Chapter Twenty :: Once in a Lifetime Weakness

One week later

"Ah! Hikari!" Akira squealed as she spun around, holding close to her friend, "You look so cute in this dress, I want to do your hair too." Hikari bowed her head, nodded and then looked up at Akira who was in a beautiful, off-white dress. "I can't believe that stupid Tadashi."

"You think he's really that bad?" Sakura asked, avoiding eye contact with Hikari at all times, "I think that a guy who lies is worse. Lying is the worst thing that you can..." Hikari stared up at her at that point, and felt her stomach churn. She knew full well that she was the reason why Kei was currently hospitalized. If she hadn't have lied to him, it would never have gotten this bad.

"I think that there are a lot worse things than lying to cover things up," Finn sighed, "Before my brother was born I grew up lying to people. Ryuu was able to understand that, and so he helped me lie too. If you're doing it to protect someone who you care about that's a pretty noble thing, at least I'd like to think so."

"Aww, Hikari-chan!" Akira smiled as she pulled Hikari towards the hair accessories, "You have to try some of these on for me."

Standing in front of them Hikari froze staring at a beret with pink gems on it with "#2" in diamonds. She offered that clip a semi-vacant expression before turning back to Akira. "Let's make this wedding the best ever right!?" she smiled, masking the fear inside of her.

"Do you want a lift there?" the bride-to-be asked, "I think we're going to choose these dresses so you're free to go, and see him."

"Ah no," Hikari smiled weakly, she backed away from Akira a little before putting on a happy face, "Let's just put our hard work into making the wedding preparations."

"So once again you're not with him when he needs you," Sakura whispered as she looked away, her grudge completely obvious. Sure this wasn't the moral choice that she would have picked but it was the one that Hikari had picked.

"Do you like Kei?" Finn asked staring across at Sakura, "I mean, do you want to go out with him? It seems that way to me, otherwise it would probably be easier to lighten up and have the fun that planning all these things can bring. Plus, I get to wear this really pretty dress for Ryuu."

Sakura stood very still as she heard the princess's words, "I find that once someone betrays a certain trust that it's not wise to come back, no matter how welcome the person may appear to be. Jun-kun would never betray me as Hikari betrayed Kei, especially since she chose to start dating again whilst he couldn't. It's the worst thing that someone can do."

"I'm really sorry about that," Hikari whispered, closing her eyes as she imagined the pain that her prince had had to face these past few years. "I know that I'm the reason that he's in the hospital right now, I don't know if I can forgive myself, but I'd like to stay beside him. Even though I won't be able to challenge him for a long time, I realized when I was away just how deeply I care for him."

"Then go see the idiot," Akira replied as she looked away, "I have to meet with Sumire-san today anyway," at that she shivered not sure what that woman would make of this. Hopefully something good. She had been dating Tadashi for coming close to four years now. It was the pregnancy that she was more afraid of telling her about.

As she thought that, she looked at herself in the mirror before hearing a voice that she didn't want to hear. "So here you are bear lady, I was trying to track you down."

Sakura's eyes lit up as she stared at Tadashi with his relaxed smile, arms behind his head, and leaning back a little. Trying to avert her eyes she looked at the idiot and walked over, pulling his hand. "You don't see the bride in a wedding dress! It's really bad luck," she sighed. She stood quite still, making sure that Tadashi wouldn't look that way again, as she was standing there a shoe came flying through the air as it struck Tadashi on the head.

"You really stupid idiot!!" Akira snapped at him, "What do you think you're doing coming in here!?"

"My mother set up a meeting with her this afternoon," the man commented, rubbing the sore part of his head, "So, I just wanted to tell you that. I also wanted to ask you about cake! What kind of cake do you think we're going to have? Also, don't you think that they'd have some underwear here as well. I mean it is supposedly a very important night," he grinned before the second shoe hit him on the head.

"You idiot!" Akira snapped again, "If you don't get out of here then there won't be any skimpy underwear, you perverted moron!"

"That's great too," Tadashi laughed, "No underwear, anyway I'm going to go now. Ryuu and I promised Kei that we'd come to visit him," with that he turned to leave. Before he had walked out, he felt someone grab him from behind and turned to see Hikari there, her head bowed.

"Can I come with you as well?" she very weakly spoke, carrying the same tone of voice, and facial expression of a young widow.

Tadashi nodded before tilting his head to the side, "Get changed, and we'll go. You wanna come too bear lady?"

"Later, I'll go see him later," Akira replied as she turned her back on her fiancee a little, "I have to discuss something with him alone."

Meanwhile

"Kei-sama, you really don't need to push yourself this far," Aoi commented as he watched the black haired boy clutch onto the side of the door, completely worn out. Inside he felt so pathetic, he was used to running this distance in only a couple of seconds so why couldn't he do that anymore? It was just a cold right? He should have gotten over it by now.

"You're making better improvement then the doctors said nii-chan," Sui spoke up, the concern in his eyes at seeing him like this. "Nii-chan do you think that you'll be okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine!!" Kei snapped back, unable to keep his emotions in check. He felt so weak at this point, he couldn't even walk across the room without wanting to pass out, and in front of all these people it was embarrassing.

Satoru walked over to his son, "Kei, it's alright. All we want to do is help you. You want papa to help you again, you seem a bit worn out, if Hikari-chan were to see you like this."

"She won't see me like this!" the nineteen year old yelled again, it really was difficult to keep his emotions in order and it scared him. He didn't know what had brought him to this condition, what had landed him in the hospital came from trying to run away from it all right? To run away with Hikari, sure he had gained a little sickness from the stress, but nothing to get him into this situation. Nothing that he knew of anyway.

"It's because you tried to drown yourself nii-chan, because you don't eat, because your body has been weakening ever since you were on life support for the sixth time. That's why it's so hard for you," Sui commented, able to read his big brother's mind. " 'Tou-san told me about the X-rays, how the doctor said that if your body gained anymore strain then it might be enough to kill you, then you have to be an idiot and run off with that stupid girl."

"Don't talk about Hikari that way!" Kei snapped at the fifteen year old.

"Yeah," a voice sounded from the doorway, "Don't talk about Hikari that way, she's much much worse than just being stupid. She's a murderer as well," hearing that, Kei delivered a glare to Iori. Unsure as to why he'd be here or how he could find his room so easily. "You know, you really do look pathetic. The perfect Kei Takishima is inside a hospital, in the room where my little sister died as well."

Kei stared at him, feeling incredibly sickened at his presence, "It's not Hikari's fault that your sister died, I apologize for that but it isn't Hikari's fault so don't you dare blame her," he hissed, a devil appearing behind him.

"You're worthless you know," Iori whispered, his heart hurting at seeing a Takishima in this room, it was Kaname Takishima who had been responsible for his sister's death, however, this guy was even worse."You deserve to die," he spoke before launching a punch right at Kei, but his hand was skilfully grabbed not by the nineteen year old but by the thirty nine year old.

Satoru gave a very firm look at Iori, filled with one emotion that no one expect from him, anger. "I'm warning you, leave my son alone or you'll be dealing with me. I have no doubt that Kei can beat you when he feels better, but for now...if you don't leave my son alone I will do all that I can to get revenge."

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