Akushi
Chapter 4
Heat. It's so hot, because, that's right. My friends and I are spending summer vacation together. And it looks like we are going camping. Sitting by a bond fire and roasting marshmallows. I can hear Mion telling me that I'm not burning them enough. I don't want anymore. I don't have an appetite. I feel hot. I'm too close to the fire.
Wait, why is the fire gone? It's raining? Are we in the rainforest? Are we not in Japan anymore? It's so humid. So hot, yet so wet.
I inhaled deeply and noticed that I was laying on my side in my futon bed. I didn't know what time it was, but it was still dark in my room, and there was a slight bit of light in the corner of my window. Sunrise was coming up.
I had just realized that my covers were all twisted up beneath me, and I was hugging my pillow as if it were my baby. So cold. I shivered slightly, and shut my eyes tightly and continued to breathe deeply. My clothes were drenched, and I noticed the futon was damp.
I grunted marginally. I'm sure I had a fever. But to make matters worse, my body was aching like hell. Where did this come from? Just where did it come from?!
At any moment, it would be direct instinct to crawl out of bed and go whining to my mother about it. Not that it would do any good. Sure, she would make me some soup, which I didn't have the appetite for. Then she would tell me to go to the clinic. Not that I was afraid of nurses, but I did not feel like going anywhere at this point.
I don't think I've ever felt this feverish before, and I doubt these aches and pains could get any worse. So, if I told Mom, then I would have to force myself out of bed and walk myself to the clinic.
Rena. No way. Did Satan want me to fail her?! "Stupid!" At that second, I felt pressure in my head, and I felt dizzy, and before I knew it, I had fallen back asleep.
Pat, pat, pat. "Pain, pain, go away." Was that Rika-Chan? It did sound a lot like her, and the touch on my head felt like her dainty little hand.
My eyes opened slowly, and the first thing I could see were the big violet ones on her cute little face. It was Rika-Chan! And she was in my room? And I was still in bed? My fever. I still had a fever, but it didn't feel as extreme. And my sheets didn't feel damp anymore.
"Hello," she said with a cute smile as she continued to rub my head gently.
"Rika-Chan," I said weakly. I noticed that it wasn't dark in my bedroom anymore, which meant the sun had completely risen. I peered up at the clock on my wall. It was nine-thirty in the morning, which meant that it was passed the time I was supposed to meet up with everybody at the shrine! Oh no.
"You look a lot better than you did thirty minutes ago," Rika-Chan said. Why was she here? Why wasn't she at the shrine with the others? "In about twenty minutes, we will try the ice pack again, okay?"
"Okay," I replied. I didn't bother asking her questions, because it looked like she was on a roll, and enjoyed playing doctor. I suddenly heard a knock, and then my door opened.
Mion? Satoko, too? And Rena? I watched as the three stepped inside. Rena was carrying a tray with a bowl of soup and pudding, and Mion and Satoko had bags of chips and cookies and sodas. What on Earth?
"Hey, you're awake!" Mion said excitedly as she placed the sodas down and sat near me. "Hey, you don't look as bad as before."
"His fever dropped a little," Rika-Chan said. "He's a trooper, just like you said. Nipah!" What was going on? Why were they all here? I just didn't know what to say.
"An improvement is good," Satoko said. "I was beginning to worry about you." Satoko worried about me? Eh?
Rena eagerly sat next to me with the tray and smiled at me like doll. She didn't have any look of disappointment on her face. "Rena," I started, then looked at the others, "you guys, "what's going on? You were all suppose to meet at the shrine."
"No," Mion said, "we were all supposed to spend time together before you leave. Since you're too weak to leave your house, we are spending time here." What? Is this a dream?
I slowly sat up. "You mean, you rather hang out in a boring room than run around the village all day?"
"Hey, it can be fun," Satoko says. "We might find some interesting stuff in here." She smirked. And I ignored her, because one, I had nothing to hide, and two, I was too weak to fight back.
"We are going to help you get better," Rika-Chan said. "So, you must make sure you listen to us and do everything we say."
"Keiichi-Kun, you promised you would go with me no matter what, right?" Rena looked at me with puppy eyes.
I smiled at her. "Yeah, I wouldn't break that promise. But are you guys sure you wanna be here?"
"It's gonna be great," Mion said. "Just trust us."
I stared at all my friends. They were looking at me with happy grins on their faces. I can't believe they skipped out on a great day just to take care of me. They truly were the best friends I ever had.
