CHAPTER SIXTY-SEVEN – A TREMULOUS NIGHT

For those who could afford enough time and attention to idle by, it was always a wonder to observe students in a quiet classroom. Naoki had his rare days of that, though it was never out of a desire to be lazy and distract himself from the lesson. Rather, it came as an option to read the mood in the room, to help him gather his thoughts for an upcoming undertaking. Often times, such quiet observation led to interesting discoveries, and it was engaging in its own little way. From classmates who were surreptitiously texting on their phones beneath the cover of their books, to those who doodled on the faces in their textbooks, it always felt amusing to see how everyone coped with the tedium of classroom life. However, as he tapped at the blank page before him with his pen, Naoki knew that his reasons for idling by today came from a more pressing concern. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary to the average student, but the atmosphere around him had a slight pall, as if it was contaminated by the perpetual idea that something might go wrong. Even Kenta seemed more on edge, Naoki observed, judging by how his fiery-haired friend looked surly and even irritated at times as he wrote on his notebook. His silence had stifled his usual boisterous demeanor, which Naoki attributed to nerves about their increasing schoolwork. Indeed, to most in 3-C, such tension would no doubt be perceived as the side effect of the upcoming exams.

Turning away, Naoki glanced over to his left, knowing he did not have to look too hard to see the turmoil roiling beneath Yuri's façade. She looked relatively focused now as she wrote down notes with the rest of the class, but Naoki could glimpse minor tics that gave her anxiety away; fidgeting fingers, rewritten lines preceding scratched-out ones on the pages of her notebook, and most glaringly of all, those caresses on her left forearm. With everything that has happened, not even their reading time could grant them enough lasting respite, especially since they were now too preoccupied to continue discovering what would happen to Libitina at the end of Markov. At lunchtime yesterday, Yuri had even refused him when he suggested that she was free to read the novel at home ahead of him.

"W-We decided that we'd finish it together," she had told him, "and I don't want to change that."

"I know. I just figured that, well . . . if it'll give you something to do so that you can put your mind at ease at least for a little while, you can do so," Naoki had proffered.

"No, it's okay, Naoki. I just need to take care of what's happening with Grandmother, a-and then things will go back to normal."

"Well, if you say so. I'll wait for you then."

And so Naoki waited, watching from the sidelines in case there was anything he could do to help Yuri. Two days had passed since her grandmother's collapse, and the moment he had gotten home that day, he had started researching on what might have caused the fatigue, musing that a quick and logical explanation can help put any of Yuri's immense fears to rest. But as he looked for medical articles or informative pieces online about the possible causes of illness among the elderly, he found himself hesitating to tell her about them all the same. As much as he wanted to put her mind at ease, he grew worried about the idea that he might simply exacerbate her anxiety if he overstepped his boundaries and overwhelmed her with explanations. Caught up in this line of thinking, he decided to ask very sparingly and let Yuri elaborate on what she could.

Finally, after what seemed like a quiet eternity, their professor wrapped up his lecture and left them to wait for their next class. All at once, the chatter inside the classroom picked up. Naoki stowed away his Social Studies notebook and sat back on his chair, wondering what to do. He half-expected Kenta to strike up a conversation, but the latter simply turned away and busied himself on his phone.

Yuri looked deflated as she sunk deeper into her chair. Naoki leaned over to her. "Yuri?"

"Y-Yes?" said Yuri, snapping to attention.

"Are you okay? Are you feeling well?"

"Oh, yes, I'm alright." An attempt at a smile faltered before it even reached the corners of her eyes. "I'm just tired, s-sorry."

"That's okay, no need to apologize," said Naoki. He hesitated for a moment before asking, "How's your grandmother doing?"

Yuri breathed deeply for a second. "She's doing okay. She can't get up by herself j-just yet, but she can eat normally."

Naoki nodded. "That's good to hear, at least."

