Immortal (boy x boy)

Part 11

(Takahiro's POV)

I blinked my eyes open, seeing the same ugly walls. I gritted my teeth. The bastards poisoned me. Literally to death, though not really. Now, they were scribbling furiously on clipboards. I guessed they were writing everything down. There was a kid, probably in his twenties, standing behind the chief of the lab. He looked nervous as hell. From what I overheard as I was coming around, he was late in bringing the chief some papers and he got punished. 

"C-chief Akihara," the kid stammered.

"What?" he hissed, pushing his spectacles up.

"Would you...like to s-see the results?"

Akihara frowned. "Not only are you a horrible excuse for an assistant, but you're stupid, too? I detest idiocy."

"I-I'm sorry, sir!" A sharp slap resounded in the room.

"Sorry doesn't fix anything. Give me the damn papers and go get me some coffee. If you get that wrong, you'll regret it."

"Y-yes, sir!" The kid tore from the room. I really hated this man. He scanned the papers carefully before walking away. He conversed briefly with one of the other scientists and left. They stared at me for a second before approaching. One of them wielded a scalpel. My eyes widened. What were they going to do this time? The rest of them grabbed my head, holding it still. The one with the blade started to cut my neck. I tried to scream at the pain, but blood flowed into my windpipe. Yet again, I felt myself drowning in my own blood. I could even taste the copper of it this time. Gurgling sounds left me as my body struggled to draw in air. When it couldn't, my consciousness faded.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Although I wasn't in any pain, I had to forcefully peel my eyelids back. Sweat coated my body, but it wasn't hot in the room. I'd died several times before, but not in such a short span of time. Again, the scientists are standing around me, talking amongst themselves. They stared at me as if I was simply a lab rat, put there for their entertainment. It irked me, how they saw me as less than they were. But I was a human, just like them, and I had feelings. I deserved to be treated like one.

"It seems the specimen heals from all injures when he 'dies'. Maybe that's why it doesn't actually die."

"It's so interesting, isn't it? Something that can't die."

"I know. Just imagine what we could do with this! Imagine how rich we'd be! The government would pay a lot of money for something like this!"

"Why're you all standing around and gossiping like girls?" Akihara sneered. "Don't you have work to do?" He hit them all and they scrambled to follow his orders. I glared at him. This was a cruel man, one who would do anything and sacrifice any amount of people to get what he wanted. This was a man I certainly didn't want to be in the hands of. He was a heartless, cunning, and sadistic person. And he really enjoyed doing his 'research'.

"How are you doing, my fine specimen?"

"As if you actually care."

He grinned. "You're right, I don't. But it is the polite thing to do."

"What do you care about polite? You busted into my school, shot me, beat up my friend, and kidnapped me."

"Kidnapping only applies to humans."

"I am a human!" I yelled. "I was born a human and I grew up as one! Just because I'm not like you doesn't make me inhuman! I have feelings, just like a person!"

"Even a dog has feelings. Doesn't make it a person, does it?" I reeled back, stunned. I had no argument against that. "Now keep your trap shut. Dogs are supposed to be loyal, after all." With that, he disappeared. Tears stung my eyes and slipped down my cheeks. I hated it here. I wanted to go home, even though it wasn't much better than here. I wanted to see Haruki again. At the thought of him, I squeezed my eyes shut.

I wondered what he was doing. I wondered if he was worrying about me, trying to find me. Maybe he just forgot about me. Maybe he'd lied and didn't really care about me. After all, I was nothing. Just a toy for people to play with however they wanted. Maybe he wanted the same thing. I just wondered what his game was. Perhaps he wanted to build me up so he could tear me down even lower than before. That would be the most effective approach. If I wanted to break someone, that was what I would do. But, I didn't want to do that. I knew what true misery felt like and I wouldn't ever inflict that on another person. 

I sighed, laying my head back. I just wanted to get away. For once, even though I was miserable, I didn't want to die. Even if it would get me out of this situation, I didn't want to die. I had a lot to live for now. I didn't even care if Haruki was just using me. I'd rather he use me than to die and never see him again. He was so stable, like a deeply rooted tree. He propped me up when I wanted to collapse. When I did finally fall, he held out his hand for me to take. He was always there, whether or not I needed him to be. He was always nearby, ready to lend me a helping hand.

So, I'd take his hand and grip on tightly. I wouldn't let him go, because I needed him. My life literally depended on him, or it did. Without him, I'd still be lost in the darkness. I wouldn't have even known what light was if it wasn't for him. I had just started to find myself and I needed his guiding brightness. Otherwise, I'd fall and never get back up again. I just didn't have the strength anymore. I'd lost all the fight in my blood and I was left an empty shell. Somehow, he brought me back to life. I could never repay him for that. I heard a strange sound and, for the first time since I was brought here, I realized I was hungry. I doubted they'd feed me, though. So, with a painfully rumbling stomach and a wary feeling, I slipped into the oblivion of sleep.