Cyber Love: Chapter 3
Written by: aZn dReAmEr xD
A/N: Dedicated to .StArRy.AnImE. for helping out
unexpectantly with this chapter! Whoo hooo!
Ahh, thank you for the reviews!
NOTENOTENOTE: I made a mistake on the last chapter. They aren't on Junior High, but in HIGH SCHOOL. Agh, sorry.
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Yumi stood, paralyzed. She dropped the phone emotionlessly on the bed, and then soon after, dropped herself, her mind going blank.
Then she bolted up again, and grabbed her phone, stuffing it in her pocket, the thought finally sinking in, and planning to take action.
Her first thought was, "Oh my god, my little brother's in the hospital!"
"How was I supposed to get there? Aelita was out, and parents were expecting for me to come over with someone. And because they were really Asian (strange expression) they would be overly protective, and ask if I had came in a car with someone." Yumi's mind was working rapidly, but only one thought came to her head. (And yeah, asian people should understand...)
"Oh please." She pleaded to no one in particular. "Drastic measures don't always have to call for drastic measures, right?"
She stood up, and sighed. There was no time to lose now. She grabbed her long black coat, and hastily put it on. She ran all the way upstairs to Ulrich's room, and knocked on the door, humiliated. Yumi stuffed her sweaty hands in her pockets, hoping her face wasn't flushing.
Hah, it was. But guys are oblivious to everything, unless the girl's like, on fire. Literally, and un-literal.
The handsome young boy (man?) opened the door, and peered through the crack. Seeing it wasn't Sissy, he opened the door a bit wider.
"Hey, what's up?" he questioned curiously. He knew Yumi wouldn't come to his doorstep ever. She was still pissed that he had almost given her a fatal concussion so many years ago.
Yumi got to the point. "Do you have a car?"
"Uh-huh, my parents gave it to me as an early birthday present. My birthday isn't very far away; you know…" he grinned childishly, as if hoping for a present. "I'm almost seventeen, yah know. I would kind of be upset if I didn't have a driver's license by now."
"Can you drive me to the hospital?" Yumi's voice shuddered, sobs clutching her throat.
His smile faltered until it was nothing left but a small line. "You aren't hurt, are you?" he opened the door to its full potential and immediately walked to her.
"No, it's my brother." she answered, staring at the floor, her mesmirizing brown eyes' shine being wasted on the dull, hardwood floor.
"What's wrong?"
"Does the words, 'I hate cars?' mean anything to you?"
"That's kind of ironic. You hate cars, but you want me to drive you?"
"Please?"
He sighed and looked around. He left a note on the inside part of the door, hoping when he came back that Odd didn't taunt him about Yumi.
"Let's go."
----
As soon as the red car stopped in the parking lot, the beautiful, torn-apart Japanese girl opened the door and slammed it shut with brutal force.
Ulrich was on the verge of telling her to watch the door. He had been nice enough to drive her, and it was a new car too. But he didn't, considering how her baby brother could be dead at this very moment.
"Hiroki..." she mumbled, her usually gleaming eyes blocked by glimmering tears that threatened to fall. If they did, Ulrich wanted to brush them away. But he knew that if he did, Yumi would slap him away. Or would she?
Yumi shook her head slightly, trying to get rid of the tears. She tried hard not to blink. It was a trick every kid knew. You stared ahead to stop crying. If you blinked, all was lost. Yumi couldn't lose her "tough-I-can-kick-yer-ass-anyday" appearance. Everyone saw her as the tough girl, someone they know would protect them, someone who would never, ever cry. And besides "perfect" girls never, ever cry.
But tears didn't make you weaker on the outside or inside. Yumi didn't know that.
She ran inside, and asked for directions. Soon enough, she ended up in the Waiting Room, outside of a series of halls.
Ulrich sat beside her in one of the white, almost broken chairs.
"Do you want me to stay?" he questioned, looking at her through the corner of his eye.
Yumi shrugged, a single tear sliding down her perfect skin.
He sat there, twiddling his thumbs. After a few minutes, she turned to him, a few tear-stains on her face. "Aren't you going to leave?" she sniffled. "Why would you want to be close to the girl who apparently hates you because you gave her a concussion?"
He just smiled softly. "When my grandfather died, no one was there with me in the Waiting Room. My parents were on his way over." he stared into the emptiness of the Waiting Room. "I know how it feels to have someone on the verge of dying, Yumi." he whispered, closing his eyes. "Don't you ever dare say that I didn't. I loved my grandfather, but he died because of a heart attack, right in the middle of the living room. Quite ironic... the living room, but it was where he gave one of his last breaths..."
"I-I'm sorry..."
