CHAPTER 4

"...Are you sure he'll be okay?"

"Well, you saw how we found Esme, and he's okay now, isn't he?"

"B-But his wounds are so infected..."

"Let's do our best, alright?"

Hands and voices dragged Hikaru out of his dreamless sleep, and he opened his eyes to the sight of Beau and Lucien Thayer leaning over him.

"Ah, you're awake!" Lucien gasped, stepping back before a smile dawned on his lips. "I'm so happy..."

"Lucien bandaged your wounds when you got here, you know," Beau smiled. "He's the one to thank."

"For looking like a mummy?" Hikaru chuckled, his ribs aching at the motion. He winced and then smiled. "Thank you, Luci. I appreciate it."

"It's nothing at all. Beau's the one who calls the shots around here," the dark-haired boy chuckled sheepishly.

"But you did a good job, too. We're a team, and we're the ones who patch people up when they get hurt, so both of us have our roles to fulfill," Beau encouraged him, and then turned to Hinata. "Anyway, enough about that. How do you feel?"

"Better. Less tired. Kinda hungry," Hikaru shrugged. "Sorry. I'm probably using up a lot of your supplies by just being here..."

"No such thing. We can always find more." But the sudden strain in Beau's smile didn't make him very credible on that. Guilt welled up inside of Hikaru, and he looked down, ashamed.

"As soon as I get better, I'll help you guys find more stuff, okay? Promise," he whispered.

"Just get better, alright?" Beau's eyes darkened for a moment, but then perked right back up. "Alright. Your vital signs still seem okay. You have a bit of a fever, but it should go down if you take care of yourself. Asides from that, we'll have to see how you're fighting the infection, and hopefully, the next raid Nicholas will coordinate will be in a pharmacy still stocked with antibiotics."

"Can I see the others?" Hikaru asked, eager to get moving a little bit.

"They should be back any time now, so if you wait, I'll tell them to come to see you."

"Can't I get up?" Hikaru pouted, crossing his arms.

"Not yet. Gather some more strength. You can start walking tomorrow morning, if you feel up to it," Beau smiled, moving to the curtain and struggling a bit to pull it open entirely on both sides. Hikaru got a view of the front entrance to the gym and smiled gratefully at Beau for his consideration.

"Thanks again, Beau. For everything."

"Not at all, Hikaru," the vice-captain of the volleyball team assured him, and then his expression turned wistful. "Some horrible, horrible things have happened to all of us, and when there is nobody else, we have each other. And we have to stay together because there's nothing else in the world more valuable than us."

The two first-years nodded silently at that. Hikaru, mostly because he couldn't get a sound out of his throat at the thought of his mother's body still buried underneath all that rubble. Beau was right. He had nobody but the team now. They were his family.

Beau and Lucien seemed to notice the haunted look in his eyes and shared a glance. Then, the older teen stood back and motioned to the younger.

"Come, Luci. We have to do medical inventory before the others get here."

"Yeah," the younger nodded curtly, heading for the desk and sitting on the floor.

"Tell me if you need anything," Beau nodded to Hikaru, and then joined Lucien at the desk. The two began checking the inventory of their cardboard boxes, and Hikaru left them to it.

For a while, he closed his eyes and listened to the ruffling of equipment in the boxes and the occasional comment made by one or the other of the improvised medics. His heart warmed at the thought of Beau, ever-so-caring Beau, volunteering all of his time and energy taking care of others. And Lucien, shy and quiet Lucien, working hard to save other people's lives... it really was incredible.

He wondered what the others were up to.

_________________________________________________________________

The front entrance to the gym slammed open, startling Hikaru right out of his shallow slumber. Beau and Lucien, who were studying some nursing textbook or another together, stood up to look over the railing, and Hikaru tried to lean as much as he could to take in as much of the scene as he could.

"Bow down before our skill!" A familiar voice echoed across the gym, and a large grin split Hikaru's face.

