Why had I cried?  How weak compared to my normal façade.  It must have been his face, or – no, that look in his eyes…hopeful despair.  I met that feeling too often so I knew it better than the back of my hand.

As I had laid my head there upon his lap and he stroked my hair, I wondered if he was just like that doctor I had met earlier.  A false mask of concern and care, pretending to lift me up just to push me down again.  After all, he could be.  Even though he was young, he would have had to learn since his parents had split.

I can’t take this anymore.  I can’t take the pity that people burden me with.

                                       ησ, ı ωση'т αccєρт тнıs ƒαłsєηєss.

---

After meeting my koi fish in his room, I heard the nurse coming, so I hid behind the window curtain.  However, the person that walked into the room was – contrary to what I thought – not the nurse but…

“You again?!” I couldn’t help but push away the translucent curtain with disgust.

The blonde doctor glanced at me in surprise.  “Why, it’s the coffee lover,” he grinned slightly, walking over.

“D-Don’t talk to me,” I growled, my cheeks heating up with embarrassment.

“Eh?  You know him?!” the boy looked back between the two of us at least ten times.  “Is he your boyfr-”

“No.”

“Haha, Ko-chan, you’re funny,” the doctor rubbed my koi’s head, which made me slightly uncomfortable.  “I don’t think the lioness would like that.”

“Mh, Nee-chan’s not a lion,” Kohaku suddenly piped up, his bright eyes shining when he glanced over at me.  “She’s an angel.~  She made my wish come true!”

“Oh?” the doctor glanced at me with a raised eyebrow.  “Well, I’m going to give you the daily check-up now, so your Nee-Tianshi might want to leave the room.”

I bristled at his tone slightly but left after noticing the faint blush appearing on Kohaku’s cheeks.  “You know which room I’m in,” was all I said before I exited the room.

---

“You’re not allowed out of your room unless you’re watched?” I sat cross-legged on the grassy lawn of the inner courtyard with Kohaku sitting in a wheelchair next to me.

“Yeah, so my nurse heard that you came in, and she said it was okay if you watched me instead because everyone’s busy!” the boy was folding another paper crane.  Today, it was blue.

“You can give up on that already,” I closed my eyes, leaning back against the soft grass caressing my cheeks.  “I’ll make my wish come true myself.”

“Have you tried before in the past?”

“What?” The question caught me off guard as I glanced over at the blonde.

He was staring straight up at the sky, clouds casting shadows every now and then.  “You’ve tried to make your wish come true in the past before, right?”  He then glanced over at me.  “You seem like someone who would do that.  A persistent person who likes getting their way.”  Kohaku waved his arms hurriedly, “Not like I’m saying Nee-chan is rash or anything but-”

“Mah, I guess you’re right,” I closed my eyes, letting my face bask in the sun.  “I like getting my way…especially since I’ve been pursuing this wish for years now…”

…In every single case, I failed.  After all, if I hadn’t failed, I wouldn’t be here now.  That last accident had been with those knives when I was helping Atsuki cut those vegetables.  Most of the scars of all the other incidents had already faded, but the most recent one still left a scar trailing down the side of my neck…

I rubbed it absentmindedly and groaned, slightly frustrated.  Bad idea.

“Ah!  Nee-chan!  What’s that?” Kohaku was peering down at me from his wheelchair.  “That long line on your neck!”  He leaned precariously over the edge of his wheelchair and fell on top of me.  At least he was a pretty scrawny and small kid, so I caught him easily.  

                                                                                              тнαт's ωнєη ı ησтıcє∂ ıт.

тнє нυgє scαяs cяısscяσssıηg тнє yσυηg вσy’s cнєsт.