Can't I See You One Last Time?

Chapter 11: Emotionless No More

Loud. Loud ear breaking screams spread across the train. The scream was agonizing to the ears. It sounded like the scream of a monster, and it was. In some people's perspectives anyway. The combo move between Tanjiro and Inosuke had been successful. They had completely severed the front car in, uneven, two parts.

Demon flesh started growing out of every part of the train. Hands formed out of the clumps and reached out like trying to grab something. The train started tilting from the new found weight and started shaking violently. The train weeks left the track and was now in the air as the clumps of demon kept growing. The passengers were getting thrown out of the train, getting crushed, and dying.

"WE CUT HIS NECK AND MADE HIM WRITHE IN PAIN! TERRIFIC!!"
As the chaos was happing, Inosuke was cheering for their victory. He didn't seemed phased by the constant movement. While Tanjiro was struggling to hold onto the open door frame and still on guard.
"WE'RE FALLING SIDEWAYS! INOSUKE-"
Pain. The ignored pain from his stab wound was acknowledged causing Tanjiro to wince. Inosuke noticed how Tanjiro's hand moved to his stomach, and over the scream, he yelled,
"A-ARE YOU OKAY?"
Tanjiro ignored the act of kindness and yelled back,
"PROTECT THE PASS-"
That was it. The losses of his grip causing him to fall from the train. His hands slipping away from the door frame.

He was falling. Tanjiro was falling through the clumps of flesh holding his stomach wound. Before Tanjiro had started falling, he saw the face of the sleeping conductor. Sure, that man had been the one to stab Tanjiro, but Tanjiro still had sympathy for him. So, he couldn't die. Tanjiro couldn't die. He couldn't allow that man, who was just looking for peace, to become a murderer.

He did it. Tanjiro had cut the demon's neck. Now all they had to do was jump off, or land safely. That should be the only thing on their minds. Surviving. That should be the only thing their thinking about.

Giyuu wasn't thinking about that though. He was thinking about Tanjiro. He hadn't even thought about his own safety. He wondered if Tanjiro had gotten out of the train safely, if he was still uninjured, if he was even alive. Giyuu didn't even want to consider that possibly. Tanjiro dying...he couldn't handle that. Tanjiro had gotten away from this mission alive, but was it going to be the same this time? He couldn't know. Giyuu had changed the future just by coming on the mission so anything could change. Tanjiro could die and Giyuu wouldn't be able to handle it. He would be stuck in the same depression as before. He'd be back at square one...
No no no no, don't think like that. Be positive! Tanjiro's strong he'll come out alive...he has too...

Giyuu shook his head. Searching the train as it was now was not a good idea. The train had to reach the ground, and then he'd start searching. As soon as the train made contact with the ground...

Well, this was a surprise. Rengoku had just stepped out of the flesh filled train to be hit with something...unusual.
"Tanjiro, are you okay?"
Giyuu was on his knees holding Tanjiro's upper body in his arms. Giyuu looked worried. That's how Rengoku perceived the look. It was unusual for Giyuu's expression to change, but there it was, changing.
"I'm fine Giyuu-san."
Even from a few feet away, Rengoku could see that Tanjiro was struggling to smile.
At this rate, the kid might die from blood loss.
Rengoku approached them and put his hand on Giyuu's shoulder. Giyuu looked back at him, and Rengoku was stunned by how much Giyuu's expression changed. He had the expression of a worried person. He had nervous sweat drops on his face. His pupils were sharpened. His body was shaking, and it seemed like tears were about to fall out of his blue eyes.

It was astonishing. Rengoku could have never have imagined to see an expression like that on Giyuu's face. He couldn't show his astonishment. He had to be calm. He didn't know what would happen if his expression showed that he was surprised or confused, so he covered his stunned feelings with his normal smile,
"You have to stop the bleeding."
Giyuu looked a little less worried as he slowly nodded his head. He looked back at Tanjiro,
"Focus and raise the accuracy of your breathing. Spread sensitivity to every part of your body."
Tanjiro started taking deeper, longer breaths.

He wasn't getting it, so Rengoku chipped in,
"There's a blood vessel and it's broken."
Tanjiro kept breathing, focusing to spread his sensitivity to every part of his body. He felt Giyuu's warm touch and the cold ground. The pieces for fabric laying on his skin. His beating heart. The veins with blood flowing through. The warm blood moving throughout his body. The place where the veins unnaturally disconnected. The place where his blood went cold.

That was it. The place where blood was spilling out of his body. The place where his blood was starting to clot.

Tanjiro didn't notice, but as he kept breathing, Giyuu's expression slowly changed to his normal one. No, it wasn't. His expression was turning into a relived one, and Rengoku caught that when quickly glancing at his face.

They both noticed that Tanjiro had found the bleeding spot, but Rengoku stayed quiet letting Giyuu give Tanjiro the next piece of advice.
"Now, stop the bleeding."
Tanjiro started squinting from his struggle, and his mind started wandering away from his wound. Giyuu hovered over Tanjiro, their face getting closer. Giyuu looked him straight in the eyes,
"Focus."
Tanjiro's eyes widened, and there seemed to be a faint blush on his cheeks. That did not go unnoticed by Rengoku who was looking over Giyuu's shoulder. Tanjiro closed his eyes and started focusing again. His focus going right back to his broken veins.

Stop the bleeding. Cut of all blood flow to that area. Close off the pathways. Stop. Close.
Those phrase and words repeating in Tanjiro's head.
Close close close close.
Tanjiro slightly scrunched up with a struggling breath. Then, he fell back into Giyuu's arms with exhaustion. As a reward Giyuu patted Tanjiro's head,
"Good job."

It was soft. Not to bright and not showing any hostility. It wasn't forced like the others, but done unconsciously. It was a smile not a single person could imagine gracing the face of a, so called, emotionless man. Although it was foreign, the smile was a pretty one, and the red head was smiling. He wasn't covering his pain, but happy that he got to see a genuine, smile on his face.
"Giyuu-san, you should smile more often."
The smile on his face disappeared and his normal, emotionless face was back.
"Why?"
Tanjiro raised his, slightly, shaking hand and place it on Giyuu's cheek.
"Because it suits you."
Giyuu put one oh his hands over Tanjiro's and closed his eyes, leaning into Tanjiro's hand.
"Okay."