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Dark.
Cold.
Black.
Nothing.
Kaori struggled to move her hands and feet...how long had she been under now?
It was strange, really.
Instead of feeling pain, fear, or even sadness, Kaori just felt a deathly chill enveloping her as she floated in...limbo? Eternal darkness? What was this odd void that her body aimlessly floated through as it hung in between life and death?
Then suddenly, a bright white light.
A dozen voices as the surgeons operating on her shouted and barked various commands at one another.
"It seems her body is not rejecting the transplanted organ!"
"Keep the patient stable! If she moves too quickly or hurts herself, she'll be at high risk of injury!"
Kaori groaned and lifted her hand to her face, shielding her eyes from the blinding lights. Then, she heard it.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
Tilting her head to the left, she saw her heart rate displayed on the heart monitor. It appeared steady. And that was when she felt it: a brand new heart, good as new, beating inside her chest. The operation had worked! She was alive!
"Ms. Miyazono, can you hear me?!" the senior surgeon shouted.
"Uh...yes," Kaori mumbled, trying to find which of the masked faces had spoken to her.
"Help her sit up! Slowly!" the gruff male voice ordered, and Kaori felt multiple arms helping her sit in an upright position on the operating table.
"Gently now, young lady," the senior surgeon said in a kind voice. "Don't do too much, too fast."
"Okay," Kaori said as she took deep breaths in and out. She checked her pulse just to make sure it wasn't a dream. Yup, she was alive all right. Sitting up, breathing, and full of new energy!
"I'll go get her parents!" one of the other surgeons said, opening the door and calling for Kaori's parents to come in.
Kaori's face broke into an excited smile as she saw her parents walk into the operating room. It had worked! She'd be able to go home with them in a few days and eat dinner with them like usual! Maybe even catch up on school!
That was when Kaori noticed something was wrong. Her parents weren't leaping for joy, smiling, teasing her, or laughing. They were crying. Not tears of joy...but tears of anguish.
"Mom? Dad?" Kaori asked. "What's the matter?"
"I'm sorry, sweetheart!" her mother, Ryouko, sobbed. "We couldn't stop him!"
"We didn't know he was doing it until right before the operation!" added her father, Yoshiyuki.
"What? Couldn't stop who? Didn't know who was doing what? Mom, dad, you're scaring me!"
Yoshiyuki tried to formulate an explanation to his bewildered daughter, but his voice cracked as his throat choked up and his tongue refused to enunciate words. Instead, he simply pointed behind Kaori as he and his wife continued to sob.
"Wait, don't-!" the head surgeon warned.
But he was too late. Kaori looked behind her, and saw the reason for her parent's distress. A dead body lay on the operating table just a few feet to her left.
But that wasn't what made Kaori scream.
"KOUSEEEEIIIII!!!"
There was no denying it. The mop of fuzzy black hair. The kind, meek smile now frozen on his cold, pale face. The familiar pair of black glasses.
"No! NO! NOOOOO!!!" Kaori wailed, trying to lunge for the other operating table as the surgeons restrained her.
"Ms. Miyazono, please! Don't over-exert yourself!" the head surgeon shouted.
Kaori flailed her arms in a desperate, defeated manner, her voice reaching new heights as she cried out in denial and anger at what she was seeing. The truth was there, before her eyes, clear as day.
Kousei had given his heart...his life...to save hers!
"Sit up, you idiot!" she sobbed. "We haven't played our second duet yet, remember?! You're the great Kousei Arima right?! Get up, get up, get UP!"
But Kousei's body just lay there, cold and lifeless. Not stirring. Not playing. Not even breathing. The boy she'd met on that spring day, the boy who had won her admiration at only five years old, the boy she loved...was gone.
"KOUSEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!"
.......................................
Kaori couldn't stop crying as she knelt at Kousei's grave, the frigid snow soaking through the knees of her jeans. It had been over a week, but the time had blurred by. Even now, Kaori still couldn't believe it. What on Earth had led Kousei to do such a thing?
Her pondering was cut short as she heard another set of booted footsteps approaching. She didn't need to look to see who it was. The jealous, icy tone of voice confirmed Tsubaki's hostile presence.
"The GALL you have, to come here, and kneel at his grave," Tsubaki growled in a voice that sounded like the predatorial snarl of a mountain lion.
Kaori said nothing.
"You...YOU! The one who lied to him AND me! The one who filled his head with crazy ideas of playing music again! The one who just barged into our friend group like you belonged there!"
Again, Kaori said nothing.
