AN: Guess who is back! Yes, it's me and my defunked keyboard! I was very, very busy with my college classes, which stole most of my brain of creativity from August to now! Anyways, about my keyboard, it really sucks...so, if you see typos anywhere (I think I eliminated all of them), blame the keyboard. I need to get the darn thing fixed! I seriously apologize to those who were following the story since August and was deprived of a good flowing story. Now, I present to thee, a two-sided chapter sixteen!
Enjoy!
Chapter 16
"Moonlit Shadows"
Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired.
-Robert Frost
A blend of black and blue with faint specs of white painted the circular canvas above the cooling earth and the lone shelter by the lake. The darkness of the higher space covered the peeking moon with their hidden black clouds. The luminous glow of the hidden moon could be seen through transparency of the dark mass, although it could not reach to the shadowy halls of the summer shelter below.
The shadowed rooms of the shelter was decorated with patterns of the hidden moonlight, as she quietly walked through the hallways of the second story as she held on to the railing and leading herself to the stairwell. Slowly, she took each step carefully, downward, until she reaches the first floor. Once she reached her destination, she stood and examined her darken surroundings.
Where is it?
She stared at the kitchen space, then walked towards its direction. Without hesitation, she searched through the bottom cabinets and a unopened pantry to search for the object of her need. Through different unused kitchen necessities, she searched and searched, but no avail.
I know we have one.
But where was it stored?
With a sigh, she turned and ran into something soft and solid. A gasp escaped from her lips once she had a glimpse of that something, which was not something...but someone.
"What are you looking for, Machi-chan?" that someone asked. The searching girl had her hand to the left side of her chest, for she had a fright. Yet, she was thankful that it was only Asume, her brother's girlfriend.
"A portable fan," she plainly answered, looking away with hidden embarrassment.
"Ehh? You too! It is a little humid in here...hmmm...say, Machi, why don't we go outside for awhile? It's cooler out there I bet!" Asume headed for the sliding doors and exited. The other girl hesitantly followed.
Outside, a light breezed greeted the sticky humidity on their skins.
"Haaa! Much better than a little fan, ne?"
"Mmhm." Machi solemnly stood behind her dark-haired companion. She felt the compulsion to walk away from the bubbly girl who loves a moron like her brother. It was not that she was a bad person, it was Machi's own persona to be anti-sociable, even with her brother's girlfriend. She knew the girl since her brother started dating her in junior high.
"Machi-chan," she bursted Machi's bubble of thought, "I was just thinking...Kakeru-kun never explained it...but...how...how..." The girl gave a quizzical stare into Machi's brown eyes. "Uh...what I meant is...hoowww..."
The questioned girl only answered with an raised eyebrow.
What is she trying to ask?
"Eh-heh," the interrogating girl nervously laughed at her attempts to release the question she had in mind. "Gomen, Machi. I guess I could be a little shy...it is certainly possible, you know. Demo (But)...my curiosity really speaks for itself...I mean...Kakeru doesn't mention it too much...but how...you...you know..." She hesitated and looked at her hands, intertwining and shifting its fingers together. "How do you two really got together!" She blushed and closed her eyes tightly. Once she opened them again, she glance to the side and still see a blank-faced Machi. "Ahh...gomen, gomen! I know its none of my business, but it was..."
"Out of curiosity," Machi said.
"Huh?"
"Out of curiosity," Machi repeated with a more brighter expression.
The other girl blinked and thought for a moment. Once the words connected in her mind, she clasped her hand together and beamed. "You meant it was his curiosity that brought you together?"
"It was because we were both curious of one another and what hidden happiness we discovered in one another. Before that curiosity and discovery, we were so lonely."
"He was like Kakeru-kun before we dated. So distant and alone. It's no wonder that he and Sohma-san are best of friends!"
"Yes," Machi said as she looked up at the sky of dark masses, which was moving out of the way of the moon. The hidden light revealed it true white, silver light and beamed at the house below.
Because of you, I don't need to hide no longer.
The girls returned to the house after their brief midnight outing and headed back to their rooms. They tip-toed on the wooden steps to be sure they wouldn't wake the other sleeping members of the household.
"Good night, Machi-chan," whispered Asume as she started to open her door, which is the closest to the stairwell.
"Good night," Machi responded. She started to head for her room, but a noise from one of the doors she was passing prevented her to move on.
Asume caught an earful before she entered her room. She hesitated at her door. "Could that possibly be?"
"There's only one way to be sure," Machi said as she carefully turned the door handle and opened the door with a slow motion. Her eyebrows lifted at the scene behind the door. The sleeping young man in the room rested comfortably, with a slight breeze...from a large fan.
"Eh!" Asume pointed to the young sleeping man, appearing astonished. "You idiot! You have it!" She stormed over and yanked the pillow from beneath his head, then, wacked him in the face with it.
"HUH! Who...has...huh?" the young man slurred as his upper body rose from his sleeping place.
"You have it, Kakeru! Don't you ever heard of sharing? Or think about that everyone else might need it too! Obviously, it's very hot! Even Machi-chan think so!" Asume whined as she lightly banged Kakeru's arm over and over.
