The Princess of Cherry Blossoms

By: CleideJam

Chapter 10: The Reaper, the Patient and some Courting?

"Do you want to restart this relationship with me?"

"R-Riko?...W-What are y-you…?" quivering lips, a throaty voice and an almost bulging eyes. Satsuki knows that she looks ridiculous at that moment. But she couldn't help it and she CANNOT believe it. The last statement that Riko has spoken to her took some time to process making her gape, stutter and get her mind hay-wired. She wants to say something, anything as long as the girl before her would comprehend it. She just wants to say 'YES'!

*sigh*

Hearing the exasperated sigh of her beloved woman, Satsuki winced and slowly bows her head in shame. She had already reflected upon her actions earlier, even before the brunette found her. She has realized how selfish and childish she is for even claiming Riko as her own possession. The girl is just friendly and caring and she mistook the signal as something even more special.

But when her eyes took the image of one Riko Aida, all her defences fell leaving her a crying and whining mess who is furiously shouting at Riko. She wants to simply spank the words 'I LOVE YOU' on the thick-headed brunette's face and silence her reply with a soft, breath-taking kiss. "Oh boy, I got it that hard huh?" she mumbles to herself although she thinks that Riko heard it since the brunette is slowly leaning towards her.

Wait.

Leaning?

She quickly looks up to see Riko's body isn't leaning but actually falling towards her and without a second thought she catches the cold and shivering body of the brunette. "Riko?" deciding that the brunette's face looks too flushed to be normal, Satsuki's right palm rests upon the student-council president's forehead. "Oh God. Riko!" but it's all too late. The woman in her arms is already out. Probably fainted from too much stress and Satsuki is already hating herself for being such a burden to her.

"Riko…"

"Taiga, here's your coffee" Tetsu says as soon as he enters the white-themed room of the hospital. Sitting on the long unoccupied couch, he passes the cup to his older brother who is obviously blaming himself for not taking good care of their sister. The red-head decided to take the seat placed on the bedside and have not moved an inch ever since they have brought Riko to the hospital.

"Thanks" the older one says and takes a few sips before placing the cup on the nearby table and bringing his attention back to his younger sister. Strong and muscular hands slowly ruffles the soft, brown tresses feeling Riko's fever is still there but not as worst as before. Leaning back on his chair, Taiga releases a long sigh of relieve and smiles warmly at the sleeping brunette.

"That girl just doesn't know when to stop, huh?" surprisingly, Tetsu's the one to start a conversation between the two. He himself couldn't bear the heavy feeling when their family is in a hospital. It just brings back memories from the past. Taiga looks at him, his eyes filled with playfulness, "Yeah. She's been like that since we're kids. She is always too serious with life," he pause and pushes a stray strand of brown hair out of Riko's peaceful face, "Doesn't like relying on others and she really-"

"Has no idea that so many people loves her" Tetsu ends smirking at his own statement which is actually true. The other male in the room gives him a smirk as a sign of his own agreement at his statement. "Well, she isn't like that before…you know…that event" Taiga says in a lower tone remembering the images of a very dependent, very playful and very cheeky Riko. "Ahh…right. That event. She really didn't take it too well just like father said. I wonder if we were just a bit more mature that time…will we be able to stop Riko from blaming herself?" Tetsu stops, her eyes dark and filled with regret.

However, even before they could linger on that painful topic, Taiga quickly stands from his chair and playfully rubs the top of Tetsu's head, "Tetsu, we can't stop that from happening, you know. Even father wasn't able to stop it. All we can do now is believe in Riko. I'm sure that brainiac," he pause to point a thumb towards the direction of the hospital bed, and with a smug look on his face he said, "will wake up from her own sleep…" he grins and ruffles his head a bit more. Taiga then heads towards the door of the room. "Where are you going?" Tetsu asks as he watches Taiga twisting the door knob. "Just grabbing some food. I'm hungry. You want some too?" he receives a nod and with that made his way out of the room.

"Taiga's such a softie. Going out for some food? More like going out to cry" Tetsu quickly snaps his head towards the direction where the voice just came from. "Whoa. You look like you've seen a ghost there" Riko says with a cheeky grin. Shaking his head at her statement, the blue-haired brother moves towards the bed, "How's your rest?" he simply asks with a concern voice. Showing her healthy biceps and a wide grin, Riko replies, "Like I've been reborn!"

