Slam Dunk Fan Fiction ❯ The Girl That Time Loved ❯ Cleansing ( Chapter 18 )

I am grateful for the long-drawn patience of my readers.

Krissy, you've waited a long time for this part. Enjoy.

Be advised that this is not the end, Doujin.

Thank you for reading.

iron kitty

All men gasped at her last reply and instinctively Jackson raised his gaze to the upper level once more, his eyes frantically searching for a suspect. He muttered a curse under his breath as he saw the multitudes of people crowd the exits, and he swung his head to the opposite side of the upper level. His eyes widened as he saw the man with the cane. Jackson looked to the shooting guard.

"We need to get her out of here. Mitsui-san, we're going to need your help," Jackson said, carrying Reiko off the floor and placing her into the shooting guard's arms. "I need you to go to the hospital with Sakai. Fuji will take you there. Miller, let's go!"

Miller ran behind Jackson as they weaved quickly through the crowd, Sakai calling out to Mitsui.

"Mitsui-san, hurry and follow me!"

As they pushed their way through the crowd, Coach Sato turned around to see Reiko's limp body in Mitsui's arms.

"What the hell?! Mitsui-kun!" the coach yelled.

"Reiko-chan!" the team cried out, confused and upset at seeing their teammate's unconscious form being carried away.

"Ladies, stay here," Coach Sato instructed. He tried to catch up with the shooting guard who was trying to get past the crowd to the nearest exit. "What's going on, Mitsui-kun?"

"Can't stay and talk right now, Sato-sensei. Someone shot a poisoned needle at her. We need to get away from here," said Mitsui, his strong arms shifting Reiko's body into a more comfortable position in his grasp. He looked down at his stretch partner, the lifeless look across her face causing a surge of panic inside him.

Coach Sato stopped running at his words and flagged down the nearest security guard he found.

In the seats of the upper level, Akagi and the rest of his team watched in astonishment as they followed Mitsui and the unconscious Reiko in his arms run through the crowd. Ayako turned to her boyfriend.

"Ryota, what happened to Reiko-chan?" she said, both her hands tugging nervously at his muscled arm.

"I don't know..." He turned to Akagi. "Gori, what the hell's happening?"

The center shrugged as he shook his head. Their attention was caught by Hanamichi's loud voice.

"What the hell?! Hey asshole, don't shove people around!" the redhead said as he grabbed a scrawny man wearing a flannel suit.

"Get out of my way, you freak!" the man barked as he tried to get away from his grasp.

"Why you -" Hanamichi was about to give the guy a head butt when Akagi stepped forward.

"Sakuragi, stop," the center's bass voice boomed.

"But Gori, this guy shoved me!" the redhead whined.

Impervious to his complaint, Akagi walked over to the bickering two, eyeing the man in the flannel suit as Hanamichi held onto him by the collar of his shirt. "You're one of the math professor's minions, aren't you?"

"Let me go!" the man yelped nervously, clearly overwhelmed by the two large basketball players.

Ayako let out a cry that whipped all their heads to her direction. They followed her gaze to the opposite side of the upper level and saw Jackson running through the crowd with a gun, and several feet ahead of him was a man running away with a cane in hand. Several shrieks erupted from the crowd.

"Either that man was healed by the hand of God or he did something very, very bad," mumbled Rukawa as he dug his hands in his back pockets.

Akagi unconsciously gripped the rail and leaned over slightly as his eyes followed the running men, and as they neared the stairwell, Miller ran into the cane-toting man head on, knocking both of them as they tumbled down the stairwell out of the center's line of sight.

"Oh shit..." Akagi mumbled as he looked down the court in realization. "Miyagi, they're the ones who hurt Reiko-san."

The point guard's eyes narrowed in anger. "What?! You mean to tell me that this asswipe is one of the bad guys?" he snarled as he jerked a thumb at the man in the flannel suit. Before the center could confirm, Miyagi grabbed the scrawny man's collar, yanked him from Hanamichi's clutch, turned him around and slammed him against the railing. The man whimpered in pain.

"Why'd you hurt my pal's girlfriend, you shit?!"

"Calm down, men," Coach Miwa interrupted, both his hands clasped behind his back as he walked up to the man struggling against the railing. Looking him over, he turned to Akagi and the others.

"Akagi, Keiichi, go see if Jackson-san needs your help. Miyagi, Kazuma, make sure this man stays here. Ayako-chan, go down and tell Sato's team to go back to the locker room and stay there. I'll go find Sato downstairs. Whoever's got a cell phone, please call the cops now."

They dispersed and did as instructed, and as they descended separate stairwells, Kazuma got on his phone and called the police. Hanamichi, Rukawa and the point guard gave the flannel-suited man a glare that made him squirm in Miyagi's grasp. His grip only grew tighter.

"Move and you're dead, chicken shit," Miyagi growled.

In the speeding Suburban, Sakai and Mitsui had the seats tilted back flat and tended to Reiko's supine form, still and unmoving. Placing an ear to her chest, Sakai listened for a heartbeat. Not hearing one, he checked her carotids for a pulse.

"Mitsui-san, behind you is a first-aid kit. I need you to get it for me."

The shooting guard did as he requested, quickly ripping the kit from its Velcro hold and unzipping it open. Sakai remembered the cell phone Jackson handed Mitsui.

"Call Dr. Nakamichi, tell him it's an emergency," he said, easing Reiko's head back to clear her airway before performing CPR.

Mitsui could hear his heart pounding as he fretfully pushed the `send' button twice, his troubled eyes watching Sakai as he attempted to breathe life back into his stretch partner's lungs.

"Dr. Nakamichi," a voice answered on the other line.

"Hello, sir, my name is Mitsui Hisashi and something happened to Reiko-san."

"What?!"

"She's unconscious and Sakai-san is performing CPR as we speak. Fuji-san is taking us to the hospital, sir."

The doctor was thrown into confusion. "What happened?"

"We found a needle stuck behind her arm... it looked like a dart or something... she told us it was poison before she passed out."

"Good God..."

Tak Nakamichi stood from his seat and his mind raced with thought. It could be any poison...

"What exactly happened before you found her?"

"She was grabbing her throat, sir."

She couldn't breath. An immediate reaction...

"Mitsui-san, do you see any welts or bumps on her body?"

The shooting guard moved over Reiko and anxiously examined her legs. "I don't see any, sir."

"Did you check her thorax?"

"Her what?"

"Her chest and abdomen, do you see them there?" Dr. Nakamichi said hastily.

Realizing that this was no time for guarding his inhibitions, Mitsui held his breath as he lifted Reiko's uniform up to reveal scattered bumps that looked like insect bites all over her abdomen.

"Yes, sir, all over her tummy."

Mitsui heard a sharp intake of breath from the other line.

"Tell Sakai to give her a shot of epinephrine immediately."

"Sakai-san, she needs epinephrine now," instructed Mitsui, clutching the phone to his ear tensely as he lowered Reiko's shirt over her abdomen. The bodyguard grabbed the kit and fumbled to find a vial of liquid and a syringe as the Suburban screeched to make a sharp turn.

"Keep her steady for a second, Fuji," ordered Sakai as calmly as possible, concentrating his efforts on getting the needle to puncture the rubber top of the vial. Succeeding, the guard injected several milliliters of the liquid into her unaffected arm and told Mitsui to keep her head still as he put away the syringe and vial. The shooting guard cradled Reiko's head in his lap.

"Come on, dear," Sakai coaxed softly as he rubbed her limp hand. "Come back to us..."

"What's happening now?" demanded Dr. Nakamichi on the other line, the tension in his voice palpable.

"Sakai-san just gave her a shot of that epinephrine stuff, and -"

Mitsui abruptly stopped when he saw Reiko's chest move as she gasped for air.

"She's breathing, sir!" he exclaimed in relief, and a thankful, weary chuckle escaped from the bodyguard's throat.

