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Destiny, by Kristii
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Chapter Seven ~ the longest chapter so far, as well as the most
difficult to write. I tried to make the scenes as plausible and realistic
as possible, and I hope they convey the emotions that I was trying
to embed within them… apologies in advance if things are a bit
too descriptive or too harsh =/
Comments? Write me ~ aznvballgurl@yahoo.com ^^
Sailor Mars and affiliated characters (c) Naoko Takeuchi
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After his suicide attempt, Kyle's doctors had allowed him to
return home for his final days, accompanied by three round-the-clock nurses
and an unlimited supply of morphine. His Potomac mansion was dark,
however, as Rei pulled up in its long, circular driveway; she was stricken by
an overwhelming sense of death as she let herself in the front door with a key
from her married days, stepping softly into the grand open foyer. Kyle and I
used to laugh in this house, she thought to herself, stunned at the change that
had occurred in just a few short months. We kissed here, loved here, smiled
here – but now… it's so empty…
Quietly, almost afraid to disturb the smothering silence, Rei made
her way up the sweeping staircase, down the wide hall she had once known
so well. She stood outside Kyle's door for several minutes, trying to calm
her nerves; then, taking a deep breath, Rei lifted her hand and rapped lightly
on the closed double doors…
"Hello?" The doors pulled back a few minutes later; a dark-haired
nurse stood before Rei, a clipboard in her hands. "Miss Hino? What a pleasant
surprise!" She threw the door open and ushered Rei inside, smiling pleasantly.
"How are you doing today?"
"Fine…" Rei was about to return the greeting when her eyes
wandered past the nurse's shoulder; her words died suddenly on her lips as
she caught sight of the patient behind her. "Oh… my god." Her hand went to
her mouth involuntarily; she could not believe that the man before her was the
same she had known just months before, so tall and strong and handsome.
"Kyle… my God… my poor Kyle…"
A few feet before her, Kyle Kennedy lay motionless in a sea of
white, his pale face the color of his bed sheets. His eyes were closed tightly,
his jaw clenching painfully with each tortured breath. His face was ashen,
pitifully thin—from what Rei had heard, his six-foot-two frame now carried
barely 90 pounds—and a half-dozen IV's were taped to the crook of his
outstretched arm. Just a few days ago, Rei had never thought that she could see
anything worse than Jadeite's broken body; now, staring down at Kyle's still
figure, she suddenly wasn't so sure…
"Miss Hino?" The nurse's hand was on Rei's shoulder, her eyes
concerned as she took in the younger woman's sudden pallor. "Are you
alright, miss?"
"I—" Rei looked up at the nurse for a second, then turned
toward Kyle again, staring down at his ashen face. "I'm fine…" She paused
for a moment, then spoke shakily: "How—how's Kyle? Is—is he in pain?
He looks terrible…"
"Hmm?" The nurse pursed her lips, glancing down at her patient
for a moment before she answered. "It's been pretty hard for him," she said
finally, her words carefully measured. "We give him as much morphine as
we can, but… there are good days, and there are bad days. Today's been
pretty rough…"
"Oh…" Rei closed her eyes for a moment, trying to swallow
the tears that were threatening to break loose. "I—should I just let him
rest, then?" She asked softly, glancing down at the sleeping man. "I—I
don't want to bother him—I can come back tomorrow, maybe—"
"Oh, no, Miss Hino," the nurse cut in quickly, smiling
reassuringly at Rei. "Mr. Kennedy would be terribly upset to know that
he missed you. He hasn't had visitors for quite some time now; I'm sure
he'd like it if you could stay a while… unless, of course, you have
another appointment?"
"I—" Rei let her eyes wander back to Kyle for a moment. My
poor Kyle… "No… I can stay."
"That's wonderful!" The nurse smiled at Rei, waving her toward
a chair at the side of Kyle's bed. "Why don't you sit down, Miss Hino? It
might be a little while before he wakes up, but it should be pretty soon."
"Thank you…" Rei sat down slowly, unable to take her eyes
off Kyle's face. What have we done to you, Kyle? There were hard lines
around his eyes and the corners of his lips – lines of pain, which had not
been there just three months before. "How—how bad is the cancer now?"
She asked softly. "Is it—worse?"
"I'm afraid so, yes." The nurse nodded, taking a seat beside
Rei. "He can't eat or swallow anymore," she said quietly. "We tried a
stomach pump, but he just threw everything up – he can't keep anything
down for more than maybe twenty minutes – and it just got to be too
hard on him."
