Happy new year! It's a week late though, lol. But hey... it's better late than never.

Anyway guys... it's been a while, almost roughly two months I think. And also, this story almost three years long since the first upload was in March, 2018. The progress was kinda slow I know, after such a long hiatus because a job, now I have enough time to continue it. I really appreciate for those who keep stick with me and this story even after three years long, and willing to wait for the next update. I can't thank you enough...

You guys are awesome!

Happy reading...


3rd person POV

"The surgery is very dangerous and has a great risk. The chance of success is only five percent. Even if this went well, it'd only give you a little more time."

One quiet night in a hospital...

Returned to a small room furnished with a rectangular glass table that was very familiar in the eyes of a patient who visited him regularly every week, even the doctor's face in the white coat became permanent memory in her head as they looked at each other's faces between these white wall.

Hearing the bitter facts described by the experienced doctor, honestly surprised the parents of the patient who had only been able to stand behind their daughter's wheelchair... silent, and could only accompany their beloved daughter... accept and support all the decisions she'd make.

"Yes, I understand. I have thought this through carefully." the patient answered with confidence in her gaze, "I have discussed it with my parents, and I'm ready for it... I want to have it... the surgery."

The doctor looked into her face... looked intently into her turquoise eyes which exuded a very strong conviction and honesty...

"Even if it only gives me a little more time, even if there's only the slightest hope... I'm willing to cling to anything," the patient slowly smiled,"There was a boy whom I met in the spring... I cried and vomited and struggled so hard it was unseemly... but, when many people read my books and reached their hearts... I shone like a star, and my life seemed like a gorgeous ballad." she gave all her reasons for having such small hopes, even maybe having invisible hopes,"I made a promise with this boy... he said,'Let's write a book together again...' that's why I... I want to struggle as hard as I can... no matter how unseemly or futile it may be... I'm going to struggle... struggle... struggle like there's no tomorrow! Because I'm one of them too. If I go on wallowing in my despair, and just give up... I can never face my parents who gave birth to me and raised me..."

Hearing their daughter express all her pure feelings, made her mother could no longer hold back her tears. Her tears broke out in this silence, and her husband immediately hugged her, trying to calm her down...

The patient paused for a moment, hearing her mother sobbing behind her,"Because it is my life... if I just give up now... I'd feel sorry for myself..."

"Therefore... I beg of you, doctor..." staring once more at the doctor's face, showing a slight compassion towards her, she said her determination once again, "I want to have it... the surgery!"

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December 27th...

Gracie's POV

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"No...! The background character must also be given a detailed description as well... including the name!"

"It's a waste of time... he's just a background character without a significant role. Doesn't have an active role that drives the story. After all, readers will soon forget him!"

The atmosphere of a hospital that should be calm and peaceful for its patients, a place that should be a place for healing various illnesses both physically and mentally... I think that phrase these days are now nothing more than just a mere myth.

"He's also a character of your creation, at least give him a little appreciation for decorating your story plot!"

Because these two crazy writers... they've always been arguing about this background character from the beginning... where Blu who doesn't really care about that character, on the other hand... Jewel, she really cares about it.

"What a peaceful day..."

Roberto, who sat next to me, could only smile broadly this morning... watching the opposition and the affirmative who always gave arguments to support and oppose the motion.

"Yeah, you're right..." I answered him.

But I think it's true what Roberto said, even though this room sounds noisy, there's actually a peace in it. This is the nature of the two of them, contradicting each other. That's precisely the good thing, because... Jewel's face doesn't look gloomy anymore.

"By including him in the story, he's been felt appreciated. No need for a detailed description of the backstory, and his name. He's just a random sound that became a background sound. Quoted his dialogue alone is more than enough."

Looks like Blu issued a logical explanation to break Jewel's argument...

"Fine..." Jewel suddenly snatched the script which was in Blu's wing, "Then I'll give it to him personally...!" she immediately reached for the pencil on the table beside her.

"Hey, wait...! What are you gonna do?"

It only took five minutes for Jewel returning the script...

"See..." she said proudly, "It just needs a little decoration here and there... his description, name and background are done. You're just too lazy to make one."

"It's true, though... but..." Blu paused for a moment, staring at the script. I slowly looked for an opportunity to see it too, "I can't read it at all..."

Jewel's writing is like a three years old kid's, no... I think it's even worse than that... It's barely readable.

"How rude! Even though I've struggled to write it..." said Jewel, "Okay, I'll dictate it for you..."

It's all thanks to Blu's performance at Christmas... thanks to the expressions of his words... his feelings... Jewel decided to return to writing a book with him...

Without realizing it, I slowly opened my mouth and the air flowed out through it... sighing in silence...

'I really envy her...'

December 28th...

Blu's POV

"She's not here..."

A freezing morning at the end of December, when I was going to visit her as usual, hoping to see her annoying face again... but it seemed, for some unknown reasons, she wasn't in her room. There was only the patient's bed sheets neatly arranged. I checked into the hospital garden, but to sit there in this season, I think it's unlikely.

