Pairing: Kotori X Umi

Rating: T

Chapter: Love that heals.

AU: In which Umi is a sniper but gets hurt and falls into a coma. Kotori worries over her lover's safety.

Grasping her lover's limp hands, Kotori brought the blunette's cold hand towards her own aching chest as the first signs of tears brimmed at the edge of her amber eyes.

"Umi-chan..." The taupe haired woman's voice broke as she observed how lifeless the blue haired woman lying on the hospital bed looked with all the life support connected to her. The unconscious woman's face was deathly pale, her lips chapped and purplish blue. Bandages and gauze were also wrapped around the bluenette's head and chest, emphasising her extent of injuries. The woman in front of her looked so fragile that Kotori couldn't help a choked sob that escaped from her lips as the dull ache in her heart tightened.

"Umi-chan...please don't leave me," Kotori's lips trembled, her hands shook slightly as she bit her lips, a certain degree of hopelessness and desperation reflected in her amber orbs. As much as it hurt Kotori to admit, there was nothing the taupe haired girl could do except to stay by her lover's side and pray that her lover would wake up soon.

When Kotori had received a call from the hospital, her mind had immediately turned blank, as instinctual fear and worry grabbed her. It was as if time had stopped and she had stood frozen on the spot for a second as she let the nurse's words sunk into her. Fear had crept up her spine, like poison vines, digging straight into her bones. She couldn't believe that Umi, her beloved who she'd just seen in the morning, who she'd just kissed good-bye on her cheeks, who had been with her since they were young was in critical condition after being shot during her job.

At once, she had abandoned her work, not caring that her sketches had tumbled onto the ground messily, as she had rushed to the hospital, only to have to wait until the surgeon finally came out of the operating room many hours later. She had instantly shot up from the chair at the familiar sight of a certain red head walking out of the operating room. At the stressed and grave look on Maki's face, Kotori's heart had immediately lurched.

"Her life is not in critical danger anymore, but we do not know when she's going to wake up. I'm sorry, Kotori but we tried our best."

That was what Maki had told her and ever since then, Kotori had been staying by her lover's side, holding her hands, whispering comforting words to her, fervently hoping and wishing that she would wake up.

It has already been a month since Umi fell into coma and there was still no sign of her blue haired lover waking.

"Umi-chan..." The fashion designer's voice came out as a soft and pained whisper. "You have to be fine. Please wake up soon..I need you." The taupe haired woman tightened her fingers around the cold hands she was grasping, locking their fingers together. She had hoped that her own warmth could perhaps somehow, at the very least, warm the bluenette or cause the woman to wake up from her comatose state when she felt her.

Of course, that was but wishful thinking as Umi remained still on the bed, unmoving.

"Please be alright... If you're not by my side I-" Kotori's voice suddenly hitched at the thought and her whole body started to tremble, all the pent up worry and fear for her beloved all crashed onto her in that instant, the flood behind the dam finally broke as tears finally streamed down the taupe haired woman's face, her anguished sobs echoing throughout the room, as tears wrecked her entire body.

Umi had to be fine. She just had to be fine.

She couldn't imagine her life without her beloved. Just the thought of not seeing Umi again, or to hear her voice and to feel her touch ever again sent yet another set of tears down her face as her chest constricted from the unbearable pain, the ache within her smothering her, choking her - so much so that she could scarcely breathe.

"Umi-chan...I love you...Please don't leave me..."

The bluenette was lying flat on her stomach, her finger hovering over the trigger of her Howa Type 88 Assault Rifle, eye trained on the telescopic sight. Without hesitation, Umi pressed the trigger and sent a clean shot at her assigned target- a masked terrorist in black. But before she could breathe a sigh of relief at the sight of target falling, she could feel her skin crawling as a sense of forbidding washed over her. Following her instincts- which were more often than not, accurate, the bluenette had began to shift slightly to her left, backing away, when she felt pain erupting from her chest.

Her world had immediately spun as shock reverberated through her body as she realised immediately that she had been shot. The biting pain in her burst into flames and she cried out as raw pain exploded within her.

Umi's eyes fluttered open, wide with fear and panic as her whole body jolted up, and she started to gasp wildly, her heart thundering against her chest. Her ears were ringing and her vision blurred around her as white assaulted her vision.

