Chapter 182 [End of 3rd Round]
A suffocating silence enveloped the spacious ward. The air seemed to become thinner, and the chest seemed to be tightly squeezed by an invisible big hand. All one could feel was suffocation and hopelessness.
It was not until an unknown amount of time had passed that someone broke the silence.
"Sana-senpai, how could she...?!"
Taocheng Wu's pupils lost focus and his expression was one of disbelief and confusion.
The other regular players from Seigaku and Hyotei had the same expression as him.
They had just walked out of Kurikawa Sana's hospital room, finishing their visit. Their steps were almost frozen, and they didn't even know how they left.
Everyone who came out of the ward was incredibly pale, with faces filled with disbelief, astonishment and unacceptable shock.
Regret, heartache, depression, and disbelief.
A few nights ago, in this ward, Kurikawa Sana suffered cardiac arrest, which interrupted the blood and oxygen supply to the brain and caused severe brain hypoxia damage. She was diagnosed as "brain dead" and entered a persistent vegetative state.
A brain-dead vegetative patient is legally considered "dead".
If I want to see her open her eyes and wake up, I can only pray for a miracle.
Although everyone already knew that Sana was suffering from a terminal illness and didn't have much time left... but when that day really came and when they really saw it all with their own eyes, the shock was still hard to accept.
Such a beautiful person, whose laughter and joy could be seen not long ago, became like this in an instant, declared "dead" by modern medicine——
This realization alone is enough to make people so heartbroken that they can't breathe, and the unspeakable sadness overwhelms them like a torrent.
They are already like this, so what about those people who have deeper connections with Sana?
No one knew better than them how deeply those people loved Sana. As their teammates, they had witnessed everything along the way.
It is said that Yukimura and Atobe even watched Sana "leave" with their own eyes. During the last period of time that Sana stayed, they stayed with her until she suffered a cardiac arrest.
I don't know whether this is lucky or cruel. If it's the former, they accompanied Sana in her final moments, and the last and most profound people she would remember in her life would be them. If it's the latter, they also witnessed the scene that tore their hearts apart...
They watched with their own eyes as Sana closed her eyes, and saw with their own eyes that her heart stopped and her brain stopped getting oxygen, turning her into a vegetative state without any thinking or reaction.
The patient in the next ward on the same floor of the hospital was also in a vegetative state. After decades of companionship and painful suffering, his family finally decided to give up.
As if by chance, the topic of today's lecture in the auditorium of the University of Tokyo happened to be discussing "whether it is necessary for brain-dead vegetative patients to continue to persevere."
…But why?!
She was clearly lying there, even though her face was a little pale, but she seemed no different from usual, still so perfect, as if the angel had just fallen asleep temporarily. As long as you wait patiently, she will open her eyes again sooner or later...
But the cruel reality is that the possibility of this happening is extremely slim.
During the endless waiting period, the deeper the feelings, the more painful it will be.
I don't know who sighed first, or maybe they all sighed at the same time.
“…Let’s go out first and don’t disturb Sana’s rest.” Mukai Taketo clenched his fists and his voice became hoarse.
She had clearly prepared herself mentally before coming here, and had clearly promised not to cry... otherwise Sana would definitely be even more sad. She has never wanted to make others worry or sad.
But as soon as he said "Don't disturb her rest", even he himself felt his eyes sore and tears were about to burst out.
Yeah, it would be nice if she really was just "resting" and sleeping.
...Unfortunately not.
This was self-deception. Even if she wanted to convince herself that she would wake up after a good rest, she knew clearly in her mind that it was futile.
"Mr. Mukai..." Hou Chotaro's voice was a little choked. It was really too sad that his respected senior suddenly became like this.
"Don't be like this, Chotaro, she will be sad." Shishido Ryo closed his eyes, as if as long as he closed his eyes, some substance would not fall from inside.
When he closed his eyes, Shishido Ryo recalled the words he had blurted out to her at the very beginning -
"Are you kidding me, Chotaro? Who cares about her? Someone like her who only has Atobe and Obito on her mind...?"
