Crash site:

8man PoV

"Oi! Get me … head is leaking blood like a …."

What?

I could barely make out the words being spoken around me, my vision was getting blurry like I was underwater.

What happened? All I remember is jumping to save that dog before the damn car hit me.

"Apply…Pressure!"

Just what is happening…I'm gonna be late in the first day, this sucks.

"Move! We…"

I'm feeling tired…maybe I'll take a nap.

…

(8mom PoV)

"…Yes Komiko the presentation is ready, I'll be there for the meeting and- wait a sec- someone's calling me."

I glanced at the phone screen irritated, this device was honestly more of a curse than a blessing. How I loved the days of my youth, parents actually had to believe you when you said you were going out to college or to a job, and landline phones were so scarce and calls so expensive that no one would bother calling to confirm.

Now you have a damn 'ping' every minute

Nonetheless, I picked up the call.

"Am I speaking to Mrs. Hikigaya Kimiko?"

"Yes," I could detect some tension from the voice on the other side, "And you would be?"

"My name is Kirishima Sakuya, I'm a nurse at the Local Municipal Hospital,"

Hospital!?

"This is about your son Hikigaya Hachiman, I am afraid that he was in an accident and…"

My phone unceremoniously dropped as I fell to my knees…

Hachi…

(Hospital)

8mom PoV

I rushed through the glass doors on the ground floor caring little about ruckus my entrance caused, I ran to the reception and practically shouted at the receptionist.

"Where is the Intensive Care Unit!?"

Apparently used to this sort of behaviour, the receptionist calmly asked me who I wanted to see and pointed me in the correct direction.

As I ran up the stairs I could see the familiar figure of Joichiro as he was talking to a guy wearing green scrubs.

"Chiro!" I shouted as I ran to him, we hugged as I sobbed in his arms for a few moments before I felt his grip loosen and distanced myself enough to face who I assumed was the doctor.

"Mrs. Hikigaya I presume?" The guy asked.

"Yes," I answered as calmly as I could in the given situation.

"My name is Dr. Miura Katsuki," he spoke through his surgical mask, "I'm afraid that it is time to start the surgery, so I will be leaving it to your husband to explain the situation."

I nodded slightly as Dr. Miura moved and disappeared through the doors of the operation theatre, the red light above the door acquired an ominous red hue as the door closed behind him.

Joichiro and I stood still for a few moments before he held my hand and we sat on a nearby bench.

"What happened?" I finally found the courage to speak.

Joichiro squirmed a bit in his seat before he spoke.

"He got hit by a car," Joichiro choked, "He apparently jumped to save a dog…got hit and…hit his head against a pole and…"

Even Chiro's façade of calmness faded as I saw tears roll down his cheeks, he had been here much before me and had been holding up throughout the process of seeing Hachi in his current state and signing the waiver forms, I simply wove my arms around his frame and sat quietly for some time.

…

(An hour later)

The red light suddenly turned off as some of the staff trickled out of the Operation Theatre, I was about to rush the nearest guy in scrubs when Joichiro held my hand firmly and made me sit.

"They've done what they could," Joichiro spoke, "Let them come to us."

I sat for what felt like an eternity before Dr. Miura came to us and removed his surgical mask to reveal a faint smile.

"He's out of danger," Dr. Miura spoke, "He lost quite a bit of blood but luckily we had more than enough to make it up," his smile faltered a bit, "although his head took quite a hit, so I'm afraid we'll have to keep him under observation for some time after he gains consciousness to check for any trauma."

Joichiro nodded to him after which Dr. Miura went off, presumably to rid himself of the now ruby red scrubs. We sat in the same position for a few moments before releasing a breath we did not realising we had been holding.

"Thank god he's okay." Joichiro spoke, breaking the silence as I felt a small smile creep onto my face despite the circumstances.

I had run away from my first meeting with the editor-in-chief, I was looking worse than a homeless drug addict and missing a shoe, with an unconscious son in the Intensive care ward…

But Hachi was still breathing! That's all I could care about at the moment.

Joichiro got up as another guy in scrubs approached us and explained the standard procedure, Hachi would be kept under observation for atleast 24 hours before being shifted out to another ward where we could meet him.

"…so you can see him tomorrow morning, I understand you would want to see him personally but the risk of infection is too high given his injuries."

"I understand, I'll clear everything with the administrative wing in the evening." Joichiro spoke, I wanted to protest, to see Hachi even it was for just a few seconds but Joichiro's firm grip on my hand kept me rooted.

"You can take your time sir," the guy spoke in an understanding voice, "The paperwork can wait, right now I would recommend that the both of you take some rest and eat something. Your son has suffered a serious blow to his head, therefore it'd be for the best if you could appear as normal as possible when he wakes up in order to avoid any trauma."

"Yes doctor, thank you for your efforts." Joichiro bowed slightly as I mimicked his actions.

"Oh please, it was our duty," the guy said, rubbing his head in embarrassment, "But Dr. Miura is the one you should really be thanking, he's the one who was leading the team."

Joichiro nodded to him a the rest of the staff dispersed, we stood still for a few moments before Joichiro nudged me.