"Behold!" The second voice added in, and Hikaru outright laughed when Hassan Gica picked Ethan Ross right off the floor, the latter brandishing a pack of toilet paper as if it were a gold ingot into the air.

"The almighty savior of our asses, literally!" Ethan exclaimed, sounding so convinced in his own speech that Hikaru couldn't help but have tears in his eyes at the sight of the familiar ridiculousness of his two friends.

"You're so crude and loud. Put that down," an exasperated voice came after them, and Hikaru did not even need to see to know that it was Esme Lavigne, apathetic as ever.

"Don't you understand? My butt can't take any more towels!" Hassan sobbed dramatically, putting Ethan down.

"Ethan, Hassan, you're embarrassing..." Ivan Ilin's gentler voice muttered as the ace walked in, carrying a backpack that looked rather heavy. He dropped it in the middle of the gym, next to Ethan's prized toilet paper rolls, and sighed. "Honestly..."

"Ivan is right," the familiar, comforting, commanding tone of their very own captain rang out as Nicholas Smith strode in, carrying a backpack as well. "Just because the world is ending, it doesn't mean you can be so crude."

"Lighten up, captain. Today was a good raid, after all," Ethan grinned. "Let's have a feast tonight!"

"Agreed. I'm starving," Hassan complained, flopping down on the gym floor and dropping his baseball bat next to Ethan's.

"You two are going to doom us all, you know," one last voice rang out before the double doors closed and the chains around the handles were locked, and Hikaru's heart positively leaped out of his throat. "With your appetites, we'll be running out of rations in no time!"

And he was on his feet before he knew it, covers were thrown off and completely disregarding Beau's instructions because he was so happy, so, so happy that everyone was alive.

A debate had sparked on the floor below, and Hikaru didn't care. He was flying again, soaring above the clouds where no pain could touch him and no sadness could rob him of this one moment when, standing in the light, he finally felt like he was safe and sound.

His knees buckled under his weight as he ran to Beau's side, and thankfully, the third-year was astute enough to catch him before he fell again.

"Hikaru!" he chided, straightening him up, but nothing could wipe away the bright, sunny smile on his face.

All heads turned up to the landing at the sound of his name, and all eyes, without exception, went to his smile.

"Hikaru!"

The collective cry tumbled out of everybody's lips -even Esme looked astonished, what a surprise-, and Hikaru's cheeks hurt from how hard he was grinning.

"Idiot!" One cry towered above all others, and Hikaru looked at Elon, who looked absolutely pissed and yet absolutely relieved to see him on his feet. "You stupid, stupid idiot!"

And Hikaru laughed and laughed, and though he wanted to welcome them back, all that came out of his mouth was a bright and unintentionally uplifting "Welcome home!".

____________________________________________________________________

Home was imperfect.

Its inhabitants didn't always get along. The electricity sometimes went out and they'd have to have cold showers for days. When food ran out, they'd go to sleep to the lullaby moaned by their collectively empty stomachs. They couldn't turn on the lights due to a fear of being spotted at a distance and had to make good use of the daylight, and dragged black cloth over the windows at night. Sometimes, people disagreed on who got the night watch shifts. Other times, people disagreed on raid parties.

Sometimes, people cried. Sometimes, people bled. Sometimes, people were so afraid that they would wake up screaming in the night, and everyone else would pretend they didn't hear them sobbing quietly into their pillow. Sometimes, people came close to giving up. Sometimes, people did.

And yet they stood strong and towered over the challenges set in their path. Best of all, they succeeded. They trampled over obstacles, helped each other over the walls blocking their way, and kept one another alive.

And through the dark, cold, terrifying nights where survival was put into doubt, there was always the mute reassurance that whether they lasted to see the morning light or not, they would do it together.

Even though they are imperfect, but together they are home. And when the sun shone through the dark clouds to wake them up in the morning, if there was no joy in living, there was always joy in being together.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***