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“Your driving is absolute ass,” Koki complained as Akira narrowly missed a driver turning in the lane next to them.
“Learned from the best,” They responded sarcastically.
“Why are you coming along, anyway? This appointment doesn’t involve you.”
“Got a problem with it?”
He glared at them. “...If I did, would I be letting you drive?”
“Gentlemen and gentlethems, you’re both handsome, cut to the chase,” Kita grumbled from the backseat.
Akira smirked. “Just interested, is all. Never met y’all’s neurologist. Hopefully she can find a cure for y’all’s pain things.”
“Yeah! I don’t want the tiniest cramps to feel like that part of my body is being cut off!”
“...And it’d be nice to know when something in my body hurts so I know when to go to a doctor for it. That nearly killed me back in… 2017 I think it was?”
It’s true. Koki had suffered a massive heart attack - the Widow Maker - at a surprisingly young age, and didn’t know he was having a heart attack until he started passing out at a bus stop. After he got a heart transplant, he went to a neurologist by chance, and found out that he has a nerve disorder that impairs his ability to feel pain; a gash on his arm would feel like a papercut to him. Kita has the same thing, except she feels more pain than she’s supposed to; a papercut feels like she was stabbed with a running chainsaw to her. Both of their conditions are as a result of ‘experiments’ that were run on them in their childhood. And there’s no cure.
However, Akira had read in a magazine at their endocrinology office (the new one; and their new endocrinologist is a trans woman!) about a quarterly injection that’s intended to help people with nerve pain. They’re wondering if that can also help with Koki and Kita’s conditions, and that’s what they intend to ask their neurologist.
They know; reading such a thing from a magazine of all things sounds ridiculous, but everything in that particular magazine is approved by the Fifth Oligarch herself, who runs Rozae’s healthcare system and is a medical biologist herself. So, seeing as that drug seems to be approved by one of the greatest biologists in the country… it’s worth a shot, right?
Finally, they arrive at the office. Akira was a bit wary, given that the neurologist office is located in the same complex as their old endocrinology office, and they kinda (unintentionally) scandalized the place and shut it down social-wise. Nobody wants to go to it.
Koki, however, didn’t give a damn. He just wanted to get the appointment over with. Technically, this neurologist is Kita’s, but Dr. Z, his psychiatrist, recently recommended him to go to a neurologist for his nerve condition, because it’s starting to impact his mental and physical health. He reluctantly agreed because his arms have gotten stiff lately, and that’s a bad thing for doing CPR. That has been stressing him out lately because his paramedic job is almost everything to him, and he’d hate to lose it.
Kita never fretted about her condition. Well, it upsets her, definitely, but compared to her brother, she doesn’t care as much. She has a rare congenital brain disorder that nobody can figure out. She’s one of three people on Rozae Island that has it, and one of thirty-something that have ever had it in history. All her neurologist knows about her disease is that it mimics Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease, yet isn’t a prion, is 100% fatal, and it’ll kill her in her thirties, if she’s lucky. As far as she’s concerned, she’s already lived through half of her life, and to her, treating her condition - and her other conditions associated with it - is the equivalent of making someone on life support as comfortable as possible until they pass away. The difference is that she’s still alive and (mostly) able-bodied.
Walking into the office, the front desk receptionist immediately recognizes Kita and starts speaking rapid-fire Rozaen to her. Now, Kita and Koki have lived on this island for about six years now - and Akira has for two - and all of them are near-fluent in the language… yet none of them had no idea what this woman was trying to say.
“ Gensoku suru! Kuso! ” She yelled, then cleared her throat. “Sorry! Um, what I meant to say was ‘I’m here to check in for my appointment.’”
The receptionist looked at her stunned for a moment. “...You’re trilingual…? Um, *ahem* right. Dr. Azeri, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Okay, you’re checked in.”
“...Uh-huh.” Kita muttered under her breath doubtfully.
The three of them sat down. It wasn’t long before a nurse called out Kita’s name.
“Kaomi?”
The three of them walked into the nursing area. The common color for neurology in Rozae is banana yellow - for some reason - so the wallboards were painted that color, and nearly all the stools and chairs in the nursing area were that color as well. Heck, even the stethoscopes!
“Hello, how are you today?”
“The usual. Still dying, you know,” Kita mutters. “My brother is also seeing Avery today, by the way.”
“Who is the winged one, then?”
“Um, my name is Kaomi Akira. I’m Kita’s older sibling. I brought them both here.”
“Oh, okay. By the way, due to covid regulations, we’ll need to get your vitals too, Kaomi-Bi.”
Akira raised a brow. “...I’m… not the patient? I don’t even need a neurologist?”
