Tokyo, 2021
Spring
The sunshine rays was piercing through almost every corner of Sakura's house. Today forecast said the weather would be sunny all day long, it motivated her even more to ran for a lap this morning.
Usually for Saturday, Sakura's morning routine would be running along her neighborhood. Then she would go to the nearest traditional market, and spare some times at the park to just breathing the air and looking at the people there. If only she was not have a seminar nor a training of course.
But, today Sakura had an unexpected guest. Drop off from her black Toyota Crown, Sakura was surprised to see Uchiha Mikoto.
/
hERe aFtEr
7.
/
"I can see the hospital's building from here. You're right, Sakura-chan, this is a very nice neighborhood," Mikoto stood before her small yard.
Two days ago Mikoto insisted that she would pay Sakura a visit. Sakura did not know it would be today. She welcomed her with open arms nevertheless.
"Sakura-chan," Mikoto called after shipping her tea.
Sakura lifted her head from her ready to serve sweet potatoes when Mikoto asked her, "Do you mind if you come with me to our hotel's annual banquet? it'll also be a welcome party for Sasuke."
Sakura blinked her eyes twice. "Eeh? Can I… I mean isn't that supposed to be an exclusive event, Mikoto-san?"
Mikoto chuckled, "Nonsense, you're just like a lost daughter that I'm certainly treasured though."
"Aah," It made Sakura blush. And she did not know how to respond.
"So???" Mikoto asked with a slightly tilted head, "By the way this is my first annual banquet after two years, so I'm really nervous right now. I thought, to have you there with me it will means a lot, Sakura-chan."
Sakura was taken aback to hear Mikoto's real reason. She had no heart to say no, eventhough she felt it was burdensome.
"I'll come with you, Mikoto-san. When is it-wait, didn't you say… right now?"
Mikoto with such innocent eyes, nodding her head. Indeed burdensome. Sakura noted to herself.
They reached to the hotel after spent hour and a half at a professional salon in the middle of bustling Tokyo. Mikoto had asked Sakura politely to do their hair and make up together, and Sakura-knowing how long she had waited to finally set her foot into the beautiful famous salon in front of her-said okay right away. She could not hide her excitement. Both of the woman had a really good time there.
Sakura glanced over her own reflection for probably the tenth times. Her hair was simply braided then rolled into a lovely loose bun at the base of her head. The glowy yet effortless look she got made the salon live up to their name.
Step out of the lift into the banquet hall floor, Sakura saw a men had waited for them. "It's been awhile, Haru-kun," said Mikoto to the very young men.
Haru looked bashful through his nonchalant look, "Nice to see you again, Mikoto-san."
Then Haru led them not to the main door at the front, but towards the smaller one at the end of the floor. After they turned their direction, Sakura's eyes accidently met with Uchiha Sasuke's who was standing alone in front of the door.
"Are you nervous, my dear?" Mikoto approached Sasuke.
"M-mom?" Sasuke could not hide his puzzled look.
Sakura almost pull her lips to the side if it only was not because Sasuke turned around to take Mikoto with him.
Sakura sucked her mouth. Well… that's awkward.
"It's fine... I know you're nervous... " Sakura could read Mikoto's lips while she was stroking her son's cheek. They calmly walked back to Sakura after two minutes talk.
"C'mon, we're late~" Mikoto's excitement tone-with such beautiful smile-made Sakura felt Mikoto's sincere effort to eased her mind.
For Sakura could easily turned on her heels to forget about her exbestfriend's rudeness.
/
After Sasuke's welcome ceremony ended, all of the guests started to blend in. Never once in her life Sakura attended such an exclusive standing party. There were only about a hundred guests, which made plenty room for them to meet and talk to each other comfortably.
Sakura could recognized two legislatures and the mayor's spokesman were talking with bunch of people. She also saw a few politicians and some of the famous artists or influencers.
Sakura now thought about Sasuke's bewilderment to see her coming was not exaggerated. This annual banquet supposed to be VVIP only, becaue they had talked about an internal issues of the hotel, their valuable stocks, and other crucial part of the hotel's development projects.
