Atsuki was on his way to the hospital since his mother suddenly collapsed. He was worried of his mother so he quickly left the base. When he arrived, he quickly went to the emergency room to find his mother. When he arrived, he saw his mother's friend waiting outside.

Atsuki: "Aunt Mai! Is my mother okay?" he asked out of breath while having a worried look on his face.

Mai: "She's still in the emergency room. The doctors haven't given me any news on her."

Atsuki: "I see..."

Suddenly, the doors opened and one of the doctors came outside of the emergency room.

Doctor: "Are you the family member of miss Sakura?"

Atsuki: "Yes, I'm her son, Atsuki. Doctor, is my mother going to be okay?"

Doctor: "Her condition is stable for the time being, but she still hasn't regained consciousness. I suggest for her to be treated here for a few days so we can monitor her condition."

Atsuki: "Yes, of course..."

Nurse: "Sir, you are needed at room 342."

Doctor: "I will be there shortly. I'm sorry sir but I am needed elsewhere. Excuse me."

And with that, the doctor left the emergency room. Atsuki's mother, Sakura, was moved to a private room. Her neighbour, Mai, went to accompany her and Astuki went to the counter to pay the hospital bill. After doing so, he sat down on one of the chairs near the counter.

Atsuki: *sigh* "What am I going to do?"

The thought of losing her mother made Atsuki tear up a little. He quickly wiped his eyes and reassured himself. Everything's going to be alright. No need to worry too much he thought trying to calm himself down. Suddenly, he heard someone call out to him.

Haruna: "Atsuki!"

Atsuki: "Haruna? What are you doing here?"

Haruna: "I was worried about you so I followed you here. Are you alright?" She asked with a worried expression.

Atsuki: "Yeah, I'm fine. No need to worry." He said reassuring her.

Haruna: "I see... How is your mother's condition?"

Atsuki: "The doctors said she's stable but she still hasn't woken up."

Haruna: "I see..."

Atsuki: "Would you like to see her? She's being accompanied by one of my neighbours. I also want to check up on her."

Haruna: "Of course!"

Hearing her positive voice made Atsuki at ease. He smiled at her and soon the two went to Sakura's room.

When they arrived in front of the door, Atsuki could hear Mai talking to someone in the room. He opened the door and saw the doctor that he met earlier.

Atsuki: "Doctor? What's wrong?" He asked worriedly.

Doctor: "Mr. Atsuki, I have something that I want to discuss with you. It's about Ms. Sakura."

Atsuki: "What is it doctor?"

Doctor: "Regarding Miss Sakura, she suffered a heart attack. She needs to undergo surgery. I was informing this to Miss Mai."

Atsuki: "Surgery?! But why?"

Doctor: "The cause of the heart attack was the flow of blood in her heart being blocked due to plaque build up in her artery. The surgery will help clear the blood flow by placing a stent in the blocked artery. Do you want us to do the surgery?"

Atsuki: "Yes doctor. Just, please help her."

Doctor: "Don't worry, sir. We will do everything we can to help your mother. Now, we need you to sign a few things."

Atsuki: "Alright. Haruna, can you stay here while I finish this?"

Haruna: "Of course."

Atsuki: "Okay..."

And with that, Atsuki and the doctor left the room.

Mai: *sigh* "Sakura... I hope you wake up soon..."

She then noticed Haruna standing near the door.

Mai: "Hmm? Oh, you must be Atsuki's friend. Pardon me for not introducing myself earlier. My name is Mai. It's nice to meet you."

Haruna: "It's nice to meet you too miss Mai. My name is Haruna."

Mai: "Well, what are standing there for? Here, have a seat." She said, gesturing to the seat next to her.

Haruna: "Oh, y-yes."

She then sat down next to Mai.

Mai: "Have you eaten yet? I brought some bread with me. You can have it if you want."

Haruna: "It's alright miss Mai. I just ate a while ago. Thank you for the offer though."

Mai: "I see."

They both fell silent for a bit until Mai began talking again.

