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Iruma was, more often than not, an extremely agreeable child. He did exactly what you asked of him and extra, as long as you expressed how much you'd appreciate him doing so.The words "please!" "I beg you!" And "you're my last hope!" Worked on this boy like a magic spell.Right now, however, Iruma was being way less agreeable than usual. He was dragging his feet, walking silently a few meters away from his particularly cheery parents, expression of pure misery painting his face."C'mon Iruma-chan! We're almost there!" His mom yelled to him and stopped in front of an obscure looking leningrad-esque flats.That did not cheer him up. If anything, Iruma's scowl deepened. He'd like to think he's fully justified in that. Early in the morning, when he got up and started dressing, his father suddenly stopped him with a cheery "don't bother! You're not going to work today." And for a moment there, Iruma really thought that the tides shifted for him. Maybe his parents won the lottery, maybe they got money from a rich relative, whatever the reason was- Iruma didn't really care. All he heard was "from this day on, you don't have to work for your family's survival anymore!!", and that was all he really needed to hear.
His eyes went wide, mind running wild, excited because - maybe now, if they don't expect him to be the sole breadwinner anymore, he'll be allowed to finally attend school! Or, an even crazier scenario - maybe they'll even have a normal home now. How cool would sleeping in a normal bed with a frame be for once. Instead of flat mattresses in dirty hostel rooms and makeshift tents with wet rags for pillows."I don't have to work?" He asked, as to make sure. His father laughed sincerly.
"Oh you'll still work! Probably. Or not, I don't actually know. But you won't be working for us anymore!" Iruma kind of wanted to laugh at the ridiculousness of the situation. It sounded like he was getting fired. Was he being fired? But you can't really fire your child, can you? Family can't be fired."But if I don't work for you - if i work for someone else, how will you make money?" Iruma asked, his silly face focused in a confused expression, looking at his mother for answers. She sat next to him and pat his blue hair pitifully."Oh honey, you don't get it. Steady income is nice and all, but we ran into some problems... ysee, we owe someone quite a pull of cash. So we need a LOT of money and we need it FAST. You'd never come close to the amount we need just by working.... That's why we're selling you!"Iruma couldn't believe his parents would just... trade him for money. It kind of made sense, and it was happening, but that had to be an exorbitance in every other universe."Ow chop chop, Iruma, smile! Or the buyer will think you're grumpy and won't want you!"'good' Iruma thought to himself, but he shook his head to get rid of that selfish thought. He knew his parents needed the money. He wasn't sure what for, or who did they owe it to. They made it clear ever since he was a little boy that it wasn't his concern. His concern was only bringing the money back to them. He pushed out the fakest smile of his life and his father sent him a thumbs up."Now now... the people from Kararagi said that we need to get to the 5th floor, i think?"His mom asked no one in particular. "Was it building numbered nine or seven? I don't remember.""Seven!" Iruma's father chimed in. His mother nodded. "Up we go then!" She laughed, and grabbing Iruma by the hand she pulled him inside.There was an elevator, but after five minutes of trying to get it to open, Irumas parents gave up and ambitiously started climbing the stairwell instead.Iruma was getting more freaked up with every minute - the walls were dirty, breaking down, roughcast falling off in chunks from the ceiling. Iruma could've sworn he saw a splatter of.... Something. Something nasty, to be prcise, on the concrete flooring. His parents didn't notice.After reaching the top of the staircase, the whole family was catching their breaths in front of the apartment 19. Iruma's mother finally recomposed herself enough to stand upright again and knock unceremoniously on the door.There was a moment of silence.