"Oh, thank God..." the doctor sighed as he collapsed onto his swivel chair. Taking a second to inhale, he coughed before talking into the receiver. "Mitsui-san, how close are you to the hospital?"

"We're approaching the driveway as we speak, sir," replied Mitsui, his free hand brushing several wisps of hair away from Reiko's cheek.

"Good. Thank you for helping my niece and the guards, Mitsui-san. I need to speak to Sakai-san," he said.

Following orders, the shooting guard gave Sakai the phone as he secured Reiko's head and upper body while Fuji pulled into the driveway of the hospital. Fuji shifted the vehicle in park and all of them quickly got out of the car, Mitsui and Sakai carrying their precious cargo into the emergency room.

"Yes, sir..." talked Sakai into the cell phone. "No, sir, they're still at the arena. They're going after the suspects... Yes, sir... Understood. We will see you then, sir." Sakai hung up as several men and women in white coats took Reiko from Mitsui's arms and laid her on a gurney.

Taking his Beretta from the holster strapped around his shoulder, Sakai asked, "Do you know how to use a gun?" Before the shooting guard could reply, Sakai checked the gun and handed it to Mitsui. "All you need to do is pull the trigger. There is a Dr. Takani in this hospital, and he's a good friend of Dr. Nakamichi. He'll be taking care of her. Don't let anyone near her but him." Before Mitsui ran off behind the gurney, Sakai pleaded, "Mitsui-san, don't let her out of your sight."

Answering with a brief nod, the shooting guard was gone.

Feeling like a heavy burden just lifted off his shoulders, Sakai turned to his younger colleague.

"Fuji, I need you to take me back to the arena. I have a feeling Jackson and Miller need our help."

"Let me go instead. You can stay here and watch over Nakamichi-dono."

Sakai sighed and rolled his eyes. "Always ready for a fight like your father."

Fuji grinned.

"Dr. Nakamichi will be taking the first flight to Japan out of Los Angeles. That gives us roughly thirteen hours to get her in and out of the immersion chamber."

"Do you think that's such a good idea? I mean, it's too soon," remarked Fuji as he took his vibrating cell phone off its belt clip. "This is Fuji," he answered.

"Fuji, is Nakamichi-dono okay?" said Miller, his breathing labored.

"We've got her breathing again. We're at the hospital right now."

"Good. Get over here, man. I just got shot with a dart, and one of the bastards stabbed me in my thigh… it's hard to get around."

"Are you all right?" Fuji asked with a furrowed brow, making Sakai turn his head at the younger guard in curiosity.

"I'm not exactly feeling fabulous at the moment, but I'll live. Mitsui-san's teammates are helping us out, but they don't have weapons and --"

"And what?" demanded Fuji as he strained to listen for Miller's voice, hearing loud gunshots in the background instead. "Miller? Miller!"

A few pauses of static came through the line for a couple of seconds.

"Fuji, can you hear me?"

Heaving a sigh, Fuji was relieved to hear his colleague's voice. "Miller, you ass, I thought something happened to you… what just happened?"

"The professor just shot at Jackson. He's okay, but Jackson's the only guy running around here with a weapon. I'm worried about Akagi-san and the others."

"I'm on my way," Fuji curtly replied as he hung up. Before he could run back to the vehicle, Sakai grabbed a hold of his arm.

"Where are you going?"

"To the arena, where else?"

"Not without me, you're not."

"All right, but I'm driving. You drive like an old woman."

Sakai grinned as both of them hastily got into the Suburban and buckled up. Just like his father was, Fuji found ways to lighten the guards' moods. The screeching sound of tires made heads in the reception area of the emergency unit turned as the vehicle pealed out of the hospital's driveway. As they ran a red light, Fuji turned sharply on a corner without so much as a bat of an eyelash, his face unchangingly calm despite the honks he got from other drivers.

"Do you think it's all right to leave Nakamichi-dono and Mitsui-san alone?" he randomly asked, the people and cars on the street appearing as blurs to Sakai in the speeding Suburban. The older guard opened the glove box and took the revolver that it contained.

"Jackson's intuition is very dependable… Mitsui-san's all right," answered Sakai, his hand holding onto the grip just above the window. He let a weak smile cross his lips. "Love can make the fiercest protector out of anyone, Fuji. Mitsui-san is fueled by it."

As they sped through the parking lot of the arena, Fuji briefly glanced at the older guard with a knowing grin.

Mitsui followed the nurses as they ran through the double doors of the intensive care unit, asking him for the details that led to her condition. He told them of the needle, and about the shot of epinephrine delivered by Sakai.

"What was she doing prior to the event?" asked one of the nurses as they counted to three before lifting Reiko off the gurney and onto the hospital bed.

"She was playing volleyball at the Kanagawa Arena."

"You mean she was playing in the finals?" piped one of the younger nurses. As they checked her vitals, a middle-aged man with graying locks of hair in a long white coat walked hurriedly into the room.

"Yeah," Mitsui replied with a twinge of pride in his voice. "Will she be all right?"

"We'll have to see," said the man with the white coat. "I'm Dr. Takani and I'll be seeing to it that Tak's niece gets taken care of," he said as he checked Reiko's pupils with a pen light.

"Mitsui Hisashi, sir. Thank you for coming to her aid."

Dr. Takani took a second to look at the shooting guard. "Yes, Tak told me about you. It's nice to meet you, though it might have been nicer had it not been in these circumstances. Now, if you'll excuse me," he said as he placed the earpieces of his stethoscope into his ears.

Mitsui stepped back and watched the nurses and the doctor attend to his stretch partner, relieved that she was under more capable hands yet at the same still worried. He was scared out of his wits when she wasn't breathing and he found himself in the corner of the room thinking of how different things could have been had he not turned around to give Coach Sato the stats sheet. The shortest of the nurses approached him and broke him from his guilty reverie.

"Sir, you can wait outside. We'll take good care of her," she said, her gentle hand pushing lightly behind the shooting guard's taut back as she tried to usher him out.

"It's all right," said the doctor out loud. "Let him stay."

The nurse merely shrugged her small shoulders and took the metal clipboard from the hanging file bin at the foot of the bed.

Still in his corner, Mitsui continued to watch, his heart swelling with the guilt that hurled him back into self-contempt. // I should've never taken my eyes off her … //

Chaos in the Kanagawa Arena.

The security guards did their best to direct the distraught and panic-stricken spectators out of the arena, Yohei and the Sakuragi Gundan helping them. Police cruisers surrounded the building, with several officers securing each exit through which the perpetrators could possibly escape. Fuji and Sakai fought their way against the waves of people streaming out of the main entrance, shrieks and cries filling the entrance hall.

In one of the stairwells, Miller winced as he tried to stand up on his good leg. Below him lay an unconscious man on the lower steps, the cane which he held earlier not too far away from his sprawled out form. He gritted his teeth upon looking at the cane once more. These people were organized and had planned for this attack. They made a dart gun out of the cane using compressed air to deliver the poison. He made his way back to the upper level, recognizing Miyagi with several other men and a much smaller man whose collar was held up by a tall redhead. Several police officers made their way to them and escorted the group outside. Most of the upper level was cleared out by now, and he could hear Jackson yelling down below.

"Come out, you asshole!" roared the bulky guard, his hand holding his Glock steady below him, his trigger finger ready to pull. He used the cement wall that lined the courtside seats as a shield, and from time to time he peeked out into the seats in an attempt to find the man who stabbed Miller in the stairwell. He was about to peer out from behind the wall when a hail of bullets sent chips of cement flying just millimeters from Jackson's face. He immediately hid behind the wall. Remembering the angle of the shots, he waited several seconds before firing a number of shots at a row of seats just across the wall. Getting behind the wall once more, he grinned in satisfaction when he heard a loud groan from behind the row. Taking a deep breath, he rushed from behind the wall ran across the court. He heard Miller shout out from above.