"You're a real freak, you know that? Using your stupid little music to win Kousei's heart and steal him from me! Acting all happy and go-lucky just so none of us would find out about your little condition!"
Kaori, with some effort, stood up and turned to look Tsubaki in the eye. In contrast to Kaori's devastated, tearful expression, Tsubaki's countenance was icier than the current weather and full of vengeful menace.
"I'm sorry Tsubaki!" Kaori pleaded. "I'd known you liked him for a long time! I didn't want him to get too attached! I wanted to tell one of you at some point, but-!"
"SILENCE!" Tsubaki shouted, and Kaori jumped back in fear.
"He was never yours, do you understand?" Tsubaki seethed, reaching for a long, wooden object in her backpack.
Kaori stepped back, her body quivering uncontrollably. But not from the cold.
"He was MINE."
Kaori couldn't take her eyes off of the large softball bat in Tsubaki's right hand. "Tsubaki, please! I never meant-!"
"Don't give me those excuses, you insufferable meddler," Tsubaki cut her off in a low, hate-filled voice. She began to raise the bat over her head.
"STOP IT!"
Nao Kashiwagi suddenly darted in from the side, knocking Tsubaki to the ground and relieving her of the bat. Tsubaki cried out in surprise and anger and lunged for Kaori, only to be pinned down by Kashiwagi.
"Kaori, go!" Kashiwagi said as she held Tsubaki back. "I'll handle this!"
"YOU HAD NO RIGHT!" Tsubaki spat at Kaori. "YOU SHOULD'VE STAYED OUT OF MY WAY! KOUSEI WAS MINE!"
Kaori wanted to argue back. To say that she truly hadn't meant any harm. That she'd wanted to try and leave behind as less of a mess as possible when she left this world. But in the moment, she could see that Tsubaki was not open to any sort of rational reasoning, and turned to walk away.
"I can see you need some time, Tsubaki," Kaori said through tears. "So I'll just give you some space for now."
"KOUSEI WAS MINE! DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND!" Tsubaki continued to scream as Kaori walked away.
"Stop this, Tsubaki! It's not Kaori's fault Kousei didn't feel the same way about you!"
"Yes it is!" Tsubaki insisted. "If she'd never butted into our lives, Kousei would've never wanted to move to a Music School! He never would've-would've-!"
"So are you saying you wish Kaori was dead?!" Nao yelled, twisting Tsubaki around to look her square in the face.
Tsubaki was taken aback. "What?! That's not-!"
"HE WAS NEVER YOURS, TSUBAKI!"
Tsubaki froze. Her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth. While Nao hadn't physically slapped her across the face, this brutal dose of reality hurt much worse.
"Kousei didn't feel the same way about you! At ALL! Even before Kaori came into the picture! I warned you many times that hiding your feelings behind the facade of dating Saito would lead to nothing but hurt! But YOU! DIDN'T! LISTEN!"
Now it was Tsubaki's turn to be silent.
"Stop with this nonsense, Tsubaki! All you've done is push away everyone who has tried to help you! If Kousei were still here, do you think this is what he would want?! For you to treat Kaori this way?!"
"Don't you DARE bring up what Kousei would want!" Tsubaki snapped back. "I know him better than any of you! I hung out with him every day! Stood by his side when his mother passed away! Where was Kaori for that?!"
"And in all that time being around Kousei, you couldn't even be honest about your feelings with him once?" Nao asked.
"GET OUT!" Tsubaki wailed, throwing some snow in Nao's face. Nao's face was non-chalant as she wiped away the cold substance from her eyes.
"Have it your way, Tsubaki," Nao shrugged, leaving Tsubaki to weep at Kousei's grave.
'Weeping' was an understatement. Had Tsubaki's despair and jealous rage been able to generate water, the entirety of Japan would've been washed off the map.
"Why Kousei, why?" she sobbed. "Why did you have to be so noble?!"
..........................................
Back at the Ma Fille, Kaori wept with her parents as she recounted what Tsubaki had told her.
"I know Ms. Hiroko Seto told me she doesn't hate me...and Watari has already told me he doesn't blame me either!" Kaori sniffed. "But...still-!"
"I know, dear," Yoshiyuki consoled his daughter. "Of course it hurts, and what Tsubaki said to you is not right. But we are all hurting right now. As you said, Tsubaki will need some space for now."
"Kaori," Ryouko interjected. "Before he was wheeled into the operating room, Kousei asked us to give you this."
