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It was a stary night outside. Kiyoshi loved that. he was staring up at the moon as everything went quiet. the monster was finally dead and all the people in the village could rest peacefully, without fearing for their lives everytime they went to sleep. it slowly started raining as the cold rain drops fell on his face and dripped down on the wet ground.
he slowly raised his hand and put it above his wound, trying to stop the bleeding. for a few minutes, at least. he wanted to see Naoki one more time. his only regret was not being able to confess his feelings.
he wasnt sure what he was feeling now. sadness, because he knew he was dying. he could feel the life slowly draining out of him. the blood was seeping thru his fingers, staining his skin and clothes with red and the unwanted scent of iron, fresh blood, filling up his nostrils.
happiness, because they won. they managed to do it. this monster was known for killing multiple knights and such. no one had been able to even get too close before them. he was feeling proud for doing this. of course, he couldnt have defeated the monster without Naoki.
he raised his head and looked around. his sword was laying just a couple of feet away from him. he hardly stretched over and grabbed the handle, pulling it closer. he raised it and looked at its blade. the last time he was gonna see his precious sword. the one who he spent so much time and effort to aquire. he didnt regret that.
he was hanging on a small thread of life only to see Naoki one more time. if he was to die, he didnt want to go to the underworld with regrets. as much as it pained him to not be able to be here longer, he knew there was probably no other chance for him to survive. he considered himself a dead man already.
Naoki was feeling proud of himself, like he had accomplished something amazing, something worth to be remembered over decades and hundreds of generations yet to come. his relief soon transformed into consuming anxiety while realising Kiyoshi wasnt at his side anymore.
"he must be fine.. he's strong.."
he kept repeating to himself as he took deep breaths, trying to calm down. he then started to look in bushes and behind trees, even under the debris left from the fight in hopes it would be just a sick joke. the anxiety startrd eating at hin from the inside after a few long minutes of searching.
it had even started to rain as he was starting to panick more and more. tears started to well up in his eyes while trying to keep his cool,, repeating to himself that Kiyoshi must be fine. he must be, right? there was no way he wouldnt.
when he found him, Kiyoshi was bleeding heavily from a wound in his stomach, most probably caused by stabbing. the air got knocked out of his chest out of fear when he noticed he was motionless, but he soon started to regain his breath as he saw his slow rising and falling of his chest. he was alive for the time being.
Kiyosh was slowly dying, and he was very afraid he wouldnt see Naoki one last time. he was terryfied now, even if he tried to stay calm. he took a deep breath, trying to fill his lungs with the much needed air, but it was hard. it seemed like he had broken a rib, and it's been poking at his lung, making it difficult to breathe.
as soon as he heard the boy call out his name, a small and sad smile appeared on his face. he looked up in his eyes, being love struck. he was gripping onto the flesh of the wound, making anything possible for him to stay alive just a little more.
"I was scared you wouldnt come"
he whispered, his voice quiet and hoarse. he didnt have enough strenght to speak louder than that. it was too draining.
"I really wanna tell you something. Before I die"
"No, no, you won't die here."
Naoki's trembling hands searched in his pockets for bandages, until he found them. Quickly, he wrapped them around the wound to try and stop the bleeding, but it was a lot and the bandages weren't doing much.
"Dont speak, okay?"
Maybe running off to find an hospital would be a better option, but he had to hurry. Naoki carefully put his arms under the other's legs and back, lifting him up trying to not move him much.
He knew Kiyoshi was hurting and it hurt him too. Not breaking down in the moment was getting difficult.
"Stay with me, Kiyoshi, hold on."
He begged as he started walking. His voice was broken and worried, and while he was injured himself it didn't even hurt at that moment. All that mattered was Kiyoshi.
Kiyoshi groaned in pain and gasped as he was picked up. he shut his eyes tightly and gripped onti his wound, more blood coming out. he wanted to get out of his grip, he couldnt stand that anymore.
"I love you"
he opened his mouth and whispered. he wanted to add something more, but the words died down in his dry throath. he felt like he was already dead. he took another deep breath and slowly opened back his eyes
"You're injured too.. ill tell you something, okay?"
he whispered to him and gave a small and sad smile. he was trying his hardest to stay positive, but it was almost impossible in this situation. some blood dripped down the corner of his mouth as he started to breathe heavily from the lack of air.
"get a piece of metal.. and keep it in fire until it's bright red. then burn your wounds... it will stop the bleeding, but you need to find a medic immediatly to avoid any infections."
he whispered and raised his hand shakely, cupping his cheek and smearing blood in his face by accident, tho neither of them seemed to care about that anymore. He was just trying to help his lover one. He was bound to die now anyways, so what good would it do if Naoki tried to held him? he was already dead.
He was breathing heavily, barely managing to stay awake. his eyes felt heavy. too heavy to keep them open, tho he forced himself to stay conscious. only to see Naoki for a little more.
"... I love you too."
Placing a kiss on his forehead, Naoki reciprocated the feeling, though it only broke his heart that the confession wasnt made before. What was the point of loving someone if they weren't going to be here anymore?
"Heh, I know. I'm not that dumb, you know? And it doesn't even hurt, please don't worry about me and shut up."
He forced a laugh. A sad laugh. He was trying to keep positive. For Kiyoshi. If he showed that he was scared out if his mind, Kiyoshi would start panicking. As he carried him down, it was getting harder to see because of the tears almost coming out of his eyes, his vision was blurry and the forest seemed painfully infinite.
Still, he smiled at Kiyoshi, leaning in his touch. His blood was warm. Naoki was begging to whatever god or deity heard him to let his ...friend hold on a little more, even though he wasn't a devotee or strong believer to anyone.