TITLE: Goodbye by ~mnh
DISCLAIMER: SK?? not mine. I still want to write stories. .
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"People think a soul mate is your perfect fit, and that's what everyone wants. But a true soul mate is a mirror, the person who shows you everything that is holding you back, the person who brings you to your own attention so you can change your life.
A true soul mate is probably the most important person you'll ever meet, because they tear down your walls and smack you awake. But to live with a soul mate forever? Nah. Too painful. Soul mates, they come into your life just to reveal another layer of yourself to you, and then leave.
A soul mates purpose is to shake you up, tear apart your ego a little bit, show you your obstacles and addictions, break your heart open so new light can get in, make you so desperate and out of control that you have to transform your life. ~ Elizabeth Gilbert (Eat, Pray, Love)
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It was a normal day, as normal as it can be for the not so normal beings, who live at the En Inn. Hours pass by without anyone noticing. They are all busy with the chores the blonde itako asked them, nah… not asked but commanded would be the right term, to do. You would never hear the word request or ask from her. It's either you do it OR you do it. No choice. No other options. They were quite used to it now that they don't mind doing those everyday chores.
We can say that the said itako who was just watching her favorite drama on TV was the luckiest and the most blessed human on earth. She has a beautiful easy life with a kind, warm-hearted fiancé, and even though she does not show it, she is also happy when those moronic friends of her fiancé were at their place. What a perfect little world, ne? But happy..??? Yes she is happy. She's grateful that Kami gave her these people to rescue her from total destruction. They gave her all that helped her breakout of her own dark world. So there is something that needs to be done. She has to do it or they will just be hurt and will just be burdened. No other choice. No other options. Now all she had done was thrown back at her. No one can help. Such a pity.
Sometimes, the more important people are to you, the more you have to let them go., the more you have to choose their happiness, their peace of mind. It's the least that you can do to make sure they will have a perfect life. A blissful future. And that would only happen… without… a burden…
"What should be done must be done……" She whispered.
"Huh?" Yoh asked. She did not notice her fiancé enter the living room.
"What?"
"Oh, I just thought you said something……"
"No, I did not." She snapped.
"Oh, Okay." He shrugged and continued cleaning the room.
"By the way Anna, do you want to join us tomorrow? We are planning to go swimming. "
"What made you think that I would go with you and your friends?"
"Well, you know, it's summer already, and it's really getting so hot" he waited Anna to answer but when he realized that he would get none, he continued. "We can relax and have some fun and we can also buy souvenirs. You like that right?"
"No."
"But……"
"I already made my point so stop bothering me. You. Are. Disturbing. Me."
"Sorry. I just wanted…" he stopped, seeing the glare thrown by his fiancée. Well, I just want to be with you. You always want to be alone these past few days. You seem so sad and distant. He walked out of the room and saw his friends eavesdropping.
"Hey! What happened? Will she go with us?" asked his yellow haired midget friend.
"No, she does not want to and she said she does not want us to bother her either." Yoh said walking towards the kitchen.
Pirika sighed. "Anna has been like this lately. I wonder what's wrong with her."
"When she's not watching her soaps, she would be in her room and stay there for hours. She would also eat by herself." Ren added.
"Uhm… Do you think we did something that made her angry? Maybe that's why she's acting like that." Tamao said.
"No, that is not possible. If we angered her, we would be dead meat by now for sure." Horo horo answered.
Yes. What Horo Horo said is true. She can't be angry. She's just so aloof nowadays. Like she's distancing herself to us.
They all stopped talking when they saw Anna getting up from her favorite position. She did not even glance at them when she passed.
"I will be late tonight. Don't wait for me." She said as she walked up the stairs.
"Why? Where will you go?" Yoh inquired.
"It's none of your business." Was the cold reply from the itako.
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It's been a month since Anna started acting weird. Yoh was really worried because she goes out every week and arrives almost twelve midnight. She won't even let me be with her alone. Once I enter the living room she would make excuses and somewhere else. Sometimes it irritates Yoh but sometimes it makes him think of dreadful things. Is Anna hiding something from me? Is she seeing someone else? Maybe she already found the man she will truly love. What if she does not want to be with me anymore? Those silly thoughts that a lover usually thinks if his beloved is giving him a cold shoulder still continued to haunt him.
