A/N - Can you guess it yet? Yeah, I don't own these characters.

Chapter 28

They stayed like that until the bell signaled the end of the lunch period.

Leaning back so as to see Yumi's face clearly, Sachiko tentatively asked, "Should we go on home?"

Her tears having dried already, Yumi resolutely shook her head. "I don't know how much longer I'll be able to attend, so no. I want to go to class."

Though Sachiko still wasn't convinced it was for the best, she did not try to fight Yumi on the topic. Instead, she stood and raised Yumi shakily to her feet. It was only then that Yumi noticed everyone else had already left. She smiled to herself, thinking how grateful she was that they had left Sachiko to hold her in the privacy of the infirmary and had not made a production out of what had happened. She had been expecting the hair loss, but it had still come as a shock.

In an obvious attempt to distract her from what had happened, Sachiko inquired about the council. "Is there a council meeting today? Preparations have begun for graduation, haven't they?"

"Yes, we have a planning and strategy meeting this afternoon." Yumi nodded as she gathered her bags and coat.

"Then I can attend as well so we can go home together." Sachiko offered, looking at her watch to see how long she had to make it back to her classroom.

Yumi chuckled and smiled at her Onee-sama. "You can't very well be part of preparations for celebrating your own class graduation now, can you? Anyway, didn't you tell me you had a study group this evening? Finals are just a few weeks away."

"I don't really need to study. My involvement is more for the sake of those studying with me." Sachiko stated in a matter-of-fact manner.

"Then for the sake of your classmates, you shouldn't bail on them now." Yumi sighed in exasperation.

"Well, then I'll go for a while and then come back to pick you up so we can go home together." Sachiko seemed utterly determined to be by her side today.

"Where is the study group supposed to meet?" Yumi inquired curiously.

"At the tea shop near the square downtown."

Yumi stopped mid-step toward the door and turned back. "And you want to come all the way back here to get me and escort me home? Sachiko, no."

Setting her jaw stubbornly, Sachiko immediately countered the argument. "You can't possibly go home alone right now. Yoshino and Rei live in the opposite direction. It's completely out of the way for Shimako and Noriko. Are you even strong enough at the moment to make it on the bus safely?"

The instant that the last question escaped her lips she wished she could tear them back out of the air. Yumi's eyes flashed with anger for the briefest of moments before she blinked and there was nothing. If Sachiko could kick herself soundly she would have. Yumi had worked so hard to become strong. She hadn't gloated about her newly developed strength, instead choosing to grow stronger for her own personal reasons. Reasons that had turned out to be tied up in her feelings for Sachiko herself. The younger girl had wanted to grow stronger, to have the confidence to stand by Sachiko's side despite the phenomenal difference in their social status and upbringing. And what had Sachiko done? She had thrown Yumi's weakness, physical weakness from her chemo treatments, right in her face.

Yumi's eyes studied her face passively for a time before she turned and continued her walk toward the door.

"Yumi," Sachiko called out, but Yumi didn't stop or turn back. "Yumi, I'm s-"

"We better hurry, Onee-sama. We shouldn't get back too late. We wouldn't want the teachers thinking we are taking advantage of my illness, now would we?"

Sachiko was silent for a moment before she too approached the door. "I'll walk you to your room."

Yumi opened the door and without turning back replied, "It's alright. I'll be okay. See you at home tonight." With that she turned left toward the stairs that would take her to her class, leaving Sachiko to turn right to head to hers.

Still, Sachiko waited in the doorway until Yumi disappeared around the corner. Every ounce of her screamed to follow, but she couldn't. This was her punishment for letting the unrelenting princess out of her cage once again. She had to have her way and so she instinctively had used the card that, in normal circumstances, would have earned her victory. However, with Yumi things were never normal. Especially now.

So stupid. I'm so exceedingly stupid! Every time we are happy for a moment, something happens and I end up hurting her. How can I be so insensitive? Sachiko mentally gave herself a beat down as she returned to her class. She arrived late but already knowing the circumstances with her petite soeur the teacher merely nodded in her direction to acknowledge her arrival and continued with the lesson.

The class was all review and revision of previously tested information, so Sachiko didn't even attempt to pay attention. Instead, she let her mind wander to Yumi, thinking of what she could do to make it all up to her. The hard part was that on a level Sachiko didn't truly believe she had been wrong in her concern for Yumi. It was how she had approached the topic, her words about Yumi's strength or lack thereof was the blatant issue. How could she make up for that when her concerns were actually legitimate?

