Epilogue
Epilogue
The ground approached. The steel hand was all around her. And then—
Huh? The next thing she knew, Kaname found herself with her face buried in a pillow. There was an IV drip stand in front of her. Beyond it was a window. It looked out on cherry trees, soaked by falling rain. She was in a hospital room.
“Oh, hey, you’re awake.” A young nurse was sitting next to her bedside. She was beautiful, yet radiated a sense of willfulness.
“Where am I?” Kaname asked.
“A hospital in Tokyo. It’s 5:35 PM on May 1st. You’ve been sleeping for two and a half days,” the nurse answered. “An ‘ambulance of unknown origin’ brought you here yesterday—You had some bruises and sprains, but no broken bones. If they only drugged you that once, then—”
“Um, who are you?” Kaname interrupted.
“Heh... The nurse act wasn’t convincing, huh? These uniforms make me feel so stiff... You know, Sousuke could’ve been more careful and spared me all this...”
“Sousuke? You know Sagara-kun?”
“Sort of,” she shrugged. “Anyway, Kaname. Now that you’re awake, here’s a word of advice: those bad guys at the airfield drugged you. You lost consciousness, and when you woke up, you were in the hospital here. You don’t remember anything that happened in between. Forget Sousuke, forget Kurz, forget that white AS. All of it.”
“You mean... you want me to keep Mithril a secret?” Kaname asked.
“Well, it’s up to you. I think the Japanese military knows our name, at least. But if the police catch wind of us or what happened to you, they’ll want to hold on to you for a while... The police will probably be by tomorrow to question you, so between now and then, keep pushing the I-don’t-remember line.” The nurse stood up. “And, one more thing; I want to thank you.”
“Thank me?”
“Yes, Chidori Kaname-san. You saved two of my men. They owe their lives to you.” She held out her hand for a handshake.
Kaname felt flustered by the sudden attention. “I d-didn’t do anything...”
“Actually, Kurz told me everything. I know that if you hadn’t been there, neither he nor Sousuke would have made it back alive. I think you might be the strongest out of all of us.”
“N-No way. You’re making me blush...” Kaname laughed awkwardly, then tentatively took her hand. The nurse had a powerful grip, despite her delicate, tapered fingers.
“Well, I should get going.”
“Um...”
“Yes?”
“What’s going to happen to... Sagara-kun?”
“Sousuke?” The nurse answered. “He’s already been assigned to his next mission.”
“Um... did he leave a message?”
“For you? Hmm... I don’t think so.”
“Oh...”
“Well, goodbye.” The woman from Mithril left the room.
Outside, the rain continued.
Is Sousuke on another mission right now? Kaname wondered. Is he off somewhere, trembling in this rain? He could be in danger. He could be in pain. And then some day, like a stray dog, he might...
“He could have at least left a goodbye...” she muttered. She found that the thought caused her eyes to fill with tears, which she wiped at with her sheet, then buried her face back in the pillow.
About five minutes later, the real doctor and nurse arrived. They gave Kaname a clean bill of health and permission to check out in a day or two. They also told her that her father had stayed in her hospital room until just after noon, but had then had to return to New York for work.
They left, and five minutes later, her friends from Jindai High School began flooding into the room. Ten boys and girls from class, five from the softball team, four from the student council, the principal and the vice principal, Ms. Kagurazaka and...
“Kana-chan!” Kyoko hugged her as tightly as she could. Her other friends crowded around, too, expressing joy at her safe return and peppering her with questions.
“We really were worried, you know?”
“The transport plane let us off at an airport in Fukuoka...”
“The rescue squad disappeared after that. They said they were UN or something!”
“It all smells like a conspiracy to me...”
“Also! Also! Hey! None of us knew where you were or who to ask...”
“Ah, I’m sorry, Chidori-san! I should have let them take me instead! I feel like a failure as a teacher!”
“Ugh... Kana-chaaaaaan!”
They jostled her mercilessly, but this was how Kaname knew she was loved. She was glad to be back—Truly.
“H-Hey... I’m still recovering, you know! Hey!” Kaname shouted, bearing their weight.
“That’s right. They’re only mild contusions, but you should still treat her gently,” one of the visitors said.
Kaname nodded. “Exactly! Be nice to me! Of course, they said I can go home tomorrow...”
“That’s good. You should be grateful to that rescue squad.”
“Yeah, though it stinks that the field trip was a bust...”
“But you’re alive. That’s what matters.”
“Yes, yes, the important thing is—huh?” Kaname turned to the visitor in realization. Behind Ms. Kagurazaka (who was welling up with tears) stood a male student. His mouth was drawn into a tight, sullen frown. He had unstyled hair and— “S-Sagara-kun?!”
Confused by her reaction, they all turned to look at Sagara Sousuke.
“What is it, Chidori?”
“What... What... are you doing here?!”
“How rude. I came to see you. You see? I even brought a gift.” He walked up to Kaname with a pack of spicy pollock roe from Hakata.
“What in the world are you—”
“I’m insurance,” Sousuke whispered.
“Insurance?”
“Yes. For a while, at least.”
“How dare you...” She couldn’t bring herself to say, “Thank you” or, “I’m sorry for the trouble” or, “I’m so glad to see you.” His bluntness just made her so angry. But... there was something pleasant about the anger. Kaname took in a deep breath, and... “Hey, Sousuke! There’s a whole lot I want to say to you! How dare you—” As she prepared to lay into him, Sousuke looked around the room, flustered.
The rain outside looked like it would clear up that night.