Title: Morinaga Tetsuhiro, Unmasked, Part Two

By: EsTeLweNadia

Summary: Two-shot. Set after Souichi collapsed, Vol 8 Ch 10. Morinaga had been taking such good care of his Senpai when he was sick, and when it was his turn to fall sick, Souichi found himself repaying the favor. Then he learned a side of Morinaga he never really knew.

Genre: Hurt/Comfort/Friendship/Romance/Angst

Warnings: Senpai and his mouth… But I'll try to tone it down.

Disclaimer: Characters afflicted are not mine, and will never be. Except in my dreams, maybe. ^^

Author's Note: Thank you for your kinds words in your reviews. You really motivated me to continue writing. I couldn't have done it without your tireless support! So as my thanks, this is Part Two! ^^

Author's Note 2: Any mistakes seen are mine, and mine alone. I am not perfect, and I did the best I could. Reviews are immensely appreciated, so please have them coming! Now what are you waiting for? Get on reading! ^^

Previously on Part One:

Barging right in, the first thing Souichi did was to switch on the lights. And the scene that was revealed before him horrified him the second time that evening.

Morinaga, on the couch, a very familiar jacket was grasped tightly against his chest.

Upon closer look, Souichi realized that the kouhai was still drenched from the rain. And his eyes were closed.

"Oi, Morinaga!"

Panicked, Souichi ran over to him. A gentle hand to the younger man's forehead only determined his suspicions.

Morinaga was having a fever. And it was bad. Really bad.

Morinaga Tetsuhiro, Unmasked

Part Two

"Dammit, dammit, DAMMIT! Stupid, fucking idiot!"

His curses echoed eerily in the silent apartment.

Neighbours might think that he had lost his temper. Again.

But the truth was, he was scared. Really scared.

Morinaga had never depended on him. In fact, Morinaga had been the one taking care of him, seeing to his every need, without hesitation and without fail. Even after Souichi tried to push him away countless times, Morinaga never failed to bounce happily right back.

Souichi swallowed at a sudden pain that stabbed his heart, at the sudden pang of guilt and remorse that threatened to engulf him.

"Sen….pai…"

Morinaga's pained whisper cut through his despair and yanked him back onto solid ground. And rationality started to kick in.

Fever. Wet clothes. Bad combination.

Souichi made a dash into Morinaga's room and threw open his wardrobe, grabbing the first pair of pajamas his eyes landed on. And a towel. Then he rushed back to Morinaga's side.

The first thing he did was to try to pry his jacket from Morinaga's grasp. He tugged and pulled and yanked as hard as he could, but Morinaga still did not relent his hold on the jacket.

"C'mon, let go," Souichi hissed, hoping that his voice would somehow penetrate through the fever that raged within Morinaga.

But he should have known better.

In the end, out of ideas and desperate to do anything to get the jacket out so he could start bringing the fever down, Souichi forced a finger into the clenched fist.

To his surprise, Morinaga released the jacket to grasp the hand the finger belonged to in a surprisingly strong grip.

Souichi groaned in frustration.

"Senpai?"

Startled, Souichi snapped his head up to look at Morinaga. His eyes were opened, but they were unfocused and glazed with fever.

"Who else do you think I am?" barked Souichi. "Let me go!"

"I can't…" Morinaga rasped. "You'll just… leave… me… alone… I don't want… to be alone…"

Loneliness. Abandonment. Rejection. All these were Morinaga's worst nightmares.

"I won't," Souichi found himself saying. "I won't leave."

Souichi almost broke at the sight of hope in the feverish eyes. "Promise?"

"I promise."

As soon as Morinaga opened his hand, Souichi immediately yanked his out.

"Oi, Morinaga!"

No response. His kouhai had fallen into unconsciousness again.

Oh well. All the better. Because what Souichi intended to do next, he preferred Morinaga not awake throughout. He absolutely did not need Morinaga's lewd commentary to accompany his actions.

While stripping Morinaga of his wet clothes, Soiuchi tried so hard not to look at the naked skin any longer than necessary. But he could not stop the blush from appearing on his cheeks. And to his horror, his rapidly rising desire, too.

Soiuchi swallowed audibly, willing the blush and the lust away. This was not the time!

He wiped Morinaga down quickly, but with a gentleness that surprised even himself. Once he had put on dry clothes on Morinaga, Souichi tried to shake the other man awake.

"Oi, Morinaga!"

It took awhile, but his kouhai finally responded with a bewildered, "Huh?"

"Can you get up? The couch is wet. I have to get you in bed."

