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Innocent Rain	By : saxonjesus Category: +. to F > D. Gray Man Views: 3947 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
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Chapter List
- 32
- 33
- 34
Epilogue:
Wake

February 15, 2014, 7:16 AM�London, England

�� Innocent rain fell from the
illuminated sky, drenching the world with its purity. Allen held Lenalee�s hand
tighter, and together they turned to face the horrors of the battlefield. It
was as if time had stopped when the sky had opened up and was now coming
crashing back. First came sight and�
Allen felt his stomach recoil as he viewed the bodies littering the
courtyard; the ground that was once gray was now a mixture of brown, red, and
black, all combining as the rain washed away the taint. Then sound, screams and
moans of fallen soldiers seemed to play almost paradoxically against the
all-encompassing silence of the city
around them. Vaguely, Allen wondered where the sirens of the ambulances he had
asked for were, but his concerns were overshadowed by the desperate call he
received.

�� Allen! We need to get to the hospital! Now! Amanda�s voice was
screeching over the stud communicator in his ear.� He looked around desperately for any sign of
the American girl, but the rain had yet to clear the sky of the haze of smoke
and sorrow.

�� Faith, they need Sebastian.�
Sarah�s voice said, and it drew Allen�s gaze to the two girls a few meters
away. The holy girl in Sarah�s arms nodded and grasped Love�s hand. A
fantastic, almost blinding, golden light shone brightly from their chests, and
when the light receded, a figure stood in front of them. Allen had known the
musician was Mana�s brother, but he hadn�t been expected such a familiar face
to be smiling at him.

�� I�m free!� Sebastian exclaimed,
and picked up Faith in his arms. �Thank you so much, Faith!� Faith was
laughing, and it made Allen�s heart swell to see it, but the smile disappeared
immediately as he received another transmission from Amanda.

�� Allen! Oh my God! Get over here now! Amanda was sobbing. Its Lavi and Kanda! There�s so much blood! Help me! The screaming was so loud that
Sebastian turned and placed Faith onto the ground, walking over to Allen and
Lenalee.

�� Tell me what you need me to
do,� Sebastian said, and Allen felt it strange to actually see the man
speaking, but the urgency of the situation held no time for such thoughts, and
he, Lenalee, and Sebastian ran through the smoldering piles of corpses on the
ground.

�� Allen. It was Tyki�s voice. The white-haired boy would know it
anywhere, even if he wasn�t Noah�s Heart. I�m
with Kanda and Lavi.

�� And suddenly, Allen knew where
he was�exactly. He ran forward, Lenalee sprinting beside him on shaking legs.
The sight before them was something Allen would never forget. Amanda was on her
knees, one side of her face seeping blood as she held up an unconscious Lavi.
His side was spurting out little fountains of dark red blood. Amanda had her
hand over the wound, holding something that looked suspiciously
like innards and trapping them inside Lavi�s body. On his lap, face covered
with dirt and blood and dust, was Kanda. Allen couldn�t see much of the
dark-haired man, but he wasn�t moving, save for the lightest up and down
movement of his chest. Tyki was hunched over Kanda across from Lavi, and he was
wrestling with something Allen couldn�t see. The Noah�s expression was worried
and nearly frantic as he tried to do whatever he was doing. He pulled back when
Allen put a hand on his shoulder.

�� Lavi won�t let him go,� Tyki
said, gesturing helplessly at a hand that was knotted in Kanda�s hair.

�� I think I know what to do,�
Lenalee said lightly. She circled around the group of bodies and pinched a
nerve in Lavi�s neck. He fell limp against Amanda. A large gush of blood
spurted onto Kanda�s face. Allen leaned down to take Lavi�s now lax hand from
Kanda�s hair, only to discover that it was, for all intents and purposes,
stuck. Reaching into his nearly destroyed pant pocket, Allen procured his
pocket knife and flipped it open, one-handed. Tyki pulled Lavi�s hand away from
Kanda�s skull, and Allen quickly sliced away the attached hair.

�� Standing up,� the manly half of Noah�s Heart saw
Sebastian opening a portal to one of the designated hospitals they had chosen
before the battle and ushering in doctor after doctor. Many looked green and
overwhelmed at the macabre sight before them, but horror turned to
determination as they set to their tasks. Lavi and Kanda were lifted onto
gurneys and rushed through the portal. Lenalee followed and Allen wanted to as
well, but he was needed here to help identify the bodies.

�� Allen heard approaching
footsteps and turned to see Cyrah, completely healthy, carrying a very, very
still Chu-chan. Her face was set, and she staggered under Chu-chan�s weight,
letting out a heavy sigh when the doctors hurried over to take him away. She
walked over to Allen and stood stoically next to him, her shining eyes the only
indication of her grief.

�� Darcy was the next to arrive and
he, as well as three soldiers, carried what appeared to be a body, right side
burned almost beyond recognition. As the group placed the burned man onto a
gurney, Allen was able to get a look at who the victim was. Tamas stared up at
him, completely coherent, and in obvious agony.

�� Hey, Walker, stop lookin� at me
like I�m a leper or somethin�. Jus� �cause I can�t
move half my body doesn�t give you the right to stare. I�ll be fine. Ow, fuck!
Don�t touch that, you son-of-a-bitch!� The gurney was jostled away and through
Sebastian�s door before Allen could respond.

�� Emiko and Cyril walked up
moments later. There was something strange in Emiko�s eyes as she nodded at him
and walked into the now bustling hospital. Allen assumed the worst when he saw
that Vikram was not following. Miranda, Lolek, Charlie, Lulu, Justin, Elliot,
Michel�who was struggling to carry Hok�ee on his back�and another handful of
soldiers arrived minutes later. Allen was keeping a tally in his head of just
how many had died.

�� Looking up into the sky, Allen
saw a pair of white wings circling high above, scanning for survivors. Sarah
found ten soldiers that had been too badly injured to move, but that was all.
There had been, at the minimum, one hundred civilians at the start of the
battle, at least one thousand soldiers stationed around the parameter of the
bubble. Only sixteen remained, and Allen now knew that there were five
confirmed dead Exorcists. He didn�t want to think about the injured now in the
hospital.

�� The rain was washing away the
ash on the plaza, but as Allen turned to face the city around him, he noticed
the way the smoke still hadn�t dissipated from the air and how it seemed to
rise from the city itself. Dread pooled in the boy�s stomach; he needed to
speak with the Coalition at once. Nodding toward the large group of his kin,
who were crowded around Faith, Allen walked into Sebastian�s portal and into
the blindingly sterile hospital.

---

February 15, 2014, 11:34 PM-- Hospital in
London

�� Lenalee hadn�t stopped crying,
and all Allen could do was hold her close and tell her everything was going to
be all right, even though he himself wasn�t even sure. The Coalition had
informed them that while they had been attacking the Earl, the Noah of
Vengeance had released Akuma across the world. Cities had been leveled by the
overwhelming surge. There was no way to know just how many people had survived,
but the first reports had begun to come in a few hours after the rain started.
The numbers were not promising. There were countries that had simply blinked
from existence. The estimates of the number of dead kept rising, from hundreds
of thousands, to millions, to hundred millions, and finally billions. Allen
felt hollow inside; had their efforts gone to such a waste?

