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Title: Second Life
Chapter: 10 - Apollo Smiles
Character: Aoi Ryosuke, Ryuzaki Shinji, Shirakawa Kana
Fandom: Orthros no Inu
Rating: PG13
Summary: Another day passed and the sun shone bright. Times like these, even Shinji wanted to think about other things aside from the depressing ones...
A/N: One more chapter to post... and we'd be catching up with the current chapter on FF.net XDDDD And I loved my speeding wheelchairs... XD
Side note: 4 - yon, shi or sei when pronounced in Cantonese. Most of the times when counting and such, the kunyomi pronunciation was used instead of onyomi since sei/shi carries the sound of another ominous word that was... sei/shi (death - 死). Same reason as 7 is mostly read as nana and not shichi.
-----------------
“You’re still here.”
Ryosuke spoke, not amused as Shinji helped him to sit up. He rolled his eyes at his brother.
“Do you always have to come so early?”
“Yeah.”
“Don’t you have work?”
“No. I took a long indefinite leave.”
“Not good... you shouldn’t have done that. How would you support yourself?”
“I have my ways...”
Ryosuke frowned.
“Can’t you leave my bedside for at least half a day?” he asked again as he received a negative reply. He moaned.
“You’re such a stalker brother...”
“I still haven’t stalked you enough...”
Ryosuke’s cheek flushed as he turned back towards Shinji. He wrapped his arm around himself as if the room suddenly got colder.
“Eeek, I feel cold! You’re creepy. Even I didn’t get so overprotective like that with Shiho. What you’re doing Aniki... is not healthy! Definitely! Without a doubt!”
Shinji did not reply as he continued smiling. Ryosuke eyed him nervously as his eyes darted here and there.
“What are you—stop staring! Aniki, you got creepier every second! What—I liked you better when I didn’t know that you’re my brother...” Ryosuke scooted away a bit as if his chastity was at stake before continuing to mumble under his breath.
Shinji chuckled.
“It’s because you’re a beautiful child.”
Ryosuke’s face immediately light up as he attempted to throw a pillow to Shinji. Shinji stopped him as he started laughing really loudly.
“All right... enough teasing. But I’ve said the truth. You did looked better... and the bruise on your neck had already started to fade—”
Ryosuke’s grin immediately turned to a frown as he fingered the bandage on his neck, when he realized it was already loose. No wonder his brother could see it. Few days ago, he saw it himself. The bruises. One can almost see the exact hand marks on his neck. How much force could have been used to leave such a clear mark like that? Seeing that, made him realize how close has it that he almost died... again. Not that it was anything new since last year. Counting this one, it was already four times...
Four. What an unlucky number. The number four... at which its other pronunciation sounded like another unlucky thing.
Death...
“Ryosuke? Hello? Anyone there?”
Shinji’s voice suddenly echoed beside him as a hand started waving in front of his face. Ryosuke turned his head towards him as the older man smiled.
“Are you okay? Just when I thought you’ve finally cheered up again...”
Ryosuke blinked at him in surprise before fully registering his words in his mind.
“Aah? No... I just—“ Ryosuke blinked as he finally noticed. “Aniki, are you worried about me?”
Shinji leered at him.
“Of course I am! Do you think I won’t be worried about you after all that had happened? I—“
“My bad. I’m sorry...”
Shinji paused in mid-word as he watched Ryosuke fidget with his hands.
“I guessed I was in a shock. When I woke up... everyone jumped out at me, looking as badly as how much they have worried about me. And then noticing how I could not move freely at the moment, my body still being weak... the pain I felt in my chest whenever I tried to move too much—I’m really am such a bother, ain’t I?” said Ryo slowly as Shinji hastily reach out and held him in his arm.
“No, you’re not. It’s not a bother. And I liked to spend my time here... looking after you.” said Shinji, trying to reassure him.
Ryosuke sighed, before a peculiar sound filled the room. He grinned at himself as Shinji chuckled. Ryosuke leered towards his brother.
