Enjoy!
.
.
.
.
Auburn Strands and Red Threads #3
The previous night, Orihime arrived home feeling pleased with the day's happenings.
She did, however, worry over having the crystal in her possession.
She recalled that the boy came to her school looking for something—he called it by a name she didn't really remember. He must have been referring to the crystal, and she had it the whole time. If she had known, she could have saved him the anxiety he must have felt, but . . . if it was as powerful as Kisuke said, was it her responsibility to give it back? She also played a small role in protecting the World of the Living, so maybe she shouldn't give something like that back to a rookie Soul Reaper . . .
Well, no.
According to Kisuke, he was not a Soul Reaper and didn't come from the Soul Society. So, if he had the possibility of becoming a problem, should she tell the others? She didn't want them to worry, but if something happened, and she gave them no warning, then she would have only aided in their pain. Still . . . if he had a good reason for carrying around something so powerful, she didn't want her friends to give him a rough time.
It was a very troubling matter.
Whatever the case, she had to think of what to do if she was going to face future troubles, but she could put it off for a while. She awoke this morning filled with a new sense of responsibility, and she was glad to admit that she was excited because of it. She would be cooking for more than just herself from now on—for a limited time anyway—and that made her feel a certain way.
A certain important way.
She would have to stop by the store directly after school and make dinner as soon as she got home if she was going to get the food delivered by dinner time, but the only question was what to make. She wanted to try something new, but maybe for a few nights she should stick to something that wasn't too experimental.
She grinned to herself, firmly decided on what would be good for the new mouths to feed. She would grill some chicken, cover it with red bean paste and make some cheesy mashed potatoes.
"Oh!" She squealed herself out of bed. "I hope he doesn't find that too fancy!"
This was not going the way he had intended, and he found himself making a bigger mess because of it.
Kagome asked him where he had been this whole time, and, of course, he had no choice but to say he had chased a demon into her world, lost sight of it, and it miraculously appeared again after he left her home and knocked him unconscious when he was in the woods.
Why was he in the woods?
Because he thought he saw that very same demon run in there when he had all the intentions in the world of going back to the Feudal Era.
Coming up with this story on the spot was hard enough, but the lame excuse was the most painful to tell—Kagome and Shippo's pitying gazes even worse to take. However, he forced himself to tell every word of it because the truth would have been even more gruesome to own up to.
After he let them believe that awful lie, the three of them went back to the Feudal Era to team up with Miroku and Sango. They were glad to see them and even more sympathetic when they heard all that had happened. The group then went to Kaede's hut, and they were seated around the place as she prepared a meal for them; she also put together an herbal medicine in case Inuyasha felt a dizzy spell about to come over him.
"It's amazing you did not die out there," Miroku commented.
"He's right," Sango agreed. "It's rare that you get taken out by an opponent like that, and we were nowhere around."
Inuyasha snorted to himself. "I'm just lucky, I guess."
He had been lying on his back, arms folded behind his head, away from everyone else. They all assumed he was just taking it easy, but that was far from the case. He knew he was not lucky. He let the shard get away from him twice, and now he would have to go back. Even worse, he had to sneak away so that no one would want to tag along to make sure he wouldn't get attacked again.
And that was the other thing: How could they believe he would allow himself to get taken out like that? Knocked out by a demon that didn't finish the job?
"Gimmie a break," he mumbled.
"So, tell us, Inuyasha," Kaede said as she stirred the pot filled with stew, "do you think the demon that attacked ye is still roaming in Kagome's time?"
"It could still be there terrorizing people, couldn't it?" Kagome asked.
"I highly doubt that," he mumbled again, this time for people to hear. The only demon he saw there was dead. "It probably came back here because this is the jewel hot spot."
"Speaking of jewel shards," Kagome turned towards him, "where's the jewel you found?"
"What?"
"Remember, you said you found a shard and brought it back here."
He stared at the ceiling. When had he said that? More importantly, why had he said that?
"How is that possible?" Shippo chimed in. "He hasn't been back here for a few days, remember? He must have gotten confused after he fell unconscious."
"But . . . he got attacked by the demon after he came to my house, and that's when he told me about the jewel. Inuyasha, you did come here, ri-"
"Ya know what?" Inuyasha jumped to his feet. "All this talkin' and questionin' is makin' my head hurt. I'm gonna go take a walk."
