AN: Sorry it took me so long! I had a lot of homework and stuff. I'll try to be better about updating! Thank you for all of your wonderful reviews!This chapter is dedicated to Lessa-13-2004! She's one of my friends here in Iowa and has really encouraged me! Just to clarify something before I let you read, the last chapter was a dream. It was not a real life thing. Some people missed that. Sorry for the confusion! Next time read the author notes cuz they help to explain stuff. Really, they do. Anyway, read, review, and enjoy!
"Yumi, wake up! You have to wake up," Ulrich said, shaking the dark-haired girl's shoulder carefully, yet persistently. The heart monitor was beeping rapidly, bringing a curious doctor and attentive nurse to investigate.
"What's going on here?" the doctor asked gruffly.
"She's having a nightmare and won't wake," Ulrich said distractedly, still shaking Yumi carefully.
"She'll wake eventually," the doctor said dismissively and motioned for the nurse to follow him into the hall.
"Check on them every five minutes or so, but be discreet," he whispered to the nurse before he returned to his rounds.
"Wake up," Ulrich said, crouching down so his face was level with hers, "I'm here like I promised. Now you have to wake up!"
Yumi's eyes snapped open and focused on the dark ones before her.
"Ulrich?" she said, unsure if her mind was playing tricks on her - showing her the face she was to never see again.
"You were having another nightmare," he explained, drawing back and sitting in his chair beside her.
"I was in Lyoko again," Yumi said softly, her eyes downcast.
"Was it the same as last time?" Ulrich prompted gently, his brow furrowed in worry.
"No... this time X.A.N.A. kept freezing me - leaving me helpless and having to watch while he tried to destroy you. And then I... I got trapped in the d-digital void." Yumi shuddered slightly at the memory, made worse by her true previous journey into that abyss. Ulrich reached over and squeezed her hand reassuringly.
"Everything was my fault... You were hurt so much because of me," Yumi said softly. Tears trickled down her face and landed on the pillow, quickly wetting it.
"I'm sure it wasn't all your fault," Ulrich reasoned, "If things were easy on Lyoko, we'd only ever have to send Odd. Everything's fine now, I promise. You can go back to sleep if you want."
"Please don't let me go back to sleep," she begged, "I can't take another nightmare... I'd rather die than go back into my mind."
"I'll stay up with you then," Ulrich said, "It's almost dawn anyway."
"You should get some sleep," Yumi said, feeling guilty at having kept him up for so long.
"I'll be fine," Ulrich said, turning away her suggestion, "I rested while you were u-unconscious, remember?" He hated how he'd stuttered on so common a word. Ulrich suspected that if he would have been talking about anyone else, he would have had no trouble saying it. Ever so carefully, Ulrich wiped Yumi's cheeks with the backs of his unbandaged fingers. A few tears ran down his fingers and soaked into the bandages; the droplets were cool against his heated skin.
"Thank you," Yumi said quietly, still not meeting Ulrich's eyes. An oppressive silence hung in the room, tempting both of its occupants to break it.
"Do -" "At -" the two spoke together, both trying to start a conversation.
"Do what?" Ulrich asked politely.
"Nothing - you go first," Yumi said quickly.
"I was going to say at least today's Sunday so there's no school," Ulrich replied, "What were you going to say?"
"I um.. I was going to ask if you were getting hungry. I know I am a little," Yumi said, meeting his eyes briefly, then looking back at her sheets.
"A bit," Ulrich admitted, "What do you want to eat?"
"Anything," she answered truthfully, for she was finally feeling the effects of skipping so many meals.
"I'll be right back," Ulrich said, giving her hand a last squeeze before he stood. On impulse, Yumi's hand tightened on Ulrich's as he pulled it away gently. It took a great deal of effort for her to loosen her grip and let his fingers slide past hers. Ulrich smiled inwardly at himself, for he had noticed her reluctance, but he gave no indication to her. As he ducked out the door, Ulrich glanced back. She'll be fine without me, he though, I'll only be gone for a moment. Unbeknownst to him, Yumi's thoughts mimicked his own.
