Days had been passing for what seemed like a life time. Then again, every moment in this dark and silent place seemed like a lifetime. Only from from the small glimmers of light through the curtains could I tell it has been six days. Six that I have sat alone hurting at my past.

Each day I had thought about Sakae. How much I wished she had never saved me and how much I wish she hadn't returned. It was her fault that my life is like this. That was my time to die, and she took that away from me. Every scrap of happiness was torn away in one instant, and now that was the only thing I had to remember – that burning pain of betrayal and thoughts of what could have been. I had never gotten a chance to tell her…my beautiful Gumi…how much I loved her. And I never will.

The seventh day was the coldest. I woke up from the little sleep I've had only to feel frozen and numb. How had it gotten so cold so fast? It was only December.

I set the last of the spare firewood in the fireplace and lit it with little struggle. The flames were quick to burn the dry wood and heat up the room, but that was as far as it went. I could not leave the room without the cold making it hard to breathe. So here I would stay.

Sitting on the purple couch in the dark room was unnatural to me. Only a few times have I ever been in here. It was a small room, but the only one with a fireplace. A few of the women would sleep here on cold nights, and not even then did I stay with them in here.

Three quick rapps on the door made me jump the slightest. They were small scratching sounds, ones that only came from the strong wind blowing the tree against the house. Nothing to worry about, only unpleasant whether to interrupt my unpleasant thoughts.

More rapps came along and were easy to ignore. The crackling fire took its place.

Suddenly, the door pulled opened and in came the cold wind of the night. Those rapps on my door were not just the weather, but a small knocking by someone outside.

There in the doorway stood a thin figure that I remembered so well. My eyes went wide and I hurried over to the door.

Sakae, pale and breathing heavy was standing at my door in nothing but an average dress and a small blanket wrapped around her shoulders. Her hair was frayed and wind-battered, as well as the petals gone. Her eyes were barely open and the bright green I had remembered was as pale as her skin.
I stood a few feet from her, just staring. She looked like life had been drained from her. But I could not get over that fact that "…You came back," I vocalized my thoughts.
Her mouth dropped open the slightest bit to speak, but she didn't say a word. Her eyes only looked up to mine, pleading.

Her body was shaking violently from the cold. Small, nimble fingers struggled to hold onto the blanket around her shoulders. What did she want from me? I could see in her eyes she was asking for something, but there was nothing I could give her. She wasn't supposed to be here in the first place.

Her eyes were starting to close as though she was falling asleep – or falling out of consciousness.
I gritted my teeth. What a sad sight. She had made a mistake to come back to this place.

I stepped forward to her and gripped my fist. Her eyes were still focused to me, and they were hard to look past. They were just like hers…

Letting go of all the tension in my body I closed my eyes. Heart burning, I stretched out my arms and wrapped them around Sakae. Her body was ice cold and brittle, her hair knotted and frayed. She didn't seem to move as I surrounded her in an embrace. With passing moments I only pulled her closer and closed the small gap between us. Soft, cold breaths of hers could be felt on my neck. It made me hold her tighter. She was cold and shivering in my arms, and the urge to keep her safe was unbearable.

Bending down gently, I put my arm under her legs and lifted her into my hold. She was lighter than I expected.
As soon as took her off of her feet she went limp in my arms and her eyes closed – almost unwillingly. One hand was lightly over my shoulder and the other laid on her torso. The blanket had slid off of her shoulders and on to the floor. I paid no attention to it.

Although a short walk, I was careful to bring her into the room with the fireplace. Instantly you could feel the heat of the live fire surround us. But her skin was still freezing to the touch.
I laid her down on the couch to face the fire. With each crackle she was illuminated in the amber glow. I sat on a spare chair to the left of her.

What a strange woman to return to a place like this one. What had drawn her back I hadn't a clue, but it could have been pure stupidity. Not even I wanted to be here.

A chill of wind whipped in through the doorway and flickered the fire, threatening to put it out.
I had forgotten to close the door. Rising from my chair I hurried over to shut it. The blanket was still on the floor, I picked it up and held it in my hand. A dark green color and very small, it was also very thin. It seemed more of a cloth than a blanket, and it was just as cold as Sakae. I placed the garment on the banister for her Sakae to get when she awoke. If she forgot it again then she might have a reason to return. That was the last thing I wanted.

