6 Chapter 6

A FEW DAYS LATER

Miyuki and Rokuro were on their way to school like they used to before. They had taken a good ten days off and most of them were free of all the stresses that they had been experiencing for the past few days. Rokuro had not had any nightmare and it was going smoothly for all of them, though they did not have any idea about how the school would react to the news of them busting the brothers, and how Rokuro's nightmares had meaning hidden in them all this while. They just walked to the school thinking it would be a normal day. They were anxious about what the people might say, but they did not have any idea about what was in store for them.

Rokuro spotted Ken standing at the entrance of the school. He expected him to behave in the same manner as he used to, however, Rokuro was in for a surprise. Ken ran towards Miyuki and Rokuro as he saw them entering the school.

"Dude, what was that?" Ken said with excitement. "That was awesome. How did you guys pull it off?"

Rokuro looked at Miyuki wondering how it spread in the school.

"What are you trying to think? The whole school is talking about it. You helped the police to catch the Shuji brothers, that was awesome. Everybody's talking about it." Ken said.

"You already said it was awesome." Miyuki said.

"But that wasn't enough. Dude, you two are celebs now, and Mika too." Ken stopped as he mentioned Mika. "I'm sorry she had to do it. It must have been tough for her. She did great nonetheless."

"That's fine. And yes, she's a great girl." Rokuro said, trying to dodge Ken and head towards the classroom.

"You did well." Miyuki said.

"Huh?" Rokuro said.

"You dodged him well. You're a quick learner."

"Ah! Thank you! Does everybody know about it now?"

"Probably. Getting the Shuji brothers behind the bars isn't a small feat."

"I don't want to be bothered by people asking me the same question again and again."

"Keep dodging." Miyuki said and smiled a little. He knew how to take things lightly.

The very first thing that Rokuro noticed as he entered the classroom, as always, was Kairi. She was sitting at her usual seat, smiling as usual. Rokuro smiled instinctively just looking at her as if looking at her made his day. Indeed, the time he spent in school was made much more bearable looking at her beautiful smile. He paced towards his usual seat with Asa. He was so lost into Kairi's smile that he didn't even notice that Asa had made a new bench-partner to sit with her. He gave her a look when he noticed his seat was taken, to which she responded with a smile and gestured him to sit on the seat behind her with Kairi. That was when he realized what this was all about. He instantly smiled back at her. He wasn't shy of sitting with Kairi anymore or interacting with her.

He nodded a little to thank Asa for the help. Even though he was a much more confident person now, he would not have taken the first stride. He felt a strange sense of unease accompanied by a good prickling feeling when he sat next to Kairi. He knew he liked her, but to feel these little feelings was a different thing altogether. He had only heard about these things in stories and movies before, but to feel these in real life was an experience that he would not forget for a long time.

"I heard." Kairi said.

"What?" Rokuro replied. "What do you mean?"

"I heard what you guys did. I heard everything. I never associated adventure with you. I always thought of you as the silent-type. But boy you're so much more."

Every word that left Kairi's mouth made Rokuro uncomfortable, not in a way that would cause him unease, but in a good and joyous way. It almost startled him to hear Kairi speak in that manner. He had never thought she would ever say appreciative words for him, not that he thought of her as a rude person, but he never thought she would be interested in him. So, hearing her say those words not only made him feel good, but he was elated.

"Oh! Thank you! I'm glad you did." Rokuro said.

"I didn't know you could be a secret hero or something. It never appeared you could do something like that. That's great." Kairi said.

They continued talking for the rest of the day, even during the classes. It was like they always had so much to talk about and it was piling up and the shackles were cut loose for them to pour it all out. Neither of them had talked so much in their entire life, however long it had been so far. They even got to know today that they don't live too far apart. Their houses were rather close by than they would have imagined. So they decided they'd meet in the evening and continue their chatting session.

