Chapter 21

Sakuta and Mai had offered to stick around once Sakura went into surgery, but I waved them off. I had a lot on my mind, between the events of the past few days, the quick wedding ceremony, and all the emotions currently swirling inside from all of it.

Rio popped in and out of the waiting room, checking on me every so often. She wasn't a doctor, so she wasn't going into the operating room. But she managed to pass along updates when the doctors would rotate out.

I can't believe we really did that. True, it wasn't a real ceremony with rings but it was still hard to believe. Sakura really doesn't mind spending the rest of her life with me, huh? I could only imagine what Kyoko would say once she heard the news. We had managed to become a little more friendly in the past few days, but I could easily see her raising a fuss over the wedding.

"Just to be sure, you don't have any interest in making me your girlfriend right?"

Back then, I wasn't really sure how I felt about Sakura. I had begun to enjoy spending time with her, but it was hard to pin down just how she saw me. Somewhere along the way, I know I had gone from just being "classmate that knows my secret" to something that could be considered friends.

"There was moments where I really felt as though I was falling for you."

But when had she truly fallen past the point of no return? Maybe there was no one moment, simply a slow build over her feelings over each time that burst through the walls she had set up for herself.

I know for myself that was exactly what had happened. Sure, I may have been interested that day on the beach. But back then, I still never quite knew if she was ever being serious or if it was just another joke.

Perhaps it was the night we spent in the hotel playing truth or dare that started me down this path. Up until then, all I had to go on was the times we had spent together, as well as her looks. I can admit that I did find her attractive, though coming out and admitting it was not an easy task.

But as I learned more about who she was, what she was like growing up, I could feel myself becoming more and more interested in this girl who had forced her way into my life. Part of it was wanting become more like her, but also wanting to be closer to her infectious personality.

Rio popped back in the room with another update. "So far so good. The doctors are saying it should only be a few more hours until it's over. How are you holding up?"

I leaned back, feeling a bit stiff from sitting down for so long. "I'm hanging in there, still a little nervous about everything. It's still hard to believe we went through with that."

Rio took a seat next to me, smiling. "Young love is very interesting to witness. For an on the spot wedding, you both did a great job." She leaned back in the chair, stretching out and yawning.

"Thank you for making all of this possible, if it wasn't for you I wouldn't be sitting here right now." I thought back to the first time we encountered each other at that net cafe, not realizing just how much that moment would change my life.

"But of course, it was beneficial for both of us. I got to have more research for my work, and you got to save someone you care about." Rio pulled a can of coffee from her lab coat pocket, cracking it open and taking a sip.

"Have you worked with many others that had the syndrome?" I knew from our previous talks that she had some experience, but I never knew just how many times she had.

"There was a few cases here and there, but after we all graduated high school it was pretty rare. I've spent a lot of time just doing research and writing papers on my past experience." Rio took another drink, sighing in relief at the caffeine entering her system.

"To be honest, your case was the first one I've dealt with in a while. It was a nice change of pace from browsing online, reading old forums and message boards. It's hard to tell what's true and what's make believe on there."

I nodded, not spending much time online myself but I could only imagine what she had to dig through just to find something useful for her research.

I asked if Sakura had mentioned anything about dreams when the two had disappeared earlier, but Rio shook her head. Quickly catching her up, Rio puzzled over this new information.

"As far as I'm aware, she isn't dealing with her own syndrome. In regards to your situation, this may simply be more lingering effects. How and why it's affected her may be due to the tight bond between you two."

Rio leaned back, deep in thought. "The human mind is a mystery, even after decades and even centuries of research. There's still so much we don't understand."

I nodded, completely out of my depth at this point. "It may be that the bond the two of you share, the same bond that led to you awakening the syndrome, carried over and affected her too."

"So if it was with someone else, and we had a close enough bond, the same thing could happen?" Rio shook her head.

