AN:Hey guys! Hope you like what I have on this chapter! 2,000+ words of Itakiss yummyness!
"The trick is to fry the vegetables before mixing it in the stew. Do you want mushed vegetables in your dish?" stated Kotoko's father as he sipped on some green tea, while jotting down the recipe for Noriko. Shigeki nodded sagely in understanding as he heard his best friend's wisdom, happy to have a professional cook as his best friend and in-law.
On boring nights like these, the parents usually relaxed in the family room and enjoyed each others company while catching up on their day to day Shigeki and Shigeo chatted about a nostalgic lunch meal in elementary school, the phone rang from across the up the phone, Noriko answered in a cheerful tone, "Irie-Aihara residence, who is calling?"
She didn't expect Kotoko's incoherent words and she certainly didn't expect to understand them so easily.
"Nao..naoki he- he-probably has a con-concussion…mama, He's hurt-we're at the hospital I need you! " sobbed her daughter in-law heavily, gasping in every other word. Hearing the grave words stopped her brain processing; the phone fell from her grasp as her eyes glistened. Noriko never heard her daughter-in-law use his first name. Ever.
"My boy…"
Surprisingly, Noriko Irie didn't faint; she knew her boy would overpass this tumble with Japan's most capable doctors. However...the crippling fear that all mother's possessed took hold of her body. Noticing the phone on the floor, she quickly picked it up and spat out that they were on the way.
There was no time to waste. Seeing her in-law and husband's worried faces, she quickly strode to the young couple's room while yelling over her shoulder,
"Papa! Shigeo-san! Get dressed, Naoki is hurt and He's in the hospital as we speak! I'm packing for them. Hurry!"
High, broken keening sounds had echoed in the waiting room. The young nurse was denied any access to the ER since it was a conflict of relationship. She couldn't even report to Nishigaki properly due to her stuttering and panicking, thus being escorted by an ashen Moto-chan. He was still in shock; not even ten minutes ago, he received the news that the prodigal doctor and his wife took a dangerous tumble down the stairs. He had relied on the other nurses to clean the blood-soaked floors while he took care of his hysterical colleague.
Kotoko was a mess; terrible thoughts and forms of guilt entered her brain, infecting her senses. What if her husband died because of her faulty moccasins and careless actions? She vaguely remembered him chiding her on those shoes, since they had no stable sole. If he became anything less than he originally was, she'd be ridden of guilt for the rest of her miserable life. Of course, she'd stick with Irie-kun no matter what the outcome was. However, she couldn't bear the guilt of changing somebody's life in this extreme level.
"Kotoko-san! Focus. Now tell me, are you feeling alright? Kotoko-san?" Moto-chan murmured, studying her features and he tried calming her down. Looking down, he noticed that she had a swollen ankle. Maybe it was sprained?
"Kotoko, calm down; you're probably hurt. Does your ankle hurt? Let's have a doctor check your leg-"
"No! I am not moving from here, I refuseMotoki, I need to see if Irie-kun is alive and well. I will notmove from here, even if I die by some injury I refuse!" Kotoko's rant had escalated to panicking and hysterical yelling. Discarding the friend card, Motoki pulled out the no-nonsense-nurse card and called for backup as he held her squirming body down. Their size difference was no match; her screams didn't falter until the nurses had to step in and sedate her. Pulling her into a nearby cot, the team of nurses began to search for injuries.
Kotoko's world began to darken as the panic escaped her body and was replaced by a thick layer of fuzzy numbness, filling in the gaping hole in her heart.
Naoki, please be alive and well...I love you.
The Irie-Aihara's burst through the hospital entrance and sprinted to the desk. Where were their children? After being directed to the wing by a solemn nurse, they spotted Motoki, who was rolling Kotoko's bed into a different ward.
"Moto-chan! Why is Kotoko unconscious?!"
"My daughter! Where's my son?! What happened?!"
