Suspended
Disclaimer: Not mine, don't sue please.
Thank you to all those who left me a review, chapter 3 is here for you enjoy!
Drip…drip…drip, the echoing noise stirred my sleeping body from its stiff security, grudgingly my lavender eyes creaked open and observed the steel tap from which small droplets of water fell away pattering the inside of the sink in a steady rhythm. Breathing in deeply I let all the weariness of sleep wash away with an equally strong sigh. Why was I so tired? The window across from me gently guided rays of faint light onto my body; it was the beginning of the morning so I hadn't slept as long as I thought. I slumped against the wall again the temptation of returning to my relatively peaceful slumber was increasingly desirable. I sighed again allowing my head to loll to the side, where upon my limp arm rested, bandaged in slightly dull white fabric my mind slowly registered the memories of the previous night…the escape of my darkness winced painfully within me as I curled my slack hands into tight fists. The lips had ceased parting on my fists and arm thankfully; at least I didn't have to bear with their taunts again.
Why was I asleep in my bathroom anyway? I'm pretty sure my room, my bed, is much more accommodating to my body's need. Gripping the edge of my bathtub I cautiously lifted my stiff body onto my feet and trudged towards my room, my sanctuary. Opening the door gratefully, I was hit by a wave of nausea as the stench of dried blood and vomit collided with my nose, I contained my breath within me- my eyes watering the foul odours attacking them also- as I fought with my stomach not to add another fresh layer to the force of the transparent gasses lingering in my room. Shaking off the initial shock of the smells that had accumulated during the night I noticed my fallen wardrobe in front of me, crimson staining it almost as if it was a soldier fatally injured in battle and was unable to keep fighting on. I leapt effortlessly into the centre of the battle and threw open my large window to start aiding me in my resistance against the carnage left by the darkness. The bin that had been volunteered to counter my sickness had to be sacrificed, the damage was too great for me to try and save it so wrapping it in a black bag I discarded it to stop the spread of further disease affecting me as I rescued what I could from the previous night's raid.
Heaving the heavy oak wardrobe back into its upright position, replacing the desk onto its legs and steadying the previously airborne bed side table my room had started to look back to normal save the red stains fading into the wood, the main concern to me now was the cluster of shattered glass in the corner of my room. Carefully sweeping the tainted glass into another bin I found it harder and harder to ignore what they were reflecting back at me: myself…polluted by dark blood…by the darkness. Anger surged through me as I forced the rest of the wicked glass away from sight, away from me. My last chore before my room was completely restored was the removal of my blood from the walls and pieces of furniture. Filling up a bucket of warm water and grabbing a sturdy cloth I set about rubbing off the painful reminders of what the darkness could do from my room. Dried blood, hardened from the night before, refused and protested against my efforts but I did not desist in my attempts. I would not let anyone see what I really was when I wasn't in control, my muscled arms started to weigh a lot more from the vigorous scrubbing I was doing but it was worth the pain to see all the blood non existent upon my room once again. Transporting the bucket of bloody water to the bathroom I let it spill out into the sink, dirty blood poured from the buckets mouth, my blood…the blood that continually pumped inside me was it all dirty? Was I just a tainted mass with no real purpose except to cause others and myself pain? The bucket finished spewing out its contents and I quickly switched on the tap and took a moment of pleasure to watch the clean, clear water push it all away into the depths of the sewer system.
A noise caught my attention and then suddenly pangs of pain pulsed from stomach and I suddenly realised I had not eaten anything since yesterday. I made myself a substantial breakfast to help me regain the blood I had lost, before returning to the bathroom to treat my wounds. I placed the soiled bandages in the bin and tentatively washed my hands under lukewarm water to shed the dried blood around my numerous cuts and indulged in the well known stinging sensation of disinfectant before reapplying fresh bandages around them. Many years now as a Senshi had taught me to keep a very large supply of medical equipment around my home, something that unfortunately Makoto and me had needed quite regularly due to our job of being the brute strength and protection of the Sailor Team.
In my recollection I believe Makoto had a lot more scrapes than I did in battles as she did have a habit of paying for other members mistakes but it was only because she always tried to distract the enemy to allow us to get to a safer vantage point. I sighed loudly at Makoto's ability to seemingly bounce back after many brutal attacks against an enemy, her determination fuelled by her love for Ami and for her friends, a similar love I still felt for Minako. However Ami returned Makoto's affection while Minako had Hero to snuggle into in her moments of fear.
