(YM)
Every beep of the monitor seemed to punctuate my growing unease. Each momentary silence between heartbeats marked a reminder of the risks of such an experimental surgery. I couldn't tear my eyes away from the screen, consumed by worry for Hinata lying motionless in the hospital bed. Well, wasn't this just the highlight of my day? Spending hours in a stuffy operating room, elbow-deep in an operation I've been dreading since I got to know the guy. All that time poking at his brain made my own exhausted. Yeah, imagine that.
Brain fog and strain swirled in my mind up until I sewed his head back into one piece. My overworked mind clicked back into a different mode as soon as Hinata's whole again, wondering if he's still himself. I knew I'd have to wait at least a day before I had my answer. Sleep helps the mind heal, after all. Our work was done for the day. All 10 hours spent in his head to give him math and language based talents. Of course, both of those affected the frontal lobe. He might be completely different when he woke up. Realistically, some things were bound to be different. He would be closer to what the old bastards wanted.
"Good work, Matsuda, Dr. Shikinami." The lack of a 'doctor' to my name was such a lovely reminder. "How long until we can wake him?" One of the committee geezers asked while us mere medical staff walked into the observation room. They were such a pain to look at. "24 hours would be the best for the amount of tinkering we did." I spat out the correct number, although I wanted to see if he was still Hinata as soon as I possibly could. The oldies nodded in almost a disappointed way. Wanting to see the same thing, but with different desired results. Tch. "Very well, you're dismissed."
With half assed goodbyes, we all left the building. All the other staff went through a back door to avoid getting seen, but not me. Since I was a student at the oh so glorious Hope's Peak, I could walk all over this place no questions asked. A solemness tugged at me with each tired step. Patiently waiting for answers, how fun... When I stepped into the blinding sunlight, it dawned on me how utterly unimportant my needs seemed to be in that room. Hungry, exhausted, and annoyed. How could this waiting period get any worse?
Just then, my cellphone rang. Exactly what I needed right now; to deal with people. The caller ID sprung out at me: "Enoshima Junko 3"...Don't ask how that heart got there. I took a breath before answering while I walked to my dorm. "What do YOU want?" I didn't waste time in formalities with her. She hated when people did anything like that, especially me. "Ooh, feisty. Is that anyway to talk to your nice little girlfriend?~ I miss you so much and you're mean right off the bat!" Her playful voice already brought a lightness to my annoyance. We messaged everyday, but calls are more rare recently. "Yeah, yeah. What do you want?" I asked a bit less harshly. Knowing her, she probably wanted someone to pester. Unlike Hinata, her pestering usually went too far too fast. At times, I couldn't help thinking about what her limits were or if any existed at all.
"I wanted to see my sweetie! I'm in town for a shoot and have a hotel room just for us~" Enoshima's voice was sing songy. I could just imagine her twirling her hair around a finger. "I just got done with a 10 hour surgery. I don't have the energy for your bullshit." Oh great, another thrilling episode of trying to wrangle her into something resembling acceptable behavior. Any of her dumbass obsession and my head might explode. Especially today. "Aww, don't be like that. Are you hungry? We could go out on a date. Come on, Yasuke! Take me out! Don't you wanna show me off in public? We make each other even hotter by association." She was the only person in my life at this point to use my first name. The familiarity tried to melt my heart when she said it, but I had to focus and keep her in check.
"...you're at a hotel. We could get room service. Don't cause a public scene around me today, Stupid." My dorm room had some fruit in it. Something easy for on the go. Fake crying that used to work on me started up as soon as I picked out an apple. "You're no fun. I just wanna spend time with you, jerk! Am I not pretty enough or something?" How ridiculous. Did she really think I'd fall for that after so long? "Oh, please, spare me the Oscar-worthy performance. I've seen better acting from a soap opera. Where are you anyway?" I took my first bite after the question came out. Her fake sniffles didn't stop as she replied. "...At the Kodaka Inn. Room 9875." I knew exactly where that was. Down the street and to the left of the school. Hm, sounds planned. What was she planning? "Fine, I'll head that way. Don't do anything stupid before I get there." I chose to continue my apple as I walk there. Yeah, it was rude or whatever, but I didn't care. I needed something before dealing with the train wreck that was Enoshima Junko.
