Re-Start Chapter 4

Sakura felt her cheeks heating up as she sat on her own bed remembering the events which just happened two hours ago. She had squeezed Shori's hand not once but thrice and Shori had squeezed her hand back once so that made four. They held hands four times in just two hours! Sakura felt her heart pounding as she hugged her pillow. Sakura grabbed her phone and looked out of the window gazing at the moon. Sakura clutched her pillow closer as a memory flashed through her mind.

Flashback

Sixteen-year-old Sakura sat in her room doing her homework by her open bedroom window with the full moon in the sky. Sakura paused from her work when a paper aeroplane flew into her room and landed on her study table. Sakura opened it and realised that it was a note from Shori, having recognised his handwriting. Sakura looked out of the window and found Shori sitting on his bed staring into her window. Shori had a mini whiteboard with him and he wrote something on it.

Shori held up the whiteboard which had "Are you going to the school dance tomorrow?"

Sakura took out her own whiteboard and marker. Sakura held up her answer which was, "No, I'm studying for that math test on Monday."

Sakura gave an apologetic smile and Shori nodded and put away his whiteboard. Shori disappeared from Sakura's view and the latter assumed that the former had left his room. Sakura's eyes landed on a piece of folded paper in her waste paper basket. Sakura took it out and read it. Sakura had written, "Shori-kun, I was waiting for you to ask me." Sakura felt a tear slip out of her eye and she reached out to clean it. Sakura wiped her tears and she remembered hearing Shori ask her good friend Motomura Aoi to the dance earlier that day after school and Aoi had accepted. Sakura was disappointed but she didn't show it. Sakura shook her head and threw the piece of paper into the waste paper basket again. Sakura put away her whiteboard and marker, and continued with her homework.

The next evening...

Sakura was at home alone, her parents were out and her younger brother was staying over at a friend's house. Sakura was studying for her math test on Monday. Sakura was in her room when another paper aeroplane flew into her room. Sakura looked out of the window and saw Shori dressed in a white dress shirt with black pants. Sakura smiled and gave him a thumbs up. Sakura went back to her studying but she could no longer concentrate on studying. Sakura's eyes shifted to a white halter neck dress with a silver rhinestone belt hanging on her closet door. A pair of silver heels were below the dress. Sakura shook her head and went back to her math problems.

Sakura frowned when she couldn't concentrate as her thoughts kept flowing back to Shori. Sakura clenched her fist and quickly kept the outfit into her closet and hugged her pillow. Sakura's tears slipped out continuously and she cried into her pillow. Sakura kept crying until she headed to the kitchen to wash her face and have her dinner. Sakura stopped crying after washing her face but she managed to finish her dinner. Sakura decided to go onto the roof from her bedroom window. Sakura climbed out of her bedroom window using the ladder which her father had built on every room's window in the house. Sakura took a seat and gazed at the stars and moon. Sakura stayed up there until her parents returned and Sakura returned to her room.

End of Flashback

Sakura's expression became a sad one as she finished reliving the memory. Sakura covered herself with her blanket and fell asleep, keeping her window open.
 

The next day...

Sakura woke up and had breakfast which was prepared by her mother. Sakura showered and changed into a white shirt and jean skirt. Sakura couldn't face Shori again so soon after what had happened yesterday. Sakura decided to head back to her apartment early. Sakura hugged her parents and younger brother before taking her car back to her apartment. Sakura parked her car and headed up to her apartment. Sakura found Anna cooking some ramen in the kitchen while Jurina was out doing grocery shopping.

"Are you hungry? I'm cooking some ramen, we can share if you like." Asked Anna.

Sakura nodded and went to her room to put her bag and car keys down. Sakura slipped on her bedroom slippers as Anna opened another pack of ramen. Sakura washed the bowls while Anna cooked the ramen. Anna brought the steaming pot over to the living room's coffee table where Sakura was.

"Anything on your mind?" Asked Anna, setting the mittens on the coffee table.

"Shori-kun just received his transfer letter here." Spoke Sakura.

Anna nodded but stayed quiet as she knew that Sakura still had something else to say.

"I helped him break the news to his parents but I squeezed his hand out of habit a couple of times. I don't know what I'm feeling right now!" Said Sakura.

Anna nodded, "I think you still have feelings for him. I know it's been more than ten years since you realised that you had feelings for him but maybe those old feelings will rekindle and maybe he'll also develop feelings for you."

Anna hugged Sakura and patted her back.

"Come on, cheer up! I'll get Jurina to get some ice cream for us." Said Anna, knowing that Sakura would never be able to reject ice cream.

