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Notes: Frickin HUGE flashback in here. But no worries, you will likeit. Not much else to say, so... yeah. End notes are huge. But you should read them.

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Posted 12/13/06

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If You'll Be My Bodyguard

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Summary: Usagi Tsukino is the President's daughter. When she is nearly kidnapped, her father immediately hires a personal bodyguard to protect her-the best in the business. His name? Seiya Kou.

Last chapter:

"Well, this particular sedative has an approximate half-life of sixteen to thirty hours-"

"That long? I really am going to have a heart attack. I can't wait another hour, let along another fifteen," he said very quickly, not allowing the tall doctor to correct him.

"Oh no, Mr. President, she won't be out for that long," Setsuna said, almost amused by Kenji's jumping to conclusions. "That's only how long the substance will be affecting her, not necessarily how long she will remain unconscious." There was a pause before Kenji spoke again.

"Thank God," he said, relieved. "...But you're not telling me specifically how long it will be for Usagi. That's just average, right? What about an overdose?"

"As of right now, we really don't know. I'm very sorry." Negative scenarios ran through the president's head, dread washing over his already tired mind.

"Usagi is going to be okay, right?"

"Yes, I'm sure of it," she reassured him. She didn't mention that there could be serious side-effects, he was troubled enough as it was.

"All right. Thank you, Doctor Meioh."

"You're very welcome, Mr. President. But don't forget, you need to sleep."

Kenji managed a weary smile and a nod as he walked past her and left the room.

Chapter Ten: Seiya's Jekyll

11:45 am

Seiya Kou, a naturally calm and patient man, was sure he was going insane.

As good as he was at keeping himself company, staying in one spot for so many hours (it had now been almost eighteen) was wearing him down. Usagi's father had popped in for a while just a bit ago, and had brought with him a hefty breakfast for both himself and the bodyguard. Minako, also, had come to visit earlier that morning, and had stayed (she was sitting across from Seiya on the other side of Usagi's bed). The door was now open to visitors (and there had been many of those), but only after being cleared by the hospital employees-and Seiya, of course.

Minako had quite clearly expressed her anger, and he could tell that she'd been there just as long as he. In fact, he actually sympathized with the girl. For two reasons. First of all, she'd been there for so long like he had but not been able to see her best friend; and second, she'd had less-than-pleasant company...

Said company was named Yaten Kou. Fortunately, for Minako, Taiki had shown up shortly after Yaten, making the whole awkwardness thing easier for her. But Seiya hadn't thought about how it must have sucked for Minako to be with Yaten and Taiki for so long when the two men walked through that door. To say that Seiya was shocked would perhaps be the biggest understatement ever. Well, maybe of the summer.

Flashback: 7:29 am

Minako, try as she might, had not managed to stay awake through all the wee hours of the morning. The blonde had dozed off at around five; Yaten was out at around three with Taiki following suit. But, just before half-past seven, someone shook her awake.

"Nnnngh... five more-what?" her lazy, half-opened eyes widened to their normal size upon her remembering everything that had recently happened. A small, and slightly pudgy woman with a warm face was smiling down at her.

"You are Ms. Aino, I presume?" Minako blinked the sleep out of her eyes and tried to clear her very blurry vision.

"Mhmmm," she managed to mumble.

"Oh, good. I've heard that you've been waiting here for quite some time. And I'm glad to be the one to inform you that you may enter Ms. Tsukino's room." That did a decent job of waking up the young woman.

Very slowly, and rather like a zombie, Minako rose from her seat and shook her head vigorously to clear it.

"Thank you," she murmured as clearly as she could with a lazy smile. The woman-Minako assumed her to be a nurse-only smiled brightly and extended a hand, gesturing to the now unlocked door. It didn't occur to her tired mind to wake the sleeping men with ponytails, and so she grasped the door handle with no one to follow behind her. It took a couple of tries for her to turn it and push open the door, and she did so rather clumsily.

What she saw when she stepped through the doorway brought a strange smile to her face. It wasn't a happy smile, or a sad smile, but rather a smile coming from the sight that warmed her heart.

Usagi looked so much healthier-there was color in her cheeks and her breathing seemed normal. The unconscious girl's heartbeat was its usual speed (Minako knew this as a best friend of many, many years, that Usagi's heartbeat was a bit fast), and her overall state had vastly improved.

But it wasn't actually Usagi's normalcy and the relief it gave that brought Minako her smile, nor was it from the joy of seeing her best friend after what seemed so long. Perhaps it should have been, but it was not. What had made the corners of her lips quirk up was, in fact, Seiya.