I shuddered involuntary as an image of her cuddling a stranger fleeted through my mind. I need to get I away I decided, there was no use going crazy in here, literally. Changing into a loose long sleeved purple hooded top and well worn jeans I left my home and met the warm outside air, the cawing of crows high in the pleasantly blue sky with only a few wispy clouds lazily travelling across the world. I stood still for a moment relishing the fresh air and the warm sun shinning down from the heavens, a light breeze ruffle my hair slightly and tickled my skin as I walked languidly down towards the streets of Tokyo heading for the large fertile field of grass that lay next to the calming body of a lake and was the home of many ancient Sakura trees.
The hard concrete of the streets morphed into springy blades of grass beneath my feet as I trod through a less well known path through the beautiful park, sounds of laughter suddenly drowned out my appreciation of the scenery and I looked through the trees to pin point where the carefree laughter was coming from…hold on. I know that laugh…Minako was here? A deeper laugh cut into my thoughts as realisation struck me. She was here with Hero; I looked through the trees and yes. There they were, I was about to turn away but I saw Hero lean down and claim Minako's lips in a sensually lazy kiss, which started to develop further as Minako's arms entwined behind his neck pulling him further, erupting it into a passionate kiss. I couldn't move, every fibre in my body screamed at me to move, to run away, and to rip my eyes away from them but I couldn't help notice the way his larger body pinned her toned one against the bow of the tree. His hands stroking her hips, the way she completely responded to his movements and the expression of pure bliss upon her face. I finally tore my eyes away from them and walked faster down the path, hopefully I could avoid them but the downside was I could very easily sense Minako's increasingly happy aura from where I was so I was sure she could sense me…a downside to being Sailor Senshi as I stepped into a natural opening of grass I felt my blood run cold.
"REI?" Her voice shouted from her tree to my newly exposed position in the clearing of grass. I turned slowly, dreading the next few moments of my life. I was now facing her, them and smiled back at her as she ran towards me, hugging me tightly she spoke excitedly,
"Rei I never expected you to be here!"
"Yeah, I just felt like going for a walk and ended up here," I replied casually keeping my attention focused on the blonde energy in front of me, trying to erase the explicit display of love I had found myself watching just seconds beforehand.
"Are you here on your own?" She quizzed looking around me and down the annoying path I had chosen,
"Yeah just me," I looked away from the blonde and to the man that had made his way to her side, observing me through dark brown eyes, his black, sharply styled hair giving him a serious air about him. His expression was neutral as he too, took in my appearance, he was dressed in knee length black shorts and his torso donned a baggy green vest top, permitting his strong arms to be portrayed freely.
"Rei this is Hero, Hero this is my best friend Rei," I faintly noticed the extra emphasis on 'friend' but I extended my hand out in a polite manner, hoping he'd shake and permit her to leave as fast as she could.
He took my hand firmly shaking it, my body was well disciplined as it restraint itself from wincing as I felt the lips parting and whisper among themselves, obviously enjoying my distress.
"Hi I'm Hero, nice to meet you," He said gruffly but his eyes remained fixated on me with an interested gaze.
"Rei and likewise," I said shortly, unsure about how to react to his body language but remained calm so not to alert Minako that something was…different.
It looks like Minako has replaced you with a very good candidate…he reminds us of you haha!
I clenched my jaw at the whispers but there was a subtle change in his aura as we dropped hands, but I couldn't place it…was he disappointed?
A soft gasp brought me out of my observation,
"Rei what happened to your hand…hands?" Minako asked panicking she took my hands gently and inspected the bandages that were rapidly losing their cleanliness and regaining their impurity.
"Ah I cut them as I was cleaning a mirror and it fell down, it's nothing Minako," I said gently removing my hands from hers and burying them in my pockets.
"But Rei…"
"Don't worry Minako, enjoy your day together, ja ne," I swiftly twirled on my heel and started to make my way back down the path after hearing Minako's concerned, "Sayonara Rei," however while walking away I felt a pair of eyes staring after my retreating figure and I knew they didn't belong to Minako…
Well there's chapter 3 for you all, please leave me a review good or bad any form of feedback is appreciated. – Dark Shadows 01