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The summer heat permeated the classroom, despite the AC being on full blast. After getting nagged by his vice captains, Sakura had no choice but to give in and remove his jacket, now just in his regular white t-shirt.
He was sitting in his usual spot for lunch, his friends desks pulled in a circle as they ate. To his right, Tsugeura was loudly telling Nirei about a new dish at the muscle cafe. Kiryuu seemed to be absorbed in a new game, headphones on but was throwing in a comment every so often. And Suo, without food as usual, sat quietly to his left, observing the class contentedly.
Sakura was struggling to pay attention. He hadn't been sleeping well the last couple nights due to the overwhelming heat of his apartment. Instead, escaping to take long walks, enjoying the cool night air.
Seeing Makochi at night is soothing. Everything is quiet, the usually bustling town turned soft. This place is peaceful. Sure they get into brawls pretty frequently, but Bofurin are protectors. That means something.
Helping clean up graffiti for the cactus bakery, or carrying boxes for the auntie at the antiques shop is more rewarding than any fight. The rise of Bofurin drew the community together. It's crazy to him that he used to think fighting was the only way to have fun.
He noticed the concerned glances of his classmates when he walked in with bags under his eyes, but waved them off.
It really wasn't a big deal. In a day or two the weather should relax, and he will be able to enjoy his dilapidated apartment in peace.
He stands up to stretch, hoping to wake himself up a bit before lunch ends and patrol begins. He feels his shirt rise with his arms and pauses when he hears an alarmed sound beside him.
Neire is suddenly right in front of him lifting the shirt higher with a panicked look. “Sakura-san! Where did you get these!?” His voice was loud enough to pull the attention of the rest of the class. Faint noises of distress sounded from the people closest to them as whispers broke out.
He hadn't even thought of them, the scars from his life before Makochi. They had been there for so long Sakura barely remembered he had them most days.
Instinct took over and before he even realized it Nirei was on the ground, seemingly unconscious, with Kiryuu beside him.
Suo was in front of Sakura now with his hands raised. He was saying something, but Sakura couldn’t hear it over the rushing of blood in his ears.
He looks down at his hands, horrified, and stumbles back until he hits the desks behind him, knocking a chair over with a loud crash.
The noise breaks him out of his stupor, panic overtaking any other thoughts.
Run. A long dormant urge to escape overtakes him as he searches for the closest exit. He needed to get out. He couldn't be here anymore.
The window.
Without any hesitation he jumps through the partially open window down two stories, barely registering the sharp pain in his leg from the impact, or the sting in his side. Looking down there is a piece of glass poking out from his rib cage, most likely from breaking it on his way down.
It doesn't matter. Run.
Sakura takes off as fast as he can out the school gates and refuses to look back.
–
In the classroom, Suo watches as Sakura seems to recover from his fall to bolt.
“Fuck.” He turns quickly to assess the situation behind him. Neire is still on the ground but thankfully conscious, Kiryuu seems to be checking him for a concussion just in case.
“Nirei. Call Hiragi and tell him what happened. We might need to start a search to find Sakura. The rest of you stay here. I am going to go after him.”
With his orders given Suo runs through the door, hoping to make it outside fast enough to see where Sakura was going.
He almost runs straight into the chest of Umemiya, only barely stopping in time. The upperclassman gives him a once over and seems to come to the conclusion something is wrong.
“Suo, what happened?” Umemiya asks seriously.
In a rush and barely holding back his own worry, Suo’s words seem to fly out of him without permission. “Nirei overstepped and Sakura punched him, but he didn't mean to. He panicked and jumped out the window. He ran and I think he’s injured.”
Umemiya’s expression had darkened by the time Sou finished his explanation. “Okay, I’ll go start the search for him. You meet up with Hiragi to explain the situation and coordinate your class before following. If we haven't found him by dark we will expand the search party. Understood?”
Suo nods, reluctant to put off following immediately. At his hesitation Umemiya gives him a small reassuring smile. “We’ll find him. He couldn't have gone far, especially if he’s injured.”
—
Umemiya really should have known better than to think an injury would slow Sakura down. He barely stops to ask the townspeople if they saw the boy in his rush.
He had seen a trail of blood starting from where Sakura must have landed at the school, but it went cold quickly. The boy probably knew to cover his tracks even while panicking and injured.
Umemiya hates that he knows how to do it in the first place.
It’s easy enough to tell the bi-colored boy came from a bad situation. He exhibits all the same signs he’s seen over and over again in kids from the orphanage.
But it’s different with Sakura. He was so naive to the world and how people interact without violence. He used to freeze up at the barest hint of touch outside a fight. Fists raised and on the defensive until he registered that he was safe.
