Day 30: Music Room (Third Shift)
The last intercom had spelled out everything.
Misbehavior. Someone had started a riot - quickly quelled from the sounds of it. He didn't want to say it was good thing he'd be stabbed, but from the looks of it, it was probably best he was absent from whatever shift this had happened during. The warning siren, and all of the habub about it; blood ( Read more... )
Misbehavior. Someone had started a riot - quickly quelled from the sounds of it. He didn't want to say it was good thing he'd be stabbed, but from the looks of it, it was probably best he was absent from whatever shift this had happened during. The warning siren, and all of the habub about it; blood ( Read more... )
The Music Room was the last room that the nurse mentioned, so it was the first place Rika decided to check. She didn't know where Mion and the others could be, but she had to start somewhere.
In retrospect, the Sun Room was probably the wisest place to check, but what if Mion wanted somewhere quieter to stay? She was injured, after all. Rika almost regretted her choice of room when she walked in and saw it nearly empty... except for someone that she happened to be looking for.
"Edward! You're OK!" Rika joyfully smiled, running up to him. Her eyes showed that she was happy that one of her new allies had made it out alive, especially with her last memory of him being one where he was between her and a woman with a fire poker for a weapon.
"I was very worried. I didn't remember what happened to you last night. Mii... have you seen Bella?"
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Ending on a broken note, Edward turned to see Rika's overly happy face. He had to smile in response - he didn't think she would have been worried about him. "Yes, I barely got scratched," he sighed, relieved. The girl looked perfectly unharmed, which meant he had been successful in diverting the purple woman's attention.
His face turned back into one of worry when Rika mentioned his fiancé. "No, I haven't. I woke up late, and missed a shift... I'm sure she's alright. You weren't hurt at all, were you?"
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"I'm fine, all thanks to you!" She smiled. "And I was a good girl too in the morning and didn't get caught up in that fight this morning. I'm glad you didn't have to see such a sight, Edward, it was awful."
Rika paused. Bella certainly wouldn't have joined in... would she? She looked at Edward with this unasked question, since he knew Bella much better than she.
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At first, Bella had no idea where she was going to go. She had plenty of choices to choose from in looking for her fiancé, and she only got one chance at finding the right room. Dammit, she cursed to herself, chewing on her bottom lip as she delayed telling the nurse where to bring her, If only I could track.
That was before she heard the piano playing.
“The music room,” Bella answered instantly, her gut twisting. She hoped she had made the correct choice.
To her intense delight, she had.
Sitting in front of a large keyboard was Edward, talking to none other than Rika. All at once all her panic and fear seeped out of her, and she let out a shuddered breath, watching as her fiancé spoke to the child for a few moments before she began to run towards the two of them, her eyes starting to burn with relief.
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Leave it to Bella to make friends with the mentally abnormal children.
"I heard. It sounded pretty bad." He played a few spare keys in deliberation. "I know she wouldn't join in. Bella would hurt herself more than anyone else."
But speak of the devil, and she would appear.
The vampire let out a long breath full of relief, glad to see his fiancé was fine, running up to them with such a drumming heartbeat. He could hear it even over the pangs of the keyboard.
As much as he would have loved to stand and greet her, the pain along his ribcage was reminder enough. "Hello again, love."
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It wasn't until Bella showed up did Rika realize it. They were like Shion and Satoshi, the way they should have ended up. Rika couldn't say for sure, and she certainly couldn't ask, but she had the feeling that Bella and Edward had overcome much hardship to end up together. There was just something about the way they interacted, that made Rika think they had gone through so much.
At least they had a happy ending. No resets. It was nice to see.
"Bella! You're OK too," Rika greeted her, and she had the feeling she was starting to intrude. Perhaps it was time to go try and find Mion...
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Looking around, she quickly pulled up a chair and dragged it so that it was next to Edward’s own. Sitting down in it slowly, she toweled off her hair as she turned to look at her fiancé with a bright smile. “Hey, Edward-“ wait a minute. Bella froze, the smile dropping off of her lips as she peered up at her vampire’s face. Something was … different.
And then it hit her.
Bella’s heartbeat practically stopped when she realized his eyes - which had been the normal topaz yesterday - were now black, despite the fact that he looked completely fine.
“How are you, Edward?” She asked, her thoughts teetering on the edge of panic and hysteria. She had been able to keep her tone casual, at least.
But she didn’t know how long it would last for.
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No, something was off there. Definitely. His relief was cut short by it. No breaks, even when he was bleeding. For the first time in... a long time. Just stop thinking about it. He was well enough at reading her to see something was obviously wrong, but what? Her heartbeat was racing.
"I'm fine. I only received a scratch." Edward tried not to look skeptical, a few familiar notes peeling out from under his wavering fingers. At least look like he was using it. "Has something happened?"
Not a good moment for her to be blocked from him. His right hand was already digging into the white keys of the pseudo-piano, tense. He hated the way her silence drove him insane. Sometimes.
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Rika was short and the night was dark, so she took no notice of Edward's eye color. Rather, she just gave them both worried glances.
"... Is something wrong?" She quietly spoke, her voice losing some of that childish edge.
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No, it was not “nothing”. It was “something incredibly wrong and hysteria causing.” Turning back to look at Edward, Bella leaned back in her seat away from him, the towel falling to her lap as her hands snuck under the towel to latch into a death grasp onto her pants.
He was clearly thirsty, and yet she just sat there, being a temptation. She knew Edward was fully capable of stopping himself or, rather, ignoring the thirst, but that didn’t mean she could stop herself from feeling terrible about it.
Without even noticing, Bella had begun to slowly scoot her chair back from him. When she realized what she was doing, she coughed and bent down low to the ground as if to fix her pants around her ankles.
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"Of course," he answered, his face breaking into a carefree smile, voice smooth. "Sorry, I'm only relieved both of you were safe last night." Edward swiveled in the chair, turning back to face the keyboard, eyes still glued to Bella, a question hidden within them. One that he would be forced to ask later.
"Since we're here, and the keyboard is free for once, do you have any requests?" His question was nonchalant, completely devoid of worry. He was going to ignore that Bella was practically begging for attention. Just. Ignore. It. "I haven't touched one in ages." He looked to Rika, curious. "Do you like piano music?"
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Still, it did make her curious, but that would be another question for another day.
"Of course! I haven't had the chance to learn, but I love listening when I have the chance," Rika smiled back. That was true, on the rare occasions that she got to listen to Western piano performances (she believed they called it 'elevator music' over there) in the Irie clinic, it was always pleasant to hear.
But the chance for listening to some elevator music disappeared as a nurse drew closer, gently laying a hand on Rika's shoulder.
"Yukari, it's time for the younger children to take a shower," She smiled. "You'll be able to speak to your friends later."
"Miii..." Rika whined in protest, but there wasn't much she could do as the nurse lead her away from the pair.
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