The next day, when Tezuka Koku woke up, it was already 10 in the morning. Tezuka Kunimitsu had already gone to school under the urging of their parents and had taken the opportunity to call in sick for his brother. The large hospital room was completely silent, with only Tezuka Ayana staying by Koku’s bedside. To avoid waking him, Tezuka Ayana was being extra careful with her movements.
However, after sleeping the whole night, Tezuka Koku still opened his eyes earlier than expected. When he saw the familiar yet unfamiliar ceiling, he was momentarily stunned, but quickly realized he was in the hospital again. Remembering how his stomach had hurt so much last night that he lost consciousness, he made up his mind not to overeat in the future.
Koku then tried to sit up on his own, but that’s when he noticed that his hand was hooked up to an IV drip. At the sight of the familiar IV bottle, Tezuka Koku remembered the bad uncle who always gave him injections, and he couldn’t help but frown.
“Mom, I don’t want any more injections. I want to go home. I’m not feeling uncomfortable anymore, so I don’t need any more injections.”
As soon as Koku woke up, Tezuka Ayana felt a bit uneasy because she hadn’t expected her son to wake up so early. She had already discussed with Oshitari Eiji to finish the glucose drip before Koku woke up and remove the needle as soon as possible. But she hadn’t anticipated that Koku’s school routine had adjusted his schedule, so even though Oshitari Eiji had added a sedative to the medication yesterday, Koku still woke up much earlier than they had expected.
To soothe her son’s emotions, Tezuka Ayana immediately went to his bedside. “Koku, be good. Once this bottle is finished, we can go home. There’s only a little bit left in the bottle, so just hang in there a little longer, okay?”
Tezuka Ayana’s voice was very gentle because she knew that if she didn’t act weak, Koku would definitely refuse to continue the IV and would insist on being discharged. But now, with only her in the hospital, if Koku started to make a fuss, Tezuka Ayana knew she wouldn’t be able to handle it alone. Although Koku had always been a well-behaved child, he became particularly anxious and restless in the hospital, completely different from his usual self.
The family had always thought it was because he had spent too much time in the hospital as a child and had developed a psychological shadow. So, to keep Koku’s emotions stable, they tried to avoid taking him to the hospital as much as possible. Even for regular check-ups, they would trouble Oshitari Eiji to come to their home.
If it weren’t for the urgent situation this time, they would never have brought Koku to the hospital for an examination. Thinking about how Koku’s face would always look thinner after a hospital visit, Tezuka Ayana continued, “Mom knows Koku doesn’t like the hospital, but your stomach hurt yesterday, right? We came to the hospital to make your stomach feel better.”
But Koku really doesn’t like the smell of the hospital! Tezuka Koku wanted to say this to his mother, but when he looked up, he saw the worry in her eyes that she couldn’t hide. So, he swallowed his words and obediently replied, “Once this is done, we can go home.”
“Yes, we’ll go home.”
Tezuka Ayana was a bit surprised at how cooperative her child was this time, thinking she would need more time to persuade him. But she didn’t think much of it, assuming Koku was still feeling a bit unwell, which made him more obedient.
So she asked again, “Koku, do you still feel uncomfortable? If you do, you must tell Mom, okay? Don’t try to be strong!”
“Okay, Mom, I’m fine.”
Just as Tezuka Ayana was about to confirm her child’s condition again, someone knocked on the door. The person knocked lightly twice and then entered without waiting for a response. “Sister-in-law, I’m here to remove Koku’s needle. He’s not awake yet, right?”
Unfortunately, he was already awake and currently unhappy about the injection. Tezuka Ayana mentally replied, knowing without looking that it was Koku’s attending physician, Oshitari Eiji. But she couldn’t act too familiar with Oshitari Eiji in front of Koku, so she signaled with her eyes, telling him not to say too much because Koku was already awake.
However, Oshitari Eiji didn’t catch her eye signal because he had already sensed something was off in the room. Previously, when he asked questions like this, his sister-in-law would respond quietly, ensuring not to disturb Koku while also providing detailed information for his diagnosis. But today, she was unusually quiet, indicating something he wasn’t aware of had happened.
While Oshitari Eiji was pondering what had happened, he suddenly found himself locking eyes with Koku. The boy, who should have been asleep due to the sedative, was sitting up in bed, his big eyes filled with grievance and displeasure, glaring at him fiercely.
Alright, he had a rough idea of why his sister-in-law was silent, but he wasn’t intimidated by little Koku’s gaze. Instead, he cheerfully started a conversation, “Oh, Koku is already awake! Are you happy to see Uncle Oshitari?”
“Uncle is here to remove your needle. Are you scared? If you are, just close your eyes quickly.”
To be honest, Oshitari Eiji was quite experienced in dealing with a grumpy Koku. He naturally started chatting with Koku while smoothly removing the needle. Even though Koku ignored him, he kept talking, “Koku is so brave, watching Uncle remove the needle with your eyes open. That’s amazing!”
The person having the needle removed, however, kept a cold face, ignoring the smiling doctor who kept praising him. Instead, he focused intently on Oshitari Eiji’s actions. Once the needle was out and a cotton swab was pressed to stop the bleeding, Tezuka Koku finally spoke to his mother, “Mom, the needle is out. Can we go home now?”
“Huh, does little Koku really not want to stay with Uncle Oshitari? You want to leave so soon?” Hearing Koku’s words, Oshitari Eiji pretended to be reluctant, teasing the boy eager to go home.
“But what if Koku’s body hasn’t fully recovered and can’t be discharged yet?”
“No, Koku wants to go home.”
Hearing the bad uncle not allowing him to be discharged, Tezuka Koku couldn’t hold back his suppressed grievance any longer. “Mom said once the needle is out, we can go home…”
“Mom didn’t lie to you. We’ll go home in a bit.” Hearing the sob in her son’s voice, Tezuka Ayana felt very sorry and hugged him. “Uncle was just joking with you. Think about it, if you had to stay in the hospital, Uncle wouldn’t have removed your needle today, right?”
Right, with Mom’s reminder, Koku’s intelligence finally kicked back in. If he were to stay in the hospital long-term, to avoid repeated needle pricks, Uncle Oshitari wouldn’t have removed the needle after the medication ended, so it could be easily reconnected the next day.
But Uncle Oshitari had already removed the needle, so he didn’t need to stay in the hospital!!! Uncle Oshitari was lying to him, which was too much.
“So, Koku hates Uncle Oshitari the most!”