"Yes. I'm just w-waiting for my parents to call again. I think they're . . . t-they're trying to see if they can come home to take care of her."

"Oh, I see. How long has it been since they last came here?"

Yuri paused briefly, her brow furrowing with thought. "I think that was around two years ago, before they moved to Hiroshima for work."

"Wow, that's quite a long time already." Naoki drew a hint of comfort from that, musing that perhaps with her parents around, Yuri might feel less stressed and more secure. "Travel might become hectic when December rolls in. Hopefully they can come home before holiday season really kicks in."

"Y-Yes, hopefully." This time, Yuri's smile managed to appear. "Thank you for checking on me. I appreciate it."

"You're very much welcome," said Naoki, smiling back. "If only we can go out for some coffee at The Monocle one of these days, to help you feel better and all."

"I'd like that. If only I'm not too busy. . ." Yuri sighed. "I'm sorry."

"Hey, it's okay, Yuri. No need to apologize," said Naoki reassuringly. "Your grandmother takes top priority, of course. I hope she gets better."

"I hope so too. . ."

Before their conversation could go any further, their next professor walked through the door. In an instant, the class shifted back to normal. Yuri receded into her silent state, and Naoki noticed one more time a secretive caress on her forearm.

Radio broadcasts across Eishima soon began forecasting snowfall across Japan. The city saw only little snow during winter, being closer to the south of Honshu, but that did not spare it from the harsh chill that prevailed over most of the country. Regardless, as she listened to the small radio in the kitchen while washing used utensils on the kitchen sink, Yuri knew she should be drawing comfort from the broadcast. Cold weather often gave her a sense of contentment and bliss, even though there were many in town who found it to be a hindrance, especially those prone to illness. Nowadays, however, there was little to be happy or comfortable about, and the cold outside, mixed with the sporadic rains, felt more oppressive than indicative of the spirit of the upcoming holidays. Though there was still light outside, the kitchen was steeped in a dim shroud that added to heaviness she felt. She had not bothered to turn on the light, though whether it was because she could do without it or because she could not stomach the brightness, she could not say.

Yuri set the washed utensils down on the counter next to her. The chilly water from the sink made her hands feel numb, but it added a refreshing feeling to her face as she rubbed her temples wearily. There was very little respite to be hand in the past couple of days—and even in the ones to come, she knew. Her grandmother, still weakened from her collapse the other day, had needed care and attention ever since she had collapsed. Being her grandmother's sole companion in the house, it fell to Yuri to feed, clean and even bathe her, though it was a relief that her grandmother could still use the bathroom even if she did need her arm to support her along the way. Still, that did not make things any easier, even if Yuri was more than willing to undertake such duties.

That brought her mind back to the results they had gotten. Somehow, it seemed obvious that her grandmother would experience complications from diabetes similar to what her late grandfather had endured in the twilight of his life. But knowing little to nothing about medical issues such as that, and being too young to remember the specifics that her grandfather had experienced, she decided to do her own research about it on the same day the results of her grandmother's blood test came. Relatively high glucose levels in her system, coupled with her fatigue and spells of malaise, had given cause for worry. More tests had been recommended in the case of any major changes, but anxious and unfamiliar as she was with medical matters, Yuri explained to the clinic that she had to take up the matter with her parents first. They had been understandably riled up when she called them that evening, immediately bombarding her with questions. Yuri answered everything as best as she could, using her grandmother's own testimonies as well as her personal observations whenever she assisted her. Her grandmother had spoken briefly on the phone with her mother, if only to assure them that she was no longer in that precarious of a state, but the worry endured all the same. Yuri promised to update them on anything and follow through with their permission to have her grandmother undergo more tests just in case, but she found herself dreading the next phone call all the same.