"We should go… maybe go home and change," he spoke with hesitation, "It's not even noon yet, I think maybe we can pick up Komachi-chan later and get something to eat."

I swallowed a biting retort as I settled for a nod, the doctors had advised us to retain normalcy, and we'd be no good for Hachi in our current state even if he woke up. We thereafter made our way downstairs, Joichiro signed in the register and we took a cab home.

…

(Komachi PoV)

I waved off my friends as we separated from the gate, today had been a very good day.

I walked along the pavement, gomii-chan had promised me he would come and pick me up today. Maybe I could act a bit cutesy and trick him into buying me some sweets?

Hmmm I'm sounding a bit manipulative there…

Tee hee!

…

I waited near the intersection for some time but there was no sign of gomii-chan anywhere.

Gasp! Did he suddenly become popular, make a lot of friends and started hanging out with them!? If so who would look after poor old Komachi!?

…

Well, it was atleast it sounded a bit funny. Honestly I wasn't expecting much, gomii-chan isn't the type to get along with people and would generally just sulk around the house after school.

But things had been different since the last 2 weeks, after his admission to Sobu High School gomii-chan wasn't sulking anymore, hell I had even see him smile a few times, not the creepy smile he got while reading those strange books, but a smile with actual happiness.

So maybe I wasn't that far off, and as far as I'm working on scenarios, who knows maybe he'd come to get me with a girl in his arm…

"…machi-chan!"

Eh?

"Komachi!"

Am I daydreaming? Or are mom and dad here to get me? Not like I don't appreciate the gesture, but why are they wearing their home clothes? Didn't they leave just after gomii-chan and I did?

"Mom, Dad," I walked to them and greeted them with a smile, whatever it was, I was just happy that my parents were here to get me.

"Hello Komachi-chan," Mom spoke as she suddenly got down to my level and started caressing my cheeks. She looks a bit out of it, did something happen?

Did you get fired!?

"Komachi," dad spoke as he held moms hand and got her back up, he looked a bit unsure himself but asked a question I always answered in the affirmative.

"Are you hungry?"

…

(Restaurant)

8dad PoV

I firmly held onto Kimiko's hand as we walked into the nearest family restaurant. Komachi was quick to order her favourite pasta and I mindlessly told the waiter to triple the order and make us 2 strong black coffees, the day had been a vicious roller-coaster and I didn't feel like eating at all.

But I had to fill my stomach with something, an empty stomach was the last thing I wanted on my mind.

The day had started rather easy, if anything it was actually more pleasant. Hachiman had been rather enthusiastic, if I could label his behaviour in the morning, he got up early, ironed his uniform twice and left for school early enough to greet the night-shift watchman.

If I hadn't known better I'd assume he just gone for an early morning tryst, but unfortunately I knew better. Hachiman was overall a pretty nice guy, he had inherited his mother's pleasant looks and had a brain which functioned at a level beyond both mine and Kimiko's; but unfortunately of all things he could have gotten from me, he got my eyes.

The eyes…they were like a curse of the family, and my son had inherited the curse with my genes. I had known about the bullying Hachiman had suffered due to his physical features, kids could be rather cruel-but there was little I could do. Kimiko had insisted on multiple occasions about talking to the parents of his peers but I knew better, complaining about it to the parents of the kids who picked on him would have only made things worse. Hachiman had not been very forthcoming about everything, but I had an inkling that a girl was somehow involved in the entire thing.

But things had taken a turn for the better, Hachiman had cracked one of the toughest High School Entrance examinations, he had managed to score high enough to place in the top 5 in the district and even got a scholarship. He had practically jumped from his seat when we looked at the website; everything was feeling better. He would finally be at a good place with a fresh start, there was little more anyone could have asked of him.

I still remembered the feast Kimiko had cooked on the evening of the result- the way Hachiman had coughed after gulping his first saucer of saké had been hilarious!

"Uh…dad."

"Hmm," I looked up, Komachi's voice had broken my trance as I looked up.

"Uh, the food will get cold…" Komachi spoke, I realised that the waiter had already served our meal. Komachi and Kimiko were looking at me worriedly.

"Ah, Itadakimasu." I muttered as I got a spoon and chewed on a dish of rubbery pasta.

But everything had gone downhill soon after I reached office, I had initially rebuffed the calls but Kimiko kept calling me, I picked up the phone on the second ring…

…and then all hell broke loose.

I had run like a madman to the nearest cab I could find, Kimiko had only managed to utter 3 few words between her choked sobs on the phone, but they were enough to make my blood run cold.

"Hachi…accident…hospital…"

I had thrown money at the cab driver as I got down and rushed to the hospital. The doctors had inquired about my identity and gave suddenly served me with an ultimatum.

"Sir, I'm afraid that the accident has caused considerable damage to your son's head. We will have to operate as quickly as possible if we want to avoid any permanent damage…"

I had to force down the torrent of emotions that had been threatening to spill out as I had filled out a few forms and signed on the waiver document, I had somehow managed to keep myself standing until Kimiko stopped crying and Dr. Miura had informed us that Hachiman would live.

"…Dad!"

"Yeah?"