Then there was quiet shuffling.After a while that felt like eternity, the doors slightly cracked open.In the crack appeared an eye, surrounded by locks of white hair. Iruma shivered at the horroresque nature of the situation, though his parents beamed with joy."...Yes?" The man behind the door asked tiredly with a deep voice- hoarse, like it wasn't used for a while."You're Doctor Balam, yes? May we come in? We're here to make an offer." Iruma's father smiled widely. The man behind the door skimmed over him, then his eyes landed on Iruma's mother- only then they stopped on the boy. Iruma shivered under the gaze, feeling like they found an interest in him. The scary man thought for a moment, then sighed and opened the door wide for them.Iruma's mom excitedly nudged her son to get in, the father behind in tow.So called "Doctor" wiped his hands on a rag before closing the door behind them, leaving a red-and-yellow smear. Iruma tried not to think about what exactly that was."If it's about the boy, you're better off taking him to the hospital." The doctor said, turned away from them. He was picking some tools from a bloodied table and throwing them in a metal bucket, which made a loud, clanking sound. "Feel free to sit on the couch." He added, after a moment of hesitation.Iruma's parents listened. They huddled together, leaving their son standing a bit further from them. Iruma looked around, and after a moment of quick decision making, he sat shyly at the edge on the worn down couch. If the doctor found it odd, he didn't comment."Even if it's about an organ transplant, and i assume that's the case, your chances are still higher there. No matter what the people say, we exclusively take care of adult donors."Doctor Balam said with a surprisingly apologetic tone. "It's never easy. But there's nothing i can offer you. If the boy is sick, you're in the wrong place."Iruma's parents looked at the doctor like he just said something ridiculous, as Iruma looked between all of the adults present, a bit lost."Well." Iruma's father started. "It is about Iruma, yes. But he's not sick. He's a perfectly healthy boy, in fact!"Doctor Balam raised his brows, as confused as the pair staring back at him."We heard you need more subjects to experiment on?" Iruma's mother asked, her head cocked to the side. "Iruma'd be a perfect little subject! No questions asked. He's yours! We just need quick money, so the more you have to offer today the better."The woman said with a smile, as the child slumped a bit forward. Balam's heart dropped."What...?" He asked, pretty sure he must've horribly misunderstood something ."We were thinking between 200 grand and 250. We can negotiate the final price." The father added, like they were in a basic business meeting. Cross-leged, cheery. Like those two didn't just propose selling their own child."You are joking." Balam said with a tinge of danger in his voice.Iruma's father looked at his wife and frowned. "Why, is that too much? Iruma is extremely well behaved. I think the price should be accurate?""That's - that's not--" The doctor stuttered, growing frantic. "You can't possibly be aware of what you're trying to do right now. That's child trafficking."Balam felt sick to his stomach."We're on the black market." Iruma's father said, as a last protest. Like it made anything better. "Everything is allowed here."The doctor huffed out a breathy chuckle in disbelief. Those people had no idea what they were trying to get into."Get out of my gabinet." He finally squeezed out in a tone leaving no room for discussion. Iruma's mother huffed and got up with a piss poor attitude."Fine. Black rabbit will probably pay us more anyway."She realized her mistake the moment words left her mouth, but it was too late then. The doctor's face contorted in something between disgust and pure unfiltered rage. Iruma just got up from the couch to trail behind his parents, but he was snatched by the doctor and pulled back."You're not getting that boy anywhere near the black rabbit."Doctor Balam growled dangerously, as the parents protested. The boy was just a bit dazed, growing more confused at the situation at hand with every moment."Iruma is okay with being sold!! He agreed!! You can't just take him!" Iruma's father stepped closer, which in turn made Balam shield the boy with his own body."Bullshit! No child can agree to something like that!" He sneered.Balam Shichiro came from blood that didn't heat quickly. There weren't many things that sent him into blind rage - at worst, he'd get mildly infuriated or annoyed and delete himself from the troublesome situation. He could take quite a lot of jabs and injustices, but one of the few things that he simply could never walk past, was harm imposed on kids.As one of the most influential people on the Black Market, he made sure the whole Kararagi knew