Sorry that this update took longer than usual. I've been busy, and I had writer's block. xD
Thank you guys for the sweet reviews. :)
Hope you like it!
Nagihiko was sitting in the waiting room, head buried in his hands. He had been there for the past few hours while they treated Rima's foot, anxiously awaiting any news. He wasn't going to call their friends just yet, until he was sure that she would be okay; the hospital had tried to get in contact with her mother at home, and then at her work, but she couldn't come until her shift was over at eight.
So it had just been him, letting his thoughts wander from guilt to the worst case scenario and back again. His mind felt tired, he was drained, and he just wanted reassurance that she was okay so that he could leave her to rest.
Another half-hour had passed by the time a doctor emerged, holding a clipboard firmly in her hands. "Miss Fujisaki?" she cleared her throat.
"Yes?" Nagihiko asked, straightening up and almost forgetting to raise the pitch of his voice.
"Your friend has been treated. We performed the surgery she was to have in a week today, so we'll need to keep her overnight, but other than that, she's okay."
Nagihiko stood, running a hand through his ponytail. "And what about her foot?"
The doctor frowned, a sigh passing through her lips. "It's been badly damaged. As of now, it looks like she won't be able to use it normally for a few months, or at least until the hospital confirms that it's completely healed. And even then, she'll have to treat it lightly."
"...Will she ever be able to dance seriously again?" Nagihiko asked, after moments of careful thought.
"Eventually. What caused this problem in the first place was her dancing on her foot when it wasn't fully healed. She can't exert herself if she wants to keep up with the sport after this ordeal has passed." The doctor then smiled. "It's good that you were able to react as you did under the circumstances; she would've been in serious trouble if you had hesitated. Are you a good friend of hers?"
Nagihiko nodded a little, smiling faintly. "I guess you could say that. I've known her for a long time, and I... I know how much dancing means to her. Are you sure there's nothing we can do to speed up her recovery?"
The doctor shook her head. "Not if you want to avoid this situation again. Who knows? If she takes it easy, she might be better in three-quarters of the time or less. But I want someone to keep constant watch on her for at least a few weeks, and I know that her mother probably can't spare that amount of time because of work. I'll talk it over with her and see what she says."
Nagihiko sighed in defeat. "Right. Thank you very much, Doctor."
"You're welcome." The doctor turned around to leave, but stopped herself once she realized she had forgotten something. "She's resting right now, but if you still want to see her, you may. Just try not to wake her up, please." She looked down at her clipboard. "She's right down the hall, in room 475."
He allowed himself a small smile, bowing slightly to the woman before him. "Thank you, again." And with that, Nagihiko started down the hall to Rima's room.
As he stepped inside, the sterile smell made him wrinkle his nose. The whiteness of the room was overwhelming, and he would've stepped right back outside if not for the small form in the bed before him.
Nagihiko approached the bed, sinking down in the chair to the right of it. He looked at Rima with a gentle expression, trying to ignore her heavily bandaged foot near the end of the bed. She looked peaceful as she slept (most likely the result of painkillers), and the monitor showed that her heart was beating at a steady pace.
It was a relief, seeing her stable, yet he still thought that he was to blame, to a certain extent.
He wanted to apologize to her. As himself.
And maybe I can do that while she's still resting.
Nagihiko undid the tie that was holding up his ponytail, letting his long hair loose and leaning back in the chair, relaxed. He hated pretending, putting on an act for other people. He hardly ever had the chance to be himself, and sure, he was taking a risk here, but he felt like it was worth it.
"Rima-chan. I know that if you were awake and knew that I was doing this, you'd call me lame for not being able to say it to your face. And you'd be right, but... I just feel like apologizing as Nadeshiko doesn't mean anything. It has to be me."
He took this moment to look toward the door and make sure it was closed.
"It really starts with what I did all those years ago, doesn't it? It's my fault that the bones in your foot ended up broken. All because I had to protect my stupid secret. And I wish I could say the secret doesn't matter anymore, but it still does, so I can't tell you about the real me. I almost wish that you would find out yourself so that I wouldn't have to keep pretending around you. You're the one person I always wanted to tell that I was Nagihiko Fujisaki, a boy with a passion for both dance and basketball. And-"
Nagihiko stopped abruptly when Rima began to stir, looking like she was about to wake up. But then he noticed her body relax and her breathing even out, indicating that she had fallen back asleep.