These were the words he had said before, and Sana heard them with her own ears. The girl, wearing a velvet dress and happily preparing to attend the Hyotei Academy theme ball, heard his slip of the tongue as soon as she opened the door.
The girl's face was filled with shock and hurt, which is still vivid in my mind.
Shishido Ryo unconsciously clenched his fists, his nails digging deep into his palms, as if only this sharp feeling could bring him a moment of peace.
...Really, what on earth was he thinking at that time?!
Because of the stereotype and the initial bad impression of her behavior, I preconceived that she was trying to attract the attention of Atobe and Obito by sensationalism, and blurted out sharp words...
Yesterday, when Atobe told them the news that Sana from Hyotei had collapsed due to cardiac arrest, when they were all shocked, stunned and sad beyond words, Atobe also revealed a message.
Atobe said that when Sana couldn't hold on any longer and was about to leave, she finally told him the reasons why she had done those puzzling actions and behaviors.
She said she did that simply because she had a dream, in which she said that if she could make everyone like her, she wouldn't have to die.
It was indeed a surprising reason, but everyone knew that Atobe would not make any jokes now - he was actually speaking to Oshitari.
Among the people present yesterday, apart from Atobe, only Yuushi Oshitari had also received Sana's confession - Oshitari was qualified to know the truth and also needed to know the truth.
Shishido Ryo clearly remembered Oshitari's expression at that time.
I have never seen such an expression on Ozaki's face. Even the genius of Hyotei, who is always calm and composed and always puts rationality first, would have such moments of hesitation.
Just like now, Shishido Ryo couldn't help but open his eyes again and look at Oshitari Yuushi beside him.
The dark blue semi-long-haired boy had a pair of glasses on his nose that had no prescription and were only used to hide his emotions. Even at this moment, the glasses still reflected the light, making it impossible to see the emotions in his eyes.
But his tightly clenched fists, the tense muscles in his arms, the bulging veins, and the taut jawline and masseter muscles all revealed his inner restlessness.
...You must be regretting it if you tolerate him enough.
I regret not facing my feelings like Atobe did and moving forward courageously.
…
The teammates left one after another, and Yuushi Ozaki was left alone in the ward.
Sitting beside the hospital bed and looking at the girl's face which looked like she was just asleep, Yuushi Ozuki couldn't help but feel a little dazed.
My thoughts seemed to go back to the day of the Hyotei theme ball. The girl's waist-length black hair was curled into gorgeous curls. Her face, with delicate makeup, had a sweet and bright smile. Her black and gold Baroque-style velvet dress swayed gracefully with her dance steps.
At that time, he was dancing with her hand in his gentlemanly manner.
At that time, he clearly had the opportunity to really hold her hand...but he backed off.
At first, because of his rationality and calmness, even though he had developed an interest in her, he subconsciously avoided getting closer to her.
Later, because he found out that his good friend Atobe was serious about her, Obusuke Yuushi weighed the pros and cons in his heart, and felt that his interest in her was not strong enough to surpass his friendship with Atobe, so he backed off again and again.
How far did he retreat? Even though he was the first person to know about Sana's illness, even though he already knew that she had not much time left, he gave the last time he spent with Sana to Atobe.
It was given to Atobe, to Tezuka, Fuji, Echizen, Yukimura, and Shiraishi...it was given to many, many people.
No, it’s not so much about “letting” as it is that he himself is not sure whether he is “qualified” to be one of them and accompany her through her final moments.
Yuushi Oshitari lowered his eyes and looked at the quiet girl on the hospital bed. A trace of confusion appeared in his deep blue pupils.
As one of the first people she confessed to, his deliberate avoidance meant that he and Sana had very little time to spend together. To the point where he wasn't even sure if his feelings for her were deep enough to...accompany her through the final chapter of her life.
It seems not.
So he gave in again, leaving all the last bit of time and space to them.
They were starting from the same starting line and had both received her "confession", but the feelings between Atobe, Yukimura and Sana were much deeper and he could not compare with them.
Perhaps, in Sana's heart, his existence has gradually become blurred.
He has the ability to close his heart and not let anyone know his true thoughts. Because of this, perhaps Sana never discovered his thoughts until she actually left.
