The Wait: The Kaigo Shelter
Chihiro was too dazed to move. With the man's lips on hers turning her insides to mush, she simply couldn't think straight. All her brain could seem to register was his hands around her that made her feel warm and safe and his lips that were gently touching hers.
That was not supposed to happen. He was supposed to get mad at her, scold her for causing him trouble when the monster tried to attack her. He was supposed to be more than happy to get her out of the Spirit World and away from him forever. And she was supposed to leave for good, severing all ties with the people whom she'd met here, including him.
But no, apparently fate had other ideas. And here she was, in Haku's embrace and enjoying his kiss.
She must be dreaming, she thought wildly to herself. Haku was a stranger, as was she to him. He could not be kissing her right then and there; she must be hallucinating. Fevers often had weird effects on people and she'd heard many stories before, though not fully believing in them.
However, when migraine after migraine attacked her head making her wince, she was quick to realize that it was not a dream. Shock was the only thing that registered in her brain before she shoved the man away from her with all her might.
Her hands went up to her lips, like in the many dramas she'd watched and she felt the feeling of that kiss linger bitterly. A careless look at his hurt expression gripped her heart.
"I… I…" At a complete loss for words, she did the next best thing she could to avoid the incredibly awkward situation: Run.
Chihiro got up and ran towards the shelter of the oak trees, ignoring the fact that she was feeling lightheaded and nauseous. All that filled her mind was the kiss and Haku's hurt expression, his face, everything about him. And she wanted those thoughts out of her head immediately.
Not surprisingly, soon her lungs were screaming for air and she felt dizzier than ever before. Perhaps running hadn't been the correct choice, but she had too little time to think.
Without realizing, she had stumbled and placed her hand on the rough bark of a tree beside her to steady herself, getting a small cut from a splinter in the process. She breathed heavily, panting like there was no tomorrow.
Her vision slowly blurred and she found herself free-falling backwards. She landed on the dirt with a 'thud'. More pain seared through her head, but she did not even possess the slightest strength to lift her hands to add pressure to her temples.
And just like that, for the third time in the Spirit World, darkness engulfed her, except this time, she was happy to escape reality, even if it was just for a moment.
Chihiro found herself on the beach, her bare feet nestling themselves in the warm, moist sand. The sky was a brilliant marigold along with clouds dipped in pink, purple and orange. The calm waves of the sea splashed against the shore playfully, giving off a serene feeling.
At first she thought she was the only one in the vast space, till her eyes spotted the silhouettes of 3 figures standing side by side by the seashore. Their backs were facing her but they looked oddly familiar. It piqued her curiosity and she began to step toward them, the sound of waves getting louder with each step she took.
When she was a few meters away from them, her heart started beating faster. Were they strangers? Did she know them? Something told her that they were people that she knew, and just before she could begin to guess, one of them called her name. Her feet shuffled to a stop and she gasped as recognition seeped into her being.
She recognized that voice anywhere; that cheerful voice no matter how tired he actually was when he got home, no matter how much physical anguish he was going through.
Then, he turned around. Chihiro's jaw literally dropped, and for a moment, she was too dumbfounded to move. After thinking a little, she dismissed the whole setting as a dream, until he gestured for her to go over to him. Involuntarily, her legs started to move towards her father who was actually standing right before her, looking as if he'd never set foot in a hospital before. His face had a healthy glow to it, and his wide welcoming smile brought fresh tears to her eyes.
He held her at arm's length as she took hold of his wrinkled hands, touching them as if touching a priceless gem with care and awe. Unbelief was plain on her face as she never thought she'd ever get the chance to see him again. Embracing him enthusiastically, she inhaled his lemon mint smell. The smell seemed to trigger something in her tear ducts and automatically, tears flowed down her cheeks. They embraced each other tightly, and she felt his chest reverberate with joyful laughter, making her smile. She missed his contagious laughter very much.