As much as the man got on her nerves, she had to admit that in that moment, she found him absolutely endearing. The snobby, tightly wound bodyguard had also fallen victim to sleep. His head was resting on top of his bent left arm, on the edge of Usagi's bed. And currently, Usagi's left hand was limply resting on her stomach. Seiya had unknowingly intertwined his fingers with hers, and their hands were loosely clasped together. It was, to Minako at least, adorable. Even if she did think he was a grouch.

Never before had she wished so much to have a camera. That scene captured forever would be something to treasure, indeed. But then a rather mischievous thought occurred to Minako. Besides taking a picture of the two to hold dearly and always remember the day that Seiya, jerk extraordinaire, looked sweet, there was something else...

Oh, the blackmail.

Minako mentally cursed not having her digital camera. A lot.

Forgetting the loss, the young woman crossed the room and went around to the other side of Usagi's bed, across from the sleeping man. She gazed down at her best friend affectionately, and brushed her hair away from her face.

"You'd better wake up soon, Usa. You've no clue how many people are about to die from worrying about you," she said softly. Minako then looked around the room, and discovered that there were actually four more chairs in the room. She wouldn't think that there would be chairs in there, considering how frantic the doctors seemed when Usagi had first been brought in. Maybe the medical personnel got them when she was asleep.

After getting one for herself and plopping down on it next to Usagi's bedside, Minako lightly flicked her best friend on the nose.

"I stayed up all night for you, so you better be grateful when you wake up!" Minako grinned. "Oh man, you should have seen Haruka. She went totally bonkers! I feel bad for Seiya, she's going to let hell loose on the poor guy when you're up and running again. Or just when she sees him. And oh, by the way, your little bodyguard is all cuddled up with you. It's quite amusing, and would work for great blackmail material. I bet I could get him to do all sorts of stuff with a snapshot of this! Maybe I could force him to do the can-can while wearing a pink, frilly hat, or something."

Her brightening expression faltered a little when Usagi didn't respond; Minako knew she wouldn't get any enthusiastic replies, but it still hurt a bit when her best friend remained still.

"Well, I think I should give you some updates, hmm?"

No response.

"Good answer. So, while I was out there, I met these two guys, right? One of them was a bit of a bitch, but what can ya do?" she continued quietly, trying not to wake Seiya. He deserved some sleep, after all. "Anyway, apparently Grouchy actually had friends when he was a kid! Kind of hard to believe, you know? But I think I'm gonna try not to get on his case so much, 'cause he's had it pretty rough. I suppose I can give you details later. It feels weird talking about his business when he's right in front of me. I kinda feel bad saying it all anyway, it's almost like gossip." She grinned, and unintentionally raised her voice because of her cheer's comeback. "But we're Minagi, nothing goes unsaid between us!"

Minako's one-sided conversation ended then, due to the fact that Seiya was a relatively light sleeper. Had he not been so sleep-deprived, he might have woken sooner.

Like Minako, Seiya woke lethargically and slow. He gradually took in his surroundings, and noticed the painful kink in his neck, and the blonde sitting up across from him-watching him with an amused, smug look.

"Why, Seiya, I never thought you to be a physical guy. More the stand-offish type." He looked at her, confused.

What the hell is she talking about? he thought. Seiya started to straighten up, feeling some more pain in his cramping back. However, as he moved, he noticed that his right hand was warmer than his left...

Oh, how his face was red.

He immediately snatched his hand away from the girl on the bed like he'd been burned, and looked at her like she was an alien. Minako held back a mean chuckle. If she was going to be nicer to him, she couldn't laugh at him. He was definitely embarrassed enough; fully-ripened tomatoes were put to shame. She almost changed her mind when he sent her a 'you'll die if you tell anyone about this' glare, but instead shrugged; though teasing him was also an acceptable alternative.

"Hey, I can't blame you. She's a hot girl. But watch out for the other guys, you'll have a ton of competition."

The glare intensified immensely.

"I do not-" he began defensively, but was cut off by the noise of the door behind him opening. A man's cocky, and not very deep voice spoke out-the familiarity of it made Seiya whip his head around to face the two men who had just stepped into the room.

The man who called himself Yaten was the one to speak first, regardless of how he'd wanted Seiya to begin the conversation.

"Long time, no freakin see, Seiya."

Seiya only stared at the men for a moment, then slowly stood up while gently pushing his chair away from him.

"Yaten? And... Taiki? What..."

"Nice to see you too," Taiki said lightheartedly, stepping foward. "I'm surprised that your greeting is so unenthusiastic, granted the last time we saw you was when you were about seven years old."

Seiya's face remained devoid of any emotion save for shock, and he took his own few steps towards his old friends. He simply stared at them, his eyes darting back and forth between the two men.

