"I know, it's weird." He said, blushing slightly out of embarrassment.
"No, I like it actually. It's cool!" The girl smiled. "My name's Hope. I know, it's basic and boring." She laughed, a sound that comforted Akuro more than he ever thought it could.
"Hope..." he echoed her words. "I like it." For the first time in months, Akuro gave his first real smile that night.
"Well... the only good thing about my name.. is that there's always hope in misery." Hope smiled, filling Akuro with a warmth he'd missed for so long. "Come on. Let's get out of here."
After meeting Hope, Akuro slowly came out of his depression, slowly gaining back his confidence and becoming more like himself. Four months passed that he spent with Hope, and in that time he'd fallen in love with her, she was the only light in his life of suffering, she was his Hope in his misery.
One night he sat in her room, leaning up against her with her head on his shoulder. That night he couldn't help but think of his sister and how long it's been since he last saw her. He felt horrible. He saw only then that, in all reality, he'd abandoned her. What a horrible brother he was, falling in love while she suffered slowly... alone.
"What's wrong, Akuro?" Hope asked, taking not of his frown.
"Oh... nothing. I'm fine." He lied.
"Then why are you crying?" She asked. Akuro froze then, and slowly put a hand to his cheek. It was damp. And then he felt tears well in his eyes as his vision went blurry.
"I-I'm sorry..." he said. It was the first time he'd cried in over half a year. Hope held him to her chest and stroked his hair.
"How many times to I have to tell you, you don't need to apologize to me, silly." Hope spoke softly. "It's your sister, right? Her name was Alina, wasn't it?"
"Yeah... she's sick. She doesn't have much time left." Akuro said quietly. "Haven't seen her in over half a year now. I wonder how she's doing..."
"Well... let's go see her." Hope said.
Akuro shivered. "No... I- I can't. I don't have the right-"
"You're her older brother, no matter what happens, she'll always love you. I'm sure she knows your in pain, and I doubt she blames you for anything."
Akuro broke down that night and cried. He fell asleep in Hope's arms, and in his mind he'd made the decision. He was going to see his sister. He was going to see Alina.
The next day Akuro dressed himself in the best clothes he had; dark jeans, a dark blue shirt to compliment his eyes and a white hoodie. Hope rushed him out the door, wishing him luck, then he drove to his sister's hospital. Anxiety built up in his chest and he felt like he was going to burst at any moment. His hands shook violently and he had to clench his jaw to keep his teeth from chattering.
For a long time he just sat in the car. About an hour he wasted just sitting there staring at his hands as he held tightly onto the steering wheel as if his life depended on it. He gulped painfully, then took in a deep breath and got out of the car. Each step he took toward the hospital doors increased his anxiety. And when he actually entered the building he shook so bad the people gave him strange looks, taking note of it. He clenched his fists and walked up to the counter, his movements heavy and slow.
"Yes?" The lady at the counter asked.
"I-I'm here to see my si- my sister, Alina Zaizen." He stuttered.
"Name?"
"Akuro. Akuro Zaizen."
The woman flipped through some papers slowly, increasing his anticipation. She glanced up at him. "I know your mother." She said. "She came in a while ago... she removed you from the visitor list..."
Akuro's heart dropped. He felt sick, his head spun and he felt like he'd pass out. His vision blurred.
"No... please... I'm so sorry..." he said meekly.
The woman gave him a long look, he couldn't tell if it was pity or if it was contempt, but he didn't care. He world, again, was crumbling around him.
The woman sighed, then made a note on a paper, folded it, then held it out to Akuro. "Here. Take this. Give it to your sister's nurse, then you can see her. I see how much you care about her just by looking at you. Don't make my choice a mistake, got it?" The woman smiled.
Akuro looked down at the pink slip of paper in the woman's hand. He grabbed it with a trembling hand, then bowed. "Thank you! Thank you so much!"
A sad look crossed the woman's eyes. "If course. Now get out of here before I change my mind."
Akuro turned and walked down the halls of the hospital. He saw injured and crippled people around every corner. At one point he saw a mother and a father holding each other crying. Around another corner he saw a man staring at his missing, bandaged legs. His body was scorched and his eyes were without light. All Akuro saw around every corner was pain. Now he looks back on that and wonders... maybe that was an omen.