"Oh…" Rei bit her lip, nodding weakly. "Has—has the cancer
spread, then?"
"Yes, Miss Hino." The nurse nodded again, her eyes sympathetic.
"It's his lungs, mostly – the tumors spread there, and now they're putting
a lot of pressure on his heart and he's having a lot of difficulty breathing."
She paused for a moment, then continued, her voice softer. "He did a lot of
damage to himself with those painkillers too, you know. They wrecked his
kidneys—we've put him on dialysis, but…"
"Oh god…" Rei looked down, blinking back tears. That was
my fault, don't you see? He was trying to dull the pain inside – but
all the medication in the world couldn't help him, just made everything
even worse. "How—how much time do you think he has?"
"Not a lot, Miss Hino." The nurse replied. "I'm terribly
sorry, Miss Hino… Perhaps a month?"
"Oh…" The words were like a blow; Rei closed her eyes
for a moment, unable to comprehend the nurse's words. In one month,
Kyle, I'll lose you forever…? "That—that's—"
"Rei…"
Kyle stirred slightly, then, and Rei looked down hurriedly.
"Kyle—" It took her a few moments to realize that the man had not
opened his eyes. She turned toward the nurse in bewilderment, eyes
wide with worry. "Miss – he's hurting – what should I…?"
The nurse glanced down at her patient quickly, the shook
her head. "Don't worry, Miss Hino; he's all right." She stepped to
Kyle's side and bent down, placing her hand on his forehead. "Mr.
Kennedy has been running a fever for the last few days," she explained
quietly. "He won't say it normally, but… he's been begging for you,
just begging. That's why I thought if might do him some good to see
you today, maybe ease his mind a little bit, give him a nice surprise…"
"Oh…" Rei nodded as the nurse straightened up, her mind
whirling. Kyle… you still beg for me, after everything I've done to
hurt you? She stared down at her former husband, swallowing hard as
he cried out again. "Shh…Kyle… my poor Kyle…"
A fine sheen of perspiration was breaking out on Kyle's
brow; his features tightened, and his shallow breaths were becoming
more labored. "Rei…" He moaned softly, his voice thick with agony,
pleading with some unseen force to relieve his suffering. In that one
instant, Rei understood why Pluto had insisted that she suspend all
contact with Kyle while she was still with Jadeite – no one, not even
the stern cold Time Senshi herself, could hear his whispered pleas
without sharing in his anguish…
"Shhh…" Gently, trying not to disturb the sleeping man, Rei
leaned over and wiped Kyle's sweat-drenched brow. "It's okay, Kyle, it's
okay…" His face was burning hot against her hand; she held her cool
palm to his forehead for several minutes, trying to bring him some relief.
"Shh…"
"Rei…" Kyle's face was still tight with pain, but his tortured
breaths eased a bit, and he lapsed back into silence. Drawing her hand
from his face, Rei took some clear gloss from her purse and dabbed
some onto Kyle's dry, chapped lips; he caught her finger between them,
and she let him hang on to it, lightly caressing his face with her free
fingers…
It was nearly ten when Rei finally rose, turning toward the
nurse with one last glance at her former husband. "I should go, Miss."
Her voice was very soft, laced with resigned disappointment. "Don't
tell him I was here, please; it'll just upset him that he missed me. I'll
try and stop by tomorrow, if I can…"
"Are you sure, Miss Hino?" The nurse looked up from the
paperwork she had been tending to, her voice inquisitive. "Mr.
Kennedy should be up any minute now. If you just wait a little longer –"
"No…" Rei shook her head slightly, straightening her skirt
as she stood. "I—I'll just let him rest—he needs it." Nodding politely
toward the nurse, she flung her purse over her shoulder and moved
quietly toward the door. Her hand was on the doorknob when Kyle
cried out sharply behind her; involuntarily, Rei looked back –
–and found herself staring into a pair of stunned, feverish
blue eyes.
Kyle…
In that one moment, all words failed Rei; frozen in
the doorway, she could not pull her eyes from Kyle's gaze.
Oh god, Kyle, please don't look at me like that… don't look
at me like you love me – I don't deserve it…
"Rei…" Kyle tried to speak, but a sudden wave of pain
tore through his body, clamping his jaw shut abruptly. "Wait…"
He forced the word out through clenched teeth, then cried out in
agony, a fit of violent coughs tearing through his body…
The nurse sprung into action, then, snatching a small
basin off Kyle's dresser and rushing to his side. She was just in
time – a moment later, Kyle's coughs turned to heaves, and he
retched up a mess of bloody phlegm into the waiting basin. As Rei
watched in horror, his coughs intensified; he choked up several more
mouthfuls of dark blood, finally sinking with an exhausted moan
into his pillows.