"Oh, what the hell..." Yaten said, before casually walking up to Seiya and giving him a big hug. Taiki followed, his size managing to embrace both Yaten and Seiya at the same time. The latter, still overcome with shock, remained still. Minako laughed a little and chided the bodyguard.

"C'mon, Seiya. Just hug the guys, geez!"

And he did.

End Flashback

The long, and eventually both happy and excited conversation commenced shortly after Seiya got over the surprise of seeing his friends again. Though the happiness was not as lively as it could be, given that they had all gotten a minimal amount of sleep. Taiki and Yaten told Seiya all about their lives since the "split," and Minako joined in the conversation. The four formed a square around Usagi, with Taiki next to Seiya and Yaten next to Minako.

When it was Seiya's turn to talk, however, the man became more solemn. And Minako had been so glad that the bodyguard had lightened up and was friendly and talkative, too. He sighed and stared at the wall behind Minako and Yaten. Each member of the party was eager to find out the truth behind the man with a mysterious past. He'd been such a bright boy, full of happiness and energy. But all of a sudden he had changed, and they were about to find out exactly why.

Or so they thought.

- - -

"You IDIOT!" an enraged voice bellowed. "How in the seven hells did you manage to hit a vein? A VEIN, Hayden!"

"I assure you," a defensive voice replied, "that I was not aiming to-"

"But you did! And now's she's in the fucking hospital!"

"I've heard that she'll be fine-"

"Fine my ass, Hayden!" The furious speaker was wearing a mauve-colored suit with a white dress shirt underneath. His black shoes would have a shine to them if the sun was shining on them, but the dimly-lit room prevented that. There was a single, flickering flourescent light above the two men in the small room with grey, peeling walls. "Do you have any idea what possible side effects there are for the amount you shot into her bloodstream? And where the hell is Finley? He was supposed to come back with you."

"Ah, about that..."

"About it?" The man named Hayden cringed.

"...The police got him."

"What?" The other man shot back with a warning tone.

"It was that stupid man's fault! I barely saw what was happening, there were so many people that I couldn't even get close to the window! But I heard that asshole shout to the police to get Finley," Hayden said defensively.

"Man? What man?"

"The girl's bodyguard, you know? Ruben, that guy is just ridiculous! But what worries me more, is that he called her his girlfriend. I don't see how that's possible, but if it is, the boss is gonna be so pissed off."

"Not him again! Maybe we should try to take out the bodyguard instead of focusing on her. Argh!" the one named Ruben growled in frustration. "We are so dead."

"Tell me," said a new, deeper voice, "are you 'so dead' because of what I just saw on the news, or because of something else?" Hayden and Ruben nearly jumped in surprise, their heads whipping to face the intruder. They looked at each other with similar, very scared looks.

"Oh, about that..." Hayden trailed off, not so thrilled to be in this situation. "You see, sir, there were many people bustling about the theatre, and it was really difficult to get a precise hit in..."

The rest of the conversation was, to say the least, not very pretty.

- - -

As Minako, Yaten, and Taiki waited for Seiya to inform them of his life since they'd last been together, An ache began to settle in the bodyguard's head. There was no way he could deal with his returning stress from the situation with Usagi and the stress from telling his story at the same time. No possible way.

"Uhm... Seiya?" Yaten said.

"I'm sorry, but I can't," Seiya replied quickly, and the other three looked confused.

"Can't what?" asked Minako.

"I can't talk about that right now. There's just too much going on."

"But-" Yaten interjected, before being cut off.

"It's okay," Taiki said, earning a glare from the smaller man across from him. "It'll give us something to talk about later." Seiya nodded gratefully at Taiki.

"Yeah."

"Well, we've got to be going. Yaten, up with you."

"We do?" Yaten asked, confused.

"Oh yes, we do. We shouldn't really be here, but... well, we did have to see you, Seiya. But we have to get back to work, the president called me on my way here and told me they had a new guy for us to research." Yaten nodded and stood up from his seat.

"Hey, Taiki," Seiya said after a moment of thought, "you wouldn't happen to know if the police got a woman with blue hair, would you?"

"I've no idea. I don't even know what the name of the guy we have to look up now is." Seiya sighed.

"Well, can you do me a favor?"

"Sure."

"Give me you phone numbers and call me if you find out anything about this woman, okay?"

"No problem, you have something to write with?"

"No, but you can just put it directly into your cell." Seiya had a lot of things on his person, but no writing utensils-unless you wanted to write in blood. Two knives, a gun, and even mace, yes. There were a few other things, but the nifty gadgets weren't things to use as weapons or to write with. So, as for pens, no.

"Ah, I knew that."

And so, the three men exchanged numbers. Little did they know that Minako had sneakily typed in all of the numbers to her own cell phone when they were preoccupied. You never know when a thing like that will come in handy, right? At least she thought so.

