@phoenix0i: I apologize for the long wait...

but at last here's another update. at last~
@Rina_Yuu: same as to you, Rina-chan, i apologize.

Thanks for supporting this fic

hello~
at last, an update~
i found time to write something out of my free time.
waaaaah i'm too busy with school
but at last, i managed to post this...
enjoy!

btw, hi to all silent readers out there~
ENTRY #28
The afternoon breeze felt somewhat warm as it brushed through Mariko’s soft skin. Another tiring school day has passes… It has been the same scenery since before…
She let out a sigh…
The day’s been really stressful…
The students, as well as the teachers, have gone through a lot of plans and preparations for the incoming open-school cultural festival and also to celebrate the foundation day of the school…
This school… where everything started…
Her thoughts were interrupted as she heard the slight creak of the now opened door.
“Mariko…” It was Principal Noro who entered the room. She let out a big sigh as she leaned on the wall. “It felt like I lost a few kilograms after this day…”
“Yeah, you look quite… thinner—”
“Really?!”
“Just kidding!” Then, the two girls burst into laughter.
“It has been a while since we laughed like that, Kayo…”
“Yeah… I can still remember that we always used to laugh like that before… when we were younger…” Kayo looked dreamy and as she spoke, it brought a new sparkle to her eyes.
“Ah! By the way, I almost forgot…” Kayo exclaimed in surprise. “There’s someone waiting for you at your office. The person wanted to see you.”
“Eh? A student, perhaps…”
She looked at Kayo inquiringly.
“See it for yourself… Anyways, I’ll be heading home now… So, goodbye, Mariko. Otsukare~” Kayo waved her hand as she walked out of the classroom.
Mariko headed to her office…
She was thinking… Who would want to see her after class…? At this hour, few teachers were still lurking around, about to go home already…
Her journey was a very short one…
She slowly opened the door and it made that familiar creaking sound…
As soon as she saw who was inside, she can’t help but smile.
“Hi, Marichan~” It was none other than her lovely wife who’s waiting for her inside her office.
“I didn’t expect—” Her words were cut off when Haruna embraced her. “Seems like you missed me so much…”
“Un~”
“What brought you here, Nyaro? Is there any problem… or anything?”
Haruna shook her head. “I just wanted to see you, that’s all…”
“Cheesy wife…”
“Eh? But that’s true!” Haruna pouted like a kid. “Anyways… being in this place feels really nostalgic. This school really brings back memories…”
“Definitely… I can still remember when you stole pictures of me while I was asleep.” Mariko smirked.
Her wife’s cheeks instantly turned red.
“I can’t help it… Back then, Shinoda-sensei looked absolutely cute!”
The teacher kept on teasing Haruna. “And after you were mesmerized by my beauty, your heart went dokidoki, right?” Mariko smirked.
It made Haruna blush redder… “I thought you were the one who’s mesmerized by my voice…” She said with a pout.
Mariko pinched her wife’s cheek. “It doesn’t matter who fell in love first…” Then, she swiftly leaned towards Haruna. The distance between them shrunk rapidly. “All I know is that… I love you.”
“I know that, dear…” Haruna smiled sweetly. Then, she quickly gave a peck on her lips. “I love you, too…”
Realizing that this isn’t the right place for any intimate moment, both of them moved back and composed themselves…
“By the way, I think we should invite the other girls…” Mariko reached for her things and orderly placed it inside her bag. “If they would want to visit here and join the open-school cultural festival…”
“Really?! That’s a great idea~ We’ll be having all the fun we want!”
Agreeing on Haruna’s statement, Mariko nodded with a smile. She kept on packing her things inside her bag.
“I bet there’ll be lots of booths and cute goodies everywhere! Kyaah~ I’m so excited!” Haruna’s eyes were sparkling as she spoke and her smile was magnificent.
“It’s too early to be too excited, honey. That would be happening in two weeks’ time…”
“But it gets closer every passing hour, right…?”
