Chapter 3- A Night to Remember

All the pain
I thought I knew
All the thoughts lead back to you
Back to what
Was never said
Back and forth
Inside my head
I can't handle this confusion

I'm unable come and take me away…

Colored strobe lights skipped across the floor as teens danced to the rhythm of the music playing through the loudspeakers.

At that moment, Odd and Sam entered through the double doors of the gymnasium. "Wow Odd, this is really cool. It's way better than the dances they do at my school." She said as her eyes darted back and forth across the room.

"I thought they didn't have dances at your school," asked Odd, confused.

"My point exactly," she laughed as a now, unconfused Odd joined her.

"Hey look, there's Jeremie and Aelita." He pointed over to a table where many people were packed.

"What are they doing?" Sam strained her neck, trying to see over the crowd of people.

"Well, let's go find out." Odd led his girlfriend through the swarms of dancers, until they finally reached the table.

"Hey Einstein, what's up?" asked Odd, squeezing through the tiny spaces available in between individuals.

"Oh hey guys. I'm taking song requests, and Aelita's helping.

"Cool. Are you the DJ for the dance Jeremie?" asked Sam.

"Yes actually; it's real fun. You guys should try it some time." He said, attempting to multitask talking, taking requests, and keeping the crowd under control.

"You can bet we will Jer." Odd smiled.

"Well, I don't want to keep you guys from having fun. You two go dance." Said Jeremie.

"Alright. We'll see ya later you two."

"Bye." Jeremie yelled back, but then realized something. "Hey wait, where are Yumi, Ulrich, and Sissy?"

"Oh, Ulrich is picking Yumi up at her house. They should be here soon. Sissy should be here, but if she isn't yet, she's still getting ready. You know how long girls take to get ready."

"Hey!" Sam jammed Odd in arm with her elbow.

"Ow!" was his only remark.

"Ok then. You guys have fun. See ya."

"Bye!" waved Aelita.

-----

Yumi sighed as she and Ulrich entered the school campus.

"I can't believe the school year is almost over. We'll be going into 11th grade." She said, breaking the silence. (A/N: remember in this story they are all in the same grade.)

"I know." Agreed Ulrich. "It did go by pretty quick." An eerie silence once again crept its way back into the nighttime air.

Out of the corner of his eye, Ulrich could see Yumi staring at the ground intently, even though her head was turned.

"Uh, Yumi?"

"Yes?" she replied, giving him her undivided attention.

The personal nature of this topic made him stammer as he continued. "I...um…...I w-wanted to know if maybe…" he trailed off at the end while scratching the back of his head, evidently unsure if he should continue.

"If what?" the young girl solicited.

"If…you might w-want to um…go out sometime…" Ulrich continued, gradually getting softer as he neared the end of his sentence.

Yumi had always hoped that this moment would happen someday (or something like it, anyways). In her heart she would willing answer 'yes', but it was so hard for her now, especially since they were both blushing.

"Okay." She replied with a grin.

"Um…great!" Ulrich instantly let out the breath he had been holding, and the couple resumed their amble to Kadic.

-----

"Hey guys!" greeted Sissy, who had just strutted up to the couple upon their entrance.

"Hi Sissy." The two replied in unison.

"Well, what are you two just standing there for? Get in here and dance!" she said, smiling and laughing at the same time.

A new song began echoing throughout the gym. "Ah, I love this song. Come on Yumi." Ulrich led Yumi to the group of dancers gathered near the speakers.

Try to tell me what I shouldn't do
You should know by now
I won't listen to you
Walk around with my hands
Up in the air
'cause I don't care

Students danced in time to the music, mesmerized by it's rhythm while many sang along to the song, it familiar to them.

I'm all right
I'm fine
Just freak out let it go
I'm gonna live my life
I can't ever run and hide
I won't compromise'cause I'll n ever know
I'm gonna close my eyes
I can't watch the time go by
I won't keep it inside
Freak out let it go
Just freak out let it go

Several hours later, Yumi and Ulrich found their way to seats on the side of the room. "That was fun." Said Yumi.

