Chapter One: White Light
To be at our vacation home feels so good right now. It's been some time since Itsuki, and I had any time off from work to have a relaxing time with each other. Two weeks to be exact. Being the head doctor of one of the biggest hospitals in Tokyo keeps me away for days at a time. But now that I have time off, I'm going to enjoy the beauty of the forest, and everything that's come with it. Though the first day here looked like a thunderstorm, with lots of rain showers. On days like this, I could sit outside on the enclosed porch and read a good book, with a cup of hot tea. It had a beautiful view of the surrounding forest and a pretty large beach lake from the second story. There was an old castle nearby that was now a shrine that I loved to go pay my respects to all the time and pray for a child of my own.
We arrived two days before my friends, their husbands, and their daughters that would be joining us for the next two weeks. Itsuki and I had to set up the new beddings I bought for the several bedrooms we had, including new towels for the five bathrooms. We recently had all the rooms repainted and the old bedding didn't go too well with the colors that we chose. The same with towels.
"Itsuki, could you take the two sets of twin bedding to the twin bedrooms, please? I'll make them here soon." I was already working on the queen size bedding for the guest bedroom. I already had a set in the linen closet for one of the back bedrooms that faced the backyard. I'll put that on later.
"Of course, Mika. Would there be anything else that I can do for you?" He's so caring.
"Can you get the teapot going? I could really go for some tea just about now." I was going to open some windows here shortly. It was getting stuffy inside and I didn't want to turn on the a.c. just yet. That will be for tonight.
"Anything for you, Mika."
"Thank you dear."
Itsuki and I met when we were in high school, in the ninth grade, and have been together ever since. Though we went to different universities to study for our dream jobs; Itsuki for game design and me for my M.D. We always stayed in touch throughout that time, and we attended each other's graduations. It was also that same night he proposed to me in front of my family. Fifteen years later and we are living the life we dreamt of having, but one thing was missing from our lives, a child to call our own. Unfortunately, I was diagnosed with endometriosis, and was told that I had a small chance of becoming pregnant. I was devastated when I was given the news. Being a mother was something I dreamt of since that night I became engaged. One day I will foster a child and adopt soon after.
The following early morning, Itsuki and I both awoke at the same time to see dark clouds outside our bay window. "Looks like another day of rain," I curled up into his arms. I hope to have a day of sunshine soon.
"I agree, Mika. I wonder when it's going to start?" Itsuki picked up his phone to check the weather. "Seems like it won't start for another two hours. Want to get a quick walk in before it starts?"
I had to think about that. It had been some time since we each took a walk together. It hasn't started raining yet and I do enjoy early morning walks. "Sure."
Dressed for our walk, we made our way out the back, and headed for the beach. "These next two weeks will be the best relaxing days we've had in a really long time, Itsuki." I took his hand, palm to palm, and looked up to the nearly morning sky. "What should I make for breakfast?"
Itsuki let go of my hand and wrapped his arm around my waist. "I agree my dear, Mika. I do miss these types of days. For breakfast let's go out, then after we'll get the food shopping done."
"Yes, breakfast out together would be great. I do agree about getting the shopping done today. I have so many meals planned for us all."
"How I miss your meals, Mika. What do you plan to make us tonight?"
"Hmm, I'm not sure. We'll discuss that over breakfast."
"Okay."
We made it to the small beach and stood along the shore. The lake was dark and gloomy due to the incoming weather. Wind blew a cool breeze off the lake. It was nice and relaxing and not too cold.
We stood by the lake and took in the quietness and tranquility that surrounded us. Birds were chirping and many different butterflies flew around us. Even a doe with her little fawn was grazing down on the other side of the lake. We remained quiet so we wouldn't scare them off. We were so lost in thought when a white light busted out of the ground beside us. It knocked both of us off our feet and onto the wet surface below. The mother deer and her baby darted away into the dim forest.
Itsuki sat up fast, "what the hell was that?" he shouted, dazed and confused. I was in shock, not knowing what just happened. I sat motionless and unable to speak. "Mika, stay here, I'm going to investigate what it was," he informed me, getting to his feet.
Itsuki walked over to where the white light shot up and did not care that his shoes and socks were getting wet and muddy. I didn't realize how wet the ground was. He approached the exact spot where the light came from and looked down the hole. With great horror, I heard him shout in terror. "Mika! Come here quickly! There's a girl down here!" he yelled out as he jumped down in the hole.
