Chapter Text
The last thing Damon remembered was the color of the stone pavement before everything went black.
Next thing he knew everything was blindingly white, and his sense of smell was attacked by disinfectant alcohol. Silhouettes he didn't recognize towered over him and spoke but he couldn't understand. Damon wanted to open his mouth but realized he couldn't move any part of his body.
Before panic and confusion could fully set in, he once again fell unconscious.
The next time he woke up was to the sound of whispers. The light was softer on his eyes and the environment felt more pleasant than that creepily white area previously. A groan escaped him as he tried to get up.
"Damon?"
"Lars...?"
"Close."
The blonde slowly opened his eyes to see, to his surprise, Eiji standing by the bed with a tray of what seemed to be food. He held up the tray and offered a small smile.
Damon realized he was in his room back at the ranch.
"Your mom made you breakfast for when you wake up. Heh, I guess she sensed you'd be waking up soon".
"Breakfast?" Damon watched the farmer set the tray on his bedside table. He wasn't too hungry at the moment and numerous questions flooded his brain as it began wake up more "What happened? Why are you here? Where's my bike?"
The farmer gently pushed Damon back down against the bed when he tried to stand up "Slow down. You just woke up from your bike accident." Seeing the confusion in Damon's face, he continued "Your bike flipped. Lars and I transferred you to the nearest clinic and luckily you just got a bad bump and a few scratches".
Damon noticed there were bags under Eiji's eyes. Come to think of it, the guy seemed more tired than he was.
"...How long was I out?"
"Two days-ish. Your family, Lars, and I have been taking turns watching you." Eiji's smile was tired, but genuine "I'm so glad you're awake. When I saw you fall like that I..." the brunette shook his head and waved his hand dismissively as if to shoo away the bad thoughts. Even in his current state, Damon noticed the reflective sheen on Eiji's eyes which fought back tears.
Damon felt his chest twist with guilt "... I'm sorry for worrying all of you."
The farmer shook his head once more "No, no! It's not your fault- and it's not like you wanted this to happen. I- We're just so happy you're okay."
Damon looked away, suddenly feeling shy. Eiji was that worried about him? Well, that made sense since they were friends but his heart seemed to skip a beat knowing the farmer took time off his busy schedule to visit and care for him.
"Oh, are you okay? Your face is red-" Eiji pressed the back of his palm against Damon's neck, leaning over him in the process from his chair next to the bed "Hm, no fever...".
It felt strange seeing the farmer so serious and worried... worried over him. Normally, Eiji was always bouncing against the walls with energy and felt like, in Lars' own words, a walking bundle of sunshine.
Damon felt his stomach twist and turn at their close proximity that he felt the sudden urge to jump back.
"Have you slept?" He asked, trying to change the subject and avoid looking stupid. Just trying to recover from processing so many thoughts and emotions within a few miliseconds got him exhausted. That coffee next to his porridge looked really good right now.
Eiji blinked, then blinked again as if noticing his vision did seem a little blurry from exhaustion "Oh, not yet. But, Bridget should be coming in a bit." On queue, he held up his hand to yawn as he straightened back in his seat.
At the thought of Eiji leaving, Damon reached out on impulse to grip one of the farmer's folded sleeves. Eiji tilted his head, confused by the look Damon gave him. He had never seen such an expression from his friend before.
"Damon? What's up?"
Maybe Damon was just as tired, or his head was still recovering but without thinking he lifted his hand to caress the farmer's tired face. Eiji's eyes seemed to widen slightly at the gesture, but the gentle touch had him leaning into it as his body began to give in to the fatigue.
...
Bridget peeked into the slightly open door of Damon's room, smiled to herself before sneaking away as she decided to come back a little later.
Inside, Damon had sat up and was enjoying the coffee despite it being lukewarm from time passing. He held the cup up as his blanket-covered lap was occupied by the head of his tired friend who had fallen asleep almost instantly.
Damon's free hand absent-mindedly combed through Eiji's short brown hair, which the man seemed to like as he smiled in his sleep. The blonde couldn't help but smile back at the unconscious response.
Minutes ago, as Eiji gave in to the temptation of rest, strong arms had wrapped around the biker's slim torso as if making sure he doesn't slip away.
The blonde watched him sleep, his own face still faintly pink as his chest ached. He was aware however, that it wasn't from the accident.
"Eiji..." Damon whispered "... how much do I mean to you?"
His question was met with soft snoring.