CHAPTER TWO: TERMINAL
"We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope."
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Honoka wished she had thought to grab her earbuds before she left. She kept her eyes glued on her hands, trying to block out the distracting noise the hospitals made. Her only other option was to just in the cool, now warmed seat and watch the small television hung from afar in the top corner. Her lips curled into slight disgust at the so-called "tear-jerking" love scene displayed across the monitor.
Soap operas. Out of everything that could've been on public TV, why did it have to be soap operas? The real question is, what was so interesting about them that made people around her want to watch? What made people around her age so addicted to shows like these? With a scoff, Honoka rolled her eyes at the "romantic" couple making out. 'Ugh...so mushy. How much longer do I have to sit here and watch this stuff?' she inwardly gagged revoltingly. There was not a second that passed by that she wanted to repeatedly bang her head against the wall until she drew blood. 'Why couldn't there be some awesome kung fu movie playing on TV here?'
Every time Honoka spotted a soap on TV or let alone the word being mentioned around her, her impressions of them wouldn't be all that positive. She couldn't understand why girls would get so excited when talking about them when all soaps, in general, were dull and dry. In fact, she found the romance genre less interesting. From her experience of watching a couple of romcoms with her grandmother, she learned that many of them barely had any plots and tend to plant the "love at first sight" and "love triangle" cliche in the mix. Of course, she couldn't forget that there's also has to be the girl who has to make the dislikable guy lovable while there had to be some poor soul to play into the role of the "evil other woman" to make their movies enjoyable. They all had a habit of overusing one or too many cliches to make tv shows and movies more interesting to keep their audience watching.
Honoka sat in the hospital lobby with her hands clasped together, waiting for someone to come and tell her the news concerning her grandmother's condition, whether it'd be good or bad. Her eyes remained on her hands, trying to erase the memory of the horrific event from her head. The horrific event that she had to witness after traveling home from school.
Every single part of her wished it was all just a nightmare and that she was dreaming. But of course, she wasn't dreaming at all. Much to her horror, it was all real. Very real.
Letting out a frustrated sigh, she buried her head in her hands. She wanted all of this to be over and go home in peace with her grandmother.
As a young girl, Honoka was never enthusiastic about being in hospitals. They would always give her an eerie feeling in the pit of her stomach. The cool air hitting her skin didn't seem to help. She has watched bad things happen to people in television shows and movies who would end up in hospitals. And she hopes her guardian wouldn't suffer the same fate as they did.
"Miss Kimura?" sounded a female voice, snapping her out of her trance.
Hearing her surname, she immediately jumped to her feet and walked to where the doctor stood. "Yes? How's my grandma, Doctor? Is she okay?" she frantically questioned with concern.
The doctor stayed silent for a few seconds before releasing a sigh. "You may want to have a seat, first. This may take a while for me to explain," she instructed, gesturing to an empty chair.
For a reason unknown, her stomach churned in fear. Honoka hesitantly took a seat without a word while the doctor took one on the opposite side. "D-Doctor, is my grandma gonna be okay?" she asked once more.
"It pains me to have to inform you that..." the doctor paused, becoming uncertain whether it was a good idea to break the news to the young girl or not. She was only seventeen in high school. It would be too much on her shoulders. "...your grandmother won't be waking up for at least a few days."
Honoka's heart nearly stopped at what the doctor was telling her. "W-Wha...what do you mean?"
"She slipped into cardiac arrest twice while we were doing everything we can to keep a pulse and judging from the infection we found in her x-rays, I'm afraid that it appears your grandmother has acute lymphoblastic leukemia."
Becoming confused about the newfound word, Honoka merely stared at the doctor. "Acute...lym...lympho..." she repeated, trying to spell it out correctly.
"Lymphoblastic leukemia," answered the doctor. "it's a type of cancer of the blood and bone marrow that affects white blood cells. As it worsens, your grandmother would progressively have trouble breathing." she finished, looking at Honoka. "So, does she live by herself?"
Honoka shook her head. "Um...no. I live with her," she replied.
"Then I strongly advise that she stays with you or someone else she knows to watch over her."
As he finished explaining her grandmother's current condition, an image of her lying on the floor with blood leaking from her mouth flashed itself in Honoka's mind. "S-So...d-does that mean..."
