Chapter 23: Stop Talking

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It was a haze. That was the only way to describe the next few days. At least, Byakuya thought it was a few days. He couldn't really be certain of anything with the fog that hung heavy over his mind. It felt like it had been longer, like he'd been trapped in this hospital bed for weeks, months, years. But, at the same time, time flew by. He hated it. He hated not knowing what was going on. He hated that someone always had to be by his side in case he tried to hurt himself.

That someone was usually Naegi. It was strange; Byakuya was sure that some of the time where Makoto stayed with him was during school hours. There'd be no end to his anger if the brunette missed class for him of all people. Secretly, though, he loved every minute the smaller boy was by his side. Most of the time, they didn't talk. They just remained in comfortable silence, content with the other's company against the confusing rush that was the rest of the world. In here, it was just them. No Togami family, no Hope's Peak Academy, nothing. Nothing except them.

"I'm worried about you, Toga." Makoto said one day out of the blue, startling Byakuya. The blond looked up at Makoto sharply, frowning.

"..Why?" He asked simply. He still didn't have much energy for sleep, so most of his communication was reduced to nods and one word answers. It was frustrating, to be sure. He felt so many complex emotions, but whenever he tried to talk about them, the words died in his mouth, leaving a bitter aftertaste. He'd learned to stop trying after only a few days.

"Why? Byakuya, you can't be serious." Makoto cried incredulously. "You disappear from the party after clearly having a panic attack, and half an hour later I find you almost dead in the pool. Nurse Tsumiki... also said that there were some drugs in your system. Is that true?" The boy's voice had softened, hushed down to a whisper. There was nobody else in the room, and yet the boy was still concerned about other people hearing him. It was undeniably adorable.

"I... would rather speak about this when I'm feeling more lucid." Byakuya admitted, looking away from Makoto as his face burned up. He was so ashamed that Makoto had found out about his... habit. It was something that not even his father knew about. If anyone found out, there was no question about it; he'd be completely ruined. The heir to the Togami corporation, addicted to painkillers? The news would spread like wildfire, until it burned down his entire life.

Makoto nodded, seeming to understand. Byakuya didn't understand him. Why was he here? Why did he still care? Byakuya had behaved monstrously to him, and then rejected him and stormed off like a child throwing a temper tantrum. And that was before he'd forced Makoto to essentially risk his life saving him from his own carelessness. Although, he noted, it hadn't exactly been carelessness. Whilst he was glad he had been saved, he didn't imagine he would have been too upset if he hadn't been.

And yet, after all of that, the brunette was still by his side. Day in, day out, even during times when Byakuya was fairly sure that Makoto had class to be getting to. If Byakuya recovered and the boy had gotten behind on his schoolwork, he would be in for an earful from the blonde.

Goddammit, Makoto, he thought, you've made me want to recover.

"Wait." he called out to Makoto, who responded with a slight tilt of the head, nodding for Byakuya to continue. "I don't want to talk about it right now, but... I do want to talk. To you. Now. Um. If you're alright with that, of course. It doesn't have to be about anything in particular, you can choose. If you want to? If not, that's fine too..." Why the hell was he finding this so difficult? It was just a conversation.

"Byakuya Togami." Makoto responded. "Are you asking for permission to have a conversation with me?"

"Um. Maybe?" Came the sheepish and quiet reply, to which Makoto burst out laughing.

You've reached the end of published parts.

⏰ Last updated: Dec 20, 2022 ⏰

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