After Yaten and Taiki had left, Minako's stomach had loudly complained to her about its needs. It was easier than Seiya thought it would be to convince the girl to get something to eat and some sleep. He, of course, couldn't leave Usagi's side because he was her bodyguard. But man, was he tired. He groaned for that reason, cursing the hospital for not having more comfortable chairs. Maybe he could get them to wheel in another bed, or something. He was getting desperate; he needed to sleep.

Suddenly, the door opened, and in stepped a happy president.

"Stand up, my boy, we're going back to the house!" he said with a grin. Seiya looked astonished. Not only because of what Kenji had said, but because he'd called Seiya his boy. He wasn't part of Tsukino family. That was just weird.

"...Are you serious?" he asked, though Kenji was unaware of it questioning two things he'd just said.

"Completely. There's nothing more they can do at the moment, so she's doctor-free until she wakes up, or if anything strange happens. But it shouldn't," he added quickly, but mainly for his own reassurance.

Though he tried very hard to suppress it, Seiya couldn't stop the smile from spreading across his face.

- - -

2:37 pm

Seiya was very, very happy. After they had all gotten back to the White House, Usagi had been set up in her bed. She had been changed into some of her own pajamas by some female doctors, then gently laid down and covered up. Her arms were on top of her light covers, so that the heart monitor could be attached again as well as the IV to ensure she didn't starve to death. But what made Seiya the most happy, was that he was able to sleep. Kenji had told him that he'd be told all about the doctors' findings some time after the younger man had rested up.

And he had the most vivid dreams. But this was not an unusual occurrence for the man. Knowing a little bit of psychology and having a certain red notebook saw to that.

It was one of the main reasons that Seiya was so good at his job. A little bit of mind training-well, a lot of mind training-over the years had given the bodyguard an advantage. During his time at the... "academy," he'd been taught to use sleep for more than just rest (he didn't need much sleep, but still used the time wisely). Dreams just as real as actual reality could serve as extra time to learn all sorts of things. While resting, Seiya could actually think and experiment in his dreams; and wake up remembering it all. The only thing he had to do was immediately write down everything in his dream, and the dreams would remain clear and easy to remember. He didn't even have to record them to remember them now; but he had to keep that skill working. In order to keep the ability, he had too keep up the method. Seiya couldn't afford to lose that precious time.

It was almost like magic; in his dreams he could go to a library and actually read. In his dreams he could go to a restaurant and actually taste the food. Seiya could do almost anything. Unfortunately, he couldn't retain any results from intensive exercise. He couldn't improve his aim with a gun, or his skill in the martial arts, or his physical endurance. Now that would be amazing. Physical training during sleep would be too good to be true. And so, Seiya had to limit his sleep activities to things that would improve him mentally, rather than physically. But he wasn't about to complain.

Using the hours of the night to do such things was an ability taught to him by the most ingenious man Seiya had ever known. Dr. Tomoe had seen great potential in the young Seiya, and the boy had quickly become a favorite of the brilliant man. The favorite, in fact.

Now, years later, Seiya was chuck-full of knowledge and getting smarter every day.

But now, he wasn't getting much exercise.

Watching over the young woman named Usagi was a full time job. There wasn't time to go to a gym or go running by himself. Perhaps he could convince the girl to go jogging every now and then, to keep himself in shape. Sure, he could do push ups and sit ups and all whenever he wanted, but running was a necessity. One that he was seriously neglecting.

Seiya rolled over in his sleep. His current dream wasn't too exciting, however real. He didn't really feel like doing anything at all, and thus was reclining in a lounge chair. On the beach. With seventy-degree whether. In his pajamas. With a smoothie. It was very nice.

- - -

2:49 pm

Seeing as Usagi was still in a vulnerable state, and that her bodyguard was conked out due to exhaustion, Kenji decided to bring in some temporary protection for his daughter.

Jadeite, Kunzite, Nephrite, Zoicite, and Mamoru were very happy to be let go of their current duties; in order to attend instead to their friend. Because of how busy they were, they hadn't been able to see her yet. Thus, the five eagerly took the opportunity to do so.

The president had fully debriefed them on the situation before sending them to Usagi's room, where both Seiya and she were out cold. The five guards shared some anxiety as they approached the door to the girl's room, afraid of seeing her in such a weak state. It wasn't like her. They spent just a moment exchanging apprehensive looks outside, before Kunzite turned the doorknob and stepped in. Jadeite followed second, and was the first to speak.

"Oh, God..."

