"You said... you remember us?"
Ren stared at her in disbelief. Tsubaki saw the flicker of anxiety in his eyes. Guilt crept inside her heart as she understood he was afraid if she was not telling the truth.
Tsubaki nodded. She raised one of her hands and placed her palm gently against his cheek. "I saw you in my dream. We were walking to the stream behind my house. You told me you've never been this happy in your life."
Ren's lips parted, no words came to him as he too remembered the memory. It was one of his fondest memory of them both. It was a sunny day where both of them had days off. She invited him for a walk and he followed her. He had even remembered the dress she wore that day.
Ren didn't realize his eyes had glistened with tears until Tsubaki sat up and kissed the corners of his eyes. He snapped out of his senses and returned the kiss on her lips.
"You... remember?" He asked hoarsely, still couldn't believe his ears. "You really remember us?"
Tsubaki smiled. Her face was still pale. "I only remember the memory. I'm sorry, I haven't remembered everything."
Ren chuckled, he buried his head in the crook of her neck. "It's okay, sweetheart. Don't force yourself. Sooner or later, you'd remember the rest of them."
Tsubaki dipped her head in agreement. She just let him held her close. Sensing the fear that lingered within him, she didn't have the heart to ask him to stop worrying. She tightened her hold around his body, letting him to hear her heart beating.
"How long have I fainted?" Tsubaki asked once they laid side by side on the hospital bed. The bed was quite big, unlike the usual ones Satsuki had. She knew this was one for the VIP wards.
"For almost a day. You fainted in the afternoon," answered Ren, he glanced at his wristwatch. "It's close to 10 PM already."
"Oh, dear..." Tsubaki felt guilty. "How's Aunt Ume and Kou-chan? They must be shocked."
"I've told them there's nothing wrong with you." Ren brushed the stray strands of hair from her face. "They wanted to wait until you wake up but I asked Hibiki to send them home. They'd come tomorrow morning."
Tsubaki sighed in relief. She knew Aunt Ume had been frightened by her. The snippets of their conversation resounded in her mind. Her brows knitted as she recalled the contents of it. Unconsciously, she held tightly on Ren's shirt.
"Sweetheart?" Ren was quick to notice her change in expression.
"Did... Aunt Ume tell you anything?" Tsubaki looked at her husband. She was unable to conceal her fear.
Ren paused before he slowly nodded his head. There was no use if he wanted to hide it from her.
"Aunt Ume told me everything about Miss Hinata."
Tsubaki closed her eyes as she snuggled closer to him. She still found it a hard topic to bring up. "Don't you find anything strange? After all, those incidents happened to her 5 years ago."
Ren knew what Tsubaki was talking about. He too was shocked when Aunt Ume told him what she had relayed to Tsubaki about Kouichi's mother. After the old lady went home, he immediately called Akashi.
His suspicions were almost confirmed.
"Hush, don't think about it," said Ren in a low voice. "We'll talk about this later. Now, I want you to rest. I've asked Hibiki to send your supper soon. You need to eat, sweetheart."
"Okay," Tsubaki agreed. Her body felt so weak as her last meal was the breakfast she made for them both in the morning.
Hibiki arrived shortly after they spoke. If she was energetic enough, she would already bombard him with questions about Yoshie but she didn't have the energy to do so. The special assistant immediately left after being dismissed by his boss.
As the night was getting late, Hibiki brought two sets of chicken soup and steamed dumplings for them both. Ren adjusted the rotating overbed table and placed the meals on it. They sat opposite each other on the bed as they ate their supper.
"Grandma wanted to come to visit you but I refused her," said Ren as he fed her a dumpling. Tsubaki obediently ate it.
"That's good," said Tsubaki after she swallowed the dumpling down her throat. "She must be worried, I feel guilty."
"There's nothing wrong for her to worry about her granddaughter-in-law," Ren smiled as he gently coaxed her. "I've told her she doesn't need to come. But I think she would come here the first thing in the morning."
Tsubaki giggled. The rosy color on her cheeks had returned gradually. She scooped some soup and brought the spoon to her husband's lips. "I just don't want her to strain herself. This hospital is quite far from the old house."
"Stop worrying over small matters like that." Ren patted the side of her head. "After supper, you could continue to rest. I'm going to meet Toshiro for a minute."
"Okay." Tsubaki picked another dumpling and took a small bite of it. "I don't think I could continue sleeping. I might as well have my movie night tonight."
Ren laughed, amused by her choice. They ended their supper shortly.
After making sure Tsubaki was comfortable, Ren stepped outside the ward. He instructed his bodyguards to guard the door well. Even though the security inside the hospital was almost faultless, he didn't want to risk it. He was afraid if there was someone lurking in the dark, waiting for an opportunity to strike his attack.
"I thought it would be the next morning when I could finally see you," said Toshiro teasingly once he saw Ren came inside his office.
"She'd feel uncomfortable if I continued worrying," replied Ren helplessly.
The truth was he didn't want to leave her alone inside the ward. Only God knew how much he was frightened when she suddenly fainted after screaming in pain. But he understood she needed some space after what happened. Although he was reluctant, he still left to meet Toshiro.
"Have you got what I asked for?"
Toshiro stood up from his chair, walking over to the small pantry inside his office. He opened two sachets of instant coffee and poured hot water into two mugs. After stirring the coffee, he handed one mug to Ren who was sitting on the couch.
"Yes."
Ren brought out four small zip-locked plastics from his jacket pocket. There was names written on each of them. He gave the plastics to Toshiro who was waiting. Toshiro took a look at the plastics on his palms.
Fuse Tsubaki.
Nagao Kouichi.
There were a few strands of hair with the follicles intact inside the plastic bags. As well as a chewed gum and cheek swab of Kouichi and Tsubaki respectively.
"I'll do the test in secrecy. I'll notify you of the results as soon as possible." Toshiro placed the plastic bags inside a drawer. He didn't forget to lock it.
Ren nodded. His eyes darkened as he looked at the drawer where the bags were kept.
"And..." Toshiro seemed to remember something. "Akashi told me that the suspect has came into contact with your wife. Is it true?"
Ren closed his eyes, silently confirming Toshiro's question.