his opinion on child trafficking and anything associated. Through the years, a few vendors appeared, who either didn't know, or blatantly ignored the warnings and tried going in that direction. It never ended well for them, and Shichiro never felt good about what he had to do, but his actions sent a message loud and clear. Thanks to that, in this day and age the Kararagi had everything and anything illegal to offer - except children.Those poor excuses of parents heard some stupid rumor, and fully believing it's accuracy they marched in, ready to commit one of the worst crimes they possibly could.With one shaking hand he was holding the boy out of the parents' reach, while with the other he opened the drawer of a conveniently placed cupboard, and pulled a gun out of it."Get out." He repeated with a cold yet frantic tone. Iruma's mother screamed a pathetic little "No! No! You can't take him!", but she took two steps back anyway."Pay us, at least!" The father pleaded. "Please, we need the money! Keep the child! We just--""Get the fuck out!" The doctor yelled finally, before letting go of the boy and cocking his gun, not wanting to hear them for any second more. He marched towards them, and Iruma's parents scrambled to the door with panic like cockroaches. They flew out of the apartment.Only after he could hear their footsteps fade, did Balam close the door of his gabinet. Iruma was still standing in the middle of the room, terrified and confused out of his mind.Seeing the small figure, shaking profusely, all of the anger he felt vanished, making space for a wave of panic and worry instead."I--" He started, at the same time as the terrified child eyed the gun in his hand. Noticing that, the Doctor cut himself off and put it away back to its designated drawer with record speed, almost like it burnt him.In a moment of silence, he prepared an apology on his tongue, but before he could share it, to his surprise Iruma suddenly bowed low."Please don't experiment on me!" His tone was way more polite than Balam would've expected. A dark thought went through his mind - did the boy had to ask questions of familiar nature often enough that it's not bizzare to him?"I'm not going to experiment on you." Doctor said with a gentle tone. He kneeled in front of Iruma, to get on his eye level and hopefully make himself less intimidating. "You're safe here. I'm not going to hurt you. I can promise you that.""Oh... Okay." The boy only said, instantly way more at ease. With those big blue eyes, glinting with hope and unwarranted trust. Balam's heart was caught in anger directed at Iruma's parents once more, but he did his best to not show it this time."I'll make you tea, how about that?" Shichiro half asked-half decided already and got up with a sigh. The blue haired child only nodded."Get comfortable, Iruma. I'm afraid it's going to be a long day for you." Doctor added, before turning around to pour the water into the electric kettle.That wasn't exactly an ideal situation, yet alone a situation he would ever expect himself to be in, but he had to figure it out, somehow. He had still a lot of work to do with the bodies, commissioned by Babyls and initially his plan was to pull an all-nighter. With the boy here, it complicated some things.Iruma hesitantly sat on the sofa once again. His eyes were trailing after the doctor curiously, while he was walking around the room.A bit mindlessly, he brought out a little, foldable drum table and put it in front of the couch. He collected some magazines and books laying around and put them on the said table, in case Iruma got bored. Unfortunately most materials were either medical focused or advertising pamphlets Balam forgot to throw away, so not much of a read for an... Eleven year old? Twelve? Fourteen? It was hard to tell Iruma's age, he looked so malnourished. The doctor made a mental note to ask about his age later on.After a moment of thinking, he also digged out long unused paper and markers, hoping that's enough for now to keep the boy occupied.A metallic click of the kettle sounded across the room, signifying that the water was ready."You're awfully calm, given the situation." Shichiro said while handing the boy a cup of tea. Iruma just shrugged. "I'm used to weird situations." He smiled, unaware of the weight of his words. "I just worry if my parents will be okay without me. It'll probably be even worse once i get back." Iruma tapped the mug in his hands with one finger, deep in thought. Balam didn't answer, unsure if telling the boy that he's definitely not going back to those people, ever, would make the situation worse or better to handle.Instead of explaining the hard things, doctor decided to change the topic."Do you prefer rice curry or udon?" Iruma seemed to perk up at the mention of food. That was a good sign."I really like yaki udon!"