Eventually the five men gathered their bearings and settled themselves around Usagi's bed. She was nearest to the left side of her bed, from her own perspective, and it was the side closest to the door. Jadeite took the place closest to her head, with Kunzite to his left. Zoicite's chair was at the foot of the bed, and to his left was Mamoru's, and last was Nephrite.

"Well, damn." Kunzite's voice was quiet, and sad.

"I second that," replied Zoicite, leaning back in his chair. All of their eyes were on Usagi's still, pale face, which was disturbingly blank. Mamoru turned his gaze to the sleeping man behind Zoicite.

"This is all his fault," he said bitterly. His other companions looked at him to realize who he was talking about.

"Look," Nephrite said after a moment, "he's not my favorite person either. But don't put all the blame on the guy, he's doing a better job than we did."

Mamoru didn't agree at all. So she had managed to sneak away from them a few times, so what? At least Usagi had never had this happen to her under their watch. He didn't think about the fact that there weren't a bunch of people after her then, either.

"Whatever you say," he scoffed.

Jadeite, though his head was bent to face Usagi's, let his eyes slowly and discreetly wander to Mamoru's face. After watching the man with dark hair for a few moments, Jadeite got the feeling that Mamoru felt more animosity towards Seiya than he let on. It was shown in the way that he looked at the bodyguard. Like Seiya had wronged him personally or something. But there was something else about Mamoru that seemed odd to Jadeite. Besides looking at Seiya strangely, the way he looked at Usagi was...

"..anything, Jadeite?"

Nephrite's voice brought Jadeite out of his thoughts and back to the real world. The latter briefly wondered if Mamoru had noticed his scrutinizing.

"Come again?" Jadeite replied, not having been paying attention to the conversation around him. Nephrite looked at him inquisitively.

"I asked you if you knew anything about the guys we have in custody, didn't you hear?"

"Oh... no, I don't think so," Jadeite said a little too quickly. "At least nothing more than we all know. What about you?"

"I just said that, Jadeite... oh, never mind." Nephrite's gaze was a little suspicious, but he quickly dropped the look before Jadeite could identify it. Something was going on with Jadeite. And Mamoru, too. The tension in the room was building from things gone unsaid, and Nephrite wasn't exactly sure he really wanted to hear them. They could change things between the five friends, and he certainly didn't want that. Kunzite and Zoicite seemed to pick up on the odd vibes emitting from Jadeite and Mamoru, but they didn't talk about it.

The truth was, Jadeite knew more than he was letting on.

And Mamoru... well, he had been spending his free time a little differently these days.

While Zoicite and Nephrite decided to stay out of whatever was going on, Kunzite silently vowed to find out what was happening behind closed doors.

- - -

7:51 pm

Seiya slowly woke up, feeling quite refreshed. He noticed that five solemn, and rather irritated, men dressed in black were sitting around Usagi's bed. Apparently, they had been his stand-ins while he caught up on some much-needed rest. The members of the Secret Service who were the girl's friends did not seem happy with him, but the one named Mamoru in particular appeared angry. The others didn't seem to blame Seiya, and only directed their upset moods at him because he was the only one to direct them at.

Upon Seiya's return to the world of the living, the five left in silence, each sparing Usagi an affectionate glance as they walked past. They had, after all, spent hours by her side. Perhaps they'd gotten their fill of seeing the girl and weren't going to fight to stay. But the bodyguard could tell that they would remain there if required, and without hesitation.

After spending a few minutes of quality time with his notebook, Seiya took a short trip to the bathroom. When he was done observing himself in Usagi's huge mirror above the sink, he tried to fix his disheveled hair a bit while frowning at the bags under his eyes. Were he just a little more vain, he might have looked through the drawers for something to cover them up. Seiya almost cringed at the thought of how horrible those circles must have been before he'd gotten some sleep.

After exiting the large bathroom, Seiya made his way across the room to the edge of Usagi's bed. He didn't know whether or not to be curious or amused at the look on her face. Was she... frowning? Since when did unconscious people-not sleeping people, unconscious people-frown?

"What's got you in such a bad mood?" he asked her, almost like he was waiting for her to respond.

He wasn't expecting to have his question answered. And certainly not by the person who did.

"Oh, I'll tell you why I'm pissed," a voice snarled. "I'm in a bad mood because some asshole didn't do his job and landed one of my closest friends in the hospital!"

Seiya whirled around to face the door that had been flung open, and met the gaze of a very angry Haruka.

"Nice to see you, too," he mumbled to himself sarcastically.

"I can't believe you! You're getting paid a buttload of cash for doing absolutely nothing! If you weren't employed by the president himself... argh! You have no idea how much I would just love to strangle-"

"Haruka!" a voice scolded. "Calm down! You didn't come here to get angry at anyone, you came to visit Usagi. You remember that, right?" A lovely woman had side-stepped the woman yelling at the bodyguard, and had quite an exasperated expression.