�� A doctor emerged from the
operating room, covered from neck to toe in blood. Allen had insisted the man
tell him immediately when the operation was complete. Pulling down his surgical
mask, the old man sighed. Lenalee stiffened against his chest.

�� Well, he�s still alive.� The
doctor�s voice was weary after his sixteen hour surgery. Allen held his breath,
waiting for more news on Lavi�s condition. Kanda had been placed in the
intensive care unit fourteen hours prior.

�� We managed clean out his chest
as best we could, but his organs touched the ground, so it is
possible�actually, it�s almost definite�that he will suffer from massive
infections. We had to replace three of his ribs and remove a large section of
his liver. All the muscle was ripped away from his stomach, so we had to take
skin from his legs to cover the wound.�

�� Allen was horrified; he didn�t
think he could ever look at Lavi the same way again.

�� What about Yuu-kun?� Lenalee
asked desperately. The doctor sighed. That was not an encouraging sigh.

�� There�s no� obvious brain
damage. He had signs of a hemorrhage, but that seems to have disappeared
completely. We did numerous brain scans, but his heart rate and brain activity
are both too low for that of simple sleep. It seems he�s lapsed into a coma.�
Lenalee shrank against Allen�s chest, sobbing.

�� When is he�?� Lenalee asked
shakily, but the doctor just shook his head.

�� He may never wake up,� the man
finished sadly, and Lenalee sobbed harder.

---

February 20, 2014�Hospital in London

�� The first thing he felt was the
overwhelming pain pulsing out from his stomach and reaching the very limits of
his body. His hands, too, ached and throbbed. He opened his eyes�though he
could only see out of one�and tried to blink away the fuzziness of his vision.
His mind felt heavy, as if all his blood had been replaced with water.

�� A blurry, dark-haired figure sat
next to him, though Lavi couldn�t see the features clearly.

�� Yuu?�
He asked. His voice cracked a bit, but he tried to keep back the spasms and
coughs that threatened to attack him.

�� Oh, Lavi!
You�re awake!�

�� Lavi�s heart sank. It wasn�t Yuu
there. He only heard the rainbow quality of Lenalee�s voice. He wanted butter.

�� Where�s� Yuu?�
He asked, his voice thin and hoarse. He tried to clear
his throat, but pain shot through his stomach. �Fuck!�

�� And suddenly, he was coughing.
With each tremor, he felt something thick and coppery fill his mouth. A wave of
nausea washed over him. He couldn�t keep it back. Turning his head so as not to
choke on it, Lavi vomited. He didn�t need clear vision to see that it mostly
consisted of blood.

�� Lavi!�
Lenalee called in a worried voice. She stood up and walked over to the wall.
Lavi couldn�t see what she pressed, but he assumed she was calling someone to
take care of him. The industrial smell, mixed with the white, rough fabric of
the bed he was on confirmed that he was in a hospital.

�� Lenalee� what happened?� He
asked. For some reason, his brain wasn�t working yet. Little patterns were
swirling before his eye, superimposed on the real world. Thought was nearly
impossible. �Have I been drugged?�

�� No, of course
not!� Lenalee sounded scandalized at the idea. �You just� well, thank
God you�re awake. They weren�t sure if you�d fight the infection off enough to
wake up.�

�� Infection?� Lavi asked, not
sure he wanted to know the answer.

�� Lavi, you� don�t remember?� Now
Lenalee sounded hesitant, as if she wasn�t quite sure what to say.

�� Everything�s really blurry.
Lenalee, where�s Yuu?� Lavi asked weakly. He was finding it hard to think
through his thoughts. I�m definitely
drugged, he concluded. Still, he needed to see Yuu, make sure he was
alright. Lavi remembered going into the battle. Obviously, he�d gotten hurt. He
needed to know if Yuu was injured, too.

�� There was an awkward silence.
Lenalee wasn�t answering him.

�� Lenalee, what happened to him?�
Lavi asked, trying to get up despite the pain. His arms wouldn�t move. Trying
to lift his arms again, he realized something was holding them back. The
redhead gazed downward and saw them restrained to the rails of the bed. His
heart began to beat painfully fast. Was this a precautionary measure?

�� I can�t tell you, I�m sorry,�
Lenalee said, looking away and seeming somewhat guilt-ridden. Lavi�s vision was
beginning to clear, thankfully. His sense of dread didn�t disappear, though.

�� Lenalee�tell me. Now,� Lavi
ordered, trying to keep the terror from his voice. Something had to be terribly
wrong with Yuu, or else they�d tell him. Unless�

�� The heart monitor, which had
been going off steadily for the entirety of the conversation, skipped a beat
and then picked up its pace. Lavi couldn�t breathe. Every gasp of air felt
shallow, too little to be sufficient.

�� He�s dead, isn�t he?� Lavi
gasped out. It had to be true. It couldn�t not be.
Lenalee wouldn�t hesitate to tell him unless something had happened to his
lover. Pain erupted before his eyes, and his diaphragm hurt, but he needed to
keep trying to breathe.

�� No! No, Lavi, that�s not it!�
Lenalee said, raising her hands up above her chest and waving them at him.

�� But I can�t see him!�

�� Yuu should have�would have�been here when he woke up.
Even if he was injured, Yuu would have been right there at the side of the bed,
where Lavi had first seen Lenalee. The world was getting far blurrier than he
could ever remember it being.

�� That�s because he�s unconscious
right now,� Lenalee explained, grabbing his wrist above the restraints in a
tight hold.

�� But that wasn�t possible,
because Yuu would have insisted on being in the same room. If
he was unconscious, drug-induced or not, he would have been in the empty bed
next to Lavi�s. Instead, there was a pile of books and a sweater on top
of pressed, stark white sheets.

�� Suddenly, reality seemed even
fuzzier, and he pulled out of it before it became too confusing, too painful.

---

�� As if every breath didn�t hurt
enough, as if his stomach didn�t stab at his awareness each time he made a
slight movement, the pain in his cheek woke him up. Opening his eyes, Lavi
glared up at whoever the cause was. He wanted to bring a hand to his face, but
the rattling noise and lack of movement reminded him that he was restrained.

�� Lavi, stop scaring Lenalee,�
Allen said, looking angry. The blurriness from Lavi�s previous waking was completely
gone, and his head was clear. Obviously, some time had passed between the last
thing he remembered and�

�� Yuu was dead, though, right?

�� Lavi tried to pull past the
restraints, get up so he could grab Allen�s lapels and shake the boy until he
got an answer. A strong hand came down on his chest, forcing him to still.
Blinding pain engulfed him, but Lavi didn�t care. Allen knew what had
happened�he didn�t look that battered.

�� Hey, Lavi, stop moving, you�re
going to take out your stitches,� Allen admonished, leaving his hand in place.
Lavi squirmed against it, but the pain was starting to get to him, so he
stopped, feeling resigned.

�� No one will tell me what
happened to Yuu,� Lavi mumbled, looking up imploringly at the white-haired boy.
�All Lenalee would say is that he was unconscious. He�s dead, though, isn�t
he?�

�� Allen shook his head, looking
down at Lavi pityingly. The redhead found he didn�t much like the expression.
�No,� the white-haired boy said, sounding as if he was talking to the very,
very dull, �he�s unconscious.� Allen sighed, and Lavi nodded for him to
continue. �He�s� in a coma.� He spoke the last words carefully,
probably afraid Lavi would react badly. That was a given, though. A coma?