----- CHAPTER BREAK -----
While Iruma never said it outright, Balam quickly connected the dots and came to a conclusion that this poor boy has not only been starving basically his whole life - the food was withheld from him on purpose, too.He was happily answering questions about his favorite foods, in the meantime completely obliviously sharing horrifying details of his upbringing.Like this one time his parents went to a restaurant without him, and brought back scraps of teriyaki shredded chicken (very yummy!) on a smuggled plate. The scraps that weren't even destined for their child, mind you, and they had the audacity to be angry at the boy for eating it.Or that other time, when his parents actually gave him food, but only because it spoiled and they wouldn't touch it. And as one may expect, Iruma got sick after eating spoiled tuna-filled rice balls, so now it's his least favorite. Yeah, no wonder, if he was throwing up the whole night after.After hearing Iruma's rant about food, Balam was tempted to order every dish the nearby restaurant's menu had to offer. Thinking it trough, though, realistically, he opted for only four instead. One for himself, three for Iruma. Let the boy try everything and pick whichever he likes the most. And, well, if a lot of food is still left, Iruma will be able to snack on it later on. Looking at his malnourished frame, he could really use consistent access to sustenance, especially since they'll stay in the office for a while.He'll need to look for some nutritional recipes and cook something tomorrow for both of them. Schichiro considered himself to be a pretty good cook, but for the life of him he focused so much on work lately, he couldn't remember when was the last time he didn't eat takeout. Sue him, he just couldn't find the time to sit in the kitchen and wait for potatoes to boil. He couldn't really find the time to take care of himself in general, thinking about it now. When was the last time he washed his hair? Monday? Last week? He couldn't remember. The consistent lack of sleep was catching up to him really fucking fast.A rumble of the boy's stomach sounded across the room, pulling Shichiro out of his own head. Well, that settles it. The man got his phone out to place an order, while Iruma flashed red out of embarrassment.After finishing and paying online (thank god for technology), the doctor sighed and put his phone aside, bracing for a topic he had to bring up. They stayed in silence for a longer moment before he eventually spoke up."The food should be here in around 40 minutes. Now... Iruma. Are you aware of what your parents were trying to do?"The boy nodded. "Yeah. They wanted to sell me."It was so straightforward, he didn't show an ounce of anger about it. Just a bit of sadness, or disappointment."Do you think that... was okay?" Balam asked, a bit afraid of the answer."No, but they uh. They begged me to agree. They needed a lot of money really fast, and there was no other option." The boy said, recalling the conversation he had with his mother. The doctor made a sound of acknowledgement with a sad glint in his eyes."And if they managed to sell you- what do you think would happen with you?""Mmmm well my father said I'll probably be working for someone." The boy made a face. "Nobody said anything about experimenting." Again, no anger. Just passively accepting his fate, whatever that fate would've been.Balam nodded. "I'm afraid your parents lied to you. They brought you here, thinking that i may harm you." His face was very serious. He didn't want to scare the boy, but for his own good he couldn't sugarcoat the situation. "They had to know that selling you to a person famous on the black market could be equivalent to a death sentence."Iruma didn't look surprised. His face didn't signify any sort of disbelief or denial going on in his mind, he just put his lips in a thin line and swinged his legs, as if all the doctor's words did was prove his suspicions."Well, i really hope they won't try doing that again." The boy only said, playing with the warm cup of tea in his hands. Balam's heart could break right there and then."They won't." The doctor said trough gritted teeth, as Iruma looked at him hopefully. "You have my word."Balam took a moment to compose himself, before continuing."For now, though, you're staying with me. Until i figure out what to do with you." Not much of a question this time. Iruma was a bit conflicted about it, since it meant his parents will be without any financial aid for a while."Doctor Balam.... I have to go to work tomorrow. Knowing my parents, they probably didn't even tell my boss that I'd be gone today..." The boy sighed and then frowned, realization upon his face. "Oh.. He'll probably cut my pension.""Your boss?" Balam was ticked off, but kept it in. No reason to worry Iruma. "We can visit him tomorrow, how about it?" He asked, leaning back on the couch, crossing his arms. "I'll talk with him and.... ....Explain the situation." Balam waved his hand, trying to come up with something that didn't sound too much like a lie."Oh... Okay?" Iruma agreed, a bit lost.They mostly settled into silence again, only from time to time picking up a new, more lighthearted topic. They must have spent another half an hour like