Ichimatsu blinked open his eyes, cringing as he found it extremely painful to breathe.

There was a quiet, constant "beep" coming from a machine beside Ichimatsu's bed. Not to mention, there was also freaking needle in his hand. Well, actually it was an iv, but still.

"Is Jyushimatsu okay?" Ichimatsu croaked, but nobody replied. At that moment, he realized where he was. A sickening smell overflowed his nostrils, causing his mind to remind him exactly where he was.

"The hospital, huh..?" Ichimatsu thought as he tried to turn over and go back to sleep. But he wasn't able to do that. His ribs were killing him. "I guess I really did get hurt this time. Way to go, me. Here I am, just trying to move on after losing what matters most, and I end up right back to where it all started in the first place. I bet I'm a disappointment to Jyushimatsu and everyone else."

Ichimatsu glanced around the room, eyeing every single corner of it. Something about this room made him feel slightly depressed, but then it also made him smile in spite of himself.

"I guess I should be proud, shouldn't I? Proud that...I'm here because I'm physically hurt. The last two times were because I was hurting myself on purpose. This time, I'm hurt because of Jyushimatsu. It's not his fault though. I didn't see that car coming either. I wonder if it was a drunk driver. Probably. And Jyushimatsu...is he okay? I never saw him after I passed out in the street. I mean, someone had to have called the hospital to even get me here. Maybe it was Jyushimatsu. I hope so..he better be okay. This pain would be well worth it then..." Ichimatsu thought as he looked down at the needle in his hand. He couldn't help but cringe.

There was a soft knock at the door in his room.

Looking up, Ichimatsu croaked out, "Come in."

The door was pushed open, and in came a nurse that looked familiar to Ichimatsu.

"Hello, Ichimatsu," the nurse said, glancing down at her chart, writing something down. "I see you're awake. So tell me, on a scale of one to ten, how would you rate your pain?"

"Maybe a...five...?" Ichimatsu replied. "She has no idea how much better it feels to be physically hurt..." he thought.

"What happened to you this time? Were you trying to kill yourself again?" the nurse asked rudely.

Ichimatsu sighed, then cringed at the pain he felt each time he did that.

"Jyushimatsu and I were just walking across the street, and a car was about to hit my younger brother, so I pushed him out of the way. I thought I was out of the way as well, but I wasn't. All I remember past that is being thrown up in the air, and when I hit the ground, I felt really tired. It only hurt a little anyways..." Ichimatsu replied as calmly as he could. "I hope Jyushimatsu is okay...is he okay? He better be okay...I hope he's not crying. I hope Jyushimatsu is okay. I hope...what is hope? Does it even exist? Hope in a world like this..."

"Ichimatsu!" the nurse yelled frustratedly. "This is the last time I'm asking you this! Would you like some morphine to relieve your pain?"

"Heck no," Ichimatsu spat, "I said I didn't hurt that much..."

"You're cringing in pain as we speak. Don't lie to me," the nurse said.

"I'm fine, really..." Ichimatsu mumbled, and the nurse sighed, turning around to leave.

"I'll be bringing you some food in a minute then. What would you like to drink?" she asked.

"Water..." Ichimatsu mumbled, trying his best not to sigh.

"Very well. I'll see you again in fifteen minutes," the nurse replied, closing Ichimatsu's hospital room door behind her.

"The last time I was here, I was in a coma, wasn't I? Poor Jyushimatsu...I made him worry about me for no reason. Why would he worry so much? I'm not really worth it. I'm not worth anyone's time at all. I still don't see why they even tried to save me. In the end, I still died..." Ichimatsu thought, feeling a smile spread across his face. "They cared though, didn't they? If they hadn't cared, if Jyushimatsu hadn't cared, they would have stopped checking on me every single day to take care of me. I caused them so much pain, yet they didn't give up. Determined to help someone who would never appreciate them. I would be happy if I never came back to life. Maybe, if there is an afterlife...if...maybe I would have been able to see Akari and Homura. And maybe I could visit Jyushimatsu in his dreams. That would be nice...that would be..."

Ichimatsu fell asleep.