"Watch it, he's still armed!"

In a second, a man with a bloody left shoulder emerged from his hiding place behind the row of seats and aimed his gun at the running Jackson. Miller instinctively pulled out his weapon and took a shot, the sound from his gun surprisingly loud. He saw his target fall in a split second, and after muttering a curse at their fallen adversary, his eyes drifted down the court to Jackson.

He gasped upon seeing his colleague's body on the wooden floor, motionless.

"Jackson!"

Miller winced in pain as he hobbled down the stairwell, kicking the unconscious cane-carrying man aside so he could hop down the steps. When he got to court level, Fuji and Sakai were already running towards their fallen comrade.

"Jackson!" both guards called out, immediately inspecting his body for the offending wound. Miller limped as fast as he could to Jackson's side.

"Miller," acknowledged Fuji as his eyes strayed to his bloody thigh. "Shit, you look bad."

"It's nice to see you, too, punk," said Miller, smiling despite the pain that shot down his thigh. Looking down at Jackson, he was more than relieved to see the burly guard's eyes open. "Hey Jackson, you okay?"

He grunted with a nod. "I just got the wind knocked out of me…"

"Aren't you glad you wore your vest?" cajoled Fuji, tapping against Jackson's knee. "You think you can walk?"

"Yeah, just give me a minute… don't let your guard down, guys… I think the professor's still at large."

"We didn't see him on our way in. I heard that Mitsui-san's teammates are helping out. Where are they?" asked Fuji.

With some difficulty, Jackson managed to sit up. "I think I saw Miyagi-san and his friends leave with the scumbag and the cops. Where they went is beyond my knowledge. As for Akagi-san and his teammate, the last time I saw them was when Miller got stabbed. They were headed to the locker rooms."

Sakai offered his hand to help Jackson up on his feet. Taking it, he tried to stand as straight as possible, momentarily clutching his ribs before reaching for the inside pocket of his jacket and switching out the gun's empty clip for a full one.

"Miller, could you lend me your gun?" asked Sakai. Nodding, the grimacing guard handed his gun to the older guard. "Thanks."

"Fuji, take Miller to the hospital. Sakai and I will handle the professor. If you see him on the way out, shoot to kill. Understand?"

"Yes," both younger guards answered. All their heads turned when they heard muffled gunfire from the entrance hall of the arena. All guards immediately gripped their weapons.

"Let's go, Sakai."

Her ankle with a bag of ice taped around it, Nanami pulled herself from the chair she sat in and hopped onto the vacant one next to Ayako. Instead of celebrating, the volleyball team clustered in silence at one corner of the locker room, the door locked with the back of a chair jarring the door handle. After being told of what happened outside, the leader in her took charge of the situation and calmed everybody down despite the inflamed condition her ankle was in. Like little sisters, they all looked up to Nanami for answers.

"Nanami-chan, do you think it's safe to go out now?" asked Miki, her voice a whisper everyone could hear.

"I think we should stay here until Sato-sensei or the cops come to get us," answered the setter.

"God, what's going to happen to Reiko-chan?" Kaname blurted, her eyes threatening to spill tears at any second.

"I don't know the answer to that, Kaname-chan… didn't you guys say that Mi-chan was with her and another bodyguard?"

"Yeah… but -"

"Don't think about it, Kaname-chan. We can only hope for the best possible outcome," countered Nanami, her hand gently rubbing Kaname's back as she hugged her knees closer to her chest, tears escaping through the corners of her eyes.

A loud thud jolted everyone's attention to the locker room door, eliciting several gasps from the ladies including the setter. Nanami signaled to them with an index finger to her lips, bidding the ladies to keep their silence despite repeated thuds against the door that got louder and louder. The ladies huddled closer to each other. They could hear shouts outside the door.

Thunderous gunfire followed by the startling crash of the locker room door against the floor extracted brisk cries from the team and Ayako. Their voices rose to piercing shrieks when they saw a man come into view from behind the wall of lockers, one hand hidden behind his back.

Pausing to look at slight man, Sayuri clamped her mouth as her eyes widened skeptically.

"Wait a minute, YOU'RE the guy who kicked the door down?" she asked cynically, her brow arching at the skinny man.

"What the hell do you mean by that, you brazen hussy?" retorted the man, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose as he made an effort to straighten his tie and comb his messy hair with his bony fingers despite the sweat that held the small locks together.

"You're the one who hurt Reiko-chan!" Ayako angrily blurted out, her hands balled into white-knuckled fists.

"And so what if I did, bitch? What are you going to do, huh?" the bespectacled man scoffed, producing a gun from behind his back and relishing in the terrified gasps it produced.

"You bastard! I will never forgive you for hurting her!" yelled Nanami, her blood racing to a boil as she hopped indignantly forward on her good leg.

"Your forgiveness matters not to me, dear," the man sneered as he charged at the setter, the ladies and Ayako crying out for Nanami to get away. She couldn't flee fast enough to avoid the man's clutches. "But you'd make a good shield. Get over here, wench." He pulled her over and she stumbled in agony, her ankle shooting pain up her leg as she was dragged across the floor to a bench by the shower rooms. Looking over his shoulder at the horrified ladies, he flashed them a yellow, toothy grin. "If you try anything, you're as good as dead, you hear me?"

He was answered by nervous sniffling and angry tears.

Just outside, Akagi and Keiichi were beside themselves in dread when Jackson and Sakai approached them.

"Jackson-san, the whole volleyball team and Ayako-chan are in there, and so is that damn professor! We gotta get them out of there!" the center hastily said.

"Is he carrying a weapon?" asked Sakai.

Both teammates looked at each other. "He shot at the door."

"All right. You guys stay here. If the police come, tell them to send men on the east side of the building. There's a ventilation shaft that leads to the locker room. Tell them to block it. We'll take care of him from here."

A few feet away from the locker room's entrance, Jackson silently signaled for Sakai to hold his position, Sakai waiting alongside of the entrance wall. Seeing the door barged in, the guards crept inside in silence, Sakai being the first to enter. Upon taking a third step, a shot fired at him, luckily missing his head and hitting the wall beside him. Sakai took a few steps back and held his gun up.

"Don't even try coming after me, you muscle heads," shouted the professor, his arm's grip around Nanami's neck choking the setter. "Or else the girl with the limp will pay for it!"

Hearing the professor's shouts and the setter's groans, Akagi clenched his fists in anger. He turned to Keiichi.

"Damn him, he's hurting Nanami-chan!" he growled as he stepped forward towards the locker room entrance. Keiichi grabbed his muscled shoulder.

"Akagi, are you nuts?! We don't have guns like Jackson-san and Sakai-san, we need to stay put!"

"If he hurt someone you cared about, you wouldn't be so hesitant," Akagi said flatly and shrugged away from his teammate's grasp.

Before Keiichi could think of words to say, a round of shots rang inside the locker room once more, sending Akagi into a fit of anxiety. Seeing the broken chair and door in plain view, the center started walking to the locker room.

Dr. Takani had successfully stabilized Reiko's vitals and had her wheeled to a room by his office. Mitsui followed the doctor to the room, watching carefully as he adjusted the drip of the IV unit. Jotting a few notes on a metal clipboard, Dr. Takani replaced it by the foot of the hospital bed. He took a second to glance at the shooting guard who stared at the sleeping Reiko in silence.

"Son, are you all right?" asked the doctor.

"I don't know yet, sir," mumbled Mitsui, his face harboring a blank look.

"Well, you don't have to worry so much. She's pretty stable now, she can even go home tonight. Just make sure you check in with me on the phone from time to time. She's lucky she was given epinephrine on the way here." He looked at her cataleptic state. "Poor Rei-chan… why would anyone do this to her?"

The shooting guard slowly shook his head. "I don't know, sensei… but I know our math professor had something to do with it."

Dr. Takani was about to prod him for more answers when a voice on the intercom interrupted him.

