Echo and Chung
It was a boiling day in the whole of Elrios, especially out in the rural areas of the large populated country. The wooden shack was filled with the sounds of the large whirling table saw. Chung lifted his block of wood, sliding it slowly across the table towards the saw, cutting it cleanly in two like butter. The blonde boy wore a white shirt that had been dirtied from the long years of working in the wooden shack. His brown short pants were baggy, a couple of holes situated now and then, no doubt from mistakes with the saw from past experience.
He turned around and grabbed another piece of wood, just as his partner, Echo, pushed her piece of wood through the saw. Her grey hair was tied back in a bun, careful not to let it go near the large saw. She wore a simple striped singlet and black shorts, both fairly old and slightly too big for her. While doing so, she sucked on the lollipop in her mouth, obviously enjoying its taste.
"Don't rush it," Chung warned, slowly sliding the small plank through the saw. "You'll injure yourself like that."
Echo wiped the sweat off her forehead with her arm, before taking in a deep breath.
"How can you still be going?" Echo asked, sitting on a pile of wood shavings, not caring about its uncomfortableness.
"Because I made a promise to a girl that I would go to the sea with her," Chung smirked, giving Echo a playful wink.
The girl blushed, and nearly choked on her lollipop in her mouth. She cleared her throat, before standing up.
"We better get this done then," she said, about to grab a block of wood. Echo's arm was grabbed by the blonde boy, who shook his head.
"You go get ready," he said. "I can do the rest."
"Are you sure?" Echo asked.
Chung smiled, before gently patting the smaller girls head.
"I promise I'll be fine," the boy said.
Smiling, the girl nodded, and with one more look at Chung, she ran happily out of the barn.
Echo waited under the Eltree, where they had originally had agreed to meet up. It was well past five in the afternoon, yet Chung had not showed up.
Sighing, Echo finally gave up and made her way back to the barn. On the way there, a commotion arised in Ruben.
A crowd of people were surrounding something or someone.
The young girl couldn't see even when she tip toed.
She watched as some of the villagers winced. Whatever was happening it wasn't a pretty sight.
Echo pushed her way through the crowd, desperately making her way to the front. She reached the front, immediately seeing two people carrying a boy on a stretcher.
It was no other than Chung. A giant cut from below his chin, down to his abdomen. Echo ran forward, grabbing Chung's hand.
"What happened?" she asked, even though she had a rough understanding of what must have happened.
"I slipped," he said. "Sorry I broke our promise."
The young girl started to cry.
"How are we going to pay the doctor? We haven't saved up enough to get anywhere that close."
Weakly, Chung wiped her tears with his hand.
"Don't ruin that cute face with tears like that," he said replying. "I'll…be fine."
He smiled, but Echo knew that he was lying. He always smiled like that whenever he wanted to keep her from something.
He thinks he won't make it.
Echo sat on the steps of her home, her face in her hands. If only she didn't leave him, then he wouldn't be the way he was.
But what could she do apart from hope for a flicker of a chance?
Echo raised her head, staring at the children on the street playing. She smiled gently, and continued to watch the children playing.
Suddenly there was something that perked their interest in one of the girls' hand.
A paper crane.
1000 paper cranes can grant one wish.
Echo stood up and immediately ran into her house, hoping that she had enough time.
Two days passed, and Echo finally finished folding the cranes, sliding the last one onto the end of the string. Immediately, she ran out of her house and towards the doctor's place, where Chung hopefully was.
She turned the corner crashing into a tall black haired man and a blonde woman beside him.
She bounced back onto the paper cranes, crushing some of them.
"Are you alright?" asked the man, offering his hand.
"Sorry, I'm in a rush."
She rose to her feet and rushed past the man and woman. Hopefully she made it in time.
For what seemed like hours, she finally arrived outside the doctor's home. Echo burst through the door.
"Doctor!" she shouted.
"Yes?" he replied from another room.
"Which room is Chung's?"
"Right at the back."
She ran down the hallway to the last room at the end, opening the door.
Chung was unconscious on the bed in the room.
Quietly she walked around the bed to the window, where she hung the long string of paper cranes.
Silently she made her wish. But she knew it was impossible for it to come true.
The doctor walked into the room, looking at the paper cranes.
"1000 paper cranes?" he said. "Won't do much if he's not treated."
"Can you not treat him?"
"Can you pay for the treatment?"
Echo bit her lip in annoyance. She hoped her wish came true.
"Um, excuse me," someone said from the door.
Both of them turned and saw a tall black haired man. It was the man that Echo had crashed into before. Beside him, a beautiful blonde woman smiled.
"So this was why you were in a rush," the man said.
He walked past the doctor and towards Echo.
"Be careful next time," he said, placing a slightly crushed paper crane in her hand. "Or your wish won't come true."
The doctor cleared his throat loudly.
"I'm sorry little miss, but I won't treat him without any payment."
Echo looked at the ground sadly.
Suddenly she felt a warm pat on her head. The black haired man rubbed Echo's head in a calming manner.
"We'll pay for it then," he said.
Echo's eyes widened, and the Doctor took a step back.
"Are you serious?" the doctor asked.
"Very," the man replied. "So let's discuss the payment outside."
The two men walked out of the room, their voices gradually fading away. Only Echo and the blonde woman remained in the room.
"Why is he helping me?" Echo asked the woman.
The blonde woman crouched down till she was the same height at Echo.
"That's just the way he is," she said. "It was the same for me. When I had nowhere else to go, he gave me a home. Even though there was an internal power struggle in the Isolet household, he continued to defend me. And now, he is the head of the family and I am his first lady."
The blonde woman smiled.
"I'm sure your friend would be happy that you tried so hard to make your wish come true," the woman said. "Speaking of which, what was your wish?"
"I wished for him to live."
The winds were strong and had a salty taste to it. Laughing, Echo ran through the sand towards the ocean.
"It's beautiful!" she shouted.
She was followed by Chung, who was also laughing.
Watching from behind them, Raven and Rena Isolet watched.
"He's lucky to be alive that kid," Raven said. "That operation had a high chance of killing him. I guess he really wanted to live."
Rena smiled.
"Or maybe it was because someone wished for it to happen."