from skybluescramble:
okay… finally I`m back to this fic
it`s getting colder and colder in recent days.. and I caught a cold even though I hate to admit it *sneeze*
so, again, a bear hug for my beta-reader Irrevocable Truth :D
and then for all my reviewers who I love so much: xiLynnx, James Birdsong, winterkaguya, Shanaa12, tomoyo-amethyst, prilly55, Seirin, cupid17, FantasyFan123, krazypig91, eileene, Krissy, DitaDichuu, B.A.K11, cheng, Hotaru, Shenhui, KiNoMoTo18, Krissy, and chiharu-tanaka; thank you very much for being patient ! I promise you I won`t let this piece on hiatus *crossing fingers*
into the fic :D
DISCLAIMER
NOT MINE.
Are we allowed to write this 'disclaimer` thingy only at the first chapter of the fic?
Really, I hate writing this part -_-"
::The Proposal::
::::::::::::::
SUMMARY:
"Something`s wrong, right?" Nakuru guessed."Ne, Eriol?"
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CHAPTER #12: A Shattering Reverie
ERIOL HIIRAGIZAWA was shaking from head to toe with thrill. He couldn`t stand still; he was walking back and forth for half an hour and didn`t show any resolve to sit. He never missed a minute without glancing at the closed door of the Intensive Care Unit seven times or more, and continued to walk again like a madman.
Perhaps he was a madman.
Forty-five minutes earlier, he had just finished walking Kaho Mizuki to the elevator when his secretary, Higashitani Akane appeared from the stairs; her breath was labored and she was sweating. He asked her what was wrong, and like a waterfall she rambled so fast about Tomoyo Daidouji coming to see him, suddenly choosing to go home and taking the stairs in a hurry, walking down carelessly and falling. Higashitani didn`t see the whole accident, because she was busy reading files, but noises from the sixth floor distracted her from the mountainous work of hers, so she decided to go down and see what was going on.
That was how she found out about Tomoyo`s accident.
And like an arrow released from its bow, Eriol darted forward, no thinking, no deliberating, he was simply follow his head`s command. His body seemed to move on its own will, too. The lunch he`d eaten earlier maneuvered inside his stomach when his gaze found her limp, unconscious body lying on the floor.
He saw blood.
He saw people surrounding her, doing nothing. One of them was clever enough to tell someone to call an ambulance.
Suddenly felt so angry with those people, Eriol rushed to her side, slipped his arms under the nape of her neck and below her knees before lifting her at the count of three. He roared as loud as possible, calling the nearest security guard to prepare his rental car and drive them to the hospital. An ambulance won`t make it, he thought grimly as blood oozed from between her legs, smudging the once flawless rental car`s floor. He silently prayed for her safety—both of their safety, virtually; Tomoyo and their baby—while the car slid on the road with constant speed.
"Is any family of Miss Daidouji present?"
Eriol immediately turned around. When he caught a sight of a female doctor dressed in a white lab coat, he dashed forward.
"I am the family."
She gave him an unconvinced look. "Name, sir?"
"Hiiragizawa. Eriol Hiiragizawa."
The unconvinced look on her pupils was becoming stronger.
"I`m her fiancé," he quickly added with more determination. "Please. She has no one other than me."
"Well, then." The doctor sighed. "Please follow me, Mr. Hiiragizawa. My name`s Fukimoto."
She guided him to another room with bookshelves and a small desk—perhaps her working room. After fetching a brand new map file from a stand on her desk, she turned it over, ready to show Eriol what was inside.
"Please take a seat," she said. "We aren`t going to have conversations standing up."
Being on pins and needles, Eriol pulled the nearest chair towards him and sat down slowly. At the very same time, the doctor flapped the map file open. Several black-and-white pictures and papers with incomprehensible tables were ejected.
"We`re in a difficult situation," she started explaining in a way he didn`t like. "Very difficult, if I`m allowed to speak frankly, Mr. Hiiragizawa; and dillemmatic."
Eriol shifted his weight uneasily. "Could you just be… straightforward?"
"Miss Daidouji lost a lot of blood. She`s now getting transfusion, but if we can`t make things fast enough…" she didn`t have to finish that sentence. Eriol had understood. He had a presumption that this was about to come when they were on the way to the hospital, but hearing the doctor say it…
"What decision should I make?" he looked up to face Doctor Fukimoto, an unfaltering gaze painted on his face.