"Yoh?"
He looked up and saw the silhouette of a boy his age in front of him. He can't see his face for the light coming from the sun is blinding him. "Yes?" he asked none the less.
The boy moved and sat down beside him. That was when he realized that it's Ren. "Ah… Ren…. What is it?"
"What are you doing here alone? Don't tell me you're planning to commit suicide?"
"Eh??? No… no… no….definitely not. Hehe. I was just thinking about Anna. She's been acting really strange, ne?"
"Yeah, well… if you are really bothered by it, why don't you ask her?"
"I can't even go near her these days. It's like she's avoiding me."
"Hmmmmm…."
"I do not know what to do anymore" Yoh said covering his face with both his hands.
"It's Anna, so we can't really know what she's thinking unless she wants us to know whatever it is." Although Ren wanted to help the couple, especially his frien, he could not do anything. He does not even know what their problem is. And judging by how Anna treated them, she won't tell anything to anyone. She'll probably just keep avoiding them.
"Uhm.. Ren…. D-do you think …"
"hn…??"
"……………" Should I tell him?
"What?!!! You're driving me insane here" Yoh knew that Ren did not like waiting nor kept hanging on a lose thread, so he decided to speak up not quite sure how to put what he has in mind to words.
"Oh, uhm.. I- uhm… d-do you think she uhm she already has someone else?"
"……………….."
"It's because she always go home late and she won't even allow me to talk to her even for a minute. She usually is inside her room or outside the house meeting whoever that is. I was just—"
"Yoh…… Anna loves you… you should know that…. Well... you should've known that a long time ago… ne?"
"I am just confused right now……" Yoh sighed and lay down on the grass, finally deciding to drop the subject. Ren is right. I know she loves me but what's this feeling? Something is just isn't right.
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I do not know what love is. I do not know how it feels like to be in love. It may be near me or whispering near my ear, but I won't recognize it. Love? It is an alien thing to me. So no matter how much I want to help my friend, I will just fail. The boy with shark like hairstyle roams around the city not quite knowing where to go nor where his feet would lead him. He passed several shops as he walked and walked. He decided to buy his stock of milk as he saw the mart just a few blocks ahead. There were so many people, busy with their own businesses but what caught his eyes was the blonde girl wearing a red bandana. He started to walk towards her when he saw someone talking to her. It was a man just a few years older than them. He has a long unruly black hair. He was wearing a suit like the other young adults who wanted to look grown up. He was good looking but nothing that would capture Anna's attention. Yoh is better. He finally continued walking towards them when he saw the guy hugged the blonde. She looked like she's enjoying what the man was doing. How dare you. He run towards the two, shoved Anna away from the embrace of the guy and punched him. She heard the girl scream and a lot of people were now looking at them.
"What do you think are you doing, you baka!" Anna yelled at him and rushed to the side of the guy. "Are you okay?" she asked, worried.
The violet haired boy smirked. "Well… well… well… what do we have here, huh? Anna? You care for him and rushes to his side right away when all you do to your fiancé is make him worried. You clearly have some guts" he said. "You know you just have to tell him that you already love someone else. Do not hurt him more than what you are doing now."
"Shut up, Tao." She muttered, her back to him, and continued asking the guy with worry. "I am really sorry, Luke. I'll just see you again next week." The guy nodded and looked at the violet haired guy. He bowed and walked the opposite direction from them. She whirled around and glare at her fiancé's friend. "What did you do that for?!"
"Oh? What did I do that for? WHAT DID I DO THAT FOR?!!!! FOR MY FRIEND!!!! I WON'T LET YOU MAKE A CUCKOLED OF HIM!!!" he stopped shouting when he finally saw Anna's face. She's crying. Thick tears continued flowing down as she looked at him sorrowfully. "Why are you crying? You are cheating on Yoh and YOU are the one crying? Oh, woman!!!" He yelled again. Anna did not stop crying. She looked down on her feet and cried silently.
"Do you love that guy? Why did not you tell Yoh?" Ren asked after a few minutes when he already sense that he can now talk to her calmly.
Anna raised her head and looked at him. She's still crying. Her eyes now red and puffy and she also has big bags under her eyes. "Come with me." She said and walked towards the café near the mart.
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"Tadaima!" Ren called in and went straight to the living room. Anna, however, went up stairs and slammed the door shut.