Even the slightest notion of affection between others made the boy blush as red as his tomatoes.
He’s been doing better recently. Accepting help from his friends and senpai, leaning into Umemiya and Tsubiki’s head pats, or rough housing with his class. He doesn't push them away if given a hug, leans into it even.
It’s not that he doesn’t like touch, he’s just painfully unused to it.
It’s late afternoon before Umemiya finds him, curled up in an alleyway with his hands pulling at his hair in a way that must be painful.
He approaches slowly, arms already up in a placating gesture hoping not to scare the boy.
“Sakura.”
At the sound of his name Sakura raises his head and flinches, quickly rising, sluggishly putting his fists up in defense and stumbling back.
“I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to. Please I’m sorry it won’t happen again.”
The boy seems completely out of it, and Unemiya can see his side is covered in blood.
“I know. It’s okay, no one is mad at you. We just wanna make sure you're safe.”
Sakura doesn’t seem to hear him, just keeps mumbling in a small tone, so unlike his usual demeanor. Umemiya’s heart clenches.
“Hey hey, listen to me. Take some deep breaths. It’s gonna be okay, I’m not mad. Nirei is fine, just a bump on the head.”
That seems to break through to the boy, a little bit of clarity showing in his eyes as he unconsciously follows his exaggerated breathing.
“What?”
“He’s just fine, and no one is mad at you. It’s okay to have an instinctual reaction when a boundary is broken. You're not at fault.”
He still looks out of it, but Sakura finally lowers his hands. “Umemiya?”
He smiles in what he hopes is a reassuring way. “Yep it’s me. It’s gonna be alright. Can I come closer to take a look at your injuries?”
Even though he still seems hesitant the boy gives a faint nod and collapses against the alley wall. Umemiya is there before he can hit the ground to hold the boy steady as he lowers them to the pavement.
Up close there is more blood then he would like and it seems a piece of glass is poking out from his ribs.
Umemiya takes a steadying breath. When he looks up to Sakura’s face the boy's eyes are closed.
“Hey bud I need you to keep your eyes open. I’m gonna call for an ambulance, okay?”
His eyes flutter open, clouded in pain, but still nods groggily.
“Can you tell me about patrol yesterday? I heard there was a small brawl on Main Street that you and your crew handled easily.”
While the boy starts to recount the fight Umemyia calls an ambulance and notifies Hiragi and Sakura’s vice captains that he found him, so they can call off the search.
Finally, he hears the tell-tale sounds of sirens drawing closer. He lets go of an unsteady breath.
“Okay Sakura, some people are gonna be here soon to help you. They’ll take you straight to the hospital okay?”
That pulls a reaction from the boy as he abruptly grabs Umemiya's arm in a death grip. “No! No you can’t. You can’t let them take me.”
The reaction surprises him at first, but dawning realization floods him with anger. Even medical professionals have failed the bi-colored boy in the past.
“It’s gonna be okay, they won’t hurt you. Would you feel better if I stayed with you? I’ll make sure to keep you safe.” Umemiya says softly.
Sakura takes a moment to think it over, seemingly struggling to process the offer before looking him straight in the eye.
“Promise?”
Immediately, Umemiya gives a firm nod and a smile, “I promise. I’ll keep you safe, what else are big brothers for?”
The boy nods and seems to release the rest of the tension in his body, moving his hand from his arm to grip his own tightly.
“Okay. I trust you.” Sakura says with a faint nod.
Umemiya's heart softens and his eyes burn. This boy, always moving forward. He will treasure this trust and do his best to never break it.
It’s then that the ambulance arrives, EMT’s jumping out and pulling over a stretcher. They ask Sakura questions he barely seems able to answer, Umemiya jumping in to fill the gaps.
As they raise him up to the back of the vehicle, Umemiya says in a steely tone, “I’m going with you.”
“Sir, only the immediate family can ride with him.”
He nods, “I’m his brother.”
They give him a skeptical look before nodding. “Okay get in.”
—
By the time they arrive at the hospital Sakura is beyond delirious. After hours with a slice of glass between his ribs, he lost a significant amount of blood. A dangerous amount.
Keeping him conscious during the trip had been a losing battle. Sakura kept muttering to himself, quiet enough for Umemiya to only hear bits and pieces. All things that outline a gruesome past full of scorn.
It took all of his hard won control not to fall into anger. It wasn’t helped by the littering of scars across his chest. Some looked like long gashes and burns, on top of many smaller injuries. Probably from fighting since a young age.
Sakura is highly skilled. Most of the other exceptional first years have formal training that aided their growth. All he had was natural talent and experience.
Umemiya is walking beside the gurney and medical staff as they move him to continue a blood transfusion. The cut had already been stitched in the ER.