Once Ulrich was out of sight, Yumi's heart started to pound harder. I'll be fine, Yumi repeated mentally to herself. Wide eyes darted around the room, searching for possible threats. Despite her attempts to remain calm at being alone, Yumi felt her carefully constructed control slip and panic creep in. Please come back, don't leave me alone, her heart pleaded silently. Remembering a trick she used to use when she was a child, Yumi closed her eyes and started humming part of a song. At the dance, she had heard a new American one, and this one the one she chose. In her mind, the words joined the notes.
'Now I will tell you what I've done for you,
50 thousand tears I've cried...'
Yumi visibly jumped when a deeper voice joined hers for the last few notes. Her eyes opened to Ulrich relief flooded through her. Though surprised at his speedy return, she continued with him to the next few lines, this time adding words.
'Screaming deceiving and bleeding for you
and you still won't hear me'
"I hear you, Yumi," Ulrich said quietly once they both stopped singing softly.
"I know," Yumi answered with downcast eyes, mentally adding 'now.'
Silence stretched over the two again until Ulrich remembered the reason he had left the room.
"Oh.... uh I got some green tea and rolls," Ulrich said, holding out the tray containing two lidded cups and a plate of white rolls. Yumi accepted one of the cups and Ulrich set the tray down on her bed. As Yumi soon discovered, the bandages would often cause the styrofoam cup to slip down in her hands. The first time she nearly dropped it, Ulrich came to her rescue by putting his hand on the bottom, stopping its slide.
"Thanks," Yumi said, giving him a small smile that, to him, spoke louder than her words.
"Here, try this," Ulrich said, taking the cup from her. Once he had set her cup beside his on the tray, he took her hand in both of his and carefully unwrapped the bandages on her palms. When he got closer to her skin, he slowed almost to a stop, taking care not to irritate the wounds. After finishing one hand, he moved on to her right. This one was slightly more difficult because of her IV. He accidentally bumped the needle, bringing a small, sharp gasp from Yumi. Ulrich mumbled an apology and maneuvered his hands so he would not cause her more pain. The process took longer than it should have - partly because Ulrich's bandaged hands had stiffened slightly throughout the night. When the last of Yumi's bandages were removed from her palms, Ulrich put the wrap and gauze on the stand beside her bed.
"Better?" he asked as she slowly clenched her hand, stretching and testing the partly healed over scrapes.
"Yes, thank you," Yumi said, meeting his eyes briefly, then looking back at her hands.
"What happened?" Ulrich asked gently, hoping to get a better answer from her this time.
"I um...," Yumi mumbled, her mind racing as she debated with herself What could she say? Ulrich had been so good to her and deserved a better answer than 'I can't.' But if she told him the truth, Theo... well he had told her the consequences. Best to stick with a half-truth, she decided.
"I-I fell... that's all," Yumi said quickly.
"Oh...," was all Ulrich said in reply. His mind disagreed with her story, but he didn't press her. Like before, he figured she would tell him the truth when she was ready.
Now that her hands were free, Yumi was able to pick up her cup without it sliding. She wrapped both hands around the warm styrofoam and brought the cup up to her lips. That's a far as it got, though, as she noticed a problem. Laying on her side as she was, made drinking an interesting activity. Setting her tea back on the tray, Yumi placed her hands in front of her and pushed on the bed, trying to lift herself up. After two excruciating inches, she gave up and her body came to rest on the bed again. Had Yumi been her usual self, propping her body up would have been easy. Apparently, the events of the previous night had been too much for her poorly fueled muscles and the blow to her back didn't do a lot to help either. Waves of frustration and helplessness washed over Yumi, and her dry throat started to close up as she tried to hold back the tears that threatened to fall.
After watching Yumi's attempt to prop herself up, Ulrich decided to give it a try. Placing his cup on the tray, Ulrich stood and walked over to his bed. Once he pulled the pillows off his bed, Ulrich moved to the couch and selected the largest pillows. Ok, now I've got stuff to prop her up with... so how do I do it, Ulrich thought. While his mind was in motion, his body was too and he ended up beside Yumi's bed. Still trying to plan, Ulrich laid the pillows on Yumi's bed and moved the tray to the chair he had occupied moments ago. Now what, he thought, I need to prop her up, but I don't want to hurt her. It didn't help that Yumi was watching him steadily, her eyes questioning him. It was a look he had to answer.
