Chapter 3: Chapter 3: Small Accident- Part 2

Ginger came to first a few minutes later and discovered that he'd landed safely on top of another body.

When he tried to get up, a force prevented from doing so, and his head could only bump into the person's chest once more. He realized that the person had instinctively shielded his head and back with his arms, so in such an awkward embrace he couldn't help but feel a sudden rush of embarrassment.

He immediately broke free from that awkward situation with a single shove of his arms and hovered above the other person, both his hands pressed onto the grass at either side of Haruki's face.

As his face lingered directly above Haru's, he couldn't help but click his tongue in contempt at the unconscious person.

This fool. It's his fault for trying to play 'hero'.

Nonetheless, he still called out to him as if trying to wake him up, "Hey."

Nothing.

"Hey you."

Still no response.

Ginger added a tiny slap onto Haru's right cheek, "Keep this up and I'll hit you even harder."

Silence.

Ginger suddenly grew an unsettling feeling of worry, "Hey stop messing around, I'm not kidding. I really will hit you," he warned.

But Haru still made no response.

Ginger shifted slightly from his position and to examine Haru's head, pinching the guy's chin so as to slowly shift his head from side to side. There might have been a lawn to partially break their fall but that hadn't made the ground any softer.

Haru's ebony hair had already been in a messy state to begin with, but now that they'd fallen, his bangs had hooded his eyes, adding to Ginger's sense of alarm since the guy really appeared to be knocked out.

Ginger shifted his hand from the person's chin to gently sweep the long bangs that covered Haru's eyes to the sides and felt at his forehead, only to discover how incredibly warm it was.

Now he wasn't sure if that was the beginning of a fever or just Haru's natural body temperature.

"Dammit, wake up, don't fool around," but even as he said that, he still gently lifted Haru's head to examine it. Who knew the moment one of his hands went to the back of Haru's head, he'd feel something warm and sticky in his palm. Bringing it back for his inspection, he discovered a familiar red sticky and warm liquid that's smeared the center of his right palm. Though it wasn't much, his suspicions were confirmed.

This person really had been knocked out.

..

It was a little while later when Haruki finally woke up, but it was only due to the splitting headache that wouldn't permit him any more peaceful rest. He raised a hand to his head as his eyes slowly fluttered open, his field of vision still blurry. It took him a few seconds to adjust to the light, and the first thing he saw was a field of green leaves above him, with warm sunlight seeping through their patches.

Wait, what was he doing under a tree again?

It was only once he'd recalled where he was, and what had happened, that he gasped.

"Ginger!" he panicked, immediately sitting upright. However, that movement had been a big 'no-no' for someone who had a concussion, hence that splitting headache 'split' even more, causing him to bury his face in both hands.

"Calm down," came a voice from close-by, making him turn. He hadn't even noticed that someone had been sitting s few feet near his side.

Ginger still looked as indifferent as ever, even reading that Math textbook of his as he continued with a, "Welcome back to the land of the living."

However Haru immediately stretched over and grabbed at his shoulders, baffling him.

"Are you crazy?!" Haru had been just about to let loose a string of insults before he suddenly remembered, "No wait, are you okay? Any broken bones, skin, or sprained ankles?"

Ginger, still in his surprised state, only shook his head slightly.

Haru breathed a sigh of relief, "That- that's a relief." Who knew in the next moment he'd actually flick Ginger's forehead, completely catching him off-guard.

Ginger rubbed at his painful forehead with a hand and fumed, "Hey—"

"Jumping off a place that high without any form of protection or at the very least assurance that you'll be okay, are you out of your mind!" Haruki refuted, cutting him short, "You think you're made of steel or something? You're just a tiny brat!"

What's with him? He's the one who acted without thinking, Ginger thought but could never bring himself to say it out loud. Instead he mumbled a little ashamed, "I'd already told you I could make the jump. Between us two, you should be more worried about yourself."

"Why would I be..." he trailed off when he felt a sharp sting travel across his head, as if it was literally splitting apart. He couldn't help but curse with a low, "Damn it."

