DISCLAIMER: I own nothing. This is a fanfic written for entertainment only.
A/N: Thank you for the feedback! (n.n) I'm happy that you enjoy reading the story! I hope you will enjoy this chapter as well! XD English is not my first language. Pardon the bad grammar and stuff... n.n;
"Are you happy, Hiro?" she asked as she looked up to him from the comfortable position she's in.
The doctor looked down at her, a confused expression was clearly shown on that baby-face face of his. "What's with that question?" he asked back as his fingers played with the strands of her hair, twirling some of it around his fingers, repeating said action while he waited for the other brunette's comeback.
Instead of replying him with words, she gave him a soft chuckle. "Since when did you started that habit of yours answering questions with another question?" she said, poking a finger to the broad chest she's leaning onto. The silver ring she's wearing on the next two fingers shone brightly at the dim light provided by a sole candle above their heads. "Bad Hiro," she added as she continued chuckling and snuggled closer to the man, relaxing herself in the scent the man carried.
"It's because you're asking a weird question," he told her, releasing the strands of hair in his hand, tucking some of it behind her ear and moved his arms to her back, pulling her closer to him. "You already know the answer for that, didn't you?" he continued as he closed his eyes, resting his chin on her head and inhaled the sweet strawberry smell the shampoo she'd used earlier produced.
PAPER CRANES – FALL
Hiro massaged the bridge of his nose after taking off his reading glasses. He closed his eyes for some seconds along the process, sighing once and again putting on his glasses before continuing reading the book in his hand. It's been three hours since he last dropped in to her room to check her condition. It's been three hours since he saw her smiled weakly, blood dripping from the corner of her mouth before he wiped it away with a white handkerchief he had always keep in his white coat – said piece of cloth was one of the many birthday presents she gave him; he treasured it very much and will never leave the house without making sure he had it inside of his coat's pocket.
The doctor's eyebrows knitted together as he remembered the scene in her room three hours ago and again cursed himself for his inability to find a cure for her, to make sure that that series of coughs will never hits her again and that he will no longer see her angelic smile tainted with the red liquid – the company of said coughs that he detested so much. He looked down at the words printed on the opened page of the book in his hand – the thousand sentences he'd been reading since last night gave him nothing in return; he still have no idea what kind of medicine that can cure her, him as well, from the misery that befalls her. He gritted his teeth, mustering all the sanity left inside of him to resist the urge to slam the book down onto the table and spit on its functionality as an informative book. Harvest Goddess knows how he loathed the so-called medicine book. How he wanted so much to burn it to ashes for it provided none of the information he's been trying to find if it's not for the fact that the book was loaned to him and it's his responsibility to make sure that the book is free from any kind of vandalism.
"This might help you feel relax," a voice chimed in and suddenly the scent of coffee lingered in the atmosphere of the room. "Glaring at the book won't do any help, Hiro."
Hiro turned around to see the owner of the voice-though he didn't have to guess who said person is-just to be greeted by an outstretched hand with violet-painted nails belonged to one older woman he was familiar with ever since he decided to follow his father's footsteps becoming a doctor – she was handing him a cup of hot black coffee.
"How long were you up, Hiro?" the older doctor asked as the younger took hold of the cup she's handing him, nodding at the 'thanks' the younger gave her.
Hiro brought the cup closer to his mouth and took a sip of the hot coffee. Although it did nothing to ease his annoyance towards the inanimate object in his hand, the black coffee somehow refreshed his tired mind after missing the hours of sleep he was supposed to have since Harvest Goddess-knows-when. "I'm not sure," he replied, putting down the cup on the table and removing his reading glasses, placing it next to the pathetic excuse of a book. "5, 6 hours maybe? Why?"
"Lies. You looked like you've been up for two days straight," Ayame replied, pointing out a finger first at the black bags formed under the brunette doctor's eyes and to his crumpled white coat next. "You looked awful. You should go catch some sleep before you collapse," she added as she pulled out a chair and sat next to him. "I'll watch over her while you go recover all that energy you've lost."
The younger shook his head at the older doctor's words. "I'm fine. I'm neither tired nor sleepy," he told her and spun his chair around, once again engaging himself with the printed words of the-in his own opinion-accursed book.
"You are tired," the black-haired woman said as she picked the younger's reading glasses and poked the brunette's left shoulder with said glasses. The brunette turned to her, shot an annoyed look at the reading glasses before taking it off the other doctor's hand and expressing his gratitude with a muttered 'thanks'. "Go to rest, Hiro. Harvest Goddess knows very well you need it," she added and sipped on her coffee. "I will watch over Lillian."
