As soon as Akai's blood was clean of disease, as soon as his heart was normal and his wounds were in check, he and Connor were put on a jet to the States. He was able to use the phone provided to call his parents, and cry most of the way home as he explained the situation. They sounded relieved, however, that neither were dead. After promising to call when they landed and give them their location, Connor shakily called Akai's parents.

Nearly a month passed where Connor saw nothing but the inside of the hospital. He couldn't sleep through the nightmares of seeing entrails, blood spattered rooms and screaming faces, beating hearts in their ribcages and slimy infected wounds. He woke up feeling sick when he did sleep, screaming other times, and spending days with a specialist talking through the situations but feeling no different. When his parents visited, Connor cried on their shoulders, and didn't speak of the horrors he saw in the medical tents. He only spoke of Akai, and they gave the unconscious man a sad look from time to time. Akai's parents hadn't managed to arrive yet, and Connor had taken to keeping them updated on their son's condition as they made it across the country.

The armchair beside Akai's bed in the private room became Connor's bed, as it was closer to the man than the couch in the corner. He was only half asleep---the day was early, not quite noon so lunch wasn't being taken around to the patients and their loved ones yet. He opened his deeply-shadowed eyes, rubbing them and glancing at Akai, who was awake. He jumped up with a gasp as the man spoke, sounding as if he hadn't done so in years. "Akai... We're in California---in the best hospital that can be found. You've been out for a while..." He went around to sit lightly on the bed, grasping Akai's hand around the several cords taped into his veins. "How... are you feeling?"

"My... Arm..." he began weakly, but couldn't find the strength to continue. He closed his eyes and let his hand be held tightly by Connor's. It felt unbelievably good to be able to feel him again, and he grinned slightly. "So good... See you..." He tried to stay awake, but his body was just too tired. He fell back into a deep sleep, plagued by nightmares of the battlefield.

-

It had been a few weeks since Akai had been transported to California. His parents had struggled to get there, but they finally did on a Friday. The weather was warm and sunny, which was unusual for the winter, as they landed in the airport and took the first cab they could get into.

Once at the hospital, they were led to the room where their son was sleeping. He had been awake a few times in the last few days, but he never seemed to be strong enough to hold conversations. They were briefed about his condition and warned that he was a triple amputee. When they were allowed into the room, Akai's mother ran straight to her son's bedside and sobbed, stroking his face and hugging him the best she could. His father gulped down sadness, though his eyes were tearing up at the sight of his brave boy. He noticed another man sitting on an arm chair and hugged him instead of a standard handshake.

"You must be Connor. We've heard a lot about you," he said, his voice straining to remain calm. "Thank you so much for looking after him. We had a lot of money issues, trying to get across the country."

He stood back and glanced at Akai. No legs and missing his right arm. Would he ever be able to work again? Walk? Play? Swim? He bit back a sob. "M'name's Fred. This here is Sasha, we're his parents."

At the mention of her name, Sasha looked over to Connor and smiled weakly. "You do good. We so thankful. So thankful you save Akai."

He hadn't looked at himself in a long while. No doubt he looked horrible, worse than Akai. Not long before Akai's parents arrived he wandered into the bathroom that had been used solely by him and stood back to study himself. His hair was longer than he usually kept it, his eyes bloodshot and shaded, his skin pale. He might have lost weight, too---his clothes didn't fit quite right. Shaking his head, he stepped out and went back to the chair that acted as his bed and sat, cradling his head in his hands until someone else came in. A single look told him that these two were Akai's parents, and he was surprised when Akai's father simply hugged him. But he didn't go back---it felt good to accept a hug from someone else. Someone that meant a lot to Akai, no less.

He stood, going around the bed as Sasha spoke and putting a hand on her shoulder. "I'm sorry I couldn't save... all of him." He said, faltering halfway through and looking toward Akai. "But listen... There's something I want to talk to you about. Something my parents and I want to talk to you about. And Akai, too. I just... want to wait until he can stay awake throughout the day." He wrung his hands, feeling a bit awkward now. He was sure he'd meet Akai's parents after the war was entirely over, after they got home with no more than a few scratches, on their own two feet. He would have loved to see Sasha and Fred with bright smiles, a careful, studying gaze of him, instead of through a sheet of tears.