"Don't you want to rest a bit more?" Kagome asked.
"I can rest outside."
The remaining people watched him storm out. There were mixed feelings about his departure, but they figured it had something to do with his accident. He wasn't a person of many expressive attributes, not counter to his anger and annoyance, and, surely, if something was bothering him to a point he couldn't bear, he would tell someone. Most likely, it would be Kagome in a falling out argument on trying to help him through this.
"Does Inuyasha seem to be more agitated than usual?" Miroku asked.
"How can you tell?" Sango commented, stroking Kirara. "He's always jumping through the many levels of being bothered."
"Yes, this is true, but something about him seems to be off, don't you think?"
"He is right," Kaede agreed. "It is very unusual for Inuyasha to be defeated by an enemy in the way he described." She turned to Kagome. "Kagome, are you willing to see what is bothering Inuyasha? If anyone can get him to say anything then it is you."
"Um, alright."
"And please bring him back as soon as possible. The stew will be ready in a short while."
o0o0o
Inuyasha had not gone very far. He figured if he went to where the scent of Kaede's cooking began to fade, he would feel like he had a good hold of things.
He walked aimlessly for a while before jumping into the highest tree he could find and relaxed on the thickest branch. He looked at the ground, not feeling high up enough, despite people on the ground being hard to make out, then set his gaze upwards. Staring up into the light blue sky with the occasional thin, white fluffs leisurely floating by eased him—but only by the smallest degree.
It was almost high noon, a time that usually produced the least productivity when it came to finding shards, and that did not sit well with his sense of dread.
In all honesty, the amount of lying he's been doing lately was starting to get to him. He didn't want to lie, but that was the instinct he kept going with; it wasn't even an impulsive instinct. What he really wanted to keep hidden wasn't that he found a jewel and it got stolen from him—at least, that wasn't a driving force—and he was starting to question all his reasoning up to this point.
Did he not want them to know about the girl? If so, why? She didn't appear to be powerful, and she certainly didn't feel that way, so what was the problem?
What was his problem?
While he was on the topic, why didn't he just force her to tell him where the shard was in the first place? He demanded she tell him, sure, but he knew he was holding back a lot. Why? Was she powerful after all and a part of him knew that? That seemed unlikely . . . but what else could it be?
"What is it about me . . . ?"
He thought and thought. The more he thought, the more he bummed himself out. He couldn't come up with a single reason. He must have been having an off day. Or, a more logical way of thinking, she did something to him when she "healed" him. That had to be it. She must have cast something upon him when she closed his wound.
That would make sense . . .
That's why he's hesitating so much!
"Inuyasha!"
He looked into the distance to see Kagome coming his way. She didn't see him, just calling out in hopes that he would hear.
It worked.
He sighed, wondering if he should go down there and decided he should. He probably caused a lot of grief for everyone.
He jumped down as close to her as he could get and walked until she saw him. She called at him again and ran the rest of the way.
"Where did you go?" she asked.
"I told you I was taking a walk."
"Yes . . . but why did you leave so suddenly?"
"It's nothing, Kagome." He rubbed his head and walked around her. "I just needed a breather."
She turned. "You know you can talk to me about anything."
"Yeah, yeah. And when I have a problem, you'll be the first person I go to."
"Inuyasha!"
"What?!" He turned sharply and was greeted by Kagome's saddened glare.
What had he done now? Maybe he was too harsh with what he said, but how was that different from any other time? Didn't she know that's just the way he is?
"I get that you want to be the tough guy all time, Inuyasha, but you do have people who care for you when stuff happens. I'm not saying you have to be dependent on us all the time, but don't avoid us."
"I'm not-! It's not like that, okay? I just have things ta deal with, and I need to think freely." He paused. "Fine. I'll admit something is botherin' me, but I've got it taken care of, okay? If it gets any worse, I'll tell you about it."
She walked over to him, studying his face. "Promise?"
"Yeah, yeah. I promise."
She didn't think that was all to what was bothering him; she really wanted to know what was bothering him exactly, but she believed he would turn to her eventually. They've been through worse than this.
"Alright." She held his hand. "Let's head back then. Kaede is almost finished."
"Uh . . . Kagome . . ." He looked down at their hands, suddenly feeling too warm.
She squeezed his hand lightly. "Humor me, will ya?"
