Chapter Text
The rain pounded down on the ground, mocking and loud, fitting for such an occasion. Trees seemed to wilt, clouds concealed the sky as a burial shroud covers a corpse. The weather was disgusting, laughing down at the pitiful mortals as if their problems were nothing but superfluous things, not worth the concern of higher powers.
Although it probably would have been worse if it was sunny and bright.
Surrounded by crying relatives and friends, Tsukasa balled his hands into fists and tried to ignore the rambling of his parents. She couldn’t have been dead.
It was impossible.
No one thought this was even a little suspicious? No one was questioning anything, no one had even a shred of doubt in their words as they poured their hearts out for someone who disappeared.
Not dead, disappeared.
“We mourn the loss of such a cheerful soul, a spirit of which…”
The only thing lost that day was Tsukasa’s sanity.
A funeral for someone who isn’t dead.
What a joke.
When it was his turn to speak, Tsukasa got up and said all the things he was meant to say. Oh, how he missed his poor sister, there was nothing we could have done, he will be grieving for the rest of his life because of this terrible event, a life taken too young.
He didn’t believe a word he was saying.
Tsukasa would find her. He’d find her somehow, even at the expense of his own life. He’d search the four corners of the world to get even a glimmer of an idea of where she was.
He was probably crazy, but he didn’t care. Anything but admitting she was dead. She’d vanished, not died.
The difference may not be clear for others, but to Tsukasa, it was everything.
Dust nodes floated through the air, causing Tsukasa to have an uncomfortable tickle in his throat. He rubbed his nose, expecting a sneeze but was left with a pent up feeling of something, something lingering and annoying. The soft orange lights of his room would normally have provided comfort, but all they did was cause Tsukasa to strain his eyes. He could feel them unfocusing and blurring as he tried to concentrate on what he had scribbled down in his little red notebook.
Saki’s death disappearance
- Last seen at the morning roast cafe
- Wearing a yellow sundress, brown sandals, pink sunglasses and a Pompompurin purse
- Wanted to get coffee cake
- Was acting
happy,sad,quiet,loud, ???
He ran his hand through his hair and tugged at it, as if the answer was somewhere in the depths of his head and if he pulled hard enough it would present itself. Tsukasa had been up for days, but nothing made sense. He’d gone to that same cafe five times and found nothing that had any sort of connection to her disappearance. He groaned and rubbed his face.
He should get some sleep.
But what if the answer was lying just out of reach but right in front of his face? He couldn’t be so selfish as to ignore something like that just because he’s tired.
No, he’s not tired. He just needs… a break. But Tsukasa can’t afford a break. Not when it comes to Saki.
Back to the drawing board it is.
Knock, knock, knock.
Three knocks on his door interrupted his thoughts, loud and concise.
Who could it be at this hour?
Best case scenario, it was someone looking to hire him. But when it comes to him, best case scenarios would be a miracle. Not only is his sister missing, Tsukasa also happens to be broke and jobless, the cherry on top of the fucked up cake that is his life.
Maybe he shouldn’t have gotten that literature degree.
Whatever the case of his poor life decisions, he was too tired to deal with some bullshit from a door to door salesman or some religious nutcase. But he had a gut feeling that he should probably open the door. Getting up from his slouched position on the couch and rubbing his eyes, Tsukasa slowly opened the door.
“No, I’m not interested in-...” His statement trailed off as he took in the sight in front of him.
What he found was a man clutching his right side, which was covered in blood. He had a black eye, a split lip and skin littered with cuts and bruises. His purple hair was tied back in a small ponytail and his glasses were broken, split in half in the middle. He stumbled forward and Tsukasa caught him clumsily.
“I- I don’t suppose you could help me?” The man’s voice had a musical lilt, it rolled out of his mouth like butter, smooth and suave despite his condition.
“Uh–I–yeah! Yeah, definitely! I just, uhm, why aren’t you at a hospital?” Tsukasa’s voice was pitched unusually high, he was trying his hardest to not freak out. It’s not everyday some bleeding man shows up at your doorstep. He slung the other man’s arm over his shoulder and laid him down on the couch. The man remained silent, opting to ignore Tsukasa’s question. His hand clutched his side just a bit harder.
“Why are you even here? I don’t know you. I’m no medical professional. Did you confuse my apartment number for someone else’s…?”
The man shifted a little to get a better view of Tsukasa’s face, tired gold eyes meeting panicked amber ones. He winced as he turned to his uninjured side.
“I don’t know anyone in this area. This building was the closest I could find.”
“Sure…” Something about this seemed suspicious, but Tsukasa just couldn’t put his finger on it.
“So… what happened to you anyways?” Tsukasa moved to remove the man’s hand from his side, but he pivoted so Tsukasa couldn’t reach it.
“Nothing much. Just a cut.”
Tsukasa looked at him in disbelief.
“Do you really expect me to believe that? Do you think I’m stupid or something?”
“Well you did open the door at midnight to a random knock from a person you didn’t know, so I wouldn’t put it past you.” The man gave him a lopsided smile.
“Just let me see! I’m helping you right now, I deserve to know what’s going on.” Tsukasa’s right eye twitched. The man reluctantly turned to face Tsukasa and removed his hand from where it was resting. There he saw it: a bullet wound.
“What the fuck man…” Tsukasa wasn’t one to cuss a lot, but this was one time he was willing to let himself slip. “You don’t get caught up in gang stuff or anything, do you?” The neighborhood he lived in was rough, and he wouldn’t be shocked if that was the truth.
The man looked at Tsukasa in surprise, eyes widening. Then he started to laugh. His laugh was clear and bright, everything it shouldn’t be considering his situation.
