Fate
Chapter IV
"Between men and women there is no friendship possible. There is passion, enmity, worship, love, but no friendship." Oscar Wilde
Disclaimer: I don't own Love Hina or any of the characters, they are all propierty of Ken Akamatsu.
- 'Thoughts' -
- memories -
-'sound effects' -
Important stuff, emphasis
------------------- Change of scenery, change of character
After I decided on what I had to do, I got out of my room with the tenants profiles in one hand and so, with newfound esteem, my field trip around Hinata Sou resumed.
First off I started with the second floor, thanks to the book; I realized that Kitsune's room was just next to mine and Shinobu's was at the east end of the corridor, after that I went up to the third floor.
Narusegawa's room was above mine, Su Kaolla's room was just above Shinobu's and Motoko's room was besides Kaolla's, Sarah's room was on this floor too…
I looked around the third floor and I came upon a terrace, there were some clothes drying in the sun. I walked to the end of the terrace and I was amazed.
The view from Hinata Sou was spectacular!
"He, he, this is my favorite spot" I saw a girl standing above the main building roof; I stared at her as the wind played with her hair.
And once again, for the second time of the day my mind seemed to be remembering, each memory was pleasant, but I couldn't recognize anyone...I leaned against the handrail; trying to put my thoughts in order, after all I only needed time to get my memories back but how long would it be?
'I don't know'
That was the only answer I could think of, but I was sure that I was doing fine, all these memories flowing back to me today encouraged me… but I had the feeling that something was wrong, I couldn't place my finger on it but it began after I checked my room…
"Good afternoon Sempai!" I felt someone placing their hand on my shoulder and I jumped out of my wits...
I turned around and I saw Shinobu behind me, she looked surprised and I don't blame her, I... I let out a cry when she greeted me...
"So, you are back from school already?" I said, still a bit shocked
"Y…Yes sempai, I was going to check the laundry, but if I am bothering you…"
"Ah, no, no, you aren't bothering me at all Shinobu, You surprised me that's all"
"Hmm… Ok…"
And with that, Shinobu bowed slightly and started to check the laundry, if the cloth was dry enough, she picked it up, fold it and then place it in a basket she was carrying. I kept looking at her working for a while before I spoke.
"Can I help you with that?" I felt bad to just look at her working while I just watched.
"N… No thank you sempai" She answered shyly, as she started working a bit faster.
"Huh? Why not?" I tried pushing it a little more… maybe she wouldn't take my help because she was shy?
"Well… it's… it's everyone's clothes and…hmmm" She couldn't say anymore and she didn't need to, I looked at the clothes with more attention and I realized that there was all kind of clothes… underwear included.
"Oh…" I said as I turned my head away from the clothes in embarrassment as she did the same, none of us talked at all, we just tried not to look at each other, doing nothing.
After some time, I tried doing something but I felt... awkward, and I could tell she felt the same but both of us did nothing… embarrassment taking the best of us.
"Ah, well… Your cooking was really good today Shinobu!" I rubbed the back of my head as I said the first thing that popped into my mind.
"It was nothing sempai, I am glad that you and the others liked it"
"Yeah, it was so good that I nearly ate the dishes!"
"He, he, then I'll cook something really good tonight!" She said happily as the humor lifted, but as soon as I tried to say something else, a strong wave of wind passed trough the terrace, shaking the clothes and threatening to take a few away before stopping. As if this was some kind of warning, Shinobu nodded to the laundry and I understood what she meant, I nodded in reply as she turned back to her chore.
She resumed her work, doing it a lot faster than before and this time without checking if the clothes were completely dry or not, she was determined to finish with all the clothes in one go. Knowing that she wouldn't take my help, I looked into the sky. I didn't notice before but it seemed like it was about to rain… I kept staring instinctively at the sky, my mind drifting as I felt uneasy...
"Is Something wrong sempai?" Shinobu's worried voice called me back to reality; I looked back at her before speaking.