Mikoto was busy greeting and talking to her guests. One or two of them would nicely asked about Sakura as their courtesy. Mikoto's answer would always the same, "My relative from Hokkaido, doctor Haruno Sakura."
The topic of their discussion mainly would be about their concerns for hotel's unstability. Then they would share the common things like how their bussiness going, some of their high-class lifestyle, and did not forget to brought up their children's successful life.
Mikoto Uchiha made her respectful gesture by doing the exact same thing. From Mikoto's side Sakura kept her composure by pretended as if she was attentively listening. Although, her mind wondered somewhere in between.
Really. What was the reason for you to came, Sakura?
The liquid inside Sakura's glass seemed bottomless, it made Mikoto concerned. "You don't like the wine?"
"No, instead, this is the best wine I ever had, Mikoto-san."
Mikoto let out a small laugh. "That's our hotel's signature. Sasuke made it himself."
"Wow, he did?"
Mikoto nodded proudly.
Too bad for Sakura, she never drink during the day. Not only because of her work, but also she would immediately feeling drowsy afterward.
Right across the room, Sakura noticed the man they were talking about. It was not hard to find him even in a quite distance. He was busy talking to a couple who was around Mikoto's age.
But, by the look on Sasuke's face something unusual had occurred. The wife look troubled and clutched to her chest the whole time. The husband tried to hold the wife's arms. It was not long after that, the couple and Sasuke bowed each other then parted. The couple hurried their way to the door.
Sakura's instinct as a doctor was kicking in. The way the wife walked were too suspicious for Sakura. So, she whispered to Mikoto, "Mikoto-san may I excuse myself for a second."
Mikoto looked away from her guests to answered Sakura beside her, "Sure, Sakura-chan. I'll be here, okay."
Sakura put down her glass to the nearest table. Then calmly made her way toward the door. The hall door was wide enough for Sakura to see the couple were still waiting for the elevator. She halted and decided to watch from afar.
The elevator was one floor away Sakura could clearly see it, when the wife's body limply hit the carpeted floor. Like a runner, Sakura pumped her heels to the couple's side.
"What happened to her, sir?" Sakura crouched down to see the couple.
"W-who are you?" The husband asked Sakura.
"I'm a doctor. Can I take a look at your wife?" Took a second for the husband to nodded his head.
"Ma'am, can you hear me?" Examined the pale face, Sakura shaked the wife's shoulders. Gained no respond from the wife, "Sir, please call 119 right now," Sakura shouted so other people could hear her either.
Then Sakura laid her head close to the wife's face, to feel whether the breathing was still there or not. The wife was breathless which automatically made Sakura searched for a pulse at her neck. Shit. Unfortunately, there was also no pulse.
"Hey, tell me what're you doing!? We need to go the hospital! If you're not going to-" and unfortunately the old husband was too shock to listened to Sakura.
"Sir, please be calm," said Sakura to the husband who was now trembling. "I'm a doctor, your wife is having a cardiac arrest, we don't have time to go to the hospital, so I need to do a chest compression right here right now. Please call an ambulance and tell them to bring an AED."
About time for people finally came. Mikoto especially with her guests from before was making their way toward Sakura. But, Sakura raised her hand to held them from coming closer.
"Mikoto-san, please help this men calling an ambulance and do not gathered around us, I need-"
"-What do you need?" before Sakura continued Sasuke stepped in and knelt beside her.
Overcome their sudden close proximity in a split second, Sakura answered, "I need someone who knows about recucitation or maybe had performed a chest compression before."
Sasuke nodded his head while leaving. He made his way to the VVIP guests, asking for help.
Sakura took off her blazer, then she went positioning the wife's body to laid flat on her back. She put a thin layer of paper from inside her wallet, which she always kept in time of emergency purposes.
Sakura took her stance and started the chest compressions right away. After the thirtieth compressions, deep breath was taken for her to quickly blew it from inside her puffed mouth to the wife's mouth through the thin layer. The wife's chest was bulging, it went smooth as she was the main instructor for the training cardiac life support.
A man and a woman came to her side. Sakura had done an excellent job maintaining the recucitation, but it would drained so much energy and the rescue team's arrival time was something unpredictable. If there was another person who could swaped around to performed the chest compression or the rescue breath, sure that would be very helpful.
