A Familiar Face From the Past
"Kouki-sensei, good morning. To whom do we owe the pleasure of your visit to?" the young nurse simpered at the ER doctor's surprise visit to the recovery ward. Doctor Miroku Kouki was especially handsome today. Miroku Kouki. 32 years old. ER surgeon. Comes for a good family. Single... And a womanizer.
"Na-chan, delightful as ever now are we? You look gorgeous, hon," Miroku winked at the nurse and grinned when she turned into a shade redder than before. "I'm looking for Takahashi-sensei. Where is he right now? Not in surgery, I would presume?"
He was going to break in an hour and wanted to grab lunch with someone. His best friend, InuYasha Takahashi, would be the perfect lunch buddy.
"Ah, you just missed him. He left ten minutes ago. He's off for the day. It's March 28th, remember?" the nurse gently reminded Miroku. Who could forget? It's that date again for heaven's sake. InuYasha went through a lot of trouble to take the 28th of March off every single year. That was one of his employment terms - to have March 28th off. Because of that small change in agenda, the March surgery schedule was especially difficult if not impossible to tweak.
"Right! Right! Right!" Miroku tapped his forehead with his palm. He was thirty-seven hours into his shift and his brain seemed to have stopped working. How could have forgotten? InuYasha was at Kikyo's. Miroku had always found that strange - InuYasha was still mourning the death of his fiancé even after twelve whole years. But then again, he had also admired InuYasha for his dedication.
-x-x-x-
"Kaede is finishing high school this year. She's graduating next month. Can you believe it? Kids grow so fast!" InuYasha chuckled as he played with the piece of grass in his hands. "She was only 6 years old when you last... saw her... She misses you. She wished she could come today but she has her entrance exam to TU. You should be proud of her. I am. Although... Although I secretly want her to go to Waseda. You know? Our alma mater?"
InuYasha smiled at the picture of Kikyo on the gravestone. God, she was beautiful. So beautiful. It's been 12 years but it had always been her. Her alone. She didn't have a replacement. She was irreplaceable to him.
'Blinds are so tacky, InuYasha! Especially the ones that roll down! I want the pretty lacy white curtains!' she pouted as she tugged his sweater's sleeves.
'Well, I like my roll down blinds! They completely block all the lights out! I need to sleep in complete darkness after my shifts!' he grinned as he grabbed her waist closer to him.
Kikyo let out a long sigh and stared him down before she spoke again, 'Fine. You win. But I get to pick the colours.'
He chuckled at the memory of their curtain-shopping excursion for their new home. She was always so agreeable. He suddenly cringed for a moment. Something was wrong with him. He could barely remember Kikyo's voice. He had forgotten exactly how she sounded like. It was a fuzzy notion in his head already. No matter how hard he had tried to remember her voice it was disappearing from his weak human memories. Lately it was even harder to envision her face. InuYasha panicked.
No. No. No. This wasn't happening to him. He wanted to remember her. He needed to remember her. Memories of her had to be fresh in his mind all the time. It was his obsession. For years he was dysfunctional after her passing. Then, he made a pact that he would only visit her grave once a year to control his neurosis.
He thought long and hard for a moment and leaned to touch the cold marble with his forehead.
"I love you, Kikyo," he smiled as he repositioned the bouquet of red roses in front of her grave. He took a long and deep breath and took in the gentle fragrance. He looked up to survey the surroundings. It was already cherry blossom season. The light pink flowers were in full bloom.
He looked at her picture once more and smiled.
Days Later...
Beep... Beep... Beep... Beep...
She woke up to the sound of a heart monitor and the scent of strong disinfectants. There was no doubt about it. She was in a hospital.
'Gah! No! No! No! Ah! No!'
Her head pounded as she recalled the memory of her losing control of the steering. How long has it been? Had she been in a coma this whole time?
"Ah, you're finally awake, Higurashi-san! I'm so glad!" the nurse rushed to her side and helped Kagome to adjust the pillows so that she could sit up comfortably.
"How long... how long have I been asleep for?" Kagome asked the nurse hesitantly. She was afraid of the answer. For all she knew it could be for years. She brought the arm that wasn't in cast up to feel her face. Her entire head was in bandages. Her heart sank. Did something happen to her face in the accident? Her cheeks were sore and itchy. She could barely see from the small slit cut out from the bandages.
"Hm... Just two weeks. Not that long after you've gone through so much, Higurashi-san," the nurse reassured Kagome that she hadn't missed much of her life. "Let me call Takahashi-sensei to check on you, alright? I'll be right back."
Kagome was in a daze. With the bandages around her face it was even hard to breathe. Her heart was pounding against her chest. Was she disfigured? No... No... No... She was living a nightmare.
