The Perfect One...

Chapter Two: A Bird of No Wings [Part 1]

-Shinrai’s POV-

            Aishh~ I let out a deep sigh. Hana and her friends are too annoying. I can’t stand their irksome behavior. What, is it wrong to not having a boyfriend at the age of 19? I don’t think so… A deep, long breath is taken again. I put my hood up as I feel the cold. It’s raining heavily tonight.

            As I’m passing the street that is usually taken by me, I see a body lying on the ground. “Eh? Who’s that? Lying on the ground? In this rain? I wonder who’s that…” I mutter while taking steps towards that body. I have to stoop in order to see that person’s face. “A boy? Is he sleeping?” I’m whingeing about that boy.

            But when I move his body a bit to see his face, my heart has stopped beating. I rub my eyes, to make sure of what I have seen. I look at him again, my heart pounding in my chest. “Ryosuke-… kun?” I call for his name with disbelief.

            Do not care of getting wet, I sweep towards him. I put my palm on his forehead. So hot! He’s getting a cold! Seeing him breathless has filled me with dread. He looks very pale and drawn! Quickly I take off my hoodie and put it on him, hoping that this could lessen the coldness that he feels. Although me, myself feel the icy coldness until the innermost skin of mine, I don’t care about it. Right now, I’m worried of you, Ryosuke-kun. Why this is happening to you? I am in tears to see you in this kind of condition.

            I know that I have to do something. Forcefully, I hold his shoulders tightly to prop him up. Frankly speaking, I don’t know where I should take him to. His house? I don’t know where is it. To the hospital? Ahh~ It’s far from here and it’s raining cats and dogs. Then, where? I give a sudden jerk of my head when hearing the whisper of my heart. Wha-What?! Taking him home… to my house?! I can feel the embarrassment surging inside me.

            I talk to my own self, “But he’s a boy. I-I’ve never brought any boys home. And plus, what will my neighbors say if they see me taking him home.” I feel my cheeks flush crimson. So red! My head is shook for times while my heart is pounding hardly. “Mu-Muri desu! It’s impossible for me to bring him home!”

But…

            “Hi-Hiromi-chan… Please… don’t le-leave me… I don’t want to be separated with you… You know how much I have loved you…” My heart stops beating while my eyes are wide opened when hearing Ryosuke is talking in his sleep. I’m on the verge of tears to hear that. A deep, heavy breath is taken, “Nee, Ryosuke-kun. You love Hiromi-chan that much eh? Until you are deeply hurt like this.” My heart is flowing with sadness. Then, I make the effort to bring him home.

-End of Shinrai’s POV-

            When reaching home, Shinrai quickly takes Ryosuke to her room and lays him on the futon. “Ahh~ I’m so tired!” She speaks alone. But then she remembers something, “Ah, yes! Now I remember!” In a hurry, she goes to the kitchen and comes back minutes later while holding a container of warm water and a small, white towel.

            She takes a seat beside the futon and then she realizes something. “Oh my God. I forgot that his body is wet. Why am I so forgetful to not remembering it?” She slaps her forehead quite hard. “Now, what shall I do? Changing his clothes?” she is flushing deeply and starts to panic, “Uh oh… That’s too embarrassing! There’s no way that I can change a boy’s clothes! Muri desu~”

            She walks about aimlessly in her room, “Then, should I leave him wet like that?” She thinks for a while and after that she shakes her head. “Yada. Yada ne! That’s too cold for him and I can’t just leave him like that! Un. Yada ne!” She talks alone to herself and sometimes she nods her head.

            She rushes towards the wardrobe to search for clothes that would fit Ryosuke’s body. After searching for minutes, she has found her old, big-sized clothes. “I hope this would fit him well.” She mutters. She comes closer to Ryosuke to change into dry clothes. Her heart is throbbing hardly. Her face is too much crimson with embarrassment.

            Her beautiful fingers start to Ryosuke’s shirt. She closes her eyes as soon as she takes Ryosuke’s clothes off. She doesn’t have the guts to see him in that kind of condition. She is not a ert girl! After that, he is clothed quickly with the dry clothes. She breathes a sigh of relief. “I’m glad that it’s now over. I swear that this will be the last time for me to do that.” The fact is, she is still blushing.