“I’m hungry...” Ryosuke said slowly, his lips almost pouting which made Shinji smile again in amusement.
“Sure, you are. Here... let me help you—“ he said as he helped Ryosuke to sit on the wheelchair. “How’s your legs?”
Ryosuke smiled weakly.
“I can feel my legs... thankfully now. But I don’t think my legs could support my weight at the moment, my legs felt weak... but that’s what the rehabili are for, isn’t it?”
Shinji smiled as he wheeled Ryosuke out of the room. He patted Ryosuke’s shoulders before speaking.
“Yes, but let’s wait for that until all your injuries are healed. We don’t want your injuries to get any worse than it already is...”
Ryosuke chuckled.
“Definitely—!”
Shinji suddenly paused. “Ah!”
Ryosuke turned around, looking at his brother in wonder.
“What is it?”
Shinji slapped his head silly. “Did I forget to feed Ryo-kun this morning?”
Ryosuke blinked at him, what was he talking about?
“Ryo-kun?” he asked as Shinji nodded before taking out his handphone.
“Ah!” Shinji gasped as his call connected. “Aoyama-san... are you at home now? Ah... sorry to bother you... unn... yes, I mean... I was at the hospital now, looking after my brother. Could you go to my apartment now and feed the puppy? Yea... haaa, it’s embarrassing... I totally forgot. Oh? Thanks... the keys was at the usual place anyway...”
Shinji ended the call, relieved as he turned to look at the surprised face of his brother.
“It’s my neighbour... nice guy.”
“I wasn’t talking about that. I mean... what’s up with Ryo-kun—”
“It’s a puppy... found it abandoned one day so I took it home—”
“You called a puppy with my name? Aniki—!”
Shinji said nothing as he continued to grin cheekily...
xxx
“So how’s your brother today?” ask the doctor, in charge of Ryosuke’s treatment.
Shinji shrugged.
“He’s finally cheering up. Of course he was still troubled at the fact he still needed people to help him move around... but at least he wasn’t spouting gloom all over. That’s good... right?”
The doctor nodded.
“For sure... it was essential to keep the patient’s spirit up. It would definitely help hasten the recovery for Aoi-san. Us doctors could only so much... if the family members can help out by supporting the patients mentally, then all the better would it be for the patient.”
Shinji nodded.
“Considering that his adopted families could only visit at certain times only, I’m glad to be able to help.”
Outside, Ryosuke wheeled himself around, wondering what took Shinji so long inside.
“My condition was not that bad... what took him so long—”
“You know... that person in that doctor’s office, for some reason he looked like Ryuzaki-san...”
Ryosuke almost gave a loud cry, hearing the conversation before wheeling himself hastily out of view of the two women who were chatting at the corner of the hall.
“Ryuzaki?” cried the other woman, before shaking her head.
“Impossible... I thought he was already dead! Last year... the police said that he fell into the Ryukoku dam and drowned.”
“But the reports did say that his body was never found... wasn’t it? What if—“ the first woman tried to argue as her friend waved her away.
“Can’t be. If it was Ryuzaki... then that other man would have been cured so easily—”
Ryosuke froze as the women started mentioning about himself.
“What other man?” asked the woman, clueless.
“I heard it was his brother... there was an incident earlier. Must be someone important, I saw the police had been going around the room the man was in. There was even someone who had come to kill that man!”
The woman gasped aloud at the retelling of her friend.
“How horrible! So... did you know anything more about that man—”
The other woman waved at her friend frantically.
“There’s nothing else! Anyhow... that’s not the point. But don’t you see? If that was really Ryuzaki-san, he would have been able to heal the other man just as easily. But that didn’t happen, right?”
The woman who had first spoke about Shinji sighed.
“Too bad... isn’t it? If it was really Ryuzaki-san... he would have been able to heal my husband’s illness—”
Ryosuke hastily wheeled away as the women started talking about themselves, finally moving on from their earlier topic. He stopped as a pair of feet blocked his way. He looked up to see Shirakawa standing before him. The concerned look on her face probably meant that she had heard the two ladies’ conversation as well.