"If you hadn't come looking for me and tried to force your way into my room by sticking your foot right there, at that angle, I wouldn't have slammed the door on it, and you might be... okay right now. And I know it was an accident, but you deserved an explanation, and I walked out of your life before you could ask for one. So I just want you to know that I'm sorry for everything. It ruined our friendship, and it's no one's fault but my own."
After a few moments of silence, he chuckled, feeling silly for pouring his heart out to an unconscious girl.
"I am glad that you kept dancing, though. You've gotten so much better, it's incredible... and knowing you, you'll be back up on your feet before a few months have passed, completely healed and ready to dance again. I should've realized that something was wrong with your foot when you tried to get out of the routine, so I'm sorry for that, too," he sighed.
It was then that he noticed Rima opening her golden eyes, so he hastily put his hair back up in a high ponytail and stopped slouching. When he spoke this time, his voice was back to its unnatural pitch. "You're awake," he said with a relieved smile.
"Mm," she mumbled groggily, eyes seeming to finally focus on him. "Yeah, I am..."
"How do you feel?"
Rima shrugged a little, not even bothering with an attempt to sit up. "Out of it, but I'm not in pain right now, so I guess that's a good thing."
Nagihiko nodded, feeling at a loss for words after everything he had said. "Do you... remember what happened?"
"Kind of... I remember that we did our routine, and it was perfect, but I was in a lot of pain. I remember that Amu left early and told me to wait for you, so I was doing that, and then you found me... but after that, I can't remember anything."
"Yeah," he sighed. "That was when you fainted."
"And then what happened?" she asked, directing her gaze toward the ceiling.
"I called for an ambulance and they brought us here. They wheeled you off to an operating room to perform surgery on your foot, which took a few hours, and for the rest of the time, you've been asleep."
Rima frowned somewhat, turning back toward him. "Have you been here the whole time?"
Nagihiko nodded, leaning back in the chair a little bit.
"Oh," she said quietly, looking down at her lap. "Well, um... thanks..."
He shrugged, smiling sweetly. "There's no need to thank me. I just did what anyone else would've done."
As Rima silently agreed, the doctor stepped in, clipboard still in her hands. "It's nice to see you awake, Mashiro-san. We'll need to perform a few tests, if you don't mind, just to check that your levels are regular. We'll have to keep you overnight, and I just talked to your mom - she's on her way and she'll be here in a few minutes..."
Nagihiko took this as an opportunity to leave, and with a quiet goodbye directed toward Rima and another thank you to the doctor, he was out of the room and into the lobby. He continued down the hall until he was back in the waiting room, where he took a seat. He fished his phone out of his pocket to dial his mom's number and ask for a ride home.
"Mother? Yes, I'm all finished up here... Would you mind coming to pick me up? It's the local hospital, where you take me for annual checkups. Okay. Love you, see you soon... Bye." He closed the phone and returned it to his pocket. He then stood up, about to head outside to wait for his mom, when a woman entered the waiting room at a brisk pace. She looked like she was dressed for work, clad in a professional black suit with her light hair swept up in a tight bun.
Rima-chan's mom, he thought. Just as I remember her.
She was about to storm up to the front desk when she caught Nagihiko's gaze and approached him instead. She couldn't help the look of surprise that came to her face, a mix of shock, relief, and sadness all at once. "Nadeshiko-chan," she said quietly, stony expression softening.
"It's nice to see you again, Mashiro-san," he mumbled, bowing slightly.
"Were you the one who called the ambulance to transport Rima here?"
Nagihiko nodded a little.
Rima's mother bowed humbly, seeming genuinely appreciative. "Thank you so much. You probably saved my daughter's life."
"Oh, um..." she rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. "It was nothing, really..."
"It's not 'nothing'. Really, thank you." She paused a moment, seeming to brighten as an idea came to her. "The doctor explained the situation to me over the phone, and my understanding of it is that she needs someone to look after her every day while I'm at work."
"That's what the doctor mentioned, yes," he nodded.
"Now... I know this is a lot to ask of you, but would you mind doing that for me? You're one of the only friends of Rima's that I trust, and you live right down the street. It's your decision, in the end, but it would really mean a lot if you could take care of her in my stead."
"Well, I'm not sure-" He stopped upon seeing her expectant look.
Rima probably wasn't going to be thrilled when she found out that her mom had asked this of 'Nadeshiko', but maybe this was Nagihiko's chance to repair their friendship and make up for all the trouble he'd caused her.
He could make things right between them again.
He nodded moments later, smiling determinedly. "I'll do it."
This whole chapter was a little filler, but I enjoyed writing it nonetheless.
I hope you guys enjoyed it, too. :D