The rain had started before sundown. Now, hours later, it showed no sign of letting up.
From her seat at the nurse station window, Sayaka Nakamura watched it snake down the glass like melting veins. The hospital halls had grown quieter, except for the occasional squeak of rubber soles and the low, ever-present hum of fluorescent lights.
She stood, stretched her aching shoulders, and grabbed the chart at the top of her stack.
> Yuri Kojima
Diagnosis: Respiratory weakness, long-term monitoring.
Status: Stable, fatigued.
Next of kin: Keiko Kojima, Satoru Kojima.
Sayaka had memorized the name by now. The mother with a soft voice and stubborn eyes. The son who kept arriving bruised but smiling.
Room 214.
Sayaka walked the quiet corridor, the echo of her footsteps softened by the linoleum. She knocked once and pushed open the door.
Yuri Kojima was propped up against her pillows, pale but smiling faintly.
"You're still awake?" Sayaka asked.
"It's hard to sleep with this weather," Yuri said. "And I keep thinking about him."
Sayaka pulled the chair closer. "Satoru?"
Yuri nodded. "He tries so hard to keep it all together."
Sayaka didn't answer. She simply sat, placing the chart aside, letting the hum of the IV fill the silence.
"I used to worry," Yuri said quietly. "That he was too soft. But I think… I was wrong. He's not soft. He just doesn't break where others would."
Sayaka folded her arms. "Stupid kind of strength."
Yuri chuckled. "Exactly."
There was a long pause before Sayaka finally said, "You raised him right."
Yuri turned to her. "You see him a lot, don't you?"
Sayaka shrugged. "He has a loyalty streak bigger than his brain. Keeps getting himself patched up and then rushing off again like he's made of steel."
"Is he… happy?" Yuri's voice was barely above a whisper.
Sayaka didn't respond at first.
"He's tired. I know that much," she finally said. "But he still smiles. Still keeps going."
Yuri looked away. "That's what scares me."
Sayaka reached out, gently took Yuri's hand. It felt too thin. Too cold.
"I'll keep an eye on him," she said softly.
Yuri blinked. "That's not your job."
Sayaka's voice didn't waver. "I know."
A crack of thunder rolled through the sky. The lights flickered once, but stayed on.
"Thank you," Yuri whispered.
Sayaka rose, placing the blanket more snugly over her. "Get some rest. I'll be around."
As she left, she paused by the door, glancing back once.
The woman lay still now, eyes closed.
Sayaka turned, walked back into the hallway, and found herself staring out the window again.
Satoru Kojima was so goddamn breakable.
And she wasn't going to let him shatter without someone there to pick up the pieces.