"Dr. Takani to the emergency room, please… Dr. Takani to the emergency room."

"Well, looks like I'm needed," he said as he headed for the door, sighing as he turned the knob. "Her uncle asked that she be released after being stabilized. Have the nurse give you my number. I hope to hear of her progress soon, Mitsui-san." With that, the doctor closed the door behind him.

Left alone with his sleeping stretch partner, he was unaware of the pandemonium that was occurring at the arena nor did he care all that much. She was out of the woods. Mitsui walked to the side of the bed, pulled the chair next to the bed closer and took a seat.

"Reiko-san," he called softly, clutching her cool wilted hand in his. "You're okay now..." he mumbled, the softly spoken words more for his reassurance. He felt like he was in a waking nightmare, and they were in the eye of the storm. // Why did this happen? // The shooting guard took her palm and pressed it against his face flushed with remorseful ease. He didn't fight the prick of tears that escaped his tightly shut eyes, the shooting guard crumpled forward, quietly sobbing.

He froze when he felt the hand against his face twitch, a hoarse whisper audible in the quiet room.

"Mitsui-san?" she assumed, the tips of her fingers slowly trailing over the skin that it touched, stopping at the track of tears that forged a path down his cheek. Reiko found it difficult to swallow with a dry throat, and her eyes remained closed. She could hear the person's breathing before her increase in rate, and the skin underneath her fingers was moist and warm to the touch.

"Your cheek is wet."

It was an unassuming, unseen observation that caught him off guard. He lowered her hand from his face and quickly wiped the evidence of his guilt with his sleeve.

"It was raining outside," he said, a forced smile creeping across his lips. Never mind that he lied, he thought. He was the only person before her at that moment that she could draw strength from, and he wasn't about to be a fortress of lament. "How are you feeling?" he asked, his clutch on her hand slightly taut.

She tried to smile. "Heavy," she replied. "Other than that, I'm quite peachy."

Mitsui let out a laugh, one that betrayed a sense of deliverance. "You worried me there, Reiko-san..."

She let her eyes open slowly, blinking several times before she could focus on the figure whose calm and deep voice was recognizably her stretch partner's. He wore that grin that she had grown accustomed to seeing, and the warmth of his hand against hers emanated a sense of tenderness she had associated with her parents and siblings. She felt at home, and the gray in her eyes faded into a static blue hue. This made Mitsui smile even more.

"You don't know how happy I am to see those blue eyes of yours," he said as he gave her hand a brief squeeze.

"The feeling is mutual, Mitsui-san," she replied with a smile.

"Dr. Takani said you can go home tonight. Do you think you're up for that?"

"Home sounds wonderful," she whispered, her eyes wandering as she took in her surroundings. "Dr. Takani... he was Uncle Tak's roommate when he was going to medical school... Where is Mr. Jackson and the others?"

"They're still at the arena," he replied as soft as he could, trying to tone down the chaos that loomed in his imagination.

Reiko willed every muscle in her body to move as she tried to prop herself up into a sitting position. "Are they all right?"

"Sakai-san and Fuji-san drove us here, but they went back to the arena... they're good men, they'll be okay."

Noticing the gun and the cell phone on his person, Reiko blinked at her stretch partner. He noted her perception. "Sakai-san gave this to me to protect you," he explained as he shifted in his seat. "And Jackson-san gave me this to call your uncle should anything happen to you, and something did happen to you," he said as he looked down at his shoes. "I talked to him on the way here."

Before he could continue, the door opened after several knocks and a smiling Fuji and a bandaged Miller walked in, Fuji holding a bouquet of flowers in his hand and Reiko's gym bag hanging from his shoulder.

"It's good to see you conscious again, Nakamichi-dono," greeted Fuji, a surprisingly playful grin plastered across his face. "Dr. Takani told us that you can go home soon."

"You saw Dr. Takani?" she asked.

"He was the one who treated Miller," he replied as he jerked a thumb at Miller. "Oh, these are for you," he said, handing the flowers over to her. "No bugs on them, I checked."

Reiko looked at the bouquet with a smile. "Thank you, Fuji-san." She turned her gaze to Miller and his bandaged leg. "What happened, Mr. Miller?"

He shrugged. "I tripped and grazed my thigh on a nail," he said as his hands dug into his trouser pockets. "Don't worry, my tetanus shots are up to date," he assured with a smirk. It made Reiko chuckle, and Fuji nodded in silent approval as he looked at Miller's straight face.

"Dr. Takani has notified your uncle of the situation and we were told that you can go home tonight," reported the bandaged guard. "Um... we were wondering if you wanted to go home a little sooner than that."

"How soon is soon?" asked Mitsui.

"Ten minutes."

"That soon?"

Both guards nodded. Turning their attention to Reiko once more, Fuji stepped forward. "Nakamichi-dono, we - " he stopped himself as his eyes briefly rolled sideways at Mitsui's direction. In a tone an octave lower, he continued. "We have to prepare the immersion chamber for you."

Reiko stiffened at Fuji's words, her free hand gripped the white hospital sheet for a fleeting moment, and had the shooting guard blinked, he would have missed her reaction. Her head lowered to look blankly down her lap.

Fuji looked at Miller and his pursed lips who with a small and quick nod encouraged him to continue before averting his gaze down the floor, and he caught Mitsui's questioning glance. His gaze returned to Reiko as he lowered the gym bag to the floor.

"Dr. Nakamichi will be arriving early tomorrow morning, and -"

Her head whipped up. "Uncle Tak is coming?" she asked eagerly, her eyes displaying a cerulean hue in hopeful anticipation.

Fuji grinned in relief. "Yes, he wanted to make sure you were all right." Both guards' brows eased at the sight of her beaming face. In the past, one mention of the immersion chamber would send her into a subdued state of depression, and the guards disliked seeing her in such disposition. They disliked themselves even more to hear her feeble cries of protest. Her current reaction gave them nothing short of a quiet startle.

"Will my uncle be there while I'm in the chamber?" she coyly asked, her head slightly lowering to meet Fuji's eyes with her azure ones, almost fearing embarrassment unexplained to Mitsui.

"Everything should be done by then," replied Fuji.

"Nakamichi-dono, can you walk?" asked Miller.

She moved her legs to dangle off the side of the bed, and pushed herself off until her feet planted onto to the cold floor. She straightened up slowly and reassured them with a smile. "Well, I can stand…" She took a deep breath and a step away from the bed, surprised at the feat and when she tried to turn around to face the men, she lost her balance. The shooting guard caught her, and the younger guard instinctively moved to her side. Reiko wrinkled her nose in disappointment. "Perhaps I shouldn't move so quickly."

"Okay… we're just gonna have to carry you then, Nakamichi-dono," said Fuji, his hand rubbing the back of his head. "We brought your clothes with us, perhaps you might be more comfortable in them than in that standard issue hospital gown." She smiled at him. "Miller will be asking the doctor to have you released and I'll have the Suburban up front. Mitsui-san, do you think you can help carry her out of here?"

"Yeah, no prob," he said as he looked at his stretch partner.

The three men stepped outside to give her privacy to change. Cracking the door open to signal she was done, Mitsui knocked twice before poking his head inside.

"Ready?" he asked with a little mischief in his voice. Nodding, she reached around his neck and draped her arm behind his shoulders and held onto the shooting guard as he lifted her off the cold floor, strong arms snugly suspending her against his chest. Taking the gym bag with them, they left the room to meet the two guards in the front, receiving quizzical looks from the nurses and visitors on the floor.

Each step of the way, the shooting guard's mind swam with questions. Mitsui had not a clue of what she and her guards had just talked about. It felt strange for him to be there, to hear their conversation, to feel as if they didn't want him to know what was said. He couldn't help but wonder why Reiko responded the way she did to something he didn't know anything about. Even if he wanted to know, he didn't know how to ask her for fear of garnering the same despondent look from her. As he walked down the corridor that led to the automatic sliding doors of the emergency bay, he felt her tremble as a gust of cold wind blew through the hallway as the doors slid open. He stopped and told her softly that he was going to put her down for a moment, and after doing so, he took her warm-up jacket from the gym bag and gave it to her.

