ACT II CONSEQUENCE
I'm not sure if I'm spinning or falling, maybe even both. There's the sensation of my eyes being closed, but everything is blood red. My body is tingling and vaguely sore. I must be dreaming this. I got hurled through a concrete wall, I should be hurting more than this. I try opening my eyes. Nothing but a bright white light. This can't be a dream, everything seems too real. I realise that I'm actually sitting down. On what? I'm not sure, a solid glowing floor maybe? I blink. There's a figure sitting opposite me. The light coming from behind them is so bright that it obscures their face almost completely.
"Hello." There's something familiar about that voice. It sounds so sweet and feminine, that I'm surprised that I can't place it immediately.
"Where are we?"
"Can't say for sure, somewhere in your subconscious maybe." The figure sits there completely still, waiting for me to say something. Her shoulders don't move; she must not be breathing then. If it's my subconscious, then I could just be imagining her and I'm too lazy to make her breathe.
"Alright, then why are we here?"
"Isn't it obvious? What's the last thing you remember?"
"Well, I won against Raiden and the building collapsed." Wait. "Am I dead again?"
"Not quite, you barely escaped with your life. Your body is in a coma right now." That makes sense. This is too vivid to be a normal dream. "Do you know why you're in a coma?"
"I lost a lot of blood?" The figure sighs.
"Silly child, you've put yourself through a lot of trauma is the last couple of months." Child? "Your body has started to give up."
"Put myself through trauma? What are you talking about?" My voice rises by itself. I can feel fire in the pit of my stomach. She's cornered me and she knows it.
"Is that anyway to talk to your mother?" I freeze. How did I not realise it? How did I not recognise my own mother's voice? Then, it occurs to me. Bright lights and seeing dead people, she must be telling the truth. People talk about seeing a bright light before they die, this must be mine.
"I'm sorry." I stare down at my hands. She hums, I can vaguely make out a smile on her face.
"I need you to think of a reason for your trauma. I told you that your body gave up because of that. If you don't address it, you won't be able to leave here. Your body won't recover." She stops talking and I don't start. As hard as it is, I start going through everything that's happened since the start of the Fortune Cup.
"I don't know. I made some wrong assumptions, and it ended badly. I don't think that's what you mean though."
"No, it's not. You know the reason. You've said it yourself before."
"What? I'm a coward?" I shrug my shoulders.
"No, it took a great deal of courage to stand up to that boy." She must mean Raiden. I suppose it did. "I need you to think. Why did you stand up to him in the first place?"
"Well, he kept manipulating me." I exhale through my nose. "Looking back, he used my emotions against me. He said things that would make me feel a certain way and get me to do what he wanted. He ignored me until I accepted my leader position. Acknowledging my insecurities about Yusei."
"Yusei, huh?" Suddenly, I get the sensation of being kissed on my forehead. My mother looks like she's deep in thought. I can't make out the specifics of her face. I look at her, eyebrows raised. She waves her hand, telling me to forget about it. "Did anyone else ever do that?" I'm about to ask what she means by that. Then, it hits me.
"Of course." My eyes are wide. "How did I not see it? That's exactly what Kiryu did. He lied to me so that I'd hate Yusei too. And I believed him. Everything makes sense now. I let myself get manipulated time and time again. I let myself get ruled by these emotions. That's my problem! That's why all this happened." My shoulders feel lighter. Perhaps it's a sense of clarity.
"You feel guilty about this, yes?" Her body language seems to indicate a sense of righteousness.
"Of course I do. It was all my fault. Why? Should I not feel guilty?" The mere prospect of that accusation disgusts me. My actions were wrong, therefore, I should feel guilty.
"I never said whether or not you should feel guilty. That's entirely up to you. The real question is what you should do with your guilt. What do you do when you're guilty?"
"I don't know. I've never felt guilt like this before."
"You feel sorry for yourself." She's right. "You let your life go by because the guilt is stopping you. No wonder your body has started to give up." My mother is a savage apparently. "I take my guilt and turn it into something better." Something better? Interesting. "When I was in college, I accidently spilt my coffee all over this poor girl. I felt so bad, I ended up taking her shopping and paid for it myself. Funnily enough, she eventually married my best friend." She laughs. She moves her hand to her mouth, almost like she's forgotten what she was going to say next. I pay no mind to it. It feels so natural like this. This is how it was supposed to be. A mother giving her daughter some advice.
For a second, I see myself in my mother. The dark brown colour of her hair melts into my own sandy blonde. The ends of her straight hair started to curl and lengthen, ending at her waist. I blink and she returns to normal.
"Something better?" What could I do? No, what can I do?
"I think you're ready to go back. Do you think you're ready?" I sigh.
"This is my first time seeing you in twelve years. Do you want this to be over so soon?"