"Higurashi-san?" a deep and soothing voice called her name. Kagome looked up to find a dashingly attractive doctor standing by her bed in a white coat, glancing through her patient file.
"I'm InuYasha Takahashi, the surgeon who performed your reconstructive surgery," InuYasha held out his hand to meet Kagome's.
"Re..constructive surgery?" Kagome repeated his words, almost in a whisper. "I... had reconstructive surgery..."
"The impact damaged your visage and your tissues were damaged from shattering glass. We had to repair it. But please, I reassure you that the surgery was a success," InuYasha tried to give Kagome a smile to cheer her up. "I was able to restore your full sensory nervous system in the facial area."
"Oh..." was all she could say.
"Kotoko-chan, can we contact Higurashi-san's mother? I need to speak with her," InuYasha turned to the nurse and gave her some extensive orders. He looked to Kagome again and smiled, "You need plenty of rest right now, Higurashi-san. I can talk to you later if you have any concerns."
A Few Weeks Later...
"Kaede! How were your results?" InuYasha turned to the young girl as she opened the left door and sat in the passenger seat.
"I got in! I got in! I got my offer from TokyoU!" Kaede shouted excitedly as she leaned over to hug InuYasha. "I placed eighth in the national exam!"
Kaede opened her bag to take out another package, "I got Waseda too, Onii-chan!"
"Ah! I'm so happy for you!" InuYasha's gray eyes sparkled. "Your Onee-chan will be so proud of you!"
Kaede grinned, "I know. I know."
"We have to go out to celebrate! Where do you want to go?" InuYasha clutched to the steering wheel of his Lexus and smiled at Kaede.
"Ne, Onii-chan. You pick, you need to celebrate too!" Kaede poked InuYasha and grinned.
"..What?" he stared at her, blankly.
"It's your 38th birthday, Onii-chan! How can you forget you old man? Are you so old that you can't even remember your own birthday?" Kaede joked as she punched InuYasha once again.
"I stopped counting, kiddo," he chuckled once again.
-x-x-x-
"Onii-chan, what are you going to wish for?" Kaede stared at InuYasha who was sitting beside her on the high bar stool of the restaurant with the cake in front of them. "Choose wisely! You only get that one special wish every year!"
"Hm... I have everything I want," InuYasha let out a long sigh and returned to watch Kaede. "I'm going to wish for world peace."
Kaede gave InuYasha an annoyed look, played with her hoodie drawstring, and looked up to the ceiling for a while to think. She really didn't have to think long and hard. She knew exactly what her Onii-chan lacked in his life.
"Ne, Inu-Onii-chan. You need a girlfriend," Kaede grinned ear to ear at InuYasha. "Ah... Hm... That sounds weird... a 38-year-old old man with a 'girlfriend.' Let's hope you get married by the end of this year! It's the end of June now. You have less than half a year!"
InuYasha's eyebrows perked up. Did Kaede just say what he thought she did? "No I don't! Mind your own business, Kaede!" he replied curtly to the hopeful teenager.
"Onee-sama had been dead for... twelve years? Since I was... 5 years old," Kaede leaned closer to the table. "You know she can't come back to life, Onii-chan. She'd want you to be happy too."
InuYasha avoided Kaede's gaze and stared at the flickering thirty-eight candles on the small cake. "I know," he finally spoke up. "But she's irreplaceable, Kaede. You won't understand."
Kaede gulped. She suddenly felt... afraid. InuYasha looked like he was about to cry. His gray eyes turned into a dark coal color. She patted him on the back and began to apologize, "Eh... Onii-chan. I'm sorry. Please, don't cry... Ah... Hm... Eh... Why don't you... Eh... Wish for a pony instead?"
InuYasha let out a long sigh once again. He was scaring Kaede with his outburst of emotions. They were celebrating today. He wasn't going to ruin the mood. The corners of his mouth suddenly perked up. He let out a whole-hearted laugh, "Ha! I got cha, baka! You should have seen your face! It was priceless! Ha! Ha! Ha!"
Kaede stared at InuYasha and rolled her eyes, "Not funny, Onii-chan!"
"Hm... What shall I wish for this year? I'll wish for a girlfriend," InuYasha paused to look at Kaede and smiled ear to ear. "Happy now?"
"Yes! Now blow out the candles!"
Three Months Later...
"Higurashi-san, your daughter has recovery well. I don't foresee any scarring when I remove the bandages," InuYasha nodded at Midori Higurashi once again to reassure her once again.
"All... alright. Please do your best, Takahashi-sensei," Midori smiled weakly. Her daughter was having her bandages removed today. No one could know for certain how it would go. "I want to show you something, Takahashi-sensei," she whispered as she pulled out a small album.
"This is Kagome before her accident," Midroki flipped to a picture of Kagome's Keio graduation.