"I know how it feels to have someone to sit next to you. Just the presence of them being there can comfort you. Even if it's someone you hate; unless they're quiet. I'll try to be that way for you so I don't annoy you." he said emotionlessly. "And don't be sorry, it was no one's fault. Destiny and fate work together to create such a tragedy, and in the end, you will see each other again, so there's no use to get worked up about it. Spirits are always flying around, checking up on you every so often."
Yumi turned her head to smile at him. "Thanks. Maybe I don't hate you as much as I thought I did."
And he smiled back.
"Yumi? You're allowed to come in now. As well as your company," a nurse turned the corner and told her. She was dressed in all white, her gloved hands clasped together firmly.
"Okay." Yumi stood up, and Ulrich stood up as well.
"Should I go inside?" he questioned for her permission.
"Well, you're the only company I have, right?" Yumi shrugged, smiling a bit, but it diminished quickly.
"I guess, unless you have an imaginary friend called Bob."
"Why Bob?"
"I don't know..."
Yumi reluctantly followed the nurse with Ulrich in tow. They walked down a few halls, and came to the Emergency Room, where her solemn mother and father stood. Her father looked grim, staring at nothing, and her mother's face was tear-stained with shiny tears.
She was muttering regrets in Japanese. Translated, they were something about how she should have never left him standing there, she should have stayed by his side the entire time.
"Mama... it's okay." Yumi whispered, rushing to her mother's side, and hugging her. "Hiroki will make it out alive."
"I hope so, Yumi-chan." she answered, wiping her tears, and trying to smile, avoiding looking at her son's still body. "So, who is this fine, young man?"
Ulrich grinned and shot Yumi a "SEE? TOLD YOU SO!" look. She glared at him, and jerked her chin towards her mother, indicating for him to shut up.
"This is Ulrich, Mama..." she chuckled nervously. "He was the only one with a car..."
"Ah I see! Nice to meet you. Thank you for driving Yumi all the way up here!" Mrs. Ishiyama tried hard to be optimistic, but the shuddering, teary voice was still there.
"No problem, it was only a mere three minutes..." Ulrich wiped the back of his head with his hand, sweat-dropping.
"Driving is driving, isn't it?" Yumi's mother countered in a much nicer tone than Yumi would have done it. Ah, so this is where Yumi had got her practicalness from...
"Yeah, I guess so." Ulrich shrugged.
"Is Hiroki okay?" Yumi asked her mother worriedly. She stuffed her hands into her pockets, staring at the ground.
"Doctor?" Mrs. Ishiyama questioned the doctor.
"He's alive, but barely. We'll have to see what we can do. It's a 50/50 chance..." The Doctor answered, not finishing his sentence. He didn't want to, and he knew the family didn't want to hear it either. Hiroki was connected to lots of gray machinery, all making peculiar noises of some sort. All sorts of beeping were heard.
And that's exactly what Yumi wanted to do.
Beep. Beep, beep, beep the car that hit Hiroki, freaking beep beep beep the beep world.
BEEP...
---
Meanwhile, Aelita and Jeremie had just finished a pleasant stroll around the park, and had a nice cup of cappuccino. Jeremie had even insisted on buying a slice of strawberry cheesecake for Aelita, which, she had to admit, was pretty sweet. It was pink, it was strawberry, and it was DEFINITELY tasty. No other stupid quarterback guy in High School had ever done anything but buy her pizza and then stuff their freaking large mouths into them.
Suddenly, Jer's mobile rang right after they stepped foot outside the café.
"Hello?" he questioned.
"Oh, Odd, hey… uh-huh, it's going good… wait what? Okay." Jeremie handed his cell phone to his date.
"Hey Odd, what's up?" she listened for awhile longer, with Jeremie staring at her with a curious look on his face. She pressed a finger to her soft, pink lips, signaling for him to keep quiet. He mentally drooled.
"Yumi? Hospital? With Ulrich? I don't know whether to be happy or sad…" the emotion on her face had no words to describe. Some feelings are just beyond what words can tell. "I want to go, but I can't. Jim has that nightly check-up thing now, remember? I have to get back, but I'll call her later. Mm hmm. Okay. Thanks, bye."
"Yumi's brother, Hiroki, is in the hospital. She needs support, but we have to go back to school, or we're gonna get in serious trouble. We'll call her when we get back." Aelita's face was pale as she sighed.
"Mmkay. Sounds like a plan." Jeremie agreed. He took back his cell phone and turned it off, grinning a little bit at Aelita. She grinned back, showing off slightly her pearl-white teeth.
They walked silently back to their school. Jeremie slowly reached for her slender hand, and intertwined his fingers with hers. Her hands felt sweet and cold, and it sent shivers down his spine. He had never felt such a way with a girl before, and it was giving him the chills by such strong feelings. He really felt like he loved her, only if they only knew each other for a short while.
They soon reached to their destination- Kadic. They reached a dead end, in which they were supposed to separate into each other's dorms.
