A Story of Love
Chapter Five
By: Ices
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Usagi leaned back against the exit door for a moment and tried to clear her head, it was still fuzzy from the drinks she had earlier, not to mention the bump forming over her left temple and the argument with Mamoru. She suddenly realized how mentally and physically tired she was, her body ached and throbbed almost in time to the music and lights in the club. This night it would seem had been a bust, she sighed the familiar loneliness filling her until she wanted to scream. She just wanted to be able to forget she had ever met Mamoru Chiba, was that so hard?
Apparently it was, she saw Nephrite coming toward the door and quickly ducked into the crowd. She didn't want to have to deal with anyone else from her past, especially not Mamoru's best friend. She made her way slowly toward the bar and flagged Donald over; he nodded and held up a finger to her as he filled someone's drink. A moment later Donald stopped in front of her and gave her a concerned look.
"What's up Usagi?" He asked in his rumbling drawl, an ever present cigarette hanging from the corner of his mouth.
"Can you tell Amanda I had to go? I'll drive back to the townhouse if you two don't mind me staying the night." She said in a watery voice.
"Sure thing, but should you really be driving," he asked leaning down to her.
"I'll be careful; I just have to get out of here…" Usagi said forcing a grin to her lips.
Donald eyed her for a moment longer then reached under the bar and pulled out a ring of keys handing them to her.
"Spare keys, always have them here incase a friend needs to crash." He explained.
Usagi smiled her thanks and took the keys depositing them into her purse and swayed on her boots slowly toward the door, she nodded to the bouncer as she slipped out into the cool evening air. She tilted her head back on her neck closing her eyes and took in a deep breath, when she opened her eyes again, tears still showed in their depths but not as near to the surface.
'I'll be okay…' she thought to herself.
She moved toward her car and unlocked it with the button on the keychain; after she climbed in she caught a glance of her face in the mirror and chuckled softly to herself. If it sounded a little hysterical to her ears, that was okay right? But she knew now why Donald had given her such a strange look, mascara and eyeliner had tried in tracks on her cheeks where she had been crying earlier. She was a mess, both in appearance and mentally.
She put the car into gear and slowly pulled out of her spot, she need to run. She needed to think, she needed to forget. She pulled onto the highway pressing down the gas a bit harder than needed, as the car picked up speed she let out a contained breath. She needed to get away from her past; she had though she had, until tonight. Usagi mindlessly drove along the familiar roads as he mind once more drifted back to the past.
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Usagi sat curled in the window seat in her room, her eyes were puffy and red, her hands trembled as they clasped a golden locket in her hand. She sniffed and wiped at her tears, with trembling hands she opened the locket and a soft melody began to fill her room. Tears swelled and ran down her cheeks anew as she hummed softly to the song, she glanced down at the street outside her room. Her swollen eyes widened at a shadow by the street light. She hurried to the door of her room and down the flight of stairs uncaring of the fact that she was in her pajamas.
She struggled with the dead bolt on the door then flung it open her bare feet slapping painfully against the cold hard sidewalk, she ran around the side of the house where her bedroom was and stared across the street her heart breaking. He wasn't there; he hadn't been there for weeks.
"Mamo-chan, where are you…" she cried softly into the night.
Slowly she fell to her knees uncaring of the impact against the sidewalk; the locket slowly fell from her trembling hands as her body shook with sobs. She cried like her heart was being ripped out, slowly she collapsed onto the side walk her tears quiet as her body shuddered violently. She stared at the open locket on the sidewalk next to her its soft melody still playing into the night.
"Mamo-chan…" She whimpered reaching a hand out as if reaching for something.
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Usagi slammed on her breaks suddenly and her small car slide in the water, it had started to rain at some point. The car fishtailed and continued to slide, her still intoxicated reflexes strained as she struggled to bring the vehicle under control. She had a moment to scream as the car smashed into the pylon before her head was thrown to the side and she slumped against the steering wheel. Blood slowly trickled down the side of her face from her temple, the tempered glass of the driver's side window was shattered a spatter of blood in the center of the break.
The glove compartment had opened on impact and a small golden locket fell from it landing on the passenger seat, a soft melody filled the silent night.
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Mamoru settled himself against the window of the passenger side of the car as Nephrite drove them to the hotel they had reserved rooms at for the night. Neither of them having been looking forward to the three hour drive back to Baltimore. He clung a bit tighter to the handle of the door as Nephrite took a wet curve a bit too fast for Mamoru's taste. He hated the rain, he had hated it since he had been a small child and his mother had died in a car wreck.
He let out a tight breath and lightened his hold on the door glancing about Pittsburgh with a curious eye. A shadow of red caught his attention and he tapped Nephrite on the shoulder.
"Turn around, I though I saw a car wrecked into the pylon back there." Mamoru said his chest tight. This was why he hated the rain; people have a much larger chance of getting hurt.
Nephrite shot his friend a look out of the corner of his eye as he pulled a u-turn slowly in the middle of the street and drove back the way they had come.
"Tell me when to stop Mamoru," he said straining to see through the sheets of rain.
"Stop!" Mamoru yelled.
Nephrite stopped the car and Mamoru jumped out even before he turned off the engine.
"Call 911 Nephrite!" Mamoru yelled over his shoulder as he rushed across the street to the red car.
Mamoru approached the car fearing the worst when he saw the broken driver's side window. His midnight eyes scanned the street to see if maybe the driver had been tossed out of the car, he let out a breath when he saw no bodies on the street. The driver had been wearing a seatbelt, smart driver. He slowly approached the drivers' door and tried to pull it open, it didn't budge. He peered into the windshield and saw a familiar head of blond curl.
"Usako…" Mamoru said and his heart seemed to stop.
He moved around to the side of the car again and braced a foot against the back door and pulled on the handle again. After what seemed like an eternity the door wrenched open and he leaned in, it was Usagi. A shadow of dread started to settle over him as he quickly checked her pulse; he almost fainted when he found the steady thread of live. He un-buckled the girl and pulled her out of the car into his arms. He noticed the blood on the side of her face and swallowed hard, there was swelling as well.
"Hang in there Usako…" he said softly against her ear hoping she could hear him.
As Mamoru stood in the sheet like rain holding Usagi, he could only picture the sorrow and absolute brokenness he had seen in her eyes earlier that night. And as the sound of sirens came to his ears he though that maybe, she didn't think she had a reason to hold on.
His heart almost stopped at the thought.
"Please stay with me Usako; I can't loose you… not again." He whispered brokenly.