Stopping to shush up the increasingly louder questions by her family members, Moto-chan motioned them to calm down; he wouldn't want them to be escorted out by the head nurse, especially at this critical hour. Once he had her settled in the room, he began to fill in the questions of her worried parents.
"From what I gathered from Kotoko and the security cameras, she was carrying their lunch and slipped down the stairs. Irie-san caught her as they both tumbled down. So far, she has a slightly fractured ankle, and some bruising on her arm. Other than that, she's healthy and well. As for Irie-san…there have been no updates from the operating doctors." Motoki trailed off, eyeing the horror-struck parents with genuine guilt and empathy. Clearing his throat, he excused himself and offered to ask the doctor if any updates were available.
Shigeo gripped his daughter's dainty hand and he quickly wiped his watery eyes with the other. Why is Kotoko always getting into these dangerous situations? Didn't this higher power know she is all he had left in this unforgiving world? Feeling two sets of hands on his shoulders, he looked up to Noriko and Shigeki. The sad and understanding eyes mirrored his own as they all tearfully hugged each other, staying united for the sake of their children.
"That was a close call. He almost bled out; the broken femur had slashed the femoral artery in his right leg, causing hemorrhaging and his concussion didn't help matters either. There's heavy swelling in the occipital lobe and in his hippocampus, there is a possibility he will have some memory problems." Nishigaki-san murmured tiredly as he took off his operating mask. A short pale woman had tear-streaks as she clung on to a dumpy man with spectacles. To his right, he saw a teenager that held a strong resemblance to his colleague. Nishigaki noticed that a petite nurse was missing from the crying crowd.
"Where's Irie's wife? Don't tell me she's been hospitalized too?" the doctor murmured as his voice turned serious again. Could this night get any worse?
"Yes doctor, but she just has a fractured ankle along with some bruises. She should be fine." Murmured a man in a chef's outfit. So this must be the dad.
"I see. Either way, I've had Irie-san moved to the ICU for overnight observations. You all are not allowed to visit him until he is moved. After the swelling in his brain is gone, he'll be moved to Kotoko-san's room just to make them comfortable. I must leave to fill out the procedure section. Excuse me."
With that, Nishigaki-sensei left. After the sighs of relief were sighed, the Irie-Aihara's quietly retreated to Kotoko's room, hoping to have both of them safe and sound very soon.
Slow, in-sync beeps began to worm into his auditory system, provoking a pounding headache in tempo with the sound. The stiffness in his fingers and limbs made him feel like a statue, stoic and trapped. Even his eyes felt that they were glued shut. Cracking an eye-lid open, he looked around. The dim lights didn't let him see anything further than the window to his left. It seemed to be mid-afternoon or early sunset. Slowly turning his head to the right, he winced. His head throbbed anew, warning him to stop the movement. However, a familiar face caught his eye.
Noriko Irie was quietly knitting as she flipped through some patterns on a book. Eyeing her in fear, Naoki questioned his sanity. His mother had longer, mid-shoulder hair with a flair of rebellion, not a short cut with a headband. Why does she have crow's feet around her eyes? She looked older, more motherly than he's ever seen her. Alongside her was his younger brother, Yuuki. However, Yuuki didn't have braces anymore, nor he was four feet tall. Long legs were crossed as he whispered indignantly to his mother. Naoki noticed that his brother wore a "Tonan Highschool Tennis" sweater. Highschool?
Closing his eyes again, he considered his options.
Choice A: He was going insane.
Choice B: He was hospitalized for six to seven years
Choice C: He was in a realistic nightmare.
Hearing footsteps, he lay still, hoping to hear in on the insanity of what he was seeing.
"Afternoon Noriko, any progress? I let Kin-chan run the restaurant while I came to visit Kotoko and Naoki-kun. Where is she?" Shigeo murmured quietly as he took a seat on the small couch, peeking over to the bathroom door.
"She's washing up for bed. Poor Kotoko-chan! I want the both of them home already!" Noriko whined, emitting a "shh!" sound from her youngest son. Somewhere along the line, Naoki needed answers. Twitching exaggeratedly, he groaned, blinking up.
