The Steps He Couldn't Catch Up To

Because of the car accident, Kikka You was admitted to the hospital. But things did not go as smoothly as expected. Less than an hour into the emergency treatment, Kaede died of organ failure caused by excessive blood loss. Even after the doctors did everything they could, there was no saving her. When Kikka You's mother learned the news, she fainted, while Ryuseki rushed into the operating room alone.

From a distance, Ryuseki looked at the white sheet covering the hospital bed. His steps slowed, and his body trembled uncontrollably. It was as though his feet were being dragged as he slowly moved forward. He knew that beneath that white sheet lay a cold body. What appeared to be only a few steps away became an unreachable stairway to heaven before him. At the other end, Kikka You smiled and waved at him.

Time seemed to freeze at that moment, showing no sign of moving forward. The feeling that had once been within reach had slipped away without him noticing. Her adorable smiling face gradually faded into the past.

Kikka You, who had always been behind him, had unknowingly surpassed Ryuseki. She ran so fast that no matter how hard he ran, he could not catch up to her footsteps. Even the bustling streetscape at the roadside failed to draw her attention. She did not stop to wait for Ryuseki, who pursued her without hesitation. Gradually, she vanished beyond the distant horizon. In the instant before she disappeared, she turned back to look at Ryuseki. Her expression seemed to say, "So you finally chose to chase me."

Ryuseki was helpless. He walked to the bedside, staring blankly at the human-shaped rise beneath the white sheet, his hands clenched into fists. Before death, no one could do anything. The fate of human life and death was not something one could change. No one could escape the threat of death, even if they hid at the ends of the earth.

A beam of sunlight streamed in through the window without a sound. It remained just as silent. Other than Ryuseki's breathing, it was difficult to catch any other sound. His steady breaths only highlighted his fear of death. A warm stream spilled from his eyes, flowed down his cheeks, passed his jaw, and dripped onto the pristine white sheet.

Outside the window stood a tree covered in green leaves. Among those leaves was one that was withered and yellow, standing out sharply amid the greenery. The wind rose, and even a summer breeze could be so gentle. Perhaps it was the wind's pursuit, or perhaps the tree had deliberately cast it away. The withered leaf slowly detached from the trunk, then swayed with the wind. Yet it did not fall to the ground. Instead, it drifted with the wind into the distant sky. Perhaps this was the leaf's destiny.

He slowly bent down and little by little lifted the white sheet. Kikka You's face gradually came into view. Her short golden hair, her light beige skin, and her peaceful expression made it seem as though she were merely asleep, too precious to wake. Facing Kikka You, the pain in Ryuseki's heart deepened further. The warm stream in his eyes fell onto Kikka You's cheek. Though it was not like the romance in stories, where tears falling onto her face would awaken her, this scene was still enough to move anyone.

What shook Ryuseki even more was that Kikka You's cold body wore a warm smile. Only a faint trace of blood remained at the corner of her lips.

Ryuseki slowly lowered his head toward Kikka You. His lips trembled slightly, like cherry blossom petals falling in a breeze. Their four lips gently touched, and Ryuseki softly kissed away the faint bloodstains from the corner of Kikka You's mouth. He wanted Kikka You to leave with the most beautiful appearance.

Ryuseki's voice was hoarse and trembling. "Why? Why wasn't it me who died?" At last, unable to bear the torment in his heart, Ryuseki burst into tears. At that moment, his tears said everything.

Then, he watched helplessly as Kaede was sent into the morgue. How he wished it were him lying there instead! But reality was reality; no one had the power to change it.

Outside the hospital room, Ryuseki's older brother Kouhi supported Kaede's unconscious mother. He watched with his own eyes as the gurney carrying Kikka You was pushed toward the morgue. He saw Kikka You's mother collapse beside him from overwhelming grief, and he saw the heartbroken Ryuseki as well. He silently muttered to himself, then slammed his fist into the wall. He was angry too. He had never expected things to turn out this way. He regretted not going with them to protect them.

Ryuseki followed the gurney out. He collapsed beside Kikka You's bed and wailed, "Ah..." Ryuseki lay beside Kikka You's bed and cried out, "Kikka You..."

This was destined to be a sleepless night.

As Kouhi began handling matters for Kikka You's family, Ryuseki was left alone at home. He crouched in the corner of his room, leaning against the wall with vacant eyes. At that moment, he stared dully around him as if darkness were closing in. Yet he had no intention of resisting. The darkness gradually drew nearer like a pair of giant hands, but just as those hands were about to reach Ryuseki, a flash of light suddenly appeared from his abdomen and drove them away.

After the light vanished, something seemed to faintly emerge from Ryuseki's chest.