I came back to reality, got up, and ran towards my husband. I didn't care about my socks and shoes getting wet either. "Did you say a girl is down there?" I asked, scared. I reached the hole, looked down, and horror ran across my face too. I saw a girl passed out cold with wild flowers scattered all around her. But she was not just a young girl, but a teenager. How did she end up down there? She wasn't here when we arrived. Neither was the hole.
"Yes, I'm going to pick her up very carefully and then I'm going to pass her up to you," Itsuki explained.
"Okay, but please be careful she might have multiple injuries," I informed him. Being a doctor, I knew what could happen moving an injured or unconscious patient. Anywhere from broken bones or a neck and spinal injury.
I watched Itsuki slowly pick up the teenage girl very carefully. He then passed her up to me and I noticed she wasn't that heavy. When I had her successfully out, I laid the girl down with her head across my lap. Then I watched Itsuki climb out of the deep wide hole.
I rubbed my hand over the unconscious girl's forehead. "Hun, can you hear me? You're safe now," I informed the sleeping girl.
Itsuki knelt down next to me. "Do you think it's safe to move her, Mika?
"I'm not sure, Itsuki. She doesn't look like she has any injuries from what I can see. But she could have injuries that we can't see."
Itsuki made the toughest decision. "Give her to me and let's get back to the house. We'll take our time and call for a medic," Itsuki said, urgently. I watched him carefully pick the teen girl up. I taught him how to do this just in case he ever came across a situation like this one. Then he and I walked back across the beach and headed back to our vacation home.
We both remained quiet for several minutes until we broke through trees outside our yard. "What the heck was that hole Itsuki?" I asked, curiously. We walked up the back porch steps and were careful not to slip since it rained during the night.
"It looked like an old well shaft, Mika," Itsuki explained.
I got in front of Itsuki and opened the patio door. "An old well shaft? I didn't think there were any out here." We walked into the kitchen and Itsuki placed the girl on the table.
"Well, it's possible. There could be a lot out there I believe." He went to grab the phone and dialed for a medic. I left the kitchen to grab a blanket from the family room, brought it back to cover the teen up, and keep her warm.
I then went over to the sink, wet a washcloth down and came back over to the girl and washed the dirt from her face. I looked at her face and noticed she only had some small cuts and bruises. I knew washing the dirt away would prevent small infections. "It's strange, I wonder who she belongs to?"
Itsuki hung up the phone and came to stand on the other side of the table. "They're on their way. I'm not sure, Mika. Maybe she belongs to a family that's vacationing here? She's wearing a very festive kimono. But it's strange, she wasn't in the vicinity when we were there. It's good that we found her and not a wild animal. But the real question is, what was that white light?"
"Maybe it was an unexpected lightning bolt? But that would have killed this girl and injured us severely." I looked down at the teen and noticed she started to stir. "Oh! I think she's coming to Itsuki." I cupped the young teen's cheek and softly asked, "sweetie, can you hear me?" We both watched her open her eyes slowly. "Hun, are you hurting anywhere? Could you tell us your name?"
The young girl just looked up to us and all she did was stare up our way. "Hun, help is on the way. You're going to be going to the hospital very soon," I informed the teen.
"Who are these two? And what is a hospital? Where am I?" I moved my eyes around the room I was in. I didn't know where I was.
"Maybe she's deaf, Mika. Try using sign language and see if that helps," I heard one person say.
"What is deaf and sign language?"
"Good idea. I'll try that." The woman started to move with her hands and I was confused about what she was trying to do. "Nothing, I'm not sure what to try now, Itsuki."
The hard surface under me was starting to hurt her back. I sat up slowly and shocked the people in front of me. "My dear, please don't move. You might have some injuries that might need to be looked at," the woman informed me. I just stared at them both. I wasn't in any pain.
"Do you need me to grab anything, Mika?" The male asked the female.
"Could you grab my medical bag? I want to check her vitals while we wait for the paramedics," she ordered him. He left the room we were in. What's a medical bag? Where am I again? "Hun, I'm going to check to see if you have any bruises along your head. Just let me know if you have any pain."
All I did was just stare and nod my head.
I left her side to grab some gloves so I could examine the teen. I pray she doesn't have any serious injuries and just has a simple bruise. With my gloves on and back at the teen's side, I started examining the back of her lower scalp. I felt nothing out of the ordinary, but a small bruise that didn't seem to phase the girl. "I don't feel anything serious with your head. Are you hurting anywhere along the head," I asked, using hand gestures, and pointing at the exact location. I just watched the girl shake her head no. That's a good sign.
Itsuki came back with my bag and placed it on the table. "Here's your bag dear."