Yuushi Ozuki didn't know whether he was happy or regretful.
The time we spent together was so short that I couldn't say I liked her...but the heartache was so real and strong.
There seemed to be a feeling of weightlessness in my chest, as if I was thrown high into the sky and then dropped suddenly, and my internal organs seemed to be thrown out.
Yuushi Oshizuka knows this feeling.
Few people know that he likes to read literary novels, and sometimes reads romance novels. When he reads the heart-wrenching and heartbreaking plots in them, he often feels this way in his chest.
But the pain level now is incomparable to how many novels I read.
Because now, there is a real girl who is enough to amaze the whole years, and she is gradually withering away in front of him under his gaze day after day.
Oshizuka Yuushi remembered that Shishido Ryo had once asked him in a low voice: "Oshizuka, do you regret it?"
yes.
I regret it.
If he could do it again, even if he knew from the beginning that she was as brilliant as fireworks but fleeting, he would definitely run towards her without hesitation and determination... just like Atobe did.
The young man slowly took off his glasses. Without any material obstruction, he looked deeply at the girl on the hospital bed, as if he wanted to engrave everything about her into his heart.
At least, don't leave yourself with regrets.
At least, she wouldn't leave without knowing his feelings.
…
*
Akutsu Jin looked at the scene in disbelief.
The unconscious girl, the dripping instrument, the alarmingly low blood pressure and heart rate indicators, and the nutrient solution flowing into her body through the blue back of the girl's hand.
All of this made the pain that filled his chest seem like it was about to burst into flames.
“…What on earth just happened?!?”
When he heard from Kawamura Takashi that Kurikawa had suffered a heart attack, suffered cardiac arrest and became a vegetable, Akutsu Jin thought Kawamura was playing a bad joke.
He just sneered and replied, "Kawamura, I haven't seen you for a while. You've become worse. You dare to make such a low-level joke?!"
But Kawamura's reaction made him feel like he was falling into an ice cellar, and his heart seemed to be hung by a huge weight, falling straight to the bottom of the valley.
"I'm not kidding, Akutsu." Kawamura's honest face was also filled with pain and sadness. "Kurikawa-san really had an accident and is now in the University of Tokyo Hospital. She has always had a very dangerous congenital heart disease, and it finally flared up recently. I don't know if she will have a chance to wake up in the future..."
Before Kawamura Takashi could utter the last word, Jin Akutsu had already rushed out at an unprecedented speed.
As if he had gone mad, he didn't even use any means of transportation. He ran directly to the hospital that Kawamura mentioned in a very short time.
His unique physical fitness and amazing physical strength brought him to Kurikawa Sana at the fastest speed.
It was not until this moment that Akutsu Jin had to confirm that Kawamura did not lie to him.
——Something really happened to her.
Akutsu Jin stood in the ward for a long time with his fists clenched, pacing back and forth in front of her bed, his muscles tense and trembling. Finally, he mustered up the courage and gently touched her hand.
So thin.
It's so cold.
For a moment, Akutsu Jin's expression became a little confused.
incredible.
I haven't seen her for a while, how come she has become like this?!
Even when she became like this... he was the last one to know.
Akutsu Jin twitched the corners of his mouth almost in self-mockery.
He knew it, he knew it from the beginning.
He was out of her sight, a forgotten existence.
When they first met, the impression he left on her was his bad behavior of splashing water on Kawamura's face... Maybe she already hated him at that time.
Even when she rescued Tezuka Kunimitsu from the earthquake and she was injured, he, Akutsu Jin, was the last one to know. By the time he rushed to the hospital, she had already been discharged, and he had no choice but to look for her.
Her illness, her last moments, had nothing to do with him.
Just as he had initially felt, she was a princess at Tokyo's top academy, while he was a mischievous, quarrelsome, and aggressive student. Originally, the two of them should have had no connection, their paths had no intersection. Even if he was sincere, she had no obligation to reciprocate.
But he still liked her and still cared about her uncontrollably, even though she didn't care about him as much as she cared about others.
"Aren..."
A fragile mature female voice sounded, and Akutsu Jin turned around to look at the door. It was his mother.