Somewhere between my endless thoughts and listening to the rain fall outside, I fell asleep. I woke up to a silent room and empty fire place. The fire must have gone out long ago, because the heat was completely drained from the room. Although it was still late in the night, no light could be seen through the curtains.

I rose from my position on the small chair. The room was dark and still, just as I had left it before. Rubbing my neck, I stood and looked around.
Empty…no wait…

Memories flooded back of Sakae.

Where had she gone? In a slight panic I looked around. Peering outside of the room proved failure when it was empty as well. Her olive-green blanket still laid across the banister, but there was no sign of her.

She must have left. No doubt she came to her senses when she woke and hurried away. Just as I expected.

I turned around to head back to the other room when a voice came from the top of the staircase.

"Are you looking for me?"

Sakae stood at the top of the staircase. She was tying her soaking wet hair up while wearing nothing but a towel.

"I hope you don't mind, I bathed upstairs while you were sleeping." Her hand gripped the banister lightly while she descended down the stairs. With each step her upper thighs shown glistening skin that was still damp from the bath.
"My clothes needed a wash too, so those are drying now," she shrugged her bare shoulders that held drops of water from her hair.

"What?" she asked. My eyes drifted to her face, she was smirking slightly. Had I been staring?

"Why are you here?" I asked bitterly.
She looked taken aback and lost the playful face. She didn't want to answer me, I could tell.
I stared into her eyes with a glare, looking for an answer. Her eyes were back to a vivid green instead of the lifeless color I saw yesterday. It was almost as if she had been someone else…

Sakae continued down the stairs and walked around me into the fireplace room. I followed her with my dark glare. Where was she going?
I followed her into the room and cautiously sat by her on the couch. She was propped up with her legs folded and both of her feet on one side. Only one hand was holding the white towel closed at her chest. She pulled it tighter as it started to slip.

"Why are you here?" I asked again, a little more roughly.

She looked up at me and searched my solemn face. What for, I had no idea. But it was the same look that she had given me the night before. That pleading look I didn't understand. It angered me.

I was about to speak again when she interrupted.

"I had nowhere else to go…" she whispered in a shy tone. Her gaze had dropped to the floor. "I didn't mean to show up unexpectedly like this. Neither did I really want to come back," her look flickered to me for just a moment. My eyes stayed intent on her face, not showing any emotion. "But…it was cold. Colder than it's been in a long time. The one night he decided to leave…" she spoke half to herself now. I could hardly hear her small words. "My father leaves at times…he just disappears without telling me where he will be. Maybe it's because he forgets, but he doesn't leave the door unlocked for me. This was the third day I haven't had a place to sleep."

She looked back to me for some sort of reaction, one I didn't really want to give. What did she want from me? Sympathy? After what she had done to me? She must have been mad.

Sakae shook her head and looked back to the floor. "I knew I shouldn't have come here. But it was my only choice." She looked towards the door behind us. "I could just leave if you like."

I didn't move. Overwhelming loneliness hit me as she spoke of leaving. As much as I hated this woman who kept invading my life, I couldn't stand the thought of being alone again. Days of silence in these dark halls…

She read my face for a long moment before placing her feet on the ground. "I understand," she whispered, taking my silence as a sentence to leave. "I'm sorry."

One last glance with angry, tearful eyes before she stood gripped at my heart. They were the same…the exact same as…

Gumi…

I reached out with one hand and pulled hard on Sakae's wrist. She fell backwards into my lap and stared up at me, surprised and curious. But beautiful with those eyes.

I leaned close and felt her breath on my face. Her scent filled my nose and made it hard to resist.
Slowly and gently I pressed my lips against hers and wrapped my arms around her bare back. Her skin was soft and smooth to match the warm feel of her lips.

I let my eyes close and pull her closer. Her hands had relaxed and removed its grip from the towel around her. She let it slip down as she rested her arms on my shoulders and around my neck. Pressing into the kiss, she leaned backwards slightly, pulling us over to lay on the couch. I ran my fingers through her slightly damp hair and the other held her face. I pulled away to look at it for just a moment. Never have a hated and loved something so much.