Chapter 4
Amu opened her eyes. She could see the white ceiling above her. She turned her head to the right side and found two drip injection bags hanging on stainless steel poll. One of the injection bags is in white color and the other one is red. She could see the edge of it injected to her right arm. She gave a sigh and turned her head to the other side where she found a midnight blue haired guy sleeping with his hands still gripping her left hand. She smiled and teased him by blowing an amount of air from her mouth to his hair. He woke up and gazed at her with his sleepy eyes.
"Amu, you're awake!" he said cheerfully.
"What happened to me, Ikuto?"
"You were bleeding from your mouth and were unconscious for two days. The doctor said that you were infected with the dengue fever"
"I thought dengue fever only exists in South East Asia region and some part of South America"
"Blame the global warming"
"So…I'm not going to die, am I?"
"Of course you're not going to die but you have to stay for about a week at this hospital"
"I don't wanna stay here alone. It's creepy here…."
"I'll let your mom knows so that she can stay here with you"
"No, Ikuto!. Please don't call my mom I don't want to worry her"
"But if I don't call your mom you'll end up staying alone here"
"I'll have you stay with me"
"What?"
"Please Ikuto, don't be so such a meanie"
"Okay, Amu" he gave in.
"Yay!, thanks Ikuto!" she threw him a big smooch on his cheek leaving him blushing red.
Five days later
"Amu, you should eat your meal"
"I'm not hungry"
"You must eat no matter what!" Ikuto was stretching his right hand to place the food tray on a table when he felt something is biting his left arm.
"Amu… I don't remember having a pink alligator as a pet" he shook his left arm but the so-called pink alligator didn't let his arm go.
"Hmmmpfff…pffff….harrrr…pfffff…hmmmppppffff"
"Sorry, don't speak your language alligator"
"I don't want to eat" she said after releasing her bite on him.
"Well, if you prefer that drip injection inside you again don't eat then!" he grabbed her right arm and showed the inner part of it. It is full of purple bruises caused by the needle of drip injection.
"Look! since your right arm is already full of bruises, you'll have the next drip injection on the left hand. But if the nurse fail to find your blood vein then you're gonna have it on your neck or maybe your feet"
Amu trembled when she heard what he just said. Although she is already seventeen she still hates any kind of injection especially the drip injection. It is like a living hell to her to have a needle stuck inside her.
"Ikuto"
"Hmm?"
"Will you take me to the beach near the hospital after I eat my meal?"
"Well, if you eat all of it without leaving even a single drop of water I'll take you there"
"Promise?" she stretched her pinky.
"Promise" he tied her little finger with his.
In a speed of Spiderman climbing a four stories office building, she finished her meal.
"I'm finished, let's go!"
"Wait!, Amu!"
She ignored him and jumped from her bed then walked toward the exit door but after two steps she fell on the floor.
"Amu!"
"Ikuto, I…..can't walk properly… my legs… they are numb…"
"Don't worry, Amu. It's because you've been staying in bed for five days, rehabilitation will bring you back to normal"
He helped her to stand up and cleaned the dust from her hospital pajama with his bare hand. He pulled the nearest wheelchair and ordered her to sit on it. Then he pushed it toward the exit door.
The sea breeze was quite chilly when they arrived there. Amu circled her arms around Ikuto's neck as he grabbed her waist and pulled her up to a standing position. They held hands and began to walk on the sand. He slowed his pace so she could catch up.
"I love walking at the seashore and daydreaming but I don't have the chance to do it because I need to watch Ami and prevent her from being lost" she said.
"I also love to walk at the seashore but Tadase and Utau always force me to accompany them building the sand castle" he added.
"Well, kids love building sand castle"
"Yeah, kids like you, Amu" he teased her.
"I'm not kids anymore, Ikuto. I'm seventeen years old third year high school student"
"But you act like an elementary school student"
"No, I'm not!. For your information I'm a grown up"
"Oh really?. So, does that mean that you don't mind if we do some grown up's things?" Ikuto smirked, he put his right hand inside her hospital pajama. She could feel his hand moving from her waist to her stomach then to the upper part of her body.
"S…stop it, Pervert!" she started to blush.
"See?, I told you that you are still a kid"
"Well…I… I just don't want to do that in front of public"
Ikuto tapped Amu on her head gently.
"Ikuto…"
"Yes, your highness?"
"Please don't ever leave me alone"
"Of course I won't leave you, silly girl" he pinched her left cheek and was surprised when a drop of tears fell on his hand.
"You know…I feel like all of my important are going to be taken away from me…I'm not strong enough to bare it alone" she sobbed.
"You are not alone, Amu" he shed her tears and gave her a warm embrace.
"I was afraid that being a twenty two years old adult male will change your personality"
"So you have the feeling that being twenty two years old will change me into a super duper cruel adult male like my step father?"
"Well… sort of…"
Ikuto gave a big chop on Amu's head.
"Ouch!. I'm a sick person and you just attacked me with full power. You're cruel you know that, Ikuto?"
"That's your punishment from being such a silly girl"
"I'm not silly!. I'm just…scared…of what will happen in the future"
Ikuto gave a big sigh.
"There are no things more silly than to be afraid of something that has not even occur yet, Amu"
"But mom told me to always be prepared for something bad that will occur"
"Your mom told you to be prepared not to be scared, right?"
"…Yes…"
"Though I'm twenty years old now, my personality is still the seventeen years old boy you know. I haven't change and I won't change"
"Ikuto…."