"Oh, nothing, it just seems like it's going to rain soon…" I said as Shinobu looked at me, with the same look she gave me back at the hospital… the same glint in her eyes…
"Hmmm… sempai, do you need anything?" She said as she tried to keep her eyes away from me, shifting uncomfortably. Seeing her like that, I realized that I had been staring at her for too long, I looked somewhere else before answering.
"No, nothing Shinobu, sorry"
"No! Don't be Sempai, I am done with the laundry so I will see you at dinner!"
I said nothing as Shinobu lifted the basket and tried to leave the terrace as fast as she could but something was wrong, that basket was so... bulky.
Without giving it a second thought, I tried to get to Shinobu as fast as I could, and my instincts were right. Just as she got to the door frame, she tripped and launched the basket into mid air, spreading all of its contents as she began to fall. I tried to reach out for her, but as I grabbed her hand, I lost my balance and fell along with her, clothes scattering all around us.
"Ow" I complained as I looked back to Shinobu, she was rubbing her side as she turned to look at me.
"Shinobu, are you alright?" I looked at her and she didn't look hurt, she was about to answer me but she suddenly stopped; she looked shocked as she stared at me. I was confused, she didn't look hurt, I wasn't hurt but something was not well, she kept staring at me, doing nothing, saying nothing, was there something on my face?
"Shinobu what's wrong? I can't tell if you don't say something" I asked as I instinctively rubbed the back of my head.
She didn't have to answer as I felt something on top of my head, I grabbed the weird object and I froze as I held it in front of me. It was Shinobu's underwear… it had her name knitted into it and a cute drawing in the back... a bear.
Shocked about my finding, I looked back at Shinobu and now her embarrassment was at the peak. I was speechless and I don't know why I didn't drop the damned thing, but a second later I saw Shinobu's eyes water and then, before she broke out, she was sprinting all the way back to her room.
"Shinobu wait! I am sorry!" I saw Shinobu's figure go down the stairs, I got up clumsily and followed after her to apologize but I never had the chance.
"What's going on here Urashima! What have you done to Shinobu!" An angry voice came from the corridor, just from where Shinobu passed before me... It was Motoko.
I stopped dead in my tracks, and I saw Motoko's figure coming towards me, she stopped to examine me for a second and then... she unsheathed her blade.
"Urashima... YOU!" I saw Motoko's angry face as her right eye began to twitch, I remembered yesterday's 'introduction' as I realized that I was still holding Shinobu's underwear.
"N…No… NO! It's not what it looks like!"
Too late, I knew it when I felt a strange force coming towards me, launching me to the other side of the hall, the odd thing is that I didn't feel any pain, well, not until I collided with the wall or better said, into the wall.
"Ugh" Was the only thing I managed to mutter before feeling something cold pressed against my throat, I looked up and I saw Motoko's angry face looking down on me, feeling dazed with the impact, I could barely hear what she said.
"It's just your second day out of the hospital and you are already into your perverted ways Urashima!"
"So… sorry Ms. Aoyama, it was an accident!" I almost screamed, feeling nauseous and dizzy, as if the whole world was made of gelatin.
"I don't believe you! You ALWAYS have these 'accidents' Urashima, don't expect me to go easy on your transgressions just because you have an injury!"
"Of course not, I am sorry Motoko!" She kept staring at me, judging my words.
We both stayed that way for several minutes, only some falling pieces of rubble dared to make any sound, we stayed like that until Motoko drew back her sword with a stoic face.
"Very well, but remember Urashima... No funny business, or else…"
"No ma'am !" I felt relieved as I gathered my crutches and stared getting up; I wasn't doing pretty well... the world kept moving hazily around me.
"Here" Motoko helped me regain my footing, I hesitated a little, but I took her help with pleasure (and very carefully), the only thing I wanted right now was to lay down in my room until everything was back to normal. I didn't get too far as the dizziness and one little piece of rubble worked together to make me trip, I waved my hands as I looked for anything to grab on to.
And I happened to find Motoko's Gi…
The girl reacted fast as she felt her clothes loosen, she looked at me with an expression of disbelief and disappointment as my mind seemed to come to a complete halt.