Zipping the warmth of her body within, she thanked her stretch partner and was again lifted up from where she stood. Seconds passed. She stirred within his strong arms.

"Are you uncomfortable?" the shooting guard asked.

Reiko faintly shook her head as she stifled a yawn. "Not at all." Blinking a few times, she mumbled, "Forgive me, I'm afraid I don't have all my faculties functioning fully." As another gust of wind blew through the irregular opening and closing of the sliding doors, she clasped the head of the zipper just below the hollow of her throat and tucked her head against her stretch partner's chest, eyes closed. Mitsui reactively held her tighter against his chest.

"Is Fuji-san coming yet?" she feebly asked, her frail voice hinting impatience. As soon as she asked, the black Suburban pulled up in front of the entrance.

"He's here now," Mitsui replied, hurrying to get her out of the cold and into the warm interior of the vehicle. Fuji rounded the front and opened the door for them, Miller surprising both Fuji and the shooting guard as he opened the front passenger door. Still in his arms, Mitsui noticed that Reiko was slowly giving in to sleep. Worry stirred within him once more. "Fuji-san, do you think we're taking her home too soon?"

"We have no choice, we have to get her home. It'll be the safest place for her to stay," Fuji said as he strapped himself in.

"What's an immersion chamber?"

"We'll explain when we get there," he said, yielding to oncoming traffic before speeding through the intersection.

Sakai nodded at Jackson as he held a leg of the broken chair behind them. He held up three fingers and counted down, and at zero Jackson threw the wooden piece across. Shots rang out, the chair leg bombarded with a hail of bullets and Sakai took a quick peek to survey the situation. There, by the shower stalls, stood the wretched professor with Nanami in a choke hold and a Smith and Wesson double action handgun, his wretched brow furled in concentration at the wooden target flying across his view. Pulling his head back behind the wall, Sakai held up 4 fingers, then five, signaling right, then signing Nanami's name with his hand. Jackson nodded.

"Give up, you spineless bastard! As much as you abhor women, it's funny how you have to hide behind one to protect yourself!" Jackson voice roared.

"What?! You dull-witted buffoon!"

Once more Jackson threw parts of the broken chair across, and the professor shot at the object in mid-air yet again. Ayako and the rest of the volleyball team huddled closer to each other and suppressed their cries with terrified whimpers. All this time, the guards had been keeping count of the number of shots fired. Finally, the sound of clicking metal echoed throughout the locker room, and Jackson took a gamble. Before Sakai could blink, Jackson rose from his crouch and charged through the locker room, spotting the arm that locked around the setter's slender neck, took aim, and fired.

Blood splattered across Nanami's cheek as the professor screamed in exquisite pain, pushing the setter forward at the burly guard. The injured man turned around and headed toward the cowering ladies.

"Oh, no you don't!" he yelled, shooting the professor in the leg, and the gun he held in his hand slid away from him when his body fell onto the hard floor.

Hearing the gun sliding on the ground, Ayako raised her head and quickly stood up to kick the gun away from the writhing professor, his face contorted in pain. As soon as they saw the basketball manager get up, the whole team followed suit, kicking the downed man instead in his torso and everywhere else they could. Catching his breath, Jackson heaved a sigh and tried to suppress a chuckle as he watched the professor get physically beaten by people he considered no-good second-class citizens. Sakai walked up to his bulky colleague with a smile on his face as he placed Miller's gun in his holster.

"Why'd you keep him alive?" Sakai asked, hands casually digging into his pockets.

"For this," answered Jackson, his grin growing wider and wider by the second, the ladies looming over the professor ranting the words `take that' and `piece of shit' at their fallen oppressor.

Both older guards stood by, a surge of satisfaction coursing through their veins.

"Reiko-san," Mitsui whispered in her ear, "we're home now."

She drifted in and out of consciousness all the way home, her body weak and close to his, and the shooting guard carried her from the Suburban all the way through the front door, following the pair of younger guards. Instructing Mitsui to set her on the living room couch, Fuji ran to the stairwell and descended down the steps to the basement, disappearing from the shooting guard's view. As quickly as he could, Miller went upstairs and grabbed the blankets from her room and her brother's. Hurrying downstairs, he told Mitsui to drape them one by one over Reiko.

"Why does she need all these blankets?" the shooting guard asked.

"Her slipping in and out of consciousness is a sign of the chills to come. I've seen this happen before," Miller explained, his phone vibrating against his hip. Stepping away, he answered in a hushed tone. "This is Miller… yeah, are you guys okay?... I'm all right. Fuji's downstairs filling the immersion chamber, and Mitsui-san's helping me with --… yes, he's still here…" Miller met Mitsui's eyes and smiled as he listened to Jackson on the other line, turning his eyes away. "It'll take about fifteen minutes to fill it, another fifteen to -- … I don't know… do you think it's okay?..."

Mitsui tried to ignore Miller's conversation and looked at his stretch partner fast asleep on the couch, slightly shaking as if she had chills as Miller had predicted.

"It won't be easy… I'll do my best. I'll have Fuji pick you guys up." Miller hung up and heaved a sigh. He hobbled forward to the curious-looking shooting guard. "Mitsui-san, there's something you need to know." He jerked his head toward the main hallway and Mitsui followed the limping guard into the kitchen.

"You're a very likeable and decent man, Mitsui-san, and for this reason we feel the need to tell you what's going to happen to her in the next few hours." Miller paused to lean on the kitchen counter. "Nakamichi-dono… she's not as perfect as you think."

Mitsui's eyes widened. // What is he talking about? //

"When she was born, she wasn't exactly the healthiest kid. She wasn't expected to live."

"What?"

Miller hesitated. "Her blood wasn't normal. I'm not too sure how... all I know is how she deals with it." Miller took a glass and filled it with water. He motioned Mitsui to follow him into the living room.

"Dr. Nakamichi poured all his time into research to find a way to give her normal blood cells, and he did. But…" Miller looked sadly at the woman passed out on the leather couch. "As time passes, her blood becomes saturated with toxins. To keep her normal, she has to undergo a filtration process every year, and it usually fall on her birthday. She's extremely allergic to bee stings, and the dart she got shot with was full of insect venom. Just the reaction she has to it multiplies her toxin level by ten fold, and for this reason we have to get her into the immersion chamber as soon as possible."

"Okay, but I don't understand why she got so sad when you mentioned this immersion chamber," whispered Mitsui as he watched the younger guard place the glass of water onto the coffee table.

Fuji entered the room before Miller could come up with an answer. "The chamber's ready. What's going on?"

Miller shrugged. "Nothing much. Jackson called. They got the professor and they need to be picked up now."

"'Kay. Let's get Nakamichi-dono in now -"

"Don't worry about that, Mitsui-san will help me."

"All right then. The mask is by the control board, I've already set the current." Turning his gaze at the shooting guard, Fuji flashed a weak smile. "Take good care of her, Mitsui-san." The shooting guard nodded his promise.

Fuji left through the back door and left the two men to watch over a sleeping Reiko.

"I don't have to explain to you why she gets depressed every time she goes into the chamber. You'll have your answer soon enough." Miller placed a hand over his forehead and ironed out the worried creases of his brow. Turning to the shooting guard, he added, "This is the only part of about this job I truly, truly hate... I'm aware of your affections for her, Mitsui-san, and because of that, you're going to be the most affected with the outcome. I ask that you steel yourself and keep your emotions at bay, if not for her, then for your sanity."

Something within Mitsui snapped and fear flooded within him. "W-what will I see, Miller-san?"