She shook her head. After wiping her hands dry on a tablecloth, she turned to pick up the tray of food that she had prepared for her grandmother's supper on the nearby table. Because of her high glucose levels, her grandmother had been advised to eat food with as little sugar as possible. A quick search through the old cookbooks her grandmother owned turned up a simple vegetable soup with spinach, celery and tomatoes. It was hardly filling fare, but having only a small appetite nowadays and fearing possible complications brought by a normal diet with her current state, her grandmother had welcomed the meager meals readily. Yuri carried the tray carefully up the stairs, hoping that her nervousness would not cause her hands to slip.

Her grandmother looked asleep on her bed, but she opened her eyes when Yuri shifted the door of the room open with her foot. "Time to eat, Grandmother," Yuri said as she entered. "I've made some more soup for you."

"Perfect timing too, Granddaughter," her grandmother remarked with a small smile. "It was getting chilly again."

"D-Do you want me to bring you thicker blankets? Or maybe I can prepare your hot water bag."

"No need. With your soup coming up, I'll be fine like this for a while yet. Maybe later, when the evening gets colder."

Nodding, Yuri set down the tray on the nearby dresser and helped her grandmother sit up on the bed. As she grasped her hand, it was difficult to tell whose fingers were colder. "How are you f-feeling?" she asked.

"Nothing's changed much, to tell you the truth," her grandmother replied. "There are times when I think I'm growing dizzy, but when I open my eyes, it stops."

"H-Hopefully that's not anything serious. How about your body? Is anything hurting?"

"No, I'm alright." Her grandmother let out a soft laugh. "You ask me that every time you feed me. I'm doing well, Granddaughter, or at least as well as I can be. If anything feels out of place, I'll let you know. Don't stress yourself out too much, or else your hair will turn white a lot earlier than mine did!"

It's a wonder it hasn't yet, with all the things I worry about. Yuri sighed as she adjusted the pillows on the bed for her grandmother to lean on, so she can eat in a sitting position. "I'll try not to, Grandmother," she said. "Now, you should start eating before the soup gets cold."

With her grandmother's weakening joints and occasional tremors, feeding was a tedious affair, but Yuri had adjusted to it quickly as she learned to feed her grandmother in careful fashion, making sure that the food was at a manageable temperature and amount. Her grandmother savored the soup with contentment, nodding after every spoonful.

"How I wish your parents were here to taste your cooking," she remarked after a while. "Your mother would like this, I'm sure."

Yuri smiled modestly at that, though she had to wonder about the kind of circumstances that would have to take place for her parents to come home to Eishima now. "I wish I could cook something better for you. Perhaps when you get better, w-we'd be able to cook some onigiri and smoked eel again." Her mind strayed for a second too long on if instead of when, and she had to shake the thought off frantically.

"That'd be nice indeed," her grandmother replied, oblivious to her thoughts. "If it wasn't wintertime, I'd have an easier time getting better."

"Hopefully winter passes by quickly enough." And every other problem that might come. Still, Yuri knew that such a thing would be too fanciful to wish for.

"The radio broadcast said that it'd be snowing soon," she went on, shifting to another topic. "It's already been snowing for two weeks now in the other cities."

Her grandmother nodded. "That should be nice on the joints," she said dourly. "Make sure you start putting on some warmer clothing when you go to school, Granddaughter."

"I will, Grandmother. Don't worry."

"I moved the thicker blankets at your grandfather's room, since the spare dresser there can hold all of them. Get one for your room too."

"Yes, Grandmother."

Thankfully, her grandmother finished her bowl of soup for the second day in a row, though she refused Yuri's offer of a second helping. "You should be having dinner soon, Granddaughter," she told her. "Don't use up too much of your time over me. At this rate, it's not like I'm going to go running off somewhere." She laughed at that, like it was a quite a knee-slapper that she had heard the other day. Yuri wanted to laugh, but the truth beneath her grandmother's jest was too serious to bear.

"After this, I'll try to eat. H-Hopefully a phone call doesn't come up just yet." Yuri stood up, a dull ache forming on her back from her sitting posture. She bent down carefully to pick up the tray, trying not to wince lest her grandmother notice. "I'll come back upstairs after half an hour to check on you again, but if you need anything, just call out."

