I had nearly reached the hospital when I, suddenly, had the very strong impression that I was being followed.
Alarmed, my heart picked up speed, my throat tightening.
The area where the hospital was situated was very quiet, with the streets desert most of the time.
Is it one of Hiyori Miyatsu's ploy again?
I felt a powerful urge to turn around to check if there was anyone coming from behind me, but I managed to resist it. Instead, I accelerated my pace, and the moment I rounded the corner of the street, I backed up against the side wall, tightening my grip around the handle of my bag, waiting.
And I heard them. Footsteps.
I was, indeed, being followed.
They seemed to belong to a single person. They drew closer. I pressed my eyes shut, still waiting. The very instant the sound of the footsteps reached the corner where I was, I jumped out of my hiding place and gave my stalker a blow with my bag, putting in as much force as I could.
I heard and felt it hit something. But then nothing.
As I opened my eyes, I was startled to find Gōjun standing in front of me.
'Gōjun!' I gasped. 'It's you!'
He was staring at his chest, where my bag had hit him, though he didn't seem the least affected by the blow.
'Well, I'm glad to see that you can also defend yourself!' he stated. 'I didn't feel anything though.'
Scratching the back of my head, I smiled awkwardly. And yet, I had put in all my force! Worse, I had intended to hit my stalker at the face, but given my small size, my blow didn't go any higher than the chest. I was lucky that it was only Gōjun!
'But, why were you following me?' I asked him, and covering my heart with my hand, I told him, in a sigh, 'You scared me!'
At this, he averted his eyes, answering, reluctantly, in a grumble, 'I wanted to know where you're going!'
I stared at him, holding my breath.
I- I see… Okā-san...
'You really want to know?' I asked him, with a poor smile, lowering my eyes. 'Well then, come with me! I'm sure that she'll appreciate to hear a different voice from my own!'
'Huh?' he uttered, with some surprise, but I didn't tell him anything.
We started to walk together. He became quiet too, and simply watched me from the corner of his eyes, keeping with his hands plunged in his pockets. When we arrived at the hospital, his expression was filled with surprise again, but he didn't ask me anything at that moment either.
I led him directly to my mother's room. Before opening the door, I fixed my expression.
'Okā-san!' I greeted, in a cheerful tone, as I entered the room. 'It's me!'
Running up to her bed, I closed my eyes and folded my hands up in front of myself, rubbing my palms together, as I apologized, fervently, 'Sorry! Sorry! Sorry! Please forgive me! I know that I didn't come to visit you for three whole days! I'm sincerely sorry!' Then, opening my eyes back again, I turned half-around to look at Gōjun- who had come to a stop in the doorway- to announce, joyfully, 'But I think you'll be happy to know that I've brought you a visitor along with me today! I present you Gōjun Shoran!' I gestured towards him. 'And Gōjun, this is my mother: Kozue Kirigakure.'
I crossed the room after that to pull the curtains of the window fully wide open, carrying on to say to my mother, in a small giggle, 'And yes, he is well one of the two young men I keep telling you about! Oh, by the way, I've brought you a new book, and this time, I was careful to check the ending, just to make sure that it's a happy one!'
By now, I had moved to the small table opposite of her bed to change the flowers in the vase there, replacing them with those that I had picked downstairs.
'I won't give you any details though! I don't want to spoil the fun!'
Moving back to her bed, I pulled a chair closer to it to sit myself down. As I took the said-book out of my bag, my attention drew back to Gōjun. He was still standing in the doorway. I wondered if he was feeling uncomfortable and wished to leave.
I was very surprised when he stepped inside of the room, and closed the door behind him, before he moved to the window to hold himself there, with his back pressed against the wall.
'Do you mind if I stand here?'
I gazed at him for a whole minute, before I shook my head in answer and looked back at the book in my lap. Opening it, I started to read.
Gōjun stayed through the whole visit, and when the visiting hours were over, we came downstairs together to leave the premises. We had been walking down the street for a moment when, he broke the intense silence between us, to ask me, 'What happened to her?'
I took a glance at him, before I moved to sit myself down on the public bench situated on my right. He came to sit down with me. I kept my eyes on the floor, clasping my hands in my lap. It took me a whole minute to be able to muster enough courage to answer him, and say, 'It's my father who has put her in this state!'
I heard his breath catch. I didn't look up.
'You know, at first, it was supposed to be an arranged marriage between them. But, when my grand-parents got ear of all the rumors on my father, they decided to call off the wedding. However, it was too late. My mother had fallen irremediably in love with him, and my grand-parents had to give in to their marriage despite themselves. After their marriage, my father turned out to be an abusive man. My mother loved him sincerely; almost blindly. He could do anything to her. He would cheat on her, he would insult her and would even hit her, but she would take everything in stride. She was... prisoner... of her own love...'
I paused.
'You have to know that my mother is my grand-parents only daughter. They loved her more than anything else in the world. When she got married, they felt betrayed by her choice. Especially my grand-mother, with whom she was especially close. Obā-san could never forgive her and she never spoke to my mother again after her marriage. Only Ojii-san would call. Things never arranged themselves between my mother and her parents. My father refused that she visits them or that they visit us after the wedding. And today, Obā-san feels even angrier towards my mother for her having hidden from them the situation in which she has been living with my father all these years, and especially for what he has done to her...'
I paused again to hug myself as a cold shiver ran through my body at that distinct memory.