Her fake sniffling still went on. Oh, please. "Can you stay on the phone until you get here, pleeease?" What a heart-wrenching voice she mustered up for that question. Yeah, truly riveting. "Need to keep you in line somehow." As soon as I said that, she quit the act. Instead, she let out that trademark endearingly dorky giggle, the one that assured me it was genuine. She typically had a fake, more polished one when she was in her model persona. Wasn't that just the cherry on top of the whole airheaded gyaru facade? "Yay, I get to talk to my baby more!" Sometimes Enoshima had the ability of using that voice against me. The real one outside of any of her personas or changes in demeanor. The tone I knew from before her obsession started to take over her life. I knew she used it to get me to melt in her hands over and over again. Regardless of how often she used her ways to hurt me or herself, I wanted to let myself be comforted. A small smile crept before I snapped out of it. "Oh, lucky me, I get the honor of being graced by your presence yet again." My common sarcasm was never lost on her, unlike with others. Maybe that's why we got along so well. Although she liked playing like she had no idea what sarcasm was whatsoever. "I know! I'm sure many guys would pay a fortune to come to a room with me~"
Throughout our conversation, my apple gradually dwindled until all that remained was the core. I had no option but to carry it until I reached the hotel. "Yeah, but they don't know you're crazy or ugly up close." I shot back as I spin the core on my finger. Wow, I guess that comeback was about as effective as trying to put out a forest fire with a squirt gun. Not my finest moment. "Shut up. You're obviously feeling better already." Closer and closer to the hotel. I could see the bright red doors and neon sign as the sky grew darker. "Well, congratulations, your voice managed to crack through my impenetrable wall of misery. I guess you're not completely useless after all." Before there were any replies or jokes, I heard the quick clacking of heels. Turning to the side, I saw her right before she grabbed me into the tightest hug her skinny arms could muster. "You're gonna be useless if you can't get out my trap!"
Oh, look at Miss Sunshine over here, spreading sweetness and light wherever she went. Surely, she was dying to stab me in the back with all that sugar-coated charm. I lightly hugged her back. People judgementally stared as her loud giggles echoed throughout the place. "Enoshima, you're making a scene." I knew using her last name got to her. I refused to use her first name unless she stopped acting like anyone besides herself. Something she rarely did, specifically not in public. She pulled away some, still pressed up against me as she stared at my face with a huge smile. One that had only a fraction of the genuine nature of that giggle earlier. The artificially curled and bleached hair took a moment to get used to even after 2 years of the look. Blue contacts hid those muted red eyes I remembered so well. Sometimes it was like she was a completely different person.
"Hehe, I couldn't help myself! You're just that cute." Enoshima playfully remarked with that cheesy grin while swaying me in her hug. "Oh, great. That's your attempt at embarrassing me? Old material." She didn't answer with words. Dragging me up by my wrist to her room was reply enough. "You better have been serious about feeding me." I wouldn't let her use the excuse of 'forgetting' again to fuel her seticism. "Of course. You're like my little puppy, aww. Look at you!" She said while pinching my cheek. "I'd say you're the dog here, but I'm above calling women bitches." She laughed at that as she shoved me into the elevator. The commotion drew the attention of all the lobby occupants. "Okay, okay, I set that one up for you too easy." Pressing the button for the 9th floor, she gave me a quick once-over. The few miliseconds it took for her to figure out my stresses. "That crazy school really has you doing 10 hour surgeries? Was it at least on real people? Ooh, ooh, have you done it to someone awake or some dead guy? If you're this tired after only using a practice dummy, that's embarrassing." The image of Hinata awake and crying played in my head as she asked her annoying questions. I had to lie. She could *NOT* under any circumstances find out anything about that project. I didn't know why or how, but I knew if she found out, she'd use that knowledge for something disgusting. Something to fuel her obsession with pain.
"No, why would a school ever want students to operate on patients while they're awake? Only some sick, ugly, insane person would think of that." Ironically enough, all those insults held true for the Steering Committee. Every last one of them. She pulled me out the elevator doors, passed the necessary places, and turned to get to her room. Compared to the busier outside and lobby, she walked slower with less over the top giddiness while still holding onto my wrist. "Are you saying you wouldn't operate on my brains?" She asked in a subdued demeanor as if it wasn't ridiculous and was actually intended to be answered 100% genuinely. We reached room 9875. Immediately, she opened the door. The key in her bra this whole time. "No. I'd get a disease from just looking at it."