this, until a ringbell rang across the apartment.It was the delivery man, and at the sight (or smell) Iruma's eyes shined so bright Shichiro was genuinely close to crying. Taking one for himself, he stacked all three remaining boxes in front of the boy."Eat as much as you want to." The doctor said, and the boy looked at him with those wide blue eyes."Really??""Yes. I, in contrary to your parents, have a job and therefore, money."Ignoring the bite directed at his parents, Iruma joyously (yet still very hesistantly) opened the first box and bit in, eying the doctor like he was going to snatch it from him any second.Balam took his own, but instead of opening it right away, he just stared at it with a thoughtful frown, as if a realization hit him."Is somewuhing wwong?" The boy asked with a mouthful of noodles, instantly picking up a shift in the adult's expression. Doctor made a loud "oh!" And put his hands up like he was calming a wild animal."No, im sorry. Don't worry about that. I'm just not hungry right now." That was a lie - he haven't eaten anything since a rushed breakfast in the morning. But he could wait a bit more. Balam fixed his mask, put the box back on the table and got up."I have to get back to work now."He said in a tone clearly sounding like he had to, but really didn't want to."But before i do- if you need water, the glasses are in this cabinet." Doctor explained, pointing at a cabinet above the sink."Please don't touch anything on that metal table and around it, okay?" Referring to the previously bloodied table - Iruma wasn't planning on going anywhere near it, he decided on that way before the doctor even brought it up."The toilet is behind the green doors with a little window, so go whenever you need to. I'll be in the room next over, if you need anything from me you can just knock or call me."Iruma nodded, absorbing all instructions."I'll check on you" the boy gave him a weak "okay" and that was it.There he went, leaving Iruma to his own devices.The boy just sat there in silence, still munching on food and vaguely looking in the direction of a window. Well, that day really took an unexpected turn, didn't it?He wasn't sure what was going on. He didn't know who the Black Rabbit was, or why was it such a big deal.Was he being held hostage right now...? Doctor Balam has been very nice to him so far. And Iruma was pretty sure if he just asked very nicely, the man would let him leave. He probably could leave right now, thinking about it.Stuffing his mouth, he considered his options. - Even despite feeling like getting up and walking out of the apartment was fully doable, he eventually decided against it. His parents told him to not go to work today. They wanted to sell him. They will sell him when he gets back.Or maybe the doctor put the fear of a devil inside of them, and they won't try that ever again. Yeah, that would be nice.Either way, it was actually pretty cool to not have to worry about food and warmth for once.Iruma sipped on the still pleasantly-hot second tea given to him by the doctor. (Because he expressed how much he liked it, and the man instantly jumped up to make him another one, even though he repeated like a mantra "it's okay" and "you don't have to") Unsurprisingly at all, it was way better than the instant tea packets he was sometimes given, that he used to mix with boiled bucket water. This one had real leaves in it, and it smelled so good too. He really, really loved the taste of tea - especially wih sugar! Back with his parents, he was never allowed any.The food was amazing, he honestly didn't remember when was the last time he had a full belly.If this is how it's like to be kidnapped, he'd like to be kidnapped more often, please.Iruma curled himself more in the blanket given by the man at some point. It was stretched, and had holes in it, but it was clean. It smelled nice and was very warm, so that definitely was a win in Iruma's book.With a sheepish curiosity that comes only after fulfilling all natural needs that come with being a human, he reached for the first book of the little pile that Dr. Balam prepared for him.He still had trouble with reading, and the book had a lot of hard words. But the pictures were interesting! Albeit a bit horrifying. Skeletons and muscles and other things like that.He was looking trough it mindlessly, when it kind of dawned on him that for the whole time Iruma spent with the doctor, the adult hasn't taken his facemask off even once. He wondered why was that - with his eyes slowly closing, the boy concluded that the man must be afraid of germs. Yeah, that had to be it. Would explain the gloves on his hands, too. He was a doctor, he had to know a lot more about germs than Iruma does.His mind buzzed with a pleasant static of an incoming food coma, and it wasn't long before he gave in. He feel asleep sitting, the book sliding off of his lap.