'What's the meaning of this? Though she the one who asked me to come every day!' I could only complain about this to myself, while walking out of the hospital.

The scene just like my mother's... when she suddenly disappeared from her room and couldn't be found anywhere except in that one spesific room.

A void that comes between hope... I have felt this kind of feeling before...

Don't tell me, if her condition gets worse...

"Oh... Hyacinthum G, is it?"

Two figures I recognized slowly coming towards me who stood frozen at the entrance...

"Jewel's father and Jewel's mother? It's been a while." I greeted them politely... and was rather awkward like I used to do.

Not as usual, I could coincidentally meet them here. I saw them carrying large bags hanging over their shoulders... maybe those were some changing clothes for their daughter.

"What a coincidence..." said his father, "We also came to deliver Jewel's clothes."

"You came here too to see her, right?" her mother asked, smiling at me.

"Yes..." I nodded slowly, "But I couldn't find her anywhere." I replied, frankly... hoping her parents knew where their daughter might be

Her father's response was somewhat surprised. He also seemed to know nothing like me, until they looked at each other and her mother remembered something...

"Maybe she's in the rehabilitation room."

Then...

"Keep going... slowly, Jewel..."

A few minutes later, as her mother said... Jewel was indeed in the rehabilitation room with her doctor. The three of us stand in front of this long glass, watching Jewel who seems trying to get back on her feet. While holding onto two iron pipes wrapped in a mat as safety, she laboriously dragged her talons which looked thin and weak while her doctor tried to cheer her up and give direction... as well as guarding her.

"She says she doesn't want to lose her stamina and muscle strength." said her mother, who was standing beside me,"She says that she wants to write one more time, standing onstage and speaking loud her writing."

Upon hearing her mother explain the reason her daughter had made this decision, the three of us saw the exhausted Jewel who almost fell. But she managed to hold her body with her knees while the doctor rushed over to help her up.

"Let's take a break for a moment, okay?" the doctor said worriedly,"You're already trying too much, Jewel."

I could see it very clearly... that sweat, that tired face and also the sound of gasping for breath... and also... that smiling face when she lifted it up to calm her worried doctor, "It's no big deal," replied Jewel, with that smiling face, "A writer has more stamina than you think."

And so... Jewel once again gets up and continues her rehabilitation tirelessly...

"This is all thanks to you, Hyacinthum G..." continued her father,"Jewel had given up... she'd thrown in the towel, really... and now she's starting to walk again... one sure step at a time."

"But I... I haven't done anything..." I replied, feeling pessimistic about my actions. Because in reality, I couldn't do anything for her... I couldn't repay her.

"No, I guess not." her mother continued, responding to my pessimistic answer,"All you did was show devotion, and that devotion was what struck a chord in Jewel's heart... that devotion you showed... Jewel's heart had turned gray, and you gave it color..." her mother slowly grabbed my shoulder gently,"So thank you... Hyacinthum G."

December 31st...

"Are you going to the hospital today?"

It was the day when the gray sky was shading this small town, when I had just come out of my house, locked the door... I heard Gracie's voice calling me from behind. I turned my body after making sure the door was locked, and there, right three meters in front of me, she stood looking at me in her red scarf that contrasted with the color of her feathers.

"Yeah..." I answered,"She orders me to check in with her regularly, then she says if I have to go, I should continue writing the book. I've no idea which one is correct."

"Can I come along?" requested her.

"Sure..." I replied, smiling, "We have to walk to get there though..."

"Don't underestimate me..." she responded rather arrogantly, "Even though in this cold temperature, I still have quite a lot of stamina." right after she finished with her words, one thing happened... one thing that was about to destroy her little arrogance, "Achoo..."

"What's that? You catch a cold, huh..." I said, cornering her by destroying that little pride she had.

"N-no, this is..." she kept trying to refute it though, "It's just a common sneeze..."

"Haaah..." I let out a short sigh along with cold dew coming out of my beak. I reached into my jacket pocket that happened to be carrying a can of hot lemonade in it, "Here... drink this..." then gave it to her, "My mother said if you have a cold, you should consume more vitamin C, especially in weather like this."

"B-but I don't..." even so, she was indeed a stubborn bird... still trying to refuse to admit her condition.

"Liar..." I snapped, "How long do you think we've known each other? You don't usually go out in winter. Your feather is very sensitive to snow. When you were young you even caught a cold for a week after watching new year's fireworks, didn't you? So, just take this..."

Stunned, she finally fell silent and slowly took this drink, "Th-thanks..." she said.

"But really..." I continued, smiling while watching her drink that hot lemonade, "You really are a girl, eh?"

"Why are you so noisy today?" she snapped at me, after drinking up her hot lemonade, then looked away from me, it seemed like she was a little mad at me. She then pocketed the empty can to throw in the trash if she found one later, "Come on..."