Soiuchi blushed as soon as he realized what he had said. He could only pray that Morinaga was too dazed to realize it.

Unfortunately, Morinaga was a man who would not let an opportunity pass by him. He saw an opportunity, he seized it immediately.

"Never thought I'll be hearing that from you, Senpai," Morinaga said breathlessly, smiling faintly even as he struggled to walk to his own bedroom, with one of his arms pulled around Senpai's shoulders and the older man supporting most of his weight.

"Shut up," Souichi muttered. "If you have the time and energy to think dirty thoughts, use them to recover quickly. Baka!"

That baka had the nerve to chuckle. "Hai, hai, gomen, gomen…"

Grumbling about sick (in every sense of the word) and perverted idiots, Souichi lowered him on his bed and pulled the comforter up to his chin. "Wait here a bit. I'm going to fetch something from the kitchen."

Morinaga just mumbled a sleepy acknowledgement.

When Souichi returned with a basin of water and a small towel, Morinaga was fast asleep again.

Souichi couldn't help a soft smile that graced his lips. For a long while he just stood there, still holding the things in his hands, watching Morinaga sleep.

So beautiful….

Unbidden, the thought crossed his mind, and this time, he didn't banish it away, because he knew it was true. It was a shame that it was only right there and then he realized how beautiful Morinaga was. The slightly chiseled face framed by spiky black hair, the soft lips that was always smiling even in sadness, the expressive emerald eyes that was always so sincere and honest…

Souichi frowned. There was something on Morinaga's left cheek. Squinting, Souichi realized that it was the mark of a fading bruise. Souichi knew all too well how it got there.

I gave that to him, yet he never once complained about it. And I never checked how bad it was. Did he go and ice it in his own privacy, I wonder?

Souichi laid a gentle hand upon Morinaga's cheek in silent apology. It was a bit too warm. With a contented sigh, Morinaga leaned into his touch, the crease between his brows diminishing little by little.

Reluctantly Souichi removed his hand, ignoring the disappointed sound of loss. He carefully dipped the small towel into the basin of water, wrung out excess water and proceeded to wipe Morinaga's face with it, again and again, until at last he wetted the towel, folded it neatly into half and placed it carefully on Morinaga's forehead.

Leaning back against his chair watching Morinaga sleep, Souichi was once again left alone with his thoughts.

Had Morinaga ever been sick before? Souichi wondered, staring at the man in question.

He strained his memories. Morinaga hardly fall sick. Except there was this one time, a month after Morinaga just became his assistant; he couldn't attend the university for three days. Upon his return, Souichi noticed that his assistant was thin and pale, and his smiles were shaky at best. He tried to ask if Morinaga was okay, but the idiot just smiled and answered him cheerfully that there was no need to worry.

"Whoever's taking care of you hasn't been doing a very good job," Souichi had callously observed.

Another smile, but this time, it was slightly pained and bitter. "That is fine, Senpai… because I live alone."

It was only then Souichi realized that Morinaga was all alone in Nagoya.

Morinaga had been living on his own since five years ago, hadn't he? Ever since he left town. He rented an apartment near the university to live all by himself…

Souichi shuddered at the pang of loss and loneliness that brushed his heart at the thought of being separated from his family, away in a strange environment, around people he didn't know, and he was all alone…

It wasn't just lonely… it was downright scary.

Because if anything was to happen to him, nobody would know. Especially if he was the type who didn't like to trouble anyone with his troubles.

Because he had no one to share his burdens with.

And even if he had, he simply refused to, because that was just like him; kind, selfless fool. Treasuring other people's feelings over his own, even if his were mercilessly trampled and cast aside.

Souichi felt sick inside.

"Okasan… Otousan…"

Pained whispers from the bed forced Souichi back to reality. He leaned forward anxiously. "Morinaga?"

Morinaga was still asleep, but his countenance was no longer peaceful; it was plagued with nightmares.

"Please… don't say it like that… I'm really sorry… I didn't mean to tarnish our family's name… I just…"

Tears started to leak out from the closed lids, much to Souichi's immense alarm.

"Oi, Morinaga, wake up! You're just dreaming!"

"Please don't hate me, Okasan, Otousan… I'll leave this place, so please, don't hate me. I just… I just want you to know that no matter where I am, I will still love you both, so that's why… that's why… I really am so sorry…"

Souichi could feel his heart breaking at the sight of torrents of tears that cascaded down Morinaga's cheeks, at the pained expression that creased the face, at the intense pain he heard from Morinaga's voice.

"Morinaga, wake up! You got to wake up now!" Souichi yelled, shaking Morinaga harder, only to stop when he heard Morinaga whispered, "Masaki-san?"