            She unfolds a new futon as the other one is wet. Once again, forcefully, Shinrai holds his shoulders tightly to prop him up to the new futon. Once Ryosuke is laid on ita, Shinrai soaks the small towel into the warm water, then squeezes it out in order to remove the liquid from it. She puts the towel on his forehead. But unexpectedly, when Shinrai is putting the towel on his forehead, Ryosuke takes hold of her hand. She is extremely shocked. Has he awake now? She asks herself that question.

            Weakly, he looks at her and says, “Hi-Hiromi-…chan? I-I’m glad… that you’re here for me…” he manages a weak smile. She is hurt to hear his saying. She fights back the tears and tries to force a smile. Her head is nodded, “Hai. But now you have to get some rest. You’re too tired about today.” At that times, she feels like her heart is going to explode because of the overwhelming sadness that she feels.

            Ryosuke is nodding and smiling weakly, “Un.” After making sure that he has fell asleep, Shinrai couldn’t help the tears from streaming down her cheeks. Ryosuke’s words haave hurt her feelings in silence. She feels so upset that he has mistook her as Hiromi. She can still accept and understand if he asks, “Who are you?” to her but he doesn’t ask her that. The worse is, he has mistook Shinrai as Hiromi. Which girls’ hearts wouldn’t be hurt because of this?

            She wipes the tears away. She looks at the sleeping him and gives a faint smile, “Nee, Ryosuke-kun… I shouldn’t be like this, right? I should understand your situation, deshou?” She wipes the fallen tears away again. She tries to calm her down. “Demo ne… It’s still hurting me, knowing how much your love towards her. She is lucky, but she… has left you. Hiromi-chan is cruel… She has wiped the smile off your face. My heart hurts so much to see you suffering like this. Just if you know how much I love you, Ryosuke-kun…” She is imploring him, her eyes filling with tears.

            That night, she spends a sleepless night, worrying and taking care of Ryosuke. Shinrai’s love towards him is so great but what a waste that he doesn’t know.

****

            Shinrai is busy washing the dishes when she heard a noise, coming from her room. She quickly rushes towards her room and sees Ryosuke, calling for Hiromi’s name. She feels grievous to see him, trying to get up to search for never here Hiromi. She dashes towards him, “Ryosuke-kun, anata wa daijoubu desuka?” She asks him with care. He then looks at her with weirdness, “Kimi wa dare desuka?” She asks weakly but his forehead is wrinkled.

-Ryosuke’s POV-

            I see a stranger right before my eyes. A girl. I gaze at her, without realizing that I’m doing so. Her skin is snowy but she has rosy cheeks which look so delicate. She has a pair of big, clear brown eyes. Her eyelashes are long. And she’s brunette. Her shoulder-length hair is straight and shiny, looking so smooth. My first impression, she is cute but if she takes off her white-framed glasses, she will look cuter.

            I bash myself for thinking and gazing at a girl that I don’t know like that. Baka ne, Ryosuke. You better stop doing that now! I speak to my own self. “Who are you?” I ask her with my forehead is wrinkled.

            “Ano… I-” She couldn’t finish her words as I have cut in. I remember something! “Anyway, are you a friend of Hiromi-chan? Where is she?” I take a look around the room, hoping that I could see her. But she is nowhere to be found. I look at that girl again. She’s being so quiet so it bothers me a lot. “Where is Hiromi? She’s here last night! Oshiete kudasai!”

            She speaks with a stammer, “Sh-She has never been here. And she’s not my friend. I don’t even know her.” I look at her with a scowl, “Uso… She’s here last night! I saw her!” I feel disappointed when seeing she is shaking her head, “Uso janai. She has never been here. I’m the one who take care of you last night! She doesn’t even know that you are sick!” My body feels weak for even more when I hear her answer.

-End of Ryosuke’s POV-

-Shinrai’s POV-

            He looks melancholy. Frankly speaking, I can sense his deep feelings of sadness. Suddenly, he laughs, blinking back unexpected tears. “Yappari… She really has left me.” He laughs again. I know that his laugh betrays his grief and wounded heart. He tries to not show it. He tries to look strong in front of others. Ryosuke, why are you torturing yourself like this?