Another week had passed before Akai finally was able to stay awake for long enough. He was surprised to wake up to not only Connor, but his Okaasan and father. He shed many tears of happiness to be able to hug them, even though it was only with one arm. The shock had set in and he quickly shrugged the fact off. He had discovered his lack of legs the day before, and cried so hard he had slipped back into his coma.

After his parents had stopped fussing over him, he grinned over at Connor. He hated to see the state the man was in, and wondered what he looked like himself. "Connor..." he reached out and held the man's hand. His father had left the room to get them all coffee from the hospital cafeteria and his mother was still fussing over the scar on his face. She was muttering in Japanese, mostly about how she was thanking God he was alive.

Once he felt Connor's hand in his own, a flow of strength radiated through him and he managed to sit up, leaning against the wall. "Connor, I love you." He wanted the man to kiss him, but his mother was in the way.

It seemed as if his parents and Akai's were on separate schedules---arriving at opposite times and nearly never meeting. They did once, it seemed, outside in the hall as Connor's arrived and Akai's were leaving. But they were on their way the day Akai was able to stay awake, though not around when he sat up. Connor sat on the foot of the bed, grasping Akai's hand tightly and trying to smile without completely breaking down. "I love you too Akai..." He said quickly, catching himself and swallowing carefully. "I'm sorry I couldn't do anything... about..." He looked down, shaking his head as the door opened and his parents arrived. "M-mom! Dad..."

Miller and Denise looked as worried as ever. They had spent day after day begging Connor to leave the room for a while, a night, but he refused, feeling he would miss when Akai woke up and stayed awake. Denise stepped around the chair, grasping her son's arm. "Akai, we've heard just about everything about you." Miller said as he approached, smiling at Sasha. "You've made Connor pretty happy---it's so good you're okay." Denise smiled, and Connor sniffed a bit, shaking his head. "Guys... do you have it?"

Miller smiled and nodded. "Yep, we have it all. We'll wait until Fred gets back to talk about it, okay?"

Connor nodded, looking toward Akai.

Akai felt as though there was some important meeting going to be held. He glanced to Connor and then to his mother, who looked slightly confused. Her English wasn't the best, but she could understand conversation well enough. She took to talking to Connor's mother in her broken, pigeon English that always made others smile. Akai looked down to his legs and felt oddly emotional as he always did when he realised he only had one arm out of four limbs others had.

His father entered the room with three mugs of coffee, blinking at the extra people in the room and then smiling to see Akai awake and sitting up. He placed the coffee on the table and shook the hands of Connor's dad. Everyone looked so happy, it was like a family reunion or something. Akai could almost forget about his current state. He pulled Connor close and managed to his the man's cheek, lingering to whisper into his ear.

"It's OK. You saved me. I don't care if I have... Well... At least the important parts aren't damaged." He grinned and winked.

Connor laughed, shaking his head and really smiling for the first time in a while. It felt odd, but familiar and warm. "Yeah, sure." He pressed his forehead against Akai's for a moment. "I don't care what you have. As long as you're alive. And okay. And you can recognize me." He blinked, scaring away the threat of new tears and backing away. "Hey, guys... My parents and I were really talking something over recently... Well, a few weeks ago..." He stood, patting Akai's hand and turning to the others.

"Recently there've been... advancements in current prosthetic limbs and organs." Connor said, looking from Akai, to his parents, and back again. "And because of Akai's position now, his status as... well, basically, a hero, he's been covered for two limbs. And we want to pay for the third. They're state of the art, controlled by your brain, they connect to the nerves still alive in your limbs and can function and feel just like real limbs." He was passed a magazine by Miller, and he opened it to a dog-eared page. When he opened it, he showed it to the three. It was a two-page view of a prosthetic leg before and after application. In the before page, the leg resembled a metal skeleton encased in an indestructible case, and after, the limb had taken on a natural look and feel custom to the body it was on.

Akai felt overwhelmed. Did they have to bring this up right now? He still hadn't gotten used to the fact that he was missing most of his limbs. His mother seemed just as emotional and he could see his father was feeling, embarrassed. They would never have afforded one prosthetic limb, and to have complete strangers offer to spend that sort of money on Akai... His father looked out the window and his mother hugged Akai, neither said anything.

"Connor... I... Appreciate the thought. Thank you... We just... Well," he bit his lip, his heart pounding hard. "Can you give us some time? I... I still haven't even... I mean... I only just woke up..."

