Fushigi Yuugi Fan Fiction ❯ Scars ❯ Peroxide and Pondering ( Chapter 8 )

Only a one question this time...am I getting less confusing? I hope so. Anyway. Answers.

Genrou didn't just call an ambulance because he doesn't have a cell phone, and though he may have passed pay phones, he didn't have any spare change on him. Besides, I wanted him to carry Chiri. Say that five times fast. Carry Chiri carry Chiri carry Chiri........

*ahem* On with the chapter.

-------Scars--------

--Houjun--

"Oi, Houjun! GENROU! YER HOOOOOO-OOOOME!"

"Daa!"

"Gah! Kouji! What th' hell wazzat fer?!"

"You guys looked so comfortable back there that I couldn't resist," Kouji grinned.

That was when we realized the position we were in.

We pulled away from each other, blushing and apologizing profusely.

Kouji and Hikou were laughing. "What's so funny?" Genrou wanted to know.

"Nothing," Hikou chuckled. "You'll figure it out, sooner or later."

Shaking his head, Genrou opened his door and stepped out. I pushed the door on my own side open, fumbling with my crutches and trying to figure out which leg it would hurt the least to stand on.

"Hey, Houjun," Genrou called concernedly. "Y' want any help?"

"No, I'm all---" I was cut off by Genrou pulling my arm around his shoulders and putting his own around me. "--right..."

"Put yer crutch on th' other side," he directed.

"I don't need any help, no da..." I protested weakly.

He grinned at me. "Yeah, sure."

I blinked.

-Genrou-

As soon as I woke up, I knew that I had fallen asleep somewhat entangled with Houjun. For some reason, I didn't want to move. I didn't want Houjun to know that, though, so as soon as Kouji drew attention to our position, I pulled away from Houjun, an embarrassed blush on my face.

I stepped out of the car, annoyed that Hikou and Kouji were laughing at us. I didn't see what was so funny. We'd just fallen asleep!

On his side of the car, Houjun was opening the door and trying rather unsuccessfully to get his crutches into place. Watching him, I realized that he still wouldn't be able to walk very well. It can't be comfortable to walk on a broken leg--even a cast one--and a sprain.

"Hey, Houjun," I called. "Y' want any help?"

He began to respond in the negative, but I didn't let him finish. I put his arm around my shoulders and looped my own arm under his for support.

"I don't need any help, no da…" he murmured uncertainly.

"Yeah, sure."

He blinked at me, an odd look in his eyes.

"C'mon, let's go inside. It's gettin' kinda chilly out here."

He nodded and we started walking, slowly, Houjun leaning heavily on my shoulder.

--Houjun--

When we got back to the apartment, Genrou disappeared. A minute later I heard him calling, "Hey, Houjun, whered'ya keep yer disinfectant?"

"In the medicine cabinet behind the bathroom mirror, no da," I yelled back.

Smiling, Genrou reappeared carrying a bottle of hydrogen peroxide and a plastic bag of cotton balls. He pulled out the chair next to mine and sat, opening the bottle.

"What's that for...?"

"Y' got cuts all over ya." Genrou soaked a cotton ball. "Y' been lyin' in a dirty alley, an' they didn' do nothin' fer yer cuts at the hospital. Yer gonna get infected if ya ain't careful." Gently he dabbed at a cut on my arm. I winced.

"Sorry. I don' like this stuff either, but it works best."

"I can do this, Genrou." I tried to take the cotton ball from him. He moved his hand quickly, swabbing another cut. I winced again. "You've done enough for me already."

He ignored me, carefully cleaning another cut and discarding the cotton ball.

"Genrou!" He looked up from the cotton he was dampening. "I'm not helpless!"

"I never said ya were," He calmly wiped a scratch and reached for my other arm.

I pulled it away. "I can do it."

He looked at me. "I just want t' help ya," He said, a little sadly.

"You've already helped me a lot." I winced as another scrape was cleaned unexpectedly. I could well believe he used to be a thief; I hadn't even noticed him taking my arm.

"That's sneaky, no da!"

He grinned at me. "Can I help ya? Please?"

"Why?" Why should he want to help me so badly?

"'Cause I like ya. Yer my friend. I like ta help my friends."

