Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ All I Ever Needed ❯ Strawberry Stained Smile ( Chapter 9 )

Chapter 9: Strawberry Stained Smile

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“I still hear your voice, when you sleep next to me.
I still feel your touch in my dreams.
Forgive me my weakness, but I don't know why.
Without you it's hard to survive”

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-Every Time We Touch

 

Hatori withdrew his stethoscope from Tohru's collarbone, and sighed, turning to the boys anxiously waiting behind him in the candlelit room.

“I'm afraid this is quite serious,” he said to the boys, eyes closed with thought. “It seems Honda-kun has acquired a case of pneumonia.”

(A/n: ni-moan-ya)

“What's newmoan-whatsit?” Kyo asked, stumbling over the word.

“Pneumonia, you stupid cat. It's a respiratory disease.” Yuki said, sighing, channeling his rising fear for Tohru into anger towards Kyo.

“That's right.” Hatori said and continued to explain. “Pneumonia is an infection of the respiratory system. It's where an infection lives in your bronchial tubes and lungs and keeps growing. If not treated the infection will close off the airways and suffocate the patient.”

“Suffocate?!” Kyo roared, his anxiety also channeling into anger. He looked over towards Tohru, a wheeze underlying her every breath.

“Which we won't let happen. Her pneumonia is still at an early stage so it can still be caught. But she will need serious attention while the treatment is taking place.”

“And what will the treatment be?” Yuki asked, fighting to keep his voice steady.

“We'll give her some medication and you'll need to monitor her all the time to make sure she's breathing. She'll sleep a lot and probably only be awake and functioning four or five hours a day.” He sighed. “I've never seen a case develop this far this fast. You say she was out in the rain for four hours?” Kyo nodded, and Hatori shook his head. “This isn't good though. I'm very glad you called me. Here,” He rummaged in his bag and pulled out two bottles.

“What are these?” Yuki asked as he took them from Hatori's hands.

“Her medication. Give her two pills everyday: one in the morning and one at night. Give her warm, easy to eat foods, preferably hearty soups with a lot of vegetables. She'll need it to get her strength back. Oh, and leeks are very good. Just about every ailment you could think of, leeks help.”

Kyo snorted. “Not if you die eating them!”

Hatori's face flickered the shadow of a smile. Yuki blinked. He wasn't even sure if it was there at all, or if it was just a trick of the light.

“Well, you two take care of her.” he head, heading for the door. “I'll come to check up on her in a couple of days.”

“Thank you so much, Hatori,” Yuki said, genuine appreciation in his deep eyes purple in color with the curse of the rat.

“You're welcome. And one of you had better sleep in here tonight to make sure she doesn't stop breathing.” And with that he shut the door and left the boys in silence to listen to his footsteps retreat down the hallway.

Yuki sighed, and looked at his watch.

“12:30.” That was all that was needed.

“I'll stay in here tonight, stupid rat!” Kyo scowled at him. “You go to bed.” Yuki was taken aback but said nothing, his knawing exhaustion left the idea of a warm comfortable bed as paradise. He walked out the door, his eyes already falling shut as he walked down the hall to his room.

 

 

Kyo thought setting up a cot would be the best way to go. He walked down the hall quickly, not wanting to leave Tohru alone too long. Quickly, he grabbed the fold-up cot, a pillow, and a blanket from the closet and headed back to the door, cursing as he tripped over the blanket edge and almost took a sideways spill down the stairs. Once back in Tohru's room, he set up the cot, blew out the candles, and lay down on top of the covers. He knew he wouldn't get much sleep tonight.

“Mmm…” Tohru murmured in her sleep before a wracking cough cut through the air. Poor thing. The moonlight spilled through the window and lit her face in an eerie glow. Her whole face, her closed eyes, her nose, her hair, all drenched in blue…except for her lips. Kyo studied them...they were the same color they always were. The color of the inside of strawberries. So full and beautiful. He wondered if they would taste as sweet…

No, he thought, not yet. I can't tell her that yet. I have to tell her everything else first. Her feelings have to come first…

Another painful sounding cough sounded in the dark room, followed by a shuddering wheeze. He jumped up out of reflex and alarms and was already kneeling beside her bed before his brain caught up to his actions. What am I doing? Kyo questioned as he stood up, looking down at her.

He leaned down and softly kissed her forehead which was heated with fever.

“Get better soon, okay?” He said, smiling down at her, his fingers tracing her lips which were pulled up into the shadow of a strawberry smile.

 

End of Chapter 9:

“Strawberry Stained Smile”

A/n: OMG I only had one title for once! *cheering crowd* thank you, thank you. This chapter, at the part where Kyo went to get a cot…*ashamed* I stopped there in June and didn't finish it until today…which is January *sob sob* Oh well. I originally wrote chapter 10 as part of chapter 9, but they seemed to go separately, so I chopped them into two chapters. Well, enjoy chapter 10! ^_^

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Fruits Basket is the creation of Takaya Natsuki, and is licensed in North

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