"And I'm still the same pervert you know" he slipped his hand to Amu's back.
"IKUTOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
A month has passed since Amu was hospitalized and she is back now as a healthy girl.
"Amu chan, what are you doing desuu?" Suu asked her.
"I'm counting my savings, Suu"
"How much do you have now, Amu chan?" asked Ran.
"I have twenty thousand yen which is more than enough to visit Ikuto in Tokyo and go shopping at Shibuya har…har…harrrrr" Amu laughed loudly as if she is the queen of pirate who found a cave full of treasure.
"Let's get going then!" Miki said happily.
"Amu, you bought too much" Ikuto complained. Both of his hands are full with shopping bags from various stores in the 109 shopping center.
"Don't worry, Ikuto. That was the last one" she said happily.
"Are you sure that you can carry this alone when you go back home?"
"Who said that I'll carry them alone?. I'll have the parcel delivery service deliver them for me" she concluded.
Ikuto scratched his head and followed her to a convenience store to have all of her shopping bags delivered.
"Ikuto, let's go to the arcade game center for the photo sticker" she pulled his arm.
"Amu, I'm not a high school student"
"There is no age limitation for photo sticker" she dragged him to the nearest arcade game center.
"Ikuto, say cheese!"
"Fish"
"I said cheese not fish, dummy!"
Click!
A sound of camera together with a flash of light ended their fight.
"It's all your fault!" she complained.
"Don't be angry, Amu. We still have one more shutter chance" Ikuto circled his hand on her neck.
Click!
Another sound of camera together with a flash of light came out for the second time that day and in about twenty seconds their photo stickers came out from the machine.
"Oh my God!, I look horrible here" Amu pointed on a picture where she scolded Ikuto who said "fish" instead of "cheese".
"But you look very cute here" he pointed the other picture of him hugging her who blushed in red.
"I look like a boiled crab there"
"Well, I love to eat crab"
"I'm not a crab, Ikuto"
They proceeded to the nearest café to have a tea break.
"Amu, I have something important to tell you" Ikuto broke the silence.
"I don't want to hear any bad news"
"I didn't say anything about bad news, did I?"
"I just have an uneasy feeling about that, Ikuto"
Ikuto took a deep breath and continued his words.
"Amu, I'm planning to search for my father in foreign countries"
"What?"
"Listen to me, Amu…I…"
"You're a liar, Ikuto!. You told me that you will never leave me but now you are leaving to search for your father. I'm such a dumb ass to have trust you!"
"Wait, Amu! I haven't finished my words yet" he grabbed her arm.
"I don't wanna hear more lies from you!" she pulled her hand back and ran toward the exit door to the crowded shopping arcade.
Amu kept walking toward the crowded arcade leaving Ikuto who is now out of her sight. Her heart is aching so badly and her vision is now blurred by her own tears. Finally she found a small stage where street musicians are performing. It seems that there is a music festival coordinated at the center of the shopping arcade. She was going to leave the place when she heard someone is screaming through the microphone.
"Amu!, Hinamori Amu!. Please listen to me!"
She could hear him screamed from above the stage. His low voice echoed through the shopping arcade. She could hear the crowd whispered to each other wondering about what the hell is happening at present.
"I'm not going to search for my father alone. I want you to come together with me, Amu! Because…" Ikuto paused for while.
Amu held her breath waiting for his next words.
"Because I love you and I want to be with you… forever"
The crowd gave a big applause when he finished his words.
"Miss Hinamori Amu, please come to the stage" the street musician of whose microphone was taken without permission by Ikuto said the announcement.
Amu walked toward the stage with tears clinging from her eyes. Ikuto welcomed her with a big smile and kneeled in front of her with his right knee on the floor and his left knee up. He drew a small midnight blue silk box and opened it facing her. Inside the box is a golden ring with a tiny pink stone.
"Hinamori Amu, would you marry me?" Ikuto asked her.
Amu burst into tears at his words.
"Amu, say your answer"
"Yes, I do"
The crowd wailed in joy as they heard her answers. He took her left hand and slipped the ring to her left ring finger. Then he lifted her up in bridal style causing the crowd wailed more joyously than before. They smiled to each other happily before exchanging a very passionate kiss.
"It was embarrassing!. But… I kinda love it" she said when they arrived at his house.
"Blame the person who made a runway to the most crowded shopping arcade in Japan"
"I'm sorry about that, Ikuto. I was just too anxious to even use my common sense"
"I didn't know that you have such thing called a common sense"
"Ikuto!"
"I'm just joking"
Ikuto placed his bag on the desk and gasped when he realized that she was circling his waist with both of her hands.
"What is it?"
"Ikuto, I want us to be united tonight"
"What do you mean?"
"Don't make me explain it briefly"
"Your dad will kill me"
"He's not here, Ikuto"
"Are you sure that you really want to have it?"
"Of course. I'm no longer an elementary school"
"Okay then let's have it after bath"
"Well, we can have it while bathing. Can't we?" she smiled naughtily.
"You naughty little pink alligator" he pinched her nose.
They walked towards the bathroom and shared a lustful bath together.
TO BE CONTINUED TO CHAPTER 5
Author's Note: Well, I can't write the detail about what they do exactly in the bathroom since the rate for this story is "T". Anyway, I'll write a one-shot about it as soon as I finish chapter 5 if you want me to.
