110: Selfish Brat

This is a single room.

Uesugi Yuichi and Nakamura Cho have earned some money in Tokyo over the past few years and can afford the cost of a single room.

He went inside and first replaced the flowers in the vase.

Then he sat down and stared blankly at the hospital bed.

The camera finally focused on Nakamura Cho.

At first glance, the audience almost didn't recognize her.

The Nakamura Cho of the past was so confident and so beautiful.

She is now extremely thin.

She has been ravaged by illness and treatment to the point of being unrecognizable.

The stark contrast left everyone speechless.

Nakamura Cho was still fast asleep at this time.

Uesugi Yuichi rubbed his cheek and forced a smile.

He gently stroked Nakamura Cho's hair and said tenderly, "Cho, it's already noon."

"Hmm..."

Nakamura Cho slowly woke up.

Her voice was very weak. "... Yuichi? You've come."

"Um."

Uesugi Yuichi helped her sit up.

"Yuichi, you didn't go to school again?"

Nakamura Cho slowly said.

"... I'll go tomorrow."

"Liar, you said the same thing yesterday."

I'll definitely go tomorrow.

Uesugi Yuichi.

"Then you'll remember that."

The two talked for a while when suddenly someone knocked on the door.

"Ms. Nakamura, Mr. Uesugi, good afternoon."

"Doctor."

"Hello, Doctor Shimoda."

Doctor Shimoda was an exceptionally intelligent middle-aged man with a calm and unhurried smile always on his face.

Uesugi Yuichi saw him suddenly appear, a bad feeling arose in his heart.

As expected, Doctor Shimoda hesitated for a moment before speaking.

"Actually, I came here today to ask if there's anything I need to... be discharged from the hospital?"

Uesugi Yuichi's face turned deathly pale.

Nakamura Cho showed an expression that suggested he had expected this.

This is what is known as in-home end-of-life care (i. e., hospice care).

This is a service that helps patients facing the end of their lives to be freed from physical, psychological, social, and spiritual suffering, to maintain human dignity in their remaining days, and to maintain peace of mind and body at the end of their lives.

This service no longer pursues drastic treatments, but rather focuses on controlling the patient's symptoms so that they can pass away peacefully and comfortably.

Doctor Shimoda explained the service to them in detail.

Gaining the understanding of the patient's family is very important.

The basic concept of this service, simply put, is:

1: Improve patients' quality of life by providing treatment in a place where they feel most at ease.

2. Respect human life and the process by which each person moves towards death.

3: While alleviating the patient's pain or other physical discomfort, support them in dealing with psychological and social anguish, and tell them that life has meaning while conducting treatment.

End-of-life care involves a wide range of human and material resources.

Once the patient agrees, a 24/7 service centered around him will be established.

Doctors and nurses will come to your home anytime, and other professionals will be available when necessary.

This is a comprehensive collaboration of healthcare, nursing care, and social welfare.

They also give lessons to the patients' families, teaching them how to cope when necessary. (The above is all translated from materials I found myself; I didn't copy and paste it here...)

But... don't be fooled by the fact that this service is full of human kindness and warmth.

This is a hospice care service.

On the verge of death.

This generally refers to six months remaining in life...

Even though Uesugi Yuichi was prepared, he still couldn't help feeling dizzy.

Doctor Shimoda fell silent, waiting for Uesugi Yuichi and Nakamura Cho's response.

Final.

Nakamura Cho chose to receive treatment at home.

She hoped that in that small world, it would belong to her and him.

Spending the last moments...

After she made her choice.

With the hospital staff and Uesugi Yuichi making preparations, he finally brought Nakamura Cho home.

The two cherished this time immensely.

Because no one knows whether Nakamura Cho's life will actually last another six months as predicted...

P. S.: I'm not entirely clear on the details of end-of-life care in Japan, so I'm just making things up.

Ps2: I may or may not change my name. The reason for changing it is that my current name is not quite right.

PS3: I recommend a lighthearted and heartwarming anime called Narcissu. I was so moved when I watched it, I'm not kidding, it's an absolutely great work with a happy ending.

Section 123, Chapter 110: The Selfish One

When Uesugi Yuichi picked up Nakamura Cho from her home, the room had already been cleaned.

Nakamura Cho returned to her home after a long absence, and her mood was noticeably brighter.

"Indeed, home is the best."

She laughed, "It has the feel of everyday life."

"Yes, there's plenty of time to experience it now."

Uesugi Yuichi nodded.

He not only cleaned the room, but also tidied his own appearance.

He's still that handsome guy with a strong artistic flair.

However... the melancholy in his eyes was easily noticeable to anyone.

"Hey, Yuichi, what's with that expression?"

Nakamura Cho patted him on the shoulder.

"Although time is limited, we should make the most of every day."

"Every day is precious; it's such a waste to waste it by looking so gloomy."

"Yes, that's true."

Uesugi Yuichi forced himself to pull himself together.

He remembered something, ran to the cabinet, and found something.

"This is... a camera we bought a while ago?"

Nakamura Cho looked at him with a puzzled expression.

I haven't used this camera much since I bought it; I played with it for two days and then put it away.

Uesugi Yuichi: "Since we're going to create wonderful memories, let's record them with photos."

"No, please. I look like this now."

You are as beautiful as ever.

Uesugi Yuichi seriously.

"... Okay then."

Nakamura Cho awkwardly agreed.

She became shy.

Uesugi Yuichi wasn't lying; although Nakamura Cho had become extremely thin, she possessed a strange beauty.

With the new song playing as background music, their final days began.

In the final moments of Nakamura Cho's life, Uesugi Yuichi rented a car and took her to many places.

In the past, the two of them were busy with their own studies and work, and had never been able to relax and have fun like they do now.

They always believed that as long as they endured the current hardships, they would have plenty of time to be together in the future.

But fate is fickle.

Just when we thought we were about to get through the most difficult time, the dawn was in sight.

Death suddenly raised its scythe.

"This shouldn't be happening..."

Countless times, Uesugi Yuichi squatted in the toilet and cried at night.

But in order to keep the sound from getting out, he could only try his best to cover his head and suppress it...

For the first two months or so, Nakamura Cho was able to travel relatively easily, but afterwards her health deteriorated and she could no longer support herself to travel too far.

Uesugi Yuichi anticipated this, and the doctor had also warned him, so he deliberately left the nearby attractions unvisited.

As a result, a couple pushing wheelchairs became a common sight in the area around their home.

On this day, on a scenic hillside.

Uesugi Yuichi pushed Nakamura Cho up, they saw a sea of flowers stretching out from their feet, as if connecting to the end of the earth.

As always, Uesugi Yuichi took photos of Nakamura Cho, and then they posed for a group photo.

Nakamura Cho had lost even more weight, looked at the beautiful scenery and struggled to stand up.

Uesugi Yuichi helped her up, and they stood on the ground together.

She leaned against him.

The two embraced and gazed at the sea of flowers.

Nakamura Cho whispered:

"Yuichi, are we really not going to tell our families?"

"Okay, I won't notify them."