Twin Hearts: A Parallel Destiny
Chapter 3: A Good Lie
She couldn't stop her sobbing or the steady flow of water from her eyes and down her cheeks.
Now what do I do? she thought. They'll come after me for sure now. They'll say, 'Now Tomo, why didn't you tell us this before when we asked. You said you were fine, that nothing was wrong. Now can you tell us what it is? Please?' And what about Dad? He'll scream at me, tell me I'm weak, that I've ruined my life. Well, if I didn't want my life to be ruined, then I wouldn't have jumped in the first place! And then, if I start crying in front of him, it will just make things worse. I'll probably end up in a hospital somewhere, where they'll try and figure me out. Give me medication, send me to a psychiatrist of psychologist or whatever...A shrink in any case...Oh, God what will I do now!! Could this get any worse??!!
She heard feet coming up the stairs behind them and felt the vibration of the feet walking towards them on the rooftop. Please don't let it be my father. Oh, God, please don't let it be him! I don't care who it is, as long as it's not him!
"Sei!"
She froze. Oh no. Not him...
"Rei! How'd you know I was here?"
"I saw you from the sidewalk. I was waiting for you outside but..."
She could feel his eyes on her as he walked past.
"Are you okay?" Shiori asked from the doorway. She wasn't able to keep up with Rei as he ran up the stairs, arriving a few moments later.
"Yeah, I'm fine. But..."
More eyes. Now all three of them were looking at her. She gathered her knees closer to her chest until she could barely breath.
"Well, there's paramedics on the way. The ambulance was arriving as we came back into the school."
Great, Tomo thought to herself, as she dried her eyes and let out a huge sigh. Simply lovely.
"What happened, Sei? This your new girlfriend or something?" Rei said, joking around.
Sei made a weak attempt at a laugh. It came out choked and high, like a squeak. "No,...no."
"Then who is she?" Shiori asked, now clinging to Rei's arm, every so often glancing at Tomo, who was now sitting with her legs straight out, but her head tilted down so they couldn't see her face. This was why she decided not to cut her hair too short this time.
"I'm not sure, actually. She ran into me earlier, literally, actually. I wanted to make sure she was okay, so I followed her up."
"That's not like you, Sei. Since when did you start stalking people?" Rei laughed at his own joke, Shiori giggled, and Sei managed a weak smile. "But anyway, what happened? Why was she hanging from the roof?"
"Well...," said Sei, as his eyes wandered over to Tomo. "She was standing on the ledge, most likely just taking in the fresh air and enjoying the view, when she slipped. I caught her right afterwards. She probably spaced out and lost her balance."
"Well, good thing you were here to save her, hero," said Rei as he patted Sei on the back. he thought to himself. Then again, you've been drifting lately... Rei sighed.
Tomo had to hold in a sadistic laugh. Hero?! A Hero?! she laughed inside her head. After all, if she laughed out loud, well, his little "story" would never hold. And if she told the same one, maybe she'd get away with her little "slip." He's far from being a 'Hero'! Heros save the lives of those who don't want to die when they're facing death, not when they chose it for themselves. He's more like a surgeon who messes up on the operation table and makes the life of his patient even worse. A 'hero' he says. More inward laughter.
Well, at least by now, her tears had dried, and she had a smile on her face.
More footsteps.
"Is everyone okay up here?" A man wearing the outfit of a paramedic and carrying a large first-aid kit stepped onto the roof from the stairs.
"Yeah," Rei shouted over.
Sei walked across the roof to the man and Tomo simply assumed that he told the man the same story he managed to tell Rei.
The man got a confused look on his face, as if he didn't quite understand, or that he didn't believe the story, but then his eyes seemed to clear and he nodded his head.
"It's happened before, but I better have a look at her and talk to her, anyway."
The sound and vibration of his steps drew nearer to her. She could feel him kneeling next to her and heard the click of the first-aid box as he placed it on the roof.
"You okay?" he asked.
"Yeah," she said with a sniffle. "I just sort-of slipped, but that boy saved me, thank God. I really should get out of the habit of coming up to the roof to relax. My friends warned me that my tendency of spacing out would get me in trouble one of these days."
She let her eyes flit in his direction. Did he buy it? She saw him smile and nod his head. She felt herself relax a bit.
"Okay. Just be more careful. And you're right, you really should get out of this dangerous habit of yours...You're not hurt at all? There doesn't seem to be a scratch on you."
Tomo shook her head. "No, I'm fine. I barely fell out of arms reach of the ledge. I didn't even scrape against anything, and I'm getting over the initial shock, too."
The paramedic smiled as he stood up. "Okay. Just be more careful, alright? And I'm guessing you don't want to go to the hospital then?"
She looked up at him and managed one of her fake happy smiles. It worked on him. She even managed to laugh. "No, I'm fine. Thanks for your concern."
He nodded his head. "No prob." He waved off the guys that were standing at the door with the stretcher, looked back at her one last time, shook his head, and then walked across the roof to the door.
"Some crazy youths we have today," he said to himself. "With some crazy, dangerous habits."
Still sitting on the roof, Tomo looked over at the little group that stood before her to find that all three were staring back.
Oops...Now what?
***
A/N: Rei and Shiori want Sei to leave with them as they head home, but Sei says he needs to make sure that the girl's okay. What will she do now? He knows her secret that she can't afford having anyone else know, and what will she do with a life that she now can't get rid of?