"Hi Ren!" Yoh shouted when he saw him. "Where did you go?"
"Oh, just here and there. Nothing that special."
"Oh, I see. Have you seen Anna? Dinner is ready." Yoh said. Ren walked to where his friend was. He's wearing an apron and setting the table up for four. "I prepared all her favourite today so she won't be upset." He stated, grinning widely at his friend.
"She's in her room but she already ate." Ren said not looking at Yoh knowing that it would only add sorrow to his friend's heart. "Do not worry. I'll call her and tell her that you cooked her favourite." Ren walked out of the kitchen and headed towards the stairs. He followed the wooden hallway and stopped right in front of Anna's room. "Anna, this is Ren." He said.
"What do you want?" Anna asked through closed doors.
"Dinner is ready, please go down and eat with us."
"I do not want to."
"A deal's a deal, Kyouyama. Go down now and put a stoic face if you want but do not let your fiancé feel more pain for now." He heard a soft sound of footsteps towards the door. It opened slowly and revealed Anna in her yukata. "Go change in your dress first. We'll wait for you down stairs." After a few minutes, Anna sat down next to Tamao. She did not look at any of them nor attempt a conversation. She just ate quietly, her hair hiding her face, and went back to her room without a single word.
"What's wrong with Anna-sama? Is she sick or something?." Tamao said, frowning a little at the direction where Anna went to. No one answered her not because they were just plainly rude but because of a different reason. Yoh did not answer for he knows not what to say while Ren did not answer because he does not want to.
Upstairs, Anna cried herself to sleep. Her sobs lulled her to sleep like a lullaby. She wondered how many tears she still has because she's been like these for over a month. She knew that crying alone won't help her. It won't even solve the problem she's dealing with now "How will I tell you? I do not want you to be hurt…"
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Everyday is a new beginning. Everyday is another chance to right what ever wrong you did yesterday and everyday is another fair shake to let your love one feel how you feel about her. It might not be a good day but you can always make it good just for her. Everyday…
Yoh woke up feeling highly energized for another sleep he just had. He stretched his arms and gave out a large yawn. He looked out of the window and saw that the sun was now starting to say hello. Its warm rays poking his sleepy limbs as if saying, 'hey! Wake up now sleepyhead. Don't be a lazy bum' He covered his eyes with the back of his hands and smiled. His gaze wandered around the room... So messy. Good thing Anna did not enter this room or I might be done for. He thought smiling o himself, he started to clean his room and put the CDs on the rack and sweep the floor. After tidying his room, he went down stairs and set out the ingredients he will need for breakfast.
"Yoh-sama, let me do that for you," Tamao said, as she stepped towards him carrying a load of groceries..
"It's okay, Tamao. I'll do this. Anna would want to have a heavy meal for breakfast. You can just set the table while I am preparing our breakfast." He said. Then he stopped what he's doing and looked at her. "And after that, can you please wake Ren and Anna up so we can eat together?"
"Sure, Yoh-sama." As she proceeded to what her master told her. He saw her set four plates on the table and marched up the wooden staircase. He was humming happily while serving the food. When he heard Tamao call out his name.
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Yoh ran outside. He did not stop when he came across his other friends.
"Yoh!" Manta called him again but he just ran and did not look back. He's like searching for someone. He was about to call hima agin and run towards him when he saw Ren ran past him. HE called out to him instead. "Ren!"
But like Yoh, he did not make any effort to stop and tell them what's happening. He heard their other friends taking to someone. He turned his head towards the sobbing noise and realized that it was the bubblegum haired Tamao. She burst into tears when Horo horo and the others asked her.
"Tamao… what's happening?" the blue-haired Ainu asked.
"S-she… r-ru-run-away…" she said while sobbing. "She…"
"Who? Who runaway?" Pirika, a long hair similar to her brother's hair color asked.
"Miss…miss a-ann-na," she said. After hearing that, they helped Yoh and Ren to look for Anna. They do not know what really happened but they know enough that it would mean the world to their friend so they started calling out Anna's name. They searched for in every crook and crannies of Tokyo. And that's saying something because Tokyo is quite big and the people were starting to go out and start their day, oblivious to the pain of a certain chocolate haired boy running around the city.
After a few hours of running and looking for Anna, they stopped and went to the park.