~Once the doctor has emerged from his work room two hours later, he was met with silence. He sped up his steps with a tiny spike of panic that dissipated the moment he saw a bundle hidden beneath the blanket, blue hair barely sticking out. Iruma's breath was steady, sound asleep.Shichiro sighed a sigh of relief and started tiptoeing around Iruma for a glass of water and the long forgotten and very much cold at this point Chop Suey. He pulled out his favorite and most reliable pair of chopsticks and thoughtlessly threw the one-use pair that automatically came with takeout to a random drawer. At least few dozen of identical ones poking out of it sadly, never-to-be-used.Without further ado, the doctor of Kararagi pulled off his mask and started eating, his eyes wandering from the sleeping boy to the mess he made on the table.Calling it a mess was an overstatement - it was just a cup and two empty boxes next to each other. Maybe a bit of sauce here and there that dripped onto the wood. Overall, it wasn't too bad. Balam guessed the boy fell asleep before he even had a thought about throwing the boxes away. Which was okay, he went through a lot today and the doctor was just happy he felt comfortable enough to rest.He should get Iruma in contact with someone from child protective services, so they can legally remove him from his abusive home. (It definitely is abusive. Neglecting your child to the point of starvation is most definitely abuse, as far as Shichiro was aware.)Thinking about it, he himself had to find a contact to a somewhat trustworthy social worker first. He can't just go and find... whoever. If he didn't have his mouth full of noodles, he'd groan with annoyance. That meant making a few phone calls.He was never involved in helping kids away from bad situations at home - kids that landed on the market were usually victims of kidnappings or coerced into it, held as products against their wills. Most of them had somewhat loving homes to come back to. This situation was completely new territory for the doctor and he frankly wasn't too sure of what was the best course of action.Focusing his energy more on here-and-now, Balam decided he should at least find some new clothes for the child. Get him a space to sleep in, too- maybe he'll let the kid sleep in his bed for now. Balam didn't mind sleeping on the couch, besides it'll be just for a few days.Finishing his food, Shichiro got up from the kitchenette counter and threw the box away in the bin. He thoroughly washed his mouth and scarring around it (as it tends to get messy during meals, especially ones containing sauces) and put a fresh mask on, old one landing alongside the takeout box.Then he shuffled around the gabinet, cleaning up the table and adding a few newly found books to 'Iruma's pile'. He didn't even notice when the boy's eyes sluggishly slid half open and blinked at him curiously.The doctor, deciding it's clean enough, leaned on the counter again and pulled out his phone with a pained expression."Devi, i hate making calls." He sighed to himself, but clicked out a number nonetheless and soon a signal could be heard."Hey? Doctor Balam here. I could really use your help." The person on the other side said something that Iruma's sleepy ears couldn't quite catch, as the doctor rolled his eyes. "No, no, i have that under control. It's unrelated."The adult tapped his gloved fingers on the counter. "Dali-san, could you contact me with a social worker, or someone like that? No, i- i have a situation." Doctor looked in the direction of the said situation, and seeing as the boy was (barely) awake, he smiled at him- not that Iruma could really tell."It's personal and i don't want Babyls to get involved - i just need a contact, that's it."The person on the other end seemed to agree to help, as Balam nodded to himself."Okay. Thank you. ... Yes. Everything's taken care of. And yes, send someone for pick-up tomorrow, as planned. Nothing changed."Another nod, a quick goodbye and the phone made a beep, heralding the end of the conversation.The doctor sighed with something akin to relief while the two of them fell into comfortable silence yet again."Sorry, i didn't mean to wake you up." He finally spoke, holding in the urge to laugh at the boy's efforts to keep his eyes open. It looked like a tough battle."Mmm s'kay" The boy slurred and shifted under the blanket in a feeble attempt to sit properly."You can go back to sleep, Iruma. I still have some work left." He said softly. The boy nodded in silent agreement."I need to pee." He lamented, and Shichiro couldn't help but chuckle at that. "Then go."The boy pouted and the man's heart melted. He had to hold in the need to ruffle his hair, reminding himself that this boy is a victim of abuse and that he's currently sitting in a stranger's apartment, all alone. Iruma seemed quite comfortable at the moment, and the doctor wanted to avoid doing anything that could change it.Refraining himself from touching Iruma in any capacity at all, the Doctor slapped his knee instead to calm his skinship and straightened up."If you want another cup of tea, the water's in the kettle so you'd just need to boil it." He was met with a muffled agreement, but he wasn't sure if the kid actually caught the meaning of his words. Balam had a sneaking suspicion that Iruma was drifting off to sleep yet again.