He pursed his lips, looking to the side. "Wh-whatever." He returned the pressure. "Let's just go."
These moments truly confused him. He didn't mind them—he really liked them—but they always came without warning. The two could be arguing or she could be sad for whatever reason and then—BAM! Something is said or done that makes him feel self-conscious. Sometimes it's his fault these moments happen, but now she's causing them, too.
He pushed the thought aside. What he said earlier was true. The situation at hand was taken care of because he knew what he had to do. He just had to get back the jewel, and, now that he knew what was going on, he had to push past any hesitation he felt because his actions were being influenced by that orange-haired wench's-
with the large, grey eyes
-trickery.
Orihime had been nothing but blissfully pleased with life all day, and because of this attitude, she found that everything seemed to be going well for her.
She passed all her tests from last week—not scoring the highest, but doing exceptionally better than any of her previous tests—and the project that was due by the end of this week was now due next week. If that wasn't good enough, she got discounts on all her ingredients for tonight's meal; she's a frequent shopper at her local market, so the owner only made her pay half the total price.
When she got home, she had her mind set on cooking. She placed her school bag on her sofa and brought her groceries to the kitchen.
Dinner didn't take as long as she had hoped. She even made the mashed potatoes herself.
By the time she was done with everything, it was barely late in the afternoon. She mulled things over as she started putting things into containers. After she wrapped everything tightly into one giant cloth, she went to her sofa, moved her bag, and decided to lie down. She had a lot of time—too much time.
Would Kisuke and the others think she was weird if she brought it over now? Did she even pack enough food?
She sighed, listening to the silence. She closed her eyes, not intending to fall asleep but also not noticing when she did.
o0o0o
When she awoke, she noticed the difference in the lighting.
She sat up and looked around. Her home had become dimmer than she remembered from just a few minutes ago.
She got up and stretched. Walking into the kitchen, she saw something covered in cloth. She stared at it, turned to get juice out of the refrigerator, then stared at it some more. Running her hand along the object, she found it to be objects. They were still very warm so . . . so . . .
Oh no.
Orihime slammed the juice on the counter and looked at the clock above her oven. She had fallen asleep for nearly an hour and a half?! She had food to deliver—food she promised to bring—and she overslept.
She quickly picked up the containers, checked her pockets for her key, and exited her apartment.
By the time she could no longer see her complex, the sun was beginning to set. She worried over whether or not Kisuke would still want the food this late. If he accepted her sincerest apologies, she would just have to make sure to not let this happen again.
If he didn't . . .
Well, she'd handle that if it turned out that way.
Once she got to the path leading to Kisuke's house, she was suddenly overcome with a wave of extreme self-consciousness. Up until this point, she had not thought about how little she knew him and how smaller the amount of interactions between the two of them have been. She knew him through Ichigo, and the only time she talked to Kisuke at length was yesterday. Was she really in a position to show up past dinnertime and expect him to think it okay? Was she giving herself too wide a range of flexibility just because they knew a mutual party?
"Maybe I should have called first," she worried aloud. However, she had no means of calling him, and secondly, she was already at his door.
She stood there for a minute, allowing her mind to race and judge her on how inconsiderate she was being, before she knocked.
Five minutes passed.
She knocked again. She neither heard movement nor did she notice any lights when she arrived. The possibility and likelihood that they had all gone to bed saddened her. Why had she taken so long that everyone was forced to go to bed without dinner? Yes, she was indeed at fault here, and, not just that, she felt some sort of emotional pain over Kisuke not being able to try her cooking. How could she even feel such a way when she was in the wrong?
She bit the inside of her lip and blinked rapidly. Orihime decided that this was enough for one night and turned to make the journey back home.
"Miss. Inoue?"
She stopped a few paces away and turned back to find a yawning Kisuke in the doorway; one arm retracted into his sleeve to scratch his chest lazily.
"I didn't expect you so early. Were you waiting long?"
"E-early? Hadn't you gone to bed?"
"I was just taking a nap. I didn't know you ate dinner before the sun went down."
Orihime smiled, a small one.
He wasn't mad at her.
In fact, she had been worrying over nothing. She felt like laughing, but the man was already giving her a weird look, tilting his head up ever so slightly so that one eye studied her quizzically.
"Is something funny?" he asked.
She shook her head bashfully. "Oh, no. I'm just . . . happy."