"You landed hard on your head," Ginger explained as if he could tell exactly what Haru had just felt and picked up something for Haru to see, "No, it's more like you landed on this in particular."

He was stunned the moment he saw a half palm-sized rock in Ginger's hand, but the size hadn't been what'd shocked him. It was the red liquid that'd already dried on top of the stone's surface.

"The hell, did I bleed?" Haru asked, feeling the back of his head. Sure enough, he felt some dried blood there, as well as a not so tiny dried wound.

Ginger nodded to the question and added, "You've been out for more than twenty minutes. The nearest water supply is some distance away, so I couldn't carry you all the way there to wash the blood away. I tried but... you're too heavy."

That was understandable. Haru noticed that the little boy now wore shoes and guessed that he always left them somewhere hidden on the ground each time climbing his tree, thus he didn't ask about it. However, after spotting the specs of dried blood in Ginger's hand, he questioned, "Why didn't you go wash it off?"

"No one would have been there to watch over you while I was gone," Ginger casually said, but suddenly regretted his words. He thought it was a strange thing to say so openly, but when he glanced at Haru once more, it didn't seem like he found it strange at all.

He even nodded understandingly, "Ah, I see. You were worried then."

Ginger, "..."

"Come to think of it, there was a time I felt as if I was lying comfortably on someone's lap," as he said these things, he didn't notice Ginger's face slowly reddening. "Was it you who—"

"Don't be stupid! Why would I do that?" Ginger immediately protested, looking utterly flustered, "Don't get over yourself."

He's an open book, Haru thought. 

"Alright, alright, it was just a dream after all," he still decided to cool the situation since it was evident that the kid would probably deny it until the day he died, "The situation's stabilized. We're both okay, even though you're the one who acted without thinking—"

"No."

Ginger's voice was so low that even though Haru was interrupted, he hadn't quite heard what the other person had said.

"Hm?"

"No, it's not okay. You're the stupid one," Ginger suddenly exploded.

Aye? What now?

Ginger leapt to his feet, leaving his book on the grass, and came to stand directly in front of Haruki, looking irritated, "You kept saying I acted rashly when in reality you're the one who didn't consider your surroundings."

"Sigh, alright then, both of us acted rashly."

"Don't lump me in with you. I'd already told you I could make the jump, then why not let me jump?"

"If the police told me to provide a detailed report about your death, what did you want me to say then? That 'Mr. Officer, this child had said he could make the jump, so I let him. I watched fall to his death.' That it?"

"You're just exaggerating. We both know I wouldn't have 'died' after that fall. At most, I'd have sprained my ankles. Then why'd you do it?"

Haruki said nothing.

"We're nothing but strangers, yet you just had to try prove a point by acting the hero where it didn't suit you. Now look where that's gotten you. You must really be regretting it, huh?"

"No, I don't," he gave the kid a smile, "Not even a little bit."

Ginger was rendered speechless.

"Sorry to disappoint."

Tsk! Ginger's hands clenched at his sides.

"It's because of what you said," Haruki spoke, picking up the book Ginger and left on the grass and browsing it as he spoke, "That's why I reacted."

"What I said?" Ginger couldn't help but be both irritated and confused.

"That 'you're used to the pain'. I just thought that you were disregarding your own well-being, in a way," Haru said with a shrug.

Ginger spoke through gritted teeth, "And so? That wasn't any of your business."

"Yeah, it wasn't," Haru didn't try to object as he puffed a laugh, "At first I even thought 'This little ingrate doesn't know how easy he's got it. Other people can't even get up from a hospital bed while he's busy acting tough like he knows true pain. I hope he breaks a leg one day and learns a lesson.'"

"Then why not let me break a leg then, huh?"

"Shush, I haven't even finished yet. As I was saying, I wanted you to learn your lesson, but then another thought crossed my mind. I recalled that you're currently a victim of bullying and thought 'hey, how will he be able to run away from those bullies if his leg is all busted up? It won't be fun to watch at all.' So I reacted."

Ginger stared at him for a good while, his face full of disbelief, "You... you're a horrible person."

"And you write with duck feet," Haru commented, holding Ginger's book upside down, "Honestly, look at the size of this writing."