"That is true." I can tell that there's a sad smile on her face. "But I told you, I'm always there. Just look for the stars and you'll find me."
"I know." My mother's smile grows bigger. The light from behind her grows brighter. I have to close my eyes to stop myself from being blinded. I open my eyes again when the light is back to normal, only to find that my mother has vanished. I look all around me in an effort to find her. Nothing. I'm completely alone. My heart sinks a little.
The floor underneath me suddenly gives away and I'm falling again. I close my eyes out of fear. I open them again and everything's blood red. I'm spinning and falling head first again. I look beneath me. What looks like a giant screw moves towards me, turning ever so slowly. The more I look at it, the more I become confused. Maybe it's the one moving and I'm frozen in place. My brain is torn between two scenarios as the screw moves ever closer. I close my eyes to prepare for a collision. But nothing happens. I try opening my eyes again. There's no screw, or blood red horizon. Just a white ceiling. I can hear the beeping of machines around me. My mouth is covered by an oxygen mask. I can feel something in my arm, an IV I reckon. I move, trying to get a good look around the room. I take the oxygen mask off. I breathe in the hospital air. It's disgusting but I roll with it.
"Yuuka, put that mask back on! You don't know if you still need that." I sigh.
"Kaoru, judging by the fact that I'm talking right now, I can safely say that I don't need it." He puts down the newspaper that he was reading, rolling his eyes.
"I'm glad you're okay." He sighs. That got deep real fast.
"What?"
"Do you not remember? You nearly died." Although his face seems pretty stoic, his eyes tell a different story. "We found you in the rubble." His eyes move like he's reliving the memory.
"Wait, where's Raiden? What happened? Where is he?" Memories from the duel flash through my head. I remember that I couldn't control my powers, something that hasn't happened in a long time. I push the heel of my hands into the bed in an attempt to get up. Kaoru holds my shoulders, keeping me in place. It's then that I get a splitting headache. I try not to move my head too much, in order to dull the pain.
"We didn't find Raiden, but Shinji says that he's alive." He exhales. "Don't move around too much. You lost a lot of blood." I sigh, moving pillows so I can sit up straight.
"How long have I been out?"
"A week."
"A week?" I almost lose my breath. "That's so long." On my nightstand, I spot quite a large bouquet of morning glories.
"I don't know who the flowers are from. They kind of just appear a couple of days ago. Originally, I though Yusei had gotten them but it's not him. No one I've met so far has left them." Kaoru scratches his cheekbone.
"They're definitely not from Yusei, that's for sure." I spot a little card buried in the flowers near the wall. I assume you couldn't see it from the chair beside my bed. Whoever left them must have known that. "Morning glories are unusual to give like this, that's for sure."
"Oh that's what they're called? Though, what other flowers are blue like that?" I cover my mouth with my hand. Something is telling me that Takumi and Kenta left them. In the language of flowers, morning glories represent promises. I did promise to help them. Maybe they're reminding me of that. I'll check the card once Kaoru is gone. I'm broken out of my daze by Kaoru standing up. "I'll go tell the doctors that you're up."
Once the door closes behind Kaoru, I slowly take the card out of the flowers. Revolution. That word is written on what appears to be a blank business card. The writing is big and cursive, one would think that the writing belongs to a girl. Now, I'm certain that Kenta got these flowers. I'm surprised that he knows the language of flowers. Then again, it could just be a coincidence. I doubt it though, Kenta seems smart enough to know such a thing. I hide the card back in the flowers. While sitting alone in the room, I ponder about how much I hate hospitals. I think it's because I was so sick as a child. While there were no real hospitals in the Satellite, I saw Dr. Schmidt enough as a child to make me cringe at any sort of medical happenings.
Kaoru quickly comes in accompanied by a female doctor, which calms me down somewhat. Apparently, visiting times are nearly over but the doctor, who introduced herself as Dr. Grey, allows Kaoru to stay until she finishes her tests. She does the standard tests. Checking my pulse, my blood pressure, the dilation of my pupils. I can tell she's uncomfortable by the way she purses her lip. I wonder if it's the mark, probably. It could be my increased healing factor, a tell-tale mark that I'm a psychic. Given the fact that she mentioned how surprised she was that I healed so quickly, probably means both. Eventually, she tells me that I can be discharged. Kaoru looks at me, not expecting me to be released so quick. Before leaving, the doctor asks Kaoru to come with her so he can fill out some forms.
