red string || sano manjiro/ mikey

chapter lxxviii: dwindling hope

it has been an hour since sada kazua was rushed to the hospital, and no news about her operation reached her loved ones just yet.

mikey took up the space by the wall, weakly leaning against it as he blankly stared down the floor in front of him. he couldn't feel anything. his body felt numb and cold.

hell, he couldn't even think properly.

he was itching to know what was happening in the operating room, but they were told to stay put and wait for the surgeons to bring them the news instead. of course, they have to comply to the hospital.

a few meters away from him, sitting on the same long waiting seat he sat on, were takemitchy and senju. they both have been talking to each other in hushed voices, but even if they were heard, mikey was sure that he'd just drown them out.

"i'm really tired." is what she told him.

mikey knew that. he always knew that, yet he didn't do anything to help her. he only added more pressure, more problems for her to deal with as he continued on his dark and endless path into the abyss. she kept chasing after him even after he hurt her that much.

it was eating him away, to know that she's inside that room once again because of his involvement with her.

her parents had every right for him to get mad that day.

he realized that a long long time ago.

"you're mikey, aren't you?"

white shoes entered his field of vision, a shadow looming over his defeated figure. mikey glances up tiredly and saw that woman who had been taking care of kazua when he was gone, emi.

he rises, standing in front of her. it made her back away a bit to maintain space.

drop!

mikey knelt on the hospital ground and bowed, his head stuck on the tile below him as he showed his deepest apologies.

"i'm sorry." he croaked. "again, i'm the reason she got sent in the hospital. don't be mad at her for trying to protect me.

"please, be mad at me for always leading her to danger. she doesn't deserve this. this is all my fault. i shouldn't have...i could have..."

he was at a loss of words.

what was he trying to say?

that he shouldn't have pressed on even when he knew that it would drastically affect them?

that he could have saved her this entire time if he just stopped and took a clear look of what remains with him even after his brother died?

mikey didn't know, but he sure knew that he had a lot to apologize for.

an apology wouldn't even suffice to the pain he caused both for kazua and to those who stuck by her side while she was busy saving him.

he was suddenly risen from the ground, standing back up on his two feet as warm arms wrapped around his broken figure tenderly.

"i'm glad you're alright." emi whispered into his ear, genuinely happy that nothing bad happened to him. "kazua-chan has been trying so hard, you know? i'm happy that she always succeeds in saving you."

"...what?"

"she really loves you. you have no idea." emi giggled. "she'd talk about how you're her knight in shining armor, and that it's time for her to protect you. she looked so happy and determined talking about how she'll keep you away from harm.

"so, when she wakes up, tell her how you truly feel, alright? she will be glad to hear your own thoughts."

she carefully sat him back down, patting his head before walking up to senju and takemitchy. the albino was quick to hug the older, apologizing over and over again for what happened to kazua.

the same as mikey, she felt responsible for her best friend's condition. she was the one who agreed to the plan without pausing to think about kazua's well-being.

she allowed the girl to fight the moment she woke up from her comatose.

if anything, the burden fell on her shoulders twice as hard because she wad aware of what they were supposed to do at that very moment.

"shh, it's alright." emi soothed the back of her head. "there is nothing to apologize for. let's hope that kazua gets through this, okay?"

while she was comforting the two younger ones, draken finally returned from his bathroom break and noticed mikey sitting at the corner. he sat a little beside him, maintaining a respectful distance for someone who hasn't kept in touch with him in awhile.

"kaz will be fine." he mumbled. "she always pulls through in the end, doesn't she?"

"yeah..." mikey trailed off, lacking the strength to talk. "...she always does."

creak!

the doors to the operating room opened, and teo surgeons came out while taking off bloody gloves. immediately, the five rushed to them and expected their report.

"how is she?" takemitchy asks.

the two surgeons looked at each other, nodding after having a silent conversation over who gets to tell them the news. with one of them returning inside the room, the one left turned to the five with a small frown on his face.

thump!

thump!

thump!

"sada kazua survived. she will be transferred in room 112 soon."