Her grandmother waved her hand a little. "I will, don't worry."

"Do you want to lie down now?"

"I'll stay like this for a while. You go on ahead and eat, Granddaughter. You might be famished already."

With a nod, Yuri took her leave, and only when she was out in the hallway did she heave a tired sigh. Sitting upright for so long while she fed her grandmother was exhausting, especially with the literal weight on her chest pulling her down all the while. At the kitchen, she deposited the tray next to the sink and sat down quickly on the nearest chair, sighing with relief as she leaned against the backrest. It was only after a few minutes of rest that she noticed how she had forgotten to change out of the rest of her uniform, engrossed as she was in preparing an early dinner for her grandmother as soon as she got home from school. She pressed her fingers against her temples, massaging them wearily.

Everything will be fine. I just need to focus, and get through another day yet again. It was the same mental cadence that Yuri always relied on as she fulfilled her duties as a student, a daughter and a granddaughter. Even if it was fast becoming an old jingle, she knew that it was better than simply letting her worries run amok in the recesses of her mind. Rubbing her hands free of literal and figurative cold, she turned on the stove at low heat to keep the soup warm and went back upstairs to change.

Around an hour later, just as she had finished eating supper and was now cleaning up the kitchen table, her cellphone began ringing. Yuri scrambled to pick it up, and felt her heartbeat rise as she saw who the caller was.

"H-Hello? Mom?"

Amidst the sounds of passing vehicles in the background, she heard her mother call out loudly. "Yuri? Yuri, are you there? Sorry, it's just so loud here right now!"

"I'm here, Mom, I can hear you!" Yuri responded. "Y-You just got out of work, right?"

"Yes, just got to the street outside the office. Hold on, I'll go somewhere quieter!"

After a few seconds, the noises receded, and soon the call was back at a more audible tone. "Thank goodness," Yuri heard her mother mutter. "Yuri? Are you still there?"

"Yes, Mom, I'm here," said Yuri, her nervousness coasting at a steady pace. "Is Dad w-with you?"

"He's working thirty minutes overtime. I just got off the phone with him before I called you. How's Grandma doing?"

"She's doing okay. I fed her supper a while ago. She's resting right now."

"Good. Any news from the doctor?"

Yuri swallowed. "N-Nothing new, although he did mention that Grandmother needed ten days before any more tests can be done, just to see if anything changes."

"Okay. I hope you two are doing just fine over there. I've spoken to my boss, but he's not sure if I can take that leave, since things are going to be busy with the holidays approaching. The same goes for your father." Her mother let out a sigh, and Yuri could almost picture her looking as weary as she did right now. "Talk about wrong timing. And with your exams coming up . . ."

Yuri could only listen somberly, not knowing what to say. She had not known whether to feel excited or uneasy about the idea that her parents, or at least one of them, would be coming home to help her take care of her grandmother. Regardless, it was always a welcome notion to see her parents again after being separated for such a long time away from them, and this new development deflated some of her hopes about at least having one or both of them around.

Her mother continued, oblivious to her worries over the phone. "I did manage to talk to your Auntie Yasue the other day, and she told me that if circumstances are willing, she might be able to come over instead."

That caught Yuri's attention somewhat. "Oh. So she's the only one who can come?" she asked.

"At the moment, yes," her mother replied. "I'm going to try and talk to my boss one more time, see if I can change his mind. If nothing works, it'll be her coming over there. She's not sure when she can leave, though, but she told me that if the time comes, she can have someone filling in for her in the meantime. Would that the same was true for me and your father."

Yuri nodded, even though her mother was not present to see the gesture. "H-How long will Aunt Yasue be staying?"

"At most, two weeks. Hopefully that should be enough time to get Grandma sorted out with a quick treatment or some medication. I'll tell her to wait for the next tests, so that she can have some extra time to take care of Grandma if the results turn up something serious, heaven forbid."