Connor closed the magazine and set it aside, stepping around to Akai and hugging him, pressing his lips against his hair. "I know, but I want you to really think about it. When you realized a few weeks ago that you didn't have legs... and only half an arm... and you were so horrified... I had to do something. I had to tell you before any of the officials come by to. But I'll let you talk about it..." He breathed in, calming himself and ushering his parents out along with him. He closed the door, and they sat in the nearby lobby, where his mother put an arm around him and Connor sighed, cradling his head in his hands and fighting off the urge to wail. He didn't like being away from Akai, but he deserved some time with his parents after so long away. And after being so terribly injured. He knew he couldn't have saved his legs, but Connor felt as if he hadn't quite done enough.

"That whole thing was a cruel bastard of a situation." Connor muttered, and felt his father's hand squeeze his shoulder. "It forced us out, hurt someone I loved and forced me to take care of the life threatening wounds. We... We'll pay for that arm, right?" Connor didn't need his parents to help if they wouldn't. But they agreed, and their kind words eased him just a bit.

Akai and his parents talked about it for what seemed like an hour. He had grown tired by the time Connor rejoined them. His parents finally left his room, to go back to their hotel room to rest a bit. He wondered how they could afford to stay there and worried slightly that they were lying about sleeping in a hotel bed. Often times they would simply sleep in their car, but they were ashamed to admit that they were too poor to afford anything else.

He was glad to see Connor and asked him to come close, so he could kiss him. It felt good being alone together again. It felt like it had been years since they had been and he couldn't stop smiling and telling Connor how much he loved the man. "Do you still find me attractive?" he asked, looking down at his missing limbs. "Even when I am a bit... lopsided?" He couldn't believe Connor would like him still. He wanted the man to prove him wrong. "I want to be inside you again, right now, right here. I don't care if someone sees. I don't care that I am hooked up to this machine. I want to be with you."

When he was able to go back, and spend a bit more time alone with Akai. His parents met Akai's outside, leaving him to go into the room and sit alongside Akai on the side of his bed. While the armchair beside it had been Connor's bed for the longest time, it was nice to sit closer to him and speak with him, instead of holding one-sided conversations that Akai probably didn't really hear. But what he said saddened Connor, and he leaned forward. "Of course... I don't care how lopsided you are." He shook his head, pressing his forehead against Akai's.

His heart leapt at what he said, and Connor's gaze fell to the monitors. "Akai... It..." He bit his lip, feeling as if he were on the spot. Of course he loved Akai, but to do anything while he was hooked to heart and brainwave monitors was a bit dangerous---doctors were alerted when the heart rate rose to dangerous resting speeds. He paused, leaning across the bed and typing something in, and at Akai's curious glance Connor said, "It'll keep us from being barged in on. I raised the resting rate to safer levels." He wouldn't let Akai think himself ugly or malformed, because he wasn't, to Connor. No matter how scarred he would be or how many limbs he lost. "You sure...?" Connor leaned forward. "I don't want to hurt you..."

"You'd never hurt me," Akai replied with a grin, kissing the man passionately. It had felt like years since they were last together, and they made love all night long, until Akai was far too tired to continue. He couldn't stop smiling and telling Connor that he loved him, even when he drifted off to sleep.

-

A few weeks had passed and Akai and his parents had thought long and hard about the offer Connor and his parents had made. Even though they hated to feel like a charity case, the decided to agree, for the sake of Akai feeling like a normal person again. He was set for surgery within that month, and was finally allowed out of the hospital, being pushed in a wheelchair by his mother or Connor.

It felt strange being back in a normal city, after days of shooting and seeing people die. Akai felt as though he didn't deserve the kindness he was receiving from people, and every night he had nightmares of the faceless men he had slaughtered. The day of his surgery, he was feeling extremely nervous. What if the legs and arm didn't feel real enough? What if something went wrong? He didn't think he could ever feel normal again. At least Connor was at his side and reassuring him that no matter what, he'd still love him. Akai proposed to him, just as they put him under. He was asleep before he could hear the answer.

