Chapter 12
"You have GOT to be kidding me!"
Throwing her hands up in frustration, Sayumi glared at the small sheets of paper taped onto the doors of both elevators in lobby E.
Lift under maintenance. The management apologizes for any inconveniences caused.
Although she knew at the back of her mind that private condominium blocks carried out regular repairs on their lifts to ensure their smooth operation, Sayumi couldn’t help but grouch at her unbelievably bad luck. It was dreadful enough for someone like her with absolutely zero athletic talent to ascend nine stories with no mechanical help. The situation was made ten times worse when she had a liability in the form of an aching ankle.
Limping over to the doorway leading to the complex’s stairwell, Sayumi took a deep breath before pushing it open. This was going to be one long journey. She didn't know how many stories she had climbed or how much time had passed since she didn't have the habit of wearing a watch. Whenever she needed the time, she could simply ask Risa. Even though she could check the time on her cellphone, at this point, Sayumi was much too weary to undertake any additional movement. She just knew that the numbers representing Risa's apartment level had not yet flashed past her eyes.
"Somebody, KILL me NOW."
Moaning aloud whilst she panted heavily, Sayumi at last saw the figures which she had so greatly wished to glimpse. 9.
"Thank heavens. If I had to take one more step I would fling myself off the building this instant."
Dragging her throbbing ankle behind her, the Rokkie hobbled towards the unit situated at the furthest end. Beads of sweat trickled freely down the sides of her face, clamping the ends of her long dark hair together while her t-shirt was thoroughly soaked through from the perspiring. Despite her beauty, Sayumi was anything but a picture of gorgeousness at the moment.
*Ding dong x 3*
"Gaki-san! Gaki-san!"
Giving up on the doorbell when she received no reply, Sayumi resorted to banging repeatedly on her senpai's apartment door like a crazed woman. It surprised her that none of the neighbors had come out of their homes to give her a verbal lashing. It was after all nearly 3 am in the morning.
"Sayu?"
Twirling around when she heard her name being called, Sayumi was astounded to see the identity of the owner of the voice.
"What are YOU doing here?"
The girls exclaimed at the same time with fingers pointing at each other and burst into amused giggles when the coincidence of it all sunk in.
"Didn't you say there was nothing to be worried about?"
By keeping her head lowered and pretending to be engrossed in searching for the set of keys hidden somewhere within her bag, Ai evaded Sayumi’s question successfully. Nevertheless, the older girl could feel her kouhai’s eyes boring into the top of her head and the intense pressure from the scrutiny made her feel extremely uneasy. Ai's reluctance to speak was not lost on the astute raven haired beauty and hence she decided to try for a more subtle approach.
“Did Gaki-san give you the key to her apartment?”
“Erm…yeah…I kinda used to drop by quite frequently.”
Inserting the key into the lock and twisting it until she heard a familiar click, Ai grabbed onto the door knob and swung open the entry with a gentle push. Moving one hand along the wall, she located the light switch effortlessly and proceeded to flood the apartment with a brilliant white glow.
“You did come over a lot.”
Mumbling under her breath, Sayumi trailed behind Ai and entered Risa’s home. The first item she saw was a huge fluffy couch and the exhausted girl was extremely tempted to make a beeline for and flop down her worn out body. Nonetheless, Sayumi continued looking around for Risa’s room, wanting to make sure within the shortest time possible that she was alright.
“Is this Gaki-san’s bedroom?”
Walking in the direction of one of the doors, Sayumi peered through the crack in between the wall and partially opened door. The scene she saw next made her let out a horrified scream. Startled by the fear evident in her voice, Ai ran over to her straight away.
"Oh my god!"
-----
“Snap out of it Reina. It’s not worth crying Reina’s heart out for something that’s not meant to be.”
Sitting under the window sill of her darkened room, Reina hugged her knees tightly as she wept. Her family members must be asleep by now and she had to be careful not to rouse them with the noise she was making. Sniffing back the tears that were rolling down her cheeks, Reina dabbed at her swollen eyes with the piece of tissue paper she clutched in her hand.
~Flashback~
Her hand fumbled clumsily over the buttons on Risa's shirt. One, two...three...Just as she was about to tear the garment completely off, Reina heard a soft but distinct whisper. Transferring her gaze once again to Risa's mouth, Reina saw them move. The words which left those slightly parted lips made the younger freeze and cease all further action.
“I love you…Ai-chan.”