Picking up the sports magazine he was reading awhile back, Tetsu softly hits Riko's head with it, "Eh? What was that for?" Riko asks rubbing the soft spot he'd hit. "That's for making me worry" and he hit her once more. "Wha-?", "For hurting Satsuki" Tetsu says and glares at Riko, quickly regretting saying the pink-haired girl's name and seeing his sister pained in return. And just like that, it seems like all of Riko's energy has been quickly vacuumed out of her body.

"*sigh* I messed it all up, Tetsu" Riko says with a tone so low that Tetsu thought he's talking to a stranger. But even before Riko could begin her rant full of self-pity and how much a failure she is, the blue-haired brother beats her to it. Flicking his sister's forehead, Tetsu grins when there's a red mark on the spot, "Hey! I'm sick you know!" Riko whines and pouts as she rubs the stinging spot. "Riko, you're always trying so hard and acting so serious. You need to act like your own age. Don't try acting like the old man, you might just get more wrinkles, you know" Tetsu is inwardly laughing when he sees the horrified expression on Riko's face.

"W-Wrinkles?! What do you mean by 'MORE' wrinkles?! Tetsu, you..! you…! Ugh! I-" Riko suddenly stops when they heard some shouting from the outside of the room. They both look at each other, then at the closed-door in front of them. "That sounded so familiar…" Tetsu says as he shifts into a thinking position thinking very hard where he had heard that voice before.

"Umm… Tetsu?"

"Hmm?"

"What time is it?"

"I think its quarter after five in the morning. Why?"

"I think the shou-!" Riko quickly shuts her mouth close when the door to her room suddenly got kicked, keeping it open for everyone who will pass by to see. But no one's in sight save for the empty hall. Or so they thought.

A hand suddenly grip the wall of Riko's room.

And Riko actually felt something cold running down her spine.

Is this her end?

Maybe she's meant to die from fatigue and dehydration but it failed so the reaper himself had decided to get her soul.

But she never knew that the reaper is dark-skinned.

And is very tall.

And has dark blue hair.

And- "Kami-sama, this is worse than the reaper himself!" Riko inwardly cries realizing the person who has decided to break the door to her room.

"Ri…Ko…." She suddenly feels an invisible lump in her throat and just realized how clammy her hands were. "Where is Aida Riko!?" and just like that Daiki made his presence in the hospital room be known. His fierce eyes searches the room only to stop once he saw his target. "Gotcha" he mouths silently with an evil smirk on his face.

"Long time no see, Daiki" Tetsu greets not feeling the dark aura the taller guy's emitting. "Yo!" is Daiki's quick reply, not even shifting his gaze to the blunette.

"D-D-Daiki? W-What's the m-meaning of this?! How dare you b-break the d-door…?" Riko begins and looks at the poor door whose hinges have been forcefully remove.

Only to have her breath taken.

Because, right there on the doorway, she sees someone she isn't expecting to see at all.

And just like that, Riko quickly forgets the deadly aura coming for her dear life, and the painful memories of the past. She didn't even see how Daiki's hands are reaching for her collar nor the quick and fluid movement of Tetsu who attempts to pull Aomine from her sister.

Bacause at that moment, Riko's being swallowed by a pair of pink gems.

"Die, Riko!"

"Daiki, Stop!"

"Riko!"

"Eh?" is her last word before she was hit by something soft yet has a hard impact leaving her knocked out.

"Look at what you've done, Aomine!" Kagami, who has just returned from his 'shopping', said, anger obviously present in his tone. The redhead has just reached for the door knob to Riko's room when he felt nothing cold and hard. Instead, his sight was greeted by a scene where Daiki's trying to strangle the living day out of her sister's body. Luckily, Tetsu and, surprisingly, Momoi was there to stop him. Unfortunately, or fortunately, Momoi's huge breasts has knocked out the sick brunette back to her deep slumber.

"Riko's been awake for less than five-minute or so" Tetsuya, who is now munching on some biscuits, says with a straight face but obviously trying to glare at Daiki. "You didn't even give her a chance to greet the girl she'll be courting" Tetsu randomly said as if he's saying how beautiful the weather is. Taiga is so quick to support Tetsu's statement, he didn't even processed the words, "Wait, what?" the redhead, the darkblue-haired and the pinkhead all said and looked at Tetsu as if he's some sort of miracle happening right in front of them.