Seiya was surprised how Haruka actually listened to Michiru, who was now a few steps in front of the other woman. "And so did I. Seiya, if you would..."

He nodded and stepped aside to allow the two access to the resting girl, retreating to his bed and pulling out a book; but not before returning Haruka's glare with equal ferocity. Michiru held back a sigh. She and Haruka gazed sadly at the girl below them, and spoke in relatively hushed voices.

"I can not wait to get my hands on this Finley guy for messing with Koneko." It was laced with a scathing hate for the man. She was feeling rather violent today.

"I hate to admit it, but I share the same sentiment. Anyone who harms Usagi is not in my good graces." Haruka nodded.

"I really don't care how small the man is, that whole 'pick on someone your own size' thing doesn't apply to the little bastard."

"Indeed."

There was a knock at the door, then , before it opened slowly (and just enough for a blonde heard to pop in) with a creak.

"Haruka! Michiru!" the girl said with a bright smile as she entered and closed the door behind her. "I didn't know you were here, it's nice to see you again."

Seiya pretended not to pay attention to the three females throughout their entire visit. Even though he knew they would never do anything bad to Usagi, it was his job to do such things.

- - -

8:40 pm

Sometime after Haruka, Michiru, and Minako had left, Seiya had given up on reading; he had actually done a bit after their departure. Usagi's state was still bothering him too much for him to focus on much anything else.

And so, he stood and crossed the room with a sigh, taking a seat on the right side of Usagi's bed. With one leg dangling over the edge, Seiya rotated his body so that he was facing his own bed, with his left bent on top of the mattress of Usagi's bed, and so that he could still look at her. The man rested his right elbow on his corresponding bent knee, and his other hand supported him as he leant back towards the headboard.

Just a few days ago, the man would have never sat on that girl's bed. That would be... inappropriate. But this question of Seiya's changing nature didn't even occur to him.

"You know, you really ought to wake up soon. Your friends are worried sick, obviously, but your parents are going crazy, too." Seiya knew she couldn't hear him, but it somehow eased his guilt to talk to her. Maybe if he was a little nicer he wouldn't feel so bad about everything that had happened.

"And you know," he continued, "your parents are actually some pretty great people." Seiya yawned a little yawn, not really sleepy, but tired enough for the action nonetheless. "I'd never tell you this in real life, but I'm actually a little envious..." As if to ensure he wasn't really telling her this, he glanced down at Usagi to make sure she was still unconscious.

Knocked out, check. Her eyes were still closed. So, Seiya went on.

"I don't know if my own parents were bad or good or anything, but I would have liked to remember them." Unconscious or not, Seiya couldn't quite believe he was telling her this about himself. And yet, he kept going.

"The earliest memories that I have, that is, the ones that are clear, are those when I was at an orphanage. Before that I only have a few blurry moments in my mind." Seiya drew in a deep breath and stared up at the white ceiling, turning his focus away from the creamy-yellow walls.

"I only have a crappy picture of them to remember what they looked like. I don't actually remember my father at all." Seiya frowned at the ceiling for just a moment. "Somehow I have the feeling that he wasn't so great." It was true. Seiya just knew somewhere inside that his father wasn't a fabulous person, though he didn't know how or why. But then, his frown faded.

"My mom, I think, was a good person." The thought of his other parent was a much better one. Though he couldn't recall her very well, there was a strong affection attached to the fragment of her memory. "I sort of remember her face on my own, you know, without that photograph. She was pretty. And kind, too." An uncharacteristic, soft smile came to his mouth.

Oh yeah, he would definitely not be telling Usagi this if she could actually hear him. Seiya probably wouldn't tell anyone else, either.

"I have this one memory of her, though it's kind of fuzzy, that I like. I think we're in a kitchen, and there's a big window. I can see the trees outside, and the colors of the leaves tell me that it's fall." Again, he glanced down at Usagi to make sure she wasn't awake.

"I know I'm really young, 'cause I'm so damn short," he huffed. "But I'm on a stool, I think, overlooking a counter top. She has her long, black hair down, and she's wearing a white dress. She's cutting up apples, and there's a jar to the side.

I know from another memory, the only other one I have of her, actually, that she really liked caramel." Seiya grinned. "She used to let me eat some whenever she had it out. But anyway, my mom's cutting up these green apples. She's making the slices almost paper-thin, and I still don't know how she could do that. I actually tried, once. It's completely impossible. But nobody has to know that I couldn't do it, because I, obviously, can do everything." Seiya took another glance at the girl to re-check her status.

Still not awake.

