Chapter seven: A little peace and quiet

Sirens so many sirens filled my head, and the voices of people I didn't know. I could feel my body being lifted up and onto something soft and a mask being placed over my mouth. My vision was so blurry that images mixed and ran together like paint. I wanted to get up but my body was still in pain. I could hear voices talking, and one sounded familiar. I opened my eyes and saw Anna. She was talking to me but I could feel my grip on conscious slipping, slowly the sounds of the sirens melted away and I only saw Anna mouth my name before I passed out again.

I woke up to the lovely scenery of a white ceiling and the smell of sterilized building; right away I knew where I was. The sound of beeping and distant voices was all I could hear; I looked over and saw a heart rate monitor.

'Wonder who the poor bastard is that needs that thing?' I asked myself, then it dawned on me that poor bastard was named Yoh! I shot up out of the bed and felt a pain in my right arm as the I.V needle ripped out of my skin.

"Yoh calm down," I looked over and saw Anna rushing to my side.

I looked around and saw every possible thing that the hospital had hooked up to me, cords and tubes everywhere; I must have looked like a damn robot. I pulled the oxygen mask off my face as well as the heart monitor. I was tired of listening to that annoying beeping.

"Leave everything on Yoh they say your still unstable," Anna pleaded trying to place the mask back on my face.

I grabbed her arm, "I don't need that thing."

My eyes shot over to the door when I saw a nurse rush into the room, "We heard your heart rate monitor stop so we thought something had happened." I watched her closely as she placed the needle back into my arm. "Would you like to talk to the doctor right now?" she asked.

"No, it's alright I think I can explain it to him," Anna replied pulling her arm out of my grasp.

She waited until the nurse left before she turned to me, I watched as she opened her mouth several times before she actually spoke. This must have been hard on her.

"Are you alright?" she asked with a cool voice.

I just shrugged my shoulders in response.

"Well that's good, but the doctors still wish to keep you here."

"Why?" I asked. Anna seemed a little surprised with my response.

"Yoh, you almost died," this time her voice was shakier.

I met her gaze; she looked as if she was on the verge of crying.

"They told me that your blood pressure was down to near death, you're breathing slow and erratic. You kept spitting up blood and they didn't know why or how to stop it. The doctors were about ready to write up the death certificate when suddenly you stabilized," I flinched a little when she moved closer to me and held onto my hand.

"Don't worry, I'm not six feet under yet," I whispered to her. She smiled a little at this and rested her head on my shoulder.

Over the next week I was visited on a regular basis by everyone. Especially Manta, I felt bad because most of the time they had me so drugged up on painkillers that I just felt like sleeping. And when I did talk I hardly made any sense at all. But I smiled and laughed even if all the while I was secretly worrying about that vision I had of Hao and what he had threatened me with. I tried again and again to convince myself that me getting ill had nothing to do with what he had said but there was no other explanation for it.

"So you will be going home tomorrow?" Manta asked.

I snorted, "Ya that's what they tell me at least. Then I can finally get of the dopey juice," I said pointing to my I.V.

Manta laughed but his smile faded quickly as his face grew serious, "You know Anna was really worried about you. She still is."

I looked away from him and decided to busy myself with looking at the ceiling. "I

know."

"She told me you have been acting strange lately. How you jut ran off and ended up at the police station."

I prayed in my head that Anna hadn't told Manta about the incident a few nights ago between us two. "What else did she tell you?" I asked not knowing if I wanted the answer.

Manta's brows came together, "Nothing. Why is there more?"

"No, I was just curious that's all."

Manta nodded in reply. I sighed, happy that he wasn't going to press the subject any further.

When I got home Anna never let me out of her sight. It was getting a little annoying, but I guess when someone spontaneously has some sort of convulsion leaving them near death you don't want to leave them alone.

"How are you feeling," She asked her eyes unreadable as she sat across from me.

"Same as I did 20 minutes ago," I replied.

She only nodded back.

I felt bad, Anna was very worried about me, and I wasn't exactly making it easy for her. But at the moment I was preoccupied with what Hao had said to me. I was lucky so far, he hadn't come to me in my dreams since the incident, still I was able to feel his presence in my body and mind, every bitter word that fell out of my mouth reminded me.

It was night and it felt good to be sleeping in my own bed. But sleep wouldn't come, I could hear Anna downstairs, she had sent me upstairs when I had mentioned my head was hurting. I rolled over to try and get comfortable but only sighed in defeat knowing sleep would not come to be tonight.

I sat up when I heard my door sliding open. I saw Anna's dark silhouette in the doorway.

"I brought you water and something for your headache," her voice sounded tired.

I thanked her as I took the water and swallowed the pills. Her face looked like the same old Anna but her eyes gave her away, I could tell she was worn out from everything that had happened.

She was about to leave but I reached out and grabbed her wrist. Anna looked down at me.

"Yoh I need to finish cleaning up."

I gently pulled her down into a sitting position next to me, "You need rest," I said letting her wrist go.

She tried to say something but when she opened up her mouth to speak a yawn replaced any real words.

I slid over in my futon; she looked confused for a second but then understood and carefully laid herself down next to me. In only a few minutes the sleep of pure exhaustion had taken Anna. I couldn't help but smile watching her sleep, but at the same time I felt like I could cry as well knowing that I had to keep all that had been happening to me a secret from her. I closed my eyes and let Anna's soft breathing lull me to sleep.