Disclaimer: I do not own Code Blue and Terrace House.

Note: Sorry for the long wait! Here's a short update from me. Hope you enjoy!

CHAPTER 7- AT THE BEGINNING

Ah-choo!

Aizawa's efficiency for the day significantly dropped. He was asked to sit out on an operation and his department head even asked him to take the day off. He insisted he could stay and finish his patients' reports but he was advised to just finish it at home. He knew insisting his way would be pointless so he obediently changed out of his scrubs and took half day off.

Saejima just got home from meeting some friends, and by looking at their "notice board", it seems that she'll be alone for a few more hours. The doctors are all on duty today, except for Shinkai who also spent his day off to meet some high school friends. They haven't seen each other for many years so he mentioned he might be coming home late tonight, as he could imagine the amount of catching up (and drinks!) that they'll be having.

That's why Saejima was surprised when she heard somebody coming from the main door at around 4 in the afternoon. She was chilling by the living room, reading some fashion magazines when she heard somebody unlocking the door. By the figure emerging from the stairs, she identified it was Aizawa.

"Eh Aizawa? Aren't you on duty today?"

"I was," he answered and faced her direction, revealing his face covered with a mask.

"Hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I just caught a cold, it seems." He went down and proceeded to the bedroom.

"Just tell me if you need some medicine. I have some!" she shouted as he made his way down, though she wasn't sure he heard. Then she went back to her magazines and continued for another hour or so until she fell asleep.

When she woke up, it's almost 30 minutes past 6 in the evening. She's in charge of tonight's dinner so she stretched out from the sofa and went to the kitchen to prepare.

Tonight's menu was cold soba and tempura. She thought it would be the perfect summer food for the hardworking doctors coming home from another long day at work. It doesn't require much preparation, too. First, she made the dipping sauce by combining sake, mirin and soy sauce and bringing it to a boil. Setting it aside to cool down, she started cooking the noodles. While waiting for the noodles to be cooked, she also began to prepare the batter for the tempura. When the noodles were done, they were drained then transferred to a bowl with iced water. She also refrigerated the dipping sauce. After the preparations, she took a photo of the food and sent a message to their group chat on LINE informing everyone of the dinner that awaits them.

Uwaaa! Can't wait to eat those! On my way home now! 3 - Hiyama

Looks delicious! I'm just going to change then I'll be heading home soon, too. Ah, take care going home everyone :) – Shiraishi

THAT LOOKS YUMMY! ^o^ Unfortunately, I may not make it home by dinner time. T.T There's been a traffic accident and we- -Fujikawa

Oops gotta go talk to yall later –Fujikawa

Please save some for me! – Fujikawa

Got it! Take care, girls! See you in a bit and see you a little later, Fujikawa ^^ Don't worry, there's enough for everyone so don't rush and focus on saving lives! Do your best! *fist emoji* - Saejima

Sadly, I won't be joining you for dinner tonight. I'm still with my friends…guess I'll be trying Saejima's cooking next time ^^; - Shinkai

Saejima started setting the table as she waited for the girls. Then she remembered to set aside a portion of the noodles for Fujikawa.

Almost 30 minutes has passed when Hiyama arrived. She entered the kitchen skipping and Saejima smiled while frying the last batch of the tempura.

"You're just in time! It's almost done," Saejima welcomed her.

"Ahhh you're the best, Saejima! I'm starving!" Hiyama said as she took a seat. "Is Shiraishi home?"

"Not yet. But Aizawa is. He went home this afternoon. It seems like he caught a cold."

Hiyama didn't reply but only nodded with a look on her face that shows she's thinking of something. A few seconds later, she got her phone from her pocket and starts calling someone.

"Hello? Shiraishi? Where are you now?...I see. Umm, cold you drop by the drugstore and buy some medicine for cough and cold?...Huh? No, not me. It's Aizawa…Yeah, he's feeling really sick and he even went home early today…I'm not sure, but it seems bad. He can't even get up from bed!...Yeah, I think you can also buy some flu meds…Oh you have some here? Okay…Yeah, okay, thanks! Take care! See you! Bye!"

