Chapter 6

I plopped onto my bed and hugged my pillow tightly. What was happening to me? Why did this have to happen now, of all times? And right in front of Inuyasha!

A stray tear rolled slowly down my cheek. I squeezed my eyes shut to prevent a tidal wave of tears from escaping. I felt so broken, so empty.

Stupid Koga. Why'd he have to go and ruin everything? I was just fine until he came along and messed up my life and…my heart.

I drifted to sleep as I tried to figure out why he cheated on me. I didn't dream. I wouldn't dream for a long time. Dreams aren't meant to be sad. They are meant to be happy, or confusing, or both. They sometimes help you and give you signs. No, I wouldn't have sweet dreams for a long, long time. I would miss them. I remembered my last dream, the night before.

It had been about Inuyasha, and what it would be like to meet him. It went very differently from the events that happened today. It didn't embarrass me, for one thing.

I slept for a few hours, and when I woke up, I looked at the clock. 1:48pm.

Wow! I slept for…about five hours…I hope this horrible feeling goes away soon. I want to be able to be normal at least a little bit around Inuyasha.

I wondered what Inuyasha was thinking about…ha! What am I thinking? Like he would be thinking about me. I'm just the girl he ran into, who then broke down over her ex-boyfriend in front of him. So much for first impressions, eh?

I sat up in my bed and swung my legs over the side. I felt her stomach growl so I got up and wandered to the kitchen. To my surprise, there was a somewhat freshly made meal in the fridge. Mom…I smiled. There was a small note attached to the side of the rice bowl.

Dear Kagome,

I thought you might get hungry, so I made this for you. Just heat it up in the microwave and it should be fine. Feel better. I love you.

Love, Mom

My mother was worried about me. Especially since I refused to talk about anything related to Koga. She thought I'd been trying not to make her upset, but really I hadn't been all sad about it until now.

I was almost done eating my delicious meal made by my mother when I jumped as my cell phone began to vibrate against the wooden table. I looked at the caller-ID. Mom…?

"Hello?" I answered.

"Kagome, dear? Where are you? Are you still at home?" said my mother. Why did she sound like she had been crying? Was something wrong?

"Yeah, I'm still home. Why? What's wrong? Did your car break down or something?" I questioned, worried and confused. My mother never called me unless it was really important.

"Um…do you know where the local Tokyo hospital is?" my mother asked, who had paused to take in a deep, but shaky, breath. She had definitely been crying.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure. Why? Are you hurt?" I was becoming more and more anxious.

"Yes, I'm fine. It's your…father. He isn't okay. He got into a really bad car crash on his way home for lunch. I want you to come here right now. Okay?" she said sternly. She definitely had tears coming out by now.

"Oh my God! I'll be there as soon as I can, alright, Mom? What is his room number?"

I was about to cry, like my mother was. Was he okay? How bad was it? What happened to make the crash so bad? All these questions raced through my mind, but I didn't have time to ask them. I needed to leave right away. My mother needed me.

"His room is 128. Make sure to tell the nurse that you are related to him. Tell him them the name and room number. They should help you find it. He has to go into surgery in about an hour. Please, be quick."

"Alright, Mom. Hang in there, okay? I'll be right there."

I raced to her room to grab my purse. I shuffled through it to find my keys. Then I ran out the front door and turned to lock the door unsteadily.

"Dammit, key! Get into the damn lock!" I yelled at the key in my hand. I didn't have time for this!

I finally got the key into the lock and turned it. I spun and ran wildly to my car. Damn these steps! If only there was some way to get down them faster.

When I finally reached the bottom, I grabbed the car door handle and yanked it open, hard. I slid into the driver's seat and started the car, closing the door and stepping on the gas pedal at the same time.

When I reached a stop sign, I buckled the seat belt. I turned and sped down the road that led to the highway. I needed to be there. And quick, because I didn't truly know the horrible condition my father was in. He may not have much time.

"Oh, Dad. Please, be safe! Just please, God, please let him be alright," I whispered to myself repeatedly.

I crossed lanes and got onto the off-ramp. I took a few turns and finally reached the hospital's parking lot. I found the nearest space I could to the door. I didn't have time to search for a better one. I removed the keys and pushed the door open, nearly slamming it into the car next to mine. I slammed it shut and ran to the front door. As I reached it, a doctor heading back inside saw me lean over and breathe heavily. I was really out of breath.

"Are you alright, miss?" asked the kind face.

I popped my head up, still leaning over, hands on my thighs. "No, I am not alright! Why else would I be going into a damn hospital?" I demanded, very frustrated. Is this guy stupid or something?

He looked at me with a surprised expression. For such a small person, I sure had a lot of anger. His face softened and he held the door open for me.

"My apologies. I suppose you're right. Here, come in." He beckoned through the door.

I was thoroughly annoyed but still accepted the whole holding-out-the-door thing. That was very gentleman-like. Duh, Kagome! He's a doctor! He has to be nice! Why the hell would I be any exception?