Sakura informed them what to do, and fortunately they had certification for a basic recucitation. It was more than enough to helped her.
The gruelling process was seen by the husband and almost all of the guests. Mikoto stood beside Itachi who was finally here, and the husband who looked white and in despair.
"It's back!" said the man with the red butterfly neck tie, "the pulse's back."
"There's still no breathing," yet the woman cried accross from him.
Sakura who was now gasping to breathe after she completed two rounds of chest compression on her own, "Then we need to keep the rescue breathing only."
It would not be as exhausting as doing the chest compression. The woman began to gave a rescue breath right away.
Right after the man tried to changed position with the woman, the rescue team came out of the elevator. Sakura and the two great helpers finally stood up and step back for the rescue team.
"The pulses has back, but you may need to keep the ventilation, or prepare the intubation just in case the ECG doesn't look good," informed Sakura to the rescue team as they started the initial assessment all over again.
They looked at Sakura with respect, "Yes, ma'am," then to the two helpers, "thank you very much."
"You should go with them, Kudo-san," Sasuke who was now stood near the rescue team, told the husband. The husband's face was hard to describe, he seemed about to pass out anytime soon.
Sakura let out a long sigh. Hope they alright, Kami-sama.
"Here," Sakura looked at her blazer lifted from the floor.
Thank God I wasn't wearing any dress or skirt. Sakura reached for her blazer, "Thank you."
It was Sasuke who held it. "No, thank you," he corrected.
/
Profesor Dai got off from the operating room after one and a half hour performing a by-pass procedure. He bumped into Sakura in the hallway.
"I heard that you're the one who saved mrs. Kudo this morning."
Sakura was on her way to meet Professor Dai. "Yes, prof. And you're just finished the surgery, right? How was she, professor?"
"Fine, thanks to you. What are you doing here? Emergency?"
Sakura nodded, "But, it's all done now. They got it under control."
"Aah. Why don't you come with me then to see mr. Kudo?"
Sakura watched as her professor waiting for an answer. "Sure."
Dai immediately smiled, she was never one to said no to him.
/
On the way to the hospital, Mikoto's words kept gnawing inside Sasuke's head. "With or without the accident, you owe her an apology, my dear."
Sasuke's hands grip the steering wheel tigher. The black sedan was turning its direction into quieter road where shady trees greeted the car lights. Sasuke got into the hospital's area in no time. Mikoto and Itachi had waited him at the lobby. So, he rushed to them as soon as the car stopped in the parking lot.
"Patient named Natsuo Kudo just got transferred from the operating room to the intensive care unit. The medic team need more time to stabilized patient's condition who has indergone major surgery," The lady at the information desk explained to the Uchihas, "For mrs. Kudo's family, they probably waiting at the VIP room." She continued to gave the direction.
The three Uchihas went on their way toward the VIP waiting room. As soon as they got into the room, Sasuke's eyes landed immediately on one figure whose back was facing him.
"You can have a proper rest now, Kudo-san," Professor Dai who was standing side by side to Sakura had finished explaining the succesfull surgery to the husband, Asahi Kudo.
"I'm so grateful, thank you very much, Professor. Never occurred to me that it could be this bad. But, good God, we're both blessed," Asahi with eyes full of tears, looked much better than when he witnessed his wife on the verge of death.
"Looks like you have visitors, Kudo-san," professor Dai bowed his head then smiled toward the three Uchihas.
Sakura turned her head.
"Aah, Uchiha-san," Asahi wiped his eyes quickly, "Doctor just explained to me about the surgery, it went very well."
Mikoto pat Asahi on the shoulders, "I'm grateful to hear that, Kudo-san."
"Knowing professor Dai myself, you shouldn't be worried. He's the best." Said Itachi.
"Indeed, Itachi-kun," Asahi glanced to Sakura, "and of course thanks to doctor Haruno, if it wasn't because of her, I could've lost my wife."
Sakura shaked her head. She denied the fact it was because of her. "Your wife is a fighter, Kudo-san. She was the one who was struggling."
"We're just doing what we need to do, Kudo-san," professor Dai added. On a moment like this, he couldn't be more proud of his pupils.