I opened my black bag and pulled out the stethoscope. "Thank you." It's good I brought my medical bag with me on this trip. After putting the ear tips on I explained to the teen, "I'm going to check your lungs and heart now. Breathe in and breathe out when I tell you too." I placed the diaphragm on the girl's chest, "breathe in." The girl breathed in some air and held it for a few seconds. "Breathe out." I did that in several spots and her vitals are normal, but she could still have injuries that worry me.
The sound of sirens could be heard in the distance. A minute later, an ambulance and a police officer arrived at our home. "I'll go let them in," Itsuki left the kitchen to open the front door. I could hear the medics walking up the front stairs and walking inside the house. "Follow me. She's in the kitchen," I turned to see the medics coming to the teen who was still on the table, sitting up.
I should let them know, "I checked her vitals and all seems to be normal, but she needs to have an x-ray and a few other tests done to determine if there are any internal injuries."
"I'm presuming you're a doctor ma'am?" the one paramedic asked.
"Yes, I'm Doctor. Ito, of Shikon Hospital in Tokyo."
"I've heard great stories about you, Doctor. Ito. We'll make sure she gets the proper care. I presume you will want to come with us to the local hospital?"
"Yes, I'll let the doctor and nurses know what needs to be done. I used to work at the hospital here before I was transferred to the city."
We were all talking when a deep male voice came up from behind us. "Hello, I'm officer Tomoyo. We were informed you found a teen girl?" the officer asked.
Itsuki and I both turned around to see the police officer behind us. "Yes, near the beach in an old well shaft," Itsuki explained quickly.
The officer looked at Itsuki with shock. "Could one of you show me while the other goes in an ambulance when they take the girl?" the officer asked.
I stood beside Itsuki as I responded first. "I'll go with the girl. Itsuki, please go show the officer where we found her. I'll keep you updated on everything," I explained.
With a nod from Itsuki, he walked out the backdoor with the officer, and I turned my attention back to the teen girl. She was being placed on the gurney getting ready to go to the hospital. They safely secured a neck brace along her neck. I watched the teen reach her hand out towards me. "It's okay, I'm coming with you. I won't leave your side. I promise."
The paramedics pushed the gurney out towards the front door and down the brick steps. Before I walked out, I grabbed my keys, and purse. I made my way down the front steps and into the ambulance, where the teen was waiting for me. She held out her hand for me again and took it in mine. The driver shut the backdoors and went around to take his seat. Then he took off towards the hospital where I used to work.
Officer Iko and I, made it to where the teen was found earlier. "This is where we found her, officer Iko," I explained.
Office Iko looked at the well and began examining it. "Crazy place for an old well. Looks like it had been covered up for hundreds of years. It's good you and your wife found her and not a wild animal," the officer expressed.
"Yes indeed. I'll buy a board and cover it up, so no one else falls down in there," I explained. We both made our way back up the path to the house.
"Do you know if there are any families with a teen girl about her age around here?" officer Iko asked.
"I'm not sure. This is our vacation home and the rest of the houses here are rentals."
"I see." Officer Ito left without another word. I knew he was off to ask anyone who was renting this week, if they have a missing teen daughter.
I headed back inside to grab my wallet and keys so I could meet Mika at the local hospital. I sent her a text that I was on my way.
On the way to the hospital they got an I.V line ready to stick into the girl's arm. "Hun, I need you to relax so we can get some fluids into you. Just relax your arm and it will be over really quick." The paramedic got the needle ready, but when the girl saw the long silver stick, fear struck her seeing how thick it was, and she nearly jumped out of the gurney. "It's okay, it's just a small prick, and it doesn't hurt that much," I informed her and caressed her cheek. "Just take a few deep breaths and it will be over very quickly." I coaxed her back onto the bed and joined by sitting next to her.
"If it makes it feel better, hold her hand and close your eyes," the paramedic offered to help ease her fear. The girl understood what he said. I held her and she closed her eyes. The paramedic wiped down the girl's arm with an alcohol wipe and then carefully found a good vein and stuck the needle in. Though she let out a little scream, the needle was in and the fluid slowly seeped into her veins.
"You did very well," I encouraged the girl. I turned to the paramedic, "she seems to be healing quite fast from being down in the well for who knows how long. I don't get many calls or cases like hers at the hospital in Tokyo."
"She sure does. Most cases people are still out cold or slowly waking up," the paramedic explained, cleaning up the scraps of paper.
The teen girl kept her eyes on me, not caring what the man was saying. Her gentle hand remained within mine.
"ETA driver?" called out another paramedic.
"We are five minutes away," called the driver.
I remained where I sat. "What's this weird thing they have me sitting on? I don't like it and it's uncomfortable. I'd rather be up and moving around. Where are they taking me again?" I cannot remember what they said.
