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“Tell me again: how the fuck did this happen?”
Yaguchi stared at the mess that Tamura was: he was sitting down in a plastic hospital chair, his foot swollen, stretched out on the seat in front of him with a bag of ice over it. He was still in his working attire, as the accident happened in the office.
“I fell.”
Yaguchi rolled his eyes “From sitting.”
“Exactly.”
A frustrated sigh rose up from Yaguchi’s throat: “You broke your ankle. Sitting down.” he was glaring in Tamura’s direction who was just hoping for a doctor to come soon and getting him free from the embarrassment he was being subject to.
“Well, I was sitting down, then I got up.“
His boyfriend was not taking it, he rose an eyebrow, cold as he could be: “Thirty years standing up from chairs and all of the sudden you forget how it’s done and break your bones in the process.”
It wasn’t that simple. That honestly, would have saved Tamura 20 minutes of scolding.
He was just sitting at work, answering to yet another annoying email on his computer when his colleague from across the room asked for an opinion on an invitation layout, to check which, he had to stand up. As he was doing so, his phone rang and he spun around to answer, although his feet wasn’t still properly laid on the floor. The sudden switch in balance made his ankle crack. Next thing he knew he was on the floor with a pulsing ankle. His colleagues called Yaguchi to bring him to the hospital.
Te full story had Yaguchi exhale out all the frustration he could get: “Told ya a billion times: you’ve gotta be careful. One task at a time.”
“I was doing one task at a time, it’s just that the times were too sho-hey!” Tamura brought a hand to the back of his nape where Yaguchi had just gently slapped him. It didn’t hurt but it was sudden and he got startled:”I’m injured, don’t make it worse.”
Yaguchi sat back on the cold plastic chair, leaning his back against the wall, his arms crossed over his chest:”If I ever manage to break your ankle by hitting you on the nape, I’m going to start a martial art company and make billions selling courses on this trademark move.” he then glared back at his boyfriend: “And I’m putting you inside an inflatable castle to make sure you don’t get injured while, I don’t know, laying down. Because apparently there’s no extent of movement you can make it out unharmed from.”
There was a guttural sound of disapproval in Tamura’s voice: “I actually broke my shin while jumping in an inflatable castle when I was nine.”
“How’s that even possib-” he interrupted himself: “You know what? I don’t care, you ruined yourself by sitting at a fucking desk. There must be no limits to the plethora of accidents you can get into.”
“I know, right? It’s a talent!”
Tamura sounded actually proud. Yaguchi didn’t answer to this statement, he just gave him a glare so dreadful that made his stomach twitch. He knew he was concerned but he did have odd ways of displaying it.
The diagnosis was better than expected: lateral malleolus fracture, it wasn’t compounded thus surgery was not required. Tamura was given a brace to wear with the recommendation to rest for six weeks, total avoidance of adding any weight on the injured ankle and move around just using crutches.
The first week was complicated but went by just fine, painkillers’ effects seemed to delay, also due to the fact that the dosage was lower not to contrast with his antidepressants, and Tamura had no choice but to stay put, being it on the bed or the couch. He took this time to rest his head a bit, binging TV series he left behind, practicing new songs on his guitar, reading or playing videogames from that expensive console that was rarely used.
Yaguchi would help him around by making or buying dinner or by assisting him whenever he needed to shower. Actually Tamura insisted he could do it alone, all he had to do was setting down a plastic stool and sit there, but the “broken ankle plus slippery floor” equation was too much of an hazard according to Yaguchi to let him go unsupervised.
After that first week, things started to grow harder to bear: the painkillers kicked in, giving Tamura a renewed sense of energy and will to move around, he would occasionally move around the house leaving his crutches in the other room, putting weight on his injured ankle in spite of medical indications.
He tried to insist in going back to the office, not because he liked his job but due to the fact that his tolerance of being confined inside the house had already been saturated. Nothing to do, his boss only allowed him to work from home. He didn’t want more injuries happening at the workplace.
On the other hand, Yaguchi kept on going to the office and would barely be at home during the week. He would regularly text Tamura home just to check in. He knew that this situation was stressing him out, and wanted to help him feel better, but there was so much he can do.
Well within the third week of recovery, Yaguchi decided to leave work early and bring him a little sweet treat. He worked a couple more hours after lunch just to finish the last details of a project he was meant to send and then he was off.
