Beautiful Disasters- Hawks x OC

Chapter 124

         The elevator was going to take forever, so Mariko ditched Hayato in the lobby and made a beeline to the staircase. She sprinted up to her floor, taking two steps at a time and burst into her hallway. Slightly sweaty and winded from the unexpected exercise, the brunette staggered towards her door. She took a moment to catch her breath before knocking.

         She knocked once, but there was no answer.

         When she knocked twice, she heard Sakura's faint voice call out from the other side of the door. "Coming!"

         Mariko held her breath, her heart rate spiking as she heard her best friend's voice. A minute later, the door was suddenly thrown open and she saw Sakura's familiar face standing in her doorway. For a moment, it seemed like the short-haired female didn't register who was standing in front of her.

         "Uhm...hey," Mariko greeted awkwardly.

          The sound of her friend's voice seemed to jar her out of whatever daze she was in. "Oh my god!" she exclaimed, staggering back several steps. "Oh my god," she repeated.

        Mariko gave her a watery smile as she took a step towards her. "Hi Sakura," she said again.

       Stumbling towards her, Sakura nearly tripped as she made her way to Mariko. "You're here right? I haven't gone crazy right?" She asked, her voice trembling slightly.

       Her friend shook her head and held her steadily at arm's length. "I'm here," she assured her.

        A sob erupted from her lips as she threw her arms around her. "Welcome home. I missed you so much," Sakura cried.

         Mariko buried her head in her shoulder and hugged her back tightly. "I missed you too. I'm so sorry... about everything."

          Pulling away slightly, the younger female sniffled loudly and pouted as Mariko wiped away her tears. "You better be!" She exclaimed. "Look at me! I'm a mess because of you!" her whine turning into a sob at the end.

        Mariko smiled slightly, glad that her childish nature hadn't suddenly disappeared in the six months she'd been gone."I'm sorry," she apologized again.

        Sakura shook her head and pulled her into another hug. "Don't apologize anymore. You're back and that's all that matters."

        Patting her back soothing, Mariko pulled away. "Sakura," she started. "Where's Hawks?" She asked. He was the person she wanted to see the most.

        At the mention of the hero, Sakura's eyes became impossibly wide. "Ohmygod Hawks!" She exclaimed. "He's in your room, but Mari you should know he's not the same. Your death... well uhm... it really affected him and he's not well. I mean he's doing a lot better than before but just... just so you know."

       Mariko nodded and squeezed her friend's shoulder. "I know things have been tough. And I'm sorry for asking you to take care of him, that wasn't fair of me. Thank you though, for working so hard up until now. You did good."

      Sakura's eyes welled with tears once more and she nodded as she furiously wiped them away and pushed her towards the hallway leading to the bedroom.

        Keigo had just taken a shower and gotten dressed in a fresh set of pajamas when he heard a commotion by the front door. He didn't check to see what was going on though. He'd had a rough night- his sleep had been plagued with nightmares and hadn't gone to sleep until five in the morning only for Sakura to wake him up only four hours later. He'd had a snack and then hopped straight into the shower to appease his friend, but he was exhausted and was about to take a nap when someone knocked on his bedroom door.