Chapter 1
She had been driving all night, worried sick. What started as a nice day turned into a right nightmare in the blink of an eye. One moment, she was celebrating with her coworkers; the next, her phone rang.
Unknown number... She thought of ignoring it but picked up regardless. She stepped out onto the balcony.
“Hello?” She covered her other ear to hear the call better.
“Hello, is this Himeko Murata?” The voice on the other side was off. Something is wrong. Something sank in her stomach.
“Yes. To whom am I speaking?” She hoped deep down that it was some telemarketer.
“I am nurse Andrews at Mercy hospital. There has been an accident. A girl called March 7th was in a car crash, and you are listed as her emergency contact.” Himeko had to support herself with her arm on the wall.
“No, no, no, no, no... Wh-what happened? Is she okay?” She felt weak, nauseous.
“She was in a crash, she suffered an injury to her head, the bleeding stopped, but she isn’t conscious. Her condition seems stable.” Himeko put a hand over her forehead.
“I’ll be there. I’m coming. It will be a few hours, but I’m on my way right now. Thank you for letting me know.” She didn’t even finish that thought before hanging up and grabbing her things.
She just let her coworkers know there was an emergency, took her purse and coat, and took off. It was a few hours’ drive to the city where March was attending university.
She sat down in her beat-up old hatchback and headed out. It was already evening when she got the call, so she would get there in the middle of the night.
She had no music on, just the road, the sounds of rain, and the car’s engine.
Now that she thought about it, the engine sounded a bit weird. She shook that thought off and kept driving.
Hours passed, and exhaustion started setting in, but she kept going strong.
Little droplets of rain turned into bigger droplets of rain, which turned into pouring like crazy. “How appropriate”, she thought to herself.
The city is now in view, and the rain is still going strong when the engine starts rattling like crazy.
“Ohhh, no, not now, you piece of shit!”
Now she is stuck on the side of the road, rain pouring, and the car simply not starting.
She tried time and time again, but no luck. “Ahh, fuck you!” She hit the steering wheel, which made the horn produce a loud but short beep.
She put her face in her hands and wanted to cry badly, but then she thought of March, and her brain refreshed.
She immediately called a mechanic she knew back when she lived in this city and just waited, March on her mind.
“You better be okay. Please God, be okay.” She couldn’t afford to lose her only family.
When the mechanic arrived, she asked him for a ride to the shop, which he obliged, of course, and also asked her why she was there in the first place.
He quickly offered his prayers when she explained. The rest of the ride to the shop was quiet.
Once they arrived, Himeko was going to call a cab, but then a thought popped up in her head.
Pulling out her phone, she scrolled through her contacts and quickly found “DO NOT ANSWER!!!” She pressed the call button.
A raspy and tired voice answered. “Himeko? Is everything alright?”
“No, no, it is not alright. March is in the hospital; can you pick me up? Please?”
She could hear rustling on the other side, as if someone was getting out of bed. “Where are you? I’m coming; just give me your location.” Himeko would smile if the circumstances were different.
“I’m sending it to you. I’ll wait just inside the car shop.” She shifted her phone to her other ear.
“Be there in 5.”
“Before you go... Thank you, Kafka.” Himeko said in a sad and sincere tone.
“Of course.” Kafka hung up.
She waited near the front door of the shop. The mechanic offered her coffee, but she declined, saying her ride would be here shortly.
Before long, a familiar purple 69’ charger pulled up to the shop, driving like a crazy person. Himeko said goodnight to the mechanic and quickly hopped into the car.
“Mercy hospital, quick.” She said in a shaken-up tone.
“On it.” Kafka put the pedal to the metal. She usually liked leisurely drives, but when it was about March, and for Himeko, she would do anything for them.
The trip was quiet; well, they were quiet. The engine sure wasn’t.
She stopped the car right at the entrance to the hospital. “Go, I’ll park.”
“Thank you, Kafka, really.” She said while getting out. “Don’t mention it, darling,” Kafka said before speeding off to the parking lot.
Himeko almost sprinted to the front desk. She explained that she was here for March. The receptionist guided her to the correct floor.
She quickly found the nurse who was on duty. “Nurse Andrews? I’m the one you called earlier, I’m here to see March.”
“Miss Himeko. We don’t usually let people in this late, but I’ll let you see her.” She gestured for Himeko to follow.
Before long, there she was. Her March, all hooked up on machines. Himeko covered her face in shock. The nurse left them alone.
She pulled up a chair and took hold of her hand. She looks as beautiful as an angel, like she is just sleeping. Tears just started streaming down her face, and she started sobbing.
Her heart broke each time she looked at March. She could not bear to see her like this, she could not bear the thought of losing her.
She cried there for a while, but no matter how she begged, March just wasn’t waking up.
She wiped her tears and reluctantly walked out. She was hungry and thirsty, and all of this was making her feel nauseous.
As she walked out, Kafka stood up; she was waiting right outside the room.
“Himeko? How is she?” She asked with a soft tone. Instead of speaking, Himeko buried herself in Kafka’s shoulder.
Tears once more streamed like crazy, her sobs muffled by Kafka’s shirt.
