set the world on fire (Mawaru Penguindrum)

Chapter 2

Shoma Takakura glanced at his watch. 7:46. Just under a half an hour before the first bell rung and yet another long, arduous day at his local high school began. Could he make it?

To hell with it, he declared, chaining his bike to the nearest lamppost and running to the hospital entrance, instinctively leaping backwards as the automatic doors opened. Breath minty and cold, he jogged to the front desk, lifting the hand-knitted scarf off his mouth. "Hi-"

"-mari Takakura," the bubblegum-chewing receptionist finished, eyes never leaving the golden glow of her laptop screen. "She's ready to see you."

Barely pausing to gasp a thank you, he dodged a supply-laden cart to dash down the hallway, nearly crashing into a wheelchair-bound boy in his eagerness to see her, stumbling in front of a quiet little door labeled "Takakura." His heart thumping in anticipation, he raised a hand to knock against the wood.

"Come in!" came the soft-spoken reply.

Flinging open the door, all of his worries melted away at the sight of Himari, angelic and blue-clothed and bathed in morning sunlight.

"Good morning, Sho!" she chirped, scooting over to allow him to sit on the edge of her hospital bed. Her frail hand moving in jerky motions, she traced a finger across the neat blue stitches of his scarf, positively beaming. "You're wearing it."

"Of course. Why wouldn't I?" He curled his fingers over her frigid ones. "It's very warm. Thank you."

Himari frowned at him, glancing at the wall clock. "Are you sure you won't be late for school? I don't want to get you in trouble."

"Don't worry, Himari," he assured her, lying through his teeth. He only had twenty minutes left to get to his first period class, but that hardly mattered now. "School doesn't start for another hour."

"Okay, then." She leaned back in bed, closing her eyes.

They sat in blissful silence.

"Sho," Himari blurted, hesitating. "Have you...seen Kan?"

His stomach twisting, he swallowed back a gulp and forced a smile. "Well...no. He's living with Dad's friends now, so I haven't talked to him much lately. Don't worry, though, he'll come around eventually. He always does."

No. He's gone. Kan is gone, he wanted to scream. He's gone, and he's not coming back.

But Himari, sweet, without-a-mean-bone-in-her-body Himari, nodded, accepting his clipped response. "Okay. When he comes back, tell him to stop by here. I'm knitting a scarf for him, too, but don't spoil it for him, okay? It's supposed to be a surprise."

He fought back tears, clutching her hands tighter. "He'll love it. I'm positive."

She smiled serenely by way of response. "Okay."

Himari proceeded to interrogate him about his grades, friends, and what he'd had for breakfast this day, smacking her lips in anticipation at his vivid descriptions of his miso soup, egg rolls, and tsukemono pickles.

"I'll bring you some next time," he promised, making a mental note to check the hospital policies for foodstuffs. "I'm trying a lot of new things now, so you'll get a real feast!"

She murmured in contentment. Face caught in mid-smile, she suddenly froze and slumped against her headboard, tangles of auburn hair hanging in her face. Her hand turned an ashy white, cold as ice.

"Himari!" he cried out, clambering to his feet and shaking her shoulders. "What's gotten into you? Wake up! Himari!"

The door creaked open, and a wave of cold descended across the room. The echoing footsteps of two leather shoes sent shivers running up Shoma's spine, belonging to a man with streaked pink hair tied into a messy ponytail, his lips upturned in a small smile.