QoH: *twitch* im losin my mind... *twitch* arg! i hate not being able to write when i want 2... _ all i do is work! even now, im snagging some time before i go in for my shift... @_@ EVILNESS!
Chapter 14: I Tried So Hard
Joey stared at her with his jaw hanging like it was on a loose hinge as he stopped cold in the doorway, "What in da heck happened?! Who did this?!"
Serenity smiled very faintly at her protective sibling as she lay back on the examining table, but her eyes became shadowed again when she thought back to earlier that day, "A gang."
Noting her short reply, he frowned and sat next to her in a rolling chair, "Hey, don't do that. No secrets, not now. Ya gotta tell me what's goin' on. I know there's more to this than you're lettin' on."
She looked away and crossed her arms, not willing to look him in the eye, "I can't."
"Can't, or won't?" Frustration evident on his face, he stood and paced around the small room, "My best friend and my sister are in the hospital 'cause of some bunch of thugs, and I can't do anythin' about it 'cause you won't say a word about it!"
Her eyes flashed in rare temper at him, bolting upright, "Joey, I said I can't say anything, so just drop it, OK? You're right, there's more to it than that, but that's precisely why I can't talk about it!"
He looked hurt, dropping back in the chair wearily, "Even to me? We've always told each other everythin', haven't we?"
Serenity sighed, regretting her outburst, "I know that, and I know you just want to help, but..." she closed her eyes, saddened, "I wish I could tell you, big brother, I really do. You have no idea how much I'd love to finally let it all out to you, but that's just impossible right now."
Joey put his hand on her arm in concern, his gaze troubled, "Are you sure there's nothin' I can do?"
She gave him a half-smile and shrugged a bit, "Afraid not. It's nice to know you're there for me, all the same."
He stood and gave her a little hug, smiling at her faintly, "I'm proud of you, Sis."
Puzzled, she drew back to look in his eyes, "Why?"
"Serenity," he sighed and hitched himself up on the table to sit beside her, "you're my little sister, but I have to face the fact that you've grown up when it's starin' me straight in the face. I know you have feelins' for Yug, and I know this whole thing's got something to do with him, way more than just the gang. Whatever it is, I can tell it's a lot to take on."
She gaped at him in shock and sputtered a half-hearted protest, knowing even as she did so that the blush flaring up her neck to her hairline told quite a different tale.
"Much as I act the part sometimes, I'm no doofus." Joey shook his head and laughed slightly as he squeezed her shoulder in reassurance, "What kinda big bro would I be if I didn't notice you fallin' for my best bud?"
She smiled a bit as she leaned her head on his shoulder, happier for his support than she doubted he'd ever know, "I guess you have a point. I don't like to think that I'm that transparent, that's all." Especially not in the current situation, she added to herself darkly as her jaw tightened just a little. I can't even confide in my own family anymore. Chalk another one up to Tea and her scheming. She hoped Joey didn't notice her expression. He was uncannily perceptive tonight and, no doubt, would know that she forming something of a plan, and probably try and stop her for her own safety. I think it's time someone evened the score.
****
In the early morning hours following the visit from her brother, Serenity counted the dots in the ceiling tiles from her hospital bed. The tension had curled in the pit of her stomach to the point where she found it impossible to sleep, and it was really beginning to get to her. Knowing Yugi was somewhere close, not to mention grievously injured because of her, kept her brain buzzing. Unfortunately, however, the ceaseless activity in her head was mostly just useless worrying. What more can I do right now? It's better than brooding, if only marginally.
Gah, this is ridiculous. She sat up irritably and scowled at the monitors beside her in an effort to direct her frustration at something, and the machines seemed as good a target as any for the moment. They happened to be the only thing keeping her from jumping right out and going to find Yugi herself, never mind that she still hurt like the dickens. However, of course, the alarms would go off the second she disconnected herself, and she couldn't drag all those gizmos with her. Yep, I'm basically stuck.
She looked up in surprise as a soft knock came on her door, her brows raising when the knob began to turn slowly, soundlessly in it's track. Strange, she thought to herself, frowning a bit, I don't think it's time for vitals, but who else could be up at this time but nurses and doctors?
"Hello, Serenity." Dr. Tamahome smiled at her and inched herself quietly through the space she'd created in the doorway, "I figured you'd still be up. Worried about young Mr. Motou, I take it?"