During his commute back home he stopped by a bakery to buy a full batch of glazed donuts. Actually, they weren’t a thing either of them went crazy for but since he started the medication with painkillers, Tamura had been carving them. Yes, they had the frozen one at home, but the fresh backed ones had that added value that would certainly be appreciated.
As Yaguchi got to the door he could hear music coming from the apartment. He fumbled in his coat pockets to look for the keys. As he opened the entrance door, his eyes went immediately to the crutches: they were abandoned against the couch: Tamura wasn’t using them and he wasn’t even around them.
He could hear noises coming from the kitchen, Tamura was singing along the notes from the Offspring song that was being busted from the stereo in the living room.
Yaguchi followed the sounds, heading straight to the kitchen, and he froze at the view.
"⁓Snake is in the grass while you're living in the past, saying "whatcha gonna do"? Yeah, watcha gonna do?"
Tamura was trying to reach for something on the top shelf of the cabinet, his good leg tiptoeing on the ground while the injured leg was bent over the counter to gain leverage from the knee.
Meanwhile he was singing along like it was nothing, paying the bare minimum attention to the task.
Yaguchi’s hair turned white, he almost dropped the donuts box on the floor.
“Yui Tamura!”
His voice full of concern and disappointment, rose over the music. He sounded exactly like a angry parent would.
Haring his name out of the blue, in b-flat had Tamura freeze in position. He could feel a cold drop of sweat trailing down his forehead.
“Hey Yacchan, you’re home early…” he giggled nervously.
Yaguchi had put the box down on the table and was now reaching for him. The intention was to help him down but his steps were so furious that it seemed he was about to break his other leg as well.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing, you dumb, stupid, reckless man?” he scolded, helping Tamura get down and sit on a chair. Tamura pointed to the chandelier hung over the kitchen table:”The light bulb just burnt out, I wanted to change it. The new ones are in the cabinet, right?”
Yaguchi shook his head in defeat as he opened the second drawer close to the sink where extra light bulbs were stored: “So according to you I am putting stuff on a pace that’s also hard for your tall ass to reach?” he snorted, taking one out and laying it on the counter.
In all that commotion, Yaguchi completely forgot to take off his coat and shoes, and he made quite a mess on the floor.
“Darn it.” he swore taking his shoes in his hands and walking back to the entrance, careful not to make a further mess on the floor. He then helped Tamura up, acting as a human crutch to lead him towards the couch. He carefully positioned a pillow on top of the coffee table so that he could lay his injured foot on.
He then laid the donuts box on the couch, right besides Tamura, handing him a cherry cream filled one.
“Now you sit here, eat your stuff and do not move.” It was more an order than a suggestion: “I’m changing the light bulb, mop the kitchen floor and then I’m making us both some hot chocolate cause I can really use one of them.”
As Yaguchi moved towards the kitchen he turned around a couple of times to make sure he was actually still on the couch and not attempting some odd, dangerous movement.
“The ladder is besides the washing machine.” Tamura advised from the living room, knowing that Yaguchi would have problems reaching the chandelier.
“I know, I know.” he was aware of it but he wasn’t going to use it. The chandelier wasn’t that high up and he didn’t want to go through the hassle of moving the table, place the ladder then move the table again and bring the ladder back just for a stupid light bulb.
Tamura switched the radio off and turned the tv on to the entertainment channel where they were interviewing an emerging pop punk band of some sort. Somewhere in the middle of it, Tamura heard a concussion from the kitchen followed by a series of curses bordering on blasphemy.
He stood up, not without difficulty, grabbed his crutches and immediately went to check what the hell was going on.
Tamura found himself in front of disaster: two legs of the kitchen table collapsed, the light bulb broke and Yaguchi was down to the floor, laid on the side while clutching his right elbow in pain.
“This table is made of crappy shit!”
Before Tamura could even attempt to go and help him, Yaguchi hissed at him to stop and call Kashima. He then slowly got up, leveraging his weight with his back against the oven. As he padded towards the chair, Tamura stared at him, concerned but a little amused. He wasn’t going to ask if he was okay: it was crystal clear that he might have broken something and if Yaguchi was going to snarl at him for something, he wanted to make sure it was for something hilarious.
“So, hum…you didn’t find the ladder, did you?”