�� He�ll wake up soon, right?�

�� Allen�s hesitation was all the
response he needed. Lavi tried to let himself go. Yuu
wasn�t waking up, so he didn�t need to either. Another slap to the same cheek
pulled him from the stupor.

�� You�re a fucktard, you know?�
Allen asked him scathingly. Lavi gazed up at him, uncomprehending. �He�s still
alive, so get the hell over it. Lavi, they don�t know why he�s in a coma. He
shouldn�t be�there�s no brain damage.�

�� Do they think he�ll ever wake
up?� the redhead asked softly. Allen shook his head.

�� But it is BaKanda. He�s too much of a stubborn ass to give up. I can�t
believe I�m saying this, but he�s going to wake up, simply because that�s who
he is. Lavi, he�d never abandon you. So stay awake until he comes out of it,
okay?�

�� Lavi wanted to nod, he really
did, but the world seemed so lackluster without his lover in it.

�� Lenalee walked in, smiling
hugely in a way that shouldn�t have been allowed. It was too cheerful. Damn
people and their happiness.

�� Hey, Lavi!�
She said, aiming her smile at him. �Did you hear? Miranda�s pregnant! And so is
Cyrah!�

�� Despite wanting to crawl under a
rock to die, Lavi felt his mouth drop open in his shock. Miranda had actually had sex? And� Cyrah? What kind
of disgusting twist of fate was that? Lavi couldn�t quite find the words to
explain his confusion.

�� Mirand�oh, fuck.� Lavi turned
his head as another wracking cough exploded from his throat with a shower of
coppery-tasting blood. Another wave of nausea swept over him, and he spewed
blood all over Allen�s clean, white shirt.

�� Aw, that�s disgusting, Lavi!
Don�t you have a chest tube to stop this?� Allen exclaimed, looking sickened.
Lavi didn�t care, his chest hurt. His
ribs twitched, and he felt something slide from between them. Abruptly, blood
spurted out, also covering the white-haired boy�s shirt. He heard Lenalee
scream, but then all sound was gone, and the world faded out.

---

�� His legs were wet. That didn�t
make sense, why would it be raining in a hospital? Lavi cracked an eye open and
was both surprised and horrified to see Amanda. Her body shook with tremendous
sobs as she unloaded tear after tear onto his legs.

�� Amanda?� He questioned, once
again trying to lift a hand so as to place it in her hair, but he was still
restrained. Amanda�s tremors abruptly stopped, and she looked up, rubbing her
eyes.

�� Hey, Lavi!
You�re awake again!� She exclaimed, her voice quivering and a large, plastic
smile plastered on her lips. Tears still rolled down her cheeks.

�� Why� are you crying on me?�
Lavi asked, bewildered.

�� I was praying to the� Hospital
Fairy for your safe recovery! It requires� the sacrifice of virgin tears,� Lavi
stared at her incredulously, �But I figured my tears would do,� she added upon
seeing his expression.

�� You�re a horrible liar when it
counts. Who died?�

�� Amanda shook her head and turned
away, obviously trying to hide more tears.

�� At least yours will be with you
once he�s recovered,� Amanda muttered, getting up to leave. The movement put
her profiled face into full view. The entire right side of her face was covered
in a light bandage, and she looked miserable. Her hand, Lavi noticed when she
lifted it from atop his legs, was similarly dressed. She was wearing a sheer,
light top, and Lavi could see further bandaging beneath it.

�� Amanda, what happened?� Lavi
asked, trying to lift his hand again and becoming infuriated with the
restraints. Abruptly, the American girl�s face crumpled, and she collapsed onto
his legs again. The movement jerked his body; Lavi yelped with the pain in his
stomach.

�� Mr. Darcy broke up with meeeee!�
Amanda wailed into Lavi�s thigh.

�� I�d give you a hug, but I�m
kind of� stuck,� Lavi said blankly. He tried to twitch his fingers in sympathy,
but pain shot through his hand, and he hissed. Amanda looked up as his legs
stiffened against her face.

�� Lavi, did the doctors look at
these?� She asked, picking up one of his hands carefully, her tears quite
forgotten. Lavi squirmed in pain, sending twinges of agony through his stomach,
but he tried to stay as still as possible. Amanda continued to examine his
hand, bending fingers and massaging the palm. Lavi could feel his bones moving
out of place with each touch. He wasn�t really surprised; without the Innocence
to keep them in alignment, he didn�t expect them to be that mobile. He still
remembered the days Yuu had lightly massaged them, and he remembered how hard
it had been to move them.

�� I don�t know,� Lavi answered
truthfully.

�� Amanda dropped his hand, and
they sat in silence for a few minutes. She was sniffling slightly but the tears
had stopped. She stood up and gave him a soft hug. It still hurt, though he
didn�t show it.

�� I�m heading home today, to
America. I have to finish high school, and I�ve already been accepted into
Princeton.� Lavi gave a low whistle and then hissed in pain as his stomach contracted.

�� Do you want me to call the
nurse before I leave?� Amanda sounded concerned, but Lavi just shook his head.

�� No, pain medication addles my
brain. It infuriates me when I can�t observe,�
Lavi explained with a grimace. Amanda nodded.

�� I�ll come
visit in a couple weeks,� she said, walking out. A minute later, the nurse
walked in, carrying a large syringe.

�� Mr. Lavi, it�s time for your
pain meds.� The nurse smiled sweetly. Lavi was not pleased.

�� No,� Lavi moaned

�� Yes, Mr. Lavi,�

�� Nooo,� Lavi insisted in a whine and tried to squirm out of his
restraints.

�� Why do you not want your meds?�
The nurse said rolling her eyes.

�� I want to be aware when Yuu
wakes up; can I please go see him?�
the redhead pleaded, widening his eye in what he hoped was a pitiful way.

�� You know you can�t, you have no
immune system. I take you out of here, and you�ll get sicker than you already
are,�

�� I�m not sick!� Lavi insisted,
coughing.

�� Suuure.�

�� Please.� His tone was
desperate, all acting gone. The nurse was obviously shaken by his sudden change
in character, but she remained stern, shaking her head sadly.

�� I�m sorry, Mr. Lavi, but right
now it�s an impossibility. If you take your meds, then
maybe you can get there faster.� The nurse walked over to his IV and pressed
the plunger down. Relief came almost immediately, as did the fuzziness that
always accompanied it. Before he fell asleep, he vaguely remembered calling
Yuu�s name.

---

March 5, 2014�Hospital in London

�� They said he had food poisoning.
Which wasn�t fair, as he�d barely eaten anything solid in the
past week. Now he couldn�t eat anything at all. Not if he didn�t want it
spewed all over the floor�or, if he was lucky, in a bucket.

�� He had never felt so weak in his
entire life. He couldn�t even lift his head from the pillow. He was vaguely
aware of someone in the room. They were talking to him, but he couldn�t
understand what they were saying. They were moving his hands, and pain shot
through him like lightning, from his hands and directly to his stomach, which
took the liberty of emptying itself on the offender�s chest.