"Happy?"
She nodded. "That you're not upset with me."
He stared at her, vaguely wondering if he was still sleeping. "Why would I be upset with you?"
She walked over to him. "It's a . . . weird something to explain. Ah! But I've brought you dinner like promised." She held out the cloth-covered containers. "I hope you enjoy it."
"My, my." He grinned, taking it from her. "This definitely looks like a feast. You've outdone yourself."
She laughed, pulling at her cheek. "Well, you know, I try to do my best." She fidgeted in place, waiting to see if he was going to say anything else. He didn't appear to be the one to break the silence anytime soon, however. He seemed intent on drawing this encounter out. "Well, I'll leave you to your dinner then. I'll be back tomorrow with more." She waved as she turned to leave.
"Ah, Miss. Inoue? You haven't already eaten, have you?"
She stopped mid-turn. "Uh, well, no. I was running late with the cooking, so I came here before I decided to eat."
"Well, if you don't mind, won't you stay to eat with me?"
Orihime stood there, feeling weightless. She's never eaten with anyone other than her friends, and she's never gotten offers from people she didn't know that well.
"Um," she pushed hair back from her ear, "o-okay. I don't mind at all."
"Great!" he sang happily. "Follow me then!"
He turned into his shop, and she timidly walked in after him.
After she shut the door behind her, she noticed that there really was little light in the house. There was only one source coming from the area she knew to be the living room with the table in the middle. She took off her shoes and walked in there. To her confusion, there were only the boxes she had brought placed on the table.
"Oh, sorry for wandering off like that," Kisuke said from behind her. She jumped slightly and turned her head in his direction. "I just went to get some saké. I brought some juice for you and also some utensils."
"O-oh. Thank you."
They walked over to the little table and sat down on the cushions surrounding it.
"I hope you don't mind the non-existent extravagance you find yourself in this evening. It's not every day that I have a guest." He put the bottle of saké and a juice pouch on the table.
"Oh, no, this is fine, really. Um . . . allow me." She pushed herself onto her knees and set the table. Now that she had a chance to lay it all out like this, she began to think she may have brought too much, even if five people were going to be eating.
"That is a lot, isn't it?" Kisuke asked just as she was eyeing the two beverages on the table.
"Ah, yes, well, I know you said not to worry about the others, but I brought enough for them, too."
"Such a sweet girl," he waved his hand in the air, "but I'm afraid they won't be able to taste your cooking for a while."
"O-oh? Why not?"
"Tessai is chaperoning a trip for Ururu and Jinta's school. I think they're going on some kind of nature exploration in the mountains; this is why I've asked you to cook for me for a while. I hope you don't mind the selfish request."
"No, it's alright. I should have listened to you when you told me not to worry about them, but I couldn't help myself from packing extra and . . . and . . . ahem." She sat back on her legs. "E-enjoy."
"Yes." He brought his hands together. "Thanks for the food."
Orihime took a fork and one of the containers with chopped chicken. She watched Kisuke as he took a fork as well, but was surprised when he took the container with the chicken breasts, stabbed his fork in one, and began eating it as is.
"What an interesting combination," he said. "I must say, this is delicious. What's this right here?" He pointed to one of the containers.
"Buttered leeks."
"Hm . . ." He pointed at another. "And this yellow stuff?"
"Cheesy mashed potatoes."
"Well, now!" he said in approval. "If I would have known you'd make something so fancy, I would have at least paid you."
She laughed softly, feeling flattered. "I could never accept your money when this is something I love to do."
"Well, I can't wait to see what you come up with these next few nights."
Orihime smiled jovially as she watched him eat. None of her friends praised her cooking as much as he was doing. She actually felt proud of herself.
o0o0o
They finished their meal, occasionally engaging in small conversation. Orihime was pleased that he ate enough for four people and also a little amazed at how she hadn't even noticed when he would finish one container and go to another.
"So, tell me, Orihime," he said when they were done, "have you met with your red-cloaked friend lately?"
"Mm," she picked up the juice pouch, "no, I haven't. That's actually something I'm worried about."
"What? Him coming back?"
"Sort of. I mean . . . I feel bad that I had what he was looking for the whole time, but I also don't know what to do since you said the crystal is so powerful. I mean, I don't think he's a bad guy, but we're not sure where he's from. This could . . . turn out bad . . . if he's bad."
