Chapter Two - Heart Wrenching Visit
"I-Ikuto.. He's dying?"
Kairi couldn't believe his ears. He hadn't know Ikuto that well but he didn't seem like a person who would die at such a young age. He had to be at least 22 or 23 now right?
Amu slowly nodded, bringing her face from Kairi's shirt and faced his eyes.
"After Yoru disappeared last year, Ikuto has been devastated. He used to come to my balcony every day and tease me, but he doesn't do that anymore. He doesn't even go outside. He just mopes around in his bedroom. His parents don't even bother to go in there anymore, so they had no clue. Finally last week he collapsed of starvation and dehydration. They brought him to the hospital after Utau went to check on him. They found knife marks up both of his arms. Tadase said that he's done some permanent damage to a few vital organs, meaning he didn't only cut his arms. Kairi, that doesn't happen to all of us right? Because Utau just lost Eru and Iru and she's doing great. She's become so famous.."
Kairi softly caressed Amu's hair and pulled her back into her position when she burst into tears.
"Have you gone to visit him? Amu, I think he really loves you. And I would be extremely selfish if I just sit here with you all to myself, while we left Ikuto to go and die."
"..I did go to visit him yesterday. It was horrible. His hair is already falling out and the doctors say his death is inevitable."
"But your Hinamori Amu! You have the capability to change someone's direction of heart. You've done it for my sake, why can't you go and give a pep talk to Ikuto?"
"..Will you come with me?"
Kairi nodded as they linked hands and headed out the door. Kairi heard Amu's father behind him saying something like if you do anything funny to my daughter, I'll kill you. But Kairi wasn't like the typical teenage boy who was looking for sex or anything perverted like that. Kairi was looking for true love, and he had found it with Hinamori Amu.
"Yes, we're here to visit Tsukiyomi Ikuto."
Kairi still was holding onto Amu's hand and his grip only grew stronger when he was speaking to the nurse at the front desk.
"I'm sorry, but visiting Tsukiyomi Ikuto is now forbidden for people under the age of eighteen."
Kairi peered out of the corner of his eye to see Amu hang her head down low. Ikuto dying must really have been a big shock for her.
Kairi slammed his fist down on the reception desk, which seemed to startle the whole waiting room.
"Listen, miss. Ikuto is a very important person to Amu and if you don't let her see him SHE might fall into a deep depression and wind up here. Are you sure you want that?"
The nurse rolled her eyes and picked up her clipboard.
"Don't blame me if you two get caught and thrown out."
Kairi faced Amu, giving her a soft smile, and lead her slowly down the sterilized hallway. Room 305 - Tsukiyomi, Ikuto was what the sign read and the nurse pointed to some disinfectant hand wipes by the door.
"We require you to use these when you enter and exit the room. If you do not, we cannot be liable if you catch any life threatening diseases."
And with that she went back down the hallway, eyeing the two every few steps.
"T-Thank you, Kairi. What you did back there, it was really nice of you. You really have turned into a great man."
Kairi blushed as he drew his hand away from Amu's and pulled out some wipes.
"I-It was nothing Amu. It was worth it."
And with that he took a deep breath and opened the door. What he saw inside was not pretty. Ikuto lay on his hospital bed with a breathing machine as doctors attempted to speed up his pulse. Now they knew why the hospital wasn't letting people under the age of eighteen enter. But with Kairi's tall and muscular figure, the doctors thought nothing of it as he and Amu sat on the chairs beside the bed.
"Ah your that girl from yesterday. Himamori..?"
"Hinamori. Hinamori Amu."
Kairi quickly spat at the assistant before Amu even had a chance to open her mouth.
"Ah. So Hinamori-san, is this your replacement boyfriend?"
"B-B-Boyfriend?!"