"Urashima, you never learn do you!"
I did nothing, I said nothing, I just stood motionless as I felt another wave push me harder, this time not into a wall, but this time I was flying through the window, where to? I didn't know.
But definitely the view from here was far better than from the terrace...
I landed in a nearby forest, how my cast managed to remain unharmed was a mystery to me, but I felt that I really didn't want to know. I looked around and I realized that I didn't know where I was. I started moving, trying to recall the direction from which I came (or flew), until I managed to get to a small clearing from which I could see Hinata sou not too far away.
'That was quite a blow...' I looked back at the sky and saw the rain clouds looming threateningly in the sky, I had to get back as soon as I could, if my cast got wet, it would need replacement, and seeing that doctor again was not something I was looking forward to; I increased my pace as much as I could but moments later, the rain started pouring gently in the forest, I felt desperate as I tried searching for the Sou once more, it couldn't be too far away now.
I kept going and I came to an abandoned storehouse, from where I saw Hinata Sou not too far away from there, I considered my chances but in the end, the rain got worse and I had no choice but to get into the storehouse, there were some leaks on the roof, but I was able to find a dry spot, I sat there and tried to get myself comfortable, I tried to think of something to pass the time, but nothing came to my mind.
'I hope the rain stops soon' I had some things to do, I truly needed to talk to Narusegawa and also I needed to apologize to Shinobu and Motoko... I couldn't help it as the memories replayed in my head.
"I don't believe you, You ALWAYS have these 'accidents' Urashima!" Motoko's words bothered me, as she said it, it seemed that I was always doing those kind of things to the girls...
'What kind of person am I?' The question echoed heavily in my mind as I tried remembering about me, my own stuff didn't tell anything, and I only had a lead for that.
'Narusegawa...'- The only person besides my aunt that seemed to know about me, I felt an urge to talk to her… to know about myself, In fact... talking to her was the only thing I could think of and when she arrived from college, that would be the first thing I'd do when I get home.
Many hours passed before the rain finally started to let of, I carefully looked outside before finally resuming my way back home. It was already night, the moon shone brightly behind Hinata Sou, giving the old inn an eerie and mystical feeling that captured me for a second before I walked to the entrance just to find no one, I went to the kitchen but no luck either, only some dirty dishes telling me that I had missed dinner.
'What time is it?'
I looked around the kitchen and I saw a clock mounted above the fridge, it's hands marked 9:00 pm soI'd better talk to Naru before she gets to sleep, I went to her room, without any encounters until I was outside Narusegawa's room, at first I hesitated as I hoped I wouldn't be bothering her, but then I remembered how important this was to me, I took a deep breath before doing anything.
'Knock, knock'
"Who is it?" Narusegawa's voice called from her room.
"It's Keitaro, can I come in?"
There was a lingering silence for a while, it didn't seem like something was happening there, I waited for a little more but still there was no answer. I was about to knock again when suddenly Narusegawa opened the door.
"Oh, Hi Narusegawa!" I said a little startled.
"Hello Keitaro, what can I do for you?" She said immediately as she looked at me.
"Well… it's just that… well I wanted to ask you something! More like a favor than anything else."
"Hmm? What is it?"
"Can you help me?"
"Help you… With what?" She said with a confused face, it seemed like I wasn't making any sense at all...
"To remember… you know I think that… I think that we've both known each other for a while and… I want to get my memory back as soon as I can, so I thought that you could help me" I don't know… but at that very moment, I felt as if I had done something terribly wrong… I didn't know what it was, but suddenly Narusegawa… for the lack of a better word, stiffed.
She seemed taken aback by my question, she looked surprised and confused at the same time, but suddenly, as fast as that reaction came another one took place swiftly, she crossed her arms around her chest and her face showed me a slight frown.
"We are friends that's all, well… you know we studied together but… it's nothing more than that"
"Friends…" I already knew that, but what kind of 'friends', study partners?
"Well it's just that… you know… I thought we knew each other for a while…"
"Well, we did study together, but it is nothing more than that, really"
"But... sorry, it's nothing, my bad" I said as confusion began to spread in my mind as a plague… I truly didn't know what to say anymore… I thought that everything would work itself out somehow when I met Naru.