"Asume?" he questioned, "I thought you were sound asleep next door! I thought about asking you, but I didn't want to wake you!"
"Well, I am awake now! Are you going to share it?" Asume fumed with her arms crossed. She sat next to her boyfriend as she awaits his answer.
"I suppose...it won't hurt...but, it won't just be us." Kakeru looked over at Machi. "Machi too?"
"We could always lay out the futons in your room," Asume said as if it was an easy answer.
"Why my room?" Kakeru complained.
"It's the largest room up here!" Asume answered easily again.
"So? It doesn't mean that everyone should pile in here!"
"Why you are speaking like a whole baseball team is coming in here? It's just the four of us!"
"Baseball team? What does baseball got to do with it? And there's three of us!"
"Baseball has nothing to do with it! Also, there's me, you, Machi-chan and Sohma-san!"
"Yun-Yun is not here!"
As their bickering continues, Kakeru's last statement reminded Machi of the missing person. She stared at the room to the left of Kakeru's and back into Kakeru's room.
"We should wake him," Machi said, blandly with no thought. She entered her brother's room and held out her hand. "I need your keys."
"M-Machi! Wh-what are you suggesting?" Kakeru nerved as he thought of his sister's attempt.
"I need your keys," she repeated.
"B-but..."
At that moment, Asume got up from where she was sitting and grabbed the keys she spotted on top of Kakeru's dresser. "Here you go!" she chimed as she threw them to Machi. When Machi caught them, she immediately departed.
"Asume!"A cry of protest sounded from Kakeru, who was trying to stop his girlfriend a few seconds too late.
"Is it a crime to check on someone you cared about?" Asume questioned while she stared at the doorway.
Kakeru sighed in defeat and sat back down on his bed. "I couldn't blame her...she's worried because Yun-Yun is a princess."
"Princess? Princess! Kakeru-kun, your speaking incoherently again!" she said as she punched him on the arm.
"Ow!"
In the next room, on the left, Machi unlocked the door with the given keys and opened it slowly with a turn on the knob, then a push from the tips of her fingers. The room was partly lit through the lace curtain covered window as the shadows shift positions on the wall. Machi grimaced at the thick, heated stiff air in it as she entered.
How could he possibly sleep in here? There is no air!
With her worried thought, she hurried to the sleeper's bedside and placed a hand over his forehead. Through the skin of her right hand, she felt a heated touch.
Just as I thought!
She immediately darted from the stuffy room and raced with quiet steps to her brother's room.
"Manabe!" she called. "Bring the fan to his room!"
Her brother, who was sitting in front of the fan at the end of his bed, stared with overtly sad face in her direction.
"Aw, Yun-Yun wants to steal my fan? Tell him to get his own!" he whined.
Machi's patience quickly emptied as she stepped up closer to her greedy brother and yelled, "HE IS SICK, DAMMIT!"
Kakeru stunned at Machi's outburst and Asume, who was seated next to him, also stunned. Then, she regained her composure. "Let's go," she said as she left from her spot to the door.
Without further dissent, Kakeru unplugged his large fan and collected the cord with his left hand as he held the handle with his right. He headed out the door and followed the girls to Yuki's room.
It only took a few seconds for Kakeru and Asume to feel the sickly heated air of the next room. The two exchanged matching glances of discomfort, while walking over to Yuki's bed. Machi had left to the nearest bathroom to prepare a cooling cloth. Kakeru and Asume quickly set up the large fan. Asume plugged it and Kakeru set it up on a desk chair he moved from the desk in the room. He also removed the satin sheet that covers the overheated boy's body.
"It's alright Yun-Yun! I am here to rescue you!" he cried out loud as he pulled the sheets. "Don't die!"
On cue, Machi returned with a wet cloth and a glass of water. She placed the glass on the night stand and the cloth over Yuki's forehead. She kept her hand over the wet cloth and stared at the awaking expression on his face.
"Is he waking?" Asume asked as she looked over Kakeru's shoulder at the left side of the bed.
Yuki's eyelashes blinked to clear his vison of six...no...three faces staring back at him.
He looked left and right."Whooo...?" was all he could say.
"He's alive!" Kakeru cheered with arms raised. Asume smiled from behind.
"He was not dying," Machi said, monotonously and still looking at Yuki.
"Machi?" Yuki questioned, once he heard her voice and her image became clear in the dimly moon-lit room.
"Why is everyone here? In the middle of the night?" He looked around as he slowly lifted his upper body. The wet cloth on his forehead dropped to his lap. "Whew...it's hot in here isn't it!" He fanned himself with the damped fabric of his nightshirt.
Kakeru's eyebrows narrowed as he watched. "You just now noticed that...after all this time...we worked hard...CLUELESS! CLUELESS YUN-YUN!" He pointed a finger at Yuki as he outbursted.
"It did not take that much work, baka!" Asume reacted. Yuki and Machi gave a dull stare.
"Thank you for your hard work," Yuki said, sarcastically. He took note of the contraption of cool air next to him. "And your fan."
