The last bandage was placed across the bridge of Kairi's nose. A pair of lips lightly pecked her forehead. Arms gently wrapped around her body and gave her a securing squeeze. Her emotion remained unreadable even from the contact. These little things used to make her smile. They brought feelings of joy. Lately, Kairi always questioned why she even got rewards like hugs and kisses. She felt as if she didn't deserve the affection. She continued to gaze downward when the embrace was over. However, when her name was called, Kairi's immediate reaction was to look up and she didn't like what she saw.
"Kai," A voice filled with worry spoke softly. It pained her to see her mother in this condition. The blonde woman couldn't even concentrate on her job or anything else since she was so worried about her only daughter. She took more time off of work just to watch Kairi. A frown took over the redhead's lips as she thought about the problems she was bringing her mom. This wasn't supposed to happen. She was supposed to be flawless. Kairi hung her head in shame. Instead, she thought she was defective and a pathetic excuse for a child. Two fingers grasped her chin in a delicate manner and tilted her head back up. A small, genuine smile spread across her mother's face. In a gentle whisper she said,"be careful, sweetie."
Kairi didn't have a chance to respond since her mother suddenly told her to hurry or she'd be late for school. With that, she nodded and headed out of the door with her brown bag hanging on her shoulder. The distance from her house to school wasn't very long at all. It'd take her ten minutes to get there if she walked and five to six if she ran. She decided to run this morning since a tardy would just be another harsh reminder of her imperfection. Kairi was determined to make her mother proud. Kairi wanted to give her the one thing she desired most, to have a daughter who was perfect. That's what also scared her. She always wondered what would happen if she couldn't achieve that goal. The worst-case scenario popped into her head which caused her to slow down then eventually stop in her tracks. If she wasn't occupied with the thought, Kairi would've realized that she stopped right in the middle of the road.
Her mind began to spin and images of what she feared could possibly happen flashed before her eyes. Suddenly, her vision went fuzzy. A sharp pain struck her the chest. Through her ears, a high piercing sound rung. It was happening again. She felt the urge to scream but just placed her hands on either side of her head and shut her eyes closed trying to make it all stop. Kairi fell to her knees and groaned out in agony. The pain distracted her from the fact that a car was quickly approaching.
The driver of the silver vehicle was too busy texting to pay attention to the road. She figured since it was just a straightway she'd be fine multitasking. Kairi on the other hand would not be. Both girls were unaware of each others existence and were soon going to be a part of a possibly fatal accidental. Kairi might have ended up in the hospital or perhaps a worse place if someone hadn't come to her rescue. Her name was shouted and when she didn't respond, someone quickly pulled her up and hurried over to the sidewalk. The silver car missed the two by an inch.
Her head was carefully rested on her saviour's lap. Kairi finally ceased her groaning looked up at the fuzzy image that appeared to be a boy above her. Colors flashed around then came to a halt. Her vision returned to normal and she could finally make out the person. His hair was messy, spiky, and the color of milk chocolate. He had the face of an angel. The most radiant blue tinted his eyes. Everything was starting to come back to her. The boy called out to her again hoping for a response this time.
"Sora?" she asked weakly. A feeling of relief instantly rushed through him but it quickly turned back into worry.
"What happened back there?" he questioned. He wanted to go strangle whoever that was about to hit his best friend. He only earned a groan from Kairi. After scanning her to see if she was physically O.K., Sora noticed the bandages covering her arms and the single one on her face. Then it hit him.
"Was it another one of your episodes?" He figured the bandages must have been a result from yesterday's but he had never seen or heard about her having two in a row. Something had to be wrong with her. These breakdowns of hers were happening way too often and seemed to be getting worse each time.
Kairi continued giving him a blank stare but now she was completely unresponsive. Sora cursed under his breath and picked up Kairi bridal style. He began to make his was back down the street and to Kairi's house, running as fast as he could. He wasn't going to take the chance of Kairi snapping out of it herself.
He was afraid that this time she wouldn't.