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Nobara wasn't waking up.
Maki couldn't move from where she lay.
Her entire body felt exhausted and pushed to its limits, but she was vaguely aware of Nobara's presence. So they were probably in the infirmary. What happened to Nobara to have landed here as well?
Maki wanted to go closer to her. Apparently, her body had other plans, and didn't move an inch.
"Try to move now, and those injuries might be permanent."
The green haired girl could just manage to hear Shoko's voice, as the older woman gave her a sympathetic look. Compared to the faces she usually wore, Maki was almost tempted to think that this was all a dream. A dream she could wake up from and find Nobara alive and well and her friends and underclassmen all safe and with her. But to fuel such fantasy, even when desperate, is not something Maki wanted to indulge in.
"It's hard to save someone who was nearly burned alive. Don't waste my hard work. Get some rest," Shoko insisted, her face a blur in Maki's vision.
All she could do was comply, laying her head back down and looking in the direction of where Nobara lay.
How long had it been? Where was everyone?
Maki could only wonder those questions after a while in bed.
Shoko would tell her little about what was going on, only telling her that her friends were healing as well. But that didn't cover half of it. What were they healing from? What about the underclassmen? What about the other teachers?
At least she could still see Nobara.
Her vision had gotten clearer over time, and she could see the other girl's face. At least, the part that wasn't wrapped heavily.
Maki had sent her off with Akari so protect her, so how did things end up like this? Nobara was strong after all, so who had they run into for this to happen?
'I couldn't help her.'
An ache in Maki's chest made her vision blur again. This time, however, it wasn't from the painful injuries all over her body. Crying wasn't something she was fond of. Mai used to cry a lot, and Maki had to be the one to lead the way for them both.
But still she was here, crying over the fact that what she did wasn't enough to help Nobara.
Maki could move now. She could walk if she tried her hardest. Shoko still refused to tell her anything, and that made Maki sure that something was going on in the outside world. Something she was certain she'd have an input on, if given the chance.
For now, she could walk over to Nobara's bed. She'd managed to learn from Shoko that the shock impact from her injury had caused the orange haired girl to enter a comatose state. Half her face was pale and the other half wrapped in the bandages Shoko had reapplied earlier today.
Seeing Nobara like this made this simultaneously better and worse. Better because she felt that if she herself had survived being set aflame, surely Nobara could survive this. Worse because, who would want to see someone dear to them in such a life threatening state. The very thought of anything worse happening to Nobara sent a shiver of fury in Maki.
"She won't heal any faster if you're watching," She heard Shoko's teasing tone, as the woman entered the curtain their beds were in. Maki still hadn't been able to use her voice much yet, so she simply shot the older a halfhearted glare.
Still, she went to laying back in her own bed, her eyes not leaving Nobara even as sleep pulled her eyes shut.
The first thing she noticed was the light to her side was brighter than usual. The second thing she noticed was Shoko standing by Nobara's bed, her brows furrowed tight.
Maki tried to blink off her exhaustion and sat up, looking on in confusion at what she was doing.
The third thing she noticed was Nobara's unwrapped side of her face, in which her eye was wide open and frantically darting around.
Maki is a very rational person in her own eyes. But no one in this line of work was completely sane.
Shoko gave her a glare as she stood up on wobbly legs. Usually Maki would stand still for a few minutes to get the blood flowing properly and her feet steady. But now, she simply started walking, only focused on Nobara. Shoko didn't stop her as she did so.
Nobara's gaze met hers for a split-second, and immediately her panic seemed to subside a little. Even Shoko seemed surprised by this, raising an eyebrow but still fast at work in injecting something through a needle.
"Ma...ki...hur..ts."
Maki felt her heart shatter as Nobara tried to speak. She maneuvered herself as to not get in the black haired woman's way, and placed her hand on Nobara's unhurt cheek, gently wiping away the small tears that had fallen.
Maki still couldn't speak, even though Shoko insisted it was only temporary. Now, more than ever, she wanted to say words she'd been holding back.
Nobara fell back asleep before she could do so.
Sleep that night and the next was restless for Maki.
Maki woke up to an engulfing silence. Knowing that was never a good sign, she sat upright with a hiss of pain at the suddenness in her own movements. She looked over at Nobara, only to see Shoko next to her as well, her arms at her sides. Was she not reapplying the bandages or checking her vitals this time?
Gritting her teeth, Maki started walking over.
"Don't come closer unless you're prepared to say goodbye," The low whisper caught the green haired girl off guard. Since when had the older woman used such a tone? It made a panic spike in Maki as she realized what those words meant. In spite of her panic, and the fact she really didn't want her nightmare to be true, she rushed to Nobara's bedside.
Nobara's breaths were more shallow than ever, and hardly there at all. Her pale complexion looked more ashen and her eyes were shut tight in a seemingly painful way. A sob threatened to choke Maki, and she clutched her chest to try and stop it.
Footsteps leaving signaled that Shoko had decided to leave them alone. Leave her alone anyway, in what she could only imagine was a few minutes.
Maki reached to grab Nobara's hand in hers, rubbing circles around the palm. Her heart jumped when the other's eye opened slightly at the small movements. A feeling of both recklessness and the feeling she'd been holding back took over her.
"Nobara," Maki's voice was croaky, and she tried clearing it, giving up after she deemed it would be understandable.
"I love you."
Maki woke up, her eyes already trained on looking in the direction of Nobara's bed after so many days of doing so. Looking that way only brought heartache now.
Nobara had died.