NOTES:
Essenity: Ugh. I hate dialup. I have it too. It takes ages to download crap, I know. But luckily, I got Moon Child from Kristal for Christmas. I made her get it for me. XD I'm a wonderful best friend, aren't I?
Fujipuri: Oh, I know I'd like to sit on Kei's lap. I'm sure Sho would too. XD COTTON CANDY! I WANT SOME! GIMME GIMME GIMME! I love cotton candy. But yeah, it does feel all fluffy and stuff. I really like the first chapter. Too bad it doesn't stay like that forever.
Emiri-chan: Yeah. Mana's living in my basement, sadly. And he will not stop talking if you wake him up. But he does enjoy locking Klaha in the dryer for punishment (or no apparent reason) and he likes flapjacks. But not Klaha's. He says Klaha's are gross. So he steals the Eggo waffles in my freezer. THEY'RE MY WAFFLES! YOU'RE IN JAPAN? OH OH OH. BRING ME BACK SOME E-MA. I NEED MORE. Really? L'Arc's back? Amazing. They were like…nothing in March. Yeah. I've downloaded their new album. It's alright. I don't care for it. I like old-school L'Arc much better. Hah. I've only had one smutty dream. And it was Kei and Sho. And it was amazing but I don't remember it. (and this is ranting, but OMGYOU'REINJAPANHOLYCRAPIWISHIWASTHERE!) Oh. Can you tell me. Where is Pachinko? My friend Mel took a picture of it somewhere in Tokyo (I think) but I don't remember what it was. I just love saying it. Okay. I'm done ranting.
Tsuki: Pfft. I replied to your review in that email. So…yeah. REVIEW. 150 WORDS. YEAH. :DD
007: Oooh. James Bond reading my fics? Amazing. I just watched The World Is Not Enough the other night. Okay. I'm done. (PS- Hope you enjoyed my fic, James! xD)
Okay. No more author notes, except DON'T THROW THINGS AT ME AGAIN. MANA ALREADY THROWS FLAPJACKS AT MY HEAD, SO I DON'T NEED OTHER STUFF THROWN AT ME. (you'll understand why I said this at the end of this chapter…or maybe it's the next chapter. Whatever)
Chapter Two
"Kei—please don't make me do it myself!" Sho begged. He was kneeling on the ground in the park in front of Kei. His arms were wrapped around Kei's waist, the side of his head pressed against Kei's stomach. "Please!"
"No." Kei told him softly, trying to pry Sho away from him. "So much for trusting me…" He muttered to himself.
"I'm not ready yet!" Sho cried, several tears falling down his cheek.
"Yes you are! You've watched me and you've done it on your own—"
"Because you brought me the bodies!" Sho began to sob uncontrollably. "Please—don't—make—me!"
"Stand up, Sho." Kei said sternly. Sho was acting too pathetic and it was annoying him. He knew Sho was capable of anything if he put his mind to it. He knew Sho could get blood for himself, but he realized Sho was simply scared to try. "Stand up now." Sho slowly stood up and faced Kei, his eyes red.
"Kei—"
"Shh." Kei said softly, reaching out and stroking Sho's cheek. "It's alright." He wrapped an arm around Sho's waist, bringing them closer.
"Kei—no…I can't—"
"Yes you can." Kei said, cutting off Sho's sentence. "You're just scared to try it on your own."
"That's not it, Kei! I—"
"No, that's exactly it, Sho." Kei said, pressing a finger to Sho's lips. "I know what you're going through. I went through it to. It's natural to be afraid of trying it on your own."
"But Kei—"
"If I wasn't here, you'd die of starvation because you'd be too afraid to try it on your own." Kei told him. "And, most likely, if I wasn't here, you wouldn't be either!" Sho stopped trying to break away from Kei's grasp. "Do you understand me, Sho?" Kei asked. Sho barely nodded. "Good."