Ginger immediately snatched his book back, both embarrassed and irritated, "I don't always write like this. There's a reason for it."

"Ah," Haru nodded as if he understood, "Is it because it doesn't have margins and lines?"

"You're a real jerk, you know that?"

Haruki shrugged, "Meh, can't always be the good guy."

And with that, he had already successfully closed off their previous topic. Ginger felt too embarrassed to even bring it up again, thus he never mentioned it, trying hard to hide his curiosity.

"Well, I think I've entertained you for long enough. Now I think it'd be best leaving the house unattended for long..." he'd just unhurriedly risen to his feet when he felt a sudden sharp pain run through his left ankle, causing him to immediately slump back down again.

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Ginger noticed this action, but thinking that it was just Haru messing around, said indifferently, "What happened to 'leaving the house unattended'? Don't want to leave anymore?"

"Of course I'm leaving," Haru said, his tone still as casual as ever, but this time he didn't dare act rashly. He carefully stood to his feet, leaned against the tree trunk, closed his eyes, and stood there for a while. During it all, he said nothing.

Ginger simply observed him, a little confused. Seeing the guy suddenly go silent like this was actually too good to be true. He even thought that the guy was paying his respects or something.

Little did he know that a thin layer of sweat was already accumulating over Haru's hair-covered forehead.

Seeing his like this almost makes me a little uncomfortable, Ginger thought and snapped his fingers in front of the other's face.

"Hey, did you pass out standing? What's with you?"

Though Haruki didn't respond immediately, he still shook his head a little before opening a pair of brown pained eyes, which locked onto his own grey gaze.

Ginger became alarmed once again, but was very good at hiding it, "Hey seriously, what is it?"

"Ha-ha... ha-ha-ha-ha-ha."

He's gone mad, Ginger thought.

"This really," Haru winced and stared down at his legs, "isn't something that I was expecting."

"???" Ginger's eyes followed Haru's gaze to his feet before returning back to stare at his face, "What? What happened?"

"I sprained an ankle."

"!!!"

He then smiled, "Can I bother you for a bit of assistance?"

...

It hadn't been just a 'bit of assistance'  like Haruki had phrased it. The guy had practically thrown his entire weight onto Ginger's shoulders, and he seemed to be having his fun teasing the kid's figure while doing it.

"I knew you were small, but I didn't think you were this tiny," Haru had teased when they'd finally reached the last block to his house.

His usual ten-minute trip from the park and round the blocks and taken the two of them more than twenty minutes to finally reach the last block to his house because of Haru's condition, yet he felt no sense of shame at all. It was still a clear afternoon. There was no rush. And apart from that, he was having the time of his life teasing Ken. Who knew the kid was more than half a head shorter than him.

"You sure we're in the same grade? It's a little hard to believe," Haruki commented.

"I'm older than you."

"Like hell you are," he snorted, "You look eleven."

"I'm fourteen."

He gaped, "No way!"

"Sorry to disappoint."

"Yeah right, stop messing around. You can't be older than me," Haruki retorted.

"How old?"

"Thirteen."

"Welcome to teenage-hood."

"Hey, I turned thirteen last year, brat. I'll be fourteen soon," Haru told him.

"Good for you," Ginger casually responded, "I'll be waiting for you."

"Stop messing around already. A shrimp like you? There's no way you're –hiss..."

"Oh sorry, I wasn't watching my step again. I'll try to be more careful," Ginger didn't sound apologetic at all as he said this.

Just now, he'd intentionally made a misstep so that the injured person he supported would also do the same, worsening his leg's pain. And this hadn't been the first time too. Each time Haru prattled about something dumb, Ginger always made sure to pull this move.

Haru shed invisible tears, thinking, this kid has such an artificial soul. Won't even consider my injury...

"Earlier you mentioned something about leaving your house unattended," Ginger suddenly spoke, a little hesitant, "Does that mean you live alone?"

"For the time being, yeah. What, you plan on robbing me?" Haru glanced at him askance.

Ginger rolled his eyes, "As if I've got nothing better to do."

