Disclaimer: Please see the first page, nothing has changed. I have actually less money now than I did then.
The sun was peaking above the horizon shyly, most of the sunlight being partially blocked due to the remaining clouds from the previous night's storms. Hideki groaned and rolled over onto his side so he faced away from the light, still tired from the day before. In vain, he attempted to pry his heavy eyelids open to look at Chii's still form beside, but no matter what he tried to coax himself with, nothing seemed to work.
After a few tries he managed to be able to lift one of them for a brief second before it wearily closed once more. He lay like that for almost a minute when something clicked in his exhausted mind, and suddenly his eyes snapped open, the soul behind them stricken with fear and worry. Chii's half of the futon was empty!
Stumbling to his feet he threw off the covers and looked wildly about the room for some hint to where she could have gone. The room was empty, but her nightshirt was in a small heap next to where she'd placed her clothes for that day the night before, which were now gone. Cursing slightly under his breath, he ran into the bedroom and threw on a white shirt and a pair of blue pants.
"Oh God Chii, where did you go?" he mumbled out loud in dread as he almost tripped and fell as he climbed into his pants. "Did something happen to you that made you run off?"
Finishing dressing, he stumbled over to the door, slipped on his shoes as fast as he could and slung the door open as he grabbed his backpack from the floor for school. He glanced quickly at the clock, which told him he had a little less than a half an hour to get to school and find Chii. He shut the door behind him and stood outside of it for a short minute to think about where she might have gone without him.
"Should I start with the area around her work or should I go ask Minoru for help?" he questioned himself, trying to figure out which would be the best approach. "Minoru probably would be able to find Chii faster than I would on foot, so I'll head over there."
Finally making up his mind, he slung the backpack on his shoulders and ran down the stairs and out the door. Turning the corner out of the apartment complex and towards his friend's house, he exclaimed,
"Oh God, Chii, please be ok!"
Meanwhile, Chii continued to walk aimlessly in the park, her heart troubled. She felt a deep pain in her chest, and she lifted her hand to her heart as she walked, a gentle breeze blowing her hair around her face. This was possibly the third time she'd been by this part of the lake, but she hadn't really been paying much attention to her surroundings.
"All things die… and Hideki will die… Can Chii not go with Hideki to where Hideki will be when Chii stops working?" Chii whispered, and the pain she felt throbbed inside of her. Who could tell her for sure, did anyone know? Could anyone tell her what she longed to hear?
A Frisbee came flying out of nowhere and hit her left arm gently and clattered to the ground. Chii looked down at it, surprised, and then up at the little girl who came to get it. Chii bent down and picked it up and handed it to the child as she came running up.
"Thank you, Miss, did I hurt you?" the little girl asked, a worried look on her face. Chii shook her head, a small smile appearing for the first time that day.
"Chii is fine; Chii did not get hurt from Frisbee…" Chii told her, slowly trailing off, the smile slowly fading from her face. The little girl cocked her head to one side as she frowned.
"Are you sure you're ok? You look hurt…"
"Chii is hurt… but Little Girl with Frisbee did not hurt Chii."
"My name is Yukiko Ishitawa, Miss Chii. It is a pleasure to meet you." The little girl smiled in reply, sounding very proper and mature for her age. "Can I help you stop being so sad? Would you like to play Frisbee with me?"
"Chii does not know how to play Frisbee," Chii told her with a small, sad smile, but it seemed not to matter to her. She took Chii's arm and led her back towards her family.
"That is fine, I'll teach you!"
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Author's Note: please R&R, or no more story, ok?
