Disclaimer: HYD and its characters aren't mine.
A/N: Apologies for the shortish chapters so far. They just fit this way...
Unrelenting rain pelted the windows of Eitoku Gakuen Library, sheets of water making the outside look blurry and vague. It was already 8pm and almost completely pitch black outside. But despite the bleakness outside, Tsukushi was happy. Tsukasa would be calling soon.
He tried calling her every night, but that wasn't possible all the time, since both of them were so busy. So she cherished the few short calls they could have between classes, or – on days like these – when Tsukushi didn't have to go to work. She had just finished studying for her entrance into the Eitoku Law Program next year, and the only people left at the library were college students studying for midterm exams. But Tsukasa promised he would call as soon as he woke up, even just to say hello before he went to school, so she decided just to study while she waited.
She stood just inside the library's lobby, gazing out at the drenched school grounds and listening to the light murmur of conversation coming from the other end of the lobby. Glancing at her phone, she sighed. It was really quite ridiculous how much she missed Tsukasa. It had been almost a year since he had left for New York, a year since she last saw him. As much as she tried, she could do nothing to stop her mind from wandering to him at every opportunity. The flood of images of him were constant, like this rain. She was forced to admit to herself again and again that she must truly be crazy about him.
Her phone began vibrating suddenly, and she jumped as it tickled her hand. "Hello?"
"Makino?" a sleepy voice said on the other end.
"Hi, Doumyouji," she responded with an involuntary smile. "Did you sleep well?"
"I guess," he muttered with a slight grumble. Tsukasa was not a morning person. "Why are you whispering? I can barely hear you."
"I'm at the library. I don't want to disturb the people who are still studying."
"Well, it's weird talking to you when you're not yelling. You don't sound like yourself."
"Hey!" Tsukushi's voice rose by several decibels, and the old woman behind the counter gave her a reprimanding look. Tsukushi winced and lowered her voice again. "You're getting me riled up on purpose."
Tsukasa chuckled. "Probably… it's cute when you're riled up."
Tsukushi grinned and blushed. "Well, stop it."
"I'll try, but I make no promises," he replied with a smile in his voice. "You were studying again?"
"That's what libraries are for, stupid."
"I know that. But I don't get why you're still studying so much. Didn't you get in already?
"Yes, but there's so much English to learn, and the program is supposed to be very difficult. And I've qualified for some scholarships, so I have to make sure I do really well my first year."
Tsukasa yawned. "You'll do fine. You're the woman I approve of, after all."
Tsukushi felt her ears get hot again. "Thank you."
"What are you thanking me for? Anyway, shouldn't you be going home now? It's getting late over there."
"It's not that late. Besides, it's really pouring rain outside. I called Hanazawa Rui earlier to pick me up." She glanced out the window for his car. He should be there any minute.
"You're gonna have that lunatic drive you home?" Tsukasa sounded like he was joking, but there was a tinge of real concern in his voice.
"Nobody else I know around here has a car."
"Get somebody to send a driver, then."
"I can't do that!" Tsukushi hissed at him, trying to keep her voice down. "I don't want to take advantage. It'd be embarrassing."
"There you go making things difficult." He sighed.
Tsukushi saw movement out of the corner of her eye. "Hey, Hanazawa Rui is here." She watched Rui step out of the car with an umbrella and approach the building. "I should get going. And aren't you supposed to be getting ready for class?"
He grunted. "Doesn't matter."
"Well…" Tsukushi cleared her throat. Rui had just walked in, waiting for her patiently. "Anyway, I'll be leaving now. You have a good day, okay?"
"Yeah. I love you, Makino."
"I…" She glanced at Rui, embarrassed. "I miss you."
"Makino…"
She took a deep breath. "And I love you too, Doumyouji."
"You take care," he said. She could hear the delight in his voice.
"Bye." They hung up.
"Ready to go?" Rui said from the doorway.
Tsukushi glanced at her phone and sighed. "Yes." As she gathered her things and went with Rui to the car, she felt a pang of guilt. Even after all this time, those three little words still had to be coaxed out of her. She vowed to herself – as she often did – that she would learn to say it freely to him, even if it took the rest of her life.
The roads were drenched with rain, but that didn't stop Rui from driving at highways speeds even in residential areas. They weaved through busy streets and zipped through quiet neighborhoods.
"Hanazawa Rui, it really isn't that far," Tsukushi said, gripping her seat with white knuckles. "You can slow down."
"Where's the fun in that?" he replied.
"I don't really care about fun. It's really wet and slippery out there. Could you slow down, please?"
"Yeah, okay." Rui sounded disappointed.
The car slowed down considerably, and Tsukushi found herself breathing normally again. She hadn't even realized she was holding her breath.
"How's Tsukasa?"
"Same as usual," she said, smiling. "He must not be doing very well in school, because he never seems to get ready in time. He doesn't even try. And he has to travel all that way into the city! It's amazing he makes it to any of his classes at all."
They approached the winding road toward her street. The rain pummeled the car endlessly. "You know how Tsukasa is," Rui said. "He always gets the best result for the least amount of effort."
"Yeah…" Tsukushi looked out her window. "Rui, watch out!" Two lights careened straight towards them.
Rui swerved and sped up, but it was already too late. The other car crashed into the passenger side of Rui's, causing it to spin wildly out of control against the slick asphalt. They finally stopped spinning when the front of the car hit a light post with a screeching crunch.
Rui looked around. Glass was everywhere, the frame of the car bent horribly out of shape. He was dimly aware of a sharp pain in his right arm, which was hanging limply at his side. He put a hand on Tsukushi's shoulder. "Makino? Are you okay?"
He turned her carefully to face him and gasped. Her face was covered in blood, her eyes closed. She looked like a rag doll, with her head drooping to one side.
"Shit!" Rui cursed, pulling out his cell phone and kicking the door open simultaneously. He held the phone against his ear and spoke to the emergency operator, barely aware of what he was telling her. He stared at Tsukushi with rare tears in his eyes – afraid to move her, afraid to even touch her – fearing confirmation of what he already knew just by looking at her.
Tsukushi was dead.