Work Text:
Finally, he could resume his work. After even just that kind of duration in the hospital, the pressure of not being able to work on his anime nearly killed him. But now... now, he could work on his anime without fear. His imposter wouldn't be out of school until many hours later, so he had all of that time to work on his anime without interruption... He made sure to keep every pen stroke even, every slight bit of hair as detailed as it could possibly have... it was perfect, it was beautiful, it was-
"M-Mitarai-san! I-...I brought something for you...!"
Completely disastrous, as Mitarai's concentration broke and he fell out of his chair.
It had been a day since Mitarai had been allowed to leave the hospital and continue to work on his anime. Tsumiki had asked the Mitarai she once knew, known secretly as the Ultimate Imposter, if she could take care of Mitarai while he was out of the hospital. The Imposter said it was alright, and insisted that she kept an eye on him to make sure his condition didn't deteriorate. He placed full confidence in Tsumiki due to her nursing abilities, a confidence that took the Imposter at least two minutes to calm Tsumiki down upon having his trust placed in her. This would be very beneficial for all of them, the Imposter figured. He would have more time to indulge in his schoolwork, Tsumiki would have someone to take care of, hopefully as a confidence booster, and Mitarai would have proper care as much as possible. Due to Mitarai's condition, however, the Imposter thought it would be best for Mitarai to have as much care as possible. He made sure to tell Instructor Yukizome about Tsumiki's absence; not giving the details about him not being Mitarai, rather saying that Tsumiki is helping him take care of a relative that just got out of the hospital. Yukizome was fine with this.
"Just make sure Tsumiki gets her homework every day! I'll give you an extra copy to take to her! We don't want Tsumiki to be a rotten orange while she's away!"
She also told the class about her absence, which made the Imposter breathe a little bit easier; now Tsumiki really could focus her time on Mitarai. Even so, everyone looked like they were gonna miss Tsumiki for a while. Even Saionji yawned loudly and spoke up her concern for Tsumiki not being around.
"Ugh, so much for my plans for the day! I was gonna demonstrate to the class what happens when an arm twists 720 degrees in its socket, but that pig doesn't even show up to be my test dummy!... Oh well! I'll take another equally-crummy volunteer!"
As Saionji chased Souda around the classroom, with Sonia giggling in the background, the Imposter had a feeling that everything was going to be alright... hopefully.
After apologizing at least twenty times, rubbing the back of Mitarai's head, and setting his chair back up, Tsumiki showed her gift; a pillow.
"I-... I thought your back would get a little bit... s-stiff while sitting in your chair, so... so I bought you this...! I... I hope it's okay...!"
Mitarai looked at the pillow. It was a very ordinary design; the pillowcase was a blank white with a faded, soft floral pattern on it. He sat in his chair, putting the pillow vertically behind his back. He felt... relaxed.
"...It's... it's great, Tsumiki-san, thank you..."
Immediately, Tsumiki started bawling, which caused Mitarai to turn around.
"N-nobody... nobody's ever thanked me for bringing them something b-before...! U-Usually they just... th-throw it in my face...! U-uuu... th-thank you so much for accepting my gift...! Thank you...!"
Mitarai gave a nervous smile, unsure of how to feel about Tsumiki's sudden graciousness. Tsumiki wiped up her tears, and sat on Mitarai's bed, her legs shaking a little bit.
"I... i-is it okay if I sit here? I'm... I'm sorry if I'm bothering you with all of my questions...!"
Mitarai turned his head, giving her a short nod.
"It's okay, Tsumiki-san..."
As he worked on his anime, he wondered why Tsumiki wasn't in school. He knew the time his imposter came in, and it wasn't for another few hours. Why was she here? As he continued to brush every individual stroke of hair on a character, he spoke.
"Tsumiki-san... shouldn't you be in class?"
Tsumiki gave a short gasp, before stammering a little bit.