"Ya, it was. I wish we could do things like this more often." Ulrich smiled at his new girlfriend, and she returned it. "You thirsty?" he asked.

"Ya, let's go get something." As they arrived at the snack table, they noticed Sissy there getting herself a drink as well.

"Hey Sissy. I haven't seen you but once all night. Where have you been?" asked Yumi.

"Oh, I was dancing with Theo most of the time, but I just came over here to get a quick drink."

"Cool. Us too." Replied Ulrich

"Here you go." She said, handing them each a cup.

"Thanks," they replied in unison.

Once filling their cups, Yumi and Ulrich gulped down their sodas, quenching their thirst, just as a song died down. Then suddenly, the lights dimmed until the room was overflowing with darkness. All was dim with the exception of a single spotlight that rested on the principal who stood on top of the stage.

"Good evening students. As some of you may already know, I am here to announce the winners nominated for Queen, King, Princess, Prince, Duchess, and Duch of this year's summer dance." The audience cheered upon hearing his announcement as a girl behind Principal Delmas handed him a large brown envelope.

"As you know, these students were nominated by you, and we have tallied up all of the votes and have found our winners. So, without further ado, let us begin! First, the winners nominated for this year's Duch and Duchess are Matthieu Ducroeq and Milly Solovieff!" friends cheered for the couple as they walked up the steps to the stage, smiles spread clear across their faces. The principal tied sashes onto them that went from their shoulder diagonally to their hip on the opposite side of their body. They read Duch/Duchess of the 2005 Summer Dance.

"Next, the winners for Prince and Princess of this year's dance are Theo Gauthier and Sissy Delmas!" once again, an uproar of congratulations and support came from the crowd, cheering on the two as the principal tied sashes on them as well.

"And now," began Principal Delmas once again, "for our King and Queen of this year's dance…" He paused, trying to build up on suspense. "..Ulrich Stern and Yumi Ishiyama!" the two gasped, astonished at the results.

"Whoo! Go Ulrich! Way-to-go Yumi!" Odd, Sam, Jeremie, Aelita, and Sissy cheered for them as they too, sauntered their way up the stairs to the front of the stage. Again, another tumult followed this announcement.

"Let's hear it for Kadic's 2005 Summer Dance Royalty!" a racket of applause and cheers rose, and echoed throughout the building. Balloons were cut off their strings so they floated up to the ceiling of the gym creating a cloud of pink, orange, and white, as people continually screamed out the names of their friends who stood before them.

"Now," started Mr. Delmas, "I'll leave so you all can get back to dancing." At that cue, Jeremie started up a slow song, while the principal ushered the couples off the stage and onto the dance floor.

Sometimes it's hard when you're so deep inside
To see all you could lose in the blink of an eye
Dreams could be shattered
You could be gone
How would I survive, 'cuz you're where I belong

"Hey Yumi, uh…would you like to dance?" Ulrich asked. It was clear that he was still a little nervous about their new relationship.

Yumi just smiled, "I'd love to."

They walked onto the dance floor, and started towards the center where there was more space. Once there, they faced each other while Yumi placed her hands around Ulrich's neck and he placed his on her waist. They gently swayed to the music, listening to its soft melody.

My soul believer, without you
I don't know who I could be

"This is going to be a night to remember for my 10th grade year," Said Ulrich, sighing.

"I know. A huge dance, balloons, end of the year, winning a contest you had no idea you were entered in. It's been an amazing night." Yumi smiled.

"Ya those are all things that made this night enjoyable, but what really made this night special was getting to spend it with you."

"Really?" Yumi asked, her lips curving into a smile.

"Ya,…you. Do you remember the last time we danced together? The last time we were ever this close in a relationship, even though this one hasn't really started yet? Do you remember the last time we had a nice conversation, just the two of us? And what the last time we had a night just like this one?" he said.

"No, I don't remember the last time we did any of those things. " she said, giggling slightly. "So I guess this really is a night to remember, isn't it?"

"Ya, it is." He replied, returning the smile.