"Well, why don't you tell Ichigo? I'm sure he'd step in."
She took a big sip of her juice. "I wouldn't want to bother him if this turns out to be nothing. Besides, if anything bad happens when or if Inu-kun shows up again, I'm sure I could defend myself . . . if I needed to."
"Inu-kun?"
She blushed, recalling her statement. "That's what I call that boy . . . He has these ears like this." She brought her hands up to her head. "They kind of look like dog ears."
Kisuke laughed, not intending for it to come out as loud and abrupt as it did. The explanation was more than enough, but he was surprised she actually showed him what it looked like to her. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," he hiccuped as he calmed down. "That was very rude of me."
She rubbed the back of her head, smiling. "It's alright, really."
He hummed to himself. "So, how are you at defending yourself, if you don't mind me asking."
"I'm decent." She held up her arm and flexed her bicep. "My friend Tatsuki has been teaching me some of her fighting techniques."
He laughed again. "Well, with a fighting spirit like that, I'm sure you'll be fine. So, what did you do with that crystal? Surely, you keep it well hidden."
"Ah, well," she pulled at the ends of her hair, "i-it's been sitting on my desk. I haven't given much thought in to what to do with it."
"I'm sure the appropriate action will be taken."
There were a few more questions Kisuke asked before they both decided it was getting late. Orihime packed up all the empty containers and said her goodbyes. She was looking forward to eating with him again because, in all honesty, he was good company.
At first, it was awkward, but she soon felt very comfortable with him—almost like he was her kin.
Kisuke walked her to the door, all the while they seemed to be bonding like brother and sister. He watched as Orihime made her way home then closed the door.
He stood in the near darkness of the entrance, staring down at the doorknob. She seemed to be alright, but things would start picking up momentum very soon. There was also something different about her spiritual pressure. It was . . . a bit stronger than yesterday. What could she have done within that time to make it rise? Or, maybe, he had just not been paying attention. Still . . . he hoped to study her and the effects of that crystal a little more.
o0o0o
Orihime arrived home thirty minutes after the streetlights came on. She was humming to herself the whole way and even stopped to talk to one of the stray dogs.
Today really had been a good day.
She wondered what Kisuke did for breakfast and lunch if everyone was gone, but never got around to asking him. Maybe, she hoped, she could talk with him about bringing food at those times, when possible. She may not admit it, but she was growing an attachment to him already. Living on her own was not always a pleasant experience, so the fact that he had asked her to stay made her feel at home. She wanted to feel like that more often.
When she was settled inside her apartment, she walked over to the kitchen, putting away the leftovers. She would have enough for her own breakfast and lunch, but not enough for the both of them for dinner. Maybe she should start buying in bulk so she wouldn't have to stop by the store every day.
After she was done, she went into her room and looked around. She had no real motivation to work on her project tonight, so she should just go to bed. There was nothing else to be done, and she would get plenty of sleep if she hurried with her bath now.
"Alright," she agreed. "Bed it is"
She took out her hairpins and walked over to her desk. She traded her pins for a scrunchie and began pulling her hair back into a ponytail. As she did so, her eyes wandered to the contents of her desk and landed on the crystal next to her pins. She dropped her hands and picked up the crystal and one pin. Looking between the two, she noticed how they complimented each other—the gleam of the plastic and the natural shine of the crystal seemed fated to meet.
They would probably look really outstanding if the crystal was a glittery powder she could sprinkled on the clip.
"Or just . . . stick it in the middle somehow."
She pushed one pointed end in the center of her clip and applied mild pressure. She wasn't sure if it would look good if it worked—a sharp crystal protruding from a pin. If she were to wear it, it'd look like she had a splinter coming out the side of her head. Maybe the idea was better in theory. There's no way she'd actually smash it into dust either.
She tried to pull the two apart, but the crystal was stuck. Pulling harder, carefully, it still wouldn't come out. She brought it up to eye level, crystal poking in the air. The pointed end wasn't in the clip at all: It was standing on it. Then, she noticed, it began to sink, almost as if it were melting. Orihime stared in amazement—until it was gone.
Speechless, she held it in front of her face. The blue parts on the clip glowed brightly and, when the light settled, had thin, pink needle-like lines going through each blue section. The center was now pink with a small point sticking out.