Mildly confused at her presence, she blinked, then nodded, "Yeah, you could say that. Excuse me, but what are you doing here, ma'am? It is the middle of the night, despite the fact that we're wide awake."
The elder woman shrugged slightly, giving her a conspiratorial smile, "I was under the impression that you were wanting to see Yugi as soon as humanly possible."
Serenity's eyes widened in shock, stunned at this sentence coming from a doctor, "Did I hear right? You mean you're going to let me see Yugi?" She sat back and put a hand to her forehead, "I sure hope this isn't some dream, or whatever.
"Nope, it's real, all right. That is, unless I'm dreaming with you." Dr. Tamahome chuckled good-naturedly as she walked toward the girl's bed, "Here, I'll help you out of all this junk. No one will know the difference, don't worry."
****
Serenity looked up uncertainly at her friend as they arrived in front of Yugi's room, almost afraid to see him now, "What if…" She couldn't even bring herself to wrap her mind around the concept, much less say it.
The doctor smiled faintly at her young conspirator, "Don't think about 'what ifs'. Just get in there, Serenity."
She smiled back up at her, grateful for her support as she opened the door to the darkened room, "Thanks."
"Not at all." Dr. Tamahome nodded slightly, urging her on. She stood there for a moment after the door closed, thoughtfully murmuring to herself, "I think they both need each other more than they know. What else could I do?"
On the other side of the door, Serenity gave her eyes time to adjust to the change in lighting. She bit her lip and crept toward the bed where he lay, his battered body delineated in appalling detail by the dim bulb over his head. Somebody had washed his hair for him, so it wasn't bloody anymore, but that just lifted it away from his face and made the wounds that much more obvious. Every mechanical beep and whir of the monitors around him attested to Yugi's tenacious hold on life, yet she gently touched his chest just to make sure he was breathing.
Yes, labored though it was, he was breathing on his own. This gave her some hope as she sat gingerly on the bed on Yugi's left side, careful not to jar him. His blackened eyes stood out brilliantly among the other bruises on his face, giving him the look of a raccoon as she tentatively trailed her fingers along his inflamed cheek and sighed, "Its so unreal, this whole thing."
She tenderly took the limp hand that lay beside her in both of hers and studied it pensively as her fingers ran over his, "I tried so hard to protect you, but in the end, it didn't even matter, did it?"
Serenity closed her eyes and shook her head bitterly, cradling his hand against her cheek, "I don't even know how it got so far. It started with one thing that shouldn't have been any of my business in the first place, and the next I know, here we are."
He looks so peaceful, she mused silently as her gaze drifted over his face, like nothing in the world is wrong. She smiled a little and pressed his knuckles to his lips, whispering fiercely, "All I know is that I didn't fall in love with you just to watch you go now, so don't you leave me, okay?" She stood up slowly and leaned over him, gently brushing her lips against his, soft as a butterfly's wing, "I won't let you die, Yugi. I can't."
~I'm gonna stand,
stand by your side.
Kiss all your tears away,
tonight.
I'm gonna stand,
stand by your side.
Make you believe again.~
Dr. Tamahome's voice came in an undertone outside the room, "It's time to go, Serenity." She tiptoed quietly to the door and put her hand on the knob, looking back at him. Come back to us, Yugi, please…
QoH: ooh, i do like this 1… *evil grin* teehee! newhosits, i gotta give credit 2 an amv ive recently gotten addicted 2 4 the inspiration of some of the lil phrases in here ^_~ its a neon genesis evangelion vid, done 2 "in the end" by linkin park (heck, im not even a fan of em! o_O weird… lol). i liked the song so much, in fact, that i went out and bought the cd (tho, unfortunately, the 1 i got was a remix and not near so good… -_-() dangit *shrugs* ah well) ^_^ actually, i happen 2 be listenin 2 the amv as i type this (bein as i cant watch it and write at the same time hehe) I think it rather fits the bitterness Serenity's feelin right now, 2 tell ya the truth. if ya wanna know what da heck im talking about, go 2 "anime rudeboy productions." U should be able 2 type that into ur browser and find it that way ^_^ it really worth lookin at, as r the rest of the vids there. neways, lemme know whatcha think, eh? again, SORRY ABOUT THE LONG WAIT! *bows profusely*