Jeremie was blushing furiously, his face was on fire, and looked like a very ripe tomato. Aelita was just… pink, matching her shirt. She had a policy with Yumi about kissing guys on the first date. First reason why they DIDN'T kiss guys on the first date- they had to examine them more. If you kiss, it's almost like you're a couple. If someone sees you, they will assume you are a couple, and blather all over school. And finally, one of the most important reasons, the guy might slobber on you like a dog, or go overboard.
But Jeremie didn't seem like a dog-kissing kind of guy. Besides, Yumi would understand if Aelita maybe- just maybe- broke their rule just this once.
"Well, I, uh, had a lot of fun tonight." Jeremie stuttered, cracking a tiny smile. He was absolutely adorable when he was nervous.
"So did I," Aelita looked away, her eyes cast on the rocky ground below them. Should she? Would she? Could she? These questions ran through her mind like a Dr. Seuss book. She kept her eyes on the ground so she didn't have to look at his face.
"Well, I'll see you at Science tomorrow." Jeremie placed a hand on her arm and gently pulled her closer. It was a courageous step for the little guy, who was forever nervous. He had went out on a small "outing" with Taelia before, a while ago, a semi-popular girl with red hair.
She was an Aelita-worshipper, which explains the same hairstyle, accessories, and cosmetics. Things hadn't gone too well when Jeremie had anxiously leaned in to kiss her on maybe the third date. She had pulled away, making him fall right in front of his face. She dumped him right then and there- turns out, she was only dating him to dump him later, something about he was too geeky.
How she would have wished she hadn't said that... her role model was going out with him. And anyway, it's so much better to have the real thing than the phony, snobbier one.
Thank god Odd had stuffed Jeremie's mouth with mint gum and made him chew it until every breath he took was minty freshh.
Surprisingly, Aelita didn't pull away. His arm supported her as her thin arms began to move forward, and wrap around his neck. They leaned in, and Jeremie's heart must have exploded. He had never kissed, and was afraid that he would mess up, and Aelita would dump him- she was truly what every guy wanted.
They were so close now, they could feel the other's body heat. They felt each other's warm breath against their skin. Their eyes closed, and they leaned in more, only a millimeter away from kissing.
RING! RING!
Even as the sharp ringing continued, they stayed in each other's arms. As the fact that it was someone's cell phone sank in, they sprang apart, blushing furiously again. They both reached into their pockets, to dig out their cell phone.
"Oh my god. I forgot to turn mine off!" Aelita growled at her cell phone, and smacked her head.
She glanced at Jeremie apologetically, and flipped it open. "Hello?"
"Aelita! FINALLY!" Odd's ignorant, loud voice was heard. "Jeremie's cell phone was freaking turned off!"
"So I've heard."
"Ahhh, it's that voice that Jeremie used when I almost interrupted his "almost-kiss" with Taelia. Did I interrupt something?"
"Oh, no, you didn't do anything at all." Aelita's voice was coated with sarcasm.
"Oh, okay! Thank god, I actually thought I interrupted something by the sound of your voice!"
"…"
"What?"
"Sarcasm, Odd."
"…Well I'm a blonde! Haven't you realized that by now!"
"What are you trying to say? Jer's a blonde too."
"Well, Jeremie's one of those smart blondes. I'm a dumb blonde." Odd defended himself- kind of.
"Sure, if you say so… why'd you call, anyway? It better be important."
"Oh, it is! You have to tell Jeremie he still owes me a whole week of doing my homework. And that he has to walk Kiwi tomorrow."
"…That's why you called? What'd you do for him?"
"He told me not to tell you."
"Ah, all right. Anything else?"
"And that Yumi's staying over at the hospital, so you'll have to get her homework."
"How about Ulrich?"
"No idea."
"Oh, okay."
"Don't forget to tell Jer. Kiwi needs to go to the bathroom around 6 AM in the morning."
"Why couldn't you tell him by yourself?"
"Too lazy. Besides, we have different rooms."
"Okay, bye Odd."
"G'night."
Aelita hung up, and told Jeremie what Odd said.
"What did he do for you?"
"Stuff."
"Odd can't do anything!"
"Eh."
"C'mon, tell me!"
"Maybe someday." Jeremie shrugged, smiling. "Good night."
"G'night." Aelita smiled back, her pearl-white teeth showing off in the moonlight. She leaned over, and pecked him on the cheek. Then she bounced away, quietly humming to herself.
"…Wow," was all Jeremie could utter that night as he walked home, spinning in circles, dazed to pieces.
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A/N: Awwww. They almost kissedddd. I thought it was too early for them to you know, make out or something, so I postponed it. Or, better yet, ODD postponed it, so feel free to throw stuff at him in reviews if you're a JxA fan.
Well… yeah. This will be a typical teenager story dealing with adolescence problems that will later on mentally kill them. Ahh, what a life.
READ AND REVIEW! Please. –glare-
--jENN