Her hands were shaking, or was it because her vision had gotten blurry?
She dreaded this sense of loss that feels all too familiar and she wished that she could simply shake off this feeling like she would to a bug caught in her clothes. The last time she had gone through this painful ordeal, was the last day she had with her beloved brother. Sou-chan had told her in his final days that soon he, too, would leave her. The moment she heard his confession, she wanted to abandon all reasons and kick and scream like a child would. But it was futile, rationality was one of her strength, so she let her eyes glaze over as tears rolled down her cheek.
He had noticed her sadness and knew her far better than she knew herself, he understood how she was trying desperately to keep her emotions under control. He held her face in his palm and her hand with his other hand, desperate to let his words reach her.
'Teru, I'm sorry that I cannot be there for you in the future. But I promise you, that you would never be alone. There will always be one person, there with you.'
He gently pulled away from her to reach for something in his pocket, revealing a small cellphone to a confused looking Teru. Hesistantly, she reached out to take it into her own hands, the lingering warmth of her brother's hand bringing tears to her eyes. Soon, she would miss this warmth fervantly and he will be far, far away from her.
'The person's name is Daisy, and whenever you get lonely or run into some kind of trouble, you can always depend on Daisy. Daisy has given me that promise for your sake, so don't you ever feel alone, my little Teru...'
Was loneliness the name of her emotion in this present time, she thought to herself as she stared at the cold steel door of the emergency room. There was also fear. And regret. And pain. And helplessness. What can she do for him, her beloved Daisy had saved her true to his promise to Sou-chan. But she could do nothing to save him in return, and that powerlessness was eating her clean inside out.
She felt worried eyes on her, and realized that feeling powerless and actually doing nothing but sulk in the current situation are not acceptable. She needed to steel herself, so she did an emergency headbutt against the wall, startling the other adults in the room with her.
I am alright, and Kurosaki will be alright. I have faith, all in all, I can remain strongly faithful to the idea that Kurosaki is one lucky, strong and impossible-to-kill cockroach - he will turn out just fine!
True to her faith, Kurosaki survived the falling chair incident with a few injuries and is set to recover in a few days time, relieving everyone from the impossible tension. Teru sat by his side, watching his quiet sleeping profile and she became overwhelmed by the urge to touch his face. She placed her palm gently and softly on the side of his face which wore a serene expression. Warmth spread across her fingertips all the way to the center of her palm and she felt Kurosaki lean into her hand. A soft flush of pink surfaced to her cheeks and she smiled at the unconscious Daisy. Even if he goes back to his childish ways and demand her care and attention when he regains consciousness, she would accept all of that, with the only wish that he would be safely by her side always.
The darker emotions resurfaced to her thoughts at that realization - Kurosaki was put in danger due to her negligence. They were fighting against an invisible enemy and she just went straight in and fell for the trap. She gripped the hems of her uniform and her fists balled up tightly, all the apologies in the world would not be enough for Kurosaki. 'Im sorry, Kurosaki. It was really my fault, I'm sorry, okay?'
'Teru? What's wrong with you, you're acting strange. I can tell right away that you're hiding something, you're apologizing way too many times. Don't you usually say something like Thank you for saving me with a grand warm smile?'
Her face crumpled around her forced smile and the tears she desperately held back came pouring down, he was always the first one to find out about her hidden emotions. He was always the one who would be kind to her, even when she went in circles and created troubles for people around her. He was her most precious, most wonderful Daisy - and her most beloved Kurosaki.
To her, he was not just a replacement for her lost brother, although she had to admit that they do share several characteristics. Yet, to Teru, Kurosaki was the perfect compliment to her own flaws and would always lead her back to the right path. She really, really love him - and she made a silent promise to herself that no matter what the future brings, she would always protect him.
And she silently pleaded to the hands of fate that they would one day, triumph against this invisible enemy.