Momentarily closing his eyes, the younger guard opened them to look at Reiko in peaceful slumber, her state soon to be thrown into unnatural, transitory madness. "It's not so much what you'll see that'll bother you." He wordlessly motioned for Mitsui to pick Reiko up off the couch, a faint whimper escaping her lips as she curled against him like a child. The shooting guard nodded and gathered her in his strapping yet gentle grasp and followed Miller down the basement. As they descended, Miller spoke over his shoulder. "It's the sound that will drive you to the cliffs of torture."

Mitsui did not like what he heard one bit, his whole being filling with dread as they walked into the workout room of the basement. The white walls of the room were blinding under the bright fluorescent lights of the ceiling. Miller walked behind the bench press and all Mitsui could see was his back for a second, and the wall moving forward the next. It was as if he had stepped into a mystery novel, where secret panels gave way to hidden corridors and dimly lit dens, except the room's light was far from dim with its bright light shining from the corner were the tiled floor turned. Upon turning the corner, Mitsui's mouth gaped at the sight of a large acrylic cylinder filled with water; it was the size of several large refrigerators put together whose capacity could easily hold over five hundred gallons of liquid. Its top was exposed and one could see tiny heat currents that rose from the bottom of the cylinder to the surface of the water. His eyes following the currents, his gaze rested on two cables attached to metal leads that dipped just several inches into the water. By the lip of the enormous cylinder of water was a grooved steel platform with a retractable metal walkway and railing.

// She's supposed to be in THAT thing? //

"We have to undress her first, Mitsui-san," said Miller in a low, diffident tone as he reached for the zipper of Reiko's warm-up jacket. The shooting guard shot him an incredulous look.

"What?!"

"Just do it, Mitsui-san, ask questions later." Miller turned around and ambled as fast as he could to the control board, checking the settings that Fuji had made earlier.

// I can't believe this... // The shooting guard's face flushed in awkwardness as he fumbled to unclasp the zipper head. After two tries he finally succeeded, and he proceeded to pull the garment's sleeves off her limp arms. She was completely passed out; he placed a finger against her throat to check for a pulse just to ease his suspicions of breathlessness. He then tugged at her warm-up pants, and the sight of her long toned legs reddened his cheeks even more and he had to look away for a moment, feeling like he had to hide his embarrassment.

"Hurry, Mitsui-san. You can leave her undergarments on," urged Miller as he turned several dials.

With much trepidation, Mitsui took a deep breath and pulled her shirt up until the sleeves slid off her wrists. He did not deny that he had at times imagined his stretch partner in clothing that showed a lot less skin, but his imagination wasn't grand or bold enough to continue on to nuder horizons. // This is no time to be thinking about that... // He never imagined to undress her in this fashion, and in the depths of his heart was a little prayer that begged for her forgiveness as he glanced briefly at the hollow of her throat. Hearing Miller walking towards him, he quickly averted his gaze and threw her clothing to the side, and as he propped her up in his arms, she roused. Groggy and disoriented, she reached out her hand and Mitsui took it.

"Reiko-san, it's okay, you're at home. We're going to put you into the immersion chamber now," he said, rubbing the pad of his thumb against the soft skin of her hand.

Her eyes cracked open and blinked, momentarily waxing lucid gray orbs as she tugged at the shooting guard's shirt.

"Mitsui-san," she whispered, "I ask that you leave now."

Somewhat distressed by her request, Mitsui refused to relent. "I can't, Reiko-san. Not until you get better."

She feebly shook her head. "I cannot let you see me like this..."

"It's okay, I don't really care what happens, I just want you to be all right."

Reiko continued to shake her head. "You don't understand... please... leave..."

With mask in hand, Miller stood alongside the crouched shooting guard with Reiko in his arms, hearing her quiet pitiable pleas. Mitsui looked up at him with indecision and confusion; the guard knew that she was trying to prevent Mitsui from changing her image in his mind. And yet...

"Nakamichi-dono," Miller softly called out, bending on one knee to tuck a stray lock behind her ear. "Mitsui-san only wants to be near you." He took the mask and gently placed it over her head and lightly pressed it against her beautiful face. "But we shall soon see, Nakamichi-dono, if this is enough to drive him away. Everyone has to take risks..." he trailed off as he briefly looked Mitsui's way. "And in the end, it can only make you a better person for learning the truth about someone else." Miller took Reiko's hand in his and gave it a quick, reassuring squeeze. "Shall we find out, Nakamichi-dono?"

Reiko closed her eyes and nodded in acquiescence.

"Mitsui-san, kindly place her in the tank. But, before you do that..." Miller took a thin breathing hose hanging on a hook from above and attached it to the mouth piece of the mask, sealing it shut with a twist. "All right, she's good to go."

The shooting guard lowered his stretch partner into the chamber until she was completely submerged, her eyes opening and closing to adjust to the underwater environment. Quickly descending the walkway, Miller made his way to the control board and flipped a few switches, adjusting a few dials and green lights lit the board's panel. Mitsui never took his eyes off her even as he stepped down the walkway, his gaze intensely watching her suspended form in the water, his heart anxious and beating at an accelerated rate. // Please be all right... // Mitsui stood beside Miller, silent and vigilant.

Several minutes passed by and the shooting guard began to see a change in the water, its clear quality replaced with a murky, rusty color. Reiko bobbed up and down, her eyes occasionally opening to see through the reddish brown water.

Seven minutes have passed, and Reiko began to jerk intermittently within the chamber, the water closer to the surface spilling out of the cylinder and dripping down its sides. The water had grown progressively darker, and her fair skin helped both men to see her through the murky water.

"How long must she stay in there?" asked Mitsui as he walked closer to the immersion chamber.

"Thirteen more minutes," Miller answered as he turned a few dials clockwise.

"Fuji-san mentioned something about a current... what's that all about?"

"It's an electric current."

Mitsui whipped his head back at Miller who manipulated the dials once more. "You mean to tell me that you're running an electric current in the water?!"

"It's a weak one, Mitsui-san."

Mitsui marched toward Miller, his face masked with disbelief. "How could this work? It's nothing short of electrocuting her!"

Miller heaved a sigh as he shook his head. "I had the same reaction when I first saw this process... but it's really quite simple. Rather than having an invasive procedure where her blood is dialyzed, Dr. Nakamichi found this way to be a lot less invasive and allows for a faster healing time. The ions are pulled out of her body one substrate at a time. But.... I'm afraid we have to pull her out a lot sooner than as planned, she's too weak to begin with."

The shooting guard glanced back at his suspended partner, floating in the chamber with her eyes closed. He knew that this was what Miller meant when he was told to steel himself. He knew he could take it, and he was yet to expect the sound he was warned about. Five more minutes passed by and the water had turned into a dark red clay hue. Mitsui ascended the walkway and spoke to Miller.

"Hasn't she gone through enough? The water's so dark!"

"If she doesn't stay in there long enough, she'll have to go through this again and she will suffer longer!"

Mitsui wanted to do something, but he didn't know what. He was powerless and without knowledge of how any of this worked; all he could see was the woman he loved suspended lifelessly in the huge cylinder of water, having gone through more than just the loss of her family in her life. He couldn't fathom the fact that every year, she had to be submerged in currents of water and electricity to keep herself alive... no wonder she wasn't happy to hear about the immersion chamber. And all this for what? She was alone. It must be hard for her to summon within herself the will to live when the ones she loved most had long passed away. It must have been difficult. How hollow and empty she must have felt... She probably expected him to leave, to not see her during her most vulnerable of times, and again she would face another facet of her life in solitude, harboring her secret and her broken heart... // Could this be the reason why she hesitates to love me back? //

He refused to answer his own query. She would answer it herself. His hands balled into fists by his sides as he shut his eyes in frustration. By now, fifteen minutes have passed, and the water was akin to the color of dried blood. Miller flipped the switches and leaned forward against the control board.

"Now, Mitsui-san!"