"I'm... um... going to try to lift you up and put the pillows under you," Ulrich explained, his mind still racing, trying to figure out just how he was to do it. Still unsure of himself, Ulrich pulled the pillows up closer to her head and stood so he was in front of her shoulders. He reached his arms out once as if he was going to try to lift her, but then withdrew them.
"What's wrong?" Yumi asked quietly.
"I don't want to hurt you," Ulrich said, "I'm afraid that when I lift you, I'll push against your bruises."
"Don't worry, I trust you," Yumi said, smiling reassuringly at him. Ulrich nodded his head slightly at her and shifted himself a little closer.
His mind finally settling on the best plan, Ulrich bent down until he was only a foot away from Yumi. Hesitantly, then with more confidence, Ulrich took Yumi's hands in his and brought them slowly around behind his neck. Getting the idea, Yumi tightened her arms and Ulrich let go of her hands. Now comes the hard part, Ulrich thought. Ever so carefully, Ulrich slid his right arm under her underarm, and looped his left around her waist, taking care not to touch the bruising on the side closest to him.
"Ready?" he asked her softly. Ulrich received a small nod in reply.
Slowly, Ulrich lifted her upward while she tightened her arms around his neck, trying to support some of her weight. Though Ulrich was being careful, his left arm still brushed against her bruise, sending ribbons of pain lacing through her back. That, along with the pain which came from having the sore muscles across her back being moved, was enough to bring tears to Yumi's eyes. They didn't make it farther, though, as Yumi did her best to hold them off. The pain escalated when Ulrich let go of her with his right arm, which had been under her underarm supporting her, and used it to position the pillows. A scream threatened to issue from her throat, but Yumi bit her lip instead, fighting it back. In an attempt to speed the process, Yumi tightened her arms even more around Ulrich, lifting herself a few more inches. Her forehead now rested against his neck and her eyes against his collarbone and she could feel each beat of his heart. His, like hers, was racing. Both, though, had different reasons for this. Yumi's rapid heartbeat, which could both be heard and seen on the monitor, was the result of pain. Ulrich's, on the other hand, was caused partly by the strain he was putting on his body, but was mostly from the closeness of Yumi.
"Almost done," Ulrich announced, giving the pillows one last adjustment. Slowly, Ulrich lowered himself closer to the bed, which also lowered Yumi. Her upper body dented the pillows that had been so carefully arranged to support her. When he was sure Yumi had settled on the pillows correctly, Ulrich slowly unlooped his arms from her. Yumi, though, kept hers around his neck and, now that the ordeal was over, wept. Feeling the dampness against his collarbone, Ulrich grew alarmed.
"Are you ok? Did I hurt you?" he asked anxiously. Ulrich would receive no answer, though, as Yumi continued to cry quietly against him. Hesitantly, carefully, he wrapped his right arm around the tops of her shoulders, where there was no bruising. His left hand hovered over her head, as if Ulrich was unsure of himself, then settled down gently on the back of her head. After a few moments, his fingers gained a life of their own and began stroking her hair lightly. When the tube from Yumi's IV swung down to the floor, Ulrich started, then returned his attention to the girl. Though his back was starting to ache from being bent over so long, Ulrich didn't pull away. Instead, he tilted his head slowly until his left cheek rested against her hair.
"I love you, Yumi," Ulrich whispered softly into her hair. Yumi would not hear him, though, for his voice was lost in her sobs. But, for Ulrich, time stood still.
AN: Ok, before you all kill me, I added the song part on purpose! It isn't mine, it belongs to Evanescence ( ----- that's my disclaimer). I put those lines in as a HUGE thank you to the band. I've been listening to their music as I write and they've helped a lot with the mood. I tried to insert the lines as non-tackily as I could. Now, for your spoiler!
' "Wonderful," she sighed. Her eyes locked on Ulrich's and she gave him a warm, true smile of gratitude.'
I know, the spoiler sucks, but I can't give everything away now, can I?