She was shot.

Twice.

But how?

"U-Umi-chan! Calm down, Umi-chan! I-I'll call the doctor!"

A familiar voice echoed in her ear. Turning her head side-wards, she saw a familiar figure hunching over, pressing the emergency call button as her breaths continued to come out in short gasps as cold sweat broke out on her forehead.

"Umi-chan!" The woman in her vision gripped her wrists tightly, brushing her thumb over her pale cheeks before her voice became softer, her amber orbs shinning with utmost love and affection as her gaze became extremely gentle and soothing, new found tears rolling down her cheeks, "It's okay, Umi-chan. You're awake now."

Staring at the pools of amber, Umi's heart slowly calmed down as she took in the features of her beloved. Kotori looked slightly pale and gaunt, creases of lines could be seen on her forehead, and her eye bags were evident, as her tears continued to slide down from pale features. Why did Kotori looked like she hadn't slept for so many days? Seeing the sight before her, a dull ache settled in the Sniper's heart. She very much wanted to wipe the tears off her beloved's face and would do so if only she could move her arms.

"K-Koto...ri?" Umi's voice was hoarse and raspy from the month of not speaking at all, having just woken up.

"I'm so glad...I'm so glad..." Kotori's cries got louder as she dropped onto the ground with utmost relief - it was almost as if all energy had been sapped out of her, burying her tear streaked face onto Umi's hospital gown, her warm tears staining the light blue fabric.

"S'okay..." Umi murmured as she tried to move her hands slightly. Gnashing her teeth as raw pain shot through her arm, the blunette forced her hand to move a little as she started stroking the taupe head's hair slowly, caressing it gently as a small smile ran along the lines of her lips.

"Umi-chan..." Kotori's sobs continued, letting out her relief at the fact that her lover had finally woken up. "Umi-chan...! I missed you...I was so worried...so scared... I kept thinking what if Umi-chan never woke up again... I felt so scared. I could never live without you... I'm so glad...that you're awake now..."

"Ko...tori..." Umi managed to say as she felt the anguish behind Kotori's words, "I'll...never leave you. I love you, Kotori. Forever and Always."

"U-Umi-chan!" The taupe haired woman let herself be comforted by her lover as her tears slowly stopped. Sniffing, the fashion designer finally looked up into the pool of golden brown and whispered, "I love you too, Umi-chan."

Umi smiled warmly and Kotori wiped the tears off her face with the sleeve of her shirt before leaning over to give a quick peck on Umi's lips, causing the Sniper to flush slightly and Kotori to giggle lightly at the adorable blush on her lover's face.

Even though there were many questions she wanted to ask - like how and why Umi got shot, Kotori figured she could leave that for later. For now, she was just really glad and contented that Umi had finally woken up.

"Umi!" A sudden voice interrupted the pair of lovers. Maki had just burst into the room, a clipboard on a hand and when she saw the sight before her, her lilac eyes narrowed slightly.

"What the hell are you two doing?!" She exclaimed, "Kotori, get off Umi this instant! I need to check her condition now! No e-extreme physical activity like this for a few months you hear me! Not until Umi complete heals!"

"E-Eh?!" Kotori whined. From her expression, it was evident that she wasn't too pleased with the idea of not doing "extreme physical activity" for a few months.

"M-Maki, you misunderstand. We weren't-" Umi tried to explain, extremely flustered.

"Enough!" Maki interrupted, "Just...don't. Kotori, if you would."

Kotori finally nodded and giving her lover one last kiss on her cheeks, the fashion designer finally left the room, leaving Umi at the hands of Maki who was now fussing over her patient.

A/N:

(1) This is prompt by Motive based on the HonoMaki in Chapter 13.

(2) Review Replies are in the previous chapter/Chapter 35.

(3) I'm sorry I'm posting at such a slow/snail pace T_T

(4) Next: Nozomi X Kotori!

(5) After NozoKoto, the list is as follows: Umi X Arisa, Honoka X Tsubasa, Honoka X Eli, Umi X Rin, Maki X Rin, Nozomi X Maki, Nozomi X Eli, Umi X Maki, Umi X Eli.