Anna called Jurina to grab a few tubs of ice cream since they were also running out. Anna hugged Sakura and patted her back. Jurina soon came back with the groceries. Jurina opened up the tub while Anna washed the ice cream spoons. Jurina and Anna grinned as Sakura literally devoured her ice cream, the Sakura they knew was back. But that the same time, Anna was worried about how Shori's transfer would affect Sakura.

Jurina pulled Anna aside when Sakura returned to her room after eating her ice cream.

"What happened to her?" Whispered Jurina.

Anna explained the whole situation and Jurina gave an uneasy face.

"I'll ask Mayu about this, I think she can tell us more about this." Said Jurina.

Jurina called Mayu and she told him about Shori's transfer. Mayu actually knew about Shori's transfer before Sakura did, but she was hesitant to tell Sakura about it. Mayu was from the same high school as Sakura and Shori. Mayu knew about Sakura's feelings for Shori, that was why she was hesitant to tell Sakura about the possibility of Shori's transfer to their hospital. Mayu confirmed the news and was worried for Sakura.

"I'm worried for Sakura, it's been years since they've met and who knows what will happen between them." Said Mayu.

Jurina nodded, "But Sakura will be pretty busy for the next two weeks, it seems that they have found a bone marrow donor for Aki-chan. Sakura will be working together with the other doctors for the operation."

"I know, but Sato-kun is supposed to transfer to our hospital next month which is in two weeks. And Sakura won't be that busy anymore." Said Mayu.

Jurina sighed, "That is a problem, but we'll come to that when the time comes."

"We'll talk about this tomorrow." Said Mayu.

Jurina hung up the phone and turned to Anna.

"Is it wise for us to leave Sakura at home alone tonight? We didn't expect her to return in the afternoon." Asked Jurina.

"I'm having dinner with Yuri tonight and you will be with Shintaro-kun. Sakura will be alone." Nodded Anna.

"Tell you what, I'll cancel my plans with Shintaro tonight, Sakura and Shori's situation is more important and I'm sure that Shintaro agrees too." Said Jurina.

"We'll have lunch with Sakura over the next two weeks." Nodded Anna.

Jurina called her boyfriend Morimoto Shintaro and cancelled their plans after explaining the situation. Shintaro agreed and said that he would help Sakura if she needed it.

"Mayu just asked if we wanted to have dinner with her and Miyuki." Spoke Anna, who just received a text from Mayu.

Jurina nodded, "I suppose, it would help Sakura keep her mind off things for a while."

Anna nodded and texted Mayu back while Jurina went to tell Sakura about their plans with the Watanabe Sisters. Anna made the three of them some tea.

"Anna, you want to take a dip in the jacuzzi?" Asked Jurina.

Anna contemplated for a moment before nodding, "I guess, we can talk to Sakura about this at the same time."

Jurina nodded, "Sakura and I'll go and prepare the jacuzzi."

The three ladies' apartment was a five room apartment. Three of the rooms were used as their bedrooms and one room was an entertainment--relaxation area for them to put their laptops and other console games, as well as to have leisure activities there. The last room was an empty room which the girls had converted into a jacuzzi and shared bath area. It wasn't cheap to convert  the empty room into it's current condition but it was worth the money as the girls used the room quite often. Especially if they had to work until late into night or when it was winter.

Sakura and Jurina finished preparing the jacuzzi by the time Anna had finished brewing the tea. The three ladies sipped their teas before going to change into their swimsuits to soak in the jacuzzi. The three friends invited the Watanabe sisters, Haruka and Ryoha over to soak in the tub as well. The seven friends sat together and they talked about Sakura's situation and about their love lives in general.

"Sakura, are you sure you are alright?" Asked Haruka.

Sakura shook her head, "I don't know, but I guess it will take time for things to happen."

Miyuki nodded, "Just so you know, we will be here for you."

"Yeah, we may not know who Sato-san is but you are our friend, Sakura." Said Ryoha.

"No, we're like sisters!" Said Mayu.

Sakura smiled slightly, "Thanks girls."

"We're usually so busy, sometimes I really wonder how we even manage to balance our work with our personal lives." Said Anna.

"Well you guys are dating people who are in similar professions. You guys can better coordinate your time together." Said Miyuki.

"Understanding is very important between couples." Nodded Jurina.

"Yeah, but I'm glad that we're able to understand each other." Said Haruka.

"I think we should be preparing dinner now." Said Miyuki.

Anna nodded, "We'll see you girls later."

Anna, Jurina, Sakura, Ryoha and Haruka stayed in the house while the Watanabe sisters left the house. The five girls took turns showering and they sat in the living room after their baths.

"Anna, have you heard of a new doctor called Kojima Haruna from the skin centre?" Asked Ryoha.