Underneath, I can feel you move through me
Inside out, you surround meI breathe you like I'm taking my last breath
Oh, you're everything I know
So how could I let you go?

Then suddenly, Yumi's eyes carried a perplexed look to them, and she put a hand to her forehead.

"Yumi, is there something wrong?" Ulrich asked, concerned.

"I think I'm ok, but I just got this pain in my head, and I feel really exhausted all of a sudden. It was probably just something I ate, and I'm probably just tired from dancing all night. M-maybe I should sit down for a while." Yumi proposed, now using both hands to hold her aching head.

"Ya, I think that's a good ide- AH! YUMI!" screamed Ulrich. She had suddenly fallen, luckily to be caught by Ulrich, and was unconscious. "Oh my god! SOMEONE CALL FOR HELP!" he yelled desperately slowly setting her onto the ground, while cradling her in his arms. He quickly checked her pulse to find it was slowing by the second. 'Oh my god! What happened!'

A crowd quickly gathered around the couple, as people started murmuring things about what they had just witnessed. "Do you think she's dead?" "Is she going to be alright?" "What happened!"

The music stopped abruptly as Jeremie and Aelita rushed to Ulrich's side as the others followed. Frantically, they put a hand to Yumi's forehead checking for sign of a fever and repetitively checked her pulse while Odd called an ambulance. Since Nurse Dorothy had gone to sleep for the night and was in a whole different building, there would do no good in going to the infirmary, plus it would take too long. Besides, this looked drastic and they needed help immediately.

"My god, what happened to her!" Sam immediately freaked out seeing her friend lying unconscious in Ulrich's arms on the ground.

"I…I don't know! We were dancing and then she said her head hurt a little and she was a little tired, so we were about to go sit down when she just, fell and her pulse is slowing!" he said all in one breath.

"You did catch her right?" Sam eyed Ulrich.

"Of course I caught her! I was holding on to her during the whole thing!"

Sam let out a sigh of great relief. "That's good."

"What's happening Jeremie! What's wrong with Yumi?" asked Aelita, extremely worried for her 'sister'. (A/N: since she's living with Yumi, her parents adopted her. They eventually just told Yumi's parents that Aelita's passed away. Ha! What a lie)

"We aren't sure Aelita. We're going to try and find out though." Jeremie replied, his voice wavering.

"The ambulance is on its way right now. They should be here any minute," said Odd, hanging up his phone.

"Do you think this could be XANA's doing?" whispered Jeremie.

"No, I don't think so; I would have sensed something," replied Aelita.

"What's wrong?" said Sissy, just then walking up to the others. When she saw Yumi on the ground, she let out a gasp. "What happened!"

"I don't know." Replied Ulrich.

"MOVE ASIDE PEOPLE! WE NEED TO GET THROUGH! WE'VE GOT AN EMERGENCY HERE!" bellowed a man, who appeared to be a doctor, who was accompanied by three others and a stretcher. "EXCUSE US! WE NEED TO GET THROUGH!"

They finally made their way through the crowd to the place where Yumi was lying. The gang and everyone crowded around stepped aside while the men loaded her onto the stretcher, and then followed. When they arrived at the flashing van, they waited patiently as the men carried Yumi into the back of the van.

"May we ride with her?" Ulrich asked the doctors, pleadingly. "We're her closest friends and we'd like to be there with her." With every word he spoke, it looked more and more like he was going to burst out into tears any second. I guess the men noticed that –or were just very lenient- because they let them ride in the ambulance with Yumi to the hospital.

-----

After several questions about the situation, the doctor finally left, leaving Ulrich alone with his friends, outside of Yumi's hospital room. A few minutes later, Yumi's parents arrived, frantic about their daughter being in the hospital.

"What on earth happened Ulrich?" asked Yumi's mother worriedly to the boy who she knew was one of Yumi's closest friends.

"I'm not sure, really. We were dancing, and she said her head hurt and she was dizzy, so we were going to go sit down, when she just fell. She's been out of it since." He then slouched back into his seat, tears brimming in his eyes.