Kei stared into Sho's eyes, which were slowly becoming unfocused. "Sho?" Sho's body suddenly became limp and he started to fall. Kei's quick reflexes caught Sho halfway to the pavement. "SHO!" He sank to the ground, cradling Sho in his arms. "WAKE UP, SHO…wake up!" Kei screamed at Sho's unconscious form. He pressed his ear to Sho's chest and heard a faint heartbeat. "You didn't just faint…you…you need to go to the hospital, Sho." Kei whispered to Sho. "There's no one around…I can't do anything for you. I can't get you blood…" Kei looked frantically around the park for a pay phone, but he couldn't see one in sight.
"Excuse me…" A soft voice said from behind Kei. Kei turned his head to find a woman no older than thirty standing behind him. Sho was tall for a woman and had short black hair, but the top layer of it was dyed hot pink. Her eyes were a bright green color that looked as though they were glowing. She was quite pretty, Kei thought to himself. "Do you need some help, sir?" For a brief second, he thought about just killing her there on the spot, but something about the woman stopped him.
"Um, yes. Do you have a cell phone? My friend here—Sho—he just passed out and I need to get an ambulance here soon." The woman walked around and kneeled down in front of Kei.
"My car's just around the corner," she replied. "And I work at the hospital. I'm the replacement for a nurse found dead at her other job." Kei swallowed hard, knowing exactly who the woman meant. "Well, I'm not really a nurse, though…" She pressed two fingers up to Sho's neck. "His pulse is slowing down…" Kei was observing the woman with great interest. Sure, Kurisutina had seemed nice, but she was evil. Could he trust this mysterious woman who was taking her place? Kei snapped out of his semi-daze when he saw the glowing green eyes staring at him. "What's your name anyway?" She asked with a smile.
"Kei." He replied, trying his best to smile.
"I'm Kurisutaru." She told Kei. Kei stared at her for a moment. Similar names… He thought to himself. "But call me Kurisu, please." She stood up, brushing her hair behind her shoulders. "I'll go bring my car around, okay?"
"Okay…" Kei said as she ran to her car. "Sho—should we trust her?" He asked the unconscious vampire. "I…have no other choice. I don't know if you can die or not…and I don't want to lose you." He brushed away small tears in his eyes. "God, why does this always seem to happen to me?"
As Kurisu pulled up her car (which turned out to be a black Mustang convertible), Kei gently cradled Sho in his arms and carried him to the backseat of her car. He gently laid him down and jumped in the passenger's seat, putting on his seat belt and closing the door. Kurisu sped off towards the hospital, which was farther away than Kei thought it was. Feeling as though he should confess, Kei spoke up.
"I should tell you, Kurisu-san—"
"Just Kurisu is fine, Kei." She cut in.
"The last time a woman was involved in mine and Sho's lives, it…um…didn't end up very good…"
"Oh? What happened?" Kurisu asked, interested.
"Sho nearly died and then, I, um…I…" Kurisu just smiled.
"It's okay if you don't want to tell me." Kurisu said. "I mean, you hardly know me." Kei sighed and stared out the window. He was worried about Sho. There was so much Luka didn't teach him about ways vampires could die. He didn't know if Sho could die from starvation and he certainly didn't want to find out. Kei sighed again. "You okay?" Kurisu asked.
"Yeah, it's just…" Kei said softly, staring out the windshield of the car. "I really appreciate you helping me, Kurisu…And I'm really worried about Sho."
"You two are really close, I can tell…" She said softly as they pulled into the hospital parking lot.
"I've known him since he was seven…" Kei said, remembering how Sho had tried to rob him of what little possessions he had left.
"So you're older than him?" Kurisu asked as Kei got out of the car and cradled Sho in his arms.
"Yes." Kei said with a slight chuckle in his voice.
"Need any help carrying him?" She asked as they walked towards the emergency room.
"Nope. I'm good." Kei replied, smiling at her. He noticed that she blushed slightly.
"If you insist…" She said, holding the door open for Kei.
"Thanks."
