Wow, that was a heck of a chapter! And, yes, I was doing a bit of "Kiku-bashing" haha X] This is a shorter chapter, so I plan on posting Chapter 8 in the next day or two. (I didn't realize how short this was until I went to post it haha) Thanks for the reviews, everyone! I love reading them so much! :D They really make my day (and they help you to get more story faster!). Again, thank you so much!
-Chapter 7-
Kiku
I suddenly realized that I was drifting back to consciousness.
I couldn't hear anything around me.
My eyes fluttered open. I couldn't see anything. Had I gone blind?
I swallowed. My throat felt dry.
I opened my mouth, and the only name I could think of came out.
"Zack."
I could still see. There he was, in front of me. Like magic, I thought.
He sighed heavily, shaking a little.
"Zack?" I asked. "Are...are you crying?"
"Of course I am," he whispered. He put one of his hands over mine. "Oh, man... You're okay."
"'Course I am," I breathed. "You...you can't get rid of me that easy."
He smiled.
"Where are we?"
"7th Heaven," he said.
"We're in a bar?" I looked around -without moving my head, of course. "Strangest bar I've ever seen."
He laughed softly. "We're above it. My friend, Anna, owns and runs it. She lives here, too. This is her spare bedroom."
I looked at my arms, all stitched and blood-stained. "Who fixed me up?"
"Anna's friend, Clay. She's a doctor."
"What time is it?"
"Little after six in the morning."
"Oh."
Having run out of questions, there was only one other thing I could think to do. So I did. I cried. He sat on the bed next to me and put his arm around my shoulders, his calm, soothing voice the only thing I could hear beyond my sobs, gasps, and sniffles.
"I'm sorry." I was surprised by his apology. "I should've been there for you. I should've stopped you from going back."
I shook my head. "Nah, I'm too stubborn," I gasped.
He laughed softly.
"I just...just learn the hard way, is all."
"That's okay," he said. "So do I."
My sobs eventually ceased, and my tears decreased from steady flow to erratic drip. "How long will I stay here?"
"Anna said you can stay as long as you like."
"Nice of her. I mean, for having not really met me and all."
"She's just that kind of person. She also said, as soon as you're well enough, she'll put you to work here."
I nodded, then looked up at him. "Will you visit?"
He smiled. "Every chance I can. I'm your best friend. You think I'm just gonna leave you here with those two nut-jobs?"
That did it. I had to laugh, even though it hurt my cheek where the knife had sliced through it. He hugged me a little tighter, as if he knew it hurt me to laugh. But laughing felt so good all at the same time...
We sat in silence for a few minutes, the red light of the dawn peeking through the window.
"There's something I've been wanting to ask you about," he said.
"What's that?" I asked.
He exhaled, releasing me. I laid my head back on the pillow, and he sat still, looking down at his hands clasped in front of him. I couldn't really remember a time when he'd looked so serious.
"...What do...wing symbolize?"
Wings, I thought. "Freedom," I said. "Power. Beauty. Like...like an angel."
He looked up at the window, early morning light glinting off his bright blue, mako-infused eyes. "So...what do angels dream of?"
I thought.
"Do they dream...of being human?"
"I don't think so," I said.
He looked at me.
I looked out the window. "Angels...are the messengers of God. They like it up there. But they want to help us mortals down here. To fight suffering and pain. So, that means that...they dream...of a better world."
He didn't speak, just looked at me as if I had answered some very important question.
I had a feeling. A feeling that everything was going to be okay now. Things were changing. But I felt they were changing for the better.
Zack
Angels dream of a better world.
I mulled over that for a very long time, long after I had left 7th Heaven and returned to Shinra. Would Angeal agree with that? It made sense when Kiku said it. Why would Angeal think that angels wanted to be human? I wondered.
Even through all that wondering, knowing Kiku was alright put me very much at ease. I felt my -as Kiku called it- "puppy-ness" coming back. She was alive. She was alright. She was going to be okay.
When I got back to Shinra, not much had changed. Sephiroth was still shut up in the Data Room, crews were still repairing the building where the Genesis copies and machines had attacked... Just the same ol', same ol'.
I asked Kunsel why Lazard had called me back if there was nothing going on. Kunsel just said something about keeping tabs on "one of the only 1st-Class SOLDIERs left."
Yeah. Sure. Whatever.
More often than not lately, I had been feeling the weight of everything that was happening coming down on me. Angeal, Genesis, Hollander, and the whole thing about Project G and the degredation process. My promotion to SOLDIER 1st Class. Meeting Kiku. Genesis' attack on Shinra. Sephiroth's reactions (or lack thereof) of everything with his two best friends. What happened to Kiku with her father...
And what was my response to all of this?
I have to think positive.
Isn't that what Kiku always said I was good at? If I stay positive, everything will be okay. Everything will work out fine.
We all just have to wait and see.
I'm sorry it's so short *sweatdrop* More soon! :D