They ended the day at school with a gentle handshake and a promise to meet in a nearby park in the evening. He was on his way home after school with Miyuki.

"You looked pretty comfortable with her today." Miyuki said.

"Yeah, I'm so glad about that. Asa arranged it for me." Rokuro replied.

"I saw that. Good to see you two get along fine. Take it slow."

"I will. I'm in no hurry. We've planned to meet this evening in the park in our locality. By the way, did you know she lives near us?"

"Does she? I didn't know that. But that's not our fault, she likes to keep things to herself, doesn't she?"

"Yeah, I agree with you on that. She's a mystery. But maybe I'll get to know her better now."

"Alright. See you tomorrow then. Have a good time with her."

"Thanks, man."

With that, they bid their goodbyes as they reached Miyuki's house. Rokuro continued walking to him home with a smile on his face that he had never worn before. He knew what it was for, and that made him smile even more. His life finally started to have meaning. First, he avenged his father, and now he was getting close to his love interest as well.

LATER THAT EVENING

Rokuro told his mother about the meeting he was about to have with Kairi. He put on his jogging clothes and wore some perfume as well. It felt odd just thinking about it that he was going to the park while wearing perfume. He nonetheless smiled and left the house. Mrs. Arata wished him luck. She felt content knowing her son was doing well after a long time.

Rokuro picked up his bike and pedaled his way to the park. It was a small park; he could see all the corners of it standing in one place. He scanned the entire park looking for her. Happiness and excitement washed over his face when he saw her entering the park from the gate on the other side. He parked his bike outside of the park and rushed to the other side where she had just entered the park. She waved her hand at him when she saw him running towards her.

"Hi." Rokuro said as he stopped right in front of her, trying to catch his breath.

"Hey. You seem pretty worn out already." Kairi said with the familiar and usual smile on her face.

"Yeah. I just ran all the way to come to this side."

"Yes, I saw that." Kairi said and gave out a giggle. "Come on, let's have a seat."

They walked to the bench close by. He couldn't help but notice how the red color of the bench complimented the green grass and the grey clouds. It all looked majestic to him.

"So, how have you been?" Kairi said.

"Oh, I'm fine now. Haven't been better. I feel good." Rokuro said.

"That's good to know. You took a week's leave as well."

"Oh yes, we badly needed that. We all were super tired."

"Right."

The two of them talked about all sorts of stuff after that, from school to their passions and all things in between, and finally about the time his family and Danuja family spent on the island and in the warehouse. He explained everything to her, every fine detail. He loved the look of awe on her face throughout the time he told the story.

"Wow! This should be a movie, for sure." Kairi said.

"I've been told that before." Rokuro replied and chuckled and a few moments later he moved his hand slightly and similar to what they show in the movies, he brushed her hand with his. She wasn't expecting him to make such a move. She was startled, but she didn't move her hand. He was about to carry things forward when he noticed the light bulb in the distance, on the other side of the park start to get brighter, but not so much that it would distract him. He could see the change in luminosity with his peripheral vision but he was still focused on grabbing her hand. He tried to focus on the hand one more time but the intensity of the light kept increasing and soon it was so bright that he couldn't keep his eyes open. He shut them and looked away.

"What's wrong?" Kairi asked, sounding a little worried.

Rokuro had wanted to hold her hand, but not in the way he was doing now. He had held both her hands and his head was almost in her lap, like a baby who was scared of the dark, only this time it was the light that scared him.

"What wrong Rokuro? What happened to you?" Kairi asked again.

"That bright light is causing me discomfort. I can't keep my eyes open. It hurts." Rokuro said.

"Bright light? What are you talking about? There is no bright light here."

"What?" Rokuro said and tried to open his eyes to check. He shut them immediately.

"Can't you the blinding bright light? It's right in front of you." Rokuro said. He sounded a little annoyed as well this time.

"Are you having a nightmare again?" Kairi said.

"I don't know. I can't keep my eyes open."