Heaven forbid indeed. Yuri bit her lip for a moment, shaking bleak notions out of her mind. "I'll t-tell you if anything else comes up," she told her mother.

"Okay. Anyway, I have to get going. It looks like it'll rain here soon," her mother stated. "I'll give your number to Yasue, so that you two can contact each other directly in case of any new developments. I might call again later at nine, so that your father can talk to you as well. We'd like to talk to Grandma again, but I know she needs to rest."

"Don't worry, I'll tell her that you two called. T-Take care, Mom."

Putting her cellphone in her pocket, Yuri plopped down on a chair and began digesting what her mother had said. Her aunt Yasue was her father's younger sister, single and busy with work as a hotel manager in Kanagawa, the closest city to Eishima when it came to their family's relations. She was not a relative that Yuri was used to seeing, though truth be told, the same case was true for most of her aunts and uncles, and her cousins as well. Still, it was better than having a complete stranger with her, though Yuri would have preferred her mother or father all the same. Closing her eyes, she imagined how the scenario would play out—her aunt coming in from Kanagawa, her grandmother's subsequent diagnosis being revealed, and what her own role would be in all of it. She could not tell whether to be relieved or apprehensive about her aunt's possible arrival, preoccupied as she was with the notion of when her grandmother would recover.

Still, Yuri knew there was little that could be done. After contemplating in silence for a few more moments, she stood up and took her used dishes over to the kitchen sink, slinking back into the dreary, tenuous monotony that surrounded the old Hoshino home.

Nothing much happened that night, save for a brief phone call with her father and mother. Too tired physically and mentally to even read a book, Yuri decided to go to sleep early, though not before checking on her grandmother one more time. She prepared the thickest blankets for her, and adjusted her pillows so that she could lie down comfortably. When this was done, Yuri washed up in the bathroom, changed into a pair of pajamas, and settled down to sleep.

Soon, she found herself dreaming, walking along an abandoned street, with only the street lamps around her providing faint circles of light in the darkness. She felt cold, even though she had a blanket wrapped around her, and her fingers felt so numb that she had to flex them just to see if they still had any feeling left in them. The starless night sky opened up above her, looking as foreboding as the street she was walking in.

A loud clanging sound made her jolt, and as she looked wildly around Yuri began to feel her fear rising within her. A few seconds of searching showed her the culprit: a striped grey cat that had overturned a garbage bin sitting in front of a house. The cat took one look at her with bright yellow eyes before scurrying away, leaving behind a pool of trash where the garbage bin had spilled its contents. For a moment, Yuri contemplated on following it, though part of her felt terrified at the sight of it.

And then, there was a faint knocking noise, as if someone was hammering on wood inside one of the dark houses to her left and right. The sound unnerved Yuri even more, primarily because she had no idea what it was or where it came from. She looked around, embracing the blanket tighter around herself, trying to see if there was anyone around. The knocking persisted, and with it, Yuri decided to quicken her pace. Her breath began to mist before her. When did it grow so cold?

The noise suddenly grew louder, causing her breath to catch in her throat. Abandoning all pretense of calm, Yuri bolted down the street, the unforgiving asphalt sending dull pain through the soles of her bare feet. The blanket fell past her head, and soon she began to feel ticklish caresses brushing against her face. When she opened her eyes, her hair was falling out. The knocking grew to an ominous crescendo, though she could not tell if it was her racing heartbeat that made it sound so loud.

With a gasp, Yuri woke up, her eyes snapping open. Her blanket was around her indeed, but she was lying in the comfort of her bed instead of running along a dark street. She scrambled to sit up, looking around the darkness of her room. Her fingers had clutched against the fabric of the blanket so tightly that her nails left deep gouges in her palms. Her hair fell past her face, though thankfully intact and not falling out in clumps. She fumbled for her phone on a nearby end table and saw that it was a little past one-thirty in the morning.

