Thinking of You - Chapter Fifteen
Kei Inoo kept his head down as he climbed onto the bus behind Daiki. He didn’t want to reveal himself to his friend just yet; he was curious to see what Daiki was up to. In the peaceful silence, Kei watched as Daiki’s eyes were continually drawn to the window, to the blurred scenery rolling past.
I wonder what he’s thinking about…
Suddenly, a crystal tear trailed from Daiki’s eyes, etching a path down his dear friend’s soft pink cheeks. Kei’s heart crumbled upon the sight.
What’s wrong, Daiki? I wish you would tell me…
As the bus came to a stop, Daiki quickly stood up, wiping the tears from his eyes, and hurried off the bus. Kei followed, but then halted upon realizing where his friend had just walked into.
Yuya’s hospital…
***
“Hi, would you please tell me which room Yuya Takaki is staying at?” Daiki requested politely to a receptionist sitting at the front desk.
“And you are…?” the lady questioned.
“A friend,” Daiki nodded unwaveringly, a look of determination in his eyes.
“I see… Well, let me look for a second…” The lady listlessly looked up Yuya’s name on her computer, searching the database for his room number. “Mr. Takaki is staying in room 326, but I think he might have just gone to bed to rest for a little while, so please try to not bother him too much, especially if he’s already asleep.”
Daiki nodded. “Thank you very much,” he added, before turning to head upstairs.
In the background, Kei watched in wonderment. He’s actually come to see Yuya? That means he’s finally beginning to regret his actions! Kei smiled, still following behind Daiki from a distance.
***
Knocking gently on the door before he entered, Daiki sighed as he found Yuya sleeping peacefully in bed, his bandaged head resting in the softness of what looked to be a freshly-fluffed pillow.
“I guess I can’t apologize properly if you’re not awake to hear it…” Daiki smiled wryly, his whisper barely loud enough for Kei to hear from out in the hall. “But still… I owe you too much for me to just go home without actually confessing my heart’s regrets.”
Sitting down in a chair beside Yuya’s bed, Daiki watched as his friend’s chest heaved gently up and down, his steady breath reassuring Daiki that thankfully, Yuya was still alive.
“How have you been, Yuya?” Daiki smiled softly, his gaze brushing from his friend’s fluttering eyelids to his pale, pale complexion. “I hope you’re not in pain still… How many days has it been since I hurt you? And yet, when I’m finally here to tell you how much I wish I hadn’t, you’re not awake to hear it.” Daiki laughed lightly at his own foolishness, sighing once again as he closed his eyes and began to speak in greater seriousness.
“It’s true, I am so sorry for what I did, for hurting you. I know that if you were awake, you’d probably not want to hear this, and you’d probably just hide from me, push me away, or cover your ears, but now… For now, please, I just hope you will hear at least some of what I have to say.
“From day one, you’ve always been a precious friend to me… We’ve been friends for so long now, yet I can’t even remember when the last time it was that we fought. Neither of us really ever had quarreling personalities, and we’ve always seemed to get along so harmoniously.
“But recently, with my new image, I’ve changed. I realize this now, and I regret it immensely. I can’t believe that I would ever hurt you, and I will never forgive myself for doing so. You were always a good friend to me, and yet I betrayed you shamelessly. For this, I will always remain remorseful. The Daiki you met, the Daiki you befriended, I want to become him again. I want to be a part of JUMP again. I want to be your friend. I can only pray you will… eventually… forgive me.
“Despite how much time passes, I can still remember all the past laughter and the fun we’ve shared together as JUMP. All the times we’ve spent fighting against all odds to achieve none other than blissful accomplishment, overcoming obstacles that none of us would ever have been able to face alone; the bonds we share always seemed as if they could never be broken.
“But again… I can only hope for that to be true.” Daiki tore his eyes away from his friend, holding back his tears that were struggling to be freed as he tried his best to keep his composure.
“I wish you’ll forgive me, Yuya… P-Please, I’m really so sorry… I feel like I’m not r-rightfully expressing to you h-how much I really do wish you could hear my apology… But I-I just want your friendship back… I hope you don’t think me as selfish for this, b-but I am really so very s-sorry… P-Please forgive me… I’m sorry!” His voice cracking upon his inundating tears, Daiki buried his head softly into the side of Yuya’s bed. His body began shaking compulsively as he dampened the edge of the bedcovers with his cries, now streaming uncontrollably from his eyes as he continuously repeated his last two words. “I’m sorry… I’m sorry… I’m sorry…”
In his unconsciousness, a single tear rolled down the older boy’s cheek, as Daiki’s cries miraculously penetrated Yuya’s sleeping heart.