Reaching into a drawer behind the counter, Ryouko retrieved a small white envelope that had Kaori's name written on it. She hesitated at first, then handed it to her daughter.
"I know it may be too soon for this-" Ryouko began.
"It's fine, mom," Kaori smiled, wiping away her tears. She opened the envelope, unfolded the letter, and began to read.
My dearest Kaori Miyazono,
By the time you read this, I will have already donated my heart so as to grant you the new heart you need to be healed and play the violin again. You are probably feeling a million things right now. Shock, sadness, maybe even like you want to hit me with a melodica. If that's the case, I don't blame you, as I'm sure my decision has devastated many others.
But I stand by it.
Why?
Because I love you, Kaori. I love you.
There, I said it.
I know it's stupid.
I know you like Watari.
But I couldn't bear the thought of not helping you when it was within my capability to do so.
The first time I laid eyes on you in that park by Towa Hall, I knew my fate was sealed. The way you gracefully danced in the breeze, the colorful intonation with which you played those notes, the beauty I saw in your sparkling eyes.
You barged right into my life without even knocking. But that's okay.
Because without you, I never would've gotten back onstage.
I never would've played the piano again.
I never would've been able to overcome the grief and guilt from my mother's death that I suffered through on the daily!
I thought all hope was lost.
But you...you showed me that there is hope and beauty in life, all around us.
And I hope that, with my decision, you will be able to enjoy the beautiful thing we call life for many more years to come.
My only regret is that I will not be there to live it with you, as even just one minute with you is worth more than all the treasures of the world.
So, while I am gone, until we meet again, promise me that you won't spend your days blaming yourself for my death. Promise me that you will continue playing the violin with your unmatched ferocity and freedom! Promise me that you will use your music and your life to inspire those who are broken, hurting, and in despair!
Promise me!
And, last of all, promise me that you won't forget me, alright?
You lived inside my heart, and helped heal it...it's time I returned the favor.
I love you, Kaori Miyazono.
I love you.
See you soon,
-Friend A
Kaori's hands shook as she read the heartfelt, passionate words inscribed onto the page. She saw her tears dripping onto the thin paper and quickly set it down on the table, hugging her father tightly and burying her face in his shoulder. "It's all my fault!" she wailed as her father pulled her in closer. "Don't say things like that, Kaori!" Yoshiyuki pleaded. "None of us knew what he was going to do!" "Mom...dad...you don't understand!" When asked by her mother what they wouldn't understand, Kaori told them what had really happened. "I lied!" Kaori confessed. "I said I had a crush on Watari so I could get closer to Kousei without making Tsubaki jealous! I loved him so much, mom! And now...now...!" Kaori couldn't stop the tears that flowed from her eyes like a raging river. Each heartbeat she felt fueled more tears as she was reminded of just who had given her that lease on life in the first place.
She had, quite literally...stolen Kousei's heart.
........................................................
"I may not be able to understand why Kousei did what he did right now," Hiroko smiled as she hugged Kaori. "But if he chose to save you, I'm sure he made a good choice. This much I know."
"Kousei was my best friend," Watari added, sipping the warm tea Ryouko had made for him, Emi, and Takeshi. "And if he made the decision to do this, I stand by it."
"Thank you...all of you," Kaori smiled, looking around the crowded lobby of Ma Fille. "I won't let this new opportunity he's given me go to waste...I promise."
The table was silent for a while before Kaori spoke up.
"So, you two...you were Kousei's rivals?"
"Well, looking back it was kinda more us putting that label on ourselves," Takeshi chuckled. "But yup. Kousei very much inspired both of us. I wouldn't be a pianist if it weren't for him."
"Neither would I," Emi agreed, her face solemn.
Yoshiyuki and his wife came to the table, raising their tea cups to the ceiling.
"To Kousei Arima," he said. "A great pianist, a good friend, an inspiration to many, and an upstanding young man. May he rest in peace."
"To Kousei!" the group chorused in unison.
..................................
"Will she be okay?"
Saki looked at her son with a gentle, caring gaze, her hand across his shoulders as they walked across the clear blue ocean to the large, black grand piano.
"It will take time, Kousei," Saki said. "But she'll come to understand."
She stopped and turned her son to face her.
"I am so, so proud of you my son!" she said. "And I'm so sorry for all the pain I caused you!"
"Don't worry about it, mom," Kousei said, giving her a tight hug. "I forgive you. I can't wait for you to meet Kaori when she gets here!"
"Of course, my son," Saki replied. "Now, let's play a short piano duet shall we?"