"I've missed you, little puppy." She could imagine him smiling that broad, toothy grin of his that would make his eyes squeeze into small slits on his face.
"I've missed you too, Dad," she squeaked. More tears cascaded down her cheeks, effectively getting his cotton polo tee soaked. He'd always loved polo tees. Oh, the sweet memories.
But all too soon, he was pulling away from her. "Sorry my little girl, I have to go now."
Without a second's hesitation, he turned back and began walking towards the sea. "Wait, Dad! Where're you going? Don't leave me!" she cried. She tried to move, but her legs were frozen in place, and no matter how much strength she mustered to get her limbs moving, they simply wouldn't listen.
Now filled with frustrated tears, her pleas echoed after her dad's deaf ears, and in he went into the sea, completely submerged.
Just as she was about ready to go berserk, another voice came from beside her.
"Chihiro-chan?"
Her head whirled around to see a grown man looking to be her age smiling down at her with a childish grin. His jet black hair was tousled, and his eyes lit up like that of a child's, full of innocent happiness. "Hi…karu?" the name came to her mind and upon realization, her eyes widened.
"The one and only," he winked teasingly. "We haven't kept in touch for a long time, huh, Chihiro-chan? I've missed you a lot!"
"Really? But, I thought—"
"Yeah… that was just me being an idiot who wanted to save face after getting rejected. I just… I just didn't know how to face you after that, and I thought you didn't want to be friends anymore, so..."
"I'm sorry…"
"It's alright! Hey, look, I need to go now. I guess I'll see you around, huh! We should totally go out sometime!" With that, he walked straight into the waters, while she merely stared and watched in disbelief. What in the world was going on? She must be dreaming, and she hit her head, demanding to wake up immediately.
"Chihiro." The sound of that low, deep drawl made her heart leap into her throat and suddenly she found it hard to speak against her accelerating heart beat. Her mouth went dry as the last person remaining on the shore turned to gaze at her.
His long, emerald green hair, untied, danced beautifully in sync with the rhythmic patterns of the wind. Tucking his hair behind his ear and getting it out of his face, he made his way towards her slowly. She tried moving backwards but there was something controlling her legs and it definitely was not her. Her mouth felt like it had been sewn shut like what Yubaba had done before, her lips frozen in a thin line. Her only form of expression was through her eyes and they were probably screaming a fusion of fear, confusion, sadness and frustration at him.
"Chihiro," he called again. This time, her tongue and lips started moving on their own.
"Kohaku…"
His lips tugged up into a smirk and leaving a mere slit of air between their bodies, he leaned in closer. "I'll protect you," he murmured, before brushing his lips against hers, sending tingles down her spine as she shivered at his touch. He stepped closer and placed his hand on the small of her back to press her against him, making use of the opportunity to deepen the kiss.
Chihiro was bewildered. What in the world was going on with everyone? Why was Haku suddenly kissing her for no reason? But the voices in her heart were overpowering the sensible part of her and she ached to kiss him back as well.
But there went the moment, when he stepped away from her. This time, however, his cold mask was back on and emotionlessly, he gestured to the sea with his head. Before she could even wonder what he was trying to do, her enchanted legs obeyed his silent command and began making their way toward the waters.
The waters were now choppy and the waves crashed violently against the shore, aggressively daring her to walk in.
'Stop! Stop this!' she screamed internally, unable to speak with her lips sealed tight.
She glanced behind to see Haku watching as she walked straight to her doom. There was not a trace of warmth in those deep trenches of emerald pools. 'I'll protect you,' his words echoed in the back of her mind.
Liar, she thought. He was a liar. Immense betrayal welled up in her and she felt her eyes water again, though her tears did not come. He broke his promise to her once, and even forgot about her while she was the foolish one to remain a loyal slave to the dragon. And now he was toying with her feelings again. She hated the feeling of being treated like a used toy, played with and then carelessly thrown aside, without so much as a thought for her feelings.