"Keitaro…" Naru's voice called me back to the outside world.
"Yes?"
"You should take it easy, you shouldn't try to remember everything in one or two days, amnesia is not a walk in the park you know..." She said as she looked a bit concerned.
"Thank you Narusegawa… I… I guess you are right" Maybe she is right about this, I am taking things too fast...
I looked at Narusegawa and she looked back at me, we stared at each other for a little while, her face and her arms relaxed but still, she was serious… The silence went on until she spoke.
"So, is there something else you need to ask me?"
"N... No, thank you for your time Narusegawa"
"No problem Keitaro, I don't mean to be rude but ... I have school tomorrow and..." She said so as she nodded to a pile of books on her desk, she seemed to be having a rough time at school…
"Oh sorry, see you around!"
"See you!"
I left Narusegawa's room as she waved me good bye, I felt odd about her answer but I couldn't place it, after all the one with the problem here is me… not her, maybe I was expecting too much, two photo stickers can't be much of a lead but unfortunately for me… that was the only lead I had.
Suddenly I felt the urge to go back to my room and forget about today, it seemed that everything went wrong today, well... maybe not so wrong with Kitsune... but still it was nothing to feel proud of!
'Grrrr'My stomach seemed to share my mood as it complained loudly, after all, I had skipped lunch today, going back to the kitchen I started rummaging trough the fridge for a snack, or if I was lucky, some of Shinobu's dinner leftovers.
"Sempai?"
'THUD!'
I hit my head against the fridge as I was taken by surprise for the second time of the day, rubbing my head as I turned around, I once again saw Shinobu.
I stood frozen as I remembered today's incident with the laundry, I couldn't really look at her in the eyes... but I needed to talk to her... to apologize.
"Oh, hi Shinobu!"
"Are you dinning Sempai?"
"Yeah, I just came here to grab a bite, what about you?"
"I need to wash the dishes, but I can also fix you something quick to eat"
"N… no Shinobu, you don't have to"
"Please Sempai, I want to help you"
"Help me… With what?"
"In anything I can until your memory comes back!" She took her hands to her mouth as she was shocked by her own words, she was nervous as she fidgeted with her fingers...
"But aren't you upset with me?" I said as I recalled today's incident...
"Eh, about what Sempai?" She said as she looked at me more surprised than shocked now, I tried not to look at her as I explained.
"About this afternoon, I mean... I am truly sorry about what happened Shinobu, I promise that it won't happen again"
"Ah, no Sempai, it's just that... it's just that..." Shinobu's voice lowered as she turned her head the other way.
I was apologizing and I was already pushing her too hard, I really have a thing to make her upset...
"I am sorry Shinobu, I shouldn't have said that, sorry"
"No sempai, it's just that I... I was too embarrassed to think anything straight, I am sorry I caused you some trouble with Motoko..."
"Don't worry, I am just glad that you are not angry at me" I said relieved.
"Sempai... just... just let me fix you something for dinner"
I stood aside and Shinobu pulled out some bread and some other ingredients from the fridge, and then she asked me to sit. I waited patiently, trying to keep my stomach from making any noise until she offered me a feisty looking sandwich.
"This looks great! Thank you Shinobu!"
She giggled happily as I devoured dinner, once again I felt like a new man as Shinobu's cooking finally appeased my stomach.
"Thank you Shinobu, it was excellent!"
She beamed me a smile as she picked up my plate and placed it in the sink, and then she started washing it alongside the rest of the dinner's.
"Let me help you with that" I said as I tried to get up and help Shinobu with the dishes, but just as soon as I moved my chair, Shinobu placed a hand on my shoulder and told me not to worry about it.
"It's not that Shinobu, it's just that you do a lot of things in the dorm and I feel bad not to help..."
"Sempai, I do this because I enjoy doing laundry and cooking so it's not a problem at all" She said as she beamed me a tender smile, I felt lucky for having her around Hinata Sou.
