Tears of the Sea

Chapter 5

  At first all he could see were blazes of color. Slowly but surely, Miroku began to open his eyes.

“Miroku?...Miroku?!” He could just barely hear someone calling his name. He felt someone squeezing his hand. As his vision became clear, he realized it was Megumi.

“Me...gu...mi?” Tears fell from her eyes as she threw her arms around him.

“Oh Miroku! Thank goodness you’re alright!”

“You'd better be alright. Considering the scare you gave us.” Miroku looked to his side.

“Sano?”

“Who else?” Miroku slowly sat up.

“Where am I?”

“In the hospital of course.” Megumi replied as she helped him sit up.

“The hospital?”

“You bet. Frankly, I don’t know how you managed to do it. We were all certain you were a goner.” Sanosuke stated. It took Miroku a minute to get his bearings.

“Oh yeah, that’s right. We were caught in that storm. That giant wave was coming towards us.”

“You were swallowed up by the currents and disappeared under the water.” Megumi explained.

“We were both afraid we lost you, but we got a call from the hospital the next morning. They said you had somehow managed to wash ashore and was still alive.” Miroku rubbed his head.

“Well, that explains why I feel like there’s a hurricane going on in my head. How long have I been out?”

“A whole week. We were starting to think you were never going to come out of it.” Sanosuke stated.

“A whole week?! Man, I never imagined I could stay under for that long.”

“I’m just glad you finally woke up.” Megumi said.  Just then, Miroku felt a tear drop on his hand. He looked up at Megumi who had tears streaming out of her eyes.

“I’m sorry, brother. It's just, I was so scared I'd lost you. You were just trying to protect me, but you...”Unable to contain herself, Megumi threw her hands over her face.

“I’m so sorry, brother! It was all my fault! You almost died trying to protect me! I’m so sorry!” The tears poured out of her eyes as she struggled to control herself. Smiling, Miroku took hold of her hands.

“It's okay, Megumi. There’s no reason to apologize. We all made it out alive and that’s what really matters.” At first, Megumi just stood there. Then, she threw herself into his arms weeping bitterly. As he held her close, all Miroku could do was smile.

“It's alright, Megumi. It's alright.” Megumi squeezed him tightly as she buried her face in his chest. For several minutes, no one said a word. Then, Sanosuke spoke.

“So, I know it's probably really sketchy, but how did you manage to get out of there?” Miroku had to think for a minute.

“I honestly can't say for sure. All I can remember is being caught in the currents. I couldn’t breathe and my body was completely numb. I remember everything slowly turning black and then...”Miroku tried to remember as the visions were slowly coming clear. Then, it hit him.

“Green eyes!” Megumi and Sanosuke looked at him confused.

“Green eyes?”

“Yeah, it's very sketchy, but I remember I suddenly felt air being blown into me. And, when I opened my eyes, I could see a pair of bright green eyes staring into mine. I remember that much...but then...after that all I could see was darkness surrounding me. The next thing I know, here I am.” Sanosuke and Megumi looked at each other.