Let's Start Over... Aoi X Umeji

- Memories -

*7 YEARS AGO...*

I woke up to the sound of people talking, as I sat up. I immediately felt pain in my left eye. When I moved my hand to cover it, I felt bandages. I suddenly realized that I couldn't even open my left eye.

With my functioning eye, I looked around a bit, and noticed I was in a hospital room. I noticed Aunt talking to a doctor. Her darker blue hair was tied back, as usual, and her greyed eyes looked worried. It was then I noticed that my parents weren't in the room.

"I'm very sorry, Miss Ryugoku," the Doctor started. He had a solemn look on his face. "We couldn't save her eye."

"How bad was it?" I could hear my aunt's voice crack a little. She sounded like she was going to cry. "How badly did they mess up her eye?"

"Well," the doctor said, looking at his clipboard, "When the authorities found her, her eyeball had been stabbed. She would've bled out had no one been there." The doctor paused, looking at his clipboard. "We also found burns and other scarring on her, likely from when she jumped out a window to escape."

My Aunt paused for a moment, before peering over at me. A small smile crept onto her face, and she walked over to sit down at the edge of my bed. She took my hand; her hand was surprisingly warm, compared to mine.

"Hey, kiddo..!" She said, barely above a whisper, "You're a real trooper, y'know that..?"

After she said that, memories of what'd happened these last few days hit me like a bus. The sadistic smile of the man that stabbed me in the eye, the days I wouldn't have food, the harsh voice of someone asking me where Megami was, and the fire that had broke out minutes before I jumped out the window and lost consciousness. I could feel my hands shake a bit, before My Aunt squeezed my hand.

"Hey, hey, it's gonna be alright, kiddo." She gave me a small smile, before looking back to the doctor. "How's her mental state?"

The doctor shook her head a little, a still somber look about her. "She'll definitely have PTSD from this, along with god-knows what else." She peered over at me, before speaking again." If I were you, I'd get her a therapist. You are her mother, correct?"

My aunt shook her head. "No, that's Asami. I'm her Aunt, Reiki Ryugoku." She looks back to the doctor, ruffling her hair. "Is there a therapist you'd recommend, though?"

My aunt went with the Doctor, leaving me alone again. I peered over on the side of the table, seeing a vase of blue roses; most likely from my Aunt. After a few seconds, I heard footsteps approach my bed.

I peered over, seeing my friend Megami, along with her father. Megami was holding a small box, which was the same icy purple as her and her fathers' hair, but with a darker blue ribbon around it.

"Hi, Aoi..!" I heard her say, putting a small smile on her face, "Are you holding up okay..?"

"Miss," the Doctor said, peering over at us, "She hasn't said a word since she's woken up. I wouldn't count on her responding."

Megami nodded a bit, peering back over at me. "It's alright, you don't need to say anything." She sat down on the side of my bed, placing the box in my hands. "I wanted to thank you. You didn't tell those people where I was, even though you got hurt..."

"I'd also like to thank you, Ms. Ryugoku." Her father finally spoke, straightening his tie. "My daughter is safe because of you. For that, I'd like to pay for the expenses of your stay at the hospital, along with offering assistance in any living expenses."

"You'd do that?" I saw my Aunt look over, eyes wide. "That would help a lot, actually, considering I'm a Military worker."

Megami's dad looked over at my aunt, raising an eyebrow. "What about her parents?" He asked, quizzically, "Aren't they in the picture still..?"

As Megami's dad talked with Aunt Reiki, Megami gestured to the box. "Well, aren't you gonna open it?" She smiles at me, raising an eyebrow. "I had it specially made, since dad told me you lost your eye."

I looked down at the box in my hands, curiosity finally getting the better of me. I undid the ribbon, taking the top of the box off. Laying neatly on the silk inside of the box was a black eyepatch, with a white design of a dragon crawling on it. I looked back at Megami, seeing a giant smile on her face.

"I know it's not as good as a new eye," she said, looking sideways, "But I think it looks pretty cool; plus, you always talk about how cool dragons are." She took my hand, tilting her head a bit. "Before I forget, when you get out of the hospital, sometime next week, my mom said you could come over; maybe I can show you some of the self-defense stuff I learned last week!"

"Megami," I heard Megami's dad say, "It's time to go. Your mother'll be concerned if we're not home by Dinner."

"Okay!" Megami nodded, before giving me a giant hug. I weakly hugged her back, my limbs still aching from yesterday. After a few seconds, she pulled away, hopping off the bed. She walked over to her dad, before smiling at me one last time, waving goodbye. "See you, Aoi!"

I waved goodbye a little, nodding a bit. My aunt walked back over to me, giving me a small smile. "Alright, kiddo." She smiled at me a little, ruffling my hair. "In a little bit, we're gonna get going. I put some new clothes in the dresser by your bed; I made sure they were cool enough for you. Then, we can go get dinner, okay?"

I nodded, setting the eyepatch on the dresser beside the bed, moving my blanket aside. I swung my legs over, my feet dangling above the floor. I pushed myself off my bed, attempting to stand. My body ached a bit, understandably so, but I was able to stand. I peered over at the mirror; my arms and legs were bandaged, and I looked kinda like a mummy, minus the face part. The hospital gown I had on had a bunch of tiny dinosaurs on it.

Cool.

I opened the drawer of the dresser, taking the clothes out of it. There was a hoodie my size with a dragon on the back, a pair of jeans, a pair of socks, and a pair of blue sneakers. My old ones were probably burned in the fire, or torn up to the point of no repair.

I went to change in the bathroom, sliding the new clothes on, discarding the hospital gown in the trashcan. I was about to walk out, when I caught a glimpse of my reflection. Just a few days ago, I had both of my eyes, and the mentality that the world was a good place.

        "Maybe it still can be..." I muttered.

          I walked out of the bathroom.

A/N : Hey all! Thanks for reading this chapter! I'm glad I could finally give some backstory to Aoi here. As always, lemme know what you think! I like hearing what you have to say! Have a nice day!

- Ky