Where are you, Anna? Why did you do this? Why? Yoh sat down the bench and looked down at his feet. Ren peered at his friend. He looked like he was about to tell him something but decided against it.
"Aghhhhh!!!! Why did she runaway?" Manta bellowed.
"If there's only a way of knowing where she is, we could've sav…" Pirika was statement was cut off by her brother's yelling voice.
"That's it!!!!" Horo horo yelled.
"Huh?"
"That's it! We just need to find out where she is,"
"Well, duh. That's the problem we do not know wher…"
"Of course we would know where she is. Tamao, do you have kokkuri board? We have to call the spirits and ask them to help us find Anna." Horo said.
"Wow, I was staring to think that you are now really evolving, Boro Boro." Ren smirked, taunting the blue-haired Ainu. "From being a pea-brained Ainu to being a bird-brained Ainu." And the argument continued after that until Yoh spoke.
"Let's do that then, Tamao." He said with his eyes still cast down.
Tamao set her kokkuri board on the gravel and started. She closed her eyes and started summoning one of the spirits in Tokyo.
"What is it that you want from me?" the guy with a weird moustache floating asked her.
"We would like to ask a favour," she answered.
"What is it that you want from me?" he asked again.
"We would like to ask for you and all the spirit's help. We need to find Anna, the itako. Do you know her?" she asked.
"Who would not?" he replied. "She is really scary, she's feared among the spirits here, but she's quite a beauty."
"Have you seen her?" Yoh Asked the pale floating form.
"Nah… but we will look for her. I'll send someone to tell you the news. If… there is…" he added. He was about to leave when he saw the violet haired boy, who's having a fight with the blue haired one. "Oh, I've seen him before." He said.
"Who?" Yoh asked.
"That boy." He stated, pointing his transparent finger at Ren. "Yeah! I saw him with the itako at Tokyo. He was shouting things at her and the girl cried. I haven't seen her cry that way before. She's really weeping that time… oh, I should go now." He said as he saw Yoh's reaction and the other boys stopped fighting. All eyes now looking at Ren.
"What does he mean by that?" Yoh asked his friend.
"Let me explain, Yoh." He said.
"You better do that." Yoh suggested.
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"I am sorry Yoh, but Anna made me promise not to tell you anything about it."
"Just spit it out, okay?!" Yoh shouted. He does not want to put all his anger and grief on Ren but he just kept a secret from him. And not an ordinary secret but a really personal one.
He started telling what he saw at the streets, telling him of how he thought Anna was cheating on him, how he punched the guy, how the people looked at them, and… "she asked me to have a talk with her. She told me that the man I punched was a doctor, HER doctor. She told me that she's been feeling really weird last two months. It's like everything she touch slips from her hand. When she's about to move, she feels so weak that she don't even have the strength to stand up. It would happen occasionally but she fears that as time goes by she would just be a burden to all of us. Although That was the time she told me that she had an ALS (-1-). I tried to reason out and say that she won't be a burden but she wouldn't even listen to me." He looked at Yoh and then continued. "So I made a deal with her, I asked her to stay with us and don't make you worry too much because what she's doing lately. I promised to help her tell you about her illness."
"Why did not you tell me right away?" Yoh asked.
"Because I thought that she will never leave, that she'll do what we talked about. Stay with us through it all. I do not know what she's thinking now."
"We really need to find her now…" Manta said, wiping the tears of his eyes.
Anna…Why? Why didn't you tell me?Yoh kept asking, already knowing the answers to his questions.
End of the First Chapter
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(-1-) ALS-- Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a rapidly progressive, invariably fatal neurological disease that attacks the nerve cells (neurons) responsible for controlling voluntary muscles. In ALS, both the upper motor neurons and the lower motor neurons degenerate or die, ceasing to send messages to muscles. Unable to function, the muscles gradually weaken, waste away, and twitch. Eventually the ability of the brain to start and control voluntary movement is lost. Individuals with ALS lose their strength and the ability to move their arms, legs, and body.
I'll end the story on my next update.
Would you like Anna to die?
Do you think the gang will successfully find where she is?
Hmmmmm…. I really do not know hahahahahahahaha
Maybe I'll just let Anna die... tsk tsk.. So I can have Yoh to myself... teehee.
See you next chapter.