"But the reason, I think," he continued, "that she cuts them so thin is just so that she can have a lot of slices. She puts the caramel into a little dish and we dip the slices in it. I guess it's kind of cheating, because we're using the same amount of caramel per these thin slices that we'd use for normal-sized ones. This way, you get to eat more caramel. It's so unhealthy," he sort of scolded himself.

"But it tastes so good," Seiya admitted, "so I guess it's worth it. That's about all I remember, except for her talking to me. I don't remember what she was saying, but she had a beautiful voice." Seiya's reminiscent smile faded.

"I tried to find her, or find out what might have happened to her if she was, well, you know." He didn't really like to think that his mother might be dead. "But there was nothing. All I had was a picture and my last name. I don't care so much about my father, I just have that feeling... that I don't like him. But I would've liked to find my mom. I just gave up after a while, it was wearing me down." The man sighed and turned his conversation back.

"So you should be happy, that your parents are such nice people and are here for you. Don't take it for granted," he added while scratching his head.

"But I don't think you do. At least in general. You did sneak out a few times in the past and all, right?"

No response. But he pretended that she'd agreed with him.

"Exactly."

Seiya sat there for a few minutes in silence, not sure if he should keep talking to her. He did feel better. Telling her about his childhood, something he'd never told anyone, seemed like an okay way to repay her for what she was going through. Even if she couldn't hear him. And maybe, just maybe, he might feel better if he told her that, too. But he wouldn't. He would, however, say something else.

"And hey, Ms. Tsukino, I have to say that... well, I'm sorry for all this mess."

If only the girl could see the look on his face.

"I hope you get better soon, Usagi."

Seiya hadn't even noticed that he'd called her by her name.

He only continued to sit there, a little lonely in the silence.

- - -

9:12 pm

In a lab just one floor above where Usagi's room had been at the hospital, Setsuna Meioh sat, troubled. While she was a very educated doctor, she didn't know everything. So, she'd had to do some extra research on the drug believed to be inside Usagi. Indeed, it had been Chlorpromazine. And as Setsuna read down through her scribbled notes, read the list of side-effects for overdoses of the substance, she felt her nausea grow.

Dry mouth. Seizures. Depression. Tardive dyskinesia. Akathisia. Leukopenia. Agranulocytosis. Liver toxicity. And those were just the main ones.

But the one that made her eyes well with tears was the one abbreviated as "NMS."

Neuroleptic malignant syndrome. A five percent chance had never seemed so big before. But when the five percent meant fatality, it was huge.

Usagi wasn't just a good friend to Setsuna, she was a great friend. A close friend. Whom she had known since before Usagi was the president's daughter. Since they were in high school. Setsuna was only four years older than the girl.

And Setsuna wouldn't believe someone five years ago if they told her that, when she was twenty-three, the girl she'd given a ride home from school would be under her watch in a hospital. And that said girl's father would be the president. And that Setsuna would work for him.

She shook the thoughts from her head and focused again on her current workings. Right now, she was comparing the amount of the drug in Usagi's body to the probability of all the side-effects on her list.

The results did nothing to cheer her up.

Setsuna decided that she wanted to visit her friend again, as if to reassure her that Usagi was fine. Even if it might only be for now. Little did she know that going to the White House was a very good thing to do, because she didn't know what was going to happen in the immediate future.

As the doctor stood to leave, her sad eyes darted up to the calendar just above her on the wall. She really hoped that Usagi would be better soon, because in four days, the girl would be twenty years old. It just wouldn't do for Usagi to miss her own birthday.

- - -

10:00 pm

It was ten at night, and Usagi could hear the distant hour chiming of the grandfather clock not too far down the hall from her room. Yes, she could hear it. Because, contrary to what everyone thought, Usagi was not unconscious.

She was awake.

And soon to be insane.

She could hear, and she could feel, but she couldn't move at all. She couldn't open her eyes, she couldn't speak. She was trapped inside her body and no one knew that she wasn't knocked out anymore. And it was driving her nuts. She wanted to scream, "I'M AWAKE!" but she couldn't. She wanted them to know that she wasn't some invalid, that she was back from the dead and bored out of her mind.

It had happened just as she was being taken to her room, after coming back home. Her senses had started returning very slowly. At first, she only heard voices as murmurs, and touches barely registered. But now, she was wide awake. Except that her eyes were closed. She could smell the familiar scent of her bedroom, feel the softness of her blankets, and hear herself breathing. But still, she couldn't move. And so she couldn't talk, and she couldn't see. It was the most infuriating thing that had ever happened to her.

People had come to visit her. It was really sweet, but she didn't really notice that because she was too busy trying to talk back to them. But no one could hear her. And frankly, she was pissed off.