"Onii-chan?!"
"Naoki-kun?"
The multiple questioning sounds came to his side immediately. Upon closer inspection, the three of them looked much older than he anticipated. His mother was sporting shiny silver streaks, while Shigeo greyed entirely.
"Finally! How're you feeling Naoki? Are you alright? Do you nee-"
"I'm fine." His voice croaked. Woah. His voice was a pitch deeper, rough even. What on Earth happened to him?
"Good to hear Naoki-kun, let me call a nurse to check up on you." Murmured Shigeo, as he stepped outside.
Hearing the commotion surrounding her husband's bed, Kotoko limped into the room, anticipating hearing his voice. Finally, after two weeks on the mend, she was released from the hospital. However, she was on leave so she could receive therapy for her ankle. Using her crutches, she reached the end of Naoki's bed and stared at him. He stared back. Kotoko also looked older. She no longer housed the baby-face complexion; her cheekbones and jaw became more sharp and defined. She had a light, healthy glow of makeup and blush, giving her a bubbly yet mature look. She sported a curvier body than the ramrod straight body he last saw.
However, his observations didn't make sense. At all.
Kotoko smiled slowly as she admired him. He looked amazing; his shrunken cheeks, his lifeless hair, his paler than normal complexion, it all screamed perfection when his eyes were open and alert. He was perfect in her eyes as long as he was alive. Quickly limping to him, she gently hugged her husband and closed her watering eyes.
"Irie-kun, I'm so glad you're awake, don't scare us like that." Kotoko whispered with heavy relief, sighing into his neck. However, her relief was short-lived when she felt weak shoving.
"Get off, you're suffocating me; what happened to me? Why am I hospitalized?" Naoki mumbled as he guiltily ignored her slightly crestfallen face.
"You don't remember? Kotoko came to bring you lunch since you had a long shift. She slipped and you caught her as you both fell down the stairs. That's why your leg is fractured." Noriko murmured as she inspected his face No realization had dawned on him, no understanding, just sheer confusion and incredulity.
He his confusion grew as well as his anger; only Aihara would get him involved with another stair-case accident. He briefly remembered the day he had his SAT's and almost failed to attend because of her unlucky charm.
However, why would they be at a hospital having lunch?
Naoki glared at Kotoko, "Only you would get us in a stair-case accident twice in one year. Honestly woman, you're such a bad luck charm." he murmured.
Everyone raised an eyebrow.
"Twice in a year?" Kotoko questioned, looking at the ceiling. They haven't had any accidents this bad since highschool...
"Yes! C'mon Kotoko, remember when you made me that "lucky" charm for my entrance SAT's? I ended up spraining my ankle! How could you forget, this happened almost a month ago!" Naoki ranted, but abruptly stopped.
Everyone looked horrified.
"A month ago? That incident happened almost eight years ago." Kotoko whispered hollowly, fearing the worst of their tragedy. Had her husband lost his memory?
It quickly grew quiet. Naoki clutched his head, trying to compute everything in place. Everything was freezing, jamming itself into a chaotic rhythm that he couldn't understand.
"Irie-san! I need you to sign this paperwork for your husband's exam results. Please sign here." a nurse spoke calmly as she timidly smiled at the lying man in bed. He didn't return it. Backtracking a bit his eyes opened at a comical size as he heard the word "husband" and saw Kotoko Aihara sign said paperwork. What on Earth was going on?
If she was Irie-san, that meant...
The platinum wedding band on his left hand sat innocently, as if taunting him into madness. This dream was getting out of hand.
"Since when are you an "Irie?" Signing documents under a different name is illegal Aihara." Naoki mumbled, but hoping to hear a reaction. He got one.
"Aihara...? Naoki, we've been married for seven years." the short woman whispered fearfully as the room grew silent once more. Things have definitely descended into madness.
AN: So...is the story still rockin? Let me know! R&R