"It's nothing!" Kakeru smiled hips usual sheepish grin.
"So, you admit it," Asume nudged from behind.
"Admit what?" Her boyfriend questioned, looking as dense as possible.
"Never mind. You already answered indirectly."
While the others were taunting, Yuki laid back down as the swirling of dizziness came to his vision. "Ugh." He placed his hand over his eyes.
"Yuki." Machi attended to him with the return of the wet cloth to his head. "Does your head hurt?"
"It's alright," he answered, still with his hand over his eyes. "It's only sicken feeling. Let it pass. It's okay...it's okay...alright...okay..."he mumbled.
"He really does look sick," Asume fretted with her hands clasp together, close to her mouth. "He probably needs to go to the hospital..."
"NO!" Yuki sat straight up again.
"Daaa!" Asume jumped at his reaction. There was a panicked expression of wide eyes, more perspiration and paled skin on Yuki's face. He felt something stabbed at his chest. His hand grabbed the fabric of his shirt, automatically.
"I...don't need... to go..."The dizziness caused him to fall back into relapse, along with a shortness of breath. His hand held against his chest as he tried to breathe.
Kakeru started to share his girlfriend's fear with a worried look of his own. He stared at his sister from across. Her face looked as pale as Yuki's and her eyes glistened against the moonlight. He knew she was trying her hardest to hide her apprehension.
"We're going," Kakeru voice cracked. "To the hospital..."
Yuki grabbed his hand and shook his head with pain.
"Gomenasai (I am sorry), Yuki...but I must," Kakeru insisted. "You need help..." He lowered down, shifted his arms under the asthmatic boy and bring him closer. "Asume, grab one of my shirts and my keys! Machi, help me get him to the car!" He commanded. Machi sworn to herself that she never seen her half-bro act in such manner. She raced to Yuki's closet to take something to cover her in the place of her robe and rushed to aid her brother.
The three teens worked as hard as they could bring their tired bodies to move. Asume followed Kakeru's directions by taking two plaid shirts, one for him and herself and his car keys on his night stand. She hurried to the staircase, where she saw Machi helping her brother as he carried the sick one down the steps. Everyone slowly approached them with caution and finally headed to the front door.
"Pleasee...don't take...meee..." Yuki wheezed.
"It's too late! We are taking you! BAKA!" Kakeru yelled as he struggled with the boy, who was making his arms ache.
Machi opened the door for the boys and Asume scurried to the car to unlock all the doors. She watched as Kakeru quickly, but gently, laid the boy in the back and Machi followed afterwards. She joined Kakeru up front and handed him one of his shirts. He swiftly put it over his T-shirt and start the ignition.
In the back, Machi watched Yuki's condition with concealed worries. His head rested on her lap and the rest of his body laid out across the backseat. He tried to breathe every breath carefully, yet at the same time he tried to get a message to Machi. He tugged on his shirt, which she was wearing. She looked down at him, partially revealing her veiled feelings.
"We're going to the nearest emergency room. Take one breath at a time...slowly and carefully."
He pulled on the collar of the shirt to get her full attention and draw her closer. She was led by his grip, until they came face to face.
"I...will..tran...s...form..." Yuki wheezed. He gasped and wheezed more as he turned his head away from Machi, who stared at the back of his head with more frightful thoughts.
Transform? What–– Wait... does he mean...oh no...
"Yuki, what do I..."Machi halted her whispered words when she saw Asume looking back at them from the front passenger seat.
"Hang on, Sohma-san. Everything will be okay," she assured Yuki. It seemed that she was assuring herself and Machi more. She returned her gaze to the front as she hugged herself in comfort.
"What should I do?" Machi whispered to Yuki once more. Her soft voice gave a small whine at the end of some of her words.
He looked up to her with his lowered gray eyes, which was tearing from his respiratory attack. The pair shone as the moonlight shone from the outside of the car window. The moonlighted tears fell from the corner of his eyes to his ears as some escaped past the ears and to the cotton fabric of the collar of his nightshirt.
"Don't...leave...me. Al...ways...stay...by...my...side," he spoke with long aspirated pauses.
Machi stared wide-eyed as she felt her eyes filling a pool of tears. "Idiot...you don't have to say that!" she quietly cried. She covered her eyes as she let out all her locked worries.
Yuki watched her until her hunched figure, embraced by the moonlit shadows and silver light faded along with darkest of nights. He felt himself falling into a dark space, where he was alone –– once again.
Pitch black. No breath. No light.
In the end...I am defeated by my own weakness.
Please someone...
...save me.
AN: Evil I am! Ha! Ha! Someone needs to save Yuki from falling from a cliff! Don't worry I will save him soon. I want to take a different approach in the next chapter by diving deeper into Yuki's thoughts, since I focused a bit more on Machi in this chapter. Soon this story will come to a close at the end of the two-week vacation, even though the summer vacation from school would be still be another month. Speaking of summer, has anyone read the latest chapters? I don't think I could include it because Yuki has yet play a major role and its more Aki-centric.