"It`s already decided. We`re going to do an operation. We`ll take the baby out. The amnion was broken, if we`re dilly-dallying it will harm the baby. The preparation is nearly done. We just need to confirm you for the consent about this. You know, sir—SOP"
SOP. Standard Operational Procedure.
Well, well. Sometimes they could be so troublesome, though.
"Yes, please. Anything to save them."
"But we can guarantee that the baby will be as healthy as your expectations, Mr. Hiiragizawa. The pregnancy is now in its seventh month period. We can do Caesarean operation to save the baby, but that means she`ll be premature. And there are some risks."
LIGHT. There was light everywhere.
Her eyes were shot open, but in the next second she closed them back abruptly, groaning. Her eyes weren`t ready for the brightness of the room. She lifted her right hand clumsily, made a mental note at how weak it felt, and rubbed both of her eyes with slow motions. It was as though someone had turned her ears off before and just turned the volume back up, because out of the blue she could hear everything around her, booming through her eardrums.
Tick. Tock.
That was the clock, perhaps.
Tick. Tick.
That one, she assumed that was the electrocardiograph.
Tomoyo remembered that she did fall from the stairs, and if she was still breathing now, it meant only one thing: she was in a hospital.
"Tomoyo? Tomoyo? You okay?" Someone said, voice filled with panic and relief at the same time. "Can you hear me? Tomoyo?"
Who?
Sakura?
No. There`s no way Sakura could have this kind of masculinity in her voice.
Could it possibly be Touya? Or Li?
Who else would call her by first name so casually?
"Tomoyo? Tomoyo? Look at me. Can you see me?"
Her eyes flicked open, struggling to fight the sudden attack of the light. "Hiiragizawa…?"
"Yes, it`s me. Thank God, you`re fine…" Eriol Hiiragizawa was standing up beside her bed, face filled with worry. He bent down to lean closer and extended his arm to caress her cheek. In this close proximity, she noticed his eyes were so red it was almost scary. He looked exhausted.
"You didn`t sleep." It wasn`t a question.
"Rest."
"Avoiding the subject, huh?"
"I said rest, Tomoyo. Please."
"What do you think I'm doing now?" she uttered, moving her hand onto her stomach, and her countenance coagulated in less than a second. Her calmness had gone. She was now panicking. Her voice was jittery, her body was shaking. "Where is it?" Croaking, she felt around her stomach frantically. "Where is she? What happened to my baby?"
"You need to calm down."
"How could I? Tell me, Eriol, what happened?"
He found his tongue tied.
"Did they kill her?" she freaked out. "Did you let them kill her?"
"Tomoyo—hey! What the fcking earth are you doing?" Gasping in shock, Eriol got to his feet and swooped towards her, who made a futile attempt to remove the IV needle from the back of her left hand, and caught her wrist in time. He held both of her hands firmly, his height created a strong sensation of presence even though he was lowering himself to her eye level. He said with a dangerous glare, "Don`t. Ever. Do. That. Again."
"I want my baby," she said hoarsely, almost crying.
"I know," said Eriol, gently pulling her into a comforting embrace and running his hand along her back. "She's alright."
Almost instantly, Tomoyo pulled away. "Is she?"
"Yeah."
"But my stomach—"
"They worked on a Caesarean operation to save her. You were bleeding seriously and the amnion broke, so they had to take her out for your safety."
"I want to see her."
Eriol gulped. "But you're not supposed to move right now. The stitch might be torn. We`ll wait until tomorrow, okay? You need some sleep, and I think our baby needs time for her to recover from the shock."
There were some moments of silence.
"Hiiragizawa?"
"Hm?" he looked down to meet her gaze, but her head turned to another direction; it was clearly noticeable that she avoided him on purpose. "What's the matter?"
"…I`m sorry."
"What are you sorry for?"
"I wasn`t careful… Recklessly stepping down the stairs. Look at what I`ve done, Hiiragizawa. I put my baby`s life in danger, and you now have to pay all the cost of these hospital stuffs."
He cracked a small laugh. "If I have the honor to remind you, I bought a cruise ship, Tom—Daidouji-san. Handling several bills from a hospital will be a piece of cake," said Eriol, flashing his charismatic cocky grin. "And talking about it… I`m wondering why you came to my office and left without saying a word. Was there anything wrong? Why you decided to go back home so suddenly? Why were you so rushed?"
"No… I can`t give the answers." She answered stiffly.
"Why?"
"It`s just—I can`t."
"Alright." Eriol suppressed the urge to push this subject longer, he knew it wouldn`t do any good. He patted Tomoyo`s back lightly and said, "Sleep. You`ll need it. We get to see our daughter tomorrow."
