BISHLOV NOTES AND WARNING:  Slightly dark at the end, and my potty mouth had been at work here.  The words are mild to my standards, but considering that I never used these particular words in the previous stories, they might make some of you cringe.  Oh yeah, there's a connection between this chapter and chapter 5 of "Hikaru's Story".  See if you can find it.  Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER:  I do not own MKR or any of its characters.  CLAMP does.  This plot is a product of my overactive imagination.

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UMI'S STORY

By bishounen lovah

Chapter 3

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"I feel weird."

"Define weird."

Umi looked out of the window of her psychiatrist's 18th floor clinic.  She loved the view.  They were so far up that the people down below looked like tiny insects.  Somehow she felt free here as though her distance from the streets of Tokyo had lessened the burden on her shoulders.  Up here she didn't have to pretend she was all right.  Up here she didn't have to be someone that she was not.

Of course, another factor for this temporary feeling of liberty was the woman across the room.  Dr. Akamatsu.  A pleasant woman.  Great listener too.  But then again it was her job to listen and she was getting a lot of money for it at the same time.

Umi went back to her chair and let out a deep sigh.  "This really is a great seat.  Makes me feel relaxed.  You think you could sell it to me?  You can name your price."

The older woman raised an eyebrow but didn't stop from writing in her top secret notepad.  "If I sold that chair to you, then it would mean the end of my career.  I'll have you know many miracles happened in that chair and I'm not going to sell it to you even if you gave me my very own tropical island to spend my premature retirement in."

"Hey, you can't blame me for trying," Umi sighed again, sinking deeper in the disgustingly comfortable seat.

"And if you think you could change the subject that easily then you've sorely underestimated my powers as a glorified shrink.  Come on.  Out with it, Umi, and tell me what's bothering you."

For a moment, the blue-haired girl hesitated.  She was so out of it these days that she wasn't sure if the feeling had basis or was just a product of her suddenly paranoid imagination.  Akamatsu-sensei wouldn't laugh at her, she was sure of it, but she also knew that it would be another point against her.  Sane — 2; Insane — 9.

Then again, what other choice did she have?  She had no one else to tell these things to and the shrink was already extorting a lot of money from her so she might as well make the most of it.

"The feeling started months ago, but I guess I never acknowledged it until recently."  Umi leaned forward and frowned.  "I feel as if someone has been watching me, following me."

"What happened?"

"Nothing really.  I told you…It was a feeling.  You know, sometimes I get the chills and sometimes the hair on my back would rise.  The feeling is getting stronger and more frequent these days.  I'm getting this notion that something bad is about to happen."

"You said the feeling started a long time ago.  Why tell me only now?"

Umi shrugged and brushed her bangs from her face.  "It didn't bother me back then.  I'm used to being stared at.  But it's different now.  Sometimes I feel like I'm being suffocated, like someone has been crowding me."

She paused for a while and saw the shrink eye her intensely.  She felt uncomfortable and it worried her that she was not getting any better.  "What's wrong with me?  Am I being too paranoid?"

"Hm.  Paranoia can be a strong condition.  Usually it can cause delusions and hallucinations.  Have you had any?  No?  Then since you haven't experienced any, I'd say you're not suffering from it.  It could be that you're being too sensitive about your illness.  You don't want others to know what you're going through so you look around to see if anyone noticed anything.  You're afraid that someone might notice thus the feeling."

It made sense, what the doctor said, and maybe she was right.  Maybe Umi was reading too much out of nothing.  At least now she knew that she was not worse off than she was yesterday.

"Have you been taking your medicines regularly," Akamatsu-sensei asked.

"Yes." Umi would have gladly popped them in her mouth like candies but always managed to stop herself in time.

"Good, good.  So tell me about your dreams.  Have you been sleeping well?"

"Sleep?  No," she laughed dryly.  "I barely sleep at all, but the funny thing is I don't have those dreams anymore.  Of course, it could be because I only get to sleep an hour or two.  Not much time for the brainwaves to kick in."

"Hm."  The shrink made that annoying sound again.

Her dreams had always revolved around one person…Ascot.  It had always been about him.  Him and his monster pets.  Him saving her life.  Him loving her.  And him leaving her.

It wasn't right though because she was the one who left him.  She was the one who rejected him.  And she was the one who was suffering.  Her every minute was plagued by thoughts of him.  Sometimes she welcomed those memories especially during times of loneliness.  Other times, she hated them because they brought too much pain.  But there were times when she woke up confused especially after having a particularly weird dream.

It had come to her in many restless, if not sleepless, nights.  The dream was vague and mysterious and made no sense.  It included her as a girl, the beach, several dogs and a boy that looked very much like Ascot.  A part of her knew that it was only a product of her desires and loneliness, but another part nagged at the familiarity of the dream.

She barely recalled her childhood but knew that her parents used to own a beach house somewhere near the city.  She was fairly sure that the dream was set in that place but had no idea how Ascot got into the picture.  Perhaps it was because her mind was drawing from previous experiences to remind her.  Of what, she didn't know.  What she did know was those memories were of happy times — when her parents still gave her the time of day and when, well, anything about Ascot was a bittersweet memory.

It had taken her months of therapy to interpret her dreams.  Akamatsu-sensei did a large part of it.  If it wasn't for her help, Umi would have probably sunk deep in desperation.  She was her only hold on sanity.  Of course, there were details that the shrink didn't know about like the magic, monsters and puu-ing marshmallows, but that didn't stop her from painting a clearer picture of Umi's mind.