Akutsu Yuuki covered her mouth and burst into tears, "I heard from Aaron... How could Sana become like this?"
Akutsu Jin didn't reply, he just stood there stiffly like a sculpture.
"How could this happen..." Akutsu Yuuki also repeated the same words almost dully, "I haven't had time to thank this child yet..."
"Thank her for what?" Akutsu Jin finally spoke. She had never heard that her mother had any private interactions with her before.
"Before, I asked Sana if she could help change you, Ni..." Akutsu Yuuki said with a sob: "Sana agreed, and you did change, Ni. Sana is really a good child..."
I see.
Akutsu Jin closed his eyes.
Should he be happy or sad? Of the few moments he and she had spent together, most had been at her mother's request. If he should be happy, it would be because she was willing to condescend to contact him in order to change him, to get him back on the right track.
But as expected, no matter what... he still couldn't let her go.
"...Is there anything I can do for her?" Akutsu Jin's voice was unusually hoarse, as if he was asking his mother, but also as if he was talking to himself.
She was frail, but he was just the opposite. His God-given strong body was his greatest advantage.
If only he could share it with her…his health.
"Pray, Jin." Akutsu Yuuki stopped crying, and her weak eyes became firm. "Pray with me."
Please believe...
A miracle will surely happen one day.
…
*
A month later.
"Yukimura."
"Um."
"...You should also take care of yourself." Yanagi Renji couldn't help but sigh and said, "If Kurikawa could wake up, she wouldn't want to see you like this."
"She will be very worried about you." Yanagi Renji said again.
Yukimura Seiichi couldn't help but stop.
I always feel that this scene is very familiar. It seemed to be the same when Lian Er accompanied him to the hospital for a physical examination.
At that time, Renji and he were at the hospital in Kanagawa together when they discovered Sana's condition.
Today, after a long time, Renji often accompanies him to visit Sana in the hospital in Tokyo.
During the short walk down the stairs together, Lian Er finally couldn't help but express his inner concerns and advised him to take care of his health.
"I'm sorry," Yukimura Seiichi said, "I've made you worried about my recent condition."
"It's okay." Yanagi Renji shook his head slowly, "As long as you can adjust."
"Speaking of which... Renji, thank you."
Yanagi Renji looked at him in surprise, "What's wrong with this all of a sudden...thank me for what?"
"Your analysis of Sana's behavior was correct. If you hadn't given me Sana's phone number, I might have missed even more time with her." Yukimura Seiichi lowered his voice. "So, thank you, Renji."
Thank you for allowing me to reach her as early as possible during her remaining, limited, and extremely precious time.
Every minute and every second of her time is precious.
The sooner you take the initiative to take steps in her direction, the less regret you will have.
"Jingshi..." Liu Lianer sighed deeply. As smart as he was, he immediately understood the other party's intention. "There's no need to say thank you or not."
It's all fate.
It’s fate and destiny.
"Renji, you should go back first." Yukimura Seiichi looked up at the floor where Kurikawa Sana's ward was located. "I'm downstairs. I'll stay with her for a while longer."
"……good."
Yanagi Renji left.
Seiichi Yukimura sat alone downstairs. The wisteria flowers in the hospital corridor garden were blooming again, just like the scene when they pushed her wheelchair together and walked through it.
At that time, they were enthusiastically discussing taking Sana to see the aurora, but that night, she suffered a cardiac arrest and never woke up again.
Going to see the aurora together... ultimately became an unfulfilled promise.
But the unfulfilled promise is more than just the aurora.
They had agreed to play a game of tennis together, but on the way to the court, he collapsed on the station platform. And now, it was her turn to collapse.
Yukimura Seiichi couldn't help but recall that time when he was watching the match between Sana and Echizen on the cruise ship. He had thought, it was just a match, let Echizen take the lead, it wasn't like there would be no chance to play again in the future...
As a result, there really was no chance.
...If only I could go back to the past.
Yukimura Seiichi slowly lowered his eyes.
If he could go back to the past, he would not only fulfill the unfinished promise, but also take back the words that hurt her... Also, he wanted to tell her his feelings as soon as possible.