"There's nothing here I promise you. Just try to open your eyes one more time. You need to fight it, come on. I am here with you. Don't you worry." Kairi said, caressing Rokuro's head to calm him down. But her efforts seemed to be going in vain.

"You can do it, Rokuro. Just try it, once. Please." Kairi pleaded. She was running out of ideas.

Rokuro listened to her and tried to open his eyes. He had only opened them so much as if he was squinting, but he could see that the blinding light was still there.

"I still see the bright light. What do I do?" Rokuro said.

Kairi was confused. She looked around to call someone for help, but there wasn't anyone who she could call.

"Just keep trying. I promise you there's nothing here. You don't need to worry." Kairi said.

"I can trust you, right?" Rokuro said.

"Of course, you can. Be strong and just do it. Fight it."

"Okay." Rokuro said and opened his eyes like he normally would and he immediately cried in pain.

"It's hurting me." Rokuro said.

"It will be alright. It'll go away. Just keep them open." Kairi replied.

She knew he was going through something terrible just by looking at the grip that he had on her hands. It was intense. But she was glad he didn't close his eyes this time. He was trying to fight it. When she thought it was getting better, another surprise welcomed her. He stood up at once, freeing her hands. His eyes were still open, but there was a hint of a smile on his face now.

"Papa?" He said.

Kairi looked around to make sure of things, but there wasn't anyone nearby.

"Are you okay, Rokuro?" Kairi said. "You're freaking me out."

As if she wasn't freaked out enough, he took a few steps forward and extended his arms.

"Papa? Is this you?" Rokuro said.

"There's no one there, Rokuro." Kairi shouted. She thought he'd hear if she yelled, and then, he fainted and fell. She rushed to see if he was okay. She turned him around and shook him, calling his name over and over again.

"Rokuro, wake up. Rokuro." Kairi said, almost crying. "Help! Help!"

Even though she could not see anyone around, a few people came in from the side of the park that she couldn't see, mostly from the side behind her.

"What's wrong? What happened to him?" One of the people that came to help, asked her.

"He fainted and isn't waking up." Kairi answered.

"Let's take him to the hospital. Come on, guys." The man said and tried to lift Rokuro. Others joined in to help the man lift the boy. One of them offered to drive him to the hospital in his car. Kairi sat next to where Rokuro was laying.

"Could you make it faster, please?" Kairi said, tears flowing down her cheeks onto Rokuro's body.

"Yes, I am. Don't worry he'll be fine." The man said.

Kairi continued to try to wake Rokuro up while they were on the way. She even kept his head in her lap and caressed it and moved her fingers through his hair. But he wasn't waking up despite everything she did.

"Don't you worry, child. He'll be fine." Another person said. "We're close."

Kairi could just nod in response. She couldn't say anything.

They reached the hospital a few minutes later and they took him to the emergency section as soon as they got out of the car.

"Doctor? Please, take a look at him. He's unconscious for the past half an hour. We've tried to wake him up but he isn't." Kairi cried as she saw the doctor. The doctor looked at him and checked his pulse. He ordered the nurses to get him onto a bed and connect the ECG and check his blood pressure.

All of them waited for the nurses to perform their duties and check for the reasons he fainted.

"It looks like it's Ventricular Tachycardia. His heart is beating too fast, above 140. His body isn't getting enough blood because of that, which is why he fainted. I've given him an injection. He'll be fine soon." The nurse said.

"There you have it. It's just a fast-beating heart that caused it all. Nothing to worry about." The doctor said to Kairi.

"But why is it beating so fast for no reason?" Kairi asked.

"There could be all sorts of reasons. Maybe he didn't eat well, maybe he ate something that he shouldn't have, some sort of medicine, or maybe he is stressed." The doctor said and left the room.

"It's alright, kid, you heard the doctor. It's nothing major." The man who drove them to the hospital said.

"Thank you, sir. You've been a great help." Kairi said.