A few days before the surgery, Connor grew nervous. He didn't sleep well---their temporary home was a nearby hotel where their parents were staying, and it felt better than an overstuffed armchair. But he still didn't sleep well. Blood soaked his dreams and he could virtually smell the burning flesh and hear the cracking of bones and ripping of skin. The sickening mixture seemed to hang in the air when he jolted awake, but he doubted anything he dreamed up was quite as bad as Akai's, who never seemed to wake easy. He kept reassuring both himself and Akai that things would go smoothly---that the limbs would feel right, and it would be as if he never lost his originals. But when the day came, it felt as if his heart were about to shove its way out of his chest. He wanted to be present during the surgery but knew he couldn't, but after the sedative was administered and before they wheeled him into the operating room, Connor was taken off guard by what Akai asked. He couldn't answer before Akai fell asleep.

He had to wait with the answer on the tip of his tongue for several hours. Microsurgery was required to attach the limbs to the nerves and string them the way normal nerves would fall, giving feeling and free range of movement, and a seamless look and feel. His mother had an arm around him, his father talked with Akai's parents, but Connor was silent. He wanted to marry the man, of course, but answering so quickly and under such pressing circumstances had him caught up.

When he was wheeled back to his room, Connor was the first in. He was glad to see the limbs were covered with a seamless skin the same tone as Akai's, and there was an extra monitor by the bed. He sat alongside the sleeping form and lifted his new arm, running fingers down the inside of his forearm and watching nerve endings light up and fire on the monitor. "Akai... you'll feel so much better when you wake up." Connor smiled, ignoring anyone else that might get close. "I hope you feel whole again..." The one thing Connor was afraid of was that Akai wouldn't feel normal. That he would hate himself, or wonder if Connor still loved him the way he did before.

Akai woke up after a day of sleep, glad to have rest without nightmares for once. He felt strange as he blinked awake, staring blankly at Connor who sat beside him. His parents came into the room, as if sensing that their son had awaken. His father was right by his side, gripping his new arm as if testing the strength of it and his mother coddled him, speaking in Japanese about how proud she was of him and how good he looked with his new limbs.

Finally they let him go and stepped back, allowing Connor to approach and hug him. He finally lifted his new arm, surprised at how real it felt as he hugged Connor tightly. He wriggled his toes and suddenly started to cry, in disbelief at how real everything felt. It did feel strange, like it wasn't a part of him. The doctors had said they would closely monitor him, in case he didn't get used to them. He had a week of rehabilitation, where he would learn to walk again and use his new limbs. Right now, though, he just wanted to hold onto his love. He remembered his question and wondered if Connor had an answer for him.

He spent the whole of the day in Akai's room, pacing, sitting, sighing, nearly pulling his hair out. It was longer than it had been before, he knew, and it hadn't yet been cut. Maybe he wouldn't cut it at all if Akai liked it. He smiled at the thought and paced more, wandered, ate a little when his mother brought him something from the cafeteria. And when Akai roused and his parents entered, Connor had to force himself to stay back so his mother and father could have a moment with him. They deserved that, after all---they deserved to see their son whole, in a way. But he was glad when he could approach, sit on the side of the bed and put his arms around Akai, feel as if he hadn't taken the man's useless limbs.

He clung to the man when he cried, and shed a few tears at the same time. It felt happy---glad that he must feel whole again. "I said yes." Connor's throat felt constricted, but he managed to speak quietly, just loudly enough for his words to hit Akai's ear.

The happiness from Connor's answer stayed with him for days, it helped his recovery and his rehabilitation. Soon he could walk like he used to be able to, and use his fake arm just like his real one. Soon he was able to finally leave the hospital and go home with his parents. Luckily, they only lived a few hours away from where Connor lived and Akai visited him everyday. They planned their life together, their wedding, their home... It was as though they had never been to war.

The day they bought their new home was the day they all received the sad news. America had lost the war and China was finalising its advances. Soon USA would belong to the extensive Chinese empire. Akai cried for so long when he heard the news, horrified that they would soon be working under the very people that had killed so many of his friends and he had murdered.

It was a fine morning one December day, after a snowy Christmas that wasn't very merry for Akai and Connor. It would be the last Christmas they would be celebrating before all Western religion and culture would be banned. Akai woke from his usual nightmares, finding Connor wasn't in bed next to him. He got out of bed, not bothering to get dressed, and walked downstairs to the kitchen, where he found his fiancé busy making breakfast. He hugged the man from behind, kissing his ear.

"Good morning beautiful," Akai greeted, spinning Connor around to face him and hugging him tightly. Akai was so happy to finally have Connor by his side, soon to be married, and living in a place of their own. Their parents visited often and they had to have two separate phone lines because of how many times their mothers called. "What did you make for me?"