But still, she could not bring herself to hate him. Why, she wondered. His panic-stricken expression resurfaced in her mind when he rescued her from the monster and she couldn't help but sense strongly that there was something being hidden from her. However, the frustrating part was that she could not seem to place her finger on it.
She let out a quiet gasp as she felt the icy cold waters begin to swallow her legs. She could feel the freezing cold waters seep into her bones, and her tiny body trembled. The girl could not stop walking though. Her body had been possessed.
As her body gradually went in deeper and deeper, with her teeth chattering harder and harder, she turned around and saw Haku gone. The next thing she knew, she was underwater.
She held her breath, not wanting to get water in her nose which would hurt. Before long her lungs were screaming for air, her chest feeling like it was going to burst. It was painful, so unbearably painful. Her mouth opened in desperation and in return she got a mouthful of salty—
No, it was not salty. It was clear, like clean, potable water. Surprise filled her for a moment before quickly being replaced with agony.
Clean water or not, she was still drowning.
"Chihiro…"
What?
"Chihiro… it's me…"
The voice was crystal clear, its sound melodiously echoing throughout the waters. Opening her eyes slightly, she saw sparkly, clear waters all around her with her chestnut brown hair floating about.
"Chihiro…"
She recognized that voice somewhere. No, it couldn't be. It was impossible. How could it be that she would be in a similar position to the first time they had met?
A streak of brilliant white danced elegantly in the distance and she stared after it, the shape growing bigger and bigger until she saw it in its full size. The majestic beast was now standing before her, doing all sorts of acrobatic stunts in the water. It swooped under her body, hauling her up towards the surface where the bright light was as her fingers feebly wrapped themselves around one horn of his.
As they moved, she heard his voice repeating, "Promise… promise… promise… Chihiro…"
Waking up with a start, Chihiro sprung into a sitting position. A cold, wet cloth fell from her forehead onto the white blanket covering her. She moaned lightly, feeling like she was having a terrible hangover.
She touched her moist forehead and noticed her temperature had gone down significantly, miraculously. Looking around, she found herself on a bed in a foreign place. It was a simple and modest room, with smooth wooden floorboards that were polished and clean. Japanese-style sliding doors stood by the side of the room and she could hear murmurs outside, though there was no shadow indicating there to be anyone outside the door.
A desk and an armchair were placed on the right side of the room, with a small table lamp and a few piles of paper on it, neatly arranged. A quill and pot of ink was by the corner of the desk. The huge window was just behind the desk and she noticed the clear skies, though spotting a couple of dark streaks in the clouds far into the distance.
The landscape was quite beautiful, with a large field just below the window. She noticed some distinct spots of colors on the tall grass and assumed them to be wild flowers, though unable to see very clearly. She noticed people taking walks and spending time together in the peaceful time of the day. But then, upon taking a closer look, those 'people' looked different and then it dawned on her that she was still in the spirit world, hence explaining the strange creatures here and there.
Turning her attention back to the rest of the room, she continued exploring it with her curious eyes. The walls of the room were the shade of a light cream with no design whatsoever on it, and there was a clock hanging on the wall above a bookshelf that was filled with books and other miscellaneous items. It was just opposite the bed she was in that lay smack dab in the middle of the room.
The salty smell of saltwater tickled her nostrils and she shuddered at the momentary recollection of that peculiar dream she just had. It smelled rather familiar, though no one in particular came to mind.
A wooden closet to her left had a full length mirror on it and she gasped at her reflection. Her hat was still on her head, thank goodness, though its cream color was slightly stained with dirt. She frowned. She'd have to wash that when she got back while finding another one to wear in the meantime. Her face was as pale as usual, so no surprise there.
However, she was not wearing her clothes anymore, and instead she was wearing a loose cotton top that was obviously way too big for her. She also had on a pair of sweats that were also slipping off her waist.
Where had her clothes gone? But more importantly, who had changed her clothes for her? The thought of some stranger stripping her of her clothes terrified the conservative woman.
