𝐀𝐙𝐔𝐑𝐄'𝐒 𝐅𝐀𝐓𝐄 | Fruits Basket FF

(58)

unrevised.
/ chapter 58 /

Empty.

Ichika's eyelids felt raw and puffy from all the crying she'd done earlier. She only just started to calm down and as a result of crying so much, she was now heavily silent and feeling empty and hollow than ever before.

Here she sat in the waiting room with a blanket wrapped around her and her head lowered, unable to look anywhere but her lap. She could feel the boys restlessness around her, their constant movements or light talk, but she was so absorbed in her own little world that she couldn't make out what they were telling each other.

Tohru isn't Ruki. Ichika tried her best to remind herself that. It was hard not to overlap the two when they both had very similar incidents, except one passed away and the other was... well, she didn't know yet. And she was afraid to know what the outcome would be, afraid it wasn't the answer she'd hope for.

Everything in her was screaming at her. Her mind was running millions of miles per hour. The worse part is that she could still hear Kyo's desperate cries of agony the moment he found Tohru. He arrived at the scene after hearing Akito's ruckus. The image of him holding Tohru's injured body in his arms with a sorrowful look on his face couldn't be erased from her head. The way he begged for her to open her eyes only get no response broke her heart into pieces.

A sense of heavy guilt weighed down on her heart. She suddenly felt responsible. If she hadn't let Akito drag her away to that part of the area, would Tohru have followed? Why couldn't she swap places with Tohru or told Tohru to come a little closer to them? Why did she let the poor girl stand close to the edge of the cliff like that...?

You had one job, Ichika. Why can you never get it right? That voice hissed at her.

Tohru isn't Ruki...

But Tohru is badly hurt.

S-She's in the surgery room right now—

How do you know she'll be okay? Doesn't this feeling of apprehension seem familiar to you?

"Whatever... thinking right now... don't listen... it." Ichika strained her ear. Who was talking to her? The voice sounded so far away from her, it almost sounded muffled. Her clouded brain could barely process what was being said.

"Sorry Ayame... isn't... working... not reaching her..." The voice said again, however this time it wasn't directed to her. "Think... need.... take her... from here. Update me... as soon as..."

Ichika kept her eyes levelled to the ground as an arm held up to stand. The pace of her legs moved to match theirs. She allowed the person to do whatever they wanted with her, having no energy to stop them nor do anything.

Right. Left. Right. Left.

She focused solely on which leg was stepping ahead first as if it was the most entertaining thing, but at least it was preoccupying her from the voices of her head. Soon she was sitting down on some sort of bench and the cool breeze indicated that she was outside, away from the pungent smell of disinfectant, and filled her nose with the scent of nature.

The person in front of her was silent for a moment before they disappeared from her line of vision, making her think she was left alone. It wasn't until a few moments later that she realised there was a flower placed on her lap.

She stared at it before carefully picking it up.

"Dandelion." Was what the person called it.