Even now, when I think back on it, I still find it hard to understand why he told Sana his true feelings only a few minutes before she left.
Medically speaking, after brain death, a person completely loses all consciousness and is no longer able to think or recall anything. This means that in Sana's life, she was only aware of his feelings for those few brief minutes.
Before that, she had never really been sure what he, Yukimura Seiichi, was thinking.
Perhaps she would still remember his slip of the tongue, and would feel pain when she recalled it from time to time. Perhaps she would think that he only accompanied her in his final moments out of sympathy or pity... Perhaps she really did not realize until the moment he left that he simply loved her.
Whenever I think of this, the dull pain in my heart turns into a sharp sting, and the intense regret is like a sharp knife, spinning, twisting and rolling in it, bringing dense pain.
Yukimura Seiichi raised his hand to cover his chest.
Sana has been experiencing this kind of pain over and over again since she was a child.
Ren Wang was right. Since he knew her time was precious, he should have been seizing every moment to cherish her time...
Veins bulged out from the back of Yukimura Seiichi's hands as he grabbed his clothes on his chest.
It was just that Ren Wang was able to understand the truth immediately when he spoke to her for the first time, but he only came to his senses later when it was too late to change.
As if what he thought of came true, Niou Masaharu walked out from the corridor behind.
"What a coincidence, Minister Yukimura." Niou Masaharu sat down next to him. "I just happened to come to visit her. There are still many people here today. I saw Tezuka and his family from Seigaku."
Yukimura Seiichi hummed softly.
"Come to think of it, my words really did come true, Chief." Niou Masaharu looked up at the sky, his emerald eyes unclear as to his emotions. "People who are too stunning are like butterflies flapping their wings, disappearing in the blink of an eye."
“………”
Yukimura Seiichi was silent.
"You know what? Buchou, I really want to see her open her eyes again, even if it's just for a moment."
Ignoring the other person's silence, Niou Masaharu continued muttering, "So, lately, I've been trying to 'imitate' her again. I think I've improved a bit, and can now imitate her 70% to 70%. Before, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get even half the look."
Yukimura Seiichi was stunned for a moment, and looked at Niou Masaharu in surprise, and found that they were not the only ones who looked a little crazy.
It turns out that in the invisible corner, Nioh's... is hidden so deeply.
"But, when I finally faced the mirror, I finally let it all go." Niou Masaharu curled his lips. "She is who she is. No one can imitate her, not even me. Continuously imitating her seems to mean that she really can't wake up again... Let's not do that."
"At first, I thought I only cared about her because she was the only one I couldn't imitate... But now I can imitate her 70% of the time, but I still feel sad when I think of her. It's so strange, why is it, Minister Yukimura?"
"Niou, you should know the reason better than anyone else." Yukimura Seiichi answered him.
"Really? Maybe."
The white-haired boy stood up with his hands in his trouser pockets and continued as if speaking to himself, "I'll wait."
"Waiting to see her wake up, waiting to see the moment she opens her eyes again."
Yukimura Seiichi looked up at the same sky, the clear blue reflected in his eyes, reflecting the same deep blue as the person in his heart.
That's right.
He will wait too.
Until she opened her eyes again.
…
*
In Kurikawa Sana's ward, Tezuka Kunimitsu had just seen off his parents and grandfather. He sat down beside the bed and gently held her hand. His movements were gentle, which was very different from his appearance.
"Sana." He called her softly.
"I've been thinking about something a lot lately. I even wondered if the time you saved me during the earthquake drained all your strength, and that's when your heart started to weaken rapidly."
"You only pushed yourself through this difficult journey to avoid worrying me, my family, and everyone else. During my time in the hospital, I often heard doctors say that many terminally ill patients experience a period of last moments of lucidity before passing away because they have unfulfilled wishes and don't want to leave with regrets."
Did you leave because you had no regrets in the end?
A trace of confusion flashed across the young man's face, which rarely showed any expression.
How can I not feel regret? Sana.
Every day after that, he missed her.
Kunimitsu Tezuka thought countless times that if he had protected Sana under his body when the earthquake struck, would the ending of the story be completely different?