"U-umm... well, Mitara-... I-I mean... well, your doppelganger..." Tsumiki was unsure of how to describe the Mitarai she had initially met. "He... h-he wanted me to watch you over the next few days, and make sure you get proper care around the clock while he's at school...! I... I hope I can be as adequate as he was...!"
Mitarai couldn't help but sigh a little bit. It was hard to focus with the Imposter in the room, but Tsumiki tended to be a little bit noisy. Regardless, deep down, he was happy to have a little bit of company every day. While he was happy to be alone and work on his anime, he was deep down still happy to have someone who actually liked him. Not someone who would throw garbage at him and laugh at him... someone who listened to him, even if he rambled on and on about anime for an entire day. His imposter did just that. Tsumiki seemed like she would too... which put Mitarai at ease.
"M-Mitarai-san? I... um... I actually was curious if... you would show me your anime..."
Mitarai looked at Tsumiki, his face showing a surprised look.
"You... really want to see it? It's not done, but... if you want to see it, th-then... you may!"
He got up and turned his chair towards Tsumiki, insisting that she sat in it. She obliged, sitting in the seat and watching the progress he had made on his anime...
"Waah... Waaaaahhhh! Th-that was... b-beautifuuulll! Waaaaahhhhhh!!"
Tsumiki couldn't stop crying from the ending. Mitarai was about to go into some of the things that really made his anime shine, when he saw his figure come through the door, coming in with a bag of groceries.
"...I brought some food for you both. I can tell you showed Tsumiki your anime... did you two even eat?"
They both paused, and Tsumiki's stomach growling cut the silence short. Her tears returned.
"N-nooo...!! I-I forgot to eat!! I'm sorry for putting that kind of pressure on you both, I-I'm s-so sorry...!!"
Mitarai attempted to comfort Tsumiki, giving her a sort of reassuring pat on the shoulder, as the Imposter laid the food on the bed. He had brought burgers; one for Mitarai, one for Tsumiki, and three for himself, as well as a couple of extras. He sat down and ate. Mitarai noticed the food, and offered one of the burgers to Tsumiki.
"H-here you go, now you can eat... it'll be fine!"
Tsumiki looked a little bit reluctant as she took the burger and took tiny bites out of it. Mitarai took his own burger and sat down at his desk, working on his anime with one hand and eating with the other. Tsumiki, inbetween her tiny bites, spoke up.
"Umm... Wh-What does your diet consist of? For working this hard, you need to make sure you eat healthily..."
Mitarai took a bite out of his burger, as he gave the finishing touches on a set of eyes. The Imposter was already on his second burger as he looked at Mitarai, when he spoke up after his bite.
"Well... I'm not really picky, so I just ask for whatever he goes out for..."
The Imposter held the quarter remainder of his second burger, turning his gaze towards Tsumiki.
"I mostly bring home fast food. Burgers, chicken, usually the cheap stuff."
Upon his words being spoken, Tsumiki instantly started shaking her head, clutching her burger with two hands.
"I-It's okay to have these kinds of meals in moderation, b-but for Mitarai-san... h-he should have something healthier...! I... I'm sorry...!"
Despite her apology, the Imposter did have to think. Mitarai didn't pay attention, but the Imposter seemed to think this was an understandable idea.
"There is nothing wrong with a little bit of weight, but if it makes Tsumiki happy, I'll start bringing you healthier choices. Is that okay with you, Mitarai? After all, she is concerned with your health."
Mitarai paused, looking at Tsumiki, who was nervously looking at him while taking baby bites out of her burger. He was touched that someone really cared that much about him, enough to want to keep him happy and healthy, even when he really couldn't care... His expression of surprise calmed down, before he nodded.
"Okay... I'll start eating healthier."
Tsumiki gave a very tiny smile in response.
It had been a week since Mitarai had started eating healthier, and it seemed like he was getting better and better by the day, though his passion for creating his anime did not stop. Tsumiki stayed by his side until then, doing her homework on his bed once the Imposter brought it to her, along with a couple of salads for the two of them, 'rabbit food' as he called it. With Mitarai's health, however, it was time for Tsumiki to come back to school. She looked more upset than usual on Sunday, as the Imposter had gone out for a walk and Mitarai continued to work furiously on his anime. Even then, however, Mitarai couldn't help but notice Tsumiki's sadness.
