Rascals

My head turned towards the door when I heard it slide open.

And the corner of my lips lifted in delight when I saw Zee come in. But that smile quickly faded when I remembered that there was a dangerous woman in the room who had threatened to hurt Zee just a few moments ago.

A few moments ago…

The short kiss that we shared replayed in my head, and I quickly brushed it away before turning to the nurse who was standing beside me.

But what I saw was a completely different person.

Gone was the woman who looked like an angel but with the spite of a devil. The nurse, currently adjusting my IV drip, looked like she was ready to retire and receive a pension anytime.

Is she the same person? Can she also change the way she looks? Did I seriously go insane?

I looked at her hand and saw a familiar-looking tattoo on her finger, which sent shivers down my spine. When I raised my eyes to face her, she gave me a warm smile.

"Do you need anything else, my dear?"

My eyes darted back and forth between her wrinkled finger and her aged face. Then I finally noticed the grey sparkling pool in her eyes, and my heart started beating faster. "N-no… thank you."

She can freaking transform?! What kind of black magic is this?! Is this some kind of dark cult?! What did I get myself into?!

She slightly bowed her head and turned to leave. But every step she took closer to Zee made me want to jump from the bed to go between them. And I would have done exactly that if I could.

But I couldn't.

Because of my freaking legs that wouldn't cooperate.

Calm down, Paige. This is no time to be terrified. If she really is the same person, that means Zeanne could be in danger.

Thankfully, she just smiled at Zee as she went past her. She then slowly closed the door and gave me an ominous gaze while mouthing, 'KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT.'

I took a large gulp, but the lump in my throat remained.

"Arthur." Hearing Zeanne's voice made me feel relieved and reminded me that I should just be happy for still being alive. For now.

"Zee!" I outstretched my arms towards her.

She looked confused by my gesture at first, but she still came closer to me. As soon as she was within my reach, I pulled her hand and embraced her. "I missed you, Sis! I thought I was dead. You don't know how thankful I am to see you!"

She stiffened against my embrace, which was completely expected.

Being tsundere again, as usual.

So when I let her go, I also expected her fist to come flying my way with anger. After all, I had the nerve to stay alive after ruining her precious wedding.

But her fist never came. And for some strange reason, I felt disappointed by that.

What's going on, sister? Where's my welcome back punch?

She just stared at me with a bewildered look on her face and then asked me in a gentle voice that was so not like her. "Since when did you wake up? Are you feeling okay?"

"I'm f-fine." My brows twitched. *Did my near-death situation make her feel obligated to be nicer to me?*

She put her hand on my shoulder and then pushed me back down on the bed. "Just lie down while I call the doctor."

She was about to walk away, but I held her back by pulling her wrist. "Zee, what's going on?"

"What do you mean?" Her dark brown eyes turned hazel against the sunlight coming in from the window. Her face was pale, and there were dark circles around her eyes as if she hadn't slept a wink for a couple of nights.

"You looked so distressed? Is everything okay?"

To my surprise, her eyes brimmed with tears, and I suddenly felt panic erupt in my chest. "W-what? W-why?!"

She wrapped her arms around my neck, and then she started crying. "Of c-course… everything's okay now... everything... will be okay now... I'm so… so happy… that you look fine… they said that you will never wake up again...so I was… I was so scared…"

And I was stunned.

I didn't know what to say or do at the moment.

As usual, I just stiffened as she bawled her eyes out over my shoulder.

It's always been like that whenever she cries. I become frozen.

Utterly useless.

She continued to cry for a few minutes, and my eyes wandered around the room, hating myself for not being able to do anything while causing her distress.

"You c-can't imagine how terrified I was when you had an arrest." She sniffled as she pulled away while wiping the tears from her face.

And I immediately missed her already.

Ha~ Arthur Blake Paige… You are a hopeless case.

I smiled meekly as she tried to regain her composure. Although her eyes were still tearful, she managed to control them and put a smile on her face. "I thought you were going to die. The doctors told us to prepare ourselves for the worst."

My condition was that bad? That means... me waking up like this was practically a miracle.

I patted her arm. "I'm fine now, so stop crying. How long have I been unconscious?"

"It's been 419 days since the accident, and you didn't show any sign of consciousness until a few days ago."

She actually counted the days? That's so cu-- Wait...Four hundred...

"WHAT?!" My head spun from the sudden surprise, and I quickly grabbed her arm for support. Then, I remembered the conversation between the nurse and the Azrael person earlier. "So I've been sleeping for more than a year?"

She put her hand over mine as if to comfort me. "Yes."

With my other hand, I touched my chest and my other arm. Then, I blankly stared into space, not knowing if I should feel relieved or mystified.

"My rascals… how come they're still intact?"