“No, of course not! Nothing like that! I just happened to be passing by an armed robbery and got unlucky,” He smiled at Tsukasa, strangely laid back.
“Uh huh… cause that sort of stuff happens everyday.” Tsukasa crossed his arms. “You’re not telling me something.”
“Ah, was it that obvious? I’m afraid I was hesitant to tell you my name… it’s Rui. Kamishiro Rui,” Rui smiled slyly at Tsukasa.
“You know that’s not what I meant!” Tsukasa’s eye twitched again. “You still haven’t told me why you didn’t decide to call the police, get an ambulance or go to the hospital. That’s what any sane person would do after getting shot!”
“I guess that makes me insane, doesn’t it?” Rui hummed.
Tsukasa shook his head. “I’m taking you to the hospital.”
“W-wait. I think I need some rest before I go anywhere. Do you mind?” Tsukasa thought he saw a glint of fear in Rui’s eyes, but it’s possible he was just seeing things.
Tsukasa sighed and ran a hand through his hair.
“It’s fine. Just… tell me when you’re ready to leave. What d’you come over here if you weren’t looking for a ride? Looking for someone to take you out to dinner?”
Rui looked at him shrewdly. “If you’re offering, I wouldn’t mind…”
Tsukasa looked at him wearily.
He was too tired to deal with any of this, he just wanted to sleep.
It didn’t look like he was going to get a whole ton of that tonight.
He needed a light.
Tsukasa trudged lazily down to his kitchen and grabbed a cigarette from an open drawer. Lighting it on the first try, he leaned back on the counter and let that feeling of calm wash over him. He knew it would be detrimental to his health if he smoked a lot, but just one couldn’t do anything, right?
He was on his eighth soon enough.
“You know smoking is bad for your health, right?” A voice chimed out from across the apartment. It was only one room, so even though Rui was facing away from Tsukasa he could still smell the smoke wafting through the air.
Tsukasa huffed as he took the cigarette out of his mouth. “You’re bleeding out on my couch and you’re worried about my health?”
“I’d hate for the person who saved my life to get lung cancer.”
Tsukasa shook his head again. “Worry about yourself.”
“So who is this ‘Saki’? Friend? Girlfriend?”
Tsukasa almost dropped his cigarette before dashing over and snatching his red notebook out of Rui’s hands. “She’s my sister. And like I said before: worry about yourself.”
Rui seemed to take a sudden interest in Tsukasa’s words, swinging his legs around and sitting up on the couch.
“She… died?”
“Disappeared. There’s a difference.”
“Let me guess… she was last seen at an unassuming location and it was barely questioned by the police where she went. Everyone else assumes she’s dead because the authorities didn’t look into it, but you,” Rui looked Tsukasa straight in the eye, fascination painted clearly on his expression. “You didn’t.”
Tsukasa was shocked, to say the least. He stood there in a stunned silence for a few seconds before forcing whatever words that were stuck out of his throat. “I- yeah, you’re… right. How did you know?”
Rui smiled, but it was bitter, like he wished he didn’t. “We’ll talk later. Now, would you mind taking me to the hospital?”
“Oh, so now you want to be taken?”
“I can’t procrastinate forever, can I?”
“You’re literally procrastinating talking later by stopping your procrastination of getting help!”
“Then maybe I can procrastinate forever. Can you help me?” Tsukasa rolled his eyes at Rui’s prior statement and grabbed the arm of his uninjured side, but immediately set him back down after seeing Rui’s face contort in pain.
“It’s fine, really. I’ll survive until your car.”
“No you won’t. I’ll just carry you.”
“What-” Before Rui could protest, Tsukasa swiftly picked Rui up in a princess carry as if he weighed nothing.
“I really don’t think this is necessary-”
“It’s quicker this way. It’d take forever to get down the stairs if just getting up is that painful for you.”
Tsukasa left the room, taking Rui with him. He closed the already open door with his foot after he was out and began walking down the stairs.
“Not even locking the door? You seem to have a lot of confidence in your neighbors.”
Tsukasa shrugged. “Nothing in there’s worth stealing.”
The drive was uneventful, nothing was said on either side for the 10 minutes it took to get to the hospital.
Tsukasa paced around in the waiting room, not able to sit still. Rui had been in there for an hour, but no one had talked to Tsukasa about anything.
He figured he should probably stay, considering the fact that Rui didn’t have any friends or family in the area.
The nurse finally left the room, an unreadable expression on her face. She tucked a strand of purple hair behind her ear before gesturing to Tsukasa to come over to her. Upon closer inspection, it looked like her name was Asahina.
“So? Is he okay?”
“Before I tell you anything, I need to know your relationship with the patient.” Asahina still held that unfeeling, apathetic expression on her face. Tsukasa wondered if it ever changed.
“I’m his…” He couldn’t really say Rui had just shown up at his doorstep, could he? “Friend. I’m his friend.”
Asahina narrowed her eyes ever so slightly, the most emotion Tsukasa had seen on her face since the first time he’d seen her. “Friend? The patient said that you’re his date.”
Tsukasa’s right eye twitched.
What a weirdo.
“If that’s what he wants to call it.”
Asahina muttered something under her breath, something like ‘I don’t get paid enough for this’, before motioning Tsukasa to enter.
“Seriously…?” Tsukasa sighed after he stepped in.
There was… no one. The bed sheets were perfectly made, not a speck of blood on the pristine white covers. It looked like there was a small yellow piece of paper on the bed. Tsukasa walked over and picked it up, covering his mouth. The smell of antiseptic made him sick.
The note read:
XXX-XXX-XXXX
I’ll take you up on your offer <3
Tsukasa dragged his hand down his face. It was going to be a long couple of weeks.