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How did things end up like this?
Tetchou clutches his stomach, his eyes widening as he stares at the sword plunged into his chest.
Fuck. He’s so stupid.
What the hell was he doing? He should’ve been keeping his guard up, not fooling around with his partner, as if they weren’t on a deadly mission right now.
He collapses to the ground, a pool of blood puddling onto the floor.
Shit. This isn’t how the mission was supposed to play out — this isn’t how things were supposed to go. They were supposed to be Hunting Dogs, tracking down their prey with no mercy. They weren’t supposed to act like sitting ducks, as if the fate of Yokohama wasn’t in their hands.
But still, it should’ve been fine to take a small break, just this once. After all, he was with his partner. Both of them had their strengths: Tetchou took care of beating their enemies to a pulp, while Jouno was in charge of investigating their opponents and ensuring that they went to prison. Together, they were the strongest. Nobody could touch them; they covered each other’s blind spots and ensured that no one could lay a hand on each other.
It should’ve been fine for Tetchou to let his guard down for one moment, and indulge in his rare moment of serenity with his partner. Rarely has anyone ever sent him to a hospital thanks to their teamwork (though Jouno hates using that term), let alone come close to hurting him.
After all, only his soulmate could kill him — so why was he dying now?
Tetchou screams in pain when pressure presses down onto his wound, making him squirm.
Everything hurts, it hurts— it’s unbearable for him, even as a Hunting Dog. Somehow, the pain right now was far more excruciating than anything he’d experienced in the past, and even the monthly surgeries he’d had didn’t help relieve the pain at all.
Maggots crawl underneath his skin as he stares at the puddle of blood, growing ever bigger as the seconds go by. He wants to vomit at the gruesome sight, but he’s not even sure if he could garner the strength to do so.
He manages to blink back the tears building up in his eyes, his eyes darting up to see who did this to him and—
Whoever is above him right now, they have an uncanny resemblance to his partner. They both have the same white hair, those same red highlights, that same dreadful expression when something goes horribly wrong during their mission.
“Shit, shit,” a voice mutters, the pressure on Tetchou’s chest becoming stronger and causing him to scream out in pain. “Don’t—don’t cry, it’ll be okay…”
Tetchou wants to believe their words, that everything will be okay. Even in the past, during the most dire scenarios, he’s always tried his best to stay optimistic — but even he knows the difference between having hope and clinging onto something that’s impossible.
“St— stop it, please,” he cries out, trying to pull their hand away from his chest to no avail.
With each inhale Tetchou manages to take, his body feels like it’s burning and sweat races down his forehead. He tries to take a deep breath, hoping that it might alleviate some of his pain but everything becomes so much more worse, and it feels like his insides were being seared from the sheer heat.
He’s supposed to be the strongest Hunting Dog. He’s not supposed to be in this state. He’s not supposed to be lying here, as he realizes that this might be the last mission he’ll ever pursue, the last time he’ll ever be able to chase justice.
What would his partner think of him? That Tetchou, of all people, managed to get tricked and stabbed by the enemy?
“It’s okay,” he whispers, turning his gaze to the person above him. “You don’t have to do this. It’s already too late.”
“Don’t speak,” they shush him, still trying to apply pressure on Tetchou’s wound. “You’ll bleed even more—“
“It doesn’t matter,” Tetchou repeats in a soft tone, keeping his voice down. “It’s already too late for me.”
“No, no it isn’t—“
“Yes it is,” he cuts them off. “It’s okay, really. It’s too late—“
Blood spills out of his throat and suddenly, the pain is slowly fading away from Tetchou’s body, as if a miracle just occurred. It’s getting harder to keep his eyes open, he feels so tired and it should be okay if he were to close his eyes for a bit and—
“Stop,” a voice murmurs, the pressure disappearing from Tetchou’s chest and instead being pressed onto his cheek. “Please don’t—“ their voice trembles as they speak, and Tetchou thinks that they might be crying, “… don’t say those types of things, like you’re not gonna make it. You’ll be okay, I promise, Tetchou.”
Huh? How did they know his name? Did they know him—
“Jouno,” he whispers, realizing who it was. “It’s you.”
“Yes, it is me,” he responds, still holding his cheek. “Help is on the way, okay? Just hold on a little longer for me, please.”
“I don’t think I can,” he tries not to let his voice break, but his words only come off as barely coherent because of his sobs. “I’m sorry.”
“D… Don’t say that.” He shakes his head. “You can— you can because you’re strong, Tetchou. I know you can.”
“But I can’t,” he mewls, tears slowly running down his face. “I feel so tired right now, I’ll just close my eyes for a bit and take a quick nap—“
“Don’t,” he says in a stern tone, before his voice returns to that soft, gentle tone. “You’re so close, Tetchou. Help is almost here, just a few more—“
“I’m sorry, Jouno. That things had to end like this.” He lets go of Jouno’s hand, the corners of his mouth moving to form a small smile. “It’s not your fault, okay? It’s never your fault.”
Tears fall onto Tetchou’s shirt, the sound of ambulances becoming indistinguishable from the cries that escape Jouno.
“It’s okay,” he whispers, lifting his hand to cup Jouno’s cheek. “I’ll never regret loving you. I’ll always love you, Jouno.”
Tetchou’s pulse comes to an abrupt stop, the warmth on Jouno’s cheek disappearing.
Jouno tries not to break down as he frantically grabs Tetchou’s wrist, trying to search for a pulse, any sign of life. But all he hears is complete silence.
It’s all his fault. It’s his fault that Tetchou’s dead.
What the hell was he thinking, letting his guard down while they were still on a dangerous mission?
If he never let his guard down, then he would’ve been able to sense that someone was there, watching them as they had their defenses lowered. He could’ve stopped this from happening. He could have prevented Tetchou’s death — but he didn’t.
How could things end like this?
How is Jouno supposed to manage living without his soulmate, knowing that he was the one who put an end to his life?