Saejima chuckled as Hiyama ended the call with a grin on her face.

"Are you playing cupid now?" she raised her eyebrows on the doctor.

"Noooo~ I'm just being a good friend who is concerned for her sick friend," she answered with a hint of sarcasm and the two girls couldn't help but giggle.

"I'm home!" Shiraishi made her way to the dining area immediately. "How is he?" she inquires.

"Still sick," Hiyama answered as she dipped another serving of noodles into her bowl.

"Has he eaten anything?"

"Not yet. He hasn't gone out of the room since he arrived this afternoon," Saejima answered this time.

Shiraishi looked at the food on the table. He might not like cold food if he's not feeling well.

"Uhmm, Saejima, please don't take this the wrong way, but do you mind if I cook something else for Aizawa? I don't think he'll be in the mood for cold noodles right now," she said while having a seriously worried look on her face.

Saejima and Hiyama exchanged looks and Hiyama and both of them tried not to smile at Shiraishi's suggestion.

"Sure, Shiraishi. Actually I was thinking of cooking porridge for him but I got a little tired preparing all these food already so I thought of entrusting this task to you or Hiyama. But knowing Hiyama…" she trailed off.

"Yup, I'll pass~"

"Un, don't worry. I'll do it," Shiraishi said with conviction as she tied her hair in a small ponytail and put on an apron.

Shiraishi carefully put made her way downstairs, carrying the tray which has a bottle of water, the bowl of porridge she cooked and the meds for Aizawa. According to Saejim, he hasn't been out of the bedroom since he got home. He's probably sleeping. She contemplated on knocking first before entering or just discreetly leaving the food by his bedside. After much thought, she decided to just wake him up to make sure he eats the porridge. After all, it's best eaten while hot.

She knocked twice but didn't wait for a response. She opened the door and switched on the lights. To her surprise, Aizawa wasn't there.

Eh? That's strange. Did he go out?

She looked around the room and noticed that Aizawa's bag wasn't there and the bed doesn't look like it's been slept on. She looked towards the laundry area but he wasn't there, too. She began feeling a mix of worry and disappointment - worried that he might have gone back to work despite feeling sick and disappointed that her efforts to cook might go to waste.

She was about to return to the dining area when she thought of something. Ah! Maybe he's there!

She took two steps back and reached for the game room. As she had guessed she found Aizawa sitting by the floor, with his eyes closed, eyebrows furrowed and head tilted back and leaning on the chair behind him. At the sound of the door opening, he opened his eyes and glanced towards the door. There he saw Shiraishi with a tray on her hands, making her way to him.

"Aizawa!" She had with a worried expression on her face. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be resting in your room?" She crouched over the center table and put down the tray.

"I would, after I finish these reports," Aizawa said while scratching his eyebrow.

"I heard you haven't eaten anything so I brought you some food. Eat it while it's hot. Also, here are some meds. One is for cold, for cough and also for flu," she talks in a very doctor-like way, he thought.

"Thanks."

"No problem. Ah, I'm not sure about the taste though. It's been a while since I cooked porridge," she said in a quiet voice."

He took a spoonful and commented it tasted just right. "That's good to know," Shiraishi replied. "Well, that's it for me. I just came to deliver your meal. I'll pick up the dishes later so just go take some rest in your room, okay?" she said with a smile.

"No need to do that. I can bring them up myself. It's just a cold. It's not like I can't walk," he said coolly.

Shiraishi nodded and left the room, leaving Aizawa savouring his bowl of porridge while looking at the tray with the pile of medicines.

I already took some, though.

At 9pm, Shiraishi had finished her dinner, taken a shower and changed into her pajamas. It's still a little early so she figured she'll pass some time reading a few books before going to bed tonight or maybe hang out with Saejima and Hiyama by the living room. She was drying her hair with a towel when a thought crossed her mind. Did Aizawa finish the food? Did he take the medicine? Don't tell me he's still working at this hour? With all this worrying, she decided to check on him before joining the girls in the living room. She took with her a thermometer and a fever patch, just in case.