"Shinobu…"
"Yes sempai?"
"Thank you"
I left the kitchen feeling well and glad that there was someone like Shinobu as a tenant here, she was helping me a lot, even if she said it was not a problem I knew I had to be grateful to her.
'YAWN'
I suddenly felt tired, even if I had overslept, today was tiring... I went back to my room and I didn't even bother to turn on the lights, I just got into my futon... falling asleep almost instantly.
- The next morning –
I woke up in my room, feeling as if I was still in a dream, I stared silently at the roof, examining it as if it were some kind of weird picture until I noticed something odd on it.
A hole.
I kept staring at it for a while. Narusegawa's room was just above mine, thinking back to yesterday, I felt a bit dumb about our conversation. It surely would have been a lot easier if she knew something about me...
'Sigh'
Snap out of it Keitaro, get a hold of yourself! I slapped myself mentally; it was too early in the morning to be in that kind of mood. I got up, got dressed as I checked the time... It was ten o'clock, I had overslept again.
Going downstairs to have some breakfast I wondered where the tenants were, I didn't find anyone in the way, not even Kitsune, entering the kitchen I saw someone with her back turned.
"Hello Keitaro" She greeted me casually as she turned to face me.
"Aunt Haruka?"
"It's just Haruka, Keitaro…" She said as she looked serious for a while, and then letting it go.
"Sorry, I forgot"
An eerie silence fell among us, Haruka took the initiative.
"Say Keitaro, how is it going?"
"Huh?"
"How are you doing in Hinata Sou?"
"Oh, I am doing ok… I guess" I wasn't sure that was the real answer but I couldn't truly complain since I was still in good shape... so to speak.
"And why is that?"
"Well it's just that… I don't know… I feel like something is odd…"
"Odd? You don't feel welcome?"
"It's hard to explain" I confessed "But even though I feel welcome, there is something bugging me... but I don't know what" I lied, Motoko's and Naru's words bothered me even more than I was willing to accept at the moment.
Haruka looked at me for a second before taking a light sip to her cigarette as she seemed absorbed into her own thoughts. She kept to herself until she talked back to me.
"Come on Keitaro, let's have some tea, my treat"
She left the kitchen and I followed behind her, we walked together down the Hinata's Sou stairs until we reached a small tea shop, the same one I had seen when I got here two days ago. We entered the tea shop and my aunt told me to take a seat in one of the tables, I obeyed as she went to the counter and ordered the tea. She came back a minute later, placing two mugs of tea on the table, we started drinking slowly.
"This is good tea" I commented as she looked at me.
"Glad to hear that, so Keitaro, how are you holding out so far?"
"Frankly I don't know, I haven't been able to remember too much... and when I do, it's distorted, in pieces"
"That's a downer, true, but if you are remembering you are doing well, right?"
"Yeah, that's right but I just can't put my finger on it... may I ask you something?"
"Is it about the tenants?" She sharply answered, she had good instincts.
"Yeah, well... I... I don't know what to ask really but something between them and me... is what feels odd"
"Well, whatever that question might be, you can come ask me anytime, but let me tell you something. Remember the dinner when you got home from the hospital?" I nodded a yes as it came back to my mind.
"Before you arrived, I talked to the tenants about the way they should act towards you, I told them to act as if nothing had happened"
"Why?"
"To keep you from getting any wrong ideas, if they acted as they usually do towards you and themselves in general you should be able to recover faster, sorry I didn't tell you before but I think that this might answer a few questions"
"Well... yeah, if that's the way they act towards me... I hope I can get out of this one without any new cast"
"Come on Keitaro, there are always doctors for that kind of stuff" She said as she grinned me a smile.
"You are right, but I don't think I want to visit a doctor like the one from the hospital in a long while..."
"He he, don't worry about that doctor Keitaro, I also had a little 'talk' with him about his 'diligence' back there in the hospital, I am sure that if you need anything he will be glad this time"
I said nothing as I looked at the sudden pleased expression on my aunt's face, deciding that I really didn't want to know, we changed the subject to anything that came into our minds, and without realizing, we started enjoying ourselves.