"Ah don't mention. I'm sure you would have done the same if you were in my place."

Miyuki and Mrs. Arata arrived at the hospital, about half an hour later after Kairi informed them.

"Where is he?" Mrs. Arata asked Kairi in a panicky voice.

"Don't worry Mrs. Arata, he's fine. He's right here in this room." Kairi said and guided her into the room where Rokuro was. She stopped at the edge of the bed and looked at her son, sleeping. He didn't look to be in any sort of trouble at the moment.

"What happened? You two were supposed to meet in the park, right?" Mrs. Arata asked.

"Yes, and we did. But a few minutes later he collapsed." Kairi said.

"Just like that?

"No, at first he said he saw a bright light whereas there was no such light. He seemed to talk to his father, but I didn't see anyone, and then he fell."

"His father? I thought his nightmares were gone for good."

"I thought of that too, but I don't understand what's going on now. We'll have to wait for him to wake up. Only he can unsolve this mystery now."

They waited for an hour for him to wake up. Their faces said how relieved they were when he finally opened his eyes. Mrs. Arata had teary eyes, and Kairi's eyes were moist. Miyuki stared at him seriously.

"You guys are scaring me." Rokuro said.

"What's wrong, dude? You keep passing out. We thought you were good now. What happened?" Miyuki said.

"It's him again. I saw him." Rokuro said.

"Your father?" Mrs. Arata asked.

"Yes, he said there's work still needs to be done. We've only completed half of the work."

"What do you mean?"

"He said that Shuji brothers don't deserve such easy goings. He said they deserve much more than this, and that is why he said he's going to live in me. Like, possess me. And that bright light began to converge into a singularity like a beam and just like a laser light it entered my chest swiftly and that was when I lost it. I fainted and don't remember anything after that."

"Oh God! What are you talking about? What is he doing? Just tell him to leave you. Why does he have to be so? Causing pain and discomfort to his son? Who does that?" Mrs. Arata cried.

"It's okay, Mrs. Arata. Calm down." Kairi said, caressing Mrs. Arata's shoulders to calm her down.

"How can you call this okay? Kono is messing with my son, his son. Can't he see it's hampering his health?"

"I understand your part. Let him speak. I think he wants to say something else as well."

Mrs. Arata looked at Rokuro in a flash. The tension was visible in the creases formed on her forehead.

"Tell me, my son." Mrs. Arata said trying to compose herself.

"He said that he's sorry for whatever is happening with me. He has no intention of causing me harm, but he doesn't have any other way to convey his messages. He said that once he has taken care of the Shuji brothers, he will never bother us again." Rokuro said.

Tears flowed down Mrs. Arata's cheeks and her eyes were still filled with them. She couldn't control them. She shut her eyes as she cried even more, and more of her tears fell on her hands.

"They're behind the bars now. What more can we do?" Mrs. Arata said.

"Not anymore." Kairi said.

"What?"

"Mika informed me that they've gotten out. They have too many contacts and they influence too many. It wouldn't have been a big deal for them to get out."

"What happens to Mika now?"

"She has left her house. She is on the run, and so should we if we want to live."

"What do you mean? We can't go on running. We need to do something about it. We have proof against him, it should be them who need to run, not us."

"That is not how it works, Mrs. Arata. In the world run by these powerful and rich people, proofs don't matter."

"What do we do then?"

"To be honest, I don't know. I don't think there's anything that we can do, other than running away."

"There's no time for that now." A deep and familiar voice was heard from the door of the room. It scared everybody in the room. Their eyes went wide and hands began to shake as they turned around to see who it was.

Daichi stood there with anger painted all over his face, nostrils flaring. Miyuki stood up from the chair, and so did the others one by one, except for Rokuro, who couldn't stand up from the bed as of yet.

"You've played your part for long enough. It's time I show you how this game is played." Daichi said, squinting his eyes and grinding his teeth.