Yaguchi’s eyes darted back at Tamura’s amused face. Then he slightly shook his head and grinned: “You still have three weeks at home, and I’m probably getting just as much. If we’re going to be stuck together and half function, trust me, it’s in your best fuckin’ interest to have me on my good side. Among the two you’re the one who cannot walk away. So, be careful.”
“Yeah, yeah, whatever you say.”
Tamura rang up Yuu, who hurried to get Yaguchi to the hospital and even went so far as fixing the table for them. Tamura insisted on paying him but all he accepted as a payment form was a coffee.
Once Kashima left, Yaguchi sat on the couch besides Tamura, his eyes staring at the TV screen without actually watching it. Now that his arm was in a cast and that the intense pain lowered a bit, he felt guilty for how snarky he acted towards his fianceé.
“So…” he started, a little unsure on where the conversation was going:”…seems like you’ll have to be my hands for the next three weeks.”
Tamura smiled: “Well, you’re going to be my legs for just as long, I say it’s fair enough.”
Yaguchi shifted a bit closer, tentatively resting his head against Tamura’s shoulder.
“Sorry, I overreacted earlier. I was mostly mad at the table.” he paused: “And at me for not taking the ladder.”
Tamura playfully ruffled his hair:” Sorry for being a total jerk when I found out you fell.” He could feel Yaguchi’s shoulders shrugging lightly against his ribs:”I kinda deserved it. I mean, if it was you I’d make sure to remark it.”
“Yes, but you’re gonna have to eat my cooking for three weeks, so I think I shall drop my sarcasm level down a tad.”
“I didn’t consider it.” he then looked up to Tamura, a playful look in his eyes: “What if we hire Yuu as a personal chef?”
Tamura smiled and nodded: “Cheaper than ordering take away. I like that!”
Yaguchi relaxed, latching his free hand into Tamura’s: “Toono’s gonna be so fucking mad.” he snickered to which Tamura readily replied: “We are injured, he does not reserve the right to be mad at us.”
“Right? Besides if he’s jealous he can always run errands for us!” he then snickered: “Oh god, now I get it.”
Tamura was puzzled, not understanding what this sudden realization was about: “What?”
Yaguchi looked up at him, bringing both his legs on the couch so that he could sit a inch higher: “Back when we started dating, he told me that ending up together might not have been a good idea.”
Tamura raised an eyebrow, it was the first time he have ever heard it: “Is that so?”
“Yep. Apparently he thought our strong and somehow similar attitudes would either clash or we would reinforce each other’s critical traits. Some psycho-bullshit I don't know.”
Tamura didn’t reply, he just took his phone out, starting to type down a list in the notes: “What are you doing?”
“Putting down all the things that little, sneaky bastard is going to do for me in the next three weeks. Oh, I’ll have him do my laundry and I’m gonna be so annoying about it!”
“You cannot be that petty.”
“Watch me!”
Yaguchi looked over at the chores list on Tamura’s phone:”Wait, our garage could use a good glow up.” he pointed at the screen: “Since Toono’s so good at restocking, reorganizing, cleaning up…wouldn’t it be great if he did it for us?”
“That place has been a mess for years.”
“He has three weeks, he can pull it off just fine.”
This had Tamura laugh: “Damn it, he was actually right about us. We are a menace to society.”
Yaguchi clenched his hand tighter around Tamura’s: “And we’re fuckin’ thriving!”
In the meantime, at the Kashima-Toono household…
Toono tensed on his chair, the chopsticks falling out of his fingers. He squirmed into his shoulders: “Woha, what’s this chill?”
Kashima glanced at the window on his back: it was closed, sealed.
“Are you catching the flu perhaps?”
Toono shook his head: “No. I’m positive it’s not ill-related.” he looked up at Kashima, puzzled about the event: “It was more like a sensation, you know like an omen of some sort…” he zipped his hoodie up: “I’ve got the feeling, no, I am sure something terrible is about to latch on me.”
Kashima smiled softly, he had always found this irrational side of him to be extremely cute.
“Well, maybe the sensation is just tricking you and it’s a good sign instead.” he poured himself some water: “Perhaps we’re receiving our insurance refund this year!”
Toono’s face grew gloomy: “No. This isn’t good. It’s something eerie. I can feel it.”
And just then, his phone beeped with a message.
Sender: Yui Tamura
Subject: Laundry
Eerie, indeed.