~~Iruma slept trough the whole night like a log. The same couldn't be said about the doctor - he haven't closed his eyes even for a moment. Organs were ready for transport at around three am, but he still had to get rid of the remnants, objectively the worst part.Gruesome, disgusting and messy. He knew the sound of breaking bones all too well and hatching at the joints to separate limb from limb was a muscle memory at this point. Admittedly it was hard to stomach the first few times, but one could eventually get used to it.Shichiro didn't take any pleasure in doing his work, but he didn't particularly feel any remorse, either. It was a job like any other. Sure a nasty one, but it paid a lot and, well, someone had to do it. The donors were dead the moment he started working on them- all he had to do was pull them apart. Obviously, he felt a bit of sadness towards the people that lost their lives, but it was at least a tiny bit consoling to think that someone out there gained one on their tragedy. Sure it was all for profit, but in Shichiro's opinion it was better than just burying them and letting the organs go to waste. Dead people didn't need them, so why let them rot when so many living people do?When 7am hit the clock, the doctor emerged from his room, carrying a sealed container. Iruma was already wide awake by then, figuring out how to use the stove. Balam's best guess was that the boy was used to waking up that early because of all the work he did every day. (Once again - curse his damn parents)The creak of the door spooked Iruma, and he jumped up with a squeak."Ah! Doctor! Um, i just wanted to make tea-" the boy started nervously explaining himself. Under his mask, Shichiro made a little frown. Devi, just what in the world wasn't forbidden from this kid."Hey, that's okay. I told you before that I don't mind. Think you could make me a cup, too?"That seemed to calm him down and redirect his attention. "Yes! Of course!" The boy smiled, way too happy to slip into familiar territory of people pleasing."Thank you. I'll..." The man trailed off as his phone made a loud "ping!" noise. With a free hand he reached to his pocket and silently read the incoming text message."...I have to carry this downstairs" Balam gestured to the container, snatching his eyes away from the phone. "I'll be back in a few minutes.""Oh, okay!" Iruma agreed, tiptoeing to grab a jar with a tea blend that was way out of his reach. Balam already moved to the doors, not noticing the boy's struggle.~~~
Opera had to admit, they never were one for sentiments - but they had a certain fondness towards the doctor of Kararagi. They liked Blushenko as a person, but as a doctor - he wanted to know way too much. In comparison, Dr.Balam never pried into Opera's personal details. Just the necessary things, no why-s, when-s or how-s.Opera appreciated that.It didn't take more than three minutes after they've sent the message, for the hulking mass of a doctor to walk out of the building, carrying a medically purposed picnic fridge."Oh, Opera-san, what a pleasant surprise." He said tiredly, yet genuinely. Opera almost flinched at the dark circles under his eyes. They were massive."Good morning doctor." They greeted and with a silent understanding, they took the container off of Balam's hands."Have you been sleeping at all lately, Balam-san?" They finally broke and asked with a raised brow. The man let out an amused chuckle."Not really."Hearing that, the security devil huffed, unhappy with the answer, but sparing the doctor a mean bite that immediately tried to force itself out of their mouth. They only let out a resigned sigh and jumped straight to the topic they actually came there for."Before you go, I heard from Dali-san that you're trying to contact a social worker?"The doctor of the Kararagi seemed a bit surprised by the question, but he corroborated."Oh. Yeah, i do."Opera nodded with their forever stoic expression."Listen. I don't know why you need it, and I'm not going to ask. But i need you to know that orphanages are hell and temporary homes are even worse."Dr. Balam's eyes went wide with surprise. Not what he was expecting, either."I've been in the system for years. They tossed me from family to family. And I'll spare you the details, but the things they did to me were far worse than the slums' streets. It's not like it changed anything, i landed back there at fiveteen either way."They felt weird opening themselves up so much in front of the man. But if it has even a fragment of a chance to spare some kid from a horrible fate, it's definitely worth it."I just want you to think about your actions very carefully. I don't want anyone to end up in a worse situation than they have already, because someone had good intentions and thought they did the right thing.""I... didn't know any of that. Thank you. Guess I'll just... have to look into it more."The doctor sighed and ran over his face with a gloved hand, mulling over the security guard's words. The man was clearly very exhausted, but Opera didn't feel too guilty about adding even more work onto his back."See you around."They only said, and with a small wave they turned around on their heels, and started walking towards the car.Seeing, as their personal chauffer (in reality he was neither their personal, nor a chauffer) opened the window of his car with a very clear intention to light up a cigarette, they sped up with a yell, almost breaking into a sprint."Ew! Put that cigarette down you filthy dog!!!!!"The raven-haired man seethed. "What in hell's name did you call me?!"