"Yes, I'm afraid." answered the doctor. "Since this illness is fatal, your grandmother's chance at surviving is low..."
As those very words slipped from the doctor's lips, Honoka felt her entire world burn into ashes. Not wanting any of this to be true, Honoka shook her head back and forth. 'N-No way.'
She couldn't believe it. She refused to believe it. This still has to be a nightmare and not real. Someone, or even the doctor, must reassure her it was all a bad dream and that she needed to wake up. From this day to one, two, or maybe four years into her life, her grandmother wouldn't be around anymore. Death would soon become her. Keeping herself from breaking down into tears, Honoka swallowed the hard lump that had formed in her throat. "C-Can I go see her?"
The doctor stared down at the young girl with kind, yet sympathetic eyes and nodded. "Of course, follow me this way," he said, walking ahead of her.
Honoka eagerly followed behind him. After everything she heard about her grandmother possibly dying, she just wanted to see her sweet and restful face before it was time for her to go home. Somewhere in her head, she could only wonder how her grandmother looked in her hospital cot. Did she look peaceful, or did she look anything the opposite? Is there any possible way of the elderly woman making a recovery from this illness at all?
"We're here." declared the doctor, bringing her back to reality. Honoka eagerly stepped around the doctor to see the sight of her grandmother and what she saw nearly made her heart stop completely.
"G-Grammy..." stammered the girl, her voice echoing through the silent room. Wanting to feel the touch of her loving grandmother, the salmon-haired girl walked towards the hospital cot where she rested. When Honoka reached her grandmother, she immediately took her fragile hand and squeezed it gently. Looking at her restful face caused by the pain in her lungs made her want to look away. The IVs and wires connected to her body with an oxygen mask on her face only made her feel even worse. "W-What...what can I do to save you? Is there anything I can do at all?" she murmured, keeping her focus on her sleeping grandmother.
Soft ruby eyes roamed innocently around the white room stacked with four walls. Her clammy hands shook behind her back, beads of sweat trickling down the sides of her small face. Five tall people surrounded her, clad in long white coats. Five pairs of eyes stared at her through the masks that hid their faces. More accurately, those eyes aren't looking at her specifically, but are studying her reactions. They were experimenting...and they were enjoying every second of it. She deeply pressed her back into the wall with all hopes of disappearing through it. Her tiny heart that lived within her chest throbbed rapidly, the swirling feeling making its presence known.
"P-Please...s-stop it..." she tearfully pleaded, her little hands clutching her head.
Her continued cries of pleading went ignored as the adults refused to take orders from the child. No matter how much she cried, begged, or pleaded, there is nothing for any of them to hear. They had to carry on with the procedure. "Don't be scared, child. It'll be all over soon." soothed a woman's voice from within the room. "I promise."
"N-No...n-no more...I don't want to-"
"Blizzard… Spark…"
Her head started to hurt. The pain is worsening, causing her to clutch her head. "It hurts! It hurts! Stop! It hurts!" she cried out.
"Rush… Thirty… Dawn… Tranquility… Five…"
As the words left the mouth of the woman, the strength left her tiny body, causing her to collapse on her knees.
"Nexus… Eleven… Speed Boat…"
And just like that...everything went entirely black.
Honoka shot up in cold sweat, her breathing hitched in her throat. Taking in her surroundings, she sat there for a moment until she finally calmed down. Putting a hand to her head, her eyes followed to an empty bag of donuts buried next to her legs. "I guess Grammy was right about watching what you eat before going to bed." she chuckled sheepishly. Even if she was far away from her grandmother, she could practically hear her voice reprimanding her over the issue right now.
With a heavy sigh, she allowed herself to plop back down onto the bed. She buried her face into the pillow as the fabric of the sheets tickled at her skin. She turned over on her back, shielding her eyes with her left arm from the sun glaring through the window. Honoka didn't really have a problem with early mornings, but they weren't exactly her best friend at most times. Maybe it was just her or not, but she didn't understand how people could stand around the bright sun shining through the houses' windows. The only thing she found good about them was the breakfast food that awaits those in the morning.
Her thoughts begin to wander off to what the doctor told her at the hospital.
"Acute...lym...lympho..."