�� He knew he was mumbling. What,
he didn�t know, but there were words coming out of his mouth. He fervently
hoped they were in a language no one would understand.

�� He faded in and out of
consciousness, and when he awoke again, the nurse was there, along with someone
who was scribbling fervently on a clipboard.�
They noticed his sudden return to attention and froze.

�� Who are you?� Lavi asked of the
young-looking brunette with the clipboard.

�� The man smiled at his restrained
form. They had tried to remove them once, but after he had ripped his stitches
from tossing about in his sleep, they�d reluctantly returned them.

�� I�m Doctor Smolder.�

�� Lavi suppressed a laugh, �You
sound like a stripper.� The man made an irritated sound, but Lavi continued
before his reply, �Why are you here?�

�� The nurse said you were
muttering some concerning things in your sleep. She asked me down here to give
you a referral.� The man replied and Lavi�s blood ran cold.

�� No. Not ever.� His voice held
no room for argument. The man simply shook his head and left. Lavi turned to
the nurse.

�� Don�t meddle.� The woman took a
step back. �I�ve seen things you could never imagine, seen things that would
curdle your blood in an instant. Tell me, should an already broken person be
splayed for the world to see? I know I�m fucked up, so don�t meddle.� Lavi
looked at the nurse, who was simply staring at him; her face was pale and she
was shaking her head.

�� I�m sorry. I won�t ask anymore,
but please, why is the sun so important? You keep calling for it in your
dreams. You sound so lost when you say it, and I just need to know if it has
anything to do with why you won�t sleep with the lights off.�

�� Lavi laughed lightly, trying not
to upset his stomach. He was trying to hide the fact that he was skipping his
pain medication. �If they did to you what they did to me, then you wouldn�t
sleep with the lights off, either. Do me a favor, when Yuu wakes up, make sure
the lights are on.�

�� The nurse nodded. �That doesn�t
explain the sun,� she said softly.

�� My sun keeps me warm, but I�m
not with him right now, so it�s very cold.� Lavi�s voice was equally soft, and
he gazed past the nurse, as if that action alone would let him see his lover.
Lavi turned his head to look away from the nurse, ending their conversation. A
moment later, he heard her footsteps leave.

---

March 6, 2014�Hospital in London

�� Beep�..Beep�.Beep. Beeps overlapped. Why was there another set? It
didn�t make sense. He was alone. A familiar scent tantalized his nose. Now the
world really wasn�t making sense. Had
someone slipped him some Morphine? Because cinnamon shouldn�t
have been in the overly sterile air. He was afraid to open his eyes, because
if he did and Yuu wasn�t there, he didn�t know what he�d do.

�� Mr. Lavi, your heart monitor is
going crazy, are you awake?�

�� It was the nurse from his room.
If she was here, that meant he wasn�t with Yuu. Lavi squeezed his eyes shut as
tight as possible, wishing he could bring his hands up to cover them as well.
The smell of cinnamon still wafted up his nose, teasing him with its very
imaginary presence.

�� Mr. Lavi, open your eyes�it
took a shitload of begging and pleading to get you in here, so take a look,
okay?�

�� Lavi shook his head, squeezing
his eyes even tighter. The nurse made a noise that Lavi couldn�t quite classify
as a sigh, though it wasn�t quite a scoff. He imagined that she was rolling her
eyes.

�� Why not?�
She asked testily. Lavi shook his head again. �You�re acting like a child, just
tell me.�

�� Because he�s
not there. This is obviously an illusion.�

�� This time, the nurse did sigh.
�Lavi, open your eyes. Don�t make me do it for you.� Lavi cracked an eye open.
�Good, now turn to face me.�

�� Gazing that way would make him
face the bed that was empty. Preparing himself to break, Lavi turned his head.
He blinked in confusion. There was someone in the bed across from his. He was
covered in thin blankets and had short, black hair.

�� Yuu?�
It looked like him, and the room, while the same, had a different view from the
window.

�� There was an almost unnoticeable
che in the air, released from the
dark-haired man�s slowly moving chest. The little digital number on the heart
monitor spiked. Next to him, the nurse froze and turned to look at the screen.

�� That shouldn�t happen,� she
said faintly. �Can I� no, that�s ridiculous. Just a
coincidence.�

�� Can I go closer?� Lavi asked,
heaving himself up despite the shaking in his limbs and the large pain that shot
through his stomach. He played it off as a twinge. The nurse gave him a
contemplative look and then nodded.

�� Lie back,� she ordered, and
Lavi fiddled with the bed�s controls until the head was at an angle. Lying back
on it, he gestured vaguely with a pain-ridden hand to continue. Carefully, the
nurse pushed their beds together. Immediately, Lavi reached out with his left
hand to grab Yuu�s stationary right one.

�� The heart monitor spiked once
again. The nurse gasped.

�� Impossible,� she muttered. A
second later, she was using the phone in the room to call in Yuu�s doctor. A
middle-aged woman walked in with Allen and Lenalee following her. Lavi pulled
his hand back; he wasn�t supposed to be over there in the first place, and the
nurse wouldn�t let it happen again if the doctor refused.

�� What�s going on?� Allen asked,
looking confused as he scratched his nose. Abruptly, Yuu�s
pulse flatlined.

�� Lavi didn�t feel anything but
the dread that overtook him like a blow from Oodzuchi. All he felt was the
sinking, drowning feeling, like he was being submerged in an icy lake.
Everything was frigid and dark, as if there would never be sun again.

�� Yuu,� Lavi whispered. If there
was no sun, there was nothing. If there was no sun, there was no warmth, and
Lavi very desperately needed warmth.

�� The doctor had a crash cart
going, but she stopped as Yuu�s heart rate settled at a slow beep again. Lavi
breathed in a deep, warming sigh of relief.

�� That was what you were talking
about, then?� The doctor asked the nurse, who nodded.

�� Look how he responds to Mr.
Lavi�s touch.� She gestured for Lavi to grab Yuu�s hand again. Heart beating
too fast from the adrenaline rush, he reached out and placed his aching hand on
Yuu�s still one. The heart monitor picked up once more. The doctor made a hmmming noise
but remained stoic and still.

�� Mr. Lavi, I�d like to test
something. You and Mr. Kanda are� an item, am I correct?� The doctor asked,
looking away as she spoke the words. Her face was a mask of confusion mixed
with acute contemplation, and her eyes were vacant as if she was thinking very
hard.

�� Lavi nodded, the movement
eliciting a small twinge from his still throbbing stomach.

�� Does he� dislike Mr. Walker?�

�� Lavi snorted. �He pretends to,�
he explained, �but really, they�re best friends. They don�t realize it,
though.�

�� I am not best friends with BaKanda!� Allen exclaimed, sounding offended.
Yuu�s heart rate dropped again, but he didn�t crash. Lavi breathed a second
sigh of relief. Yuu�s mouth twitched, but then it went slack. Lavi wanted to
squeeze his lover�s hand, but his own wouldn�t move at all.

�� His stomach wrenched in a way
that had become disturbingly familiar. It was painful and nauseating all at
once. Still, it was better than that time three weeks ago when he�d had rotavirus,
back when he�d still been in the low immune system ward. One
sickness. Two exits. For eight days. That hadn�t been pleasant. It had
been even less pleasant when it had been coupled with severe dehydration.