"Oh yeah, Emiko got you clothes. They're in the second drawer. You should change into them now." Kaoru calls back to me before closing the door behind him. I open the drawer. Oh yeah, my old clothes would have been cut up when I arrived. Shame, I liked that dress. I take the pink and white striped top, a chopped charcoal jacket and blue jeans. Wait, they're just jeggings. I note the elastic waistband, Emiko must have picked these for that reason. Taking off the hospital gown makes me suddenly aware of all the bandages on my body. Most of my torso and back are covered in bandages, as well as some of my arms. My forehead is also covered in bandages. I'm halfway to becoming a mummy now. My legs seem to be free of bandages, however, they're plagued with little cuts and bruises instead. Moving to put my underwear and jeggings on is probably the hardest task. Apparently when I fainted, I twisted my ankle too. Having your legs covered in bruises doesn't help either. I take the shoe box out the drawer. Judging by the box, I reckon they must have cost a fortune. Inside are some short brown laced-up boots. I'm surprised to find that they actually fit my feet, given the fact that my feet are larger than usual for a girl my height. Zipping up the jacket, I sit on the bed, waiting for Kaoru to come back. Emiko really did a good job in getting me clothes. I'm surprised how well everything fits. I'm curious whether or not she measured me. A knock on the door breaks me out of my thoughts.
"Yuuka, are you decent?" I'm shocked at my dad's voice coming through the door.
"I am." He opens the door. He leans against the door frame, decked up in a suit as usual, though he's missing a tie.
"You doing okay?" He sighs. Suddenly, I can see the age in his face. In the last few months, the lines in his face have become more pronounced.
"Suppose so."
"Are you ready to go? Kaoru and Yusei are down in the lobby."
"Yusei?"
"Nice kid." His fingers move in such a way that I can tell that he's itching for a smoke. "He cares a lot about you, you know."
"Really?" I'm kind of glad that my dad approves of Yusei. I know the reason why that makes me happy, which bums me out.
"Yeah, he's been up here every day according to Kaoru." That thought alone gives me butterflies. "Right, let's go. They're waiting." He moves over towards me in an effort to help me up. I try to stand. I stumble a bit at first, my dad grabs my arm so that I don't fall. Eventually, I'm able to stand without falling over. A week of being in a coma will do that to you. I hold onto my dad's arm as I walk, with him holding the flowers in the other hand. Strange how the hospital hasn't given me crutches. Then again, they couldn't have tested for a sprain while I was in a coma. I'm grateful that my room wasn't too far from the elevator. The lift takes us straight to the lobby. I hobble over to where Yusei and Kaoru are, without the help of my dad. I don't want to worry them more than I already have.
"You doing okay?" Kaoru, still filling in the form, asks. He doesn't even turn around to face me.
"As good as I can be at the moment." My eyes catch Yusei's. We both smile at the same time. I try to suppress a giggle. Yusei looks like he's about to say something, but he stops himself.
"Right, you need somewhere to stay." Kaoru speaks up again. "You live on your own, you can't handle that at the minute with your injuries." He looks up at my dad, who's typing something on his phone.
"I have to catch a flight at half five tomorrow morning. And with Nancy's shifts being how they are, there's no one to take care of you, honey. I'm sorry."
"Yuuka, you can stay with us." I'm surprised by Yusei's offer.
"Are you sure?" I don't want to have to rely on Yusei too much, but it's the only option I have at the minute.
"Of course, it's the least we can do." A part of me is being blown away by how genuine that was.
"Are you okay with that?" My dad asks, though I can tell that he's asking it out of a sense of obligation rather than anything else.
"Yeah." My head starts to get blurry from standing up too long. I notice that Kaoru's finished filling out the forms, meaning that I'm free to go.
"Right then, I'll call you a cab." I move to speak but my dad cuts me off. "Don't worry about it, I'll put it on my card." After saying that, he strides out of the lobby. We follow him, though I'm having trouble keeping up with his long legs because of my limp. Yusei notices this, he turns to me, about to ask if I need help. I put my hand up to him, not in the mood to be coddled. He seems to accept this, though I can feel his gaze lingering on me.
My dad stands at the edge of the path, trying to call a cab. Kaoru and Yusei are discussing some logistics, probably. Meanwhile, I lean against a railing, trying not to faint.
"Right, we'll see you at Poppo Time." Kaoru says, before Yusei drives off on his D-Wheel. Kaoru walks over to me. I keep the flowers against me, with the card just in front of my chest so no one notices it. I notice a cab on the other side of the road, I suspect that it's the one my dad ordered. My dad looks at his phone, before walking over to us.
"Don't worry about the fare, it'll get charged directly to my card. He already knows where you're going. Right, I have to go pack for tomorrow. I'll talk to you when I get back." My dad kisses the top of my head. He moves to walk away. Before he does, he ruffles Kaoru's hair. The taxi does a u-turn on the road and stops on the road before us. Kaoru holds my arm as I wobble over to the cab. He helps me into the cab, taking the flowers, and gets into the cab on the other side. The driver doesn't talk to us, which I'm glad for. For the first few minutes, we're both quiet. It's hard to hear Kaoru's thoughts. I wonder if this has something to do with me not being able to control my powers during my duel with Raiden. Kaoru's phone buzzes. The light of the phone lights up the dark cab.