“Well, it’s still regular in vital organ system offices, sorry! Kita, I’ll take your vitals first. Sit in that chair next to the height measurement chart.”
Kita does so. Koki and Akira watch as the nurse takes Kita’s pulse, blood pressure, and oxygenation. She makes a face at that last one.
“Hm. Your oxygenation is lower than usual. 94 percent,” The nurse mutters, mostly to herself. “Hopefully that’s not a bad sign…”
“It’s off by one point. I wouldn’t start worrying until it’s under 80 percent,” Koki said, crossing his arms. “I’m a paramedic, by the way.”
“So Kaomi-Tri told me. Get up. Kaomi-Bi, you’re next.”
Akira rolled their eyes as they sat down. Not because they thought this ‘procedure’ was ridiculous (even though they honestly do), but because they knew what the nurse was about to say.
“...Umm… that’s… very fast…” She then takes their blood pressure. “78 over 56?”
Akira inhaled. “I have WPW syndrome, atrial fibrillation, ebstein anomaly, stress cardiomyopathy, and apparently heart failure now. The last thing is making my blood pressure a little lower than usual. And yes, I’m getting treatment for that. How do you think I know this shit?”
The nurse blinked. “Hm… alright. If you insist that this is normal,” She finished taking their vital signs, then said, “Kaomi-Un, your turn.”
“I really don’t think you had to take Akira’s vitals,” He muttered as she took his pulse. “By the way, mine will be a bit high as well. Heart transplant.”
“When did you get the surgery?”
“About… five years ago, by now. My resting heart rate is usually in the upper-90s, but sometimes it goes a little over 100.”
“Yes… your pulse is 108.”
The rest of the vital signs drag-on was uneventful. Eventually, the three siblings were taken into a room.
“So, Kita is here for a routine appointment, but this is your first time here, correct?” She points to Koki.
Koki nodded.
“So, what brings you here?”
“...My sister and I both suffer from some sort of condition that tampers with our ability to feel pain. For her, it’s too much, but for me, I can barely feel it. I had a heart attack several years ago and didn’t feel any chest pain until I was walking the steps towards Morta. I’m thinking that it’s a nerve issue.”
“I see. The neurologist should be with you both soon.”
After about ten minutes, the neurologist - Dr. Avery - comes in.
“Hello again, Kita, how are you feeling?”
“The usual - still dying.” She responded spitefully.
“You’ve brought your siblings this time?”
“Yes. The purple-haired one is Koki. The brown-haired one is Akira.”
“Nice to meet you both. Akira, I presume you’re here just as a guest?”
“Yep. Um, I have a suggestion,” They take a ripped-out magazine page out of their sweater pocket, “I… read about this. I know it’s intended for nerve pain and inflamed nerves, but since Kita’s and Koki’s problems are similar, do you think it’s worth trying?”
Dr. Avery takes the page from them, then shrugs in an interested matter. “...Actually, this drug is in the same class as the ones typically used to treat pain for hypoalgesia and hyperalgesia.”
“So it’s a pain medicine?”
“That, and it heals any damaged nerves,” She turns to Koki and Kita. “Would you two be interested in trying PanGesia?”
“I am presuming that is the drug you and Akira just talked about?” Kita raised a brow.
“...Dad says not to trust or consume anything within its first year of release, but at this point, I’m willing to try anything. Do it.” Koki responded with a stern nod.
Kita shrugs. “Eh. May as well. I doubt it’ll work though.”
“Okay, good! I’ll see if we have the medication here with us, if not, you will need to make another appointment,” Avery opened the door and started to walk out of the room, “By the way, after you get it, you will be pricked with a needle to test your pain perception.” And then she shut the door.
“It’s… sweet that you thought about us when you read that, Akira.” Kita muttered awkwardly.
“Of course! I’m your sibling. I’d do anything for y’all… not like my biological siblings,” They glanced to the side for a moment and clenched their fist, then turned back to Kita. “I don’t like seeing you in pain.”
“Would be weird if you did, fuckin’ masochist,” Koki joked.
“You and I both know I’m asexual,” Akira playfully glared at him.
“Some asexuals still have sex or like kink culture.”
“Well, I’m not one of them. And neither is my girlfriend,” An impish smirk appears on their face. “ You , however…”
“ Please change the subject…” Kita moaned.
“Chickens.”
“...What the fuck?”
That’s one of the rare times Akira has actually heard Kita say an English swear word.
“You said ‘change the subject,’ I chose chickens,” They stare at the ceiling. “It’s autumn… there’s gonna be a shortage of them soon. Too bad, I love fried chicken!”
“You Americans and your grease…” Koki joked again.