�� He felt the vomit rise in his
throat and put a destroyed hand to his mouth, making a pre-retching noise. All
attention was immediately returned back to him as he spewed on Allen�s shoes.

�� Aw, come on, Lavi!� Allen
exclaimed, sounding outraged. �That�s the fifth time you�ve done that!�

�� Lavi chuckled weakly, ignoring
the awful taste in his mouth and the flash of pain that bubbled through his
stomach at the movement. �But it�s so fun,� he cackled, his voice thin. Allen
made to punch him, but the doctors held the boy back. �Which reminds me, why do
you only have one arm, and where�s Oodzuchi?�

�� Allen hesitated and looked away.
�The Innocence is in the earth now,� he responded, shrugging.

�� Oh,� Lavi replied. His eye
rolled back into his head, and the last thing he muttered before he was out
was, �do you mind if I pass out now?�

---

March 14, 2014�Hospital in London

�� It took Lavi exactly twenty-six
coherent seconds interpreting Doctor Speech to realize that he would never
regain full use of his hands. He�d been too sick during his first month in the
hospital to do any type of therapy, and now that his infection had died down
somewhat and his immune system had gotten a bit of a boost, the doctors seemed
to want to torture him for hours. They gave him an orange stress ball, one of
the squishier varieties, and they�d been trying to have him make fists for the
past three hours.

�� The only problem was that he
could barely move the damned things at all, let alone make fists. Looking at
the x-rays in the corner, he wasn�t surprised. Knuckles weren�t supposed to go
there, and fingers simply didn�t angle that way. One of the three doctors
grabbed his hands, shooting pain up his wrists.

�� Hmmm�� The doctor said,
furrowing his eyebrows until they were closely knitted together. �Your bones
are extremely out of alignment�� No shit,
Lavi thought furiously, ��and half of them are connected only by muscle. Half
of your carpal bones are rubbing up against each other in extremely destructive
ways. I suppose, with surgery�� The doctor trailed off.

�� Er�� Lavi started, but the
doctor continued on.

�� But the extent of the damage� could you repeat exactly what happened to
them?�

�� Lavi sighed. �I pretended they
were hammers. The stone floor needed to be properly shaped. I spent hours doing
it.�

�� This is self-inflicted?� The doctor�s
furrowed eyebrows raised in interest.

�� Lavi looked over at his lover.
�Yuu�� he whimpered. It was in moments like these, when the doctors got close
to forcing the pent-up emotions from him, that he missed Yuu telling them to go
shut the fuck up and leave. Maybe, Lavi thought nostalgically, he would
threaten them with Mugen, too, even though his Innocence was now gone.

�� I�m going to have someone come
in to talk to you,� the doctor said. Turning to the other two white-coated
bastards, he gestured for one to pick up the room�s phone. �Get Maynard down
here. I think he was on the case before,� he told them.

�� Letting the orange ball fall
from his slack hands, Lavi felt dread returning to his system. Despite being so
drugged up he couldn�t concentrate, he had made a point to learn every worker�s
name, face, and age. Doctor Maynard Smolder, the psychiatrist who had visited
him just a week prior. He didn�t want to see the man again. That meant the
hospital was prying, and he wasn�t sure how well he would hold up without Yuu�s
support. He gazed once more at the still figure in the other bed.

�� By the time the young brunette
entered the room, Lavi had been joined by Amanda.

�� Oh, it�s Smexy Smolder!� She
sang out, smiling another of her plastic expressions. Her eyes showed just how
torn apart she still was, even without the aid of the dark bags beneath them.
Lavi wanted to laugh at that, but he just couldn�t bring himself to do so. Each
step the doctor took brought him closer to Lavi, and the redhead felt a familiar
coldness sweep through him as the man reached his bedside.

�� I won�t grace that comment with
an answer,� the young doctor said eloquently, his face flushed with an emotion
Lavi was too panicked to recognize. Turning to the redhead, he asked, �so, how are you feeling today, Lavi?�

�� Lavi remained silent, fixing his
solitary eye on the form of his lover for lack of anywhere better to look. He
tried not to blink, but necessity brought the action about.

�� Lavi?
Can you hear me?� The doctor asked. The redhead felt someone hit his shoulder
with a tiny hand, but he ignored it. It was very easy to do. He felt Liam in
his head for a fleeting second as he brought objectivity into his world.
Nothing, no one mattered. Except Yuu, because Yuu was always
the exception.

�� Lavi? Lavi?� A hand
snapped in front of his eye, but Lavi kept himself from blinking with skills
from his Bookman training. He could imagine Yuu scoffing at the doctor�s
attempts, maybe even laughing now. He could imagine the dark-haired man just
being there, holding him.

�� Hair too short,� Lavi mumbled
without meaning to. The doctor raised an eyebrow, but Lavi had already locked
his mouth shut, and he refused to speak again until the doctor had left. When
he surveyed the room, he noticed that Amanda was gone, too. �Happy birthday,�
he added to the silence that was peppered only with the beeping of Yuu�s heart
monitor.

---

April 28, 2014�Hospital in London

�� Allen felt unbelievably sad
today, like he was feeling someone else�s sadness, not to mention the fact that
his thoughts kept going back to �Yuu-kun.� So it didn�t come as a surprise when
he found Lenalee sitting at Kanda�s bedside.

�� Where�s Lavi?� He asked,
dragging a second chair next to Lenalee�s. The Chinese girl looked up with a
gloomy expression and then returned her gaze to Kanda�s depressingly still
form.

�� He�s at physical therapy.
They�re working on his stomach and chest muscles today,� she answered quietly,
her voice nearly monotone. Allen sat down and put his hand on her shoulder,
hoping he was being comforting. She leaned into his touch, a tiny smile hinted
at the corners of her mouth.

�� I heard he�s got another
infection,� Allen said, more as a way to get his mind off of Yuu-kun. Lenalee nodded but didn�t make
any other gesture. Her right hand went out and covered Kanda�s unmoving one.
�He�s going to wake up,� Allen told her quietly.

�� How do you know?� Lenalee
asked, her voice sounding like that of a child seeking assurance.

�� Because he wouldn�t give me the
satisfaction of living longer than him,� Allen replied simply, smiling down at
the girl he loved. Lenalee gave a small, watery chuckle, though no tears fell
from her eyes. Those had long since been spent, and now she looked on in silent
depression. Allen moved his arm so that it was around her small shoulders. She
rested her head on his shoulder.

�� You�re hungry, Allen, go eat,�
she told him quietly, almost as if she didn�t want to disturb Yuu-kun�s�no, Kanda�s�sleep.

�� No, I�m not,� Allen disagreed,
looking down at his stomach. He had lost weight lately, but he just hadn�t felt
hungry at all. It was the most bizarre thing. Ever since the Innocence had left
his body, he had had trouble forcing the food down his gullet.

�� Yes, you are. Allen, you
haven�t had anything to eat in three days,� Lenalee pointed out, tilting her
head upward so that she could stare admonishingly at him.

�� Sighing, Allen disentangled
himself from her. �I just don�t feel hungry,� he muttered.