Ryosuke tried to smile.
“It’s nothing... don’t you worry about me!” he said as Shirakawa smiled weakly.
xxx
“Ne... sensei, are you really all right?”
Ryosuke shrugged.
“I’m fine. It’s nothing...”
Shirakawa sighed as she continued pushing the wheelchair around. She chuckled.
“I guess, this time... our roles are switched, isn’t it? Last time... sensei, had been looking after me... isn’t it?”
“What you’re talking about, Shirakawa? I’m your teacher, of course I’d look after you...”
Shirakawa sighed.
“I guess... there are still some things that I didn’t know. Sensei, being Ryuzaki-san’s younger brother... did you also had special powers like him?”
Shinji paused as he was mid-way from approaching the two before making himself scarce immediately. His eyes went towards Ryosuke to see his reaction. Ryosuke nodded towards Shirakawa.
“Yes, I used to. Just that... my powers was an exact opposite of his.”
“Oh... that’s why—Sensei, I guess this is belated... but I’m sorry if what I’ve said in the past had hurt your feelings! I never thought—”
“Really... it’s nothing already. And it’s not like I knew he was my brother at the time or anything—”
“But you knew something, isn’t it? Sensei had been very opposed about me depending on his powers before—“ Shirakawa went quiet suddenly before continuing, “Sensei... what has it been like, for you last year?”
Such a direct question, Shinji thought. He glanced again towards Ryosuke, towards his saddened appearance. It should be like he had imagined it before, shouldn’t it? The true reason that he had started that scenario, beginning from that time he had convinced Ryosuke to help him escape...
Ryosuke sighed before giving her a weak smile.
“It’s not that bad, considering that not many people knew about it. But even then—“ Shirakawa knelt before him before reaching out for his hands as she noticed Ryosuke’s expression.
Ryosuke laughed coldly.
“Hasebe-san... used to not want me to even touch Mio-chan, you know? Kumakiri’s father also... but then again so did the other people who knew about my powers. They would look at me with fear in their eyes, as if the mere touch from me would mean their deaths...”
Ryosuke heaved out a long sigh. “But at least it got better since then. Hasebe-san hadn’t been so repulsed of me once she knew about me more... even didn’t mind me being with Mio-chan. Kumakiri’s father also... he even went as far as helping me along the way. My family as well... even though I never thought they actually knew anything about my powers. Before...”
Ryosuke shrugged.
“At least, that was over with. Now also. So Shirakawa... you really do not have to worry about me. And about what had happened these few days as well, I’m fine with it. It’s not like I wanted Sawamura to attack me. And it’s not like I blame anyone... Hasebe-san, Aniki... everyone... for what I’m facing right now.”
Shirakawa shook her head. “That’s not it, sen—”
“All in all, I had to be grateful to my brother...”
Shinji perked up as his name was mentioned. Shirakawa cocked her head at him.
“What... did you—”
Ryosuke shrugged as he wheeled away by himself. Shirakawa followed slowly as Shinji tailed them silently. He stopped as the two had paused at some clearing.
"You know Shirakawa... all this time, ever since I accidentally killed my pet dog when I was little—I never tried to face my powers straight on. For a long time, I had always buried my feelings deep inside. Because there was a voice in my memories, telling me to do so. In order to not allow something bad to happen." Shirakawa was quiet as she continued to listen. "That's why... somehow, even when it had been painful; even if it had been brief... I had managed to accept that power that I used to have in the past."
Ryosuke sighed.
"If Shirakawa hadn't overheard the talk between Kumakiri and his friends, you probably wouldn't got into that accident. Hasebe-san wouldn't have to go undercover to catch them, I wouldn't be there and killed Kumakiri's friend. She wouldn't have known about my powers as well as my brother’s, and both of us wouldn't have met. A lot of other things wouldn't have had to happen either... I'm not even sure if that outcome would have been better. I would have still be stuck with that power, that couldn't be good... right?"
