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While the doctors at the hospital had detailed how Michael's life would be different after surviving a near fatal case of hanahaki disease, actually experiencing it is different.
Case in point, as Michael sits on the floor, wheezing for air after what should have been a simple practice session with his sword. It shouldn't be this hard, his limits shouldn't be this pathetically low, and yet the amaryllis flowers left such severe scarring that his lungs will never be the same. Michael sucks in a shaky, strained breath, frustrated with himself more than anything else. How in the world is he supposed to do anything or protect anyone now, when he can barely handle the slightest bit of exercise-
"Michael? You in here?" Yuma calls through the door, jarring Michael out of his spiral. For a brief moment he considers ignoring Yuma, not wanting him to see him in this state, but ultimately the desire to not be rude wins out.
"...Come on in, door's not locked." Michael doesn't get up, instead just sitting there as Yuma peeks in. "When'd you come over?"
"Just now." Yuma steps in, looking around at the room Michael had set aside for his sword practice. "Thomas said you were probably in here."
"Ah. I should thank him for letting you in." Michael forces a smile, even as he hugs his knees closer to his chest. "Just...just give me a moment to catch my breath, then we can go do something."
Yuma cocks his head, walking over to sit next to Michael as his breathing finally levels out. For a moment, Michael does nothing in response to Yuma's proximity, then he wordlessly leans in to cuddle him, seeking out any scrap of comfort to offset his worries.
"You okay? Crap, is the hanahaki coming back?! I can go get your brothers-" Yuma noticeably stiffens next to Michael, already scrambling to get up, only to stop when Michael pulls him back with a weak laugh.
"No, it doesn't work like- it's not coming back. It's just my lungs." Michael pauses, watching as Yuma settles down next to him again before continuing. "The flowers messed up my lungs, so now I can't do a lot of things."
"...Like what happened during gym yesterday?" This time it's Yuma who cuddles up to Michael's side, pressing in as he contemplates the question.
"...Yeah, like what happened yesterday." Michael thinks back to the day before, when he'd pushed himself so hard in gym that Yuma and Tetsuo had had to haul him to the nurse's office despite his breathless protests. Then Chris had been called in, who had made it a far bigger deal than Michael had ever wanted it to be, and well.
Michael supposes now he no longer has to worry about gym class ever again, not when Chris made sure to get gym removed from his schedule.
After a moment he sighs, admitting to himself that he owes Yuma an explanation. He loves Yuma too much to just leave him in the dark, after all.
(He loves Yuma so much his lungs turned themselves into a garden of amaryllis flowers over it.)
"...I swore I'd protect you, you know?" Michael feels Yuma jolt beside him, but continues on anyways. "I swore to be your sword and shield, and I was trying to keep my family safe too, and now I can't do any of that. Every time I try to do anything now, I just end up completely failing and need to be helped myself-"
"What's wrong with being helped!?" Yuma cuts in before Michael's rant can go any further, his eyes wide as he sits bolt upright. "I had to be helped all the time with the Numbers and the Barians! You even asked me to save your family after that duel!"
"I know, I'm sorry." Michael reaches for Yuma's hand, his pale fingers interlacing with Yuma's. "I know I asked you to save my family when I couldn't. I just...I don't like standing by when I feel like I could do something to help. I hated watching my family fall apart the way it did, and then you came along, and I decided I'd do anything to protect you. And now I can't do anything but stand by as everyone acts like I'm some fragile doll!"
Michael pauses, shaking his head in an effort to chase off his frustration before continuing.
"I'm being stupid. I just have to get used to this, then it'll get easier-"
"You're not being stupid and you're not fragile! I'd probably be pretty upset too if I couldn't do what I wanted anymore!" Yuma stands up as he speaks, tugging Michael to his own feet by their still interlinked hands in the process. "I was gonna ask if you wanted to come to that new ice cream place with me! If you wanted to-"
"I'd love that, Yuma." Michael squeezes Yuma's hand gratefully, a blush forming across his cheeks as he thinks about Yuma's insistence that he isn't fragile. "...Thanks for, uh, taking me to the nurse's office yesterday, even though I said I was fine. I think I almost passed out in front of everyone because of how hard I pushed myself."
"It was no problem! You looked really bad, like when you had hanahaki and needed to breathe after an attack, so I wanted to make sure you were okay." Yuma starts walking, Michael keeping pace as he considers how sickly he must have looked to his classmates as he trembled and wheezed on the ground after collapsing from overexertion. It had almost felt like the hanahaki was back as he struggled to not pass out altogether, and in the moment, with all eyes on him, it had felt like defeat as Yuma and Tetsuo helped him get to the nurse's office to rest.
"I'm sorry I scared you all like that." Michael squeezes Yuma's hand again, a quiet signal of appreciation. "You said there was a new ice cream place you're taking me to?"
"Yeah, come on-" And Yuma's leading the way out of the Arclight mansion, gently (but no less insistently) tugging Michael along as they walk together.