“Himeko... It’s okay, dear. It will be okay. I am here.” She rubbed her back with one hand and held her head with the other.
They sat down, and as Himeko kept crying into her shirt for a while, concern crept more and more into Kafka’s expression.
Eventually, Himeko managed to speak. “My March... She is all hooked up to machines, and-and she’s not waking up.”
“Oh, Himeko...” Kafka held her tight, trying to comfort her. “You should go home, Kafka... I will stay here.”
Kafka shook her head. “No, Himeko, you look so exhausted. You need rest. You’re going to go sleep, and we can come back after.”
Himeko was silent for a bit but then agreed with Kafka. “Okay, fine.”
They bid the nurse goodnight and took the elevator to the parking lot.
“Are you hungry? There is stew at my place.” Kafka offered. “I am hungry and thirsty, and exhausted, and sad.” Kafka nodded in understanding and took her hand.
If she was okay, she would protest this; hell, she wouldn’t even have called Kafka up in the first place.
Except she is not okay, and Kafka holding her hand is the only thing keeping her from falling apart right here in this elevator.
They walked to her car, and Kafka drove back to her place. This time, the ride was smooth, calming.
There was an understanding silence between them, and the atmosphere was not a bad one. Kafka is something very familiar to Himeko, even though she doesn’t want to admit it, she is very happy that Kafka is here.
“Here we are. Home sweet home.” They entered through the front of Kafka’s tattoo parlour and took the stairs up to her apartment.
“Hasn’t changed much,” Himeko commented with a hint of nostalgia in her voice. “It never does. I like it how it is.”
Kafka turned the lights on and gestured Himeko in. “Make yourself at home.”
“Thank you, Kafka.” She took off her coat and placed it on the coat rack. “Sit down, I’ll get you that stew I mentioned.”
Himeko sat down and just watched Kafka as she grabbed the food. She heated it up a little in the microwave and sat down across from Himeko.
“Here you go.” She smiled, resting her face on her fist. “Thank you.”
She gulped the entire bowl of stew like she had never had food before. “Oh my, someone was hungry.” Kafka teased. “Yeah.” Himeko looked at her with a bit of guilt in her eyes.
Before things got even more uncomfortable, Himeko asked, “Can I use your shower?”
“Yes, of course, as I said, make yourself at home.” Kafka gave her a soft, reassuring smile. “I’m here for you; what’s mine is yours.”
“I... Thank you, Kafka.” She looked down, thinking about all their broken promises. Maybe they could have been happy together, living in this exact place.
She went to the bathroom to take her shower, meanwhile, Kafka washed the dishes and prepared some clean clothes for Himeko.
In the shower, she broke down again. She sat on the floor and let the water burn her. It felt good; the pain felt good.
After a few minutes, the hot water stopped feeling so hot, and she caught herself crying over the entire thing. March is like a daughter to her, the only real person she has left in her life who feels like family.
Kafka heard the sobs. She knocked on the door. “Himeko?” There was no response, just more crying. “Himeko, I’m coming in now.” She gently opened the door.
She saw Himeko sitting on the shower floor and rushed to her immediately. “Himeko?” She reached out to touch her
“Ouch...” The water burned her. She quickly turned the water off and took Himeko’s hand. She was hot to the touch.
“What are you doing, dear? I don’t think this is healthy.” But all Himeko could say was, “Yeah.”
She pulled her out of the shower and helped her dry herself. “Oh, Himmy...” Himeko didn’t know how to feel about that nickname anymore. “I’m sorry, Kafka, I’m a mess.”
Kafka put a hand on her cheek. “I’ll always be here to take care of you if you let me.” Those words made her feel all sorts of things.
Himeko got dressed in some comfortable pyjamas and got ready for bed. Kafka brought her some water to drink after that hot water incident.
Kafka gently took her hand, rubbing circles into it with her thumb. “You can sleep on the couch or on the bed, your choice. I... don’t mind being there and sleeping with you if you are okay with that.”
“I don’t really want to be alone right now... Let’s sleep in the bed, please.” She needed Kafka at this moment. She needed the comfort of her presence. Somehow, even when they aren’t together, Kafka is a constant in her life.
They lay down, and Kafka made sure to give Himeko space; she didn’t want to make her uncomfortable, especially not now. They said their goodnights and turned to sleep.
Himeko tried her best to fall asleep, but it was difficult. Things were weighing on her mind; no matter what position she tried, sleep wouldn’t come to her, even with how tired she was.
She stared at the ceiling for a while, but it didn’t help; it just let her imagination run wild, and that was the last thing she needed.
Then she tried turning towards Kafka, who she thought was asleep. “Can’t sleep, Himmy?” She asked in a sleepy voice.
“I keep thinking about everything. About March, about you.” Suddenly, she was pulled by her waist towards Kafka. “I’ve got you, dear. Everything will be okay.”
Himeko buried her face in Kafka’s chest. It was a lot nicer than just being near her. Kafka wordlessly massaged circles into her back with one hand, and the other hand was holding Himeko’s.
They then fell asleep, intertwined together, and Himeko felt safe.