He glanced up towards his student.
"That's why, Shirakawa... you really shouldn't worry about me."
"I understand... sensei. You've said it so many times!" Ryosuke chuckled as she continued, " But you know, sensei... suddenly you seemed to grow even more mature."
Ryusuke looked at her in surprise.
"Ehh? Why...suddenly—"
"But it's true... ne? Even in the past we've always treated you as one of our friends... and sensei! Even now... you also often get bullied in that new school as well, right?" said Shirakawa, giggling as Ryosuke stuttered for an answer. She sighed. "I'm so glad! Hasbe-san had been worried, you know... sensei. She told me how you've been so depressed—"
"Haha..."
"Sensei! Is there something special between you and Hasebe-san?" she suddenly said as Ryosuke coughed.
"Ehh? No... Eh?"
A sound of a chuckle startled Ryosuke even more as he jumped. Shinji hurriedly caught him as the wheelchair almost turned over. Shinji grinned as Ryosuke looked up towards him.
"Careful there... you'd probably ended up with more injuries than you've already had." he said as he added. "By the way... that was too obvious, even for you..."
Ryosuke blinked, before turning his glances between Shinji and Shirakawa. Both of them seemed to be in with some joke that he still hadn't get. After a while, it finally dawned on him...
"Eh? Eeeeh?" He gasped again as he shook his head. "It's not what you guys think! I didn't... I didn't have a crush on Hasebe-san!" he cried as both of them started to laugh uncontrollably.
"Sensei! You're blushing really badly!"
"I didn't—it's not like that! Mou... you guys!"
Ryosuke groaned aloud as he wheeled himself angrily back towards the hospital. Shinji, who had been holding his stomach out of amusement; stood up to chase after him.
"Eh... Ryosuke! Come back! I'm just teasing you a bit—oi!" he cried as he started chasing the younger brother on the speeding wheelchair...
Chapter: 10 - Apollo Smiles
Character: Aoi Ryosuke, Ryuzaki Shinji, Shirakawa Kana
Fandom: Orthros no Inu
Rating: PG13
Summary: Another day passed and the sun shone bright. Times like these, even Shinji wanted to think about other things aside from the depressing ones...
A/N: One more chapter to post... and we'd be catching up with the current chapter on FF.net XDDDD And I loved my speeding wheelchairs... XD
Side note: 4 - yon, shi or sei when pronounced in Cantonese. Most of the times when counting and such, the kunyomi pronunciation was used instead of onyomi since sei/shi carries the sound of another ominous word that was... sei/shi (death - 死). Same reason as 7 is mostly read as nana and not shichi.
-----------------
“You’re still here.”
Ryosuke spoke, not amused as Shinji helped him to sit up. He rolled his eyes at his brother.
“Do you always have to come so early?”
“Yeah.”
“Don’t you have work?”
“No. I took a long indefinite leave.”
“Not good... you shouldn’t have done that. How would you support yourself?”
“I have my ways...”
Ryosuke frowned.
“Can’t you leave my bedside for at least half a day?” he asked again as he received a negative reply. He moaned.
“You’re such a stalker brother...”
“I still haven’t stalked you enough...”
Ryosuke’s cheek flushed as he turned back towards Shinji. He wrapped his arm around himself as if the room suddenly got colder.
“Eeek, I feel cold! You’re creepy. Even I didn’t get so overprotective like that with Shiho. What you’re doing Aniki... is not healthy! Definitely! Without a doubt!”
Shinji did not reply as he continued smiling. Ryosuke eyed him nervously as his eyes darted here and there.
“What are you—stop staring! Aniki, you got creepier every second! What—I liked you better when I didn’t know that you’re my brother...” Ryosuke scooted away a bit as if his chastity was at stake before continuing to mumble under his breath.
Shinji chuckled.
“It’s because you’re a beautiful child.”