"I don't believe so. I'll want to ask both of you a lot of questions for my research. But it is a fact that brain waves can be sensed with technology, so perhaps that has something to do with the fact that she had the same dreams as you. In a sense, the remnants of your syndrome transmitted to her. At least, that's my theory."

Rio stood up, stretching out. "I'll be back once I hear anything else, though I'll also be spending some time writing out what you've told me. Thank you for that." With a smile, she was gone.

I started to close my eyes, figuring I could catch a short nap, when I felt my phone vibrating in my pocket. Checking who was calling, I braced myself as I answered the phone.

"Hey dad." I could only imagine he was calling because he had heard the news from my mother. "So I heard some interesting news today. You went and got married?" Oh boy here we go.

"Yes, but it wasn't an official ceremony or anything. No paperwork or rings." He gave a small grunt at that. "But it's something that you wanted to do?"

"Yes, she means a lot to me." No matter what, I'd have gone through with it. "That's good to hear, I'm proud of you son. You'll have to bring her around sometime, I'd love to meet her sometime. Your mother has told me all about her."

"We're both looking forward to it, she was really hoping to meet you the last time she came over." My dad let out a small chuckle. "Are the two of you busy today? Maybe you can bring her by."

"Today probably wouldn't be a good day, she's in surgery at the moment." I couldn't think of a good lie, he would have seen through it. Saying the minimum truth would have to be enough.

"Is everything okay? If you want to talk, I'm always here for you." Maybe one day, when things are better for her. "Thanks, but I can't really say much more. But yes, everything is okay."

"Well when you can say more, I'll be here to listen." That'll be sooner than you expect. "Thanks dad, I appreciate it." This was the longest conversation we had in a while, so I wasn't really sure what else to say; our relationship had become a little strained over the years due to my solitary lifestyle.

"I better get back to work, just wanted to hear how things were going with you." Maybe he feels the strain of this too. "Okay, I'll talk to you later." The call ended, and I let out a sigh of relief.

To be honest, the call was a nice break from the waiting. If things were different between us, I would have gladly talked for longer. I had no idea how long the operation would take, so any distraction to pass the time was a welcome respite.

Checking my phone, I could see that it had already been two hours since Sakura had gone into the operating room. Wishing I had planned ahead and brought something to read, I began to pace around the room. My impatience and nervousness were starting the get the better of me.

By the time Rio showed back up, I almost pounced toward her but thankfully I had enough sense to hold back from doing so. "Any updates?" I hoped my voice didn't betray how I felt at the moment.

Rio leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "They're still going, all I can say is that nothing bad has happened. If you wanted to step out and get some fresh air, take a walk, you can." I quickly shook my head. No matter what, I would be here until the operation was over.

"In that case, do you want to come with me? Beats staying in this room all by yourself." Rio walked towards one of the doors leading out of the room, beckoning to me to follow her.

We ended up back in the main lab, taking a seat at the desk I had seen her working at before. I noticed she had a scattering of papers that had my name on them. "I could use an extra set of eyes going over everything you told me, if I missed anything or if you have anything else to add."

I grabbed a few pieces of the paperwork and got to work. From what I grabbed, it seemed to be a general time line of the days events with notes scribbled on the side. I decided to skim through, paying more attention to the parts that had the added notes.

Day 0

The subject experiences a high level of shock and trauma, triggering the Adolescence Syndrome.

Day 1

I met the subject at a net cafe, he appears to be experiencing a case of A.S.

(his case has some similarities to past cases, however the same solutions used will not work here)

The subject mentioned seeing visions of events that have not happened.

(possible outcomes?)

Day 2

Due to the nature of the subjects A.S., any memories of the past day are forgotten except by him.

(Reference the Laplace's Demon Case file for similarities)

Day 3

The subject ran into a friend of the person who was a catalyst for the A.S.

(Perhaps they could be useful in solving this case)

Day 4

The friend that the subject ran into appears to have retained memories from the previous day. The plan to save the person who was the catalyst is put into motion.