They reach the hospital room quickly and the doctors set up his IVs. He should wake up soon, so Umemiya plants himself in a chair next to the bed to wait. He doesn’t plan on leaving until the boy is discharged.
He looks smaller there, just as white as the sheets he’s laying on. Usually even with his shorter stature Sakura fills up a room. He has a natural magnetism and a heart of gold, even with his stray cat tendencies.
It boggles him how many people from the boy's past mistreated him. He heard too much on the way here. Names of what sounded like caretakers and mentions of living in a shed. Words like “worthless” and “monster”.
He knows what he’ll do if he meets anyone from Sakura’s past, and some guys that will happily help.
He’s broken out of his thoughts by Sakura shifting on the bed. Immediately Umemiya moves closer to grab his hand.
His eyes open slowly and move to scan the room, stopping when he sees Umemiya.
“Sakura, it’s good to see you awake.” Even he can hear the relief in his tone as he gives the boy a genuine grin. As expected the boy flushes, though much less than usual. He looks exhausted, with dark bags underneath his eyes.
To Umemiya's surprise, Sakura smiles back and squeezes his hand.
“Hi.” He croaks out, “you stayed.”
His heart all but melts grin growing wider. “Of course! What else are big brothers for.”
The boy nods and looks back up at the ceiling.
“Nirei?” He questions.
“He’s all good. Probably beside himself, but physically fine. Nothing more than a black eye.”
Sakura looks back at him with a guilty expression. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”
“I know. It was instinct to protect yourself. You don’t have to apologize.” He squeezes the boy's hand, “no one is mad at you. Your friends will probably get here soon.”
He doesn’t look like he completely believes him, but at least seems to accept it.
“You probably want to know where I got these scars.” Sakura can’t seem to meet his gaze, visibly uncomfortable.
Umemiya looks at him for a moment before placing a hand on his head. “No you don’t need to tell me. That’s your story to tell when you're ready, and I’ll be here whenever that is.”
Sakura lets out a shuddering breath.
“Yeah. Yeah I want to tell you.” His voice sounds wet, and the upperclassman freezes when he sees barely restrained tears.
He looks Umemiya in the eye and says with a surprising gravity, “Someday soon I’ll tell you.”
His smile grows soft. “I look forward to it.”
—
When Sakura jumped out the window Suo’s stomach had dropped. His captain had stared at him with unseeing eyes full of fear, so out of character with his usual character.
After talking with Umemiya, Suo met up with Hiragi back at the 1-1 classroom. Nirei was beside himself with guilt and worry.
As he should be, Suo thinks uncharitably. They all know Sakura comes from a less than ideal background. Obviously traumatized by his past and completely alone when he arrived in Makochi. Neire should have known better than to react that way.
It’s not that Suo doesn’t understand the sentiment, just the thought of the brief glance he had at the scars on Sakura's torso fills him with rage.
But he doesn’t want to force Sakura to tell them his story. They all have secrets and it would be hypocritical for him of all people to expect answers on past injuries.
He finally reached the hospital, and having been the closest in the search party he seems to be the first.
It's easy enough to find the correct room but he pauses for a moment, catching the tail end of a conversation between Sakura and Umemiya.
It’s not surprising that the two toned boy would confide in their school representative. From the day they met there seemed to be a deep level of respect between the two.
Maybe it can be said that like calls to like. Both have a way of drawing people together. Sakura might behave like a stray cat sometimes, but he has grown into his role as a leader.
His actions to save the town from Noroshi and the kindness he can’t seem to hide has endeared him to many. The town’s hero, just as popular as Unemiya these days.
He waits for a moment to let the two collect themselves before knocking, getting a quiet come in.
His eyes find Sakura immediately and he walks to the unoccupied chair beside the bed to grab his hand.
“Sakura-kun. It’s good to see you’re okay.” He takes a moment to catalog his captain’s state. He looks even more tired than he was this morning and is pale as a sheet. His skin matches the stark white of his hair but his eyes are as vibrant as ever.
“Suo.” His breath catches at the small smile on the two-tone boy's face, softer than anything he had seen before. “It’s good to see you. Sorry for the worry.”
“There’s no need to apologize. You're not to blame for reacting the way you did. Though I would prefer you didn’t jump out any more windows.” He responds with a teasing tone, though it sounds softer than usual.
Suo looks at Umemiya for the first time since entering the room. The man seems to be fine, if not a little disheveled.
He tilts his head slightly, “Thank you for finding him.”
“Of course! What else are big brothers for?” The upperclassman gives him a sunny smile, and Suo sees him squeeze Sakura’s hand from the corner of his eye.
Yes, brothers indeed.