As soon as she got the room open, she practically pushed me inside like she wanted me to fall to the floor. I caught myself just in time, barely missing the table. All of that to show off how she already ordered room service for us. Guess they don't call her the ultimate analyst for nothing. She closed the door after herself before crossing her arms with a loud huff. "See? Told ya I was nice!" I took a second to look over what she got. Strangely enough, she got a strawberry chocolate cake for dessert - a favorite of mine as a kid. How could she remember that after all this time? Something so mundane and small I forgot how long it's been since I had any. A warm sign that maybe the caring act wasn't an act at all. "Yeah, for now. Did you put razor blades in everything?" Now seated at the table, I didn't dig in yet. I waited for her and watched the entertaining show of her struggles. She struggled to take off those ridiculously high heeled boots as she replied, "Damn, I should've thought of that." A pop as the first one finally came off. Her voice lacked that mock gyaru twist she played so well. Sounding more and more like her true self as the seconds passed.
"No, razorblades in food would be too easy for you. The Junko I know would play it more complicated then get frustrated when it actually works out." I went out of my way to use her first name as the second shoe let her go. She didn't waste any time to come join me, practically cuddled up as she slid her bowl over. "Yeah. Almost as frustrating as when you don't tell me what's upsetting you." She said it so matter of factly, like we were an old married couple who could read each other that well. Quickly, I said the first thing that came to mind. "I'm just tired." It wasn't like I lied through my teeth. The whole Kamukura project was, without a doubt, absolutely exhausting. I expected it to be a draining, but not the shit show it ended up being. If it weren't for the hefty paycheck and the scientific experience, I wouldn't have signed on. None of that mattered right now with Junko breathing down my neck. My only job in this moment was to keep her clueless. The truth? Some would think it was too insane for her to begin figuring out. Regular people wouldn't even fathom that a 16-year-old's stress involved human experimentation. It shouldn't be a possibility at all. Still, I knew that if I slipped up just once, she'd clue in. Somehow, almost inexplicably. "Don't lie to me. I know something is eating at you. You didn't even make fun of me getting out of my shoes. Even if you don't feel like telling me now, I'll find out, cutie."
She roughly pinched my cheek. I grabbed her hand involuntarily due to the pressure. Great, surely another bruise would bless me in the morning. They rarely appeared in directly aggressive or violent means, but fuck, could she find a way. "Let's just eat, okay? I don't want to think about this shit right now." She stared at my face. Scanning for clues or possibly on what to say. "...We'll talk about it later. Promise." I needed time to think about a convincing lie. Lying wasn't something I ever wanted to do. I prided myself on being blunt and honest instead of telling white lies. She knew that. Spinning webs of deceit to the love of her life was her thing. My track record might help me in this situation. "...Fine. Only because I like you or whatever." She mocked my mannerisms as she answered. Using a faked, deep, monotone voice.
"I don't sound that depressed."
"You sound pissed off all the time, Yasuke."
"Pissed and monotone are different, stupid. You should know that since you fake voices constantly."
"You're just jealous of my amazing talent."
I started on my donburi as I laughed a bit to myself. That last line sounded like something Hinata would say. Great, another reminder of all the guilt. I forced my thoughts to be here with her, but they keep stressing about that project. Before I had to force myself to say anything, Junko leaned her head on my shoulder while eating. Her fluffy hair against my cheek smelled like her favorite raspberry perfume she liked to spray on everything. "I really did miss you, y'know. Being around photographers and creepy agents makes me appreciate your bluntness." She took another bite, not changing her position. "What, do they give you fake compliments?" She rolled her eyes and puffed - falling for the bait surprisingly. "That's all they ever do! It's always 'Junko-chan, you look so cute today.' 'I wish I could find a down to Earth gyaru like Junko-chan!' 'Maybe someday I'll find a girlfriend with your measurements.' It's so annoying!" Hearing her complain weirdly made her seem more down to Earth, despite that comment revealing how little these people knew about her fundamentally.
"Oh, joy. Another thrilling installment of 'Creep Chronicles'. But hey, at least you've got your very own superhero here to fend off the creeps." I playfully flex my muscles. Humor was the best distraction for anyone. Honestly, I needed a little humor now to stop the guilt from creeping back in. Distracting Junko from the pressing matter would be my best and less obvious bet. It worked. She erupted in that goofy laugh she's had since we were kids. "Ooh, you're gonna protect me, huh? I thought you didn't even like me." The laughter delayed her statement by a few moments. "Well, being around you isn't so bad, I guess."