"...Tsumiki-san? Is... is there something wrong?"
She stammered in response, shaking her head. "I-it's nothing..."
Mitarai, however, could tell that something was wrong. He reluctantly placed down his tablet pen, and sat down on the bed next to Tsumiki, who looked particularly shocked that Mitarai had sat next to her, with caring eyes.
"You... can tell me what's wrong. I'll understand."
She gave a gentle blush, before whispering with gentle tears streaming down her face.
"I... I've never had someone who... enjoyed my company so much... I-I always thought I was a b-burden, but... y-you've put up with me for the whole w-week... y-you even showed me your anime, y-you told me all about how you make it... and not once, you didn't seem to be bothered by me... u-uuuuwaaa...!!"
Tsumiki burst into tears, though they were tears of joy. Mitarai did not know what to do... but he had learned from anime that usually, friends hugged each other to show sympathy and care. Friends... they were friends, right? Mitarai held his breath, praying that they were friends, and gave Tsumiki a hug. Tsumiki's wailing stopped upon Mitarai's contact, before she hugged him back, more quiet tears streaming down her face.
"N-nobody's... e-ever hugged... me before... n-nobody..."
Mitarai nodded in understanding.
"...I know... exactly how you feel... Tsumiki-san..."
It had been about a half hour before the two separated from their hug. Even Mitarai's eyes were a little bit teared up, though nothing compared to Tsumiki's tear-covered face. The two looked at each other for a little bit longer, before Tsumiki whispered...
"I... I shouldn't keep you from work... y-you can go back to your anime, if you want..."
Mitarai, however, shook his head, making Tsumiki give a small gasp in surprise.
"I... I'm making my anime to create hope for everyone, but... I need hope to give hope... and you... Tsumiki-san, you give me hope... I... I think I... I..."
Before Mitarai could finish his sentence, the Imposter walked in, looking at a watch.
"Thirty minutes... interesting. Well, Tsumiki, consider yourself the first person to be able to pry Mitarai from his anime for the longest period of time, not counting sleep."
The two of them looked over, blushing a little bit before letting go of each other, though the Imposter gave a short chuckle.
"If you two want some alone time, you don't have to be so modest about it."
Before hearing a response from the two of them, the Imposter started to walk out, but turned his head.
"Mitarai, if you're taking advice from anime, don't think about taking advice from the 'hentai' type anime."
The Imposter left, with a flustered Mitarai and quite the confused Tsumiki left in their room, sitting on their bed. Tsumiki looked towards Mitarai, trying to see his face.
"M-Mitarai-san... wh-what did he mean by 'hentai' type anime? What's hentai...?"
The day afterwards, and from the days following, Tsumiki came to school and left school with a much more positive attitude. Everyone, naturally, was proud of her newfound confidence. Even Saionji had to admit that the lessened amount of pig squealing in the classroom was a significant improvement. As the days passed, while her timid personality remained; she cried less, apologized less, and even stuttered less. There were some scars that couldn't heal, and Tsumiki was still just a little bit fragile, but she was easily calmed by the boy who spent his own days creating anime. The same boy that she herself kept confident; bringing him healthy meals every day, giving him praise for how hard he worked on a daily basis, and soon it came to be that Mitarai exchanged Tsumiki's pillow for simply sitting with Tsumiki as he created his anime, holding onto her as the two worked with proper care on the anime that would one day bring hope to the world.
The scars of repeated abuse and bullying over the years can never fully heal, but they can be healed with time. Time, and proper care. The proper care varies from person to person, but eventually, one finds what their method of healing can be. Tsumiki's method of healing was always attention from others whether positive or negative, and Mitarai's method of healing was constantly working on his anime. Both of these methods of healing, however, were not what they truly needed.
What they truly needed was love shared with someone who shared the same scars.