I opened the door to the hospital room and walked in closing the door behind me. I would come here almost everyday just to see 'him' hoping that it might be the day that you he would wake up. It never was, but I still came. It was mostly for my sake though.

I took a few steps and saw the bed that carried a young comatose boy. He was sleeping peacefully as if he was in a blissful dream, but I knew better. His mind was still trapped due to the machine that was bound to his head: the NerveGear

I wanted to cry, but I couldn't. I made a promise to him that I wouldn't cry whenever I saw his comatose body. Instead I would give him a smile hoping that he would wake up so that we could get back on track with our lives.

I sat down on the chair that was next to the bed placing my bag down on the floor and gave the boy a warm smile, "hello Kirito-kun."

There was no response from Kirito and yet I still carried on with the conversation, "I'm so stressed Kirito-kun. My mother says that I should stop visiting you..." I glanced down at the ground now looking sad, "she said that you're never going to wake up and that I should just forget about you..."

That conversation was still fresh in my mind. I was about to leave my house to walk to the hospital that Kirito was residing in when my mother stopped me in the way. She insisted that I should stop visiting a boy that was never going to wake up. Even if he did, he would only love me for the money. I was infuriated by my mother and told her that she didn't know the real Kirito unlike how I did. After that, I walked out of my house rather rudely not looking back to see my mother's reaction.

I knew why my mother told me this though. She disliked that I had feelings for a boy that was pretty much half dead. And one that wasn't even the same social status that my family was. No, my mother wanted me to have feelings for another guy. A certain guy who I knew was a venomous tyrant.

The guy that my mother wanted me to have feelings for was a certain man called Sugou Nobuyuki. Sugou was practically family to my parents. After all, he appeared like a polite, good natured man. But I saw under his mask when I first met him. No Sugou was a filthy, dirty man who didn't deserve the kindness my parents showed towards him.

My parents had actually made Sugou my fiancée before the accident (as they now call it). But I called it off when I talked to my father about Kirito a few weeks after I had woken up.

When I had woken up, I made it my mission to search for Kirito, otherwise known as Kirigaya Kazuto in the real world. But I knew I couldn't do it alone, so I asked my father to help me locate Kirito. At first, my father was skeptical about this, but after I had told him all the events that had happened in SAO concerning about me and Kirito's relationship, he reconsidered.

My father wasn't surprised when I told him to call off the engagement to Sugou. I think he knew it would happened after learning about what Kirito meant to me. But it still didn't mean Sugou was not part of the family anymore. My father still showed towards him trust which I pretty sure Sugou was laughing at in mockery.

I blinked finding myself looking at Kirito again. I still couldn't forget that fateful day when SAO was finally cleared. That day was still clear in my mind: the battle with Heatcliff, me dying, Kirito and me watching Aincrad being deleted, our conversation with Akihiko Kayaba, and our promise. How could I forget those things?

My throat felt dry and yet I still wanted to talk to Kirito, "Kirito-kun, I'm getting a lot better now. I don't need a wheelchair anymore. The doctors said that I'll be back to my old self pretty soon..."

I wanted to say that with a smile, but I couldn't. While I'll be walking around back to my usual self, Kirito would still be here in a coma. He would be still trapped in his mind while I would be here free. But I didn't want that. I wanted Kirito to be here free alongside me.

I remembered the day when Kirito was located learning a sickening truth. He had not woken up like I did. In fact, three hundred other SAO victims including Kirito had not woken up. People were saying it was due to a bug, but I didn't think that was the reason. Akihiko Kayaba promised that everyone would be free, so why weren't the rest of SAO victims free? It just didn't make any sense.

I found myself lifting my hand from my lap to Kirito cupping mine to his. His hand was ice cold. There was no warmth in it unlike mine. I clung to his hand even tighter just wanting the warmth from my hand to go into his even though I knew this wasn't possible.

The NerveGear bound to his head kept this from being possible. The NerveGear disconnected all five of his senses from the real world: touch, hear, smell, taste, and sight. Even if I did touch him, Kirito wouldn't feel the warmth from my hand.

"Kirito-kun..." I said quietly, "I miss you... Please... Please come back to me..."

I clutched his hand a little tighter ignoring how white my hand was becoming. I didn't care how desperate I may have sounded like to people or how stupid I was to keep believing that he would wake up. All I truly wanted was Kirito to be back amongst the living. Back with his friends and family. Back with me.

I glanced at the clock nearby and sadly looked back at Kirito still sleeping peacefully on the bed. It was time for me to leave. Lisbeth had talked me into going Christmas shopping with her after my visit with Kirito. At first I thought against it, but I knew Lisbeth was just trying to make me feel better. She knew about how much Kirito meant to me. After all, she was my best friend.

So I said yes. After telling her yes, Lisbeth told me to meet her at a spot and we'll look for gifts. Before leaving, she also told me that she'll have a special surprise waiting for me. I didn't know what she was talking about, but I knew it was surprise that was suppose to cheer me up.

I grabbed my bag from the floor and have one last smile to Kirito, "I have to go Kirito-kun, but I'll be back tomorrow."

I stared at him for a few seconds before whispering two words that I knew he wouldn't even hear, "I promise."

I turned and left the room closing the door behind me. I walked down the empty hallway to the elevator ignoring how much the silence wanted to make me cuddle into a ball and cry for him. I entered the elevator and pushed the down button causing it to cringed before making me feel like I was falling.

I stared at the closed elevator door going over thoughts in my head. Christmas was coming and I wouldn't be able to spend it with Kirito. It caused my heart to hurt thinking about that. I was out here about to have a Christmas in the real world that I couldn't have for two years while Kirito was still trapped in his own mind. What was worse was that he was going to spend Christmas alone.

I heard a ding and lifted my head to see the elevator's doors opening. I walked out of the elevator and continued walking to the front desk. There sitting at the desk quietly typing on a computer was a nurse. She looked up at me from the computer and nodded returning to her work.

Everyone at the hospital knew who I was since I came almost every day to see Kirito. They learned to know who I would be seeing and practically didn't asked me any questions when I come. After all, they wanted to leave a hopeless girl who was chasing a dream that was bound to die alone. It was all that could do.

I left my pass on the desk and turned walking out of the small hospital to outside. It was chilly and the wind was a little strong. I wrapped my arms around me exhaling. I could see a small cloud of air coming from my nose. I stared at it as it disappeared. It simply was just too cold for me.

I looked to my left and started my way to the spot Lisbeth had wanted to meet me at. Although I wasn't in the mood to go shopping, I didn't want my friend to feel bad. Besides, I had nothing else to do today. Maybe Christmas shopping would help me cheer up. After all, I still had a Christmas gift to pick out for Kirito.