There was one person she could ask for help, but could she bear to? This person was in a relationship where they spent much of their time putting their foot in their mouth or apologizing for one thing or another. So they should be able to give her ideas on how to apologize, but did she want to lay bare her failure for someone else to see? Shaking her head, she realized she didn't have much of a choice. Sei-sama was, after all, a master of getting herself into and out of messes just like this one.

When Yumi made it back to her classroom she found Yoshino approaching the doorway. Relief registered on her best friend's face followed by a smile. "I was just going to check on you." Noticing the strained look in Yumi's eyes, she leaned closer and asked, "Is everything okay?"

No. Yumi thought to herself. She knew before she even attempted to speak that she couldn't. The instant she had left Sachiko in the infirmary she knew she wouldn't be able to speak for a while. Damn this tumor! I can't even write a message to Yoshino now.

Given Yumi's silence, Yoshino quickly understood the situation and took control. "Not a problem, Yumi-chan. I'll give you a copy of my notes once class is over, so don't worry."

Yumi smiled at her friend, grateful for the simple assistance that was being offered. That was one thing she loved about her dear friend. Because of her own experience with a serious heart condition, Yoshino could calmly assess the situation and do what she could for her friend. She didn't freak out. She didn't try to make her feel like she could do less than she felt she could handle. In short, Yoshino understood.

Suddenly overwhelmed by emotion, Yumi leaped forward and wrapped her arms around the unsuspecting rose.

Shocked for only a moment, Yoshino returned the hug, knowing full well what Yumi was trying to say with that hug. "It's okay, Yumi. I'm here for you."

Someone cleared their throat and both Yumi and Yoshino jumped and turned to find their classmates and teacher all staring at them. Click. In addition, a certain someone was shamelessly taking advantage of the tender moment for a rare in classroom photo shoot.

Genuinely smiling at the display, the teacher spoke, "We can all sympathize with what you and your friend are going through, Yumi-san, but might you be able to continue this after class?"

Unable to speak, Yumi nodded and saluted the teacher good-naturedly, turning on her heel and marching back to her seat like a soldier. As expected, both the teacher and the students laughed at Yumi's antics.

"Alright, enough of your cheek." The teacher's eyes glimmered with mirth for a moment before she shook her head and turned back to the chalkboard.

Yumi didn't miss the tears beginning to pool in the corners of her teacher's eyes. Taking her seat, she suddenly felt guilty for sticking around when it was obvious her presence, in this condition, caused others to worry and fear for her. Despite that, she couldn't bring herself to bow out just yet. She could bear to take a step back once her finals were over and she had delivered her farewell speech at the graduation. Once those tasks were done she would willingly take a break from school and let her friends and family take care of her. Until then, she was determined to try and stay strong.

Her headache intensified as the class went on. At this rate, she would be useless at the council meeting. When class ended, Yoshino informed her she needed to stop by the kendo club for a moment, but offered to escort her to the Rose Mansion before that. With a forced smile and a wave of the hand, Yumi declined the offer.

To Yoshino's credit, she only hesitated a moment before leaving Yumi to make her way on her own. Yumi moved slowly but managed to gather all of her things and make it to the shoe lockers without much trouble. Glancing at the third-year lockers she found Sachiko's and peeked inside. Her indoor shoes were neatly arranged inside.

Part of Yumi had hoped the infuriating woman was still in the building, but that appeared to be a fruitless hope. She was still royally pissed at Sachiko's comment from earlier. Mainly because it was so painfully accurate. At that moment, however, Yumi couldn't think beyond the pounding in her head. She moved as if on autopilot and found herself inside the greenhouse. Confused by her own actions, she looked around, wondering to herself why she had come here. At that moment, blinding pain pulled a silent scream from her and her world went black.

A/N - A moment of honesty, I can relate to Yumi's feelings on this one. I have serious medical issues myself and HATE it when people act like I'm helpless. At the same time, my family and friend merely wanna take care of me. Ever experienced this kinda thing yourself? I hope you all are appreciating the authentic, genuine torrents of emotions going down right now. It's hard to read and write, but every story has it's ups and downs right? Please, take a moment to let me know what you think! Reviews and DMs inspire me more than anything else!