Her hands groped around the sheets and she wondered where on earth she could be. Had she been abducted by someone? No, that was not possible; she should have been in ropes and gagged if that were the case. Then why wasn't she at the hospital?
And then everything came back to her.
Flying off from the bathhouse. The demon. Kissing Haku.
Her cheeks flushed at the recollection. Her fingers, just as before, touched her lips that had been kissed by Haku. What on earth went through his mind, she could not comprehend. He was such a mysterious man.
But then again, that was how he had always been, she thought with a little smile to herself.
Seeing as there was no one else in the room, she took the chance to quietly get the warm covers off of her and felt her bare feet touch the cool floor. She smiled, feeling oddly thrilled just like a child exploring the wonders of a treasure cove.
Not daring enough to go outside, she kept her little expedition to the confines of the room. She set the cloth on the dresser beside the bed and walked toward the desk, her fingers touching the smooth surface of it.
Chihiro remembered how she used to prance about in her father's study while he was working when she wanted him to play with her or to tell him something interesting that had happened in school. She still remembered how worked up he had gotten when she mentioned a boy had confessed to her and laughed through her nose. Those were the good times, now stored as rusty old memories in her storeroom of a mind.
Not wanting to touch the papers for fear of invading the host's privacy, she kept her hands to herself and walked around, exploring the room from corner to corner. The bookshelf was full of books, some old and tattered, while others were brand new with polished covers. She tried to read the words but they were incomprehensible; they were probably written in some spirit language of theirs.
Looking at the miscellaneous items on the bookshelf, she noticed a very exquisite box lying in the corner of it, and it was half-opened. Someone must have opened it not too long ago. Interest perked up in her and before she could restrain herself, she had opened the little gift box carefully, revealing a pretty gemstone.
It had been masterfully carved and it felt smooth against her index finger which stroked it lightly. The gem had a dark green glow to it, reminding her of Haku's eyes. In the center though, it was a light, sweet pink color with streaks of brown throughout the stone, reminding her of a watermelon.
"You shouldn't be touching that."
Chihiro jumped up in shock, and flushing, hurriedly placed it back in its original position to face the owner of the voice.
Standing in front of the now closed door, was a man looking to be about Haku's age. He had messy golden hair and teasing amber eyes. His high cheekbones had a rosy, healthy pink tint to them and his crooked grin was rather charming, she had to admit. He was clad in a casual bright orange button up top. Its sleeves were folded up and he had on a pair of black pants with an elaborate design of the flames of a fire at the side to go with the outfit. His black shoes had a little dirt on them though, looking a little out of place with his clean attire.
"W-Who are you?" she stuttered, getting extra nervous since she had been rather rude, touching things that did not belong to her.
His smirk grew wider. "Hi, I'm Koushou, but you can call me Shou."
She nodded and smiled hesitantly. "I'm—"
"Chihiro?" he cut in, grinning even wider when he saw the startled look on her face. She wondered if his mouth would tear from smiling so much.
"How do you know my name?"
"Haku only has one human girlfriend, so…"
Her cheeks flamed. "I'm not his girlfriend!" she exclaimed indignantly.
He smirked at her oddly quick reply. "You're cute when you get defensive."
That only made her face redden even more. He laughed at her reaction.
"I'm guessing you've got some questions about where you are now?"
She nodded. "What is this place?"
"You, my dear," he announced grandly, "are in the Kaigo Shelter!"
Now she got even more confused. "The Kaigo Shelter?" she echoed.
"Yeah, it's this shelter run by a group of us spirits who provide free care for lost spirits! Haku's the founder," he added with a suggestive wink.
Chihiro looked away, finding herself shying away from his gaze. "Umm… What are lost spirits?"
"Lost spirits like us are spirits who have lost our identities, or don't remember anything of our past."
Yubaba came to mind and sadness was all Chihiro could feel for a moment, recalling how much suffering Haku had had to go through because he had lost his name to the witch.