At one point in time, Seiya had come up to her and asked why she was frowning. The answer, to Usagi, was obvious. But this made her a little relieved; at least she was getting closer to making facial expressions. Hopefully she'd be able to move soon. Or at least talk. Anything was better than this.

In her early stages of waking up, she had recalled what she remembered happening before blacking out. It was all a little fuzzy, and she couldn't really remember it well. She was at the movies with Minako and Seiya, and got bumped into really hard. The man who'd done it was a little weird. After a sudden wave of nausea hit her, she'd retreated to the bathroom. Minako had followed, and then the world went black. When she had woken up hours ago, she had a massive headache and a serious need for something to drink. What the hell had happened to her? The questions she had and frustration kept building throughout the day and now, she was certain, she was going to explode. Not to mention she felt like shit.

But there was something that kept her thinking. It was Seiya, who was currently talking to her, thinking she was still unconscious.

And the things he was saying!

There was no way he would speak to her about such personal things and in such a nice voice if she was feeling fine and was awake. It was... weird, in a way, to see-or rather, hear-this other side of the man.

"And hey, Ms. Tsukino, I have to say that... well, I'm sorry for all this mess. I hope you get better soon, Usagi."

The fact that he had told her things so personal was surprising enough, but that really surprised the girl. He'd never called her Usagi before. At least not since she'd snapped at him about it so long ago. Perhaps this was Seiya's Dr. Jekyll, and his usual self was his Mr. Hyde.

The former, she much preferred.

Suddenly, an enormous wave of nausea hit her. Even worse than the one at the movies. And her headache became a stabbing pain wreaking havoc under her skull. It was total agony; and yet she could do nothing. She couldn't ask for help, couldn't express how miserable she was. If she could speak, she'd be moaning and groaning in pain-it was that bad. Now that she could feel such things, she discovered that a light sheen of sweat was forming on her forehead from the physical goings-on. She was hot and the room was suddenly very stuffy.

Then, something strange happened. For the first time in more than a day, Usagi's mouth opened. And she let out a very soft, but very pained groan.

The man sitting next to her turned in disbelief. When he saw her expression (yes, she had one) and realized that she had, in fact, made a noise, he scrambled off of the bed and ran around to her side.

The bodyguard looked at Usagi's face, which had a furrowed brow and was beginning to glisten. While the fact that she was showing some signs of consciousness was good, these particular signs were not good.

Seiya's hand shot into his pocket to retrieve his phone, and he had Kenji on the line in seconds. The young man was never one for easing into a conversation that had a point, so he got down to business.

"Mr. President, I believe your daughter may be waking up. But she doesn't look so good; I would advise that you come to her room with a few doctors as well." The "few" was emphasized to prevent another overflow of medics, as had happened earlier.

"Done," was the only reply that Seiya received.

-

-

Wow, Usagi. Took you long enough! Rise and shine, sheesh.

Yah, yah, I know I suck what with all the cliffhangers and all. But it was getting so long, so I basically just chopped off the last five pages and turned them into the start of chapter 11. Wow, ELEVEN. This is going a LOT faster than usual. And I guess my ideas for this story are just coming easier than usual. Hmm, it's nice.

But aha! Little did Seiya know that she heard everything he said. Ooh, that's gonna come back and get him later. Maybe not in the way you might think. Oh, and sorry about not revealing Seiya's past and junx, I couldn't just uncover the mystery man all at once! But you got to find out about his mum and all, hurrah.

Oh, and wtf is up with Jadeite and Mamoru? What's got their panties in a bunch? Keep reading to find out! Oh, and the next chapter is quite nice. I like it very much.

And I totally want some apples and caramel right now. I may just have to go get some. It's amazing that I'm an average weight. You wouldn't know with the way I eat, hmm.

Perhaps some ice cream, too.

Oh, and when I wrote "all the wee hours of the morning," I almost wrote "wii hours." Probably wishful thinking, because of the new gamecube wii, which I DO NOT HAVE. -CRIES- I have the new Zelda, but nothing to play it on! It is the worst thing ever.

Figured out who the baddies are yet?

DLS writer's block aaaaaaahh.

I know what to write, I just don't know how to go about it. And ugh, I didn't like last chapter of DLS so much. But whatever, I'm getting there.

PS!

Life is good. Very good. :) But I have to go and party now, cheers! (But I don't drink, so get those silly ideas out of your heads that I'm a hardcore college party freak!)

Oh, and I'm home. First semester is SO OVER! I have SIX weeks of winter break, YES!

PPS!

Review! I feel sad, my usual amount of reviews per chapter in both my stories is going down. Perhaps because of finals and all this week. Or midterms, depending on if you're in college or highschool. Sigh! Pleeease review? It will make me update faster, heh heh.

Laters!