“If you’re that excited now… then what more if it’s just a day away? I wonder…” Mariko, with her troll face, stared at Haruna.
The latter chuckled. “You look really cute when you’re doing that face!”
The sound of her chuckle was contagious. The older girl can’t help but to start chuckling, too…
After that, they stopped for a while to catch their breathing. Finally done with packing up her things, Mariko smiled at Haruna. “Let’s go home?”
The younger girl nodded. “I’ll cook your favorite food…”
“Wow! I’m so happy!”
Haruna clung onto Mariko’s arm as they went out of her office. “I think you deserve a foot massage later…”
“Though, I’m thinking of a full-body massage…” Mariko declared.
“Okay, then… since you’ve been so tired today… I’ll reward you with something that’ll surely make you feel good…”
“I’m looking forward to that…” Haruna was smiling at her. So, in return, she smiled back and they headed back to their house.
Meanwhile…
In another place…
“Are you ready yet, Saechan?”
Sayaka asked Sae as she put on her jacket. They’ll be visiting Ayaka at the hospital. Her operation was scheduled later this day. It has been two days since Ayaka has woken up…
“I’m done. Let’s go…”
She grabbed a basket of fruits and the two of them are ready to go.
Sayaka let out a sigh. “I do hope it’ll become successful…”
FLASHBACKTwo days ago…“Ayaka…?” With widened eyes, Yuko moved closer.
“Yuu… ko…”
Realizing that Ayaka has woken up, Yuko immediately called for the doctor…
She was sent out of the room as the doctor and the nurse checked on the sick girl…
With cold hands, Yuko leaned on the cold wall. Her heart was beating fast. She was very nervous…
It was too quiet, enough silence to drive her out to brink of her sanity already. She closed her eyes and silently prayed to God.
“Yuko-san…?”
Hearing an unfamiliar voice, she opened her eyes and tilted her head towards to where the voice came from.
Three persons were walking towards her way. “Mr. and Mrs. Umeda… and Mio-chan…” She whispered.
She bowed before Ayaka’s relatives and they returned the simple greeting.
“Where’s Ayaka? How is she?” Mr. Umeda asked Yuko.
She had met them a few times before, but she would always feel this awkward. “She had just woke up… The doctor’s been checking on her.”
“Yukatta!” Mio commented.
Mio is Ayaka’s younger sister… Ayaka was very fond of her and she would always tell Yuko about their childhood memories. Mio was very fond of Ayaka, too. They respect each other same as how they love each other.
“Tomomi-chan already told me that she was a compatible donor…” – Mio
“Thank you for taking care of her, Yuko-chan…” The soft-spoken mother of Ayaka said.
She just smiled.
“By the way, Tomomi said that you haven’t had any sleep yet. Why don’t you go home now and doze off for a couple of hours?”
“I won’t be able to sleep, ma’am… until I know that Ayaka’s fine.”
“Have you eaten already?” Both of Ayaka’s parents were engaged in the conversation with her. It was awkward but somehow, she felt warm inside… having Ayaka’s parents talk to her.
She lightly shook her head.
“Mio, will you accompany Yuko-chan and grab some food somewhere? Don’t worry, Papa and I won’t be going anywhere…”
“Hai…”
Mio looked at Yuko. “Let’s go, Yuko-san…”
She doesn’t look like a carbon copy of Ayaka… but the way she looked at Yuko was somehow same as how Ayaka looks at her. Both of them have that certain sincere gaze…
Once in a while, she glances at the young girl. She was running out of words… So, they just kept quiet until they both arrive at where they are supposed to go.
On the other hand, Ayaka’s parents were left waiting outside her room.
After a few minutes, the doctor and the nurse went out of Ayaka’s room.
“Are you Ms. Umeda’s relatives?”
“Yes, we are her parents. How’s she?” Ayaka’s father said.
“As we’ve seen, she’s conscious now and somehow starting to recover…”
“Yukatta…” Both of them sighed in relief.
“But to be frank… We can’t be totally sure of her stability. We still need to observe her for a day or two…” The doctor added. “Well, at least she has woken up. You can now visit her inside… Excuse us.”
As the doctor and the nurse left, the worried parents rushed inside…
“Ayaka…”