The shooting guard thrust his hand into the murky waters and felt for Reiko, pulling her out by the arm and laying her onto the steel platform, her breathing mask still on. Miller ambled as fast as he could to the stretch partners and screwed the breathing hose off the mask's mouth piece, and as soon as her mouth was exposed the same dark liquid gushed from her mouth as she coughed and gasped for air. Her body trembled sporadically, and Miller took his suit jacket off and wrapped it around her.

"We have to get her cleaned. Bring her upstairs to her brother's bathroom."

Without delay they left the hidden laboratory and ascended the stairs to her brother's bathroom. Miller trailed behind Mitsui and his precious bundle, heading directly to the linen closet in the bathroom. He pulled several towels out and set them to the side next to the bathtub. As he waited for Miller to draw a warm bath for her, Mitsui vividly remembered the details of the large bathroom, how he dressed himself in her older brother's suit... he looked down at her unconscious face. "It's gonna be okay, Reiko-san..."

Soap bubbles coated the surface of the water in the tub and Miller asked the shooting guard if he could clean her up. Pointing to his wounded leg, Miller told him that he wouldn't be of much help. "I have to tell the others that she's out of the chamber. I'll be downstairs to send word to Dr. Nakamichi. The intercom's right there if you need me. I'll come back in a few minutes. Oh, and Mitsui-san, all her clothes have to come off for this. We don't want the metallic smell to linger on her."

Miller left the wide-eyed shooting guard in the bathroom, Reiko's form trembling and dripping liquid down his arms. Taking a folded towel, he placed it at the end of the tub and rested her head gently on it as he laid her body into the warm bath. Making sure she stayed stationary, he scoured the bathroom for scissors. Finding one from one of the cabinets, he unfolded another towel and placed it on the water over her body. Taking a deep breath, his jaw clenched as he felt for her sports bra under the water, pulled on it and cut it of with the scissors, carefully avoiding his fingers and at the same time keeping the towel over her. // God, why am I such a prude? // He didn't want to see anything he had no permission of seeing from her, and the pads of his fingers burned as he traced her bodyline to her hip and finally her underwear. Making it swift, he cut the fabric on the left and right sides of her pelvis, and soon the detached undergarments floated on the surface of the soapy water. The towel over her soaked in the water and he used it to obstruct her nakedness past the bubbles on the surface. Finding a bath sponge, he plunged it into the water and began to lightly scrub away the evidence of her frailty. // That's funny, I don't smell anything metallic on her at all... //

Reiko's eyes opened and it startled Mitsui, the shooting guard letting go of his hold on her and the sponge quickly forgotten. She blinked twice, focusing on her surroundings, and finally gaze met Mitsui's gaping look.

It seemed like they stared at each other for hours in silence, Mitsui's eyes fixed to her wraithlike gaze, her eyes orbs of gray emptiness studying his face.

"I'm out of the chamber," she mumbled flatly, her eyes moving to the bubbly surface of the warm water. Moving her hand to scoop the suds, she looked at the white foam blankly, and Mitsui didn't know what to expect next.

"How do you feel, Reiko-san?" he asked, his voice tinged with uncertainty, recalling of what she had told him before they got into the Suburban and left the hospital. // She's been through a lot... //

"Very... very... light..." she trailed off as she leaned her head back slowly against the folded towel.

He continued what Miller had asked him to do. Mitsui found it awkward to be in the bathroom with Reiko naked in the bathtub and his fumbling hands moving the bath sponge against her silky smooth skin. She didn't seem to mind. His touch even seemed oblivious to her. He felt like she didn't even know who he was. Holding his tongue, he proceeded to wash her thick locks of hair, a whimper escaping her throat as he poured warm water over her head. // Don't lose focus, Mitsui, just finish the job... // The shooting guard pulled the drain plug and let the water drain, and as the water receded, the towel over her conformed to her soaked figure, making it hard for Mitsui to concentrate on what to do next. // Towel her dry... //

"Can you stand up, Reiko-san?" he asked, hoping she would say yes. Not waiting for an answer, he lifted her out of the bath, and after steadying her onto her feet, he draped another towel around her, tucking it in the front before pulling the wet one that covered her front side down to the floor. The sound of footsteps from the staircase made Mitsui turn his head to the bathroom door and Miller emerged in the room.

"Thanks for helping, Mitsui-san," the guard said as he took a terry cloth bathrobe from behind the door. "They're on their way home." Miller gave the robe to the shooting guard and in a few seconds the towel around her was removed. Miller leaned his back against the sink, elbows supporting his weight. He heaved a sigh. "It's been a long day."

Mitsui couldn't agree more. Bad men, poison darts, guns, running and chasing, the antiseptic smell of the hospital, the immersion chamber, the bath... Miller's sigh was infectious. Mitsui paused to breathe. // What else could go wrong? //

At that instant, Reiko fell forward, unconscious, caught by Mitsui's strong arm.

"Oh shit," Miller said as he stepped forward the couple. He felt for her carotid pulse then proceeded to check her eyes. "Quick, get her onto the bed!"

Tension rose within Mitsui once more and he carried Reiko onto her brother's bed, her hair still wet and dripping droplets of water on the covers. Upon laying her on the bed, Reiko opened her eyes and this time, the look in her eyes frightened Mitsui. It was the look of madness.

"Miller-san, what's going on with -"

"Never mind that now, hurry and get the covers over her, tuck the ends under the mattress!" barked the guard. Doing as he was told, Mitsui took one side of the bed and Miller the other, spreading the covers over her and tucking it as tightly as they could. The shooting guard looked at her once more, Reiko's jaw clenched as she continued to stare madly ahead, the muscles in her neck contracted and visibly taut. It was then she began to scream.

"Nooooo!!!"

Before Mitsui could ask any more questions, Miller pulled him by the arm and shoved him outside the room. "Go downstairs and listen to some music full blast in the music room. You don't need to hear her."

The shooting guard saw her flail and thrash under the covers, screaming once more at the top of her lungs, her head arched in extension into the pillow. "Mom!!! Dad!!! Nooo!!!" Every fiber of Mitsui's being jumped at the sound, his heart racing at the sight of her writhing.

"Please, Mitsui-san, go. The music room downstairs has an entertainment system. Go now."

"What the hell's happening to her?!"

"Get your ass downstairs, Mitsui-san! Now!" Miller barked, pushing the shooting guard away from the door. Quickly stepping out of the room, Miller closed the door behind him, leaving the shooting guard's stretch partner alone with her blood-curdling shrieks and screams. Wincing as he descended the stairs, Miller hobbled into the foyer to the flat screen panel. Picking up the phone, he pushed a button and spoke.

"Are you guys here yet?!" he asked impatiently, his voice full of worry and insecurity. "Hurry, she's going crazy!"

The sound of screeching tires drew Miller's attention to the front door. Opening it, his fellow guards ran into the house, Jackson carrying a straightjacket.

"Where is she?" Jackson asked as they all ascended the stairs, Reiko's shouts growing louder and louder.

"In Hideki's room," replied Miller who trailed behind all three guards.

"And Mitsui-san?"

Jackson opened the door and entered the room, quickly stopping in his tracks, Fuji and Sakai doing the same as Miller answered behind them. "He's in the music room, listening to -"

Miller joined his colleagues as they stood like frozen statues with eyes fixed at Reiko, every muscle in her body struggling to contract and thrash her body around and Mitsui, holding her from behind, his grip the only thing preventing her from hurling herself wildly onto the floor.

"Mom!! Dad!! Don't die!!! Onii-san!! Onee-san!! Don't leave me!!!"

She continued to scream and fight the shooting guard's forceful grip, and an occasional backhand hit Mitsui in the face. He was unmoved, though the tears that lined his cheeks displayed his sympathy for his stretch partner.

"No, don't leave me!!! Oh God!!! Please take me with them!!! I beg You!!!"