That made Haru chuckle before he explained further, "My parents left for a one-week trip because of their jobs. I'll be alone until they come back."

"You know, casually handing out information like this to strangers can get you into a lot of trouble," Ginger sighed.

"Still strangers even though we've already been through thick and thin together?" Haru feigned disappointment, "I'm hurt."

"What 'thick and thin'? You just saved a stranger from falling. And that stranger is only escorting you right now because you got injured in his place, so it's just payback. Nothing more, nothing less. I don't want to owe you."

"Brutal."

"Tsk."

"I'm kidding, I'm kidding," Haru really didn't want to get him furious again, so he immediately apologized. After a while, he suggested, "Then, want to be friends?"

Ginger almost faltered in his step, but thankfully, Haru didn't seem to have noticed.

"Why?"

Haru arched a brow, "What do you mean 'why'? Do I gotta have a reason?"

"Yes."

Haru: "Ah?"

"I didn't even share any bit of my info with you. You're the one who's been going on and on about yourself," Ginger went on, avoiding Haru's gaze. He muttered his last sentence, "I didn't even tell you my name."

Haru laughed, "But you agreed to my calling you 'Ginger'."

"I never agreed to that and you know it."

"Well, it's already been decided and my mind won't be changed. Besides, you showed me your initials before, remember?" Haru reminded.

Ginger really had forgotten about that. Still, he said, "How do you know those were my real ones?"

"Since they're what you showed me, I'll just have to hold on to what I know," Haruki didn't sound bothered at all, "And just so we're clear, I still think your first name starts with a 'K'."

Ginger said nothing more, only continuing to help Haru walk. However, he suddenly felt the body he was supporting pause in its limping step, which also dragged him to stop.

"We're here," Haru said. The two had stopped right in front of his front gate.

Ginger took in the sight of Haru's house and nodded to himself, "It's a lot bigger than I'd imagined."

Somehow Haru already had a rough idea of what Ginger had imagined but still decided to ask, "And what is it that you thought?"

"You don't want to know," Ginger assured him.

Of course, Haru sighed. "It's good you had to see it with your eyes then."

"You'll be fine on your own from here, right?" Ginger asked with a bit of reluctance.

Haruki noticed and complained, "Why do you have to wear an annoyed face while asking for my well-being?"

"I didn't want to ask," the kid was straight-forward with his answer.

He's so cold. Still, Haru didn't mind and asked instead, "You in a hurry?"

"I did leave my book at the park after all." I didn't think you'd be comfortable letting a random person into your home.

Haru understood and unhooked his arm from Ginger's shoulders before supporting his body onto the waist-high white gate, "Then I shouldn't keep you. It's only a few steps to the front porch, so I'll be fine."

Since he was wearing jeans, Ginger couldn't tell just how badly Haru had sprained his ankle, or what its current condition looked like. Both of them hadn't bothered to check, think that it wasn't such a big deal. And that surprisingly made him worry.

"Hey, Ginger," Haru's voice caught his attention again, "If I don't come to the park tomorrow, it'll probably be because my ankle wouldn't have permitted me to leave the house."

Ginger stayed quiet before shifting his eyes from Haru's, "And why did you think it was necessary to tell me this?"

Haru cocked a brow, "Sheesh, can't I tell a buddy at least that. You almost sound as if I was..." he trailed off abruptly realizing something. Ginger had never agreed to be his friend in the first place, so it made sense why he'd decided to ask that question. Haru immediately thought of trying to smooth the awkwardness by cracking a joke but found all words had already died in his mouth. He could only scratch his temple in shame and say, "S-see you around."

"Sure," Ginger turned to leave but then paused in his step before completely leaving Haru alone, "Don't overdo it. Remember that you're in bad condition."

"Yeah, thanks," Haru mumbled before he was left alone standing at the gate. Once he was certain that Ginger was far from earshot, he let out a low embarrassed groan, rubbing at the bridge of his nose.

Mom, dad, Ayame... I think I just blew my first real chance of making an actual friend by being too desperate. There really is no hope for me so please, don't expect much in the near future.

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