Atobe once asked him whether his feelings for Sana were because he liked her as a person, or just a sense of responsibility for her saving his life.
It's the former.
Kunimitsu Tezuka had never been so certain of anything.
He is willing to give everything in exchange for her happiness.
If she could survive, she would be able to go see her favorite aurora with a smile, instead of leaving like now, leaving only a few words.
"Sana..."
The boy's back was straight, but he looked so fragile and lonely from behind.
"I'd do anything for you."
"Please, wake up."
…
*
Fujiya.
When the doorbell rang, the Fujiya siblings subconsciously looked at each other - it was Zhou Jue who came back.
"I'm back." said Fuji Shusuke.
Every time at this time, it is time for Zhou Zhu to visit Sana. Every time after returning from the hospital, although he tries hard to hide it well and not to affect others, there is still an inextricable sadness in him.
"Brother..." Fuji Yuta couldn't help but ask, "Is Kurikawa-senpai still not feeling any better today?"
Fuji Shusuke shook his head slightly.
Yumiko Fuji let out a regretful sigh.
"Speaking of which..."
As if he suddenly remembered something, Fuji Yuta muttered in a daze, "No wonder Sana-senpai had such a big reaction to the damaging 'Clear Sky Intercept' I used on him... So that's how it is..."
Fuji Shusuke paused and immediately understood what his younger brother Yuta meant.
Because she has had a fatal heart disease since childhood, she cherishes her health more than anyone else. She cannot bear to see others have precious healthy bodies but not cherish them.
That's why she tried so hard to stop Yuta from hurting himself again, and taught him new tricks so that he wouldn't get stuck in a dead end.
It turns out that many minor details had signs in advance. When you think back and connect them together, you will find that everything is so obvious, but you were blinded by prejudice at the time and failed to notice it.
Whenever he thought back to the hurtful words he had said to her, Fuji Shusuke would feel as if his heart was being tightly squeezed by an invisible hand, and even his breathing tasted of rust.
In the middle of the night, he would often dream from the perspective of an outsider, dreaming of his former self coldly driving her away. He wanted to scream, but it was no use.
Fuji Shusuke saw that the girl in the dream turned pale. After being rejected, she would clutch her clothes around her chest, give a forced smile, and then stagger away.
Don't do this to her—
Then, he would suddenly wake up from the nightmare, unable to change the past and unable to see her awake again.
…
After regaining his composure, Fuji Shusuke lowered his eyes and listened to what his younger brother Fuji Yuta continued to say.
"Kurikawa-san taught me a more powerful fighting style, and my health is getting better day by day, but she herself..."
When he said this, Fuji Yuta couldn't help but lower his head, not wanting his brother and sister to see his appearance, and tears fell into the rice.
"Brother, I really want to say thank you to Kurikawa-san in person again... Will she still have a chance to hear it?"
“……!”
Fuji Shusuke's eyes dimmed, the slender joints holding the chopsticks turned white, and his fingers trembled slightly.
Fuji Yumiko's heart trembled, and she quickly held Fuji Yuta's hand, "Yuta... Zhousuke will be very sad like this..."
"It doesn't matter." Fuji Shusuke said softly: "For me, if everyone gradually forgets her, that would be the saddest thing for me."
Upon hearing this, Fuji Yuta and Fuji Yumiko were both stunned.
The highest level of love is heartache.
Zhou helps him...
I'm afraid I'll never be able to get out of this.
…
*
Echizen House.
"Hey, long time no see, Dad..."
A tall and handsome young man walked leisurely into the Echizen residence. He had the same dark green hair and amber eyes as Echizen Ryoma, but he was more mature and oppressive.
Echizen Nanjiro turned around and looked at him, his expression also showing a rare surprise, "Longya - why are you back?!"
The person who came was Ryoma Echizen, the adopted son of Nanjiro Echizen and the elder brother of Ryoma Echizen, with whom he had a deep relationship.
"What's wrong, Dad? It seems like you don't welcome me back to Japan?" Echizen Ryuya raised his eyebrows.
