"Alright dear, remember to take lots of rest. Don't worry, you'll be fine."
With that, the nurse left Sae's hospital room.
Sae was alone.
It was the day after the incident and Sae was admitted to the hospital to recover from the treatment. Her condition wasn't bad and that she would recover in no time. The worst pain was already over. However, the scars were most likely going to be permanent.
Sae looked around the room she was in. Her thighs were tied in a cast as she laid down on the hospital bed. She was dressed in the hospital's patient attire with her hair tied into a ponytail.
The room was fit for 4 people but because no one shared the same room she was in, she had the whole place all to herself. Sae was glad she was alone in her room…
Because she could cry without letting anyone see the state she was in.
"Ngh… I'm so glad… Ngh…"
Sae was happy that her boyfriend managed to bring her to safety and handled the situation well. She was happy that he was able to calm her dog despite knowing that Mirai would usually only listen to her. She was glad that he was able to assess the situation properly and handle it calmly.
"I'm so sorry…"
Sae was sad that she had ruined her boyfriend's day by causing such a huge mess. She cried herself to sleep last night because she wasn't able to be the strong, independent, wife-material girl he always wanted. She was crying because she didn't get to see him since then and was worried that he didn't want to see her.
"Why… Why am I so stupid!"
Sae was angry that because of her actions, she had caused her boyfriend to carry such a huge burden for the eternity of his life. She was furious that she had caused an unremovable pain in his heart with the prove laid as a scar on her body. She hated herself for causing pain and burden to her family again. She was even angrier that she could no longer have the flawless, scarless body that her boyfriend always wanted.
"..."
Sae finally understood now. These emotions she felt for her boyfriend were genuine. She could feel happy for him. She could cry for him. She could get angry for him. Even if Sae once thought about throwing away her emotions for him, she couldn't bring herself to do so because she was just that in love with him.
But Sae was prepared to be thrown away by him. She knew he wouldn't be able to carry that burden. Sae knew that if the roles were reversed, Sae would have broken down already.
Sae was ready to be tossed aside. And if that does happen to her, she was willing to close off her heart. And this time, never opening it up again to anyone else.
And as if she closed her heart one last time, she closed her eyes and went to sleep in tears.
.
.
.
.
Sae woke up from her sleep and noticed a silhouette appearing in front of her. It was the tall cheerful pervert that she had fallen in love with. She was glad she finally got to see him once again. With her swollen eyes and a dried mouth that refused to drink any water, she called out his name with fresh new tears.
"Nobuo?"
"No. It's me, Shinyu."
Sae opened her eyes wide and realized that the person in front of her was not just the tall cheerful pervert she was in love with, but also the round dumb crybaby with who she fell in love with.
"Shinyu… Welcome back."
"I'm back, Sae."
Sae wanted to sit up and thus Shinyu helped her with it. Sae noticed the stack of gifts and fruits beside her bed. Shinyu explained what had happened while she was asleep.
"Gin and the others came with me. They are having dinner downstairs. I'll call them up once we are done with our stuff. I have some things I want to talk to you about first."
"It's okay, No... Shinyu. You don't have to say anything. It was my fault…"
Sae was about to break into tears again but Shinyu stopped her from saying another word by patting her head. Shinyu nodded as if he wanted to wish his piece first before letting Sae talk.
"First off, I just wanted to say sorry for being late. I was supposed to come here yesterday but my car broke down and I had no choice but to settle that issue first. Then there was also the fact I don't know which hospital you were at."
Shinyu got up and sat on Sae's bed. He held Sae's hand that was shivering in fear. He then clasped them with both of his hands and ensured her that things were fine.
"Eventually, your mother told me which hospital you were admitted to. So I got the gang and came here with them."
Sae who was listening to Shinyu's piece could no longer hold in her feelings, she started crying and broke down in front of him. She was no longer in control of her emotions as her tears began to drip onto Shinyu's arms.
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry for saying sorry. I'm sorry for making you worry so much. I'm sorry for ruining our day. I wanted it to be a day where we can have fun. I'm sorry for having you carry that burden. I'm sorry for not being a cute girlfriend. I'm sorry I could not do those things with you because I was so afraid of repeating my family's mistakes!"
She continued.
"I'm sorry for not being to do anything for you! I'm sorry that I could only buy you gifts and cook for you. I'm sorry for not being the prettiest girl. I'm sorry I can't keep myself strong and healthy. I sorry! I'm sorry! I'M SORRY!"
Sae broke down as she crawled onto Shinyu's clothing. She bawled her eyes out as the echo of her cries rang through the entire room. She didn't care if the people around her could hear her cry. She only cared about having her Shinyu listen to her cries.
"I'm sorry too."
"No! You did nothing wrong! It's my fault…"
"Sae… You don't understand. I lied to you."
"Huh?" Sae said as she looked towards Shinyu's calm and collected face. He was smiling but Sae didn't understand why he was smiling.
"When I confessed to you that day I was only caring about myself. I only saw you as a girl who could satisfy me. I had only cared about having fun. And you did but I was only using you and didn't care about your happiness."
Sae shook her head as she hugged Shinyu. She didn't want to let him go because she was worried that he was about to end their relationship. She didn't care if she wasn't being loved by him. She only cared about being with Shinyu.
"I don't care. I don't mind being used by you. I don't care if you see me as just your tool or your key to happiness. As long as I can be your only source of happiness. That's all it matters to me."
Shinyu pushed her away and replied to her as he bent to level her face with Sae.
"I know you don't. But I do. I'm so sorry, Sae."
Sae who felt like she finally understood what Shinyu was achieving began to sob and cry in tears of sadness. She knew that her days with Shinyu were near their end and that it would not be the same anymore. She was not only losing her lover. She was not only losing her best friend. She was also losing her childhood friend.
"I understand now. Of course, you would want to throw me away. I was a terrible person anyway. I'm sorry for not living up to your expectations. These past few months, I had fun. I will always remember you.."
"Sae, you're mistaken."
"Huh?"
"I'm not here to end our relationship. I'm here to do what I should have done a long time ago."
Shinyu got up and kissed Sae on the forehead. Seeing that Sae's tears had stopped moving, Shinyu gave her the biggest smile without a single tear in his eyes.
"I'm here to redo it."
Shinyu got up from her bed and stood in front of her. He raised his arms as if he was ready for Sae to pounce onto him.
"I realized that I never get to do a proper confession to you. I was too scared to do it because I thought all of my words weren't thought out properly or I would miss out on something. But right now, I'm prepared. So I'm going to redo my confession."
As if he had forgotten the tears running through Sae's eyes, Shinyu gave her another smile as he prepared his heart.
"Please listen to it, okay? I'm only going to say this only once."