InuYasha stared at the girl in the picture. She was gorgeous with her long black locks. She had beautiful big brown eyes, a high nose bridge, and a perfect jawline.
"I understand, Higurashi-san. I will schedule her for another surgery if... the results today are unfavorable," InuYasha nodded understandingly at the elder mother.
-x-x-x-
"Higurashi-san, we're here to remove your bandages today," InuYasha informed Kagome. "Rin-chan is here to assist me."
Rin smiled at Kagome and bowed to her patient politely.
InuYasha was certain that Kagome had known this already. But there really wasn't anything else he could say to her. He had been doing this for years now and yet it had never gotten easier. What she would look like after the bandages were removed, no one knew. Nothing was for certain.
She knew she would find out today when the doctor removed the bandages from her face today. The anticipation was killing her and yet in a way, she would rather to never find out. But she knew she would have to face it someday. It might as well as be today. She had already prepared herself. She could never look like her old self again. She could never really be Kagome Higurashi. This was ridiculous.
"I'm... I'm ready..." Kagome let out a weak smile and shifted closer to InuYasha. She clenched to her bed sheets and waited. Was it her or was it especially cold in her patient room today?
"Honey, it's going to be all okay," Midori gripped her daughter's shoulder firmly. "I'm here for you. Takahashi-sensei has been trying so hard. He'll do his best."
He had done this a million times before but he had an ominous feeling this time that he couldn't identify.
"Rin-chan, scissors please," he held out his hand to accept the scissors from the nurse.
InuYasha brought the pair of scissors to trip the knot of the cotton strip. His hands trembled as he removed the first layer of bandages from her face. Piece by piece, he wounded down the bandage straps and held his breath as he snipped the bandage strips. This was always the most difficult part.
Kagome shifted uncomfortably and bit her lips. Her breathing was uneven. She was afraid. Very afraid.
Now on with the second layer... He gently peeled off the cotton.
"No scars yet," he smiled weakly at the sight of her pale skin to comfort Kagome. He took the tweezers from the tray to remove the cotton from her temple. When he caught sight of her eyes, his pupils constricted.
...
...
...
...
This couldn't be right.
No.
...
...
...
Kagome blinked at InuYasha. Something was wrong... the way he was staring at her face. No...
Suddenly, the room was silent.
...
Dead silent.
...
...
...
...
...
Midori stared at her daughter. Kagome's eyes had completely changed... She couldn't even recognize her own daughter. Midori's mouth was agape.
"Takahashi-sensei," the young nurse whispered to break the long silence in the room. Rin clenched her jaw. She was dating InuYasha's elder brother, Sesshomaru Takahashi. She had seen pictures of InuYasha from years ago with his fiancé Kikyo. Kagome... had Kikyo's eyes.
...
...
InuYasha gulped. He didn't know how to react. His patient... looked like... her. An overwhelmingly sense of nostalgia washed over him. Those eyes... 'Her' eyes...
...
...
...
...
...
Kagome sat in terror as everyone in the room fixed their gazes on her.
...
...
Tick tock.
...
...
...
...Tick...
Tock...
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Tick...
Tick...
...
...
Silence...
...
He clenched his jaw and took away another piece of cotton. And another one. Another one. There were all there... All there... Her features. Every single one of them were like 'hers.'
...
Hers.
...
She looked like her...
...
Every single one of his nerves intertwined. He had a strange feeling in his stomach. He hadn't done this intentionally. Not at all. No.
There was an eerie silence in the room before InuYasha Takahashi responded, "I know, I know. She looks just like... 'her.'"
He forced a smile on his face and said almost in a whisper, "The surgery was a success, congratulations."
...
...
...
He rose from his seat and bowed politely before he rushed out of the room.
Tears began to fall from her eyes. She couldn't take it anymore.
"No, Higurashi-san! It was... well!" Rin handed the mirror into Kagome's hands and clutched to her arms.
Kagome slowly opened her eyes to look at herself in the mirror. Her hands shook. "This... is... me...?" she whispered as she watched her jaw move. She couldn't recognize herself anymore. Not at all. She was a completely different woman. She stared at her own eyes. They were now rounder. What happened to her almond eyes? She brought her fingertips to touch her nose. They were now more angular than before. She brushed her hand gingerly above her mouth... She was... someone else.
The change scared her. She wasn't ugly. She wasn't deformed. No. She was far from that. She had become... In a way she hated to accept this... but... She was more gorgeous? No, she was beautiful before the surgery. But now, now... She was now more "alluring." Her features were in a way more feminine.
There was a feeling engendered in her that she couldn't describe. She dropped the mirror and buried her face into the blanket.
Did what I think happened happened? Woah... Woah... Well... Until next time, folks :)