Banana Fish Oneshots

Wake Up

"Eiji..."

"Eiji, please..."

"C'mon Eiji. Will you atleast look at me?" Ibe's sympathetic voice didn't reach the boy's ear, his voice drowned out by the monotone sound of the heart monitor that pierced into Eiji's heart. The pristine white walls felt... suffocating and as much as Eiji wanted to leave...

He couldn't.

Large eyes looked down at the unconscious boy in front of him, tears pooling again in his already red-rimmed eyes. The only signs of life were the constant ring of the ECG and the slight shifts of Ash's chest as he took shallow breaths.

Eiji couldn't remember how he even got here, in this random New York hospital. It felt his life was suddenly fast-forwarded from the moment he was in the airport, being wheeled by Ibe towards the gate till now. Everything was a blur, the moment Sing came running up to him, distraught and fear etched on his face as his mouth moved a hundred miles a minute.

"Ash... stabbed... critical condition."

His ears caught those faithful words that immediately made his blood freeze. Before Eiji knew it, he began hobbling over to Sing, stumbling on his feet as he avoided Ibe's every attempt to keep him in place. Luckily, Sing was there, running up to him and holding him up before he crashed into the ground. He clutched desperately at Sing's blue jacket, hazel eyes wide, unshed with tears as he whispered...

"Take me to him... Please!"

And now... here he was, sitting by the older boy's side, his smaller hand intertwined with Ash's limp one. Eiji winced at the coldness of it. It was as if death was slowly stripping away at the blond, draining every life essence of the blond as he laid on his metaphorical deathbed. He tried to keep his emotions at bay but every glance he took, made all the fear and misery come crashing at him again.

A firm weight clamped at his shoulder and Eiji jumped up, jostled out of his inner thoughts. He turned his head to see Ibe looking back down at him with a worried look on his face.

"Eiji... Please, you need to eat something. It's been 3 hours since lunch and you need energy." Ibe tried to persuade, coaxing the boy out of his stubborn loyalty to be by Ash's side. Eiji's eyes dimmed, clouding over with sadness. He shook his head, turning back to look at Ash, gripping onto the larger, pale hand.

"N-No... P-Please Ibe-san." He looked back up at the older man, his hazel eyes pleading. "Let me stay." Eiji's voice wavered, hitching slightly as he spoke. "I can't... I can't leave him. Not like this." Eiji whispered, turning to look at Ash again. His heart clenched as he took in the sight of the taller boy.

His already pale skin now looked ashen, devoid of its lively flush and colour. His stunning face, sunken and hollowed. Different wires were connected to his thin body, plugged to various machines that seemed to be Ash's only life force, keeping him alive and breathing.

Eiji took in a deep breath, bringing the limp hand towards him, holding it tenderly with both his hands and pressed a gentle kiss on the cold skin, tears dripping as he placed their laced hands on his lap.

Ibe stared at the sweet display of love and his heart went out for both of the boys. Anyone who spent a minute with the two of them could see the evident love they had for each other. The way Ash's eyes glazed over with softness whenever Eiji's name was mentioned or the way Eiji would smile whenever Ash entered the room.