"No way! I told you that even if we can't live together, you will always be Ryoma's brother and my son, Nanjiro. That will never change." Echizen Nanjiro said, "I'm just a little surprised. Why did you suddenly come back to Japan without even saying hello? Did something happen?"
"Don't laugh at me for telling you this." Echizen Ryuga shrugged. "I had a nightmare a few days ago. I dreamed that Little Bit suddenly lost his memory and completely forgot about the existence of his brother... So I flew back specially to see if this was true."
"Amnesia? That's not the case. Ryoma has a very good memory." Echizen Nanjiro thought, if he had amnesia, that kid would probably go crazy... There are things he absolutely cannot forget.
"Really? Isn't that great? Where is he? I'll go and tease him and give him a surprise."
Echizen Nanjiro paused, "Ryoma...I'm afraid he's not in the mood right now."
"Why? Are you throwing a tantrum because of your rebellious teenage years?" Echizen Ryuya laughed.
Echizen Nanjiro: "The girl he liked turned into a vegetable."
Echizen Ryuya stood there in a daze.
Putting away his cynical smile, he sighed and asked, "Where's the little one? I'll go see him."
…
When Ryouma Echizen came to the hospital carrying a big bag of oranges, he finally saw Xiaobutian, whom he hadn't seen for a long time, and the girl that Xiaobutian liked.
The little one had grown up, both physically and mentally. Physically, Ryoma had grown taller and gained muscle. Mentally, the little brother who had been like a tiny bean sprout when he was little now had a girl he liked.
It's just a pity that the girl he likes...
Echizen Ryuya shifted his gaze to the hospital bed and was slightly stunned.
The girl on the hospital bed closed her eyes tightly, her long eyelashes drooped, and her crow-feather-like black hair spread out like a waterfall. The sunlight from outside the window slipped in and sprinkled on her delicate facial features, making her incredibly beautiful.
…This is the girl that Little Bit likes.
Very beautiful.
Echizen Ryoma withdrew his gaze, without any romantic thoughts, only concern for his younger brother whom he had watched grow up since childhood.
The little one also turned his gaze to him. Echizen Ryoma was surprised at first. The two brothers reminisced about the past after a long time, and then... Echizen Ryoma listened to the story of his younger brother and the girl named Kurikawa Sana from the perspective of a listener and an older brother.
Echizen Ryoma rarely talks so much at once, even Echizen Ryoma finds it incredible. After hearing Nanjiro say that the little one will have a very awkward personality when he grows up, it is hard to imagine that he would actually confide in himself all this.
But it seems understandable. I always feel that with Longma's current condition, if he doesn't say it, he will break... and won't be able to hold on.
From his narration, the lively and lovely girl came to life, and just listening to her made people feel as if a warm current was flowing through their hearts.
Because of this, the more I heard the latter part, the more sour and painful my heart became.
…
Echizen Ryoma's voice was soft, as if he had returned to that day. "Finally, she left in front of us, smiling."
Echizen Ryuga sighed softly.
He reached out and gently touched Echizen Ryoma's head, just like he had touched his brother's head countless times when they were children.
"She'll wake up, little one."
"For you, for all of you, she will definitely wake up."
…
*
In the blink of an eye, winter came.
A young man dressed in special attire walked into the hospital corridor. The red and black wizard robe of Gryffindor in the Harry Potter movies was already very eye-catching, but with his striking gray-brown hair and amazingly handsome face, he became even more eye-catching.
Amid the surprised gazes of the people in the hospital, Shiraishi Kuranosuke came to Kurikawa Sana's ward wearing a magic robe that was out of place.
Gently, he placed Sana's magic robe beside her bed.
"In this way, we have fulfilled the unfinished promise, right? Sana." Shiraishi Kuranosuke said softly.
In this way, we can be considered to be wearing magic robes together in winter.
"Hey, Sana, let me tell you something."
Shiraishi Kuranosuke sat down beside her bed, leaning against the metal railings, and shared, "Before coming here, I went to Shinsaibashi again last night by myself and ate the black tea-flavored apple candy, Hakata yakitori, and okonomiyaki that you once praised so much..."
"I can't help it. I really missed you so much... Sana."