My god, Kyle… what have we done to you…?
"Rei…" Gathering what remained of his strength, Kyle
force his eyes open, trying desperately to focus on Rei's face.
"Wait…" He was gasping for breath, his low moans laced with
desperation. "Wait… stay…"
"Kyle—"
"Please!" His eyes wild with fever, Kyle tried to push
himself up to a sitting position, but fell back a moment later, his
body wracked with agony at the sudden movement. "Rei… please…
don't go…"
"Mr. Kennedy!" The nurse was at Kyle's side, her hand
on his brow as he struggled against her, fighting with all his strength
to prop himself up. "Shh… Don't upset yourself, Mr. Kennedy," she
murmured, trying to soothe her patient as she eased him back
down
onto his pillows. "Calm down; it's okay. Shh…"
"Rei…" Kyle wasn't listening, however; his eyes never
left Rei as she stood frozen in the doorway, begging her not to step
out into the hallway. "Wait…" His pale face went whiter with every
word; even Rei could tell that he was verging on unconsciousness.
"Please… Rei… wait…"
"Oh god…" Watching Kyle's tortured pleas, Rei suddenly
felt something inside her cracking. She had prepared herself for his
rage, steeled herself against a storm of furious curses and vitriol;
this, however, was something that she had never expected. "Kyle…"
Her trance broken, Rei hurried back to Kyle's side, unable to meet
his imploring eyes. "What are you doing to yourself?" She asked
softly, reaching impulsively for his right hand and giving it a gentle
squeeze. "Don't hurt yourself like this, Kyle. Please? I'm not
leaving, promise… just calm down. Don't do this to yourself, please…"
Kyle said nothing, his trembling fingers catching Rei's
as she began to draw her hand from his. For several minutes, the
nurse's soothing chatter and Kyle's soft whimpers were the only
sounds in the room; he clung to Rei's hand desperately, his
fingers tightening weakly as each wave of pain swept over him.
"Rei…" It was nearly fifteen minutes before Kyle found
his voice again. Wincing with effort, he turned his face toward Rei,
trying to meet her gaze. "Hey…"
"Kyle?" Rei glanced up for a moment, then quickly looked
away again, unable to look into Kyle's big, blue eyes. "How are
you feeling?" she asked softly, unsure of what else to say. "A
little better?"
"Yeah…" Kyle nodded slightly, forcing a small smile,
but his lie was obvious; though the worst had passed, Kyle's face
was still white with pain, and agony in his voice betrayed his
reassuring words. "How… are you?"
"I—" I haven't had a good day since I left you. "All right,
I guess."
"That's… good…" Kyle nodded weakly, a ghost of a smile
brushing his lips. "I'm…glad…" He paused for a moment, struggling
to form the painful words. "You… happy…with your… husband?"
"I—" Rei couldn't help smiling a bit at the fiercely protective
glint in Kyle's eyes. If I told him no, he would probably hunt Jadeite
down with a gun and kill him for it– cancer be damned. Except…
Jadeite is already dead… "There was an accident," she said finally,
her words carefully measured and neutral. "Jadeite—he died…"
"Rei…" Kyle looked stunned; the surprise in his eyes quickly
changed to concern, however, as he saw the look on Rei's face. "I'm…
sorry…" Her hand was still in his, and he gave it a weak squeeze, trying
to comfort the girl. "I…didn't know…"
"I know… it's okay."
There was an awkward silence for a few seconds, and then
Rei spoke again, remembering the purpose of her visit. "Kyle… I have
something to ask you," she said quietly, trying to find the best way to
phrase her words. "I know it seems random, but have you heard anything
about what's happening in Tokyo?"
"Some…" Kyle looked up at Rei, confused at the sudden change
in topic, but she did not lift her eyes to meet his. "…why?"
"It's very important, Kyle." Rei took a deep breath, then spoke
hurriedly, her voice very soft. "The news--they've kept some things from
the public, Kyle. Important things." Fuck you and your secrecy, Pluto. I
will not let Kyle go to his grave without knowing what happened! "I know
it doesn't seem like the time for these things, Kyle, but let me tell you
a story:"
"One thousand years ago, there was a great queen named
Serenity, who headed a group of powerful rulers under a pact called
the Great Alliance..."
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Like it? Hate it? comments -- aznvballgurl@yahoo.com