"I told Shinji about what's happening. He'll be over tomorrow. Apparently, there's a lot to talk about." I sigh. It's about Raiden. Shinji hasn't told Kaoru the truth about what happened, considering he just said that Raiden's alive. There's more to the story than that, we're talking about Raiden of all people.
"Alright. You should probably be there too." I have a sinking feeling that what Shinji tells me is going to affect my future plans. That my decision isn't as final as I thought it was.
"Okay, I'll be over anyway." I'm staring out the window as we drive. The sky is completely black and devoid of stars. I think back to that dream. Actually, I'm sure if that encounter was real or not. It could very well be real, considering I nearly died. "By the way, since when is dad your emergency contact?"
"Since I moved in with him."
"Have you been in contact with him? I mean, you live on your own now, so."
"Yeah, we have lunch sometimes." I have a feeling that he's hurt by that. I mean, I probably have a better relationship with our dad than he does, and he's known him far longer. The cab becomes silent again. It's strange. I'm finding it impossible to read Kaoru. Not his thoughts, his aura, anything. I wonder if it's a side effect of my injuries.
We don't talk for the rest of the cab ride. Once we arrive in the courtyard outside Poppo Time, we're able to leave the taxi without the hassle of scraping money together. I don't look at the fare as we leave, I'd probably feel guilty if I saw it. Kaoru only opens his mouth to ask me what door we're going in. I don't say anything back, and lead him to the garage door. I can spot that the garage lights are on, but I knock anyway.
"You don't need to knock you know." Yusei lets us in. I'm glad to get out of the cold.
"What can I say? Martha raised us well." I chuckle lightly at my attempt of a joke. Yusei merely nods and agrees with me. I settle down on the couch at the bottom of the stairs. I'm surprised at how comfy it is, especially since it looks quite old.
"Right, if you're alright here, then I'll leave. I'll be back over tomorrow with Shinji." Kaoru quickly leaves, jogging back out. I sigh once the door closes behind him. Something is wrong with him, but I can't tell what. Crow and Jack come down into the garage. I get the generic comments and questions that come from these types of injuries. As much as I would like to be involved in some type of actual conversation, I'm too tired to concentrate on anything. I think they pick up on this and direct the conversation elsewhere. I'm starting to doze off by the time that I get brought back into the conversation. Only then, I notice that Crow and Jack are no longer in the room.
"Yuuka, you can stay in my room if you want." Yusei looks up at me from behind his D-Wheel.
"Oh no, don't worry I can sleep on the couch."
"You're just out of the hospital, you need to rest." And now it starts.
"I'm okay here, I can rest just fine on this couch." Yusei opens his mouth to reject but I keep talking. "Besides I'd have to climb that ladder. I don't have the energy to do that right now, and with my ankle as it is right now, I couldn't climb it anyway." Yusei closes his mouth again, resigning. He goes back to working on his D-Wheel for a while, before getting up and going upstairs. He doesn't seem like he's finished for the night, but I pay no mind to it. He returns down a few minutes later with a pillow and blanket for me.
"Here you go." I stand up to take them from him. I thank him with a smile. I notice that his brow is ever so slightly furrowed. I put the blanket and pillow down on the couch. I wrap my arms around his neck and pull him into a hug.
"You worry too much." With our current height difference, which is very little, I'm able to rest my chin on his shoulder. Before, he would have been able to rest his chin on my head. It's amazing how that can change. To my relief, he wraps his arms around me as well.
"I'm just glad you're okay. You had me worried there." I pull back to let him see me raising an eyebrow at him.
"I'm sturdy now remember. It'll take more than that to take me out." He pulls back from the hug. I'm a little disappointed from the lack of warmth. I know I was close to dying, he knows that as well. I'm just saying it to make him feel better. I think he's caught onto that idea when he smiles at me.
"Goodnight Yuuka." There's still a small smile on his face as he says this.
"You're not finished what you're doing." I point towards the D-Wheel. "Don't worry about me, you can keep working."
"Are you sure?" I can tell that Yusei is somewhat relieved by the offer.
"Yeah, go on. It won't bother me." I take off my jacket, throwing it over the back of the couch. I take off my shoes, and press the heels against the side of the couch. I move the pillow and blanket so that I can get a better view of what Yusei is doing. I don't know why but the sight of someone working on a D-Wheel has always relaxed me. While I have no interest in the mechanics of it, I find it so calming to watch. I don't know if it was all the days I spent in Reika's garage, watching her fixing up every D-Wheel that was brought in. Or maybe, it reminds me of the Satellite, watching Yusei tinker with anything he could get his hands on. Probably a combination of both. "Goodnight." He repeats it back to me, and it's not long before the sounds lull me to sleep.