As soon as Kei stepped in the door with Sho in his arms, a dozen nurses and staff people swarmed around him. He held onto Sho tightly but it was no use. Two nurses brought a stretcher and pried Sho away from Kei.
"Where are you taking him!" Kei yelled after the nurses. But they didn't respond. He hung his head. "Sho-chan…" He whispered to himself. He felt a warm hand on his shoulder.
"Are you sure you're okay?" Kurisu asked. Kei looked up and nodded his head. "I just wanted to make sure."
"Why?" Kei asked as she pulled him over to a chair up against the wall. She pushed him into it.
"My shift's about to start, so I have to go…" She said softly. "I'll come back and check on you."
"Oh, you don't need to—"
"But I want to." Kurisu assured him with a smile. "Once Sho is stable, the nurse at the desk will call out his name and you'll have to fill out some paperwork…" Kurisu began to walk away, but she stopped and added, "I'll see you a little bit later, Kei."
"Bye," Kei said as she turned the corner. He rested his head on the wall behind the chair he was sitting in. Checking his watch, he knew he had plenty of time before the sun was going to rise. It was only ten-fifteen and sunrise was around six-fifteen. Sighing softly, he closed his eyes and prayed that Sho would be all right.
Several minutes later, the nurse at the desk called out, "Sho…um……Sho?" Kei's eyes shot open. He quickly walked over and smiled at the nurse. She merely stared at him. "And you're related to him how?"
"Just tell me what room he's in." Kei said.
"I'm sorry, I'm not allowed to—"
"Just tell me what room he's in." Kei hissed, glaring at the woman. She cowered slightly, but replied, "Room four-sixty-five on the third floor."
"Thank you." Kei said, following the signs to the elevators. He waited patiently for an elevator and once it arrived, he bolted into it and pressed the button for the third floor. It seemed as though it took ages for the elevator doors to finally close. And the trip to the third floor seemed even longer. Finally, the doors opened and Kei emerged, following the signs to room four sixty five.
When he saw Sho, he fell to his knees. "Sho…" He whispered to the still figure. The vampire had an IV in his wrist and was hooked up to a breathing machine. "This is more serious than before." Kei said softly, managing to stand up and walk over to the chair in the corner of the room next to the bed.
For almost an hour, Kei sat in the chair and stared at Sho, whose breathing was shallow, even with the machine helping him. Nurses kept coming in and asking him questions, but he didn't answer. He didn't want to answer. He wanted Sho to recover. He couldn't live on without Sho. How many times has Sho been in the hospital because of Kei before?
"Sir?" A young voice said. Kei looked up at the nurse, who looked about fifteen. "Doctor Matsumoto is going to come and check on Sho in a few minutes."
"Okay." Kei said.
"And you need to fill these forms out, sir." The nurse said, shoving a pile of papers and a pen in his lap and walking away briskly. Kei glanced at some of the things he had to fill out. Patient's full name. What was Sho's last name? Birth date. July 4. Spouse's name. Kei left it blank. Luckily, he didn't have to fill out anymore because Kurisu walked in.
"I told you you'd find him, Kei!" Kurisu said, smiling. She had on a pair of worn-out jeans and a white tank top with a doctor's coat over it.
"Yeah…did you?" Kei said. She merely laughed and walked over to him, grabbing the papers away from him.
"You don't need to fill these out…" Kurisu said.
"Um, okay." Kei paused. "Some nurse told me Doctor Matsumoto is coming in…"
"Yeah, I know."
"When will he be here?"
"He!" Kurisu said.
"Ye—"
"I'm Doctor Matsumoto."
"Really?"
"Yes, really."
"But you said you were the replacement for Kurisutina!"
"Yes, but I said afterwards, 'Well, I'm not really a nurse, though…'." Kurisu explained. She grabbed the clipboard off of the front of Sho's bed.
"Oh."
"Interesting…" Kurisu said softly as she scanned over the medical information about Sho.
"What's wrong with Sho?" Kei asked.
"Fatigue from blood loss." Kurisu said.
