By Your Side (ioriku)

9

"Where's Iori?" is the first thing Riku asks when he wakes up the following day. Except it wasn't actually day, it was mid-evening, nearly 24 hours since his attack.

His voice was strange and crackly, and he hated the feeling. He swallows but it hurts to do so, and he hardly has the energy to sit himself up even though all he's done is sleep.

A nurse stands before him, a kind smile on her face. "Iori-san left yesterday," she says, not going into any more detail. "However, there is someone else here to see you."

Someone else? Riku didn't have to do much thinking to figure out who that could possibly be.

When the nurse leaves, Tenn enters the room soon after. He has a still look on his face and a small gift bag in his hands.

"What do you want?" Riku asks, stiff and unfriendly. He didn't like how unseemly he sounded.

Tenn frowns. The delicacy of which he composed himself on stage was different than in real life, as if he'd much rather sit and read than sing and dance. He sits down without a word and hands Riku the gift bag.

Riku takes it, resisting his curiosity and sets it aside instead.

"I heard what happened," Tenn says. His voice is a low whisper. "Are you alright?"

"Yep," Riku says, unamused. But it's partly a lie, considering his chest still ached, his throat was sore and cold, and he felt bad for being rude to Iori the day before. Though all he really said was leave, and when Iori refused, Riku was, well... relieved. But, it was more complex than that. Riku couldn't quite put his finger on the emotion, the weight on his chest, maybe it was appreciation or gratefulness or lo...

Tenn sighs, which distracts Riku from his ever-lasting stream of overthinking.

The two linger in the silence for what feels like forever before Tenn makes his next move. He raises his hand, leans forward and wraps a comforting arm around Riku's stiffened shoulders. It's a hug, albeit an awkward one. Tenn doesn't smell like home, instead he smells of quality cologne and a far-away place. The scent makes Riku cough.

"You know, I really care about you," Tenn says to him, but it isn't reassuring, and comes off as more of a question as opposed to a statement. He seems unsure of it himself.

"No, you don't," Riku says, shaking Tenn's arm off of his shoulders.

"Riku..." Tenn says, trying again to place a sincere arm around Riku's shoulders but Riku turns away, refusing to even look at him. "I don't understand why you're being this way."

Riku doesn't reply, but it takes all he has to keep quiet. Despite his understandable hatred for his brother, he still yearns to talk to him the way they used to when they were still little, he had so much to say but he doesn't want to give in to his temptation.

Tenn sighs again, sitting back down with crossed arms and furrowed brows.

"I get it now," Tenn says, frowning. "It's that friend of yours."

This makes Riku shift his body back around ever so slightly, though he still doesn't say anything.

"He must be why you're acting this way," Tenn continues with a roll of his eyes. "He's not a good influence on you. What was his name again? Izumi Iori, was it?"

Riku's lips are thin and his eyes are strained with furious intent that he refuses to act on.

"What does Iori have to do with this?" Riku brings himself to say, sounding more upset than he'd intended. "You're just finding someone to blame, even though it's all your fault."