Suddenly, the knocking sound came again, though fainter than it had been before she woke up. Yuri looked around with a start, almost dropping her phone. Her mouth ran dry as she wondered if she had indeed escaped the odd nightmare. Only when she had calmed down after a few more seconds did she realize where the noise was coming from.

Throwing the blanket aside, Yuri got up and raced to her grandmother's room, her mind racing as she imagined finding her in another precarious situation. Thankfully, her grandmother still lay atop her bed. She glanced up as soon as Yuri slid the door open, looking as frail as ever. Her right hand was curled into a trembling fist as she hit the floor once with her knuckles, while her left one lay shaking against her chest. She was the one knocking, Yuri realized.

"Grandmother, what is it? Are you okay?" she asked breathlessly, kneeling next to her bed.

Her grandmother tried to move her lips. Only a string of unintelligible words came out, but she held out her shaking hands to her. Taking the hint, Yuri reached out to grab a hold of them. They felt as cold as ever, but what startled her was the fact that they continued to quiver tremulously, almost unnaturally, against her touch, almost as if she was being shaken by some unseen force. Tremors were nothing new, but this was the first time Yuri had seen them quite strong, and she immediately grew worried.

"Grandmother, w-why are you shaking like this? I-Is something wrong?!"

Swallowing, her grandmother opened her mouth again. Yuri leaned forward, listening hard for what she was trying to say.

"I . . . Cold . . ."

"Cold? D-Do you need some hot water? Or more blankets? Tell me a-and I'll get them!"

Still groggy from either sleep or whatever spell she was experiencing, her grandmother merely nodded. Yuri let go of her hands and quickly ran down the stairs. The light in the kitchen was piercingly blinding when she flicked the switch on, but she moved without slowing down. She took her grandmother's hot water bag from a nearby drawer, prepped the kettle on the stove, and ran back up the stairs to get some warmer blankets as it boiled.

Something's wrong, she kept telling herself as she went to her grandfather's room for the blankets. Something's wrong. How long has she been knocking? Unbidden, she remembered when her grandmother had dropped a teacup on the floor during breakfast that one time. Yuri had settled on the notion that her grandmother's muscles and reflexes were simply weakening due to old age, but tonight changed her opinion drastically. This has to be Parkinson's disease, she told herself, remembering things she had read in passing before and knowing how common the disorder was among the elderly.

Stopping outside the door, clutching the blankets tightly against her chest, Yuri closed her eyes and tried to take in deep breaths, but the effort made her feel dizzy instead. Clumsily, she fumbled at the dresser and took out the first blankets that she saw, her breath faltering as her heartbeat continued to race. Only then did she notice that in her haste to go to her grandmother's room, she had put her cellphone in her pajama's pocket.

Fumbling, Yuri took it out and considered phoning her parents, but she soon realized that it was a futile prospect. They're both sleeping by now. Morning will come before they even see any call I make. She scrolled through her very short list of contacts, trying to see if there was anyone she could call, if only to put her mind at rest. Soon, she found herself staring at Naoki's number. She bit her lip. He has to be asleep as well. I . . . I shouldn't.

Gingerly, she typed out a tentative message, musing that perhaps a text would not be as troublesome as a call. "Naoki? Are you here?" Not waiting for a reply, she pocketed her phone again and carried on with the tasks at hand.

Her grandmother was still trembling in her bed when she came up to bring a hot cup of tea. By then, Yuri was fighting hard not to show her immense worry. She had draped two more blankets over the bed, but it did little to stop her grandmother's shaking. She knelt down next to her again and pressed the cup carefully into her quaking hands. "Here, Grandmother, drink up. M-Maybe it'll help," she said.

Helping her hold onto the cup lest it spill, she guided the brim to her grandmother's lips. Her grandmother flinched a little at the heat, but she drank eagerly all the same. After two sips, she nodded feebly.