I gave up. "All right, if you really want to..."

Finishing my arm, he got a new piece of cotton and reached out to put his hand under my chin. "Hold still," he ordered. "This one's pretty bad."

I stiffened with a small gasp as he started to clean the cut on my face.

"Sorry," he murmured, rubbing still more gently.

He brushed his hand over my other cheek. My face tingled, and somehow, I didn't think it was because of the peroxide.

"Just checkin'." He grinned. " Y' had some dirt on yer cheek, an' I wanted t' make sure I didn' miss a cut."

"Thanks, Genrou," I said with a small smile.

"I ain't done yet," he said. "Take off yer shirt."

-Genrou-

As I watched Houjun's eye widen, I realized how that must have sounded.

"That ain't what I meant, ya pervert," I smacked the side of his head gently. "Whaddaya take me fer?"

Houjun blushed. "I--I wasn't thinking...that..."

I laughed. "It's just, y' got blood on yer shirt,"

"Oh." Houjun looked relieved and a little embarrassed.

"My fault," I said. "Bad choice a' words."

I tried to look at the ground as Houjun removed the stained garment.

"Pass me th' peroxide?"

"Here," he said, handing me the bag of cotton balls as well.

His back was a crisscross of faint red lines. I reached out and began to clean them. I felt Houjun tense as the peroxide contacted the scratches.

"Sorry," I said.

"That's okay, na no da."

I smiled, quickly finishing the scrapes.

"Thanks again, no da," he said. "And I'm not going to take off my pants, so don't ask."

I laughed. "I wasn' gonna."

--Houjun--

The next morning, I woke late to hear Genrou on the phone. I made my way to the kitchen.

"Yeah, it was a friend a' mine."

Pause.

"No, sir, won' happen again."

Pause.

"Thank you, sir."

He hung up. "Houjun!" he said cheerfully. "Morning."

"Who was that, no da?"

"Uhm...that was one a' my bosses."

"Why did he call?"

"Worried, 'cause I missed work yesterday."

A phrase from the conversation flashed through my head. 'Yeah, it was a friend a' mine.' Genrou had missed work because of me. I felt awful.

"I'm sorry, Genrou..."

"I'm not blamin' ya!" he said.

"It's my fault, though. I am the idiot who got lost, after all."

"It's okay, Houjun."

"No, it's not! You missed work because I was stupid enough to walk into a part of the city that I don't know."

"Everybody makes mistakes. 'S okay, though. I didn' get inta trouble, th' boss was just worried."

"I'm sorry, Genrou."

"I already told ya, it's okay." He tossed a teabag into the mug of hot water beside him and handed it to me, smiling. I couldn't help smiling back.

"Sit down," He pulled out the chair next to his. I did so. As I did, my eye fell on the clock.

"Don't you have to be at work at ten, no da?"

"Only on Saturdays and Tuesdays. Sunday is my day of rest." He grinned. "Well, Sunday morning, anyway."

"I'm glad you have some time off." I sipped my tea.

"Not as glad as I am." He laughed.

As he drank his coffee, I watched him. There was no doubt about it, Genrou definitely resembled Tasuki. He's very handsome. I tried to squash the thought without much success.

Well, it's true. Nothing wrong with noticing something that's veryobvious. It doesn't mean I like him as anything more than a friend. I just happen to think he's very good-looking. And he's not just good looking, he's also kind and he makes me laugh. I feel safe when he's around.

Blinking, I wondered where that last thought had come from. It's true, I realized. I do feel safe with him around. Shaking my head a little, I thought, Listen to me. I sound like I've got a crush on him. My eye widened. Oh, blast...

-Genrou-

Houjun was awfully quiet. I could feel his eye boring into me. I looked at him. Yup, he was staring at me. I laughed to myself. I drank some coffee and went back to reading the comics. I don't care that he's staring at me. It doesn't bother me at all. I stared back at him. He didn't seem to notice. He was too caught up in whatever he was wondering about. He's cute when he's thinking hard...Hell, he's cute anyway. I smiled.

"Hey, Houjun?" No response.

"Houjun?" Nothing. Then, on a whim, I said clearly:

"Hey, Chichiri!"

-------To be continued

Phew. That took a couple hours...

~Ambika