"Isn't she Kojima Mako-san's older sister?" Asked Haruka.

Ryoha nodded, "Apparently, she's transferred to our hospital from another hospital. It seems that she wants to be with her sister."

"What's so strange about that?" Asked Jurina.

"Well, I also heard that she's the fiancée of Dr. Fujigaya Taisuke from the neurology department. And that she transferred here because their relationship was strained. I don't know all of the details but that's what Dr. Tomonaga Mio of the neurology department told me." Said Ryoha.

"Why are you telling this to us though?" Asked Sakura.

Ryoha frowned, "Well, there may be an awkward tension between them and you know Fujigaya-sempai's temper. I'm afraid what Kojima-san's transfer will do."

The other four nodded in agreement. They knew Fujigaya Taisuke's temper and who knew what the transfer of his fiancée could do. And it could just be a template of what could happen to Shori and Sakura.

Sakura looked nervous as she realised the similarity of the two situations. Haruka squeezed her hand and so did Ryoha. Jurina and Anna patted her back.

"Come on, cheer up! Don't think too much right now, we'll solve the problems when things come to that stage." Said Anna.

"Yeah, you have to focus on Aki-chan's operation first." Said Jurina.

"Don't worry, we'll be here for you no matter what." Said Ryoha.

Miyuki soon pressed the doorbell and got them to come over for dinner. The Watanabe sisters had set the table out and the seven friends ate dinner together, hoping to keep Sakura's mind off Shori.
 

The next day...

Sakura woke up and made some coffee and breakfast for herself, Jurina and Anna. Sakura poured herself a mug of coffee and added milk to it. Sakura sipped her coffee as she took a seat at the dining table. Sakura finished her coffee and washed her mug. Sakura picked up her bag and walked to her office.

Sakura entered her office and picked up her patient's files from the main desk in the child development clinic. Sakura picked up are file with the name Nakayama Aki on it. Sakura brought it to her office along with a file with the name Takada Shiori. Sakura opened up Aki's file, Yuri, Miyuki and a senior doctor called Oshima Yuko had written important notices to her about Aki's upcoming operation. They had found a suitable bone marrow donor for Aki after two years. Dr Oshima Yuko was to conduct the operation on Aki next week. Having a suitable bone marrow would help Aki's parents save on her medical costs and Aki could live like a normal child, like other kids. Aki could go to a normal school and make many new friends. Sakura felt happy for Aki, as she could see a sickly child grow up with a normal childhood. It wasn't always that children with childhood cancer could find suitable donors so that they could grow up normally. Sakura dialled Miyuki's office number and asked her to send a copy of Aki's blood test over when she got the report.

"Sure, I'll have it sent over when I receive. I'll send one to Chinen-sempai and Oshima-sempai too." Said Miyuki, on the other line.

"Thanks, you can just leave it in my office. I'll be visiting my patients this afternoon, so I probably won't be in my office." Said Sakura.

"No problem." Said Miyuki.

"Bye." Said Sakura, before she hung up the call.

Sakura picked up Takada Shiori's file and left another two more files on her table. Sakura left her office and visited Takada Shiori's ward. Takada Shiori was an eight year old girl who became mute after suffering a kidnapping attempt when she was five, it also mentally scarred her for life. Shiori visited the hospital very month for physical therapy and stayed in the hospital for four days.

Sakura knocked on the door before entering the room. Sakura smiled at Shiori's parents before doing a check-up on Shiori. Shiori communicated with her parents, the nurses and doctors by writing on a whiteboard. Sakura patiently asked Shiori a few questions before speaking with her parents.

"She's really mature for her age, how is she in school?" Asked Sakura.

"She gets along quite well with her classmates, she was nominated for the student council too." Said Shiori's father.

"It's nice to see that she's getting along with her classmates." Said Sakura.

"Doctor, is there a way for her to be able to talk again?" Asked Shiori's mother.

"Sometimes it requires a very strong memory to be triggered, but a memory trigger may shock her even more. Even adults usually do not survive a very strong memory trigger, those who survive would just shut themselves in more." Said Sakura.

"So, there is no other way she can speak again?" Asked Shiori's mother.

Sakura shook her head, "Not exactly, sometimes when she finds or encounters something she knows from the past, she may be able to speak again but these things are usually unexpected and it's not something medicine can fix or cure."

Shiori's parents nodded and Sakura continue speaking.

"Don't worry, Shiori-chan's still young. She has a lot of time to recover and find the ability to speak again." Said Sakura.

"Thank you, Doctor." Said Shiori's father.

Sakura smiled, "It's my job."

Sakura patted Shiori's head before going to check on her next patient.