Ryosuke’s face immediately light up as he attempted to throw a pillow to Shinji. Shinji stopped him as he started laughing really loudly.
“All right... enough teasing. But I’ve said the truth. You did looked better... and the bruise on your neck had already started to fade—”
Ryosuke’s grin immediately turned to a frown as he fingered the bandage on his neck, when he realized it was already loose. No wonder his brother could see it. Few days ago, he saw it himself. The bruises. One can almost see the exact hand marks on his neck. How much force could have been used to leave such a clear mark like that? Seeing that, made him realize how close has it that he almost died... again. Not that it was anything new since last year. Counting this one, it was already four times...
Four. What an unlucky number. The number four... at which its other pronunciation sounded like another unlucky thing.
Death...
“Ryosuke? Hello? Anyone there?”
Shinji’s voice suddenly echoed beside him as a hand started waving in front of his face. Ryosuke turned his head towards him as the older man smiled.
“Are you okay? Just when I thought you’ve finally cheered up again...”
Ryosuke blinked at him in surprise before fully registering his words in his mind.
“Aah? No... I just—“ Ryosuke blinked as he finally noticed. “Aniki, are you worried about me?”
Shinji leered at him.
“Of course I am! Do you think I won’t be worried about you after all that had happened? I—“
“My bad. I’m sorry...”
Shinji paused in mid-word as he watched Ryosuke fidget with his hands.
“I guessed I was in a shock. When I woke up... everyone jumped out at me, looking as badly as how much they have worried about me. And then noticing how I could not move freely at the moment, my body still being weak... the pain I felt in my chest whenever I tried to move too much—I’m really am such a bother, ain’t I?” said Ryo slowly as Shinji hastily reach out and held him in his arm.
“No, you’re not. It’s not a bother. And I liked to spend my time here... looking after you.” said Shinji, trying to reassure him.
Ryosuke sighed, before a peculiar sound filled the room. He grinned at himself as Shinji chuckled. Ryosuke leered towards his brother.
“I’m hungry...” Ryosuke said slowly, his lips almost pouting which made Shinji smile again in amusement.
“Sure, you are. Here... let me help you—“ he said as he helped Ryosuke to sit on the wheelchair. “How’s your legs?”
Ryosuke smiled weakly.
“I can feel my legs... thankfully now. But I don’t think my legs could support my weight at the moment, my legs felt weak... but that’s what the rehabili are for, isn’t it?”
Shinji smiled as he wheeled Ryosuke out of the room. He patted Ryosuke’s shoulders before speaking.
“Yes, but let’s wait for that until all your injuries are healed. We don’t want your injuries to get any worse than it already is...”
Ryosuke chuckled.
“Definitely—!”
Shinji suddenly paused. “Ah!”
Ryosuke turned around, looking at his brother in wonder.
“What is it?”
Shinji slapped his head silly. “Did I forget to feed Ryo-kun this morning?”
Ryosuke blinked at him, what was he talking about?
“Ryo-kun?” he asked as Shinji nodded before taking out his handphone.
“Ah!” Shinji gasped as his call connected. “Aoyama-san... are you at home now? Ah... sorry to bother you... unn... yes, I mean... I was at the hospital now, looking after my brother. Could you go to my apartment now and feed the puppy? Yea... haaa, it’s embarrassing... I totally forgot. Oh? Thanks... the keys was at the usual place anyway...”
Shinji ended the call, relieved as he turned to look at the surprised face of his brother.
“It’s my neighbour... nice guy.”
“I wasn’t talking about that. I mean... what’s up with Ryo-kun—”
“It’s a puppy... found it abandoned one day so I took it home—”
“You called a puppy with my name? Aniki—!”
Shinji said nothing as he continued to grin cheekily...
xxx
“So how’s your brother today?” ask the doctor, in charge of Ryosuke’s treatment.
Shinji shrugged.
“He’s finally cheering up. Of course he was still troubled at the fact he still needed people to help him move around... but at least he wasn’t spouting gloom all over. That’s good... right?”