I walked through the door and sped up after he walked the opposite direction. I slammed my palms onto the counter of the front desk. "Where is room 128? My father should be there. I'm his daughter, Kagome Higurashi. I don't know if my mom told you I was coming or not, but it's kinda urgent so could you hurry it up?"

The receptionist at the counter was annoyed at first, but then she looked at a file and realization spread across her face, a sorrowful look in her eyes. She pointed in the direction the doctor I just talked to went. "Ask Dr. Suikotsu. He should be the one operating on your father, okay?"

"Yes, can I help you?"

"The lady at the desk told me you would be operating on my father today. I'm Kagome Higurashi…my mom told me he got into some sort of accident. Will he be okay?"

"Oh! His room is on the second floor and down the hall to the right, he motioned down the hall a ways, where I saw the elevator lights going on and off as people pushed the buttons. "I'll be there in a little bit. His condition isn't too good. I will do the best I can in surgery later to help him get better, okay?"

I looked into his eyes, tears threatening to pour out from me. I ran down the hallway and pushed the "up" button repeatedly until I heard a ding and the doors of an elevator opened. I got in and pushed the "2," and then the "close doors" button.

I tapped my foot and crossed my arms as the strange feeling of moving upwards went through me. I felt a little dizzy from it. When I reached the floor, I burst from the doors and made my way down the empty hallway. At least one thing was helpful. Everything else just made me feel worse. An empty hallway would be the only good thing that came out of today.

And, of course, meeting Inuyasha. That could've gone better, but at least we'd met.

I looked frantically at the door numbers to the right as I sped past them. "122…124…126…128!"

I stopped and knocked on the door. I heard footsteps and the door cracked open. My mother then swung it open all the way and fell into my arms. She was sobbing.

"Hey, it's alright. Everything's gonna be fine," I said to her, almost trying to reassure myself as well. I pulled my mother back and looked at her face. "Can I see him now?" She nodded.

I slowly released my mother and walked into the room. It had a nice view through the window. Mom probably paid extra for that.

I turned and saw my father in the white hospital bed.

He had his head bandaged, and most of his limbs were in slings. He was scratched and bruised all over, especially on his face. He had gauze over his cheek. Then I turned my gaze from his face to his neck. It was in a brace and held his head up. His eyes were tightly shut. He was obviously in a lot of pain.

Where was the damn anesthesiologist? Shouldn't he be loaded with morphine or something?

I slowly approached my beloved father. I walked right up to the side of his bed, carefully avoiding all the IV tubes and other machines hooked up to him.

"Oh, Dad. What happened to you?" I said in a small, almost inaudible voice. He must have heard me, though; he cracked his eyes open very slowly.

"Ka…gome…," he managed to say weakly.

"Shh, don't try to speak." I placed a finger gently over his lips, to shush him.

He let out a pain-filled sigh and closed his eyes again. He opened them after a few minutes and said, "I…love you…"

"Oh, I love you too, Dad. That's why you have to get through this, for me, for Mom. And Souta…" I turned to my mother. "Does he know yet? I should've gone to get him first!"

"It's alright, dear. I can go get him later," she murmured.

"No, you stay here. I'll go get him when Dad's surgery starts. Why does he need surgery, anyway?"

"Glass from the windshield punctured his lung…" My mother turned and started crying again. Oh, Mom…

I looked sorrowfully back at my father, who had closed his eyes again. He could've been recalling the memory of the horrid crash. "How did it happen?"

"A drunk driver…raced out of the street at a red light at full speed…and hit your father's car…causing it to shatter and break the windshield…and set the engine on fire," my mother said, sniffing and taking breaths between every few words.

Now that she mentioned fire, I noticed a few burns on my father, scattered throughout small parts of his face. I imagined there was more on his body, they were just hidden. My mother continued, "They had to use the jaws of life…to get him out…his car had turned over and…hit another car next to him…causing a collision from both sides…which made it much worse…"

My mother was crying again, this time not trying to hide it. I felt a tear roll down my cheek, burning in the stream it left on my face.

Dr. Suikotsu knocked on the door and came in. It was time for surgery. I walked back over to my father's side. I clutched his hand gently. He didn't flinch, so it might not have been hurt or broken. I kissed his hand and whispered, "Be safe, Dad…it'll be alright, I…I promise. I'll see you when you're done with surgery, okay? And Souta will be here, too….I love you."

He squeezed my hand back a little, to reassure me and acknowledge the words I said. He smiled very slightly. I knew I couldn't promise such a thing, but it helped me feel better. It made the reality of my father possibly dying hurt less.

As those quiet words lingered in the air, other doctors and nurses came in to help prepare him for surgery. Everything felt like slow motion to me. They lifted him onto a smaller bed, and attached the bags of his IVs to the hooks on it. I watched as they slowly rolled him out of the room and turned the corner. He'll be alright…he has to be…

I left the hospital and went back to pick up Souta. The whole time, my father's last words to me played like a broken record in my head.