�� Yes, you do, you just don�t
realize it because you�re so used to being a parasitic type. At least eat
something somewhat solid, okay?�

�� Allen nodded and left the room,
returning ten minutes later with a bowl of tomato soup and saltine crackers. He
ate slowly, forcing the food down at a slow pace, but under Lenalee�s
vulture-like eye, he finished it all. Some of the tiny, dull twinges in his
stomach disappeared as he digested. Sighing, he leaned over and put his head on
Lenalee�s shoulder. She made a high, inquisitive noise and shifted so that they
were both more comfortable.

�� I meant what I said,� Allen
mumbled, closing his eye�the other was little more than a hole in his head, the
eyelid still tender from the reconstructive surgery.

�� About not
being hungry?� Lenalee asked, sounding both tired and indignant at once.

�� No, I meant what I said on the
battlefield,� Allen clarified, opening his eye to look into Lenalee�s. Her face
softened as she understood what he was referring to.

�� Me, too,� she said, smiling
tenderly. Leaning her head down, she kissed Allen�s white hair with the same
gentle, caring quality of her expression.

�� They remained silent for a
while, listening to the other�s breath and to the slow rate steadily beeping
away on the heart monitor.

�� Hey, Allen?�
Lenalee asked quietly. Allen made a little grunt and opened his eye, which had
fallen closed at some point. �What are we going to do after Yuu-kun wakes up?�

�� Allen thought about it for a
moment. �Well, I do own a casino,� he
began. Lenalee�s posture stiffened for a second and then relaxed. She pulled
back enough to look Allen straight in the face. Her expression was dumbfounded.

�� You own what?� She asked, sounding shocked and confused.

�� A casino,� Allen said
matter-of-factly. �I didn�t tell you?�

�� Lenalee shook her head, looking
scandalized. �And you�re going to run it?� She asked incredulously. Upon
Allen�s answering nod, she added, �Do you even know how?�

�� Well, that�s what schooling�s
for, right?� He asked. Lenalee sighed exasperatedly.

�� Allen, no offense, but you�re
stupid,� she said.

�� Allen opened his mouth in shock.
Lenalee�his Lenalee�was calling him stupid? The world suddenly didn�t make
any sense. Maybe there were still Akuma about? �No, I�m not!� He exclaimed,
pulling away from her.

�� Yes, you are. But it�s okay,
because I love you, and I�m sure you can do anything you put your mind to,� she
said, smiling at him in a too-cheerful manner.

�� Well, what are you going to
do?� Allen asked, changing the subject. Lenalee�s expression dropped, and she
looked contemplative for a while.

�� I don�t know,� she finally
said, looking somewhat crestfallen. Allen wrapped his only arm around her
shoulder and pulled her into his chest. She nuzzled into a more comfortable
position, one where her nose wasn�t crushed and her breaths didn�t come out in
little squeaks. Allen wasn�t quite sure why, but having Lenalee right there in
his arm, smiling contentedly as she closed her eyes against him, was quite
possibly the best sensation he�d ever felt. It made his heart race. He was
positive she could hear his pulse, but it seemed she was ignoring it.

�� Allen, what are we gonna do?� She asked after a long,
comfortable silence. He looked down at her, and their eyes met. Gray and purple. Together, they made gray-purple.

�� Er� well�� Allen shifted his
eyes around the room, cancelling the color they�d made. He knew what he wanted
to say, but it sounded corny and horribly stereotypical. Lenalee didn�t deserve
stereotypes. She didn�t deserve normal. �You like kids, right?� He finally
asked, returning his gaze to her face.

�� Lenalee�s eyes went wide, and
her mouth made a little �oh� shape. �That�s very forward of you, Allen,� she
said breathlessly. Allen felt his face grow hot with a beet red blush.

�� I meant that you could work
with kids or something,� he mumbled, embarrassed.

�� Oh. Yeah, that could be fun.
Maybe I�ll teach kindergarten or something,� Lenalee said, though Allen thought
he heard a note of disappointment in her tone.

�� Do you want kids, though?�
Allen asked, blushing harder and looking anywhere but the Chinese girl in his
arm. Lenalee�s face grew nearly crimson as she nodded, a small, embarrassed
smile sitting on her lips. Allen abruptly wanted to say it again, the thing he most desperately wanted to ask her but was
too afraid to let loose into the air.

�� I mean, I�d have to be married
first,� Lenalee amended.

�� Do you want to get married,
then?� Allen blurted in a rush. His blush deepened even further, if such a
thing was possible, as he realized what he had just said. To
Lenalee. Even though he had wanted to say it.
But she wouldn�t want to, and he wasn�t quite sure they were old enough for
kids anyway, and he was a bit confused because she had tears swimming in her
eyes now, and he was scared�terrified�she
would say no.

�� Allen,� she replied slowly, �I
don�t want kids now. Maybe in a couple years, but not now.�

�� He let out a small sigh but then
realized she hadn�t answered. It cut a little bit, as it was probably her way
of refusing him�

�� But I would like to get
married,� she added.

�� Allen�s face broke out into a
huge smile. �Really?� He asked, blown away.

�� Lenalee smiled, too. �Yes,� she
said.

�� I�ll get you a ring,� Allen
promised, and Lenalee nodded.

�� Once the economy is back up,�
she said. They smiled broadly at each other, and Allen leaned down, pausing
right before their lips touched. And then the world of the hospital and the
beeping and the depression was gone, and all that mattered was Lenalee�s smile
against his lips.

---

May 27, 2014�Hospital in London

�� Life, Lavi concluded, was
miserable. It was filled with pain and infection. It was filled with
loneliness. He�d long since given up hope that Yuu would
wake. His lover�s brain activity had gotten slightly stronger over the past
couple months, but it wasn�t anything significant. There had been a period at
the beginning of May when Lavi had fought off his infection completely. He�d
been on a steep road to recovery, and suddenly he was chugging along like one
of those bullet trains they�d taken to France almost a year ago. But now the
train had derailed and fallen down the hill.

�� He could move his hands
somewhat, making a sort of half fist with them, though they wouldn�t move any
further. The doctors were encouraging, but Lavi knew he wouldn�t get much more
use out of them. The skin graft had healed within the first few weeks, and even
his stitches were starting to fade. His liver was steadily regenerating the
third he�d lost. Breathing had become easier as his lung and diaphragm healed.
The only remaining problem was the infection that had decided to worm its way
back into his system.

�� Which was why
he was currently bracing himself over the toilet, emptying the contents of his
too small, barely healed stomach. The nurse walked in and placed a new
tube of enamel-building toothpaste on the counter next to him. Lavi coughed out
his thanks before letting out another round of vomit, followed by whatever
stomach acid was left. It burned on the way up, hot and sour.

�� Getting up on shaky legs, Lavi
walked back out into the room, letting the slow, reassuring beeping of Yuu�s
heart monitor relax him in a way that Allen and Lenalee�s current presence
couldn�t. Still, when Lenalee got up, looking concerned, and walked toward him,
he let himself collapse into her. Yuu still hadn�t woken up, and he needed a
hug, dammit.

�� It�s
okay, Lavi,� Lenalee whispered into his chest. But it wasn�t okay; Yuu wasn�t
awake. �Everything will be just fine.� But it wouldn�t; Yuu wasn�t awake, and
he was showing no signs of doing so in the near future.