'The night on which it happened… My parents were having a terrible fight. My mother, for the first time, told my father that she was going to leave him and wanted a divorce. He became red with anger. He reached out for a bottle and hit her on the head with it. I was present in the room, but I couldn't do anything to protect her. I remember running to where she was lying, unmoving, on the ground, her head in blood, and when I looked over my shoulder at my father, he was gone. He had dropped the bottle and ran away. And he's been running from the police ever since! My mother never regained consciousness after that; she had slipped into a coma. And, immediately after that, I shifted in this city with her, to live with my grand-parents.'
My eyes were stinging with tears now. I, desperately, tried to hold them back. I couldn't speak anymore. I felt like a piece of glass, that was about to break at the first whiff of the wind.
In all of a sudden, I felt a hand come down onto my head in the form of a gentle, comforting pat. And instantly, I looked at Gōjun, my eyes going wide at him. He wasn't looking at me; his eyes were set on the ground ahead of himself.
For some reason that I couldn't understand, thanks to that simple gesture of his, all the pain, all the sorrow, that had been threatening to overwhelm me, faded out. I stared at his face for whole minute, breathlessly, before a feeling of embarrassment came over me at my having revealed to him such personal things about myself, and jumping to my feet on the spot, I told him rapidly that I had to leave and began to scoot away.
He sprang to his feet, startled by my reaction.
'Oi!' he called, but I was already far away.
***
Later…
When I found myself alone with my person again after having spoken to Gōjun, all the pain, all the sorrow, came back to me. It made me extremely low. And my spirit was still very low when I got to work, and I remained lost in my thoughts most of time.
I was, in this way, cleaning a window when, out of the blue, a hand went past my face from behind to close around mine onto the handle of the window cleaning squeegee I was holding. At the same time, a familiar voice spoke in one of my ears, to say, in good humor, 'You always leave out the upper corners!'
Startled, my head snapped to my right instantly to stare at Shunsui. His face was just next to mine, with my nose almost touching my left cheek. He had taken the tool from my hand now, and he cleaned the upper corner of the window with it within two seconds, before he stepped slightly away to hand it back to me.
'Shunsui… What are you doing here?' I breathed, extremely surprised to see him.
'I came to visit you, Princess!' he replied, cheerily.
'Don't call me like that!' I moaned, bowing my head, my expression awkward, and he laughed.
'Can I buy you a drink?' he asked me, and even before I could reply, he had sent his arm around my neck and was already leading me towards the elevator.
A few minutes later, we were sitting together downstairs in the lobby, sipping our drinks in silence.
'Gōjun told me that you two have had a talk with each other earlier,' he declared, at one point, and I looked at his face on the spot.
I see… I lowered my eyes. Gōjun has told him about it, even if, I had no doubt that he had already learned about what happened from Tsubasa-sama since a long time back. He has come to see how I am doing. I felt touched by his attention.
As I looked back at him, unexpectedly, he grabbed me by my forearm to pull me closer and brushing my bangs away with his other hand, he placed a kiss over my forehead.
I froze into place, my eyes going wide, my cheeks reddening.
'Hime, you impress me!' he told me, when he pulled backward, without releasing my arm.
My eyes grew wider at him.
I… impress him?!
He let go of my forearm after a minute with a smile, and picking his drink up again, he took another sip at it.
Something quite disturbing crossed my mind, suddenly, and my expression fell.
He seemed to notice it, and inquired, 'What is it?'
'I was thinking about Natsui just now,' I replied, slowly, my eyes set on the floor. 'You know, I wouldn't want the same tragedy that I have known to happen to her.'
'You're talking about her brother? Do you think that he could prove to be dangerous?'
'I don't know… But I feel scared for her mother and her,' I whispered. But then, shaking my head, as if, to get rid of the dramatic thoughts, I told him, rapidly, with a sheepish smile, 'But, maybe, I'm thinking a little too much! I mean, I'm sure nothing of the sort will-' or should- 'happen!'
He fixated me for minute, before he gave me a smile, and looked back ahead of himself to sip at his drink again, informing me, 'Oh, by the way, I don't know if Gōjun thought to tell you about it but, he won't be coming to school tomorrow. He's going out of the city for the day to participate in a Kendō competition.'
'I see,' I replied, something telling me that this was another reason why he had come to visit me. He didn't want me to form a wrong idea about Gōjun's absence given our conversation of today, and therefore to feel ill at ease with him upon his return.
Something occurred to me, abruptly.
'But, isn't he injured?!' I exclaimed, worriedly. He had a fractured rib, as well as several less minor injuries.
'He promised me that he's going only for figuration,' Shunsui reassured me. 'If he were to compete, don't you think I would have gone to watch the match?! And I would have dragged you along with me, for sure!' Smiling suggestively then, he added, 'But, if it bothers you not to have him around, don't worry, he should be back by dusk!'
I flushed up. I wasn't worrying about that!
He giggled at my expression.
***
The reddish-brown-haired young man parted with the girl shortly after that. When he came outside, he took out his cellphone and dialed a number, his expression grave.
'May I know why it's taking so long to obtain the apartment?' he demanded, and spoke to his respondent for a moment, before concluding, 'Alright! But make sure to hurry up! Everything should be set by the end of the Golden Week!'
After he had hung up, he dialed another number.
'Hello?'
'I want to engage you for a job. Are you willing to do it?'
'Anything for you. Tell me.'
'I want you to keep an eye on somebody's domicile. More specifically on a certain young man.'
'What's his name?'
'Hisashi Mizoroge. If he does anything that gives you the impression that he's going to physically hurt his mother or sister, I want you to arrest him on the spot.'
'Alright. Understood. I'll get onto it tonight itself. You can count on me.'
'Thanks. Be discreet, okay!'
'As usual!'
Thank you for reading!