Connor's answer was interrupted by a loud noise in the distance, which was followed by an earthquake. Akai jumped and whipped around to look out the window, shaking violently. "What was...?" Another loud explosion, this time the quake was so powerful it made them fall over. Akai's heart was racing, as he grabbed a hold of Connor and ran downstairs, to their basement. He had no idea what was happening, but the explosions sounded so familiar. Bombs.

He hugged Connor, scared for him and their parents. What was happening? Why would the Chinese bomb them after winning their land? Or maybe the American government was trying to put an end to the Chinese once and for all? Another loud explosion, more shaking. Akai never let go of the man he loved. Even when the next explosion took place in their neighbourhood, just across the street from their new house. Even when the house collapsed and rubble flew everywhere. Even when his world turned black. His last thoughts were for his family, and Connor.

While Akai grew used to his new arm and legs, Connor watched and helped where he could. Akai quickly went from stumbling around his room, to walking down the hall, then sprinting the length of the hospital as if he weren't supported by limbs that weren't naturally his. But maybe they were. When he doubted himself, Connor made a reminder that something was better than nothing. Especially when that something felt as real as these limbs did. But it felt like none too long had passed that their building happiness, their daily meetings, their plans, and eventually their wedding plans seemed to pale in comparison to the stress and torment that losing this war pressed down upon them. While Akai woke from nightmares of the battlefield and seemingly thoughtless killing, bullets ringing in the air and smoke hanging low, he woke from nightmares of blood and guts burying him to his neck and snapping bones and screams. Neither of them got much sleep without the other, and that was sedated a bit once they had moved in with one another.

A few days after Christmas had seemed to be a normal day. As normal for them as it could be. Connor had awakened long before the sun, a new nightmare of working on Akai's broken body having emerged and reared its ugly head, making him jolt harder than he ever had from a nightmare, and silencing a scream before it could bloom to full force. Akai had appeared to be sleeping well, one of those rare nights for either of them, and he'd slid away without disturbing him. Still, he was glad when, halfway through his cooking, Akai appeared as if out of nowhere. His fake limbs were unusually quiet, but paired with Akai's sneaky body, he didn't doubt the man couldn't sneak up on a man with eyes in the back of his head.

He was about to respond when something happened. Immediately he harkened back to when he and Akai were involved in the war---he knew he couldn't hear the sounds of the gunfire and hidden mines himself, but when he read Akai's letters he could have sworn he could hear the noise of the war. Even as the victims of such war wailed in the background of everything.

Bombs. Why were they dropping? Hadn't America given in? Hadn't the war ended? The change was slowly taking place, American flags taken down and exchanged, war memorials changed, soldiers slowly filling every city and major town to make sure some semblance of peace was kept. He was so confused but didn't have time to speak as Akai reacted, dragging him along, down the stairs and to the basement with no care about what appliances were kept on. Rubble was starting to break away from the ceiling and as the world shuddered and everything seemed to come down, and go black.

When he woke it was silent. The darkness was cut by the cold. When Connor opened his eyes he sat up immediately, and his head spun. Had he been knocked from Akai's grasp? The man was nearby, limbs intact, neither of them hurt. They were in a ring of dust and a bit of rock, but nothing so awful as what was around them. No fire, just cold. Some snow. There was a huge hole nearby. He crawled to Akai and pulled the man's head into his lap. "Akai, are you okay? Please... be okay..." It was so silent. So silent. He could hear his own breathing mixing with Akai's. Of course he was okay---just a bit of dust in the lungs he would eventually cough out. Connor grasped his fake limb's hand and squeezed, and was glad to get one in return. "It's okay, it'll be okay... God, what happened...? Don't worry, Akai... We'll figure it out... We'll figure it out... We've survived... worse... We'll be okay..."

His voice cracked and he leaned over Akai, blocking the cold, the absolute, eerie, desolate silence. How many had died...? What happened...? Soon they would have to move, but now... He couldn't. He wouldn't. Not until Akai was certainly okay. Then they would go out into the world and investigate. He was terrified, but he wouldn't show that. He'd grab his guns---the guns in the metal cabinet half buried in snow and rubble nearby---and he wouldn't be scared anymore. Would Akai have the same resolve? He hoped to whatever being watched them struggle that he did.