Many hours passed until we had to end our conversation due to a sudden rush of clients which my aunt and her employees had their hand's full. I stayed in the shop until I finished what remained of my tea. I said my good byes and headed back to Hinata Sou.
Behind the scenes ( Hospital )
Haruka entered a big office at the hospital, she took a quick look around and realized that whoever this doctor was, he was a big shot.
"Please have a sit" The doctor said as he closed the door behind him, leaving both in privacy, as he quietly moved to his seat behind a luxurious wood desk.
Haruka seated as she examined her surroundings once more everything looked expensive and meticulously cared, even the doctor's desk was clean and tidy... odd thing that he kept a bowl filled with nuts in the middle of it, and besides it, a hand made nut cracker stood proudly as the doctor used it to get a snack.
"Do you want some?" The doctor asked in a bored tone as Haruka politely declined.
"I would like to know what happened to my nephew so I can take him home Doctor"
"Oh... yes, of course"
The doctor started explaining Haruka about the situation her nephew was in, first off he started explaining how he was found, and then he explained that he was in perfect shape, of course disregarding his broken leg and bandaged head, and finally he explained how amnesia worked and that he only needed time to get better.
"Well, that's about it Mrs. Haruka"
"Thank you doctor, but it's Ms. Haruka" Haruka said as she grabbed some contents from the bowl and started juggling them in one hand as if some kind of stress relievers.
"Oh, sorry, Ms. Haruka, do you have any questions?" The doctor asked as a slight smile showed on his face as he looked at Haruka juggling nervously...
"Doctor, I have a question..." Haruka said, the doctor only nodded in agreement as he shifted on his chair to get more comfortable.
"How many times do you need to check the cast a day?"
"Well... once the bone is in place and the cast is set, the cast should be left alone and kept from getting wet as much as possible, if he feels any pain or he gets a strong hit to it, he should come back for a check up"
"Oh, so you mean that you wanted to make sure my nephew's cast was still in place before?"
The doctor looked shocked at the woman before him; she didn't look angry or suspicious of anything but still he couldn't help to shift uncomfortably before giving a response.
"Yes... Yes, I've got to make sure he is in good shape before he leaves the hospital, that's all" He shifted again as he tried to sound convincing, but he felt that the woman before him wasn't buying it, what unnerved him the most was that she didn't look angry or upset about it, he gulped as he kept looking at her.
"Well, it's good that this hospital has such a responsible doctor" Haruka said as she stopped juggling the objects in her hand.
"Of course, we take pride in our patient's recovery!" The doctor felt a wave of relief starting from his spine, passing through his gut and finally ending in his lungs. Feeling reassured and calm, he was about to tell Haruka that it would be time to go, but just as he was about to speak...
"Because, if my nephew was mistreated on purpose somehow, I don't know what I'd do" Haruka said as she crushed the nuts she was holding in her hand, pulverizing them as the dust filtered through her fingers, she glared daggers at the doctor as she swiftly made her point.
Just as fast as the relief had come, the doctor felt suddenly wishing to be allowed to run away for dear life as he understood Haruka's statement, but his legs clamped together as he felt the sudden urge to get to a toilet.
"Well doctor, let's go back to my nephew, shall we?" Haruka offered as she left her seat and headed towards the door.
The doctor said nothing as he tried to rise from his chair. Something he found terribly difficult to do without the risk of tripping. He looked back at her as her expression was calm and stoic as she was already waiting for him at the door. Finally finding the courage, he decided to follow a bit behind her, trying not to make her angry and promising himself that he would treat his patients better from now on... or at least this one in particular.
Phew, finally this chapter is done, I've got to apologize to everyone about the horrible amount of time I took to update, I truly have nothing to say in my defense.
Anyway, If you liked this story, chapter or something in this entire fic at all, please leave me a review, If you didn't like it, leave a review as well :).
I'd like to thank Havenoname for pre-reading this chapter, THANKS MAN! I OWE YOU ONE.
Untill next chapter.
JKaitz.