"So Haku founded this shelter after he quit being Yubaba's apprentice?"
"You got it."
Depression dusted her features. So he did quit, after all. But why didn't he go to see her, since he obviously had the freedom to do so?
Maybe he had a reason for it, she tried persuading herself. That would be something more comforting to believe in.
"What's wrong? Are you feeling uncomfortable or anything?"
She looked up to see Shou now standing in front of her with a concerned expression on his face. Shaking her head with a sigh, she forced a tiny smile.
"I'm fine. So, what is this room, exactly?"
"It's Haku's room."
Her eyes widened in slight shock. That was Haku's room? She looked around again. She'd heard that one could tell a person's personality from how their bedroom looked like. And it would explain the smell lingering in the room as well.
She gestured to the clothes over her naked body. "Whose…"
"They're Haku's clothes." A smirk played on his lips at her reaction again. Blushing furiously now, she was almost afraid to ask the next question.
"W-Who changed me into this..?"
"Why, it was none other than Haku!" he exclaimed happily.
Chihiro, on the other hand, felt like a couple of stones had just been hurled at her with great force. What had he seen? She began to panic. Just the mere thought of him changing her clothes for her brought her nervousness and panic to a whole new level. Before she knew it, her breaths were becoming shorter and shorter, much to Shou's shock.
"Ah! Are you alright, Chihiro? I didn't mean to scare you there, I was just kidding!"
He helped her to her bed where her eyes were huge, still frozen with terror. Apparently his words just fell on deaf ears. "Chihiro, I was kidding, really, I'm sorry," he repeatedly, shaking her lightly.
Eventually she got out of her trance and faced him. "He really didn't..?"
"No, sorry, I just wanted to tease you a little, but I didn't intend for you to get all scared," he answered ruefully.
Chihiro heaved a big sigh of relief. "Okay, good. So who helped me into my clothes anyway?"
"Sakura. She's another female spirit who works around here as well."
"Mm…" Chihiro hummed, staring into blank space. That was one of her burning questions answered. Now there were about… ninety-nine more to go.
Why was she in Haku's room? Why hadn't she gone back home yet? Why did Haku leave her here?
"You look like you have a thousand things on your mind," Shou commented thoughtfully, scrutinizing her expression.
"I was just thinking… I've got some questions to ask Haku. Where is he?"
"Oh, him? I think he hasn't come back from his fly."
"Fly?"
Shou shrugged. "It's just his way of de-stressing, I suppose. He hasn't got a lot of time to get things off of his mind; he's way too busy. I don't even get a lot of chances to annoy him anymore." His lips turned into a little pout and Chihiro couldn't help but smile at his antics.
He noticed this and grinned mischievously. "Well, he should be back anytime now. So in the meantime, while waiting for him…"
Suddenly, he pinned her down on the bed, his face hovering close above hers. "Hold still…"
"What?" she squirmed under him but was held firmly down by his muscular arms.
"Anytime now… 3… 2… 1…" he counted under his breath with a quiet chuckle.
Immediately after he counted to 1, the door slid open, and Chihiro heard a sigh as someone closed the door, before the calm footsteps quite abruptly evolved into angry stomping. Before she knew it, Shou had been dragged off of her, revealing a rather pissed off Haku grabbing his friend by the collar.
"Did he try anything on you?" Haku asked in a hard tone.
It took a second for her to register that he was talking to her. "N-No…"
"Haku! You're back!" The man exclaimed, his eyes lighting up with a sparkle.
"What are you doing here? Stop being a nuisance and get out."
"Ouch… you really know how to treat your best friend well…"
"Stop bothering me, Shou."
"But… but… I thought… we had something special… together..." he sniffled quite realistically and grabbed a bewildered Haku into a bone-crushing embrace. Chihiro could have sworn she heard a crack or two.
"Get off me," Haku snapped and wrestled his way out of Shou's arms.