"Right…" Kei muttered to himself.
"Not really fatigue. Worse than that." Kurisu said, glancing at Kei, who was staring wide-eyed at her. "We've run all of the tests that we can and it doesn't look like there will be any side-effects." Kei sighed in relief. "But he will need blood through an IV."
"My blood." Kei said softly.
"Oh no, that's not necessary!" Kurisu told him. "We've got a large supply—"
"I want it to be mine." Kei told her.
"But Kei—it doesn't need to—"
"No. My blood." Kei said sternly. Kurisu stared at him for a moment.
"You two…you're more than just long-time friends." Kurisu said. Kei nodded. He didn't want to lie to another nurse/doctor and have it end up like it had months ago.
"We're in love." Kurisu smiled.
"How sweet," she said with a smile.
"You…aren't shocked?"
"It was sort of obvious from the beginning," Kurisu told him, hanging the clipboard back on the front of Sho's bed. "But I think it's cute!" Kei smiled.
"The last time when we actually told someone, it…didn't end well."
"I take it you were Kurisutina's patients?"
"Yeah. She went a little……crazy."
"Oh I know. I'm her cousin."
"WHAT?" Kei said, shocked. God, no. Please, no. It won't happen again. She won't be like Kurisutina!
"Yeah, she was my cousin. But I always hated her. She was always a little crazy…"
"You won't turn on us, will you?" Kei asked, serious. Kurisu laughed.
"No. I promise I won't." She turned her attention back to Sho. "Well, how did he lose so much blood?"
"I…" Kei paused. One secret at a time. You don't want to have to murder someone else… "I don't know."
"Well, even if you did know, it wouldn't be a lot of help. He doesn't have any wounds or anything…" Kurisu walked over and examined Sho's neck closely. Kei watched her fingers trace over the faint scar from Kei's teeth. "Interesting…" she breathed to herself.
"He's had those for as long as I can remember." Kei said quickly. Kurisu backed away from Sho.
"Well, do you know what his blood type is?"
"I'm pretty sure it's A." Kei said. "But it doesn't matter, I don't think. And shouldn't you have that in your file of him or something?"
"Well, funny thing is, Kurisutina didn't write it down."
"Ah." Kei replied, sinking back in his chair.
"What blood type are you, Kei?" Kurisu asked.
"I have no idea. But go ahead and use the blood from your stock or whatever. I was just being…stupid." Kei said, closing his eyes. He wasn't any specific blood type since he fed off of any person's blood.
"Tired?" Kurisu asked.
"Yeah…and worried."
"He'll be fine once we set up the IV." She said softly. "Just relax, okay?"
"I'll try…" Kei said softly. As Kurisu began to leave, Kei asked, "Am I allowed to bring flowers in?" He opened his almond-shaped eyes and stared at her. She smiled.
"Of course." Kurisu said with a smile. "Feel free to leave whenever. I'll tell the nurses that you have full access to Sho's room."
"Thanks, Kurisu." Kei said gratefully. He closed his eyes quickly, pretending to be asleep, as soon as he heard a nurse approaching. Kurisu merely smiled and walked away.
"Maybe he is……but I could just be hallucinating…" She whispered to herself as she approached the nurse's desk………
Aw. Poor Sho. I feel bad for putting him in the hospital all the time. And I feel bad for Kei to have to go through all of the waiting and worrying and stuff. I don't know how that feels, but I do know how tear-jerking it is to see a loved one hooked up to IVs and a breathing tube……
And Kurisutaru……she won't be like Kurisutina. Trust me. And yes, she is related to hide. If you couldn't tell by the last name or the hair. XD I love hide's hair. I wish my hair was like that…and doesn't she seem a bit suspicious? Well, it'll be a few chapters until you -might- know...or something.
Oh. You'll throw stuff at me next chapter (I already have it written. :D). SO LEAVE LONG REVIEWS IF YOU WANNA SEE THE NEXT CHAPTER ALIVE. Or something.