Souichi stopped to stare at him in astonishment. "What?"

"Masaki-san, why…? I loved you so much, with all my heart and everything I have, so why…? I thought that you loved me, me, Masaki-san but… I guess I should have known better… that all this time you didn't love me at all… you love Nii-san. I'm just… I'm just…"

Morinaga's voice broke, then, and the tears just kept falling faster. "It's okay, Masaki-san. Even though you don't love me, I had loved you, and I won't regret it. I will cherish every memory we share together. Thank you for the memories, Masaki-san. I was truly happy being with you. My only regret that I am not Nii-san… I'm so sorry…"

Souichi was this close to slapping Morinaga awake. He pulled back the last second, remembering the fading bruise. "Oi, Morinaga! You've got to wake up right the hell NOW!"

Morinaga's eyes snapped open then, and Souichi was so startled he nearly toppled backwards. "Senpai?"

Souichi scrambled towards Morinaga. "You're awake? Thank goodness!"

But what Morinaga said next stopped him short. "I'm so sorry, Senpai…"

"What?"

Morinaga stared at him earnestly. "I love you so much… yet I always, always trouble you. Always keep imposing my feelings on you, even though I know that you don't like it. I really love you, and I want you to know that, even though I don't know how to express it to you properly. Maybe I just… I just need somebody to love me… I love my parents but they… they are happier when I left town. I love Masaki-san but he loves my brother. I love you but…" A slight, uncertain pause, and his voice trembled. "I'm not sure if you love me, Senpai. I don't even know if you love me, but I won't force you to love me back… I won't force you to accept me. Just let me stay by your side, it's good enough for me. Will you… let me stay by your side, Senpai?"

Souichi was well aware of tears spilling down his own cheeks, but he made sure his voice was strong and firm when he replied, "Of course, baka. You'll only get into trouble once you're out of my sight."

Morinaga flashed him a bright, blinding smile. "Really? Thank goodness, Senpai. I'm so happy…"

Then the smile faltered away, the eyes fell close, and Morinaga went still.

"Oi, Morinaga?"

But Morinaga was only sleeping, much to Souichi's relief.

Still, it shook Souichi to the core to realize just how much torment Morinaga had been silently suffering all this while, and what was worse, was that Souichi had absolutely no idea about it. He could blame Morinaga for hiding his pain so well; behind easy smiles and a pleasantly cheerful mask, which Souichi would never know it was there until the fever claimed Morinaga by force and unmasked him before his very eyes.

So Souichi sat vigil by the bedside all night…

… holding Morinaga's hand with both hands, until the next morning.

Dawn broke, and sunlight filtered through the bedroom curtains to lightly shine on Tetsuhiro's face; its gentle warmth slowly pulling him out of his slumber.

Thick fog of drowsiness and exhaustion wrapped lovingly around his consciousness, but still could not conceal the fact that his hand was a little too warm and numb, and that he wasn't alone in his room.

With difficulty he turned his head to the side, willing his vision to clear.

It was Senpai, with his head on the bed, fast asleep.

And Tetsuhiro reliazed with a start that his hand was held between Senpai's hands, tucked neatly underneath his cheek.

"Senpai?" He croaked.

Senpai jerked awake, blinking owlishly at him. "Morinaga! You're really awake now?!"

Tetsuhiro frowned, puzzled by the question. "Of course I'm really awake, Senpai… what's wrong?"

Senpai startled him by yanking him upright into sitting position, then enveloped him in a tight, desperate embrace.

Tetsuhiro was pretty sure he was still dreaming… except that the tears soaking into his pajamas proved him that he was not dreaming at all.

"Senpai?"

"Morinaga… promise me… don't you ever scare me like that again…"

"Senpai…"

Senpai's arms only tightened around him, and hesitantly, Tetsuhiro wrapped his own arms around Senpai.

"I'm sorry I've made you cry again, Senpai…" Tetsuhiro whispered, feeling ashamed and guilty at himself. He had made Senpai cry… despite his promise not to.

"Baka," Senpai murmured. "I'm just too happy that you're alright. Will you… stay by my side, Morinaga?"

Tetsuhiro blinked in confusion. Somehow, Senpai's question sounded vaguely familiar…

But Tetsuhiro dismissed it with an overjoyed grin and hugged Senpai tighter. "Gladly, Senpai!"

Tetsuhiro didn't know what happened the night before, but then decided he didn't care. Because right now Senpai was in his arms, and that was all that mattered.

- The End -

Thank you for reading. Hope you've enjoyed it. ^^

Owari.