Next chapter:...Chapter 4: Now What?
Chapter 3: A Good Lie
She couldn't stop her sobbing or the steady flow of water from her eyes and down her cheeks.
Now what do I do? she thought. They'll come after me for sure now. They'll say, 'Now Tomo, why didn't you tell us this before when we asked. You said you were fine, that nothing was wrong. Now can you tell us what it is? Please?' And what about Dad? He'll scream at me, tell me I'm weak, that I've ruined my life. Well, if I didn't want my life to be ruined, then I wouldn't have jumped in the first place! And then, if I start crying in front of him, it will just make things worse. I'll probably end up in a hospital somewhere, where they'll try and figure me out. Give me medication, send me to a psychiatrist of psychologist or whatever...A shrink in any case...Oh, God what will I do now!! Could this get any worse??!!
She heard feet coming up the stairs behind them and felt the vibration of the feet walking towards them on the rooftop. Please don't let it be my father. Oh, God, please don't let it be him! I don't care who it is, as long as it's not him!
"Sei!"
She froze. Oh no. Not him...
"Rei! How'd you know I was here?"
"I saw you from the sidewalk. I was waiting for you outside but..."
She could feel his eyes on her as he walked past.
"Are you okay?" Shiori asked from the doorway. She wasn't able to keep up with Rei as he ran up the stairs, arriving a few moments later.
"Yeah, I'm fine. But..."
More eyes. Now all three of them were looking at her. She gathered her knees closer to her chest until she could barely breath.
"Well, there's paramedics on the way. The ambulance was arriving as we came back into the school."
Great, Tomo thought to herself, as she dried her eyes and let out a huge sigh. Simply lovely.
"What happened, Sei? This your new girlfriend or something?" Rei said, joking around.
Sei made a weak attempt at a laugh. It came out choked and high, like a squeak. "No,...no."
"Then who is she?" Shiori asked, now clinging to Rei's arm, every so often glancing at Tomo, who was now sitting with her legs straight out, but her head tilted down so they couldn't see her face. This was why she decided not to cut her hair too short this time.
"I'm not sure, actually. She ran into me earlier, literally, actually. I wanted to make sure she was okay, so I followed her up."
"That's not like you, Sei. Since when did you start stalking people?" Rei laughed at his own joke, Shiori giggled, and Sei managed a weak smile. "But anyway, what happened? Why was she hanging from the roof?"
"Well...," said Sei, as his eyes wandered over to Tomo. "She was standing on the ledge, most likely just taking in the fresh air and enjoying the view, when she slipped. I caught her right afterwards. She probably spaced out and lost her balance."
"Well, good thing you were here to save her, hero," said Rei as he patted Sei on the back. he thought to himself. Then again, you've been drifting lately... Rei sighed.
Tomo had to hold in a sadistic laugh. Hero?! A Hero?! she laughed inside her head. After all, if she laughed out loud, well, his little "story" would never hold. And if she told the same one, maybe she'd get away with her little "slip." He's far from being a 'Hero'! Heros save the lives of those who don't want to die when they're facing death, not when they chose it for themselves. He's more like a surgeon who messes up on the operation table and makes the life of his patient even worse. A 'hero' he says. More inward laughter.
Well, at least by now, her tears had dried, and she had a smile on her face.
More footsteps.
"Is everyone okay up here?" A man wearing the outfit of a paramedic and carrying a large first-aid kit stepped onto the roof from the stairs.
"Yeah," Rei shouted over.
Sei walked across the roof to the man and Tomo simply assumed that he told the man the same story he managed to tell Rei.
The man got a confused look on his face, as if he didn't quite understand, or that he didn't believe the story, but then his eyes seemed to clear and he nodded his head.
"It's happened before, but I better have a look at her and talk to her, anyway."
The sound and vibration of his steps drew nearer to her. She could feel him kneeling next to her and heard the click of the first-aid box as he placed it on the roof.
"You okay?" he asked.
"Yeah," she said with a sniffle. "I just sort-of slipped, but that boy saved me, thank God. I really should get out of the habit of coming up to the roof to relax. My friends warned me that my tendency of spacing out would get me in trouble one of these days."
She let her eyes flit in his direction. Did he buy it? She saw him smile and nod his head. She felt herself relax a bit.
"Okay. Just be more careful. And you're right, you really should get out of this dangerous habit of yours...You're not hurt at all? There doesn't seem to be a scratch on you."
Tomo shook her head. "No, I'm fine. I barely fell out of arms reach of the ledge. I didn't even scrape against anything, and I'm getting over the initial shock, too."
The paramedic smiled as he stood up. "Okay. Just be more careful, alright? And I'm guessing you don't want to go to the hospital then?"
She looked up at him and managed one of her fake happy smiles. It worked on him. She even managed to laugh. "No, I'm fine. Thanks for your concern."
He nodded his head. "No prob." He waved off the guys that were standing at the door with the stretcher, looked back at her one last time, shook his head, and then walked across the roof to the door.
"Some crazy youths we have today," he said to himself. "With some crazy, dangerous habits."
Still sitting on the roof, Tomo looked over at the little group that stood before her to find that all three were staring back.
Oops...Now what?
***
A/N: Rei and Shiori want Sei to leave with them as they head home, but Sei says he needs to make sure that the girl's okay. What will she do now? He knows her secret that she can't afford having anyone else know, and what will she do with a life that she now can't get rid of?
Next chapter:...Chapter 4: Now What?