“Rozaen chicken isn’t as unhealthy.”
“Yeah? W-”
Suddenly, a nurse barged into the room with four syringes in a plastic container. He put it on the nearby counter and introduced himself, “Hello, I’m Zakzo, I’ll be giving you both your first PanGesia dose,” He put on some pale yellow gloves. “Have either of you gone through a spinal fluid procedure before?”
“Yes. Too many of them. I presume it’s going to feel like that?” Kita responded.
“Yes, but less painful. One injection goes in your neck, and the other goes in the middle back. Or, alternatively, whatever areas may be causing you pain - or the lack of it.”
“Fair enough,” Koki sighed.
The nurse nodded, then turned to Akira. “Leave the room for about five minutes while I give them their dose.”
Akira nodded and left. This was typical for injections that went somewhere other than the arm. After about five minutes, the nurse allows them back into the room.
“So, uh, how was it?”
“That first needle had to be, like, twenty centimeters long!” Kita yelled.
“The one that goes into the neck?”
“Yep,” Koki shuddered. “Even I felt that.”
Akira cringed. “So, um, now what?”
“The nurse told us to wait ten to twenty minutes,” Kita sighed. “That’s the thing with this place. More and more waiting.”
It didn’t take ten or even twenty minutes for the medicine to kick in; it took half an hour. Akira and Koki had already taken out their phones, and that’s when it happened.
“Itai!”
“...Did you just say ‘ow’?” Akira asked, glancing up from their phone.
“...Ugh… well, the good news is, I can feel pain now. The bad news? My arms REALLY hurt.”
“What does it feel like?”
“Cramping. And spasming. It’s muscle pain,” He said. “I guess I should expect that. I’m renowned for my ability to do CPR for a long time… but… I think that’s because I couldn’t feel my muscles getting tired. And now I'm paying for it.”
Akira shrugged. “Maybe. Talk to the neurologist about it. You might need a muscle doctor.”
The male nurse comes back into the room, Dr. Avery behind him. “Anything at all?”
“Koki says that he’s getting muscle cramps in his arms,” Kita pointed out.
The nurse glanced at Koki, then cocked his head upon noticing how much pain he’s in. “Hold out your arms.” After feeling around on his arms, the nurse says, “His muscles are spasming. It feels very tight in there.”
“Yeah, duh?” Koki grumbled sarcastically. “The pain actually doesn’t bother me that much. I prefer to think of it as a sign that something’s wrong with my body.”
“Your sibling mentioned something about CPR?” Dr. Avery asked.
“I’m a paramedic,” Koki explained, “I’m known for doing CPR on my patients for longer times than anyone else can. Like, half an hour straight.”
“...You probably didn’t feel the muscle pain,” Dr. Avery frowned.
“Exactly.”
“...What about you, Kita?”
She shrugged. “I do not know. I don’t feel any different.”
“Well, remember the needle test? We’re going to try that. Hold out your hand.”
Another syringe with a shorter needle was handed to Dr. Avery. She disinfected Kita’s hand and then stabbed her (gently) with the needle.
Kita’s eyes widened.
“Is… is this what feeling pain normally feels like?”
“What did it feel like?” Akira asked.
“...Like a very hard pinch, I guess? Usually when I get injections, it feels like someone stabbed me with a scalpel and left it there.”
“That’s how it’s supposed to feel. Uh, the pinch, I mean.”
Kita stared at them for a moment… then jumped off of her bed. “Oh my gosh, oh my gosh! Am… Am I cured?”
“You’ll need to get this injection every two-and-a-half months,” Dr. Avery said. “Your pain issues are likely caused by inflamed nerves, Kita. As for Koki, it’s probably nerve damage. Both of which are things this medication helps with. It not only helps with pain control, it helps with healing damaged or inflamed nerves as well.”
“So Akira was right,” Koki said in awe. “Hey, um, by the way, do you think I should go to a musculoskeletal doctor?”
“A… what?” Dr. Avery gave him a look like he has three heads.
“...Orthopedist.”
“Hmm… it wouldn’t hurt. Just in case you have muscle damage.”
“I would personally recommend a rheumatologist,” The nurse counteracted, “Because this muscle pain has likely been a long-term condition for you. How long have you been a paramedic?”
“Since 2018.”
“Right. If you have been doing CPR for extended amounts of time without knowing when your muscles are tired, muscle damage is possible.”
“Uhh… so… which one…?” Akira asked Koki.
“I’ll flip a coin.”
“Hey, um… thanks. Both to you, Avery, and Akira. You’ve both been very helpful.”
“No prob, sis. Told ya I cared about you.”
“I’m glad you do,” Koki smiled.