�� Lavi went a bit limp in her
embrace and let her lead him to a chair on Yuu�s right. He knew it had been
placed there so he could see his lover�s face better. Lenalee had placed it
there three weeks ago when Lavi had first started sleeping on Yuu�s bed (much
to the nurse�s consternation). He smelled the clean, floral scent of her
shampoo, wishing it was lotuses but knowing it wasn�t. Sighing, he pulled
Lenalee into his lap so he could have something solid and there to grab on to.

�� She placed her hands in his
shaking, nearly unmoving ones, and Lavi realized something was different. There
was a warm, metal object where there shouldn�t have been one. Counting her
fingers, he understood the significance at once.

�� You�re engaged to Allen?� He
asked quietly, wondering when it had happened. Had he been that out of it? He
saw the back of Lenalee�s neck blush mightily. When he looked over at Allen, he
saw a mirrored red on his features. Slowly, Lenalee nodded.

�� He just got me the ring today,
but he asked me to marry him a month ago,� she confessed. Lavi blinked, confused.

�� Allen asked you?� He asked,
uncomprehending.

�� Yeah, of course,�
Lenalee said, as if Allen dropping down on his knee to propose marriage to the love of his life

�� He had the balls?� Lavi
reiterated. Allen�s face grew offended, and he made a huffing noise. Yuu�s
heart monitor blipped higher for a moment. Lenalee scowled.

�� Of course he did!� She huffed,
but she smiled a moment later, as if conceding to the amusement.

�� The door opened, and as Lavi
looked over, a very startled-looking Sarah walked in. She ghosted over to
Lavi�s chair, lifting Lenalee from his lap as if she weighed nothing. Sarah
gave him a confused look.

�� How can you not be touching
him?� She asked incredulously, scooting his chair forward and moving his
throbbing hand so it was on Yuu�s. On the heart monitor, the beat spiked as it
always did. �No, still not good enough�too strong, too strong�need� ah!� She
raised a finger as her expression cleared with epiphany.

�� Sarah�s face scrunched up in
acute concentration as if she was focusing all her energy on one thing. A
moment later, a small ornate door appeared in the middle of the room and a
smiling Road walked out.

�� What is it, Sarah?� Road asked,
obviously concerned, �You sounded upset.�

�� Road!� Sarah exclaimed, running
up to her sister and hugging her tightly. She began to whisper something that
Lavi couldn�t hear into Road�s ear. Road�s eyes widened,
and a larger smile appeared on the black-haired girl�s features.

�� Wow, that�s a great idea,
Sarah! I wonder why I didn�t think of that!� Road exclaimed, extracting herself
from Sarah�s embrace. The young Noah skipped over to Lavi and smiled sweetly at
him.

�� Lavi?� she asked. The redhead
looked her in the eye, noticing a strange, excited gleam. �Wanna know what
Kanda�s dreaming?�

�� Lavi didn�t understand. But when
Road lifted her hand onto Yuu�s forehead, placing her other hand on Lavi�s own,
the comprehension dawned as he was thrown into a world completely unlike
reality. All around him were trees. They reminded Lavi of the forest outside of
the old Order Headquarters. Actually, they were a carbon copy, he realized as
he looked closer. Following the worn path that Yuu had engraved into the forest
floor, Lavi quickly stumbled upon his lover�s clearing. To his surprise, Yuu
was sitting cross-legged against one of the nearby maple trees, his eyes closed
and hands lightly resting atop Mugen, which was in his lap.

�� Yuu?�
Lavi asked, taking uncertain steps forward. Yuu opened an eye, looking shocked
at being interrupted. Sitting down next to him, Lavi couldn�t help but put an
arm around his lover�s shoulder, letting his head rest on it. Yuu leaned into
the embrace, a peaceful smile on his face.

�� What are you doing here?� the
Japanese man asked quietly, his tone inoffensive.

�� Road let me in,� Lavi replied
nonchalantly. There was a small silence, and then Lavi added, �I miss you.�

�� Yuu nodded. �I miss you, too,�
he mumbled, a small hint of his usual gruffness in his voice. Lavi�s heart
swelled. He�d missed that smooth, molten butter sound.

�� Ne, Yuu, when are you waking up?�
Lavi asked softly. Yuu leaned back, and Lavi let his arm drop back to his side
as the Japanese man gestured to his chokuto.

�� As soon as Mugen�s gone,� he
replied. �How long have I been unconscious?�

�� Three months, one week, six
days, fourteen hours, twenty-seven minutes, and thirty-nine seconds,� Lavi
replied, his tone coming out with a hint of depression, though he hadn�t meant
for it to. Yuu shifted uncomfortably next to him. �Do you know how long it�ll
take for Mugen to disappear?� He added after a moment.

�� No,� Yuu replied quietly as
Lavi leaned his head back on the other man�s shoulder. The Japanese man rested
his head atop Lavi�s, reaching over to place his hand in the redhead�s.

�� No pain shot up his arm at the
sudden pressure, and Lavi frowned contemplatively. Slowly, carefully, he let
his fingers curl over the back of Yuu�s hand. His hand moved smoothly, without
cracking. Each joint bent easily, as if it was in alignment. He made a curious
noise. Yuu shifted, pulling back to give him a questioning look before
returning to their previous position.

�� They work here,� Lavi
commented, raising their connected hands to imply the subject.

�� They don�t work outside?� Yuu
asked quietly. Lavi shook his head.

�� I can move them maybe about
this much,� he muttered, lifting his other hand and closing it halfway. The
other man made a small, almost disgruntled noise and switched their hands so
that their fingers were twining. Lavi squeezed his hand, smiling.

�� While we can,� he said.

�� While we can,� Yuu agreed.

�� Once again, silence fell between
the two, but Lavi didn�t mind it. He didn�t mind anything at all as long as he
could be there with his lover. He did notice how quiet it was, though.

�� Is it always so quiet?� He
asked finally, breaking the comfortable silence.

�� Sometimes I hear talking,� Yuu
said. Lavi raised an eyebrow, though he knew his lover couldn�t see or feel the
motion.

�� What was the last thing you
heard?� He asked.

�� Something ridiculous about Moyashi and Lenalee getting married,�
Yuu mumbled.

�� Yeah, they just told me that,�
Lavi said, smile turning broad.

�� When did Lenalee ask him?� Yuu
asked.

�� Actually, surprisingly, it was
Allen who did it,� Lavi replied. Yuu tensed in shock and turned so that they
could look into each other�s eyes. He looked skeptical. �Yeah, I was shocked,
too,� Lavi continued. �Apparently, Allen actually has the balls to ask for what
he wants.�

�� Yuu chuckled and leaned back on
the tree, squeezing Lavi�s hand. The redhead rested his head back on the
Japanese man�s shoulder, and they resumed the same pose for the third time.