The doctor nodded.
“For sure... it was essential to keep the patient’s spirit up. It would definitely help hasten the recovery for Aoi-san. Us doctors could only so much... if the family members can help out by supporting the patients mentally, then all the better would it be for the patient.”
Shinji nodded.
“Considering that his adopted families could only visit at certain times only, I’m glad to be able to help.”
Outside, Ryosuke wheeled himself around, wondering what took Shinji so long inside.
“My condition was not that bad... what took him so long—”
“You know... that person in that doctor’s office, for some reason he looked like Ryuzaki-san...”
Ryosuke almost gave a loud cry, hearing the conversation before wheeling himself hastily out of view of the two women who were chatting at the corner of the hall.
“Ryuzaki?” cried the other woman, before shaking her head.
“Impossible... I thought he was already dead! Last year... the police said that he fell into the Ryukoku dam and drowned.”
“But the reports did say that his body was never found... wasn’t it? What if—“ the first woman tried to argue as her friend waved her away.
“Can’t be. If it was Ryuzaki... then that other man would have been cured so easily—”
Ryosuke froze as the women started mentioning about himself.
“What other man?” asked the woman, clueless.
“I heard it was his brother... there was an incident earlier. Must be someone important, I saw the police had been going around the room the man was in. There was even someone who had come to kill that man!”
The woman gasped aloud at the retelling of her friend.
“How horrible! So... did you know anything more about that man—”
The other woman waved at her friend frantically.
“There’s nothing else! Anyhow... that’s not the point. But don’t you see? If that was really Ryuzaki-san, he would have been able to heal the other man just as easily. But that didn’t happen, right?”
The woman who had first spoke about Shinji sighed.
“Too bad... isn’t it? If it was really Ryuzaki-san... he would have been able to heal my husband’s illness—”
Ryosuke hastily wheeled away as the women started talking about themselves, finally moving on from their earlier topic. He stopped as a pair of feet blocked his way. He looked up to see Shirakawa standing before him. The concerned look on her face probably meant that she had heard the two ladies’ conversation as well.
Ryosuke tried to smile.
“It’s nothing... don’t you worry about me!” he said as Shirakawa smiled weakly.
xxx
“Ne... sensei, are you really all right?”
Ryosuke shrugged.
“I’m fine. It’s nothing...”
Shirakawa sighed as she continued pushing the wheelchair around. She chuckled.
“I guess, this time... our roles are switched, isn’t it? Last time... sensei, had been looking after me... isn’t it?”
“What you’re talking about, Shirakawa? I’m your teacher, of course I’d look after you...”
Shirakawa sighed.
“I guess... there are still some things that I didn’t know. Sensei, being Ryuzaki-san’s younger brother... did you also had special powers like him?”
Shinji paused as he was mid-way from approaching the two before making himself scarce immediately. His eyes went towards Ryosuke to see his reaction. Ryosuke nodded towards Shirakawa.
“Yes, I used to. Just that... my powers was an exact opposite of his.”
“Oh... that’s why—Sensei, I guess this is belated... but I’m sorry if what I’ve said in the past had hurt your feelings! I never thought—”
“Really... it’s nothing already. And it’s not like I knew he was my brother at the time or anything—”
“But you knew something, isn’t it? Sensei had been very opposed about me depending on his powers before—“ Shirakawa went quiet suddenly before continuing, “Sensei... what has it been like, for you last year?”
Such a direct question, Shinji thought. He glanced again towards Ryosuke, towards his saddened appearance. It should be like he had imagined it before, shouldn’t it? The true reason that he had started that scenario, beginning from that time he had convinced Ryosuke to help him escape...
Ryosuke sighed before giving her a weak smile.
“It’s not that bad, considering that not many people knew about it. But even then—“ Shirakawa knelt before him before reaching out for his hands as she noticed Ryosuke’s expression.
Ryosuke laughed coldly.