Perhaps it was the anesthetic that worked, or Eriol chanted some spells upon her, because out of the blue her lids became so heavy as though some blocks of bricks were put on them, and she drifted to a dreamless slumber.
IT WAS ALMOST MIDNIGHT, but Eriol couldn`t sleep. He was awake, alone, in the corridor, right in front of Tomoyo`s ward. His whole body was aching from sitting all day and he ignored it. Some things were bothering him relentlessly. Some things that he didn`t mention to Tomoyo, some things he hid behind his smile. He got it perfectly that she needed to grasp the real situation, but seeing her like that, he just couldn`t say a word.
His daydream broke in seconds, thanks to noises from outside the window.
It sounded like… pebbles being thrown against the glass.
He stood up, looked over his shoulder to see what was going on, his alert shooting to high. But those broad, strong shoulders relaxed after his eyes caught a glimpse of two pairs of butterfly-like wings behind the glass, hidden between shadows of the trees. He marched toward the window and unlocked it. It was huge, in order to welcome as much sunlight as possible, with sliding glass, so Eriol slid in open to get a clear view of his visitors.
"What are you two doing here?" he hissed questioningly at his guests.
Ruby Moon grinned as she crossed her legs; she was sitting on a branch of tree. "Give you companions, I think."
"Huh?"
"You didn`t come home and we thought something went wrong." Ruby explained, now playing with some twigs. She stood up, floated towards the open door and climbed in. "But Suppi suggested me to call Higashitani and she told us everything she knows. Told me, actually. For her, Suppi is no more than a plushie doll which I love to bring along everywhere."
Spinel Sun, in his panther-like true form, grunted softly.
"What is it, Spinel?" asked Eriol.
"Nothing, Master. I just can`t believe a guardian can be this dumb," he pointed to Ruby Moon with his left claw. "She was panicking like crazy, rambling stupidly while walking around the living room, and had no slightest idea of calling your secretary until I mentioned it. If you paired her with Cerberus, Master Eriol, then it would be a good show for circus."
Eriol laughed at Spinel`s frown. "That`s why I paired Ruby Moon with you."
"How is she?" said Ruby Moon, folding her wings. She was talking about Tomoyo. There was a flash of blinding light, then by the next second, Ruby Moon disappeared, replaced by a brunette girl dressed in an ivory one-piece dress who looked anxious.
"Don`t worry. She regained consciousness several hours ago," answered Eriol.
"And now?"
"She`s sleeping, of course!" said Spinel, who had turned into his small feline form. He then flew in—his true form of Spinel Sun was too big to fit through the open window—and landed on his usual favorite place: Eriol`s shoulder. "Are you even considering what time it is?"
There was some gap of silence as Eriol patted Spinel on the head.
"What about the baby?" asked the black feline, blinking his big eyes.
Eriol`s countenance changed instantly.
Spinel raised his tiny brows. "Don`t tell me…"
"Something`s wrong, right?" Nakuru guessed. "Ne, Eriol?"
Unfortunately, he refused to say anything further.
SHE CRIED. Neither hysterical nor hyperbolic, but crying anyway. Fresh drops of tears flowed down her cheeks, leaving trails on her chin before falling down, crashed when those drops collided with her clothes.
Eriol found himself unable to utter a word.
His wristwatch showed twenty past nine in the morning.
He remembered entering Tomoyo`s ward, twenty minutes earlier, only to face an unusually bright face of hers. Eriol asked about her condition and she said he had nothing to worry about. At that time, on the side of Tomoyo`s bed was a nurse; she was taking a blood sample and was supposed to take away the breakfast tray with her leaving. The nurse said that Tomoyo was still not allowed to go strolling on her own feet, but if she wanted to get rid of her boredom, she could use the wheelchair.
So that`s how it was.
Eriol had promised her yesterday that they will see the baby together.
And then here they were. Inside the infant ward, and he saw Tomoyo sobbing right before him. In every drop of her tears he felt something pierce his heart deeper. Eriol looked up, gazing against the glass box placed in front of them, making a barrier around a pink, small, newborn baby whom so many hoses were connected to—incubator.
"Don`t," whispered Eriol in her ear as he slouched down to level with her height. He lowered more to look at her face, which was facing the white tiles under his feet. "Please don`t cry, okay? You`ll just make her sad."
He glanced at the baby blearily but he succeeded in keeping his mien under control.
"I can`t stand seeing her like that," said Tomoyo with difficulties, strangulated by desolation that made her voice stuck in her throat.