She checked the game room first and was relieved to see neither Aizawa nor his stuff being there. The laptop and the files on the table earlier were gone, too. When it occurred to her that he might still work in the bedroom, she decided to check for herself.

She knocked softly and heard some sneezing on the other side of the door. She gently opened and saw Aizawa lying on the bed. Through the dim bedside lamp, she saw him open his eyes.

"Sorry! I didn't mean to wake you up."

"It's okay. I just had my eyes closed but I'm not sleeping yet," Aizawa said while sitting up.

"I just came to check on you, if you took the meds already."

"I did. Thanks again."

"Don't mention it."

"How did you know I was sick, anyway?" The question has been bothering him since she left the game room earlier. Shiraishi narrated how she got a call from Hiyama with the instructions of buying meds on her way home. "I see," he said as he grabbed the bottle of water on his bedside table.

"By the way, how did you suddenly catch a cold?"

The question almost made him choke on the water he's drinking, but he tried to keep a calm and composed face as usual.

"I…got caught in the rain…last weekend," he cleared his throat. He could vividly recall the events that transpired that day. That night. He himself didn't know that time (and still doesn't know even now) what was running on his mind when he did what he did. Before he knew it, he was kissing her and everything felt right. They got out of the pool, and with Shiraishi still walking in a funny way, he accompanied her back to their room. He told Saejima what happened, leaving the part where they kissed-and-made-up quite literally, and suggested she help Shiraishi take a shower. After leaving the girls' room, he went back to the pool area and tried to gather himself together as he took another dip into the pool.

Shiraishi tried to remember when it rained during the weekend. "Ah! When we had the pool party?"

Aizawa nodded, averting his eyes from her direction and taking another gulp from his water bottle.

"I was so drunk that day, I could barely remember what happened," she said with a light chuckle. She put her fingers on her temple, as if remembering the headache it has caused her the following day.

Barely remember? No wonder she's not saying anything about it, he thought.

"I see," he said out loud. So which ones does she REMEMBER exactly?

"Did you check your temperature already?" she asked as she put her hand on his forehead. Aizawa was surprised by the sudden touch and he felt heat creep up his face. He was thankful for the darkness that hid the blush he was sure would have been evident if the lights were on. "Hm, you're a little hot. Here," After handing him the thermometer, Shiraishi opened a pack of fever patch and placed it on Aizawa's forehead. As she tapped the patch to make sure it stuck, Aizawa caught her wrist.

"It's okay now. I can do it myself," he said in a small voice.

Shiraishi was stunned as she noticed just how close their faces actually were. She realized how it must have been uncomfortable for him. "Ah, yes, sorry," she said as she stood up. "Looks like Shinkai and Fujikawa will be home late today, so if you need help or anything just let us know…"

"I will."

"I'll take my leave then. Rest well. Good night."

"Thanks. Good night."

The human brain is really interesting. With just some alcohol, it can easily, conveniently make you forget things that had happened. Damn you, human brain. In all his years as a neurosurgeon, it's the first time he had hated how human brain functioned.

Aizawa lied down again. He wondered how Shiraishi was at work and how lucky her patients are to be treated by her. As the image of Shiraishi taking care of him lingered on his mind, he slowly drifted to sleep.

Shiraishi hurriedly headed back to their room that she didn't even hear the girls calling out to her from the living room. As soon as she entered the room, she headed straight to her bed, plopped down and covered her face with her pillow. She was frantically kicking in that position when Saejima and Hiyama opened the door, making both of them shocked.

"Oi Shiraishi, are you okay?" an amused Hiyama asked.

"Eh?" she removes the pillow from her face. "Un, I'm…okay," she answered, surprised that her roommates are there looking at her with questioning eyes. "Good night!" she said as she turned her back on them and pulled her blanket over her face.

