Chapter 1

My name's Ohayashi, Yuu, a freshman from Hiroichi Academy. I have an older sister who studies in Mihara High School. Dad and mom wanted me to study there as well, but I chose to study in Hiroichi as it was closer to our home. At least this way, I would be right here whenever I'm needed.

I had a quiet lifestyle. I was often at home whenever I'm not in school. Unless there's an emergency, the only time I wasn’t at home and in school was whenever I have to go to Mamoru Hospital for my sister. Maya-nee volunteers in the hospital to help around in her free time. As she spends a lot of time there and in her studies, she has no time to work. This being the case, our parents still sends her monthly allowances. And, of course, I'm the messenger who passes her allowance from our parents.

Honestly, I hate being in the hospital. Who knows what kind of disease I might contract while in there. Of course, I didn't reveal this thought to anyone due to my pride. But this makes me wonder why my sister would decide to spend her free time in the hospital. What would she gain?

A few months ago, Maya-nee was assigned to spend her time with some old man. I recall his last name being Noburu. It seems my sister was the only person in the hospital he got along with. No one else could help him as he didn’t open up to them. As a result, his room pretty much became sis' personal workplace.

Last month, I bumped into a strange girl on my way to visit Maya-nee. She was quite small. Her head doesn’t even reach my chest. Her hair was long and messy. She wore a large white long-sleeved shirt that extended down to her knees. I immediately apologized upon bumping into her, only to be answered by a cold dead gaze from the girl. She then turned to enter the room on my right. Her room was next to the old guy’s room. I shrugged it off then and just forgot about the girl. Today, I overheard two doctors talking about the girl I bumped into last month while walking towards Noburu-san’s room.

“Room 203?” I heard one of them ask.

“Yes, her only option is to undergo surgery. But due to her weak constitution, her chance of surviving the operation is slim.”

I didn’t know who they were talking about at first, but as I got closer to Noburu-san’s room, I caught a glimpse of the girl’s room’s number and saw “203”. Seeing the numbers sent a chill down my spine. I was used to being exposed to these things in TV dramas, but hearing it live affected me differently.

“I see. As I’ve heard, no one could tell when her time was. Wouldn’t it be best for her to undergo the operation as early as possible?”

“That’s the difficult part. As long as her body remains in good condition, her body gets stronger as time passes. As a result, her chances of surviving the operation get higher. However, the moment she gets sick, her body becomes very weak and her chance of surviving the operation returns to almost zero.”

“That is a difficult case. And what was her parents’ decision?”

At that moment, I couldn’t enter Noburu-san’s room. My attention was glued to the doctors’ conversation.

“That’s another problem. She doesn’t have any. Someone just paid for her 3 years stay here and vanished.”

After hearing that, I entered Noburu-san’s room. Maya-nee wasn’t there. According to Noburu-san, she was getting his lunch ready. He asked me if I want to wait for her, but I refused. I kept Maya-nee’s allowance in the other stuff I was asked to give her and just left them on the table, next to the TV. I knew Noburu-san had no need for money. I also knew he saw Maya-nee as something like a daughter, so there was really no reason for him to steal from her.

When I stepped outside, I saw the two doctors just leaving the area where they talked. They really shouldn’t talk about these things in the corridor, I thought. I then glanced at the number on the strange girl’s door. 203, I read in my mind.

I tried to imagine what it was like behind that door. I imagined the girl lying still on the bed. A vase filled with flowers stand on the desk by the bed. Some stuffed bears sit beside the vase, holding a note which says “Get well soon”. I snapped back into reality and found my right hand holding the doorknob. I had a weird urge to check up on the girl. Turning the knob slowly and quietly, I silently opened the door.

The place was dark and cold. The curtains were hardly open, allowing only little light to enter the room. The air conditioning made the room comfortably cool. No flowers no vase stood on the table by her bed. The only thing on the desk was what I assume was the girl’s breakfast, which was hardly touched. Only a pair of slippers was on the ground. The girl was there, sitting on the bed, looking back at me. There was not a hint of curiosity or surprise on her eyes. Her eyes and facial expression said nothing. Blank and empty; as if she doesn't see anything.

“Oops, wrong room.” I said, before laughing off my “mistake”.

I expected some sort of reply from her, but there was none. She just stared back at me, as if she was just waiting for me to leave her room.

I stepped back out and closed the door. I caught a glimpse of a long-haired brunette nurse looking my way. I hoped she wouldn’t question my entering the room and just walked away.

“Hey!” I heard her call.

Busted! I turned around and acted innocent. “Yes?”

“I saw you come out of room 203. Do you happen to be her brother?” she asked me.

“Ah, n-no. I’m just a friend,” I replied. “I was just passing by and thought I might drop by.”

“Ah, that’s great!” she exclaimed. “No one visited her until now. We were worried she had no friends.”

Craaaap!!! Why didn't I just tell her that I made a mistake?
 

“Haha, I know. She’s quite unsociable, so she didn’t have many friends,” I bluffed.

“Tell me about it. We tried letting different nurses and doctors take care of her, but she didn’t open up to anyone. She seemed so sad, but it’s impossible to help her,” she complained. “Oh, I shouldn’t say these things. I’m so sorry. Please try to forget what I just said.”

“No problem,” I answered.

“Sorry for taking so much of your time. Also, please try to visit her as often as possible. It would really be best if we could raise her spirits somehow.”

“Ah, yes. Of course. Anyway, I have to go now. Thank you for taking care of her.” I said as I made my escape.

“Take care, sir!”




-nee = honorific for sister.
-san = common polite suffix.

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