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It was incredibly hard to open his eyes for some reason, but once he did, and his vision and mind got clear enough to see where he was, HiMERU was just even more overwhelmed. Where on earth was he, how did he get here, and what happened? And why is his head hurting like hell?
The ceiling looking exactly like the one from his own dorm room made him initially think he was in his own bed, but once he actually looked around the place, he didn't recognize it. It certainly seemed like another idol's dorm room in the seisou hall, though. It had the same layout and general vibe, with two beds that don't belong to each other in the middle of the room. He was laying in one of them, all tucked in. Whose room is this, and more importantly, what is he doing in there?
All of these questions ran through HiMERU's head as if it wasn't pounding enough already, seriously. He woke up to feel so unbelievably nauseous, sweaty, and dizzy, he could barely even focus. Fortunately, he didn't need to ponder about all of this for much longer, because unfortunately, a certain someone showed up right next to the bed he lied in.
"Ah, hello, HiMERU-san, you're finally awake."
In his completely dazed and overwhelmed state, HiMERU hadn't even noticed anyone approaching. Startled, he snapped his head around, to find…
Kazehaya Tatsumi.
"Oh, oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you, HiMERU-san. How are you feeling right now?"
As if he wasn't already sick, seeing that guy's face made HiMERU want to throw up now. Although all of his body felt so incredibly weak, HiMERU tried pushing the blanket away, attempting to sit up, frantically trying to just get out of Tatsumi's bed, to get out of this awful situation he somehow ended up in.
Tatsumi just took HiMERU's efforts as him being delirious, as he gently pushed the other man back the bed, pulling the blanket back over him again, "now, now, HiMERU-san, don't worry, everything's alright, dear. You have a really high fever, so you need to rest here, alright?" His kind and gentle voice only aggravated HiMERU even more, but he still gave in. Not necessarily because he suddenly got reasonable, but more because he was physically too weak to keep on resisting.
Luckily, despite HiMERU being too out of it to keep on acting nice and all, Tatsumi seemed to not think much of HiMERU mindlessly trying to climb out of his bed, simply assuming he was just acting feverishly lightheaded, which, well, he was. If he was thinking straight, and not like his brain is on fire, he certainly wouldn't be acting this frantic. After all, he always had to keep up the facade and be nice to Tatsumi, acting like he didn't actually wish to see that guy dead in a ditch as 'HiMERU'. And all of that while still being barely able to operate his own body, god, everything was such a pain. Not only did everything feel like it was spinning, but the whole turmoil about Tatsumi also made everything just hurt even more.
"…Tatsu…mi…" he whimpered, sounding so weak and pathetic while deep down he wished he could just strangle that man as he held his hand on HiMERU's forehead without his permission, to check his temperature.
"Oh dear, your temperature hasn't gone down …" Tatsumi frowned, "and you still look completely out of it… Hm, you had called me because you weren't feeling well, do you still remember that? By the time I found you, you were unconscious in one of the bathrooms. You really scared me, you know?"
Okay, no, that doesn't make any sense. No way in hell would HiMERU ever call Kazehaya Tatsumi, that bastard saint, for help. Not him of all people, especially when he wouldn't call anyone for help, not as "HiMERU", the flawless idol. That's why he hid in that restroom, seemingly to outwait the fever. By that time, he wasn't thinking too straight anymore. Though at least he still remembered that he mustn't look sick like that in public. At least there's one person he doesn't have to keep on any facades… Oh.
Oh, now he's starting to remember. HiMERU had called HiMERU. The original HiMERU. The one stuck in the hospital due to the aftermath of that Kazehaya Tatsumi's actions. Apparently, just to complain about how sick he was feeling. He didn't have anyone else in the world he could tell how he felt like absolute shit, after all. And just for the tiniest bit of comfort, like a sick child being comforted by their mother, except that in this case, it's just your brother listening to you mumble about how you feel you're about to die.
And that was the last thing HiMERU remembered. And with how Tatsumi said he found him in there, unconscious, he was still able to deduct what happened, despite the fever really getting to him. Once HiMERU stopped answering him on the phone, the other HiMERU must've called Tatsumi, worried about the other's wellbeing. God, what kind of cruel joke is this?
To be fair, if HiMERU wasn't absolutely burning up right now and actually able to think clearly, he'd be able to understand why his brother did that. After all, for all he knows, HiMERU could have died in there, and, well, he only had Tatsumi's number. By calling him, he saved HiMERU, but at that moment, he wished he had just died on the spot.
Stuck inside the bed of the person you hate most while pretending to be friendly through a fever that felt like hell was inside his temples... what a nightmare.
"…Ngh… Tatsumi…" He simply whined again, no other word's managed to escape his mouth. Luckily, the part of HiMERU's brain that would have never allowed him to look this pathetic, especially not in front of Tatsumi, has long burned to ashes inside of the fire that was going on inside of his head.
And again, with the touching…! Now Tatsumi combed through HiMERU's (sweaty) hair, "Huh… You really don't look good. But don't worry, I'll nurse you back to health. Hold on for a second, I'll get something for you, alright? Is there any medicine you can't take?"
This is just torture. Being mothered oh so dearly by the person he hates most on this godforsaken earth. How do you even get into this kind of situation?
HiMERU simply shook his head, and his eyes fluttered shut the moment the other man stood up. Surely, all of this was just a nightmare or the cruelest fucking fever dream ever. But even after he woke up from that 20-second nap, everything was still the same.
Tatsumi gave him some medicine and even offered to make him some food, which HiMERU declined. With such a goddamn saint's smile, Tatsumi promised he'd do anything to make HiMERU feel better, and that he just needs to say something if he needs anything. And god was it hard to keep in comments like "I'd feel better if you just died on the spot", and to act all polite, like "HiMERU" is supposed to.
But no matter what, he's stuck here right now, and there's nothing he can do about it. Besides, it wasn't actually too bad… Tatsumi was actually really caring, asking HiMERU like every five minutes how he was feeling, offering anything to help again. Definitely better than passing out in a public restroom, isn't it...?
His head was still pounding, and now drowsiness overcame him, so it got harder and harder to think than it already was, but… Maybe this wasn't the worst thing that could have happened. HiMERU watched Tatsumi tend to his houseplants before his eyelids were slowly but surely growing too heavy to keep open.
'He's hurt the person in the world I care about most, but… but he's not too much of a bad guy…'
Okay, these must be the drugs getting to him. But either way, just before he dozed off, he mumbled, "Tatsumi… thank you…" (definitely just because being polite is what "HiMERU" should do (or because of the medicine's effects making him loopy), not because…)