OH. MY. GOSH. It wasn't a dream. It really rained that night. So Saejima wasn't just teasing me when she said I fell into the pool with Aizawa. If that really happened, then- STOP! Stupid, Megumi! Stop thinking about that night! Maybe the k-k-ki-kissing part was just your hallucination? If Saejima knew what happened, surely she would've said something about it by now, right?

Shiraishi kept on tossing and turning. These thoughts kept her up the whole night and before she knew it, the sun has already risen.

It seems that the universe is conspiring to make it hard for Shiraishi.

Since a few nights ago, she's been trying her best not to blush just at the mention of somebody's name. But now, she's required to spend her supposedly relaxing day off doing house chores with that somebody.

"Aaand, that settles it!" Fujikawa states as he finished writing the weekly schedule on the board. "Since you two are off today, I'll entrust the cleaning duties to you." He inserts himself in between Aizawa and Shiraishi, who were looking up at the board, and puts his arms on their shoulders, bringing them to a huddle. "Isn't this great?! At least you won't be cleaning the pool alone, Aizawa!"

"POOL?!" Shiraishi said in an almost-shouting voice.

"Yes. The pool. It's been a week since we used it and now is the only time somebody can clean it," Fujikawa said while pointing to the board. True enough, next week's schedule looked hectic. Most of them would either be doing double shifts or having night duty, making it a little difficult to work on the pool by morning.

"We got it. Go now or you'll be late," Aizawa said as he showed the time on his phone.

"Crap! I leave this to you guys then! Bye!"

Before starting their cleaning duties, Shiraishi and Aizawa decided to have some breakfast first. They opted for something quick so Shiraishi offered to toast some bread. She started to regret this as soon as the timer for the toaster was set. She sat across Aizawa while waiting for the timer to go off and soon, they found themselves engulfed in silence. Unlike the usual comforting and calming silence they had in each other's company, somehow, this silence was awkward.

A little over a minute has passed when both of them spoke at the same time.

"About-"

"How are-"

"Ladies first."

"Uh, okay, uh. Hmm…How are you feeling now? Your cold. Is it…gone?"

"Aa. I'm feeling better now. I already went to work the following day. It's not that bad, really. But thanks for taking care of me."

"It's nothing. I'm glad you feel better now," she smiled.

"About-" Aizawa started but was interrupted by the ding of the toaster and Shiraishi immediately stood up to get the bread.

While munching on their breakfast, he started to speak up again.

"Shiraishi," he called her attention. "I'd like to apologize. About the other day…"

She felt her heart skip a beat. I'M NOT READY TO HAVE THIS CONVERSATION YET! She screams in her mind, but only looked at Aizawa in reality.

"I promised to send you the photos at Enoshima, right? I just realized I haven't sent them to you at all. It's been more than two weeks now, I think."

She forced a laughter "Ahh that one! N-no problem at all. You can send them to me now if you want."

Aizawa picked up his phone and browsed his gallery. There were very few personal photos in it, most of them are brain scans and other medical related screenshots. Therefore, the photos from Enoshima clearly stood out from the rest. He carefully selected the photos, deleting some blurry shots, and sending the ones that passed his standards of a "nice photo".

Finally, he was sending some photos from the lighthouse when he came across a certain shot that made his heart beat a little faster. It was a photo of Shiraishi with her eyes closed and that gentle smile of hers and behind her was Mt. Fuji. He remembered how it happened. He was trying to take a shot of Mt. Fuji when his phone came to focus on Shiraishi's face. He unknowingly (or maybe intentionally?) pressed the shutter button, and this photo was the result. He was planning on setting it as Shiraishi's contact photo on her phone but he accidentally tapped the "send" button instead. His mind was on a state of panic but he kept a poker face and waited for Shiraishi to react.

"Ah! I didn't expect I had a photo there! Thanks!" she said with a genuine smile on her face.

He let out a relieved sigh and went back to finishing his breakfast.

