17. Chapter 17 (1/2)

csilla: i really do love this pairing, i swear! why do they inspire me to write such angst & fluff at the same time?! in the same fic?!

a sudden sharp pain in my chest and air painfully stabbed at my throat as i gasped, immediately i heard yuu crying. i pried my eyes open, just slow enough to avoid the tears falling from his closed eyes. he must have sensed some movement on my part because soon his eyes opened and his tears seemed to have paused in their movements.

"m-mika…?" i could see the disbelief in the vi

ant green eyes i loved before warmth flooded them and a relieved smile spread across his face, "thank god! i thought she killed you, but then those guys showed up and said if you really wanted to live, you could… but then," tears started falling again and before i could reach up to comfort him, yuu suddenly hugged me: "then you wouldn't wake up and i was scared you were going to leave me behind..." the rest of his words became choked sobs; my hand reached, only to rest on the back on his head.

i was alive, but how? my gaze traveled over to krul, standing before three figures clad in black. i recognized one, almost immediately, his short yellow-green hair cut nicely just below his ears and the long black horns that could easily mistake him as a reaper: kiseki-o, the current leader of the angels residing in japan.

i was distracted wondering why an angel of his caliber is in purgatory that i didn't hear one of the other black-clad figures walking over to me. i did, however, notice when they knelt down near me. i glanced over to find myself face-to-face with a

unette, who no older than eleven!

"hello, would you mind if i saw your wound?" despite her appearance, i couldn't help but think that she likely died at a young age and became an angel years ago. she acted far too old for eleven.

i nodded slightly before giving yuu a gentle push so he could release me, after a solid minute of ignoring me, he did just that. sitting with his face lowered until his bangs covered any expression he held, i sighed before turning back to the angel: "so what now?"

"i ask that the two of talk… to distract yourself. the process off healing a reaper's injury is painful, at best" she explained, motioning towards the area between myself and yuu, "just pretend i'm not here..."

i clicked my tongue before turning to face yuu as she went straight to work on taking off my bloodied uniform shirt. she positioned herself behind me, her hands on each side of the exit wound left by krul's weapon.

"yuu..." i began, although i wasn't even sure what i should talk about to distract myself from the growing burning sensation spreading across my back and onto my chest.

clearing her throat, "i think what reaper-boy wants to know if you heard him when he said that he loves you, human..."

i'm felt my face heat up as i bit out, "aren't you supposed to be doing your job?"