"I went to USJ again and rode the Hollywood Dream roller coaster in reverse order, wanting to understand how you felt back then..."
Sana... wants to go back to the past, right?
If only she could go back to the past...if only she could have a healthy body.
Not only that, he also went out of his way to buy a magic wand.
If only there really was a magical world, then magical magic could save her.
Unfortunately, there is no if, unfortunately, he is just a Muggle.
Shiraishi Kuranosuke gave a wry smile.
"Sana, I really, really miss you."
Shiraishi Kuranosuke leaned over and gently kissed the corner of the girl's lips, with endless tenderness, just like when she took the initiative to stand on tiptoe and kiss the corner of his lips.
But in the end, as if unable to restrain himself, his kiss gradually moved upwards until it completely covered her, lips to lips——
A full kiss.
"In the end, I was indeed greedy..." Shiraishi Kuranosuke murmured.
If only it could be like in fairy tales, where the princess would wake up to a loving kiss from the prince.
"Sana."
"Would you like me to be the prince in the fairy tale?"
"Please wake up if you want."
…
*
Time is passing slowly.
The young man with purple-gray middle-length hair, wearing a suit and holding a bouquet of bright red roses in his arms, came to the familiar place as usual.
Atobe Keigo never forgot his promise.
He would always give her flowers and keep one by his side. As long as the flower next to him withered, he would know that it was time to give her new flowers.
He never gave up on her treatment and searched all over the world for famous doctors. He had already visited cardiologists and neurosurgeons who specialized in treating vegetative states.
As long as there is even a glimmer of hope, he will not give up.
When placing the bouquet of flowers at Sana's bedside, Keigo Atobe keenly noticed that there were many other bouquets of flowers in Sana's ward, to the point where her room was almost flooded with a sea of flowers.
Even if the flowers were sent by people he knew from other schools, it was still too much.
But what surprised Keigo Atobe the most was that he had actually run into Akashi Seijuro here a few days ago.
Akashi Seijuro, the only son of the Akashi Group and a descendant of one of Japan's top conglomerates, Akashi Seijuro is someone he has known since he was a child.
Why is Akashi here? Is he sick, or is his friend sick?
Keigo Atobe and Seijuro Akashi met in the corridor on the same floor. They exchanged a few simple greetings, but Keigo Atobe had an inexplicable intuition that Akashi should be here to see Sana.
This should have been an unlikely guess, but after sending someone to confirm it, Atobe Keigo's pupils suddenly contracted.
——Akagi really came to find Sana.
As soon as Akashi Seijuro arrived at the hospital, he walked straight into Sana's ward and stayed there for a long time before coming out.
Not only that, the surveillance also showed that many more people came to visit Sana recently. Atobe Keigo was sure that he didn't know them, but the expressions of each of them were so consistent - heartache, sadness, sorrow, regret, and...
The love is obvious and ready to burst out.
For a moment, Keigo Atobe even felt his heart rate suddenly soar.
At the same time, the last words Sana said before her heart stopped suddenly appeared in his mind, echoing continuously——
[If I can successfully make you like me, I won't have to die.]
“……!!”
If something flashes by, you can catch it immediately.
It's the truth.
Keigo Atobe never doubted that what Sana said at the end was true, but he never thought that this sentence would come true.
Trembling slightly, Keigo Atobe turned back towards Sana's ward without hesitation. His steps were quick and he ran at the fastest speed.
There were more people than ever in Sana's ward, crowded together like a huge crowd. Almost at the same time, Atobe Keigo heard the nurse's surprised cry -
"She's awake... Miss Kurikawa is awake!!!"
“Unbelievable…”
"Doctor, go call a doctor!"
…
Like a princess in a fairy tale, the girl's long eyelashes trembled like butterfly wings.
She slowly opened her beautiful eyes that were as blue as the clear sky, and her snow-white skin was flushed with blood. She was so beautiful that it made people hold their breath.
The world was silent again, and she was the only one.
"Sana..."
Atobe Keigo heard that he and the people around him...all sighed the same way.
A miracle—really happened.
God.
Please fulfill her wish.
【Third week, finished.】
Volume 4 Basketball Volleyball Tennis
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