"You've been scraping the bottom of the plate for a whole minute," Komachi pointed out as she looked intensely between me and Kimiko, "Something's not right, both of you are out in your home clothes…is everything alright? I'm calling onii-chan now."

Kimiko shuddered a bit at the mention of our son.

"Komachi-chan," she managed to speak in a low voice, "About Hachi, he…"

She fell quiet, unable to speak.

"What about onii-chan," Komachi now got up from her seat, "Where is he? Did something happen? Why are you here then? And why…"

I just held up my hand, signalling her to sit. She obeyed hesitantly, and I decided that it would be best to tell her everything, just not here.

"We'll talk at home," I spoke as I left a wad of cash on the table. The 3 of us got into a cab, no one spoke until we reached home.

…

"So are you going to tell me now?" Komachi asked, her voice seeping in impatience and desperation.

"About Hachi, Komachi chan," Kimiko spoke, she took a sharp breath before speaking again, "He was in an accident."

Komachi stood like a statue for a few seconds, her small frame refused to move until she had completely digested the words. Her eyes bulged as she lunged across the sofa and desperately began shaking Kimiko's hand.

"What Accident!? Is he alright!? Why aren't we at the Hospital!? Why is…"

"Komachi," I spoke, the fatigue from the day was seeping in, "Hachiman is alright, we went to the hospital in the morning. He had to get a surgery, and the doctor said we can see him tomorrow morning and…"

My mouth went dry, I was suddenly unable to speak another word. Instead I just got up from my seat and hugged Komachi, holding her as close to me as I could.

"I know how you are feeling Komachi," I managed to speak as I rubbed her head, "But right now we need to remain strong. Hachiman is alright for now, but the doctor said that we need to act normal when we meet him otherwise it could be bad."

I cupped her small face in my hands as I spoke again, "So I need you to be strong, alright? We'll all go and see Hachiman tomorrow morning, so for now we need to remain strong. Hachiman needs us to be strong."

Komachi nodded, tears spilled from her cheeks but I could see in her eyes that she agreed.

She was a good sister.

I suddenly felt my eyelids grow heavier.

"Maybe we should all take a break," I spoke, Kimiko nodded to me as all 3 of us went to the bedroom for much needed rest.

…

(Next Morning at the Hospital)

8mom PoV

The three of us got off a cab, although visiting hours didn't start officially until half an hour, Dr. Miura had left us a message to meet up a bit earlier.

The moment Joichiro signed in the register we were lead to a small office, one that I presumed belonged to Dr. Miura.

"Ah, Mr. and Mrs. Hikigaya, and this young lady must be your daughter." Dr. Miura spoke, he looked quite different without his scrubs.

"Yes sir," Joichiro spoke, "this is our daughter Komachi Hikigaya."

"Pleased to meet you doctor," Komachi spoke, the greeting was returned in earnest.

"So, I will get to the point," Dr. Miura spoke as he took a few X-Rays and placed them before a bright screen, "First onto the positives, there have been no complications since the surgery, Hachiman-san is responding well to treatment and may even regain consciousness in the next 48 hours…"

There was a pregnant pause, I could sense Dr. Miura's eyes land on Komachi as he hesitated.

"It is alright doctor," I spoke as I held Komachi's hand, "She is his sister, she needs to know."

Dr. Miura sighed as he held up the last X-Ray and spoke again, "While a greater part of the physical damage will be healed in a few weeks, I'm afraid that your son may not be the same person when he wakes up."

I felt the hairs on my neck stand up at his statement.

"What do you mean doctor?" I asked.

"This," Dr. Miura pulled up a diagram from under his desk, "indicates a normal human brain. It is divided into 3 main parts: Cerebrum, Cerebellum and Brainstem." He indicated each of the parts as he spoke.

"In your son's case, the blunt force trauma has caused some major damage here," he pointed out the frontal side of the cerebrum as he spoke, he then left the diagram on the table as he pointed on the X-Ray Reports, "This is called the Hypothalmus," he pointed to a part of the diagram which had a dark hue, "In your son's case the damage was caused majorly in this area and I'm afraid that this damage could be permanent."

…

What?

"So, will Hachi…" My head felt like it was swimming, Joichiro squeezed my hand as he beckoned Dr. Miura to continue.

"It is unlikely to have any effect on his regular functioning," Dr. Miura spoke, "However this is the part of the brain which is attributed to behavioural responses in a person, most commonly known as emotions."

It felt like a stone had dropped in my stomach as words continued to roll off Dr. Miura's tongue.

"We are not in a position to indicate the exact effects of such damage, it is by no stretch life threatening, but some of the previous cases studied across the world indicate a strong psychological change that…"

"Dr. Miura," Joichiro spoke for the first time in the meeting, "It is alright, please do not beat around the bush, we can take whatever you throw at us. Nothing changes the fact that he is still our son."

Dr. Miura sighed, suddenly it looked like he had aged overnight.

"The damage means that Hachiman-san will have a tough time processing emotions," He drew a sharp breath before he continued, "It is likely that Hachiman-san would awaken as someone without emotions- completely emotionless."

My head felt heavier than it ever had, suddenly a fuse went off in my head as darkness consumed me.