Darkness to Light
By: Minako-chan
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"What? When?" Dr. Johnson looked up at me in
surprise.
Darien took a deep breath. "Years ago...when I
thought I was all alone."
Dr. Johnson raised an eyebrow, puzzled. He
thought Darien had somehow gone mad. But I knew
what he meant.
As he continued to peel off the bandage
carefully, Dr. Johnson told the other nurse to go
because I was now on duty.
"Miss Tsukino, Mr. Chiba's face might be a little
sticky from the bandage on his skin. Your very
first task is to help wash his face, but be
careful because he has stitches. This is the
cart with all the equipment that you'd need. I
don't think you'll need anything else. But do
use that phone over there if you need any help.
Any questions?" Dr. Johnson asked.
"No, thank you Doctor." I said, as he took off
with the tray with the used bandage and took off
his gloves.
As he took off, I remembered that I was on duty
officially, and turned back to face Darien for
the first time, to see his whole face without any
'masks' covering him.
He was still sitting in bed, with fingers running
on his forehead and on his eyelids.
"Darien..." I called softly. "Don't touch, I'll
wash your face now."
I walked back over to his side, and he opened his
eyes. They were colour of midnight blue.
Mysterious, yet gentle. Strong, yet sad. They
were like blackholes. I felt like I was drawn
right into his soul just by looking into his
eyes. But they were empty. He could not see
that I was looking at him...but he must have
sensed it.
"What's wrong?" He said.
"Noth...nothing." I said. There was silence.
"There's no chance that I will see again is
there?" He asked sadly.
"You will see again." was all that I could say.
I put my gloves on. I took the cotton pads and
the rubbing alcohol bottle sitting in the cart.
"Darien, this might hurt a little. I will be
cleaning with alcohol first. You might want to
hold onto a pillow or something to squeeze in
case the pain is too much." I warned.
He nodded and closed his eyes, fists tightening,
expecting the worst.
I ran the rubbing alcohol over his delicate skin
softly and quickly, because I didn't want him to
feel as much pain. I could see his grip
tightening, and his mouth forming into a straight
line.
"There, I am finished. Now I'll wash with water.
You can relax now." I looked at him as his grip
loosened. "Can you please turn toward me over
here?"
He turned toward me, following my voice.
I took a clean towel from the rack and walked
over to the nearby sink. I could feel the warm
water dripping on my skin as it splashed.
I set the wet towel aside for a moment. Darien's
eyes were open. I looked at him, with pain. I
kneeled down in front of him and set my hands on
his knees, he held onto my wet gloved hands and
smiled.
"I'll be okay." He said.
I patted his hands and brushed his bangs aside.
I ran my fingers up his face, which was
tear-streaked. With my other hand, I reached for
the towel and began to run it up and down his
forehead, well-aware of where his stitches were.
He winced in pain when I touched his wounds.
"I need a shave too don't I?" He laughed when I
finished washing his face and was already
cleaning up.
"Is it a request or are you just joking?" I
smiled, and faced him as I took off my gloves.
"A request." He said.
"Okay, I'll go get the stuff now." I said, almost
without emotion, to my surprise. I sounded like
a robot, following his orders. He must have
sensed it too.
"Thank you." He said, and waited for me to
return.
As I walked alone down the hallway, I thought
about my life, and what his must have been like.
His business life must have been successful, but
I had achieved so much more in my personal life.
I had true friends, and I had a real family. I
regretted taking anything for granted, when I
thought about what Darien must have gone through.
I walked into a small room and got the new
supplies. When I walked back out, I forgot the
way that I had come. I was lost! The hospital
was like a maze to me. After all, it was only my
third time here.
I glanced at my watch. 15 minutes had passed.
Boy was I bad with directions! I bumped into Dr.
Johnson.
"Hey Miss Tsukino! Done washing up Mr. Chiba's
face already? What are you doing? Shaving him
now?" He smiled.
"Yup! But...uh..." I turned red.
"But what?" He asked.
"I forgot my way back!" I chuckled. Dr. Johnson
laughed.
"You are almost there, actually! Just turn right
when you see that big red sign, and turn left
when you see the water fountain. Have fun in the
maze!" He laughed and hurried off to a patient's
room.
"Thanks!" I waved and left, following his
directions.
I jogged down the halls and rushed back to
Darien's room. I knocked gently.
No one answered. I pushed the door open with the
back of my hand, only to find Darien sitting in
the same position 15 minutes before, with a frown
and sighing.
His head jerked up at the sound of door opening.
"It's me, Serena..." I said, rushing to his side
and set the supplies on the cart.
"I thought you were already sick of taking care
of me." He said, and looked up like a scared
child.
"Never! I got lost in the hallways...you know,
I've only been here 3 times! And I am very bad
with directions, believe me!" I said and
laughed. Darien smiled and I sighed in relief.
"Sorry it took me so long." I whispered. I took
the razor and shaving cream.
"I must look like a mess right now." He said,
turning red.
"Don't worry...actually I've never shaved anyone
before...so I might hurt you." I laughed. Darien
smiled.
As I spread the shaving cream on his face,
Darien's eyes were open, blinking, but not seeing
anything. I thought back on what the nurses
said. He would never let anyone come close, let
alone make contact. I looked at my hands. I
touched his hands with them. I touched his
wounds, I touched his face. And yet he didn't
jerk away. Was it because I was his nurse and he
had no other choice? I shook my head. If it was
because of that, Darien would have allowed the
other nurses to come close to him. But he
didn't. He sat still, trusting my every move.
I took the razor and examined it. It had a sharp
blade. I looked at Darien's face, now the bottom
half was covered with the white shaving cream. I
began to worry. I did not want him to bleed.
With my hands shaking, I placed the blade on his
face, working from top to bottom, and ran it on
his skin. I could feel him breathing on my face,
peacefully and patiently waiting for me to
finish. I dipped the razor in the tray, washing
off the bits, and repeated, until his face was
smooth. I took another towel and wiped off the
remaining cream.
Darien sat there without an expression, then he
ran his fingers up and down his face, with a
grin.
"You aren't bad at it at all. Are you sure
you've never shaved anyone?" He laughed.
"Yeah, never in my life!" I laughed. He smiled.
"Is it smooth enough?" I asked.
"I don't know, you tell me." He said.
I took off my gloves and Darien and I both heard
the 'snap' from taking them off. I washed my
hands in warm water, and walked back to Darien
and kneeled down.
I cupped his face in my hands, and I felt his
skin from touching his face with my thumbs. For
a minute there time seemed to have frozen. I
stared directly into his eyes, and he looked as
if he was staring into my eyes too. He lifted
his own hands and placed them on mine. It was as
if it were an emotional moment for the both of
us. I blinked whatever that emotion was away,
and got up. His hands dropped.
"Smooth enough." I said, avoiding him.
"What's wrong?" He asked.
"Nothing." I said quietly. "It's 8:30am, I'll go
get your breakfast now."
He nodded, as I walked out, pushing the cart out
to clean up.
While walking alone in the hallways, I memorized
the directions this time.
"What was that?" I asked myself.