Chapter Five: A Compromise
Once Kohaku had entered the manor, her friends all looked at her since she was holding onto her own shoulder and looked like she was going to pass out. Shun quickly came to her side, inspecting her to make sure she was all right.
"What happened to you, Kohaku? How did you get that injury?"
"It's nothing and I'll be fine. I promise, Shun…" He then looked at her with worry in his eyes, making her gulp a little because she was feeling guilty that she couldn't tell him the truth of what was happening. But she had to protect all of them, even if it meant hiding the truth from her boyfriend.
"If you say so, but you should get some sleep."
"No!" They then all stared at her in shock, causing her to cover her face with one hand and sighed.
"I mean, no thanks… I'm not tired, I'll be fine. I'm gonna get a drink of water, maybe it's because I'm a little dehydrated that I seem to look tired." She stated and with her first step forward, Shun caught the young saint as she stumbled a little.
"You need more then water, Kohaku."
"But I'm fine, Shun…!" Shun suddenly picked her up bridal style and began to walk away with her.
"You're not fine… You stumbled forward, you've been screaming in your sleep and Hyoga just told us how you almost bashed his head in and yelled at him to go away. Something's bothering you and if I have to stay in your room while you sleep to find out what's wrong with you, then I will." Kohaku then blushed while looking at him in silence, blushing a little since she never had him react this way towards her before.
Right when they reached her room, Shun opened and closed the door before placing her in bed and tucking her in with a smile.
"Now then, since we're alone, how about you tell me what's wrong before you get some rest…?" She blushed a little more as she looked up at his smiling face, gulping a little since she always had a hard time resisting that smile of his.
"I-it's nothing, Shun… I've just had an old nightmare return from many years ago about my mother's death. It's hard to talk about and the only people I've told about it was Hyoga and my sensei. I'll be fine soon enough… So you don't have to worry about me any more." The concern in his eyes didn't vanish as he gazed at her, gently gripping onto one of her hands and leaning over her. His emerald hair lightly hanging in his face as he looked into her mismatched eyes.
"You stuttered, my nightingale… I know you well enough that you stutter when something's on your mind. So just tell me and I'll be able to help you, my love." Kohaku gulped then averted her eyes, trying to hide the fact that she was lying.
"F-forgive me, Shun… But I can't tell you what's going on with me at the moment. It's just that I… I can't let others put themselves at risk, so I'm trying to deal with this on my own." With a soft sigh as he sat down on the edge of the bed, Shun brushed a little of her bi-colored hair out of her face and kissed her forehead.
"If you can't tell me yet, then I'll wait until you can tell me. But until then, I'll stay with you when you're asleep so that you can rest peacefully… If you have another nightmare, then I'll be here to comfort you." He murmured softly, kissing her cheek and her lips before gently touching the side of her face.
"Now please, Kohaku… Will you go to sleep if I stay here with you?" She stared up at him, surprised and speechless that he'd suggest that, but nodded a little in reply.
"Th-that would be nice, Shun… B-but… But are you sure that it's a good idea…?"
"We've been dating for a long time now and we even slept in the same room before when I went training with you and Milo. It's not too different."
"It is different since we were only in the same room, not the same bed. I don't know if this is a good idea…" Shun then softly chuckled, still smiling at her softly.
"If it's the only way to make sure that you can sleep well, then I'm staying. Now go to sleep, Kohaku…" She then softly smiled at him in reply and nodded while he laid down with her, falling asleep only after a few moments of listening to his heart beating.