Warm Hands [Hiroomi x Akihito fanfic]

Chapter forty-five: Containment

Hiroomi Nase

         Doctors started down the hallway toward me and Mitsuki. She stood up and so did I. My eyes searched beyond the doctors, there was someone behind them. I could see his dirty blonde hair ruffled and spiked. Akihito.

        The doctors moved out of the way and my eyes met an unpleasant sight. Metal cuffs were strapped around Akihito's wrist, ankles, and neck which were connected to chains several doctors held in their grasps. My eyebrows furrowed and I felt my face getting hot.

      "What is the meaning of this?! He's not an animal!" I lurched forward, but Mitsuki held me back. One of the doctors stepped ahead and looked upon her clipboard.

      "Mr. Nase, unfortunately Mr. Kanbara must be kept on restraints due to Mrs. Nase's orders. We were ordered to take him into custody." My mouth dropped and my eyes filled with fury and sadness. Akihito's head lifted slightly to peek up at me with depressing eyes. Please, don't look at me like that.

      "I'm sorry, please say your goodbyes." The doctors dispersed, but kept the chains tightly in their hands. That won't hold him, I thought as I hurried to Akihito's spiritless body. I grab his shoulders and tried to catch his glance.

       "Akihito, listen to me, I will get you out. Please hang in there, you know you're not a monster." I rub his cheek with my thumb excessively. I could see the tears slide down his cheek. He smiled and kept his head down.

      "It's for the best, Hiroomi." His voice, low and belittled, threw me back. It was harsh, meaningless, and sad. He's giving up hope. I didn't know what to do, my body couldn't move. A doctor reaches for my shoulder to move me aside, but I moved my hand back and, before I knew it, allowed my hand to strike against Akihito's cheek with force. His face jerked to the side with his eyes wide. Tears sprung from my eyes, what am I...?

       "You can't give up!! Don't you dare say that!! It's for the best?! To hell with that!" Everyone else was stunned, even I was. Akihito moved his head toward me and stared up at me. Mitsuki stepped forward.

      "Big brother—!!" I cut her off immediately.

      "Can't you see I don't care what you do, I'll still love you as much as I did the day I met you!!" I couldn't stop the tears or words from spilling out, I just couldn't take it. My knees hit the floor and I grasped his shirt.

      "Help me fight for us!! Help me fight...for you!!!" And that was it. The rest was just the sound of me sobbing, hoping my words would change his mind. Akihito didn't flinch from his stance, he just let me sob against his shirt. No one moved for a few moments, until the girl doctor yanked me aside.

      "That's enough, Mr. Nase! Now please find yourself to Mrs. Nase's room. She would like to speak with you. Come along." She said while motioning the other doctors to leave behind her. I dropped against the cold wall as I watched Akihito slip past me, his wide eyes glued to the floor. A red mark on his cheek was staring me back in the face, I just hurt Akihito. I buried my face into my hands as my back slid down against the wall. Mitsuki moved over to where I was and put her hand on my shoulder.

      "We should go." Her voice quivered, she was crying, too. Somehow, we hugged. It wasn't normal for us to hug, but we did and it made the situation a little bit better.

•  •  •

     When we arrived in Izumi's room, I didn't bother to knock. I opened the door to see her in bed with several bandages wrapped around her body. She was wearing a loose shirt and I could see her stomach and chest were wrapped up as well. Akihito hurt her that badly, huh? She looked up at us and frowned. I didn't bother to wait for her to speak first.

       "Why did you pursue Akihito when I told you that I could handle him?" I stood up tall, but tried to keep my voice at a respectable tone. I would hate to get on her bad side even more. She took a quick breath and clenched her fists.

       "I thought I could finish the job if he wasn't expecting it. Did you really think I would let that dangerous monster roam the town?!" Her words ticked me off. I loved my sister dearly, but at this moment, I didn't. I couldn't. I stomped over to her bedside and leaned in close to her face.

       "Akihito is not a monster!! If it wasn't for you, none of this would have happened! Akihito and I could still be enjoying this lovely day, but you just couldn't let your brother outdo you by handling the job better than you ever did!" This was probably the first time I have ever been straightforward with Izumi. She was always right about everything; I looked up to her and never questioned her authority. But this time I couldn't let this pass by without a fight. She sat up and her face turned sour.

       "Like you would understand anything!! You're too blinded by his lies to see what everybody else sees!!"

      "You two cut it out!" Mitsuki marched over to us and jerked me away from her bedside. Izumi stared in disbelief. This was probably the first time she's seen Mitsuki yell, let alone be angry with us. I glanced in her direction and was surprised to see the tears streaming down her face.

      "Hiroomi, you need to calm down and show respect to your older sister–!"
       "Thank you Mi–,"
       "And Izumi you need to learn to put some more trust into Hiroomi and me! We're your siblings, for goodness sake!" Izumi was taken aback after Mitsuki's interruption. My shoulders loosened and I let my head hang from my body. She was right about both of us.

       "I'm sorry, Izumi." I mumbled through clenched teeth. Izumi looked away.

       "I'm sorry, too, Hiroomi." For several moments, only the sound of the IV drip and Mitsuki's sniffles could be heard. What are we going to do now? Akihito was taken away and I couldn't do anything to stop it. I then thought of the only thing that could possibly work. I lowered my body onto my knees and bowed my head toward the bed. My face smoothed and my body halted from its shivering.

      "Izumi, please release Akihito from custody." My breath circulated from the floor to back onto my face. The sound of silence was causing pressure to ouch down on my shoulders. I heard her sigh and shift in her seat.

      "Okay. Akihito Kanbara will be released from custody."

Next update: January