�� Everyone misses you, it�s not
just me,� Lavi commented. �I mean, obviously Lenalee, but Allen does, too, not
that he�d mention it. Amanda does, but she�s not really in the right� frame of
mind since she and Darcy broke up�yeah, they broke up; I�m as confused as you
are. Oh, did you know? Lolek and Miranda are getting married. She�s pregnant.
Apparently, she was two weeks gone in the final battle.�

�� Yuu snorted. �They would have
that luck,� he said, smiling. Abruptly, Lavi leaned forward and kissed him.
�What was that for, rabbit?�

�� I love you, that�s
all,� Lavi admitted. His stomach clenched up, and he grimaced. �And my body�ll
be throwin� up soon.�

�� Why?�

�� Well, I�m still sick,
Yuu-chan.�

�� You just said it�s been three
months since��

�� My stomach�s infected again. I
stopped throwin� up blood after my lung finished healin�, but apparently,
infection, food poisoning, rotavirus, influenza, and colds love me.�

�� Yuu pulled back again, eyes
widening. �Are you�?� He began, looking flustered, as
if he didn�t really want to admit he cared but decided to just go with it.

�� Oh, I�ll be fine. Don�t worry
about me. Just concentrate on waking up. Why are you asleep, anyway? The docs keep
sayin� there�s nothin� wrong with you, so I�m kinda confused.�

�� I�m� restarting,� Yuu said, as
if that explained everything. Which it didn�t.

�� Eh?�

�� My body is used to having the
Lotus Spell, but Mugen broke it for me. It needs to� restart� adapt to the
spell being� gone.�

�� Lavi looked down at his chest,
where a small, black marking still marred the flesh of his left breast.
Thankfully, he was wearing an Exorcist jacket here (though he was currently
clothed in a pair of sweatpants and a loose-fitting shirt, not that he cared).
Yuu shot him a curious look, but Lavi just smiled up at him.

�� Well, just concentrate on
restarting, then, and I�ll be there when you wake up. Anything I can do to help
with the silence?�

�� You could� read,� Yuu
suggested, looking away. Lavi squeezed their intertwined hands.

�� Whatcha want me to read?� He
asked.

�� Che. Whatever you have, I don�t
care.�

�� Lavi nodded. Yuu tensed again.

�� Who is that?� He asked,
pointing with his right hand to the other side of the clearing. A girl with blonde hair and sapphire blue eyes that shown as if
they were lit up by the sun was walking toward them. It was light inside
the clearing, but there was nothing bright enough to create such an effect. But
she was Sarah, after all, and Love always had shining eyes.

�� Oh, that�s Sarah. She�s Noah�s
Love.�

�� Ah,� Yuu grunted. The girl
stopped in front of them, leaning down and touching Mugen. Her face abruptly
broke out into a stormy, almost sad expression.

�� No, no, no,
not good. Three years is too long!� She exclaimed. Leaning forward and
still touching Yuu�s blade, she kissed the dark-haired man on the forehead.
Smiling, she ran off until she was gone.

�� Yuu stared after the girl, still
tensed from the sudden contact. �What the fuck?� He asked, and Lavi shook his
head, not knowing the answer. He looked down at Yuu�s lap. Mugen was nearly
transparent. The Japanese man stared at it as if he had never seen his trusty
blade before. He closed his eyes for a moment, and when they re-opened, he
looked directly into Lavi�s eye.

�� I�ll wake up in a week,� he
said simply. Lavi�s mouth opened as he gaped at his lover.

�� Come again?� He asked, mouth dry.

�� I�ll try to wake up sooner, but
a week at the latest,� Yuu repeated.

�� Lavi doubled over as his body�s
stomach rebelled. �I�ve gotta go,� he choked out. Yuu released his hand. �Love
ya.�

�� He thought he heard a similar
response, but he was back in the real world, retching all over Allen�s
shoes�what was this, the seventh time?�the stench of the disinfectant tickling
his nose. Lenalee helped him to his feet and sat him back into the chair he had
somehow vacated.

�� What happened, Lavi?� Lenalee
asked with a concerned note to her voice.

�� Yuu will wake up in a week,�
Lavi said weakly as he wiped his mouth off and Allen shot him a disgusted look.
�Can you grab me a book, Lenalee?�

�� The Chinese girl nodded and
walked over to his side of the room. �Which one?� She
asked.

�� Whichever is on top,� Lavi
clarified, coughing. When he wiped his hand over his mouth again, he saw red
once more. Grimacing, he grabbed Lenalee�s proffered book.

�� Ne, Yuu-chan, I�m gonna read you A Tale of Two Cities. Ahem. �It was the best of times; it was the
worst of times��

�� Yuu�s hand twitched as Lavi
read, and the redhead felt his heart swell with each tiny movement.

---

June 2, 2014, 11:41 PM�Hospital in London

�� Lavi felt a rough shaking
beneath him and sat up, prying his eye open. He�d fallen asleep on Yuu�s chest
without meaning to. The nurse would have his head. But at the moment, he
couldn�t bring himself to care. Yuu was staring up at him, his deep brown eyes
nearly unfocused with disuse. It was, quite possibly, the best sight Lavi had
laid eye on in the past several months.

�� Yuu?�
He asked. �You�re awake?�

�� Rabi, stop beeping,� Yuu whispered in Japanese, his voice raspy.

�� You�re eighteen minutes and
fifty-eight seconds early,� Lavi said quietly. The corners of Yuu�s mouth
lifted up in a slight smile, his atrophied muscles not allowing any further
movement. There was a soft, croaky chuckle that originated somewhere in Yuu�s
chest and came creaking out his mouth.

�� You would know the exact time,�
Yuu mumbled softly, coughing. Lavi leaned back and pressed the nurse�s call
button.

�� He couldn�t hold Yuu�s hand�he
had MRSA at the moment�but he could look down at his lover and revel in the
fact that he could now hear the voice he�d thought he�d never hear again.

�� I love you,� he whispered.

�� Baka Usagi,� Yuu grumbled, lifting his arm shakily. �You�re still beeping.�

�� Lavi rolled his eye. �That�s the
heart monitor, Yuu-chan, not me,� he said exasperatedly.

�� Tired�� Yuu mumbled, closing his eyes again. His arm was still
outstretched, as if seeking something.

�� You�ll wake up again, right?�
Lavi asked hurriedly. Yuu�s searching hand found Lavi�s, and even though the
redhead could barely bend his, their fingers intertwined for the first time in
months. He smiled.

�� Of course.� It was a simple,
decisive answer, and Lavi couldn�t help but trust it, his heart purring in
contentment.

�� Sleep well, then,� Lavi
whispered, still smiling.

�� Aishiteru,� Yuu mumbled, and then he was gone. Lavi closed his eye,
leaning back against Yuu�s chest. His world seemed much brighter and much, much
warmer. It would be an uphill struggle for good health, but it would be easier
now that Yuu was awake.

---

A/N:
FINALLY finished! On to the next! Anyhoo~ still undecided re: title for the
epilogue story, but that�ll be comin� to you in the fall! When we get back to
school (so long :�3). We�re currently listening to
�Don�t Call Me No Mo,� which is kinda fitting, since we�ve just finished IR. It
was a fun ride, and we�re glad we got it done before the end of school!

Also, the epilogue is dedicated to Em2�s friend, Casey, who suffered
rotavirus while in the hospital after a liver/kidney transplant. Several times. She actually helped us come up with things to
make Lavi suffer. :)

A/N 2: Kanda after skull! That was not what Em2 intended
to say when directing Em1 to put a
comma after the word skull. *headdesk*His sense of bread, rather than his sense
of dread, is an Em1 original speako, though
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Innocent Rain