(As with the Schrödinger's cat case, perhaps sleep is part of the reason why everyone else's memories are reset)

I was tempted to ask about the cases that were referenced throughout the paperwork; even though my case of A.S. was hopefully finished now, I still found it all quite interesting.

I handed the papers over to Rio. "It looks like you got it all, I can't think of anything that you missed." Rio nodded absent-mindedly, busy pouring over her own stack of papers.

Finally looking up, she took of her glasses. "Thank you for the help. It was a little tough to come up with all of this, having no memory of each day and having to essentially start from scratch." I nodded, understanding how annoying that must have been for her.

"So what happens now?" Rio took off her glasses and looked over to me. "Now I write it all up, scan in some of the documents, and add it to the rest of my work. Nothing too exciting." Rio checked the time, getting up from her desk.

"I should check up on how the procedure is going, do you want to come with?" I nodded, though the answer was obvious before she even asked. Of course I wanted to know, even a small update saying everything was good was enough to tide me over.

We made our way back to the waiting area, and soon enough one of the doctors came out. But one look at his face sent me into a small panic. He attempted to pull Rio out of the room, but she shook her head. "I'll just end up telling him anyway, might as well just say it here."

The doctor was clearly in a hurry, so he didn't even bother trying to argue with her. "Everything has been going well, except now the patient has lost more blood than we had anticipated. Without any stocks here, we need a donor fast. We've been trying to contact the nearby hospitals and clinics to get some."

If I wasn't seated, I felt as though my legs would have collapsed underneath me. After everything, such a small detail could lead to the end? I barely even heard what they said next, it was only when Rio got in my face that I realized she was talking to me.

"Hey we need you, don't fall apart on me now." The doctor was still in the room, a look of worry for me on his face. "What can I do." My voice was barely a whisper, the fear of losing Sakura taking hold over me once more.

"Do you know your blood type?" I thought back to my time at the hospital, when I had gone to get my appendix removed. "It's O negative." Immediately the doctor and Rio were helping me out of my seat. Rio leaned in and whispered to me. "Then you can still save her."

I found myself laying on a table, the doctor swabbing my arm to prepare it for the needle. My head rolled to the side, partly out of not wanting to see what came next, and partly of the lingering shock. I realized now that I was in the same operating room as Sakura.

Her face was peaceful, as though she was simply just taking a nap at the moment. She looked a little paler than usual, most likely from the blood loss and whatever drugs were pumping into her system for the procedure. I felt a small pinch, but I still didn't look back to my arm.

All I could do in the moment was focus on Sakura, wishing and praying to whatever gods were listening to save her. Even if I had to give my life for her, I wanted her to live.

I could hear the doctors in the room, but it sounded as though they were far away. In that moment, I was only aware of Sakura. But before long, I could feel my eyelids becoming heavier and heavier.

Maybe it was a combination of the blood being sent from my body to Sakura, the raw emotional toll of the days events, and the experiences of my adolescence syndrome, but I found it hard to stay conscious. I fought it for as long as I could, but in the end I failed.

The Author's Desk

Sorry this chapter took a little longer to write. Between starting a new job and everything involved with that, and having a close friend visit from out of state, I haven't found the time to write. With that said, the final chapters will be released weekly when I have my days off, just as an update if you've been following along each new release.

I wanted there to be one final hurdle, raise the stakes a little bit. I've found this series to be one of my all time favorites, and while I want to see Sakura become well and the two lovers have a happy life, I didn't want to just end on a cliché "the operation was a success and they all lived happily ever after." Sometimes in surgery, one wrong snip and things can go bad real fast.

I think there will probably be 2 or 3 more chapters left in this story. I won't get into details like I usually do, I'd like to leave some suspense this time.

I hope everyone has a happy holidays, whichever that you celebrate. Thank you for reading, and I'll see you in the next chapter.