Gray afternoon... this dry, cold air... we both walked side by side within it. Along the sparse sidewalk beside a road that is almost deserted.

Such a calm atmosphere we had...

"Oh... that's..." Gracie stopped, as if she saw someone, "Robe?"

What an unexpected coincidence... when we arrived at the three-way junction, we saw a blue figure that was very familiar to us. He's Roberto, who's walking alone on a vast white expanse.

"He came to see Jewel, too?"

Gracie's POV

Suddenly... out of nowhere...

"Gres... looks like it's gonna rain. Let's head home today, okay?"

I can smell the rain, as well as his white lies, above this white cold carpets...

I didn't understand what kind of anxiety was happening in his heart and mind. Even though a few hours ago he was very excited to go to the hospital just to see Jewel... but after knowing Roberto on his way to the hospital too... he undoed his strong intention deep inside the abyss of his gray heart.

Without asking a question, I just nodded and walked after him from behind... walked slowly toward our adjoining house, staring at his back covered in a thick brown fur jacket.

"Oh..."

As he said before, raindrops slowly fell from the gray sky exactly five minutes later.

"Here it comes! It's coming down..." I shouted, while warning Blu to speed up the pace and immediately find a place to shelter. Because if not, both of us might get soaked and maybe even froze when we get home.

Luckily for us, it didn't take long to find a kind of shelter in the middle of a white field close to a family farm. Maybe this place is used as a warehouse by the owner, although I don't know what kind of equipment is stored since the warehouse door is locked.

Well, at least we can take shelter under this roof for a while because the more time passes, the more heavy rain drops...

"Haaah... I wish it would be just snow instead." I complained, sighing.

"You'd only wish that until it piled up." Blu said, joining in the conversation between the two of us... standing beside me, "But this is strange... it's still December though. Maybe the global warming's getting worse, huh..."

"If the snow had its own flavor, we'd have world peace, huh?"

"If our tap water was lemonade, it would eradicate the common cold."

Talking like we always do... the banter... joking around... suddenly having to take shelter from the rain.

Then again... the suddenly-out-of-nowhere thing...

"Oh... that's a cute handkerchief you're using, Gres...!" he exclaimed, after he saw me wiping my wet shoulder from the rain with this handkerchief...

A boy right next to me...

"As I thought, you really are a girl who likes cute things, eh, Gres?" he continued, smiling at me.

Liar...

"I know you didn't want to... to go see Jewel because Roberto was there." I said, bringing up the reason why he didn't want to go to the hospital.

"No... it's not like that..." he answered, "Well, I didn't think we should get in their way when it could just be the two of them."

Liar...!

"No! You just can't take it!" I snapped at him suddenly, "It hurts to see Jewel and Roberto laughing together, am I right?"

That's why you're avoiding her... I can tell right away when you're holding back. Just like you stayed by my side... I want to stay by yours. I can read you like a book, you know... how long do you think we've known each other?

After the atmosphere calmed down a little bit...

"You love Jewel, don't you, Blu?" In the end, I asked him about this.

His eyes widened for a moment, then looked at me with his surprised face... slowly but surely, his pure and warm smile slowly formed...

"Yeah..." he nodded, admitting his true feelings towards her.

The answer was as expected... as I had anticipated before... I knew from the start that he really loved Jewel. But why, this feeling of heaviness and tightness in my chest... what is this?

"What a moron!" not sure where this feeling came from, I suddenly exploded, shouting at him,"Jewel loves Roberto, you know! She always did, remember? As if she'd ever give you a second look!"

"I know..." Blu... he calmly answered while still smiling...

"When it comes to girls, if you're up against Roberto... you don't have a snowball's chance in hell!" I continued, still scolding him.

"I know..." he answered again, still using the same phrases and expressions.

Liar... you said you'd stay by my side... you don't know the first thing about me. You liar... you've never once thought of me as a girl.

"What a moron..." I continued, this time lowering my tone,"Jewel loves Roberto... and you... have no choice but to love me."

Finally I understood the feeling of this tightness and heaviness in my chest... and I can't believe I also said this kind of phrase. I dared not look at his expression after hearing it... maybe his face was far more shocked than his when I was asking him about his feelings toward Jewel.

Well, I guess that's a natural thing... because I'm also as surprised as him... about my true feelings...

I can't bear it anymore...

I slowly lifted my talons, and prepared to kick his...

"Dummy Blu!" I shouted as kicking his right talon with all my strength. Seeing him enduring the pain, I immediately ran away leaving him alone... letting my whole body fall in this cold rain.

How's that for taking the plunge? Screw you!

I took the first step... I made him see me as a girl. I went through a lot of suffering... so you can suffer, too. Suffer, suffer, suffer... and think about me constantly. It finally started.. but, what's gonna happen now? My heart's about to burst...

The rain in winter feels so good, it tastes like lemonade...

The time I exist in...


Chapter 37 : Side by Side


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...just started flowing...