Amu blushed as she looked down to her feet, avoiding Kairi's eyes. The truth was, she didn't know how to explain her relationship with Kairi, just like Ikuto. It had been true that Ikuto and Amu had kissed before, but they had never officially been a couple. And it had been true that Kairi loved Amu, and Amu defiantly felt something when she was with Kairi, but they weren't officially a couple either.
"I-I'm..the first person who ever confessed their feelings to Amu. Back when I was in the fourth grade, and Amu in the sixth."
Amu looked back up and eyed Kairi nervously, as he did the same.
"Wow, so your two years younger? I would have never guessed. But I guess that's because Hinamori-san is so cute and fragile."
"I-I guess so, sir."
And with that he was back to helping the doctor, who had been getting annoyed with his banter with the visitors.
Kairi and Amu sat in silence for a bit, just watching over the doctors as they hooked up various machines to Ikuto. After about fifteen minutes of silence though, Amu spoke up.
"Doctor.. Is Ikuto ever going to wake up again?"
Another awkward silence. Amu gripped Kairi's hand quickly, as if she was prepared to face the worst news. Kairi just blushed a bright red, staring at Amu's hand.
"We're not too sure yet, Hinamori-san. We've been trying to speed up his heart rate but nothing seems to be working. Whether he wakes up again or goes into a permanent coma is beyond our control. It seems he attempted to kill himself while he was in his room. He gave himself a nasty stabbing right underneath his heart. It's been confirmed by the police that when Utau-chan arrived to Ikuto's room it had only been thirty minutes after.."
"..Kairi, I think we should go."
Amu looked up to Kairi with pleading eyes, so the two got up and left the room, reaching for the wipes once more.
"I can't bear to be in there any longer if Ikuto isn't going to wake up. And especially if the doctor is going to ramble on about how depressed he actually was. I mean, he could really die at any moment. It could be now, it could be next week, it could be next month.."
Kairi just nodded, taking Amu's hand again as they walked into the waiting room and then out of the hospital. The two took their time walking back to Amu's house, the journey was in silence, but this was just fine for Kairi. He assured himself that Amu was fine because whenever he glanced out of the corner of his eye, so did she and she smiled a bit.
Finally, they had reached the Hinamori residents. Amu nodded her head slightly and was just about to walk inside until a embarrassed and quivering voice stopped her.
"A-A-Amu!"
Amu turned around to see Kairi, completely avoiding Amu's glance.
"What is it Kairi?"
"U-Um, would you mind, I mean I know you probably have plans already, but would you mind if we went shopping together?"
"Oh wow Kairi, I haven't been out shopping with anyone since I went with Tadase while we were still dating. Yaya wanted me to help watch Tsubasa with her but.."
"N-No! If you have plans, I'll just stop bothering you.."
Kairi was about to walk away when he felt his hand being suddenly jerked back.
"Kairi, you don't have to worry about bothering me, your presence is far from a bother to me. In fact, I kind of like it when your around. It gives me a weird but yet comforting feeling inside."
"..When I'm around you, I feel the same way."
"So come to Yaya's house with me. Tadase, Rima, Kukai, and Nagihiko will probably be there too. We can arrive together, okay? So meet me here at around Eleven."
Kairi nodded and stared into Amu's kind eyes. He slowly looked down to her lips that were curved into a perfect smile. He couldn't use enough words to describe how much he wanted to bend down and whisper, "I love you Amu" and lift her into a passionate embrace.
But, he was Kairi. The Kairi who seemed like he could never win Amu over. So instead he slowly pulled out his hands and wrapped them around Amu's waist and pulled her closer to himself.
"G-Good night, Amu"
And with that he quickly let go and ran off. He still had the feeling of Amu's body close to his. How much he had longed for this feeling, ever since the fourth grade. Kairi let out a huge smirk he was holding in. He was in love.
Amu reached to her cheeks and felt them. Yes, they were hot. Amu knew this feeling she had. She had felt the same way she had with Ikuto all those years ago. She was falling for Kairi by the minute, and she knew it.