Chapter 3: Awakening

Chapter 3: Awakening is the third chapter of Breathe Deeply.

Characters

 * Oishi
 * Sei Inaba
 * Yuko Kazama (memory)
 * Chief
 * Oishi's Father

Synopsis
Oishi is sharing information to students on ES cells and how they could be used to grow organs needed for transplants. Since nothing would die there would be no ethical problem.

With Chief saying he is free to go, Oishi heads to his night job to pay off student loans from graduate school. At a shipyard he is transporting goods and considers his research. Even if they had the ES cells they would still need the right genes to make a heart.

It has been fifteen years since Yuko passed away, yet just as she wanted, medicine has advanced to the point where this could be done.

Visitors examine Sei’s advancements on creating an artificial heart. However neither transplantation nor ES cell research can really save the patients.

Research continues with Oishi attempting to culture cells. He remembers telling his father that he was going to work but he bluntly rejects that claim, suspecting correctly that he intends to visit hospital. Oishi also heard that they are going to cut off their welfare when he graduates from junior high so he should not even think about going to high school, he needs to work.

In hospital he hears Yuko express that she is falling behind everyone in school. She would like to study hard to get into a good school but after what Oishi had been told by his father he offhandedly questions why bother. Yuko receives this as meaning why should she bother since she could die at any time. Oishi attempts to alleviate the unintended message by telling her she cannot push herself too hard.

Rising to her feet, Yuko shows concern that it has started, it is like she has been handed a death sentence. A small amount of blood trickles from her shorts and Yuko says no matter what is happening to her organs, she does not feel like she is going to die. Her body continues to go through its cycles like is has not given up on her. With that Yuko requests that Oshi please not tell her that he has no future, neither that today does not matter.

Opening a draw Oishi finds Yuko’s entrance exam guide that he kept.

After a meeting, Sei considers that happiness, sadness, all of these emotions vanished with Yuko. He recalls being given the number of Oishi who punched him at the funeral.

In the past Oishi had been admitted to juvenile detention for violence. He took advice to solve problems and submits a research proposal asking to start it.