(Wind Breaker) The Green Rose's Thorns

Part 3

"Aoi," Suo quietly said the boy's name. No response still, but he could tell the boy was breathing at least. Stuttering, ragged breaths from the way his side rose and fell. As Suo got closer, he realized that Aoi was still wearing the same clothes as before. He was sweating a lot, and his left calf was loosely wrapped in a blood-soaked bandage. Suo reached out to pull the jacket aside, to check for any other injuries.

"Don't," Aoi growled, and Suo was taken by surprise. In an instant he had gone from kneeling down beside Aoi, to staring up at the boy's face with his back against the floor. Aoi was fast, but stopped just short of clawing at Suo's throat. He was panting hard, and beneath the curtains of messy hair Suo had a clear view of the boy's wild eyes as they jittered about. Trying to stay focused, but failing. Or maybe, not focused at all. They were glassy, and it didn't seem to Suo that they were really even processing what was in front of them. As Aoi raised his arm, to slam his fist into Suo's face, the boy he pinned down noticed the glint of the sun on the boy's fanged grin. More than the fangs that stood out, there was one tooth in the front that wasn't straight across the top. Broken, and somehow that took over Suo's mental processes for just a moment.

"Aoi!"

The door slammed into the wall with a flurry of thunderous footsteps, and both boys' heads whipped toward the sound. Tsubaki stood there, much to Suo's surprise, and wore a pained expression.

"Aoi," Tsubaki called out again between ragged breaths. Their voice was much softer this time, almost sweet in the delivery. The next thing Suo knew, Aoi's body had collapsed onto his own. He went to sit up, brushing Aoi's arm and noticing just then how hot the boy's body felt.

"Don't. Sorry, I forgot to tell you one thing," Tsubaki gingerly made their way over and pulled the unconscious Aoi off of Suo. Tsubaki's face hardened when he touched Aoi, likely reaching the same conclusion. He had a fever, and it was bad. Tsubaki pulled the jacket over Aoi's frail form and gently stood up with him held in a gentle but sturdy embrace. The larger boy's eyes then drifted to the duffel bag, brow scrunching up as they mulled something over.

"I'll get it," Suo stood up finally and scooped up the bag. It was much lighter than he thought it would be.

"Let's go. Before it gets any later," Tsubaki carried Aoi down the stairs with Suo in tow. He took care of where he stepped, frowning the whole time at the decrepit state of the building they were in.

"The thing I forgot to mention is that you shouldn't try to touch Aoi. Especially if he's asleep, or unconscious," Tsubaki kicked the metal door open fully and stepped out into the weeds. He glanced back at Suo's expression, finding it hard to get a read off the guy.

"I heard some of the Shishitoren guys mention that, yeah," Suo pulled out the weird instructions he got earlier, to help them retrace their steps. There were more directions on the other side, guiding them through back streets and alleyways until they reached the tunnel.

"Sorry, but could you follow me for a bit?," Tsubaki apologized again as a train passed over their heads. Aoi squirmed as it did, and Tsubaki's expression looked almost sad at that as he pulled the boy in closer to his chest.

"Where are we going?," Suo kept the conversation going as they walked. They should have felt relieved after passing to the other side, but both were still tense as they headed down the street.

"Pothos," Tsubaki's answer was somewhat of a shock to his companion. Tsubaki smiled at the confused look on Suo's face, and explained further as they neared the familiar street the cafe was on.

"Kotoha helps patch us up, right? Aoi's in pretty rough shape, but I don't want him getting freaked out by a hospital and punchin' out a doctor. He'd hate that, too. Oh, I hope it's not busy though," Tsubaki uttered that last part just as they reached the door. Suo stepped in first, holding the door open for the other. There were thankfully quite a few empty seats as Tsubaki carried his friend over toward the counter.

"Tsubaki, oh and who-Oh my god! What's-why'd you? Here, bring him here," Kotoha was at first jovial, then panicked as she guided her guests toward the back of the cafe. First through the kitchen, then to a sort of storage room with a folding table tucked away in the corner along with two folding chairs.

Tsubaki carefully laid Aoi down on the floor, while Kotoha scrambled to gather up her supplies. He tried to explain to the frightened girl, but ended up pleading with his eyes at Suo. Aoi was still barely conscious, but pushed back against Kotoha's treatment and groaned in protest as Suo explained what happened four days prior.

"Four days?!," Kotoha exclaimed at the end. She sat back on her heels and let out an exasperated sigh.

"And how exactly did you sneak through Shishitoren-hm?," the young woman was about to ask Tsubaki something, but stopped when Aoi's eyes snapped open. They quickly darted from person to person, around the room, and settled on Suo's form off to the side. Tsubaki followed the boy's gaze, and his eyes widened with some sort of realization.

"Sorry, after dragging you here. Can you wait in the cafe area?," Tsubaki half-pleaded from across the room. Suo complied with the Furin student's wish, mind boiling over with different things as he sat at the empty counter top on a stool.