Chapter 84

Len.

"Okay, here I go...," I glanced over the lyrics for Fire Flower and yelped as my phone rang, dropping the sheets. They floated to the ground and I pulled my phone out.

"Is it Rin?" Gumi and Yuma asked in unison. I shook my head.

"It's Oliver," I picked it up, "Hello?"

"L-Len, listen!"

"I'm listening!" I said. Oliver sounded excited, or maybe panicked, actually.

"Haku Yowane!" He yelled into the phone, "She...she knew Rin's mother!"

My mind flashed back to the Saturday afternoon when she had come across Rin and I, under the tree. I swallowed slowly, still unsure of what Oliver wanted to tell me exactly.

"Y-Yeah, okay," I stammered.

"I think she can help you and Rin!" He continued, "She says that she's known her since college, and till after she got married! I think she...she might be the answer, Len! Even with Ren dead...you and Rin can still learn the truth!"

"Right," I said quickly. We weren't going to shy away from the truth, no matter what it was, "Rin's flight is in a few hours..."

"Are you going to call her?" Oliver asked as Yuma and Gumi loomed over me, wide-eyed.

"I could," I said, "The sooner the better, right?"

"Yeah, because listen, Len. Haku...Haku may be leaving the country soon."

"What?" I raised my voice so suddenly that Gumi jumped.

"Principal Dell's not letting her stay," he sounded defeated, "She's done with alcohol, just about! She just needs a little more time, but he's not even letting her teach till the end of the year!"

"Rin and I need to talk to her in person, though!" I said quickly.

"Well, then you better bring her over tomorrow, right after school..."

"Dammit..." I grit my teeth and shut my eyes, "Okay. We'll do that."

"Great," Oliver said, "But still, I'm angry, you know...Ms. Yowane's losing her job. She loves to teach!"

"I don't think Mr. Dell sees that," I whispered.

"Yeah," Oliver said quickly, "Well, I have to go. Good luck, and don't forget to call Rin!"

"I won't," I hung up and dialled Rin's number.

Miku.

It was a lazy Tuesday afternoon, and I was just taking a nap after school. That's normal, isn't it? I mean, everyone takes naps, and besides, there's nothing quite like a nice, long nap on a summery Tuesday afternoon. Except maybe a nap on a Sunday afternoon, but you get the point, right?

I woke up around five in the afternoon, to the sound of clanking and crashing downstairs. Instantly, I pulled myself out of bed, wearing nothing but leek pyjamas, and picked up my trusty self-defence weapon: an iron rod painted to resemble a leek.

The crashing stopped once I reached my bedroom door, but there was someone down there, for sure. I knew that robbery was always a possibility, but why did these sorts of things have to happen when my parents were away?

I pushed the door open and headed downstairs slowly, my back plastered against the banister, which shoved its harsh metal structure into the length of my backside. I bit my lip and pushed my hair out of my eyes, listening to the clacking of shoes against the kitchen floor.

This was it. I had to make the jump, take the risk. It was now or never. I turned the corner, entering the kitchen and letting out a loud war cry, smashing the leek against the intruders head. His head hit the sharp edge of the cupboard and he fell to the floor with a sharp cry, head of dark blue hair lying in a growing pool of dark crimson.

Wait, dark blue hair? I dropped to my knees and turned his face. Kaito's eyes were shut and his face was scrunched up in pain. Tears streamed down my face. How could I have been so rash and stupid to not realize that it was him? Was I always this out of it?

"Kaito, no...," I sniffed, keeping his head in my lap. I didn't have my phone on me, so I searched his pockets for his. I called 911 and followed their instructions, sobbing as I pressed towels against his forehead.

"M-Miku...?" He groaned, struggling to say my name. I cried out suddenly, pressing a hand over his mouth as his eyes fluttered open. He let them close again, slowly lifting a hand and cupping it over the hand I held over his mouth.

"D-Don't talk, Kaito," I whispered, "They'll be here soon. I'm so sorry..."

"Mm," he let out slowly, and I lifted my hand off of his mouth, "It's okay, princess...everyone...I was just...making you something to...eat..."

"Shh, Kaito, please!" I pleaded, glancing down at my blood soaked pyjama bottoms, "Please don't say anything! Y-You have to conserve your strength!"

"But Miku," he whispered, wavering dark blue eyes meeting mine, "W-What if I never get to say anything...ever...again?"

"Don't say that!" I sobbed, gently wrapping my arms around him. Our noses touched and my salty tears dropped onto his cheeks and lips, "Y-You're not going anywhere, Kaito! I...I forbid you to leave me!"

"I love you, Miku," he whispered, smiling that childish smile of his. I could sense his pain; it was hard for him to keep his mouth curled up like that, "M-My leek-loving princess..."

My shoulders shook with each heavy sob. "I love you, too, Kaito, but...you're not...not leaving me!"

Kaito groaned and struggled to stretch his arms, gripping me by the nape of my neck and pulling me closer with shaking hands. My heart beat faster and faster. Why was the ambulance taking so long?

"Looks like I...might never marry you, princess," he whispered, "I'll never be able to...have kids with you, or..."

"Stop," I whispered, "J-Just stop, Kaito, don't say these things..."

He groaned again, wincing in pain and pulling me even closer, till our lips touched. I could tell that he barely had the strength to kiss me, but I did what I could, and we stayed that way for what I would have wanted to be an eternity. His bloody forehead stained my sleeves and top, and I couldn't stop the tears that were spilling from my eyes.

"I love you, Kaito," I said against his lips and he groaned in response, "I love you..."

*takes a breath*
Well, are you getting the feels or what? I nearly cried as I wrote this!
Don't ask me what happens next! You will have to wait and see! That's part of the fun (read: torture), right?!
Vote, comment, share, follow, support! Thanks for reading!
(Fun fact: the Kaito scene was supposed to be humorous; the sadist in me took hold of the wheel very suddenly, and well, I'm not going back.)