"Lymphoblastic leukemia," echoed the voice in her head. "it's a type of cancer of the blood and bone marrow that affects white blood cells. As it worsens, your grandmother would progressively have trouble breathing."
"Since this illness is fatal, your grandmother's chance at surviving is low..."
"What am I gonna do?" Honoka questioned with worry and slight despair, clutching her stuffed cow closer to her chest. After learning that Grammy may not battle this deadly illness, Honoka stayed home from school again. She didn't want to attend class with the thought of her grandmother in the hospital stuck in her head and the last thing she needed was a never-ending lecture from teachers about her performance in school. Coming home and finding her grandmother unconscious, her lips soiled with blood were too much for her to handle. It also wasn't the best sight to stumble upon, either. "I don't wanna lose her, Momo-chan. She's all I have left," she murmured to her stuffed animal as if it could respond.
If Grammy were to meet her demise, Honoka was unsure how she'd be able to handle it. Since she knew nothing of her mother and father growing up, her grandmother was the only family she had left. She and her grandmother always held a special bond with each other, ever since she was little. Honoka had a sweet and loving woman in her life and couldn't ask for anything else in the world as long as she had her grandmother around.
She was too precious to Honoka to lose and it would kill her mentally if the lethal illness were to take her life.
Ruby red orbs stared blankly into the small screen of her hand-held game as she continued to press the buttons. Without her grandmother around, there wasn't much Honoka could do. She wasn't here to talk, laugh, or watch television with her. To add on more to her mental pain, she wasn't here to even make her breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Of course, Honoka could easily go in the kitchen and whip herself up something to eat, but that'll be a lot easier said than done.
Honoka was an excellent cook, but she wasn't as good as Grammy. For Honoka, cooking took a lot of work and progress; however, her grandmother would make it look simple with no problem.
As if fate itself understood her thoughts, she heard a horrendous growl from her abdomen to alert her of the need for food. Putting a hand to her stomach, Honoka let out a groan. 'Man, I'm so hungry. If only Grammy could teleport here to make her super-duper special donburi along with tamagoyaki with rice balls, tasty moon-shaped dumplings and delicious cream puffs on the side, I'd totally sleep happily.' Without anything to worry about. Not a single thing.
She cringed at the sound of her stomach rumbling even louder than before. Her stomach couldn't take it any longer. She had a clear sign that her stomach wasn't joking around this time. It was letting her know of her growing desire for food. It was then that Honoka realized she had eaten nothing since her visit from the hospital four days ago. She had been too depressed and caught up with worrying about the fate of her grandmother that she didn't take the time to think about taking care of herself. She couldn't even remember the last time she showered.
Honoka went to take a quick whiff of her armpits, only to instantly regret it when the solid putrid smell hit her nostrils. She immediately went to cover her nose, trying not to throw up. But then again, if she were to throw up, she highly doubted anything would come out at all, considering that she hadn't eaten for four days straight—probably nothing but air. Honoka mentally kicked herself for even thinking like that. "Tch, you sound like a freaking dummy, Honoka. What would even give you that idea?"
As much as she despised admitting it, she was glad that her grandmother wasn't present in their house to witness her failure at taking care of herself and if she were standing here right now in this very room, she would never hear the end of her endless scolding. It would be way too embarrassing and enough to give Honoka a headache that'll take hours to get rid of.
'Which should I do first; do I eat or bathe first?' she pondered, putting a finger to her chin in thought. Her mind retracting back to the horrible odor under her arms, a nice warm bath sounded nice right about now.
Before she could muse to herself any longer, a loud rumble from her abdomen broke through her thoughts. Unfortunately, her stomach had other plans. "Oh, c'mon!" she groaned to herself, throwing her head back in frustration. It was like her belly knew what her following intentions would be and was doing everything it could to prevent her from doing anything else.
Her ears suddenly picked up on the sound of a vehicle engine behind her. Out of curiosity, she turned around and was surprised to find a mail truck parked outside in front of her mailbox. "Weird. Grandma doesn't usually get any mail unless it's the utility bills." Or worse...her report card for this month. Just the idea only made Honoka even more glad that her grandmother wasn't here, but safely in the hospital. It would be hard having to explain why her grades were so bad. She watched intently through the window as the mailman placed a few letters and envelopes in the box before retreating into the truck and driving away. Honoka waited until the mail truck was further and further away and immediately jogged outside to the mailbox. She didn't care that she was only clad in her cow print night-gown as there weren't any neighbours around in the area to stare at her.