By the time the hour-long session was over, Umi was feeling pretty good.  Unfortunately, the feeling should last her for a week until her next appointment and she was skeptical if she could hold on that long.

"Here," Akamatsu-sensei handed Umi a piece of paper.  "This might help you with your sleeping problem.  Try it for two or three days.  If it doesn't work, call me.  Take one pill an hour before you go to sleep."

A few minutes later, Umi emerged from the building and started to walk to the train station that would take her to the campus.  She wasn't planning on going to class today, but since she was in an okay mood, it was best if she took advantage of it.  She glanced at her watch then decided to take a shortcut.

If I catch the 12:30 train, I might be able to make it.

She was about to enter an alley when someone called out.

"Umi!"

She scanned the crowd and saw Ferio rushing towards her.  She stepped aside from the moving pedestrians and waited for him with a practiced smile.

"Hey," Ferio panted a bit, "I thought it was you.  I saw you coming out of the Medico building.  You're not sick, are you?"

"Er, no.  I had an, uh, eye exam.  What about you?  What are you doing here," Umi quickly shoved the limelight on him.

"Annual tests.  It's a pain, but it's something that had to be done.  Fuu wanted to come, but there was no point in making her wait in a strange place.  You going home yet?  I think Hikaru's there too."

"No!" she replied rather sharply.  "I mean, I, uh, have some afternoon classes."

"Oh, that's okay then.  But you will be home tonight, right?  We're planning to have a video marathon, remember?  Lots of cheese popcorn and even cheesier movies."

"Um, yeah.  I'll try to catch up…I, uh, have a lot of research to do in the library."

Ferio gave her an assessing look, as though he was trying to read her mind.  "You haven't been around much lately.  You're not avoiding us, are you?"

"No," she forced herself to laugh.  "God, no.  Why would I?  I'm just busy.  Listen, I have to go or I'm going to miss the train.  I'll see you around, okay?"

"Umi," he grabbed her hand before she could slip away.  "We miss you.  Hikaru and Fuu — they're worried about you."

"I'm fine.  There's nothing to worry about.  Really, there isn't."  It was hard to keep from falling apart right then and there.  She didn't know where she found the strength to keep on smiling, but she was able to do it.  She didn't even know why she hugged him, but it felt good to lean on a friend even for a little while.

"Hey, I really have to go," she said with a weak smile.  She had to get out of there before she burst into tears.

"Yeah.  Okay.  Be careful."

She was already walking away but waved to tell him that she heard him.  Thankfully the alleyway was deserted.  As soon as he was out of sight, she leaned on the brick wall to compose herself.

Damn!  There goes my good mood.

After a minute or so, she started to walk again.  She had no other choice but to go to class.  She was in no mood to roam around the city and she sure as hell didn't want to face Hikaru and Fuu.  There was a loud clap of thunder overhead and fat drops of rain started to fall.  Just my luck, she cursed, although she did not attempt to outrun the sudden downpour.

Halfway through the alley, Umi stopped abruptly.  She was having that feeling of being watched again.  The skin on her nape prickled and her arms were full of goose bumps.  She quickly turned around and surveyed the area.  Her eyes scanned every inch and her ears were peeled for any unusual sounds, but there was nothing amiss except for her tingling senses.

Paranoia or not, I'm not going to stay here and take my chances.

It was dangerous to turn back now and it made no sense too.  Her heels clicked loudly as she tried to walk to the other end of the alley as fast as she could.  Strange how the opening seemed too far away all of a sudden.

She was almost home free when someone grabbed her arm and twisted her around.  She was about to scream but whoever it was who grabbed her had roughly pushed her against the wall.  The force of it caused her head to slam hard on the bricks.

She didn't get to see who her assailant was.  The world suddenly turned black and the last image that came into her mind was a pair of smiling green eyes.

He couldn't save her now.

No one could.

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That slut!  That bitch!

How could she do this to me?

I worshipped her.  I thought the world of her.

And how does she repay me?

How could she replace me with that guy?

He's her friend's lover!

He doesn't love her like I do!

The man was furious.  He watched as Umi talked with the green-haired guy.  He thought it was an innocent conversation at first, although it didn't prevent him from feeling any pangs of jealousy.  He started to see red as the conversation turned into hand holding then hugging.

Everything else faded.  There was nothing and no one but him, Umi and that green-haired bastard.  He started to walk towards them, his hands balled into fists inside his coat pockets.  He didn't notice the honking cars that almost ran over him as he crossed the street.  He didn't notice the people that he bumped or the dog that he kicked.  There was only him, Umi and that bastard.

By the time he reached the area where he could do some serious damage, the two 'lovers' had already gone separate ways.  The man paused for a while to decide whom he should go after first — the bastard or the bitch.

There's nothing to gain with the man.  Umi is what I want.  And Umi is what I'll have.

He followed her through the alley, staying close to the walls.  Midway, she sensed his presence.  He expertly hid behind a large metal trash bin and waited for her to start walking again.  It was a long wait.  He had noticed that her senses were getting sharper every day.  If he didn't move now, she would find out about him and he would never be able to take her.

She started moving again, him along with her.  His strides matched her fast pace only his were longer.  Soon he was able to reach her, and just in time too.  He was able to stop her from leaving the deserted alley.

He nearly growled in anger as he stopped her from escaping.  He didn't expect to pull her so hard, but his anger gave him more strength.  For a moment, he panicked when she fell into an unconscious heap, but the feeling turned into triumph when he realized his good luck.  Gray eyes gleamed as he surveyed her face and body.

You're mine now, Umi.  You'll be mine for ever.

TBC…