"No way!" is Daiki's quick reply. He obviously doesn't like the brunette for his sister. Well, actually he did but that was before he saw Satsuki coming home late at night crying her eyes out. He and his grandmother tried their best to comfort the poor girl. She keeps on calling out the brunette's name as if it's the only life line left. And he visibly cringes when Satsuki would mumble the words 'burden', 'inappropriate' and 'selfish'. He had never once heard the girl sound so pessimist. It's as if the girl who got home was a stranger. However, his rejection was thrown away like a rug when Satsuki's reply came.

"R-Really?!" it is so obvious how happy and overwhelmed the pinkette was. She quickly snaps her head at Tetsu's direction, only to slowly look back at the sleeping figure. "Y-yeah." and for once, Tetsu has stuttered. This didn't go unnoticed by the two other men in the room. Daiki simply eyes the other blunette wondering if that was what the student-council president's plan for her sister.

"Riko…" all of their attention turns to the pinkette who has taken the chair on the bedside. Her hands holding one of Riko's and looking at the brunette lovingly. It seems like a picture from a fairy tale or something.

"She got it that bad, huh?" Daiki whispers to Tetsu not wanting his sister to get mad at him. Again.

"Yeah. There's something bothering me though" Tetsu continues, not sparing a glance at Daiki.

"What is it?"

"Do you have any idea how she fell in love with my sister?"

"What?" was Daiki's quick reply. Now it becomes clear to him, that his sister just randomly appeared in Riko's life claiming her as her girlfriend. Sighing, Daiki could only look at his sister annoyed, "I told her to explain everything before doing anything. God, that girl sure is a pain" and Tetsu nodded at that.

After half an hour of visiting his favourite trainer, Daiki pushes himself off of the couch and reaches for his bag, "Are you going already?" Tetsu asks still sitting on the couch playing temple run. Daiki didn't even look at him and simply looks at his sister, "Yeah. We have practice today and since Riko is a no-go, I'm sure our captain will double the difficulty of our training" he said then heads towards the door, which is no longer locking itself. After Daiki has left, Taiga, who has finished arranging Riko's clothes and other necessities, walks up to the other two awake occupiers of the room.

"Tetsu, I'll be heading to the airport now. Still coming?" the redhead asks still rummaging through his pouch for his wallet. The blue-haired guy thinks it over looking at Satsuki then at Taiga, "Will you be fine by yourself here, Satsuki?" Tetsu asks wondering if they leave the two by themselves they might just end up in an emotional mess. Just like the one they've witnessed last night when a crying Satsuki informed him of what had happened to Riko over the phone.

"What do you think of me? A kid? Of course we'll be fine! Mou! Tetsu is belittling me!" the pink-haired girl pouts and all Tetsu could do is smile in return. He turns to Taiga nodding his head signalling they'll be going together. "Oi! Momoi! Take good care of my sister or else…" Taiga didn't have the chance to continue his threat when Kuroko decided to pull him off the room. Satsuki watches in amusement at how over-protective Riko's brothers were even though the brunette is very independent and can very well take good care of herself, "She doesn't even need me here… what am I even doing?" Satsuki, surprised at her own pessimism, decided to think of happy thoughts at that moment.

She wonders if what Tetsu said earlier about Riko courting her is actually true, because if it's actually true then she can clearly say that Riko is giving her a chance…no, scratch that. The brunette is giving their relationship a chance. Satsuki sighs happily, she can simply daydream for now and imagine all possible things and events that may occur when Riko courts her.

"And what if it wasn't true?"

Well, she can simply settle for a simpler relationship like… friendship. Not having Riko for herself would be very painful and heart-breaking but if that's the only way she can be with her, then yes, that would be enough as long as she can stay by her beloved's side. After all, loving also means giving everything and expecting nothing in return… right?

No longer wanting to cry her heart out, Satsuki gently lay her head on her arms which are resting just beside Riko's sleeping figure, "This is like a dream come true, Riko-chan. Seeing your face before I sleep and if I'm lucky enough, waking up and greeted by you will be a bonus. Sleep tight and get well soon, ne?" with that, satsuki settles herself and slowly drifts off to a slumber herself.