"I told you I'm fine," Hiro retorted. He was aware that he's being somehow rude to his mentor when she only meant well and cared for his well-being. "I can't rest now. Not before I found out what exactly is eating Lillian's health. I need to find a cure for her. I need-"
"Hiro," Ayame cut short his sentences by calling out his name and placing a hand on the shoulder she'd poked earlier. "Lillian would hate it if she saw you pushing yourself like this. Do you think she'll be happy seeing you like this? Do you think she will like it seeing you tormenting yourself with blame of not being able to cure her, to free her from the grasp of illness that took hold of her?"
The young doctor didn't reply. Instead his grip on the edge of the book in his hand tightened and he bit his lower lip. "Then what do you suggest me to do, Ayame?" he asked, his voice marred with pain and uncertainty; it was like he was unsure what exactly he was doing but nevertheless can't help himself doing whatever he is doing since he needed to believe that that whatever thing he is doing will somehow give him a kind of promise that he is one step closer to find the cure, to help Lillian. He needed something to hold onto, to be assured that the brunette woman will recover from her illness and that everything, between him and her, will turn back the way it is before that damned sickness took away her freedom to move around and chained her onto the bed of the clinic.
Ayame and Hiro's eyes locked onto each other as Hiro lifted his face from the book in his hand. He didn't say anything to her nor did Ayame to him – they let silence ruled the moment and let their eyes do the talking. Ayame admitted to herself that she had never see the kind of determination dancing in her apprentice's eyes. It's not like Hiro was not determined in doing his best in curing other patients or in doing any kind of task he's doing-Hiro was never the one to half-ass things he had set his mind to do-but the flames in his eyes burned even brighter than his usual ones – she swore that if said fire can free itself from his eyes and run amok the room, the clinic-perhaps the village as well-will be on fire right now.
The older doctor was amazed at how passionate he is in his work of finding a cure for his beloved, how much love he has for her. She can't deny the fact that she's a little jealous at Lillian-for she herself had never been able to find a man who bear a strong feeling towards a woman like Hiro did for the brunette woman for her to keep-but at the same time wondered where the old Hiro gone – Hiro who was clumsy, Hiro who stuttered his words out whenever he talked to her about his beloved, Hiro who was shy and somehow reserved compare to other man she'd know. It's not that the younger doctor morphed into a mean-mannered older man but she pondered upon the changes that Lillian's love brought to him – he'd changed to an even more reliable man, no longer stuttering out his words-minus some special occasions where he got very embarrassed-and no longer keeping things about himself only to him and Ayame. She can feel the aura of confidence surrounded him. She saw the pride-in a good way-he had now as a doctor and as the beloved of the brunette farmer, so much that she thinks it'll burst out any moment from his chest – if pride was bestowed such action upon it.
After what seemed like an eternal silence between the two doctors, Ayame decided to speak. "How about try to rely on others?" she told her. "You're not the only doctor here, Hiro," she continued, waving a hand and sipped on her now-turned-cold coffee. "And you're surely not the only doctor available in this world. There're Doctor Hardy, Jin, Alex and Trent – they're good friends of us who're more than willing to help us. Why won't you let us help you? Why did you let your stubbornness to get in the way? It won't hurt your pride to ask for help from us now, won't it?" she sighed and placed her now-empty cup on the table, next to Hiro's own cup of coffee. "Honestly, Hiro. You've been acting like a stuck-up jerk since she's sick with that 'I'll handle this myself' bratty attitude of yours. You're not the only one who love Lillian, Hiro," Ayame added as she placed both hands on Hiro's, grasping them tightly on his lap. "I love her as well. She's like a little sister to me. You're not the only one who's worried about her – me as well. I also wanted her to be free from the clutch of her illness; I wanted to see her move around and smiled freely like she did before. Let me share the pain with you. Let me carry the burden on your shoulder with you. Let me help you."
Ayame only noticed that the young brunette doctor was crying when he buried his face on her hands – his body trembled as he sobbed hard, mumbling words of apology between sobs and as well as expressing his regret at his own inability as a doctor. Ayame smiled a sad smile and pulled him closer, bending down a little so her chin touched the back of his head. She rested her chin on the messes of his hazel hair as she reached out a hand and stroke the younger's back, telling the person she'd considered a little brother she will do her best – they will do their best to make sure that particular brunette farmer will be able to set her feet back to her farm, to the place she loved being at the most.
NEXT: PAPER CRANES – WINTER
A/N: 2 chapters down, 2 more to go. XD Thank you Aero-Dragon's-Sky for pointing out about Hiro's date dialogue of paper cranes. I tend to stalk only Mikhail-and Cam-so I miss a lot of the other bachelors' dialogue. Ehehe… XD XD I'm not so sure about the mentioned doctors' name up there except for Trent/Tim. Excuse me if I got any name in the wrong group. (n.n); This project won't take long since it consisted only 4 chapters so an update will be fast. Hopefully. X"D