Chapter 7: Garden Talk

„I can tell that you don't really like this." Michiru spoke while she wheeled Haruka down the hallway, over to the elevator. "Oh?" Haruka replied, turning her head to look at the aqua haired woman, "how come?" "You sit there all stiff and are staring down at your legs, that's what all people who can walk and still have to sit in a wheelchair for some reason do." Michiru explained while pushing the button that called the elevator up. "Seems like you have experience when it comes to that." Haruka assumed, smiling slightly. Michiru nodded, patting Harukas shoulder. "Indeed, I do." The elevator arrived, and the doors opened, allowing the aqua haired woman to push the wheelchair inside. The two stood and sat in odd silence while the lift made it's way down into the ground floor; when the doors finally opened again, Haruka let out a small, relieved sigh. "Don't like elevators?" Michiru asked immediately, once more giving Haruka the feeling that she cared a little bit more about her than doctors normally did when it came to their patients. "Slight case of claustrophobia." Haruka replied, blushing slightly while she made that confession; normally it was kept a secret. (A/N: I borrowed the idea that Haruka is suffering from slight claustrophobia from Rei-chan, since for some reason, I kinda like it ^^ Thanks Rei-chan!) "It's not like I start to panic or to cry or something, I just get uncomfortable in small places." The blonde then explained, as if trying to justify herself. "It's okay." Michiru assured her while she rolled the wheelchair down the hall and out into the garden, stopping next to a bench that stood in one of the sunny spots. "Sun or shadow?" the aqua haired woman asked, earning a slight shrug from Haruka. "I don't really care. Sun is okay, I guess." Without waiting for the doctor to help her, or even say anything, the blonde stood up and sat down on the bench, leaning back to let the sun shine on her face. Michiru sat down next to her, looking at her, before she spoke up. "You asked me while you are one of the patients who get special treatment before." Haruka turned her head to look at her, nodding. Michiru blushed slightly while she looked down at her hands. "Well, Tenoh-san, you see…I like you. Probably more than a doctor should like a patient, but I can't help it. And I feel sorry for you…I don't know you for really long now, but I can tell that you are a kind person and have a good heart. And you didn't deserve this." The last sentence was accompanied by a vague gesture at Harukas bandaged hands. "No one deserves something like that." Haruka replied, looking down at her hands herself. "But still it happened…and I guess I'll just have to live with it." She looked up again to give Michiru a weak, unsure smile. "I still can write songs after all." The aqua haired doctor nodded in reply, reaching out and putting one hand on Harukas forearm. "Yes, you can, Tenoh-san. And I'm sure that as soon as you get out of here, people will stand in line to perform the songs you will write." Haruka chuckled slightly – the first chuckle ever since she had opened the fateful package – and shrugged. "Let's hope so. Otherwise it might get quite hard to make a living." "I'm sure it will be like I said. And if not…with your knowledge when it comes to music, especially classical music, I'm sure you could also be a critic for one of the big newspapers." Michiru replied, adding a wink at the last part. Haruka chuckled again, louder and longer this time – almost making it a laugh – and looked at the doctor, smiling. "Now that's something I really should consider." She then spoke before chuckling again, shaking her head. Michiru giggled in return, playfully slapping Harukas upper arm. "Now come on, the suggestion wasn't that odd!" she defended herself while her hand fell back to the forearm of the blonde, without herself even noticing it. "No, it wasn't." Haruka replied, smiling at her doctor. "It's an option I will keep in mind when the songs I write turn out to be crap. Not that I think this will happen." "You're so modest." Michiru joked, winking at her patient once more, who grinned and shrugged in reply. "Always am." Before the blonde could say anything more, a loud grumbling noise suddenly interrupted her, causing both Michiru and herself to look slightly surprised. Then, Michiru slowly spoke, and the tone of her voice nearly caused Haruka to crack up. "Tenoh-san…was that your stomach?"

"What's for dinner?" Haruka asked eagerly when Michiru entered her room, this time not rolling a wheelchair in front of herself, but a silver steel cart with two plates and a small glass bowl on it. "Let's see what we have here." Michiru replied, stopping to examine the food that laid on the plates. "Noodle soup, chicken with potato and peas, and – for dessert – cherry compote. Like it?" Haruka shrugged, looking at the cart eagerly. "It's hospital food. No matter what you get, it all tastes the same." She replied, when suddenly worry filled her eyes. "Kaioh-san…how am I supposed to eat with my hands all bandaged up?" In front of her inner eye, she already saw herself being fed like an infant, and that scared her more than anything else for some reason. Michiru gave her a smile and kept pushing the cart until it stood next to the bed. "I need to change the bandages anyway…I will unwrap your right hand far enough to expose the first three fingers, then you should have no trouble eating. The chicken is soft, you won't need to cut it." "Thanks." Haruka replied, smiling while relief filled her. Michiru quickly did what she had promised – wrapping the bandage off until the thumb, index and middle finger of Harukas right hand laid free and were useable – and sat down next to the bed. "Try to bend your fingers…if it hurts too much, we will have to find another way to get that food into your stomach." The doctor advised, watching closely when Haruka slowly at first moved her thumb, then bending it, doing the same with the other two fingers. "Just fine." She then spoke, smiling at her doctor. "You sure? Or are you just too proud to let yourself be fed, and say that it's okay even though it does hurt?" Michiru asked, trying to sound understanding and not accusing. "I am too proud to have myself fed, but it really doesn't hurt." Haruka replied, her gaze never leaving the one of her doctor. After a seemingly endless moment, Michiru decided that Haruka told the truth and nodded, handing her a fork. "Okay. If it does start to hurt while you eat though, tell me." Haruka nodded, already getting some of the potatoes and the peas on the fork and shoving them into her mouth. Michiru leaned back, simply watching her – without the blonde noticing the loving look in the aqua haired woman's eyes.