Recap:

"Oh, you were talking about the play. At first I thought you were talking about reality and if you were then it would have gotten to be a serious problem."

"What do you mean serious problem? I highly doubt that you and I both have feelings for the same girl," Van said with a casual laugh.

"You're right, we probably don't have feelings for the same girl. All I know is that I already fell in love with one and our relationship is just starting to begin."

"Who's the girl?" Van asked as Hitomi walked towards them.

"It's . . .," Allen began.

* * * * *

Disclaimer: wow I seriously haven't written one of these since like forever . . . that is the
very first chapter I think . . . well I don't own Escaflowne .
. . or beautiful
Van . . . which sadly is quite depressing . . . (

* * * * *

Throughout the theater kids started to pile in, bustling about and preparing for rehearsal. Music and lights were tested as kids noisily talked throughout the auditorium.

"It's . . .," Allen began.

"Hitomi?" Van asked with a questioning look on his face. Allen looked at him with a funny look and then let out a small laugh.

"How did you . . .?" Allen began again.

"No. Hitomi?" Van said again and walked past Allen towards Hitomi. Allen turned and finally realized what he was talking about. Hitomi's face was covered in tears as she looked at them. Her breath became short and she started to gasp as if she couldn't breathe. Suddenly she fell on her knees and clutched her chest as she fell.

"Hitomi!" Van cried and he quickly rushed to her side and put an arm around her, "What's wrong with you?"

"Hitomi. Tell us what's wrong," Allen asked rushing to her other side. Hitomi continued gasping and sobbing and soon her condition became worse. First one student noticed and then several others began to notice that Hitomi was not in a normal state.

"What's wrong with her?"

"I don't know."

"Hope she's okay."

"Hope who's okay?" Yukari asked while walking to the center of the stage. The three girls stared at her for a second and then one of them pointed to the three kneeling in the aisles of the auditorium. Yukari turned her head cautiously, still a bit confused, and then gave a gasp as she realized who it was.

"Hitomi. Your . . . illness . . .," she whispered softly to herself, "Hitomi!"

* * * * *

'Where am I? What is this place? What happened?'

Hitomi awoke inside a white room with several windows to the right of where she lay. She moved her head around and saw that she was not wearing the same outfit she last remembered herself in and instead a light green bed sheet of a thing was covering her body. Her arms hurt as she realized that there tubes of different sorts attached to her body. She could hear the machines beeping, keeping a check on her heart rate and blood pressure. She turned again to her left and saw a single black rose in a vase on the stand next to her. Then she closed her eyes and thought about how she came to be back inside the horrible hospital she wished to forget.

'I . . . I remember I received a call. Then I just . . . ended up here?' she thought to herself, 'Why can't I seem to remember anything?'

She tried so hard for the next few hours to remember but nothing seemed to come to her. She slowly tried to sit up in her bed only to realize that if she moved the tubes from her arms pain would shoot through her causing her to grimace in pain. Finally giving up she turned her head to the side to look out the window.

"Hitomi? How are you feeling?" Yukari said as she came through the door quietly.

"Better," Hitomi responded without any particular feeling of reassurance.

"That's good. You don't want to miss anymore of school. So you better get well fast. Okay?" Yukari said while pulling up a chair and sitting next to the silent Hitomi.

"Yukari?" Hitomi asked in a voice that was barely audible to hear, "I tried." Yukari looked at Hitomi in sympathy then bowed her head in sadness.

"I tried so hard to believe that I was going to be okay. I wanted to believe in that hope; I wanted to believe in life. But then . . . when I got that phone call . . . life itself went out of my reach. It left and it was as if it never looked back," Hitomi said with silent tears.

"Hitomi?"

"I can't get the operation. There's no . . . there's no donor out there. Even my family, there's no one that matches. Then I thought about what you said. About that dream of watching each other get married and growing old and I asked the doctor if there was another way. And then he told me . . . that my parents . . . didn't want to try anything else. They didn't . . . want me to suffer anymore." Hitomi curled her hand into a fist and Yukari for the first time realized how much pain Hitomi was in.

"Hitomi. Just wait a little longer. I'm sure that . . . "

"Why? Yukari? Why did they stop trying?" Hitomi asked as more tears started to flow.

"Hitomi please just calm down. We'll find another way. We always do," Yukari said to reassure her friend. She could tell that Hitomi was about to lose control.

"Why! Why did they give up!" Hitomi began to twist herself out of the tubes and cables that were attached to her body. She tried to squirm her way out all the while screaming in pain. Yukari tried to hold her friend down to prevent her from getting hurt but it was no use. She just couldn't hold back all the pain that Hitomi was keeping deep inside her heart. Hitomi's heart rate soared and her blood pressure was climbing higher. Doctors and nurses quickly entered the room and pushed Yukari out. The nurses struggled to hold her down. The doctor prepared a drug to calm her down and amidst all the struggling he managed to inject the drug into her body. As soon as the drug entered her body, Hitomi stopped struggling and realized that her strength was being drained from her body.

'Why?' Hitomi asked herself one last time as she closed her eyes and fell into a deep state of sleep.

The doctor came out a while later and as soon as he came out Yukari got up from sitting and went to him.