The guards looked on in disbelief. No one, not one of them had ever been able to hold her down this long with her pitiful cries for her deceased parents. Every year she would have hallucinations, and every time they manifested Reiko's initial reactions to the heartbreaking news of her family's demise. It was too personal for all of them to hear her scream in agony, for each guard had a personal connection to the death of her family, either with the members of her family or the bodyguards that perished with them in the plane crash. This was the side-effect of the immersion chamber: it sent her into temporary flights of insanity that haunted them of the past they longed to forget. The younger guards turned their gazes aside, finally resolving to leave the room in silence, their brows furrowed at remembering the day they received news that their fathers were dead. Sakai soon followed suit, his face grimacing at the memory of the plane spiraling out of control into the sea that flashed in his mind. He had to close his eyes and wish with all his heart that the accident never happened. Jackson remained in the room, still in his place, words escaping him as he continued to look at Reiko's struggle from the shooting guard's hold.

Losing nerve to his fingers, the straightjacket in his hand fell onto the floor, and Jackson was too deep in thought to even notice. His eyes began to leak tears, and he quickly wiped them away with the palm of his hand before stepping out of the room. He and the other guards did not stray far from the bedroom door, each of them in their own world as Reiko's cries toned down into miserable, pitiful whimpers.

"Take every possession... take everything I own... take my intelligence... take my strength... God, I don't care if I become a weak simpleton... just let someone remain for me... please give them back to me... I wish this solitude to end... I beg of You..."

Her words made Mitsui's eyes spill more tears of pity; his suspicions of her loneliness were confirmed, and he never felt so powerless before in his life. There was nothing he could do to make her family come back, to make her wish come true. He could feel her labored sobs against his chest, and the heat from her skin burned her emotions into his touch. Her words broke his spirit.

Sagging into a sitting posture against the doorframe and walls, the guards heard every word of her prayer as they sat in vigilance, and they were moved to tears.

For Jackson and Sakai, surviving the crash was an unfair hand dealt by God, for their sole responsibility was to give their lives up for the Nakamichi family so that they may live. They felt as if they had failed.

For Fuji and Miller, surviving the death of their fathers was an event that they were able to endure, despite the pain of their loss. They had their families to comfort and support them. In one accident, Reiko had none. Their fathers' fates were harsh. Hers was harsher.

Her sobs finally quieted down, and she fell asleep even as tears streamed from her eyes. She was exhausted; her whole body had expended all energy from her both mentally and physically, and Mitsui eased his hold on her and remained in his position, her back resting against his chest. He gently pulled the covers around her and embraced her, enveloping her with what little comfort he could give even if she wasn't conscious of it, hoping that the worst of this day had passed. He wiped his own tears away, trying not to alter his breathing while she slept.

// Dear God... how do I take this pain away from her? //

Hours passed and the phone rang downstairs, jolting the guards from their vigil. Sakai went downstairs to answer the phone. After a minute or so, the guard ascended the stairs and motioned for the other guards' attention.

"That was Dr. Nakamichi. He'll be at the airport soon."

The rest of the guards stood quietly from their crouched positions, the somber look on their faces still lingering. Taking a peek inside the bedroom, Jackson saw Reiko's body rested against Mitsui, both fast asleep, the poor shooting guard likely worn out by the day's events, and she by the immersion chamber. The burly guard motioned for them to descend the stairs quietly. Gathering at the bottom of the stairs, Jackson kept his voice low.

"It's been a hectic day, guys... let's just take another breather. In a few hours, Dr. Nakamichi will be here. Fuji, take the Benz later when you pick him up. Sakai, you and Miller have our report ready. I'll go clean up down at the basement."

They dispersed from the main hallway of the house, each set out to do what was said, trying to place their minds out of depressing nostalgia back to sound equilibrium. Before Jackson descended the stairs to the basement, he looked up at Hideki's room and thought back to the sleeping stretch partners.

It had been a long day. He silently hoped that things would be better tomorrow.

That they would all be better tomorrow.

Reiko woke up to the sound of rain pattering against the skylight's dome. She felt horrible, like someone had tossed her into a blender and forgotten to take her out. She rolled over, and as she did she heard a groan from behind her. Eyes wide, she slowly looked behind her. It was a total surprise to her to find the shooting guard still with her, under the covers with her and in his arms. A fleeting look of sadness crossed her fair visage; he had seen and heard everything. He probably knows what happened to her parents, her brother and sister. Before she could even begin to shed tears, Mitsui pulled her closer against him, and should she struggle against his firm hold, it would be in vain. She didn't feel any stronger after her slumber, and she could feel her mouth tingle in pain as she clenched her jaw. Her stomach rumbled for food but she didn't have an appetite, and it woke the shooting guard.

Rubbing his eyes, Mitsui quickly looked at his encircled stretch partner, propping himself on one elbow to see her face. As he moved her body lay flat on the bed, revealing a conscious Reiko, blinking to focus on his face.

"You're awake," he whispered, releasing his hold around her abdomen. "How do you feel?"

"I need food, but I do not think I can chew... it hurts," she mumbled as she reached for her throat. "Could you help me to stand, Mitsui-san? I need to get some water."

"No, that's okay," he replied as he sat up. "You stay here, I'll get you the water and some food." He took a pillow and lifted her head to rest on it, and as he got off the bed he secured tucked her under the covers.

Mitsui hurried down the stairs to the kitchen where he took a glass and filled it with water. He opened the refrigerator to find anything she could eat, and he took the plate of grapes that sat on the second shelf. Taking the glass and the plate, he returned upstairs to her brother's room. He was afraid that she wouldn't do as he told her and was relieved to find her still in bed, her eyes fixed at the falling rain against the skylight dome. Setting the food aside, he took another pillow and propped her up to a sitting position. Mitsui took the glass of water and supported the back of her neck as she drank, her throat moving in slow undulation as she drank all of it. Setting that aside, he took the plate and gave her one big succulent grape. He offered it to her, and she tried to open her mouth to accommodate its size, but stopped midway.

"I don't think I can eat, Mitsui-san... it's going to hurt me," she said.

"How will it hurt you?"

"My mouth hurts when clench my jaw."

Lowering his hand, he paused to think of another way to feed her.

"It's all right, Mitsui-san. I'll just wait until it passes."

Finding delay unacceptable, Mitsui decided. "Reiko-san, you have to eat. It's been more than twelve hours since you last ate. I can't let you waste away. Let me help you." He placed the grape in his mouth and began to chew.

"How?"

Mitsui reached for her and pressed his mouth against hers, her eyes wide as saucers as she tasted the gush of grape juice in her mouth. She eased as she understood his effort to help, and her throat moved to receive his help. He relinquished her lips and withdrew, her eyes fixed at him in soft surprise.

"Forgive me, Reiko-san. I don't know how else to feed you. There's nothing else in the refrigerator."

She gently shook her head. "No, you've done so much for me, Mitsui-san. How am I going to repay you..." she trailed off, her gaze falling on her lap.

"You don't owe me anything," he said, lifting her face up with his finger below her chin. "In fact, I owe you everything."

She tilted her head in inquiry. "How can that be?"

The shooting guard's touch strayed up to the softness of her cheek. "You are everything that makes me happy. And for that, I would give you my all."

Her eyes remained fixed on his for some time, his handsome face sincere as his words. "You know now, everything pitiful and sad about me. Did you choose to stay out of pity?"

Mitsui faintly smiled and shook his head. "No, I chose to stay because of something more profound than that." He took another grape in his mouth, crushed it with strong jaws and took captive of his stretch partner's lips once more. She let him feed her this way, her face flushing with heat as she took his sweet offering without resistance, her eyes closed. Consuming every bit, she opened her eyes to find Mitsui's face just inches away from her blushing cheeks.

"I chose to stay because I love you."

She was overwhelmed with heat, her skin warm to the touch as he closed the distance between them and reclaimed her lips again, the sugary taste of his lips lingering as she returned his fervent kiss.