"That . . . That's good . . ." she whispered.

Yuri could not have felt more relieved. "Keep drinking," she told her. "T-There's more downstairs if you want." As she held on, her grandmother's fingers felt as if they would break free of her grip. Yuri pressed her hands on them as firmly as she could without hurting her grandmother's hands. When the cup was emptied at last, she bolted back downstairs for a refill.

Mercifully, her grandmother's spasms started to fade after a short while. There were instances where she only wanted to hold onto the cup, as if she was letting the warmth soothe her quaking hands. Yuri waited on her dutifully, even as she could feel her body growing heavier from the returning vestiges of drowsiness. She sat close to her grandmother's bed, feeling the urge to just lie down on the floor and wait for sleep to come again. Thankfully, the strange nightmare she had earlier put the notion at bay.

"Thank you for that, Granddaughter," her grandmother said, when she had finished her third cup. Her voice sounded hoarse, but she reassured her with a small smile. "I'm sorry for the inconvenience, and at such a late hour too."

"It's fine, Grandmother," said Yuri as she took the cup from her. "Are you feeling better, at least? I can c-call the clinic and see if—"

Her grandmother shook her head. "No need, Granddaughter. The shaking should be manageable now." She looked down at her hands, flexing her fingers delicately. "I hope I didn't scare you. I didn't expect this to happen this late into the night."

"No, it's okay, Grandmother. I'm just glad that it wasn't s-something as bad as last time. Do you need anything else? Going to the bathroom, another cup of tea, a-anything?"

Her grandmother closed her eyes for a moment. "Maybe one final bathroom trip before I call it a night," she replied. "With the tea I just drank, I might end up wetting the bed."

She laughed again at that. Yuri wanted to laugh as she had done earlier when she had been feeding her, but the mental image her grandmother's quip created was another testimony to old age that she had no intention of dwelling on tonight.

Even with her hands still trembling with weak tremors, her grandmother moved at a steady pace. The task of getting her to the bathroom was simple enough, if a little tedious due to the sluggish pace that they moved with, but it was her grandmother's weight that worried Yuri the most, now that her muscles have shrunk to the point where they stretched thinly across her bones. Every time she grasped her firmly by the armpit and the forearm to keep her balanced, she often imagined breaking one or more of her bones.

After she had helped her grandmother sit on the toilet at last, Yuri stepped out into the hallway to give her some privacy. She pressed her back against a nearby wall and heaved a sigh, sinking down to the cold wooden floor. With the tension from earlier gone, she felt even more drained now, and she could only wonder how stressful school would be with her sleep affected like this.

As she was about to stand back up, she soon noticed that her phone was still in her pocket. Wondering what time it was, Yuri took it out and glanced at the screen. Surprise jolted her awake for a second as she saw a single text message on it.

"yuri? sorry for the late reply. yes i'm here, is sumthing wrong?"

He replied. W-Why is he still awake? Did I wake him up? Yuri sighed, feeling shame and panic gripping her both at the same time. Too caught up in the heat of the moment, she had not bothered to think that maybe, just maybe, Naoki might actually be roused from his sleep by a wayward text at such a late hour. She wanted to ignore the reply, if only to stop disturbing Naoki any further, but ignoring him after waking him up felt worse.

Yuri decided to come clean. "Yes, I'm here. I'm sorry, something happened with Grandmother, and I panicked a little. Everything is fine now, no need to worry."

She set her phone down for a moment, hoping that perhaps Naoki had drifted back to sleep and she can simply explain what happened later in the morning, but Naoki's response came in quickly. "do u want me to call?"

Yuri bit her lip, thinking for a suitable reply, but before she could type out a word, her grandmother suddenly called out from inside the bathroom. "Granddaughter? Are you still there?"

"Y-Yes, Grandmother!" Yuri responded, standing up quickly and pocketing her phone. "Are you done?"