Sakura felt a vibration on her right white coat's pocket. Quickly she declined it.
"It was also because Mikoto-san asked me to come to the banquet where I wasn't supposed to be. I was there to accompanied her, that's all."
Mikoto reached Sakura's arm, "I'm glad I made you come."
The deep black eyes of Uchiha Sasuke couldn't stop to stare. It might made a whole on Sakura's face.
"That was prove of how gracious God is." Asahi kept his smile
There was another long vibration. "It seems like I have to go back."
Sasuke saw Sakura bowed two times before their eyes finally met. A small smile graced her face for a second.
"Hi, what's wrong? I was with patient's family," Sakura quickened her pace after leaving the room. "Take another one and we'll read it together. I'm on my way."
"Sakura," the unexpectedly barritone voice called her from behind.
"Yes, Sasuke-kun?" Sakura halted.
"Do you have time?"
"Right now? I'm sorry, but my patient is waiting."
Sasuke looked hesitant, "Well, it also can wait."
Here Sakura's another expectation unlocked. "Okay, then I'll see you again, Sasuke-kun," She stepped in to the lift, then pushed a button.
Sakura's phone rung again in her hand. She put it to her ear, "Don't let the patient move. If you're tense they could feel it too, you should calm yourself. Just wait, five minutes."
The lift's door started to close. Sasuke watched another smile left Sakura's lips while she was talking to her phone. The good thing about today's drama-Sasuke thoughtlessly wonder-was the funny feeling he had of how Sakura acted toward him and the caring she brought just by calling his name. Like nine years just a number to her.
/
My day off. I supposed to make Sashimi this morning. Sakura could felt her stomach grumbled in angry.
She devouring the nightscape when she got out the hospital's lobby. Omurice would be great. Although tonight the crescent moon was hanging low in the sky.
Someone was nudging her left shoulder, "Just go home already."
Sakura raised her right eyebrow, "Do you care to tell me what happened to your new year's eve?"
Mai snorted loudly.
"Who~? Ishida-kun or that Italian guy from before?"
"Be quiet!" Now Mai slapped Sakura's shoulder while she was laughing. Quite hard.
"Wow, pretty sure you're with that Italian guy. Poor, Ishida-kun."
"You know it's been quite awhile since I told you I like that guy, isn't it, Sakura?" The laughing turned into a blushing grin. "Ishida was a nice gentleman, but I can't lie to myself that I want to be with Julio. Eventhough I knew it could be just a one night stand for him."
"You've done a great job," Mai's eyes got big. She was suprised to hear that compliment came out of Sakura. "I was curious I wanna meet him, seeing you head over heels for him like this."
"Sure, maybe we could hook you up with some of his friends. He was very friendly and quite funny, had bunch of friends in Tokyo so you don't have to worry."
"How's he look, Mai? Italian guy must be kinda sexy."
"Oh-ho, he's mine you know," Sakura rolled her eyes to this, "he is very masculine, his face is not oustandingly handsome compared to that man over there, you know Julio is kinda muskular and-" Mai nudged Sakura's arm, then pointed her chin to someone at the parking lot.
Whom they talked about started to walk toward them.
Sakura squinted her eyes tight. Her eyes could pull a trick to her brain after everything that had happened today.
"Sakura," Uchiha Sasuke called while still strolling his long legs.
"Sasuke-kun? Where's your mom and Itachi?"
"They went home already."
"And what are you doing here?"
"I heard from the lady at the front you'd be out around this time, so I was waiting."
"O-oh!?" Sakura remembered about they conversation not too long ago. "Aah."
Mai witnessed the whole scene and smirked at how nervous Sakura looked.
"Do you mind if I'm taking you home?"
Sasuke was suddenly being too polite, Sakura was surely nervous about this. She glanced to her friend at her side.
"Totally fine," Mai raised both of her hands. Sakura mouthed a sorry before Mai waved Sakura goodbye.
Sasuke led the way to the parking lot. Looking at the broad back, Sakura felt something tickling in her stomach. Because I'm stupidly hungry. Surely it was not.
Under the beautiful night sky, Sakura met her expectation. The two were about to have their proper reunion. At last.