"Oh dear." Mrs. Ishiyama's eyes welled up with tears as well.

-----

"CLEAR!" a nurse yelled from inside the. Everyone instantaneously ran to the window of the door, watching as Yumi lay there with an oxygen mask over her face as her body bounded up slightly on the bed she was laying on. Apparently Yumi experienced a cardiac arrest! (A/N: whenthe heart stops beating)

"Oh no!" cried Sissy, her eyes watering as well.

"Oh, I can't watch!" cried Aelita, burying her head into my shirt, quickly dousing it in tears. I smoothed her hair softly, feeling tears making their way down my face. I knew what the possibilities were now, of what could happen to Yumi; I don't think I could handle my life if she didn't make it. Just as she was to Odd, Yumi was the closest I ever had to a sister. She was family to me and I knew that if anything 'happened' to her, none of us would be able to go on with our lives, especially Ulrich.

"CLEAR!" the doctors yelled again, and this time the shout's after-effect had a greater impact on us. Everyone burst into tears as they realized what a slim chance Yumi had of living now.

-----

I was devastated at what I was seeing and hearing. I couldn't believe something like this could happen to our Yumi! Yumi has always been like a sister to me, and I don't think I'd be able to live with the pain of loosing her. I had never seen Ulrich cry like this before either, though I understood perfectly why he was; and now that I thought about it, I had never seen him cry! --except the time when we were little and he fell out of a tree and broke his leg, but that didn't count because now, he was crying because of emotional pain, not physical--

"CLEAR!" If Yumi's heart didn't pick up the pace, this would probably be the last time we'd be able to see her. Ulrich was overflowing with tears now, leaning against the doorframe to her room for support. He stared at the body on the stiff hospital, springing up and down because of the electrical shock.

-----

But suddenly, Ulrich froze as he stared in shock at the heart monitor in Yumi's room, miraculously started making a –blip- every few seconds. A giant wave of relief passed over him. She was alive!

The doctor then exited the room, a very serious look on his face. "Excuse me. You all are here on behalf of…" he quickly glanced down at his clipboard, "..Yumi Ishiyama, correct?" We all nodded in agreement. "I am pleased to announce that she is alive, and her heart is returning to it's normal pace as I speak; you may have noticed a few minutes ago that her chances of living weren't good, and we have turned that around. However, she has just entered a coma, and we have no way of telling when or if she will wake up. I am sorry, but it is up to Yumi, and fate, to decide the matter of whether she will make it or not. We will have her on oxygen and feeding tubes, and that should take care of the basics. I am very sorry about all this. We are doing all we can to save your friend..," he looked at the gang, "…and daughter." He looked at Mrs. and Mr. Ishiyama. "Again, I am terribly sorry. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask." The doctor walked away, and they were left alone again.

"So, now what?" asked Sam, attempting to wipe the tearstains from her face.

"Now," started Ulrich, sighing deeply, "we have to wait, and hope for the best." And after ending his sentence, he again drooped to the ground and buried his face in his hands, praying that Yumi would make it.


The part of a song at the beginning was 'Take Me Away' by Avril Lavigne. Then 'Freak Out' by Avril Lavigne and 'Underneath' by Jessica Simpson.

A/N: sorry it took a while to update. It was busy when we were getting out of school. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Don't forget to drop a review!

aZn dReAmEr xD: thnx! I wasn't sure about my story at first, but I'll try my best to make it the best I can.

SamBlob: ya, she's always that way, but in this story she is supposed to be nice, so you'll just have to keep reading if you want to find out more! XD Thnx 4 reviewing.

Dreamer 411: you'll just have to keep reading to find out the answer to you questions. Thnx for reviewing.

Luna: it's ok it you didn't review the first chapter, but if you do, thnx. I love hearing any comments you have on my story. I am always for improvement! Thnx for updating.

Yumi-Ulrich4ever: yes, and the tension is going to rise even more later on. And don't worry. I am a huge YxU fan, so whenever I write, you won't have to worry about their relationship turning out bad in the end.

Kikyoreborn9295: thnx. I appreciated your review.