Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach.
-o-
It felt as if she were suffocating.
Hisana gasped for air, her small hands clawing at her throat, desperately trying to inhale oxygen into her tightening lungs. It felt like she was underwater, as if someone was drowning her, drowning her again and again each time she tried to surface. The girl's eyes rolled back into her skull, her breaths coming in short bursts as her arms flailed around her petite frame.
It hurt. It hurt so much.
Suddenly she began to cough, each cough shook her to the very core, each violent jerk she made as her lungs constricted, sending waves off agony through her being.
Oh Kami, it hurts… Please make it stop.
Her throat which had gone dry tightened painfully and splatters of blood decorated the futon as a thin line of crimson pooled from the girl's lips. Her lips, which had gone pale from her sickness. The sickness that drained the color from her skin, the sickness that would soon drain the very life from her body.
Please…stop.
And her prayers were answered. For it did. She could feel a large warm hand grasp her small one. Loving words being whispered in her ear as she took her very last breath.
"-kuya-sama… I'm sorry."
.
.
.
"-kuya-sama."
I'm so sorry.
-o-
"-sana,"
"Mmf,"
"Hisana, wake up you idiot."
"lemmelone…"
"HISANA!"
Hisana Kiyomi started awake, nearly hitting her head on the headboard of the hospital bed.
"W-wha!?"
The college sophomore turned her head to the right, directing her attention to the girl sitting at her bedside. The girl stared worriedly at Hisana, a sympathetic but skeptical expression plastered on her face.
Reiko Hisoka was one of Hisana's closest friends. Hisana had always been shy, growing up in a foster home when her parents were killed in car accident. She had first met Reiko in middle school. Reiko was always the popular girl. She had short curly red hair, a large (large being an understatement) bust and that signature 'Don't fuck with me' attitude. The two had met when Hisana was being bullied one day by the school's delinquent boys. They had tried to feel her up and Reiko, seeing this, quickly ran to the small girl's defense. Let's just say that the boys each left with a broken nose and their ability to have children taken away. After that, Reiko had always been there to protect Hisana and the two had been inseparable ever since.
"R-Reiko? W-where am I?"
The said girl said nothing for awhile, her crystal blue orbs narrowing as she took in her friend's appearance.
"You're in the hospital, Hisana."
Hisana's eyes widened, becoming aware of her surroundings. Her amethyst gaze swept across the room at the white tile floors, one lonely piece of art decorated the plain pale walls-an attempt to make the patient feel at ease and comfortable perhaps.
"Hisa, apparently last night you called the police? You said someone had broken into your house and," Reiko eyes darted up again to questionably take in Hisana's appearance. Long raven hair cascaded down the girl's back, ending at her middle and framing her pale heart shaped face, large violet eyes peaked through that stubborn strand of hair resting at the middle of her forehead. "Tried to rape you?"
The girl's blood went cold, her body going rigid as she suddenly recalled the night prior. She remembered the stale grey eyes burning into her soul. She remembered the large man's harsh hands brushing against her panties. She started to shake violently, her breath coming in short gasps.
Reiko noticed this and jumped up, pulling the smaller girl into her arms and kissing her forehead.
"Shh, Hisa. It's okay."
The petite girl clinched her legs together instinctively, shaking her head in an attempt to banish the traumatizing memory from her mind.
"But what I don't understand is…the police investigated your apartment for evidence. All your windows were locked, there were no fingerprints, footprints, anything!"
Reiko frowned, wiping away the tears that began to pool at her friend's eyes. She gripped the smaller girl's shoulders, turning her to face her.
"No one could have possibly been in your apartment, Hisana."
The two friends stared silently at each other. The silence is erie, unbearable, and Hisana can already hear the words that her friend is too afraid to say out loud.
Are you sure you didn't imagine all of this, Hisana?
She's shaking now and her heart's beating furiously in her chest.
"Y-you think I made a-all this up? R-Reiko-!"
"No! I'm not saying that…It's just-"
"He disappeared, Reiko! He just disappeared r-right in front of me R-Reiko!"
The redhead sighed, closing her eyes. Hisana was stressed. That's all. School was stressful for her. That's all. She fine, she just had a bad dream. That's all.
"Maybe you just thought you saw someone, Hisana."
It did seem unlikely that someone would just vanish. Literally just vanish in thin air…
"You're stressed, Hisa. School's been tough on all of us. You had a bad dream, Hisana."
Reiko forced a smile, her hard crystal orbs meeting her friend's amethyst ones.
Hisana breathed in shakily and nodded. Reiko was always there to reassure her that was something that Hisana admired about her redhead friend. Reiko was Hisana's better half. While Hisana was shy, short, pale, skinny, maybe even a little cowardly, Reiko was the opposite. Strong, loud, tall, and brave.
"O-okay, maybe you're right, Reiko. I probably just imagined it…" she said timidly, her small hands playing with the papery fabric of the hospital gown. As much as she wanted to believe that she had just simply imagined last night a part of her denied her words. She knew what she saw. She wasn't crazy, Hisana was not insane.
"Good." Reiko stated. Her lips, which had been set in a straight line pulled back into a smile, a genuine one. Hisana knew that this would be the last that they'd discuss of it.
"Now, get dressed. The hospital said you could leave today. I came to take you home."
-o-
Hisana exits the hospital building after Reiko, following behind the taller redhead to her car. She grasps in her hands a file of the report taken by the police that night.
-Case: 3902
We arrived at the scene on November 1, 2011 at approximately 1:10 A.M
The doors to the residence were locked and we had to access the apartment through forced entry. Upon entering, we found the victim, Hisana Kiyomi, lying on her bed in her bedroom. One of my men attempted to question her but she remained unresponsive. She appeared to be staring at the foot of her bed for some time until she was removed and placed into an awaiting ambulance. My men and I checked for any signs of entry, but it appears that all the windows, along with the back door, were unopened. We had search dogs sniff the entire apartment and we also checked for footprints, fingerprints, and stray hairs. Those found were only belonging to Ms. Kiyomi. No foreign forensic evidence has been acquired. All items also appear to be accounted for.
A burst of November wind blew her ebony hair from her face and an icy cold chill ran down Hisana's spine.
No one could have possibly been in her apartment last night.
"Hisana."
She jumped, startled and turned, raven locks whipping around her head wildly.
But it was just Reiko. Just Reiko staring worriedly at her out of the window from the driver's seat.
"Get in, stupid."
"H-hai! Right!"
The petite girl climbed into the Honda Civic smiling nervously and buckling her seat belt. Hisana didn't want this, jumping nervously at every little sound. She didn't want to be paranoid for the rest of her life!
The student sighed, face in hand as she was driven back to her apartment. Reiko drove slowly as to not set the girl off again. The oranges, reds and yellows of fall shown brightly and happily through the windows of the Civic and Karakura Town seemed peaceful, if only for a moment.
The universe was mocking her.
She could feel it.
They drove steadily through the crowded city, nearing one of its more rural outskirts. They were nearing her apartment. Her lonely apartment, far away.
The Civic slowed to a stop in front of the rented residence and Hisana took a deep breath. As she opened the door and was about to step out, a hand grasped her arm.
"You'll be fine, Hisa. You know I'd never let anyone hurt you."
The raven haired girl smiled, a blush reddening her pale cheeks.
"H-hai. Arigato, Reiko-san."
The two shared a quick hug and they were of. Hisana waved half heartedly as the Civic drove down the road, watching it disappear around the corner seconds later.
Unknown to her, the dark presence of a silhouette stood watching from a nearby rooftop.