Mai: "Sakura always likes to talk about Atsuki. She told me that recently he found someone special to him and would one day like to meet her."

Haruna: "I see..."

She must be talking about Kongou nee-sama... Haruna thought to herself. Unconsciously, her face began to look sad.

Mai: "Hmm? What's wrong, Haruna? You look a little down."

Haruna: "I-It's nothing. I was just thinking of something."

Mai: "Hmm... Say, Haruna, do you like Atsuki?"

Haruna: "N-No I don't! I-I mean I do but... It's just..."

Mai: "Hmm... Well, let's change the question. What do you like about Atsuki?"

Haruna: "What do I like about him... Well, I like how he's so nice to everyone, and that he always puts other people's needs before his own and how he's so caring to us..."

Mai: "Seems like you like Atsuki a lot to say those things."

Haruna: "I-It's nothing like that! It's just that I admire him so much..."

Mai: "Hmm, I think I understand. Haruna, I will be rooting for you all the way."

Haruna: "Eh? Rooting for me? What do you mean, miss Mai?"

Mai: "Nothing in particular."

The door to the room then opened and Atsuki entered.

Mai: "Atsuki, is Sakura going to be okay?"

Atsuki: "Yes, the doctors said that mom will undergo surgery as soon as possible to prevent her condition from worsening."

Suddenly, Sakura began to wake up. Atsuki then quickly rushed to his mothers side.

Atsuki: "Mom, Are you okay?"

Sakura: "Atsuki...? What are you doing here? And, where am I?" she asked as she looked at her surroundings.

Atsuki: "You're in the hospital, mom. You suffered a heart attack while you were at home. The doctors said that you need to undergo surgery."

Sakura: "Surgery? Isn't that expensive?"

Atsuki: "That doesn't matter. All that matters is that you get better."

Sakura: "Alright then..."

Sakura then noticed Haruna who was sitting next to Mai.

Sakura: "Atsuki, who is that?" she said looking at Haruna.

Atsuki: "Oh, this is Haruna. She is one of the girls I told you about."

Haruna: "It's nice to meet you miss Sakura. My name is Haruna." She said bowing a little.

Sakura: "It's nice to meet you too. Atsuki talks a lot about you girls. You are the ones that defend this city from the monsters at sea, aren't you? As a fellow citizen, I thank you for all that you've done."

Haruna: "It's nothing worth your praise... I'm just doing my job." She said a little flustered.

Sakura: "Haruna, please take care of my son. He likes to act tough sometimes and say that he doesn't need help when in reality he really does. He needs someone who can take care of him."

Atsuki: "Mom, I told you that I'm doing just fine."

Sakura: "You say that but, in the future, you're going to have to someone take care of you and I think that Haruna is the right person. You said it yourself that Haruna is someone you can rely on, so please Haruna, please take good care of my son.

Haruna: "Of course! It would be my pleasure!"

Sakura: "Thank you."

Atsuki: *sigh* "Anyway, mom, the doctor said that your surgery will be scheduled tomorrow around noon. I'll be back around that time. Will you be alright here?"

Sakura: "I'll be fine, dear. Besides, I have Mai to keep me company."

Mai: "That's right."

Atsuki: "I see. That's good to hear."

Suddenly, Atsuki's phone rang.

Atsuki: "Hello, Atsuki here."

Eiji: "Atsuki! Where are you? I went to your office but you weren't there."

Atsuki: "I'm at the hospital. I'll explain the details to you later."

Eiji: "Alright. Just hurry back, I have something to discuss with you."

Atsuki: "Alright, I'll be back soon."

He then hanged up the phone.

Atsuki: "I'm sorry mom, but I have to go. I'll be back tomorrow before the surgery."

Sakura: "Okay, dear. Be careful on your way back."

Atsuki: "I will. Let's go, Haruna."

Haruna the got up and the two bid farewell to them. After that, the went back to base.

Hello everyone. That was it for this chapter. I'm sorry if it was short. I've been swamped with college stuff so I hope you understand. Anyway, that's all for this chapter and I'll see you again later.