As Shiraishi finished washing the dishes, Aizawa went to the storage room to get their cleaning supplies. The water has already been drained from the pool so the task would not be as labor intensive as it initially looked like.

Aizawa handed Shiraishi a brush with a long handle, which she would use on the floor tiles. On the other hand, he would be brushing the tiles along the walls. They both did their tasks quietly, starting from the far end of the pool. It was too quiet that Aizawa could hear Shiraishi humming while scrubbing the tiles. Hmm, she doesn't sound bad. He thought as he continued on his task.

"What kind of music do you like?" he blurted out randomly.

Shiraishi was a bit surprised but glad that he broke the ice.

"Let's see…it depends, but mostly pop music, I guess? I listen to ballads, too. How about you?"

"I don't know a lot. I used to listen to bands when I was in the university. Like, Mr. Children…"

"Ah! Me too! I used to sing their songs in the karaoke," she happily agreed to his musical choice.

"I've never really been to a karaoke."

"Are you serious?! Not even once?"

"Okay, I did maybe once or twice when I was an intern and was forcefully invited by some senior doctors, but I didn't really sing and I think I went home after 30 minutes or so."

Shiraishi laughed at his story.

"Why? Is it that funny?" he raised an eyebrow.

"No, no. I was just trying to imagine your expression when your colleagues were forcing you to socialize. I bet they never invite you to drinking parties as well."

"They don't," he answered still with a straight face and Shiraishi burst out laughing again.

"I think it would be fun to see you get drunk."

"Well, I don't get drunk easily."

"Really? I'm so envious! I have a very low tolerance. My colleagues say I'm a completely different person when I'm drunk so I try to avoid alcohol as much as possible."

"And yet you were dead drunk last weekend."

"Eh?"

"Eh? Weren't you?"

"I WAS! I was totally d-d-drunk! I was soooo drunk I couldn't re-re-member anything!" Crap. This is dangerous territory.

"That's what I was saying." She really couldn't remember THAT, right? He started to have doubt as she stuttered on her words. "Anyway, you should be careful when you're drinking out. It's dangerous when you get drunk."

"Dangerous? What do you mean?" Wait. Don't tell me I'm not the one who initiated the kiss?! Stupid, Megumi! Remember things correctly!

"Just—Nothing. Just be careful. Or just don't drink anything at all," Aizawa said a little strongly than his previous statements.

Shiraishi was still wondering if she wants to pry on the subject more or would it be too "dangerous" for her own good, when her mobile phone rang and she picked it up immediately when she saw the caller ID. Aizawa only heard her say things like "Who's on duty?" and "How are his vitals?" and he knew the call was from the hospital. As soon as she hung up, Shiraishi apologized to him.

"I'm really sorry Aizawa but there's a sudden change with a patient and they're currently understaffed in the hospital so I really need to go now."

"I understand."

"I'm so sorry to leave you like this. I promise I'll make it up to you."

"Don't worry about it. Hurry up and go to the hospital."

Shiraishi nodded and left half jogging.

Aizawa continued scrubbing the tiles but he couldn't help worrying about Shiraishi. He could sense the concern in her voice and the sense of urgency in her footsteps when she was rushing back to the house. From the pool, he could see she's now changed her clothes and ready to leave. After much thought, he got out of the pool and called out to her.

"Wait up, Shiraishi!"

"What is it?"

He picked up the car keys from the holder.

"I'll drive you there."

A/N: Hey guys! Thanks for bearing with me! I was a little busy with real life stuff so I couldn't upload this chapter for quite a while -.- Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this short and very Aishira-centric update. Just wanna share: When I was writing the "What kind of music do you like?" part, I almost made Shiraishi say something like "Oh it depends but recently I'm into Johnny's" and Aizawa would ask about her favorite and she'd say it's Yamapi, but I drew the line there so yeah LOL.

On another note, filming for the movie has started! Yahooooo! Looking forward to more news from our lovely cast.

As always, comments, suggestions and violent reactions are always welcome! Your reviews always warm my heart 3