I must have scared the woman beside me. I tried to stand up again, when she held me back down. She spoke softly to me, "Hun, try not to move quite so much. We don't know if you have any internal injuries."
In my mind, "what are internal injuries?" But I just smiled at the woman. I find her very caring, and I don't even know her name. I took her hand and brought it to her cheek. I don't know why, but I find it comforting.
Not soon after the driver pulled up to the bay doors where a doctor and nurse waited for us. They opened up the ambulance doors and I let go of the girl's hand. "Lay back down," she did as told and I left the ambulance first. They took the gurney out next and then wheeled the teen into the hospital.
When we got inside, my old co-workers were shocked to see me coming in through the doors with the paramedics. "My husband and I found her behind our home. Her vitals are normal, but she needs an x-ray and blood work drawn. She doesn't have a head injury, but I would still like a cat scan of her head just in case there is swelling." I gave them more orders of what I wanted performed on the young, mysterious teen.
"We'll do everything we can, Doctor Ito," a young male doctor informed me. He must be new since I've never met him before. "I am Doctor Kaito. We'll be out soon and give you all the results once we get them."
"Thank you, Doctor Kaito." I expressed by bowing to the young man. After they left, I pulled out my phone to see a text from Itsuki saying he was on his way. I replied back and told him when he got inside that I would bring him to the area I was in the small hospital.
I was in a waiting room where they bring patients who don't have a serious issue and just needed to see a doctor. Taking a seat while I waited for Itsuki to make the short drive, I thought of the teen girl. I knew social services were going to be called soon since we didn't know who the girl belonged to. Just thinking about it brought back a lot of memories from my childhood being in the system after my parents death in the tsunami. I just couldn't picture the girl waiting for the right family that wasn't her to come and call her their own.
Ten minutes later I got a text from Itsuki. He just pulled into the parking lot. I left the small waiting room since it would be awhile till they did all the testing on the girl. I walked out to the main lobby and found Itsuki walking inside. "How was she on the way here, Mika?'
"She seemed to be doing well and ready to move around on the way here. Though she was a bit scared getting the needle put into her arm. But she was fine after we got the I.V going. Right now they are doing tests," I informed him. We headed back towards the waiting room.
"Have you had patients like her recovering so quickly?" I don't tell much about my past patients.
"Not really, Itsuki." We arrived at the waiting room and took a seat for a good while. After some time passed the double doors opened. I turned to see Doctor Kaito and his nurse from earlier. They wheeled the teen to the many vacant rooms that had an opened curtain. I got up quickly and walked straight to the room she was put in. "Doctor Kaito, how were her results?" I asked. The teen girl was very excited to see me again.
"Doctor Ito, her results were perfect. She only has some minor cuts and bruises, which will heal in a few days. But here are her results if you want to double check," he handed over the stacks of papers from each test they performed. They also had the x rays in the pile too.
Being the head doctor of the city hospital, I knew what I was checking for and knew how to read the papers fast. They were the results I was hoping to see.
"Thank you, I'm pleased with the results. How are you doing, Hun? Are you able to tell us who you are?" The teen just kept shaking her head no. "It's okay, hopefully we'll find out soon. Are you hungry?" The teen girl knew what those words meant and nodded head yes with a smile upon her face.
"Nurse Hetomi, could you put an order in for lunch please?" Doctor Katio ordered.
"Of course, Doctor Katio," the much older nurse said, leaving the little room.
"Doctor Ito, I have informed our social worker, Mrs. Mochi, about the girl."
"I see." I remember Mrs. Mochi from the first day I worked here. I remembered how humble she was. It has been some time since I've last seen and talked to her.
"It's been sometime, Doctor Ito." I turned to the middle-aged woman from my past. "Good afternoon to you all," she looked at everyone in the small room. Her eyes were now fixated on the teen child. "Is this the girl you informed me about, Doctor Katio?"
"Yes, she was found by Doctor Ito this morning, along with her husband."
Her eyes were shocked to hear that the head doctor of another hospital found the girl. She turned to face me, eyes still shocked. "Doctor Ito, that must have been a shocker? Do you know the teen by name or who she belongs to?"
"No, unfortunately. We don't know her name or who her family is, sadly."
"I see, it's very rare for us to get cases like these. I will contact the authorities and will have a missing child report sent out." As we all stood here, "Doctor Ito, may we talk privately?"
"Of course, Itsuki I'll be right back." I wonder why she wants to speak to me privately?
"Take your time."
We soon left, heading to her private office down the hall to speak in private.