Broken Bars; Hesitant Heart (Private: Hanako Ikezawa and Yuusuke)

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Darkness: the sensation of being enveloped by a pitch black emptiness through which no light my escape or enter. Bereft of sight or touch, Hanako Ikezawa found herself trapped within her own mind; alone as she had been for such a long time. What made the situation all the more frightening, however, was the fact that not all of her senses had shut down; at least not completely. All around her shell of darkness, muffled sounds, as if spoken from many yards away, sank into her mind through her dampened sense of hearing. Foreign scents, or rather, the smell of sterility flooded her nostrils; such a strong scent that, had her body any control, would have made her vomit. Wherever this place was, Hanako knew she did not like it. It was more than just her lack of vision and feeling, more than the smell, but that, as far as her mind could perceive, she was alone and isolated. There was no lack of people, as her hearing confirmed that there were voices all around her, but none of what they said could be understood; they were simply talking from too far off, avoiding all contact with her as people always did. Devastated, she wanted to cry, wanted to yell out in grief, wanted the world to know that she existed; but alas, she had neither the mental or physical capacity to do so. What she suffered was a fate worse than death, she had been completely passed by and forgotten by the world; her only interactions with the people allowed the dignity of true existence to serve to beat her back down into her world of isolation. This sad fate had gone on for years, Hanako unable to rise above or end the suffering. However, as she lay there in her deadened world, senses slipping away, perhaps now this cruel existence would finally let her drop into the final abyss...


What were these strange words ringing in her head? Every time Hanako felt herself slipping away closer to that abyss, these words rang as if throughout her entire being; each time bringing with them more of her senses. At first, this only served to confuse her; her memories temporarily blank as all she could remember was this darkness, but as they were repeated, their meaning soon returned to her mind. Yes, earlier today, or... was it today? Was it last week or perhaps last month? Time had lost meaning to her in this shell, but these words had definitely been spoken to her recently. As the words grew louder, so too did the voice of the one who had spoken them become clearer; a warm, heartfelt tone that had recognized her not as the rest of the world had, but as an actual person. With the voice too came a warm feeling; the only thing she could feel in the darkness as it comforted and protected her. Though just as foreign as anything her senses had picked up, this feeling was surprisingly pleasant; even managing to fight against the unpleasantness that seemed to surround her. While the words were still louder than any of the sounds her ears managed to pick up, the sounds were beginning to grow; solidify as they became clear and coherent. Oddly enough, there were not as many voices around as she had initially thought; many of the noises she had heard were simple beeps or hums, only a few actual voices from a slight distance. Oddly enough, this clarity began to make what surrounded her seem more familiar. With this familiarity, a scene began to build itself in her mind as to what could have been surrounding her, and with it, her senses seemed to begin to return. Slowly, as if waiting for the sun to rise in the morning, a blurry light broke through the darkness. It was still dim, but as it grew bit by bit, she soon realized that her eyes were closed tight. Suddenly, Hanako realized that she could feel her body again, that this darkness was all under her own control. She could break free, but if she did... what exactly awaited her? Fear once again began to swell up within her heart, but before it could grab a hold of her, those comforting words rang one last time; and the desire to look upon the kind face that had spoke them helped finally push her...

"Y-Yuusuke!?" With a loud (at least for Hanako) shout, Hanako's eyes fluttered open; bright lights flooding her vision and almost blinding her for a few seconds. Panting, her head quickly turned from side to side, trying to see where she was despite the seemingly intense brightness. She could tell now that she was in a hospital; the beeping and humming around her being the many medical devices used to monitor her vital signs, and the voices being that of doctors and nurses; though thankfully from outside of her room. This, of course, managed to frighten the poor girl, as a hospital had never been anything good in her lifetime. In fact, her last visit to one was the day her father died and her horrendous powers had killed her mother. Even more frantically she began to look around herself for something familiar, not even having her own clothes anymore as she felt a hospital gown covering her body instead of her usual attire. Feeling her heart begin to race, she was quickly approaching another panic attack and fainting spell that she had just come out of; the monitors around her beginning to beep as fast as her heart. She needed something... something to hold on to, to keep her from slipping back into darkness, but what was there? Tears welling up in her eyes, she did not know what to turn to... wait, was that someone by her bedside? With one final turn, she faced the figure sitting next to the hospital bed, and before her normal fear of people could arise, she soon recognized who it was. "Yuusuke!" she shouted once again through sobs, and without warning, nearly leaped to embrace the young man she had met earlier, Yuusuke Onodera. Still technically in the bed, her torso had reached out to cover Yuusuke's lap, and her arms had wrapped themselves tightly around his waist. She was clearly crying now, but with this one warm embrace she would not be slipping back into the darkness. "I-I... y-you d-didn't... l-leave me" she said in between sobs, though her face was pressed pretty close to Yuusuke's chest. Of course, in her current position, the back of her robes managed to slide apart slightly, leaving the scarring along the right side of her back and leg almost fully exposed to Yuusuke and anyone in the room. Thankfully, her undergarments had been left on, but to be honest; for once Hanako did not care if her scars were exposed, so long as this man before her did not leave.

“Ah! So you’re awake,” Exclaimed an astonished Yuusuke as Hanako embraced him from her hospital bed. From the time that he had arrived here until the time she now woke up, Yuusuke had been overcome with an extreme sense of worry for the young girl. When she fainted, out of fear of losing her, Yuusuke hurriedly ran to the principal’s office, requesting that he take her to the closest hospital, in the off case that she may have been in a critical condition. Even upon his arrival to the medical center, he requested that he have permission to watch over. Thinking back on it, perhaps he had worried a little too much, but the young man simply couldn’t help it.

To know he had the chance of helping this girl gain the happiness lost, allowing any danger to come upon her would not only be failure on his part, but a mighty blow to his psyche. Of course, if he had any remnant of worry before she awoke, it has all but passed now, into the depths of oblivion. If she is still able to move her body without any restraint, then that is as clear a signal as any that she is in good condition. Returning her hug, he smiled, keeping her held within his warm, welcoming embrace. Although he could perceive her scars, none of her skin defects bothered him in the slightest. After all, Yuusuke’s goal was to make her feel proud of the body she was given.

To be honest, the only thing that mattered at the moment was that Hanako was alive and well. Speaking to absolve the girl of her worries, Yuusuke said, “Why would I leave you Hanako? I like you.” He continued, patting her head ever so softly, “You’re my friend and I’d never leave a friend, especially not you. “ The genuine, heartfelt comments rolled from his lips unbidden. Each was spoken as a truth, Yuusuke’s way of showing her that their bond was indeed true. He did not come to her out of pity, nor to play any cruel prank. His sole intention was to make her happy, give her new hope, and shine a new light on her life, forever taking her away from her darkness…