            “Ryosuke-kun…? Doua no?”

            He gives me a steady but weak look and he shakes his head, “Nanimonai…” There is a brief silence before he speaks, “Nee… Can you lend me your cell phone?” I give him a shocked look, “Eh? Watashi no geitaidenwa?”

            He weakly nods his head, “Yeah. I want to give my family a call. They might be worried that I was not going home last night.” Now I understand! Quickly I take my cell phone which is on the bedside table and give it to him. “Sankyuu.” He thanks me while giving me a little smile. He, by any chance, is not forcing himself to smile, right? I wonder about that.

            I stand up after helping him leaning towards the wall. “Soe… If you excuse me, I want to resume back my work in the kitchen.” He nods his head without looking into my eyes. His eyes are on the phone. I get out the room and close the door slowly. I am sat on the floor in front of the door, hugging my knees.

            “Ryosuke-kun… You can only see Hiromi-chan in your eyes, aren’t you? There is no way that I can get your love because you don’t even look at me. Although your heart has wounded because of her, yet you still mention her name. It’s hurting me to see you torturing yourself like that. Could you please forget her, for your own sake?” I cry alone, silently.

****

            I get the door after someone has knocked it. An elderly lady and a girl of twentysomething can be seen there. I smile shyly, “Umm… Can I help you?” I wonder who are they? Shikashi, matte! They do have the little resemblance with…

-End of Shinrai’s POV-

-Chihiro’s POV-

            Oh my… This girl is cute! I then ask her smilingly, “Nee… We are here to bring Ryosuke home. He’s here, deshou? Uh oh… By the way, I am his older sister, Yamada Chihiro and this is my beloved mum.” We shake our right hands in greeting. “Yamamura Shinrai desu~!”

            “Ryosuke? Hai, kare wa koko ni aru! Please come in.” I think I like Shinrai because of her courtesy. What a nice girl! She then shows us where Ryosuke is. I am really choked to see how weak he is. We rush forward him. He gives both of us a weak and faint smile, “Okaasan… Nee-chan. I-I am happy to see you. Hontouni shiawase desu.” quickly my mother folds him in her arms. She is so upset so she asks, “Ryosuke, doua no? Oshiete kudasai!”

            Tears well up in his eyes but he keeps his mouth shut. I sit beside him and lay my hand on his shoulder. “Tell us, what has been happening to you? This is too sudden. Last night, you are still in the best of health.”

            “My heart has sank. I feel the heartbreak.” Large teardrops run down his cheeks as he begins to speak. I wonder what has happened to him. “What happened? Please tell us! Last night, you were not like this. Misaki and I could see how happy you were because you would be going on a date with Hiromi-chan. Now you are being like this. Is there anything has happened with your date? Oshiete… Don’t be like this.”

            His head is shook, “I don’t want to talk about this. I want to go home. Onegai…” I shrug and heave a heavy sigh, “Ii yo.” I turn my head to Shinrai and say smilingly, “Thank you for taking care of my brother. We really appreciate that and sorry for troubling you. Now we will bring him home. Shinrai-chan, futatabi arigatou gozaimaa!” I bow my head, showing her some respect.

            She replies with a smile, “Daijoubu desu. I’m happy to help.” She is so cute when smiling like that! In front of the main door, we hug each other. “It’s really nice meeting you, Shinrai-chan.” We break free the embrace and I smile to her, “I hope we can meet again in the future.” She nods her head with a great smile on her lips, “It’s nice meeting you too, Chihiro-san. Un. I hope the same thing too.”

            Before I get into the car, I look at her and say goodbye. She waves her hand cutely and replies, “Sayounara~!” Then my family and I left her house.

            I look at my brother beside me. He’s sleeping, his head is on my mum’s shoulder. He looks so weak and tired… and heartbroken. I wonder what has happened between him and Hiromi-chan. Something that he keeps as a secret. Dear brother, why don’t you tell me? I’m your sister, right? A deep, heavy sigh is let out.

-End of Chihiro’s POV-

To be continued…