A Love Like Ours

[KIYOMI]

Patience was something Kiyomi was determined to practice in her life, but ever since she had met the psycho queen determined to turn her life upside down worse than the Bogdan Lycans, Kiyomi wasn't sure if she was in heaven or a different kind of hell. 

Whatever that was, she was certain she hated it with all of her, and nothing would ever compare to this even as she desperately held on to her best friend who was unconscious. 

She had decided to take Elif to the hospital even though there was a chance that she was just unconscious. But then again, in the chaos that had ensued, Kiyomi only ever wanted to be sure that her human friend was okay. 

…Especially since she had started turning green. Normal people never turned green and that shit scared her to the core.

"Hello! Anyone there?" Kiyomi asked once she realized that she wasn't at Odanera City Hospital. Perhaps this was just another reminder that the woman she had been mated to was the bastard of the bastards and she had nothing to lose this time too. 

Oh, she despised Sakura Watanabe with all of her.

"Your majesty… Let us help," one of the doctors said when Kiyomi made it to the reception. It was strange how there had been no one outside the hospital and yet the moment she walked in, it was busting with life. 

From the outside, it was almost difficult to tell whether it was a hospital or just another place that she had been thrust into because of her choices. It was a different one from Odanera and seemingly well-equipped. 

It looked like something out of a fantasy and it was inviting as hell. However, that wasn't what Kiyomi was focused on at the moment her best friend was still in her arms, unconscious and Kiyomi didn't even know why the fuck she had been brought to this place.

"What?" Kiyomi asked as she looked around, wondering if there was someone else behind her, but when she realized they were talking about her, she faltered with her best friend still in her arms. 

There was just no way this had happened to her again. She was sure she had created a portal to Odanera earlier. It was the only place she wanted to be in and it didn't make any sense that she was here now. 

She had been clear, but was there anyone who cared what she felt other than the one unconscious in her arms and the one who would probably hate her for the rest of her life?

"Please let us help before she goes into shock," another doctor said.

Kiyomi wasn't sure why, but she let them out her Elif on the stretcher and wheel her away. However, this time, Kiyomi wasn't staying behind to watch how magnificent the hospital was. 

She would go with her Elif. She wouldn't be far from her friend because this wasn't how things were supposed to be. Besides, Elif had already seen enough shit for one day and Kiyomi didn't want to be the reason she suffered again; not if she could help it.

"If you hurt her any more than she is, I will burn you all," Kiyomi promised and they gulped as they looked at her. 

When they got to the emergency unit, she was about to go in, when a hand gripped her shoulder roughly, holding her back with intent and forcing her to watch defeatedly as the doors closed on her best friend.

"No, let me go," Kiyomi said angrily as she turned to look at the person who had stopped her. This wasn't the time for some hero to show up for her, because she would punch that damn hero in all the ways into hell without thinking twice.

"I won't. I will never, ever, let you go," the Lycan queen's voice rang in Kiyomi's ears, who turned to look at Sakura, only for the woman to look dead inside Kiyomi's eyes as if there was something she was looking for. 

The soulless queen, Sakura Watanabe, was a lot of things and right now, Kiyomi wasn't sure what the fuck was happening. 

She wanted to be mad at the woman and blame her for all of this and yet there was a calm in Sakura's eyes, a kind of calm that got Kiyomi leaning in involuntarily, and soon enough, she was asleep on the Lycan queen's shoulder.

"You heard the woman. If you hurt that human, I will have your heads myself," the Lycan queen said before she created a portal and went through it, with Kiyomi on her shoulders like the woman was still a troublemaker.

Funny how Kiyomi had been the one to come to the hospital with Elif in her arms and she was excited, unconscious, and with the Lycan queen holding her so delicately over her shoulders. 

It was something that got the staff at the hospital curious, but none of them could say shit.

The portal Sakura had created didn't take them to the Lycan queen's penthouse in Odanera as anyone would expect. Instead, it took them to a country house in the outskirts of the great human city that had long lured the queen in.

"What the fuck did you do to her this time?" Otaru asked and Sakura rolled her eyes at her enforcer as if to tell Otaru that he had little faith in Sakura. Then again the woman hadn't exactly been the greatest advocate for world peace, certainly not with Kiyomi Kimura.

"Don't tell me you were the one who knocked her best friend unconscious," Otaru started accusingly and at that, Sakura turned to look at Otaru, this time, there was disapproval in her eyes, but then that didn't stop Otaru from staring in wait for answers.

"Fine. I didn't do anything. I may have killed someone and the human saw it and fainted. It's not my fault that her friend is weakling," Sakura defended and Otaru facepalmed. He had known his queen had issues, but this woman was beyond redemption this time.

"And why is she on your shoulder smelling like Yena hospital then?" Otaru asked.

"Because we left Elif there, after I may or may not have knocked Kiyomi out. In my defense, she was worried about her friend and I didn't want to stress her out. I would never hurt her, Otaru, you know that by now," Sakura said, adding the last bit slowly.

"But Sakura… You can't just do that to her, not at this stage of your bond. She is angry with you in ways more than once, which is something you need to work on, but kidnapping her like this won't make issues any better.

"She cares for the human and you left the human alone in Yena with the other Lycans, unfamiliar faces that might get her scared. You realize Kiyomi won't forgive you if anything happens to Elif, right?" Otaru asked softly.

He knew this was the effect of the mate and Sakura had the urge to unconditionally protect her erasthai. It was a yearning from deep within and no matter what Sakura did, she would never be able to fight it.

Sure, when she was in front of Kiyomi, she would play the mean queen who didn't care for her and a lot more, but she was scared and it was still new to her too. Sakura was worried that things wouldn't go well and she would lose her erasthai.

Otaru knew that too.

"They wouldn't dare to hurt her; they know better than that. Aren't you worrying too much? Besides, it's not like I'm looking to get her to love me anyway. She won't ever like me and that's okay.

"I have too many faults and if she knows about them she will run, and I can't have that. She's too good for my world, I know that too, but I can't have her disappear. She can go back to her life and I'll go back to mine when she wakes up," Sakura sighed.

Otaru chuckled knowingly. 

This wasn't going to be a walk in the pack and he had seen that the moment Sakura had pushed all the drops to the chaos within. It was just a matter of time before the decision blew on her, but at least by then Kiyomi would be happy, right?

"Goddess, you're so hopeless it's infuriating. If you don't want her to keep running away from you, do something nice for her. She might appreciate it and not look at you like a monster," Otaru said and Sakura nodded before she disappeared into her bedroom.

"Wait, do you even know what you are to do?"

"Yup!"

"Sakura…"

"She'll like me when she wakes up, you'll see! Goodbye now!" Sakura said excitedly. 

"Sakura Watanabe!!" Otaru shouted in horror when he realized what Sakura meant by that, but his queen had long locked the door and shut him out.

"Goddess help us all."