~End of flashback~
What happened earlier in Risa’s apartment kept replaying itself in Reina’s mind and no matter how hard she tried to block out the heartbreaking confession from her thoughts, those three words persisted in appearing.
“She will only love Ai, Reina will never stand a chance. Never...”
Despite knowing about Risa’s fondness for Ai, it still hurt to listen first hand to the love declaration which she yearned for but couldn’t have. She was head over heels in love with Risa, yet the object of her desire cherished another. Therefore when Risa uttered her innermost feelings in her drunken stupor audibly, Reina did the act of cowardice that she had always despised. She ran away.
Leaving Risa alone when she was so intoxicated wasn’t the best course of action. However, the twenty year old was too confused to think up a better plan at that moment. Before she fell in love, Reina had never experienced such helplessness. She didn't relish this feeling and she absolutely loathed how much her life was playing out like the plot from one of the many dramas she loved to watch.
Crawling on her hands and knees to her bag which had been thrown aside haphazardly upon entering her room, Reina dug for the box containing the one item which allowed her to forget about her troubles momentarily. Balancing a single stick between her lips, Reina lit the end of the cigarette with the orange flame atop her lighter. Then sucking in deeply, she leaned her head back against the wall to stare up at the ceiling covered with an array of dancing shadows cast by the street lamp perched outside her window.
Reina does not want her.
She will be erased from Reina’s mind.
Niigaki Risa will be no longer mean anything to Reina.
-----
The air-conditioning in the waiting area was chilly. So icy cold that Ai shivered whenever the doors leading into the operating theatre swung open. A couple of harried looking nurses took turns scurrying pass, prolonging Ai's agony of not knowing what was going on inside. Wrapping her arms around her body to keep warm, the elder stood away from Sayumi who was pacing frantically along the opposite end of the corridor.
Her ankle throbbed from overexertion but Sayumi could not sit down even for a moment. She was too worried about Risa's condition. Closing her eyes and lowering her head, she muttered a silent prayer pleading for Risa’s safety. Risa couldn’t die, not when she was so young and still had her whole life ahead of her. On her part, Ai was rooted to her spot as she quietly repeated the following mantra.
“You have to pull through. You have to pull through...”
After what seemed like centuries, the red light above the door extinguished and the doctor emerged from the theatre.
“Gaki-san is she…has she?”
Fearful of hearing an answer which she could not bear to acknowledge, Sayumi's voice quivered as she dashed to the doctor’s side.
“It looks to be a case of Ulcus Pepticum but more tests would have to be carried out to ascertain it.”
Noting Sayumi’s confused expression, the man went on to explain.
“Gastric ulcers develop when the stomach’s lining is injured either by drugs, alcohol, tobacco or caffeine. Has the patient been waking up from acute pain in the night?
Unaware about the occurrence of any such episodes, Sayumi glanced at Ai for a reply. Ai's reaction constituting of a blank stare demonstrated that she didn’t know anything about this either.
“What about the blood? There was so much of it.”
Shuddering at the memory of Risa lying on sheets splattered with the crimson fluid, Sayumi pressed on, afraid that something more serious could be at play.
“Vomiting up blood is possible with gastrointestinal bleeding.”
“Can we see her?”
Before the doctor could reply Ai’s question, a melodious ringtone wafted into the ears of the trio. Shooting her a displeased look, the doctor stated.
“Mobile phone usage is prohibited in this section of the hospital.”
-----
Due to the hospital’s strict regulations, Ai could not remain in the A&E department if she wanted to use her cell phone. As a result, she was unable to visit Risa immediately. Exiting the compound to pick up the call, a wave of guiltiness welled up within Ai when she connected the call.
“Ai-chan! Have you arrived home? I was so worried when you didn’t send me a text message.”
“I’m sorry for not informing you Eri. I was so tired that I fell asleep as soon as I got home.”
The words tumbled out of her mouth in a flash and Ai only realized what she had said after Eri had accepted her explanation and ended the call with a chirpy goodbye.
For the second time that night, Ai stood dazed as the events of the night sunk in. Risa had been seriously ill for some time and she had not discovered it in spite of of her role as Risa’s best friend. She had also failed in her duty as leader of the group to ensure each and every one of the member’s wellbeing.
What's more, she had just lied to Eri about her whereabouts. Why had her mind done such a thing? Even though she hated to admit it, Ai had a nagging suspicion that she subconsciously been untrue to Eri all along.
“I lied to Eri. I lied to her for Gaki-san.”
Topic: Merry Go Round - Chapter 23 (110615) (Read 80773 times)