(17) No one ever said that life's an easy thing
"It already looks better." Dr. Tomoe turned Michiru's right arm carefully to inspect her injury. He looked satisfied as he gently started to bandage the swollen skin again. "You should take more care when you work with a sharp knife, especially when you try to open the rice pack. Scissors are better suitable doing this job."
Michiru nodded and made a face as she was allowed to lower her arm again. Although she got several painkillers it still hurt. She could not remember how she got into hospital, but when she woke up it was another morning and Dr. Tomoe had been there to tell her that she had been very lucky. Probably Haruka told him that she slipped with her kitchen's knife and injured herself so badly. Of course she had been so clumsy to pinch an aorta. That's why there had been so much blood in the snow. But she had been lucky, indeed, because Haruka brought her into hospital right in time.
Now she was looking at the white bandage, covering the seams. Dr. Tomoe had to see to her wound with several stitches. She did not ask for how many for she did not want to know; it already hurt enough without her imaging the swollen skin being pierced by a needle.
"I will, Tomoe-san, I will." Michiru leaned back in her bed as Hotaru's father rose. He wanted to be sure and therefore kept her for another day in hospital. She did faint yesterday and had been unconscious for a long time, Dr. Tomoe wanted to be safe that she was fine. So she had to stay in bed most of the time, cooling her thick arm and eat exactly the food Haruka had warned her against yesterday.
Michiru looked down at her plate and picked up a small slice of fish. It was not as bad as Haurka had told her, but she had tasted better sashimi, that was for sure! Moreover, it was not easy for her to eat with her left hand. The fish and the rice escaped her chopsticks before she had a change putting them into her mouth. After several tries she sighed frustrated and wondered if she should eat with her fingers instead. Of course, it did not look very ladylike, but she was hungry and did not want to have an aching belly besides her already hurting arm.
"You shouldn't eat that, you know?"
Michiru raised her head and smiled as she saw Haruka standing in the door frame. It was noon which meant that she would miss her Japanese lessons, if she had been at school today at all. Dr. Tomoe told her that Haruka had not left her bedside until he had to literally throw her out, because he knew that she had to go to school on a normal Wednesday morning, even if it was shortly before the Christmas holidays.
"Do I have a choice?"
"Of course!" Haruka grinned in triumph as she pulled a chair next to Michiru's bed and sat down astride. Then she opened the bag she had carried and produced two small bowls. Michiru could smell the delicious fish and the chocolate pudding even before her best friend had opened them.
"You did cook?" She asked suspiciously. "Is our kitchen still standing?"
"No." Haruka shook her head and put the hospital food determinedly away. Then she picked up Michiru's chopsticks and fished the first very delicious looking rice ball out of the bowl. It was so small that you could eat it with in one piece and Michiru could see the tiny fish pieces in there.
"Who are you? Gimme back my Ruka." Joked Michiru who knew that Haruka would have never had the patience to cook something like that, to say nothing of her skills… "She's a bad cook, but she's mine."
"Makoto helped me."
Michiru nodded understandingly. Of course. Makoto, Sailor Jupiter, was one of Usagi's best friend and a chef when it came to cooking.
"Did you force her to skip school?"
"I did not force anybody. The lessons at Usagi's school were cancelled because of the thick snow. Most of their teachers did not make to school at all so they volunteered to help me."
Michiru was happy to hear that Haruka got over her worries and started to talk to Usagi and her friends again; and that they forgave Sailor Uranus for her harsh behaviour. Nevertheless the sea beauty noticed the significant lack of information in Haruka's statement.
"And our school? The teachers are living there as I remember."
"Cancelled." It was a big lie, but Michiru did not reply anything. Partly, because she knew it was senseless to argue with Haruka about the importance of school when they had been attacked by a youma, and partly, because the blonde was raising the chopstick and fed her. The rice ball was delicious and the fish was no comparison to the hospital's one which looked suddenly even smaller and greyer.
For the next ten minutes Michiru emptied the rice ball bowl and ate most of the pudding. As she leaned back in her bed her arm still hurt, but she felt full and content.
"Usagi was surprised to hear from the youma's attack." Said Haruka after she had put Makoto's bowls back into the bag. "But Rei told us that even though we've defeated Mistress 9 there are still youmas out there. Stray monsters might attack us whenever they sense our powers." Suddenly Haruka looked depressed. "That means that something like the attack yesterday can happen all the time, most likely when we least expect it."
"Life's not easy, Ruka." Michiru covered her best friend's suddenly cold hands with her healthy one and squeezed them tenderly. "But we've managed worse."
"Still I don't like the idea."
Haruka glanced shortly at Michiru's bandaged arm and the look on her face said clearly I don't like to see you hurt. Not even two weeks ago Haruka had insisted on sacrificing everything in order to complete their mission, to let nothing come between them and their goal to destroy Mistress 9 and to save the world. Nothing, not even each other's death. Now Michiru saw that Haruka would have never been able to keep that promise, no matter how hard she had tried to convince the sea senshi, and probably herself, as well.
Michiru was thankful to have a friend like her. Without her she would not have known how to survive the past months.
"We'll defeat those youmas, you'll see. Remember, we're not alone any longer. Sailor Moon and the other senshi will help us." Michiru smiled but stifled a groan as she moved her injured arm too quickly.
"Everything alright, Michi? Shall I call for Tomoe-san? Do you need anything?" Haruka jumped to her feet, ready to literally fly out of the door.
"It's nothing." The sea beauty shrugged helplessly her shoulders. "But thank you for your concern."
"Okay… but if you need something, tell me." Haruka sat down hesitatingly, automatically taking Michiru's healthy hand in her own ones.
"So, tell me what exactly happened after the youma attacked me. Hime-chan's father said something about a kitchen knife and an accident."
"Hai. Well, that was…"
Michiru closed her eyes and listened to Haruka's story. Although her arm still hurt she felt content. Safe and loved.
Thank you for taking care of me, Ruka.
Thank you for being there for me. Now. Yesterday. Over the past months.