Mercurial Dreams – Chapter Eight

Author: tashiichaan
Rating: T
Genre: Romance, angst, humour
Featuring: Sakurai Sho
Banner designed by: tashiichaan
Story Summary: Hiroki never holds expectations for anything. She never expected to be promoted just 6 months into her job; she never expected her housemate to be a little more sane; but of all those damned unexpectations, she didn’t expect to find herself drawn into the life of Sakurai Sho. She didn’t expect to fall in love with him. And it all starts with a can of Coke.

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Mercurial Dreams
Chapter Eight

“I’m fine,” Hiroki muttered.

“No you’re not,” the doctor said patiently. She applied a layer of antiseptic solution on Hiroki’s wound, and Hiroki winced at the liquid seeping into her skin and blood, leaving a pricking, burning sensation.

“Honestly, sensei, I’m well enough to be discharged.”

The doctor remained smiling as she fetched a roll of bandage. She then cast her warm eyes at the woman fidgeting uncomfortably on the clean hospital bed. “I’d like to keep you overnight. Aside from your wounded hand, you’re deadly pale, you’ve dark circles around your eyes and clearly you’re not eating well. You’re exhausted, dear.”

“I…I’m fine,” Hiroki repeated in a shaky voice. In silence she allowed the doctor to wrap the bandage around her hand.

Where’s everyone? That question crossed Hiroki’s mind too many times that she lost count. She was barely conscious when she was brought out of the shower room, dizzy and pale from the excessive amount of blood loss and lack of sleep taking its toll on her. In her blurriness, all she could recall was being carried by unknown strong arms and being driven to the hospital. When she was fully conscious, it was already half an hour to eleven p.m. – hours and hours since she last remembered, she was dressed in a pale turquoise hospital gown and registered into this hospital room.

Her first visitor was the soft-spoken doctor who came to check on her and to replace her bandage. Said doctor was right now peering at Hiroki with an understanding gaze.

“Rough time you’re going through, dear? Heartache, perhaps?”

In a sudden succession of thoughts, Hiroki’s mind suddenly produced a clear image of Sho and her in the dark shower room, hugging and crying and murmuring words of comfort to each other. From that moment of reminiscence Hiroki blushed furiously and started studying the pale violet curtains intently to hide her deep embarrassment.

“Ah, so your heart isn’t broken then,” the doctor commented. She secured the bandage in place and rested Hiroki’s hand back on the bed, pulling the thick blanket over Hiroki’s figure in a motherly fashion. As she picked up Hiroki’s health status file and scribbled on it, she continued, “You just need rest and well-deserved sleep. Although I’ll prescribe some light dosages of iron pills, as well as sleeping pills. Do you need painkillers for your hand?”

Hiroki shook her head. Dotting a period on the paper hard, the doctor placed back the file back at the foot of the bed and smiled at Hiroki. “You’ll be discharged tomorrow if you get better. Also,” the doctor’s eyes twinkled, “whatever it is you’re going through, you’ve a nice man who cares a lot for you. It’s easy to tell from the way he asked me to watch over you. Repeated it about six times, in fact.”

At that, Hiroki’s head perked up in alert. Was he here…? Despite her reddening cheeks, she was prompted to ask the doctor about the people (or mysterious person) who brought her in, but the doctor had already slipped out of the room, leaving her in the dark room with only the bedside lamp shining a furious glare at her.

I need my clothes… she thought to herself in defeat. She turned to the bedside table on her left but found none of her possessions. She reached out and pulled each of the drawers open, but they were empty. Hiroki bit her lip at the thought of occupying a hospital room without any money for the fees – she just recalled she’d left her bag back at the restaurant’s locker room. No purse, no mobile phone, no lifesavers. Her teppanyaki outfit was in the hospital cleaners, and that was the only thing she had with her.

“Maybe I should just leave…” she muttered to herself, and threw the blanket off. She swung her legs over the bed and shivered as her bare feet touched the cold floor tiles. Suddenly, the door quietly swung open and someone stepped in, only to stop short at the sight of Hiroki standing feebly by her bed.

“Ah… Matsu… moto-san?”

Jun was standing by the door, his hand still wrapped around the doorknob and staring at Hiroki in surprise. A thick aroma of black coffee waded into the room from his direction, but strangely Jun wasn’t carrying any cup.

“Sorry, I didn’t know you’re still awake,” he started.

Dejected for being caught in her escape, Hiroki got back into bed and quickly dug her legs under the blanket so to hide them, which were left naked from her thighs down by the short hospital gown. She couldn’t help but feel her heart sink in disappointment at Jun’s unexpected appearance. She was hoping for someone else…

Jun glanced out of the room uncertainly for a while, and then closed the door softly behind him and sat on a chair beside the bed. Under the bright light, she saw that Jun was wearing his dark-rimmed spectacles and his messy hair was ruffed up. He looked tired.

“I brought your stuff,” he said shortly, swinging a black sling bag off his shoulder and handed it to Hiroki.

“My bag…” she whispered with wide eyes. She opened it and searched for her things. Her purse with all of her cards and money in the exact amount, checked. Her Sony Ericsson phone, checked. Her Johnny’s employee ID card, checked. Her clothes, checked. Even useless stuff, like the expired Isetan complimentary card and empty Cadbury chocolate wrappers, were left untouched.

“I, err, don’t know where you live, so I couldn’t get extra clothes for you,” he elaborated awkwardly.

“Thank you, Matsumoto-san,” Hiroki said sincerely. She attempted to smile at him as she hugged her bag tightly to her chest, and Jun returned the smile with a warm, friendly one.