"Doctor? How is she?" Yukari asked with anticipation.

"She'll be fine, but if she does that one more time there is no guarantee that she'll come out of it alive," the doctor replied letting out a small sigh as he did.

"What did you do to her?"

"We gave her a drug to calm her down. It should let her rest easy and in about three hours she should wake up. Don't worry she'll be fine. Now if you'll excuse me," the doctor turned and began speaking with a couple and their son. Yukari looked down at the ground. It was all she felt like she could do. She felt so helpless watching her friend go through so much pain.

". . . wake in three hours, then you can go see her," the doctor finished speaking with the couple and then walked off. Yukari looked up to see the couple sit down with their son. Then she realized something important and how familiar the family looked to her. Walking over slowly, she tried to look at their faces when the woman suddenly looked up with the same expression Yukari was showing to her.

"Mrs. Kanzaki?"

"Yukari. How are you?"

"I'm fine. I thought I recognized you. Did you come for Hitomi?"

"Yes. We heard she wasn't well, so we came here as fast as we could."

* * * * *

*Flashback*

"Why? Yukari? Why did they stop trying?"

*End Flashback*

* * * * *

"It's true isn't it? What the doctor told Hitomi?" Yukari said backing away slowly, "you've given up on her haven't you?"

"I don't . . ."

"You've stopped trying. You've stopped trying to keep her alive!"

"Yukari. That's not why. We haven't given up on her. We just don't want her to . . . suffer anymore." A moment of silence passed between the two.

"You think she'll suffer less, knowing that her own parents won't find another way to help her? I'm sorry, but that's bull. Maybe you're just blind, but she suffers more knowing that you won't try to find another way to help than she actually does from her illness. If you love her at all . . . you'd . . .," Yukari shook her head and turned to go into the room, "If you ask me, I don't think you should even be here at all." With that remark she walked into the room and closed the door leaving a speechless Mrs. Kanzaki in the hall. Yukari looked at the resting Hitomi and pulled up a chair. Taking one of her hands, she waited until Hitomi would open her eyes.

Yukari woke to a still sleeping Hitomi. She checked her watch and realized that it was nearly five hours since the drug and remembered that the doctor said it'd only take three hours and then Hitomi would wake up.

"Hitomi? Hitomi wake up," Yukari became worried, "Please tell me you're just closing your eyes. Please tell me that you're just faking it. Hitomi? Hitomi . . ."

Yukari became fearful for her friend. She knew that Hitomi would have woken up by now, with or without the drug.

'What if you never wake up? I . . . I can't lose you now Hitomi. Please just open your eyes and tell me that everything will be all right . . .,' Yukari thought. Yukari slowly pulled out her cell phone, dialed a number, and with a shaky voice she spoke.

* * * * *

Hitomi was floating in a state of darkness. She felt as if everything was lifted off of her shoulders. She closed her eyes and thought back on everything. She just wanted to disappear and never go back.

'It's so dark. This emptiness. Why does it feel so empty? Maybe it's because there is no hope. There's nothing left for me to hold on to,' Hitomi thought, 'I feel so weak, so lost. Is this how it should be? Will I be alone? Alone . . . . .'

* * * * *

Entering the room, he took a long and solemn look at Yukari then turned his focus at Hitomi. He slowly walked over and sat down in the very same place Yukari was sitting minutes before. Taking her hand into his, he whispered soft words and stared longingly at her face. After a few minutes he squeezed her hand tightly and bowed his head in sadness. There was nothing he could do to make her wake up.

"Please Hitomi . . . please come back to me," he whispered as he leaned in and rested his forehead upon hers.

* * * * *

'Hey,' a voice said.

Hitomi looked up and stared at the face that was looking down at her. The two cherry trees swayed side to side from the wind. Flower petals danced around the two figures.

'Why are you here all alone?'

'I just wanted to be alone . . . to disappear . . .'

The figure stared at her with a surprised face and then smiled. He walked towards her and sat down next to her, leaning casually against the cherry tree. Hitomi buried her face into her lap and stared on with an empty and solemn stare. Then she felt a warm presence upon her hand and looked. His hand was holding hers and she just stared.

'You don't have to be alone,' he said. Hitomi looked at him and then met his eyes, 'Because I'll always be right here with you.'

For the first time, Hitomi felt that she really wasn't alone. She felt as if this person could truly take away her pain and sadness. She leaned in closer and rested her head on his shoulder. Intertwining her fingers with his, she smiled.

'Thank you. Thank you . . . Van,'

* * * * *

Van felt a reassuring squeeze from Hitomi's hand and he opened his eyes and slowly lifted his head. Hitomi's eyes were open and she was smiling at him with weary, but happy eyes. Van just stared back and the moment that the two shared together was quiet but neither person felt that there was a need for words to be shared. Smiling Van kissed Hitomi's forehead and then rested his on the very spot for which he laid his kiss.

A/N: ahhhh . . . it feels so nice to write another chapter and then post it hehe. Long long time since i wrote this chapter and actually finished it. Oh well hope everyone enjoyed it and don't forget to review!! Damn these freakin non spaced spots . . . it's ruining the overall effect of my story . . . hope everyone can figure out the thoughts and stuff . . . damn . . .