"Well, good riddance," he harrumphed, before marching right up to Chihiro. "Since I finally got rid of him, I'm available, and you are too, why not—"
"Get out." And just like that, Shou was thrown out of the room by an exasperated Haku while Chihiro sat on the bed and giggled.
He stared at her quizzically and she smiled back at him before her smile quickly faded into a rueful, thin line. He cleared his throat a little. Things were getting awkward quite quickly. Suddenly she wished Shou was back in the room again.
"I—" Both of them said at the same time.
Looking embarrassed, Haku motioned for her to start first.
"I, uh, why am I here? Why aren't I back in the human world?"
"You fainted," he stated as if it were obvious.
"But I thought you would have sent me back to the hospital in that case?"
"I didn't…" he mumbled something incoherent under his breath and she strained to hear it.
"What?"
"I didn't… know how to get there…" he turned so that his back was facing her, looking down.
"O-Oh…" was all she could say in response. That was quite the interesting answer.
"So, what did you want to say?" she started.
A moment of silence passed between them as Haku cleared his throat rather uncomfortably. Turning around, he hung his head low, his long hair shielding his eyes. His hair was still tied back in a loose ponytail, except that it was quite messy. He must not have had time to tie it back properly after his fly. His clothes were also slightly crinkled, but still looked ever presentable.
"A-About earlier…"
Puzzled, she asked, "Earlier? What happened earlier?"
"The… kiss…"
A light pink color filled their faces simultaneously. "O-Oh… that… W-What about it?" she stammered nervously.
Not daring to look at him anymore, she focused on an interesting spot on the floor. "I'm sorry about that. I wasn't thinking properly."
"It's okay. Are you alright? You seemed pretty… out of it earlier."
"I'm quite alright."
"So… would you like a tour of the Kaigo Shelter?" he offered.
She perked up at that, glad for an ice breaker. Gazing at his sincere face, she smiled. "That'd be great."
"Can I come too?" Shou burst through the door with a childishly eager face.
"No," Haku scowled at the same time that Chihiro answered, "Why not?"
Haku gave her a look that she did not understand while Shou bounded his way over to Chihiro's side. "Yay! Let's go, Chihiro-chan!" he said in a sing-song voice, hooking his arm with hers and pulling her along out the door. At the same time, she heard an exasperated sigh coming from behind her.
Things were going to get quite interesting, she could tell.
A/N: Extra long update. Teehee~
Sorry I think this story has quite a lot of plot in it so far, but don't worry! The nice sweet chapters with lotsa fluff shall come soon ;) Uhmm… btw, I changed Miru's name to Koushou, (if you don't know who that is, it's the dude Haku left in charge of the shelter while he went to visit Lin and Kamaji—Chapter 6). I apologize if you guys got confused or anything haha.
I think Koushou's gonna be my favorite character, save for the couple. Tell me what your impression of him is? :D I think he's cute. (:
So regarding my updates… Well. I have an outline of my schedule for the next 3 weeks and honestly, it's not very pretty. I still write in my free time though. To be honest, I get distracted from my work by writing. Hahaha. So anyways, I can't guarantee the next chapter to be within the next 2 weeks, but I'm definitely gonna try my best! Thanks for your patience so far and don't worry about me not updating; chillax haha I'm working on it! ;)
Okay, thank you to you great reviewees for reviewing the previous chapter:
EpicThunder101, Guest, Leeshyloo, Ialiceiamagodness, fandomnerd12, Pale-Face, Scarlet Ammo 19, Eliza272, Poppi, FreeHummingBird11, Hana no Kamisama, toshirofan4ever, Sereenalovesanime, Anonymous Guest, Abcdefg824 and Amanda Tran! ^~^
Guest, Poppi & Abcdefg824: Hope you guys liked the update! ^~^
Anonymous Guest: Aww yay thanks bro! ;) I'm really glad you like this story so far :D
Amanda Tran: LOL YOU CAN'T DIE YET THIS STORY IS FAR FROM OVERRRR!
