Chapter 1
'Finally, I get to kiss Naru.' Keitaro's head was in a flurry. All possible scenarios flashed through his brain. Marriage, kids, no more space visits, life was looking pretty damn good, until their lips met.
"Ugh!" Keitaro broke away, disgusted.
"What are my lips not as perfect as Mutsumi's?" Naru projected at him, her blood beginning to boil throughout her body, she prepared to destroy him.
"You're teeth, they're rotten!" Keitaro's explanation flew out; he thought it might save him.
Naru's eyes widened with fear. 'Oh no, what if they find out?!' She began to run away to her room but Keitaro managed to grab hold of her wrist.
"Let go you pervert!" Naru yelled, raising an arm to punch him. In this act her sweater raised itself, bunching around her elbow.
"Naru I'm sor-"Keitaro began his apology, but neither of them heard it. Keitaro's eyes wandered to her exposed arm and gasped. Her arm was covered with scabs, some were bleeding freely, as if they were recently scratched, others looked infected.
"I-is this why you've been wearing sweaters all this time?" Keitaro asked. It was an innocent question, and anyone who knew Keitaro would know that all he wanted to do was help, but not Naru.
Naru ignored his question completely. "Shut up you pervert!" With that she darted out of the room to return to her abode.
Keitaro stared after her, sorrow piercing him deeper as he started to realized what was happening, and that he had no control over it. 'No, she's just got some skin disease or something, yeah she'll see a doctor soon.' Keitaro's thoughts soon swelled with false hopes and dreams, easily shattered with even the most controversial evidence.
The deserted dorm burst to life with the rest of the girls returning from their various schools (with the exception of Kitsune who, of course, had been out drinking.)
"Keitaro!!" Su screeched, delivering her most lethal kick straight to Keitaro's face.
After picking himself up and stopping up his nosebleed he addressed the girls.
"You guys, I think that there's something wrong with Naru." Keitaro began shifting nervously, as if Naru might smite him at any moment.
After saying this the girls left, completely oblivious to Keitaro's concern, Naru had always been an oddball. Kitsune was simply too wasted to say anything intelligent, much less even care. This left Shinobu, the only one who respected the ronin, and that was because she liked him.
"Sempai, what should we do?" She asked him, her eyes beginning to water.
"I'll call Mutsumi to see if she can help, in the meantime I think we should lay low and let her work off some steam." Keitaro spoke softly, lest he face the apocalypse early.
Shinobu nodded, she turned and began to make her way to the kitchen.
As she left Keitaro sighed 'Naru, whats happened to you?'
He trudged up to his room, every second of thought made his hopes seem more pitiful, more useless. Still he held onto them, they were all he had left despite what he had seen.
When he reach his room he looked at the ceiling. The hole up above had always filled him with happiness, it was a symbol of trust, and to him, her acceptance of his love. The hole was sealed, any notion of the past they shared was now severed completely.
For the first time, he felt anger. He began to quiver with a mixture of rage, pain, and self- pity. 'Naru, I will find out what you are.' He silently swore to himself.
He slept restlessly that night, his fears finally been given a face. When he woke his body was covered with cold sweat. 'What time is it?' Keitaro reached for his glasses, the alarm read 2 a.m.
"Tink."
The noise startled him, usually everybody was sound asleep at this time. He listened for even the slightest sound
"Tink."
"Naru?" He voiced his concern. Stealthily, making sure he made absolutely no noise, he made his way to Naru's room. As he edged closer the smell of ammonia grew stronger until it became almost unbearable right outside her door.
'What are you doing Naru?' Keitaro thought, event this thought was quiet, it barely registered to his brain. He slid the door open just a crack, what he examined blew his mind.
Her room, once littered with books and clothes, was now a replicate of a chemistry laboratory. Tubes were everywhere, glass flasks and other equipment filled with an unknown lquid bubbled softly the stench of ammonia was rampant.
Keitaro squeaked with amazement and fear. That one noise alerted Naru, who was in the process of ingesting her creation.
"Is that you Keitaro?" She asked, her voice sounded caring, sincere. "Please come here, I wish to talk with you."
Keitaro's heart stopped at the mention of his name. He opened the door the rest of the way and slowly toddled inside.
"Close the door." As Keitaro obeyed she continued. "I am sorry you had to find out like this, I meant to confess to everyone yet… I couldn't." She sighed and a single tear ran down her cheek. "I love you Keitaro, I really do, but my mind is torn in two, between you and this plague, I'm sorry." Her voice began to grow with an inexplicable anger as the drug took hold; her eyes began to gain a frenzied look.
"Naru you don't have to do this, please, I love you too, we can work this out, we can get you help, anything please!" Keitaro pleaded with her.
"There is no hope for me, don't you see this?" She growled at him, she began to scratch her arm with ferocity; the previous scabs began to bleed freely giving her a look of insanity. "Now Urashima, you will die!"She screeched at him. Naru was in a complete drug frenzy, she leaped forth with death in her eyes. In doing so her foot knocked over one of the many burners, the resulting explosion engulfed the room in flame.
Keitaro screamed with fear at the top of his lungs, he burst out of Naru's room, narrowly escaping a grisly death. Naru, however, was not so lucky; her screams bore the sound of suffering, and pain that had consumed her life. In the end she died how she had treated the man who loved her, violently.
Keitaro made his way outside, helping the others along the way. Outside he heard the sirens making their way to Hinata sou. Once he was convinced all was out of his hands he collapsed, the fumes of the smoke and ammonia sickened him and he faded out of consciousness.
Authors note, ha, a classic end to a chapter lol, hope i didnt overdo it. next chapter will be coming within a few weeks.