Opening the small box, Honoka only found four envelopes inside. Three white, only one black. Honoka pulled out the letters and placed her gaze solely on the black-colored envelope. Just looking at the fancy wrapping only gave her an overwhelming urge to open it and what made her even more curious was her full name typed on the white sheet of paper from within the envelope.
Not wanting anyone to report her for indecent exposure, Honoka gathered the four envelopes all together in her hand and went back inside the house. Plopping down on the couch, Honoka, with no ounce of hesitation, ripped open the black envelope and carefully removed the white letter from its wrapper as not to rip it. She unfolded the note and carefully read the words nicely typed on the white sheet. "To Miss Honoka Kimura, we have dispatched this letter to your address to inform you that you have been invited to participate in the upcoming fifth King of Iron Fist Tournament in Tokyo, Japan. The nations' best fighters will go head-to-head to compete for thousands of dollars in prizes. Whoever is crowned the winner will be awarded $50,000,000 and be offered the ownership to the Mishima...Zaibatsu..." she trailed off, slowly lowering the letter in shock. Her hand tightly gripped the paper as she stared at it in shock. "N-No way..."
Now Honoka had to wonder if she was dreaming or not. She clapped her hands to the cheeks of her face twice before pinching the skin of her arms. No, she wasn't dreaming. Maybe it was a setup for some television show and there was a hidden camera somewhere. Still, hell had to be frozen cold solid because there's absolutely no way she received an invitation from the Mishima Zaibatsu, one of the biggest companies of Japan.
Honoka shook her head in disbelief. She didn't get it. Why would the Mishima Zaibatsu invite HER, an amateur fighter, to participate in the King of Iron Fist tournament that would involve strong and well-known fighters? Honoka only knew a couple of fighters that fought in the KIOF tournament, but not as much as the DEAD OR ALIVE tournament.
Wait, Mishima Zaibatsu sent this letter to her address to invite her to participate in their tournament. Unless... "Hold on. D-Don't tell me that they..." To send an invitation to her, they had to have seen her fight in the DEAD OR ALIVE tournament...in which she lost. Honoka let out a groan and hung her head down in shame of the memory. Not only did she lose the tournament, but she was disqualified for a reason she couldn't even remember. It was extremely embarrassing that she wanted to hide under the covers in her bedroom for her entire existence. It didn't help that her "friends" teased her about it when she returned to school. Not to mention, other fighters who would be partaking in the KOIF tournament probably watched the DOA tournament and even laughed at her too. As much as Honoka loved fighting with the passion, just the very thought made her have seconds thoughts on entering this tournament.
"Oh, man. This has to be the WORST day of my life. Whoever sent this were probably pokin' fun at me and thinkin' I'm some big fat cow that produces a lotta milk." muttered Honoka, her head buried in her knees to hide her flustered face.
But as she was reading the letter, Honoka didn't fail to notice the amount of money typed on the piece of paper. "$50,000,000." she recited from the letter, lifting her head from her knees. "No doubt about it, that's REALLY butt loads of money and with that much money, I could pay off the payments me and Grammy's been having trouble with. And then..."
The images of her grandmother lying on the floor and ending up in the hospital flashed themselves in her head. Honoka felt a slight pang of sadness in her chest at the memory of her comatose grandmother lying on the bed with IVs and wires that were connected to her body with an oxygen mask on her face. "A-And then...help her get better from being sick."
At first, Honoka had planned on getting not one but two part-time jobs to help her earn money to pay off the mortgage, the utility bills, and her grandmother's medical bills. However, it would be a lot easier said than done as it wouldn't be enough to accomplish all of that at once. She only had one body and it would suck being exhausted just about every day from working two jobs.
But if she were to enter the tournament and win the prize money, then... "Okay, I'm gonna do it." Honoka declared, standing up on her own two feet. "I'm gonna enter this tournament and give it all I got to win this prize money just for you, grandma. I won't disappoint you," she vowed with a confident smile as she made a fist.
TO BE CONTINUED