“Hasebe-san... used to not want me to even touch Mio-chan, you know? Kumakiri’s father also... but then again so did the other people who knew about my powers. They would look at me with fear in their eyes, as if the mere touch from me would mean their deaths...”
Ryosuke heaved out a long sigh. “But at least it got better since then. Hasebe-san hadn’t been so repulsed of me once she knew about me more... even didn’t mind me being with Mio-chan. Kumakiri’s father also... he even went as far as helping me along the way. My family as well... even though I never thought they actually knew anything about my powers. Before...”
Ryosuke shrugged.
“At least, that was over with. Now also. So Shirakawa... you really do not have to worry about me. And about what had happened these few days as well, I’m fine with it. It’s not like I wanted Sawamura to attack me. And it’s not like I blame anyone... Hasebe-san, Aniki... everyone... for what I’m facing right now.”
Shirakawa shook her head. “That’s not it, sen—”
“All in all, I had to be grateful to my brother...”
Shinji perked up as his name was mentioned. Shirakawa cocked her head at him.
“What... did you—”
Ryosuke shrugged as he wheeled away by himself. Shirakawa followed slowly as Shinji tailed them silently. He stopped as the two had paused at some clearing.
"You know Shirakawa... all this time, ever since I accidentally killed my pet dog when I was little—I never tried to face my powers straight on. For a long time, I had always buried my feelings deep inside. Because there was a voice in my memories, telling me to do so. In order to not allow something bad to happen." Shirakawa was quiet as she continued to listen. "That's why... somehow, even when it had been painful; even if it had been brief... I had managed to accept that power that I used to have in the past."
Ryosuke sighed.
"If Shirakawa hadn't overheard the talk between Kumakiri and his friends, you probably wouldn't got into that accident. Hasebe-san wouldn't have to go undercover to catch them, I wouldn't be there and killed Kumakiri's friend. She wouldn't have known about my powers as well as my brother’s, and both of us wouldn't have met. A lot of other things wouldn't have had to happen either... I'm not even sure if that outcome would have been better. I would have still be stuck with that power, that couldn't be good... right?"
He glanced up towards his student.
"That's why, Shirakawa... you really shouldn't worry about me."
"I understand... sensei. You've said it so many times!" Ryosuke chuckled as she continued, " But you know, sensei... suddenly you seemed to grow even more mature."
Ryusuke looked at her in surprise.
"Ehh? Why...suddenly—"
"But it's true... ne? Even in the past we've always treated you as one of our friends... and sensei! Even now... you also often get bullied in that new school as well, right?" said Shirakawa, giggling as Ryosuke stuttered for an answer. She sighed. "I'm so glad! Hasbe-san had been worried, you know... sensei. She told me how you've been so depressed—"
"Haha..."
"Sensei! Is there something special between you and Hasebe-san?" she suddenly said as Ryosuke coughed.
"Ehh? No... Eh?"
A sound of a chuckle startled Ryosuke even more as he jumped. Shinji hurriedly caught him as the wheelchair almost turned over. Shinji grinned as Ryosuke looked up towards him.
"Careful there... you'd probably ended up with more injuries than you've already had." he said as he added. "By the way... that was too obvious, even for you..."
Ryosuke blinked, before turning his glances between Shinji and Shirakawa. Both of them seemed to be in with some joke that he still hadn't get. After a while, it finally dawned on him...
"Eh? Eeeeh?" He gasped again as he shook his head. "It's not what you guys think! I didn't... I didn't have a crush on Hasebe-san!" he cried as both of them started to laugh uncontrollably.
"Sensei! You're blushing really badly!"
"I didn't—it's not like that! Mou... you guys!"
Ryosuke groaned aloud as he wheeled himself angrily back towards the hospital. Shinji, who had been holding his stomach out of amusement; stood up to chase after him.
"Eh... Ryosuke! Come back! I'm just teasing you a bit—oi!" he cried as he started chasing the younger brother on the speeding wheelchair...
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