Seeing their daughter in that condition brought a heavy feeling inside their chests.
“Mom… and Dad…” Her mother was crying as she moved closer. Her father remained unmoved, but with worry written all over his face as he was standing by a corner of the room. Ayaka tried her best to smile.
“I shouldn’t have permitted you to live alone… I should’ve—” Her mother said as she sobbed.
“D—don’t worry, mom. I’ll be fine…”
The night passed peacefully. Ayaka didn’t have any unwanted seizures or any of that kind. Meanwhile, Yuko had gone home for the night to doze off.
Time passed by slowly. Early the next day, Yuko and Tomochin were back at the hospital again… Sae and Sayaka also came and visited Ayaka…
END OF FLASHBACK
“I know Ayaka will survive this. She may look small and fragile, but she surely has a strong heart…” Sae commented as she unconsciously gripped Sayaka’s hand tighter.
“What’s the matter?”
“Nothing… I just thought of something.”
“What is it…?”
Clearing her throat, she looked intently at Sayaka.
“What if I was dying, too? What would you do?”
Sayaka didn’t expect her to ask things like that. It was sudden, that it left her out of words… “S—Sae, I—I… won’t let it happen. I’ll protect you no matter what…”
A patch of red became visible on the Genking’s cheek. “Thank you… but—”
“Ssssh! No but’s, okay. No matter what happens to us, I’ll stay here by your side, as your support.” It silenced the Genking as she was surprised about hearing these mushy lines from Sayaka. She walked there in awe as her face felt so hot.
“So, please stop thinking of things like that…”
“Yeah…”
Silence took over between them as they continued to walk. It was a breezy day, making it very much suitable for strolling downtown.
After a few minutes, they’ve transported to the hospital. Near the entrance of the hospital, they saw the nurses’ station and they headed there to ask for what room Ayaka was transferred to.
They weren’t the only people there. Well, there was another girl there, talking to the sole nurse behind the slightly tall counter…
They’re talking quite loud that Sae and Sayaka can overhear their conversation.
“Why’re you here? I told you to just rest inside your room.”
“I’m not feeling sleepy, okay…”
“But you’ll need that for the operation later—”“Erm, excuse me… but…” It was Sayaka who interfered between the bickering girls. They stopped in quite an embarrassment and the nurse went back to business.
“Yes, what is it, ma’am?” The nurse said in a cheerful voice, completely ignoring the girl she was talking to a while ago.
“We’re just going to ask what room Ms. Umeda Ayaka was transferred to?”
“Ayaka…?” They looked at the other girl, who butted in their conversation. “Are you her… friends?”
“Yes, we are…” Confused, Sae answered.
“I’m her cousin, Tomomi…” The girl smiled. “I’ll show you her room.”
“T—thank you…”
Then, the girl looked back at the nurse. “Oi, Kasai. I’ll be going now. See you later…”
The nurse named Kasai nodded. “Take care, Itano. Good luck.” She smiled at Tomochin.
It made the other girl blushed so to hide it, she looked away and showed the way to the newly met girls.
Meanwhile…After her own classes were done, Atsuko quickly packed up her things. She will be meeting Minami today but she was dismissed earlier than expected. So, she’ll just head over to the school where Minami is.
“Bye bye, Atsuko! See you tomorrow!” One of her classmates, or rather a friend, bade her good bye with an accompanying smile.
Atsuko, in return, smiled and waved her hand.
When she was done and her bag was fixed on her shoulder, she soon walked out of the room, and out of the school, too. And up to the bus station, she continued walking.
After quite some time, she finally arrived at Minami’s school…
But she saw someone as she passed by the school gate.
“Ray…” She thought.
Ray was shocked upon seeing Atsuko. So, she immediately looked away. She was still embarrassed about the actions she did in the past.
“Wait… Ray…” Atsuko walked faster, towards the young girl, to catch up on her.
TBC...

that's it.
PS: for all readers of "The Rosehouse Ladies"... I'll post an update soon. Thank you~
Thanks for reading~