"Wh . . . what-"
Banging came from beyond her room. Her head snapped in the direction of the sound, her breathing picking up. Her heart was already beating from the previous occurrence and now this. She looked at her transformed hairpin then hallway. Quickly, she put the pin in her hair and rushed towards the living room door where the banging came again. She opened it.
She was speechless once again.
He would have broken the door down if he was certain this was the right one.
He had no trouble following her scent this time, but it became hard to keep track once he got to this level of the building. The scent was coming from all over, but was a bit stronger once he got to this particular floor. He only picked a door that might have smelled stronger than all the rest.
He banged on it.
No one came, but he was certain someone was inside, so he banged again.
This time, he heard movement inside—clumsy movement—then the knob started to turn.
And there she was.
The wench who stole his jewel and put him in this mess in the first place.
She was staring at him with those unbelievably wide, grey eyes—eyes that looked innocent, sure, but that was just an act. She was surprised that he found her, and he knew that. She thought she had gotten away with what she did, yet here he was to prove her wrong. She opened her mouth to say something, but he wouldn't allow it.
"You know why I'm here, so just hand over the jewel shard."
She heard him, heard him perfectly, but she hadn't yet come to terms with his presence. It was only a matter of time before he returned, but she had not decided what to do if things turned bad. She hadn't considered he would show up at her apartment—at night. Did that, in itself, make him a bad guy? And then he demanded for a jewel shard.
Jewel shard?
"Oh!" she said once realizing his meaning. "I . . . I can't do that."
He smirked. "I knew you wouldn't make this easy. I'll just tear this whole damn place apart until I find it." He pushed past her to get inside.
She turned. "Um, about tha-"
"I can feel it close by." He flung the cushions on her sofa to the floor. "I don't have to hurt you, so you should just make this simple."
"L-like I said, I can't do that. You see, I-"
"Why the hell not?!" He spun to face her. "You think just 'cause you're a girl, I won't kill you?"
She flinched. "Th . . . that's not what I mean. See, it-"
"Then where the hell is it?!"
She waited, finding talking to be pointless. He didn't say anything, just glared at her with those eyes—those intense, golden eyes.
"You got five seconds before I start slashing you to bits, lady." He placed a hand on his sword.
Her heart began to pound. She only had one pin on and he seemed furious. Did that make him bad or did the crystal mean a lot to him?
Slowly, her hand came up and pointed at the side of her head. "H-here."
"'Here'? Is that where you want me to cut you first?"
"N-no! Th-the crystal. I-it went into my hairpin somehow."
He was dumbstruck.
She already fused it with something?
No, of course she already fused it with something! Is that why her scent became hard to find just a while ago? Does that mean she just did it? If he had gotten here a few seconds earlier, he could have had it?!
"You've gotta be kidding me!" he yelled.
"I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean for it to happen! I'd give it back if I knew how!"
"If you wanna give it back so bad, then break that stupid thing on your head already!"
Her heart burst with adrenaline.
Break it?
Break her hairpin?
Even if that did help, how could she possibly do that? Her brother gave her these, so there was no way she could just break one—not either of them.
"I . . . I can't. These . . .these mean a lot to me. Maybe I-"
"Argh! I don't have time for your games! I can break the damn thing myself!" He stormed over to her.
Orihime panicked and ran forward, ducking under his arm to retreat to the hallway. The boy yelled in protest; she could hear him running after her.
"I'm tired of this!" His hand came down on her shoulder and forced her to spin around.
"No, wait!" Her hand came up to protect her clip, and she felt a sensation from under her fingertips. She snatched her fingers away from the sensation that was completely different from what she ever felt from her clips, and a large blast, a pink light rather than a yellow one, shot from the side of her head and into the right side of the boy's chest.
They both froze, grey and gold eyes alike going wide.
His grip on her tightened, nails digging into her skin. She cringed but couldn't move more than a few inches. She forced her eyes to move to the new hole in him, and her stomach dropped.
Did she shoot through his heart?
A gurgling sound came from the boy. His eyes became dull, eyelids drooping. His grip on her softened completely, and his body no longer stood on its own. Orihime watched in horror as his mouth spewed blood, as he fell to his knees, head limp against her thighs. She stared down at the top of his head. Her breathing had picked up to the point where she was becoming light-headed.
"N . . . no." Her body trembled, eyes swelling with tears.