"Yes, that should be it. Just help me clean myself up and we'll be on our way."

A few minutes later, her grandmother was back in her bed, looking considerably relieved. Yuri bundled up the blankets around her, giving one final check to make sure that she was properly shielded from the cold. "Thank you, Granddaughter," her grandmother muttered. "I do hope you're not feeling overwhelmed at having to take care of me like this."

"It's okay, Grandmother. When Auntie Yasue comes, we'll be able to share the effort between us." Yuri knew that her aunt's arrival was still up in the air, but the assurance was what her grandmother needed.

"Ah, yes. I can only wonder how Yasue would react upon seeing me. She'd be shocked to see what state I'm in now."

"She'd still be glad to see you, I'm sure. A-Are you feeling better now? Is there anything else you need?"

Her grandmother waved a tremulous hand. "That'll be all for tonight. You go get some sleep now. You still have school later."

"Okay. Good night, Grandmother. I'll see you in the morning."

"Good night, Granddaughter." With that, Yuri bowed her head and took her leave. Her grandmother lay her head back and closed her eyes, her hands shaking only faintly as they lay on her stomach.

When she was back in her own room and on her own bed, she took out her cellphone again and sent a hasty reply to Naoki. "I'm sorry, are you still here?"

Again, Naoki's response was swift. "yes. do you still want me to call? i promise it won't take long. i just wanna check on you"

Yuri pressed her phone to her forehead for a moment. "Okay, if it's not too much trouble."

Within seconds, her cellphone was ringing. As Yuri answered it, she heard Naoki's voice greeting her. "Hey, how are you? How's your grandmother doing?" he immediately asked. Yuri took note of the slight thickness in his voice, a telltale sign of his drowsiness. Still, she clung to his words like they were a lifebuoy in the middle of the ocean.

"I'm doing better, thank you. Grandmother is sleeping now. I had to tuck her in after she went to the bathroom," she told him. "I'm really, really sorry f-for texting you. I m-might've woken you up."

"No, it's fine. I woke up to go to the bathroom, and then I saw your text. I'm sorry if I couldn't reply any sooner."

"That's okay. Y-You were already asleep then. I just got w-woken up when I heard Grandmother knocking. O-On the floor, I mean."

"Oh, I see. Whatever the case, it's good to know that she's doing fine now."

"Y-Yes." Yuri threw her head back on her pillow, her eyes stinging from sleepiness as she stared up at the ceiling. From her peculiar nightmare to her grandmother's tremors to her mother's phone call earlier, she had no idea on how to start. "A lot of things happened, and I was just s-so overwhelmed. I thought . . ." She sighed again, struggling to find the right words.

Fortunately, Naoki came to her rescue. "Hey, it's okay. We can talk about it later at school, okay? You did good tonight, and you should get some rest."

"Y-Yes, I'll try going back to sleep soon," said Yuri, feeling relieved that she would not be made to explain things further. "How about you?"

"Same. Unless you want me to stick around for a bit?"

"No, I should be fine o-on my own now. Thank you for calling, Naoki. I really appreciate it."

"You're welcome, Yuri. I'll see you later at school, okay? Good night!"

"G-Good night." Hanging up, Yuri set her phone back on the end table next to her bed. All around her, the house seemed eerily quiet, but as she bundled herself up in blankets and closed her eyes, she could almost draw some form of solace from the silence.

A/N: Getting this chapter out at last is a huge relief, to be honest. Apart from hitting a few snags in its writing, my laptop decided to go absolutely bonkers and deleted all of my games and some of my programs. I had to act quickly and back things up before the mishap affects my files and docs. Fortunately, they were unaffected and are now secure in case something like that ever happens again, but bringing everything back to normal took a while and just stressed me out majorly. Hopefully, the finished product makes for a good read for you guys. I have no idea how things would've turned out if my docs got nuked, and here's hoping things don't go nuts like that again. Stay safe, and happy reading!