Eriol was about to say something when a nurse burst in.
"Miss Daidouji, it`s time to go back to your room."
"Can`t I be here a little longer?" asked Tomoyo, almost pleading.
"I`m afraid not, Miss. We`re going to check the babies` condition soon. No one is allowed to be here but paramedics. I`ll escort you back—"
"No," rejected Eriol politely, "she`s with me."
Tomoyo kept her face down along the way back to her ward. Realizing he couldn`t act as though he was absentminded to this, Eriol decided to talk to her. He closed the door, walked towards the bed and yanked the blanket to create enough space, and then he helped Tomoyo climb back to her bed. Noticing her sad expression, Eriol automatically knelt down on his knees. He put a finger under her chin, gently persuading her to look up.
"She`s fighting, you know." He said, "You saw the small movements on her toes? She`s doing her best to live."
Tomoyo`s eyes reddened again.
"Don`t cry, okay? You must give your best, too."
Their eyes met.
"Promise me, Tomoyo. You`ll be strong."
Tomoyo, he said. Not the usual Daidouji-san with the cocky, teasing tone he had. No, no, no. She was not going to burst in tears. Not in front of him. She did not want to curl up in a small ball and become struck by her own sadness like there was no ending.
But the truth was that she did.
Because the more she looked into the depth of his eyes—that appraising, dark gaze that made her feel vulnerable in an instance—and her head unconsciously replayed his deep voice, the more she wanted to scream at the fates for giving her this grieving situation. Tomoyo`s barrier broke. She threw herself forward, flung her arms around his neck as she hugged him tight, crying silently.
"This is the last one," she whispered croakily, "and I won`t sob again."
"I know," murmured Eriol as his hand stroked her back in a soothing way.
"I`m ruining your clothes," said Tomoyo. "They look expensive..."
"That`s the last thing you should pay attention to." Eriol answered simply, but he couldn`t help not to smile.
"Sorry." Tomoyo murmured, pulling herself apart from him and raising her face. Her lips pursed into a weak smile as she said, "You`re right. I need to be strong for her. I have to. So that at least she`s not fighting alone…"
She had some beads of tears on her face; between her lashes, some still pooled in her eyes, and some hung on her jaw, resisting to fall and crash when colliding with their clothes. She had no makeup on, her face looked weary and slightly pathetic; maybe there was nothing interesting from her appearance in that moment. That`s why Eriol could find no reason good enough to decipher why he didn`t remove his hands from her back.
Or why he didn`t stop his palm moving upwards to the back of her neck.
Or why he didn`t just stay still and look straight at those clear amethyst eyes.
Or why he, instead, leaned forward and kissed her.
On the other hand, Tomoyo was completely shocked when his lips met hers. It was not only because of the kiss, but also her own body`s reaction. Her mind went blank as her entire body felt so hot instantly. She was no longer able to recognize where they were, when he started nibbling and licking her lower lip.
He was slow and torturing. Tomoyo wanted to protest, but concentrated at her breath while kissing him was more than enough to make her so busy. She needed to pay attention to her oxygen supply—or else, she would suffocate—because Eriol didn`t give her a break. It was almost impossible how he could manage his respiration so easily when all he did was consume her mouth like crazy. His tongue was excellent. Tomoyo found no words fair enough to describe the effects.
The next thing she knew, she was lying on her back and he was hovering above her, feet still on the floor but it was as though he could join her on the bed anytime. He was stealing over her, taking away all good sense and judgment, so much so that she could not even care about her thumping heart which bumped against her chest mercilessly. His hands were everywhere; caressing the side of her face, grasping her locks, cupping her cheek, tracing her jaw line and neck, moving to her arms then down along her body… his fingertips left a burning sensation on the place they touched her skin… Tomoyo felt herself being swept away by a firestorm of emotions. Flames seemed to arc between them, so hot she could almost feel them licking at her skin. Her body felt heavy, all of a sudden extremely sensitive to Eriol's simple touch. Heat flooded her from head to toe, and her arms went up automatically. She pressed her fingertips against his broad chest; there was no energy left to do more than that, but thankfully he caught her sign.
Eriol slowly backed away. He then placed his forehead on her scapula, his breath as ragged as hers. They were enveloped in a warm silence for some minutes.
"I`ll never apologize for this," said Eriol firmly, yet softly.
And Tomoyo was grateful he couldn`t see her face just now, because she didn`t think she could think straight if her eyes met those dark, piercing orbs.
.
.to be continued