There was a knock on the door, and a nurse walked in with a plastic cup, two pills clanking noisily in it. “Your sleeping pills for tonight,” she told cheerily, putting the cup on the portable table. She poured a glass of water from the prepared jug by the window and handed it to Hiroki, who murmured thanks. “Sleep well,” the nurse wished and exited the room, not sparing a blush and a muffled giggle at Jun.

“How’re you feeling?” Jun asked as Hiroki swallowed the pills and drank the water hungrily.

“Better, I think,” Hiroki answered uncertainly, putting the empty glass aside and unconsciously touching the bandage around her hand. She felt a desperate clutch inside her, the wordless pleadings to herself to ask Jun the question that’d been bothering her. There were many questions that she wanted them answered, like how she got her, what happened to everyone, why she was alone her, or why only Jun was here to see her…

Plucking up her courage, she turned her fully to Jun and asked in the most airy voice she could muster, “How… how’s Sakurai-san? And everyone else?”

Jun suddenly broke into a grin at the sound of Sho’s name on Hiroki’s lips, and Hiroki arched an eyebrow in curiosity. He sighed and replied, “After you were admitted here, Sho immediately went back to Johnny’s to sort out the Sakamoto scandal personally with Johnny-san.”

Hiroki gulped nervously as she studied Jun’s innocent face. Johnny Kitagawa? Sho actually brought this issue ALL the way up to the highest-positioned man in the company, just for this misunderstanding? That guy never ceased to amaze her. But mostly, she felt a sudden lift of burden from her chest, feeling so much easier to breathe without worrying about her maintaining her job and her dignity. She didn’t feel so helpless and alone anymore. Warmth and joy gripped her heart.

He kept his promise.

“Also, he paid for the hospital fees beforehand. He told me to tell you not to worry about that.”

A sudden lurch groaned in her previously-warmed heart, and Hiroki’s joy quickly tumbled into the drain. For all that happened, the only message Sho passed on to her was that he’d covered her bill? Stung, Hiroki’s lips quickly pursed into a thin line.

“How about everyone else?” Hiroki grunted in annoyance.

“Gone to convince as many people that Sakamoto’s story is a lie,” Jun continued, nonchalantly playing with the straps on the sleeve of his jacket, “Ohno-san seems to have worked his magic with the Juniors, having such an admirer in Chinen-kun. Nino and Aiba went to talk to your supervisor, as well as the boys’ manager to clear up this mess.”

Hiroki’s jaw dropped as she listened intently and tried to absorb everything that Jun had said. “You really… don’t need to…” she stammered, but Jun interrupted her.

“Look, Hiroki…” With an averted gaze, he took a deep breath and continued in a regretful tone, “I’m sorry for having put you through all of this. I – We – shouldn’t have done what we did, running off like that. Just because of an image we have to put up to, it doesn’t give us an excuse to be so selfish.”

Hiroki smiled sadly at Jun’s apology. “There’s nothing to be sorry for. We all did the right thing, just that one of us had to play the sacrificial lamb and you guys don’t deserve that,” she said softly with sad eyes, “Besides, I’m really, really thankful for all of your help. Really.”

She gave Jun a reassuring smile, and her face then scrunched up as she yawned loudly. The sleeping pills were starting to take a knock out of her. Instinctively, Jun grabbed Hiroki’s bag from her and placed it on the floor, just as Hiroki eased herself deeper into the blanket. Sleepily, she mumbled something like ‘g’night’ and ‘don’t worry’, and almost instantaneously fell into a deep slumber, her eyes closed and her breath slowing into a calm rhythm.

Jun remained standing where he was, studying Hiroki’s sleeping face and trying to measure the strength in this lithe woman. Secretly, he was amazed by the compassion she had, and also the strength to face all the problems unrightfully thrown at her.

Without his eyes leaving her, Jun nudged his head slightly towards the door behind him and called out, “You can come in now.”

The door creaked open slightly, and the familiar aroma of coffee from before filled the room. Sho entered, carrying a paper cup that was the source of the bitter scent, and wearing a concerned expression on his face.

He was the one who dragged Jun along to visit Hiroki, knowing it would’ve been horribly awkward on his own (not like Jun protested). Once he heard Hiroki’s voice, he panicked and barred himself out, and hid outside as he eavesdropped on the conversation. He just couldn’t bring himself to meet her. He didn’t know how to greet her, or what to say to her, what he should say to her, after all that happened. It’s was rather hypocritical of him though, because his heart skipped a beat when he heard Hiroki say his name.

“She’s fine,” Jun automatically answered the question he knew Sho was about to demand from him.

Wordlessly, Sho nodded in relief and stepped closer to the sleeping figure. Hiroki looked so relaxed and vulnerable, so vulnerable, it still hurt him to recall the pain and anguish he felt from her back in the shower room. Tomorrow everything would be fixed, he promised Hiroki that inwardly. Silently and gently, he picked up Hiroki’s heavily bandaged hand and squeezed it, as if afraid of letting go.

“Sho-san really likes Hiroki?” Jun whispered with curiosity, looking between Sho and Hiroki.

“I just care a lot for her, that’s all,” Sho retorted a little in annoyance, but his face was gentle as he read every detail of Hiroki’s soft face and still kept hold of her hand. In truth, he was confused about his feelings. He was very sure it was just infatuation, but something inside was telling him it would develop into something deeper and much more meaningful. Despite his hopes, he didn’t want to cling onto that belief, because love would get nowhere in this industry he was embroiled in.

He just knew that evidently, he cared deeply for Hiroki, and he would do everything and anything to make sure she wouldn’t get hurt again.

~