Children with tubes on their noses and sterilized stuffed animals sat around Maya as she read the final scene of her latest novel, book four of her series Yuki the World-Hopping Detective: The Shadow Under the Waves.
"And then," Maya read, pushing back a streak of indigo hair behind her ear, "the detective gave the sea serpent a tight hug, it was the tightest, gut-squeezing, bubble-expelling hug the creature has ever known, and Yuki smiled as they explained, 'I finished my job here and cleared the misunderstanding with the sea folk.'" Maya flipped the page. "Jordan the sea serpent asked, 'Can't you stay?' But the detective shook their head and somberly said, 'I can't stay here forever. I don't belong here.' The sea monster frowned but the detective patted his head. 'You're stronger than you think you are. Have faith in yourself, even if it's fake, so that others will have faith in you too.' With these parting words, Yuki swam inside their Submarine, which then flashed a brilliant white before disappearing. 'Do you think he'll be all right?' questioned the Sentient Submarine. Yuki shed their wetsuit and oxygen tank and changed into warmer clothes before sitting in the control room. 'He'll be fine,' the detective reassured, 'He'll make lots of friends and no one will accuse him of eating sailors ever again!' Yuki then opened the quantum synchronizator and prepared to hop to their next adventure."
Maya shut the book and the children cheered and cried. Boba, now a full grown dog, barked. A little girl wearing a loose powder blue headscarf shyly approached the writer and asked, "Miss Maya, do you think the sea monster, no, will Jordan ever meet Yuki again?"
"Who knows, Akane," Maya said, reaching over to fix the girl's headscarf, "Our detective only looks forward. What do we always say?"
Akane and the others recited in unison, "Always appreciate the present and never dwell on the past."
"Exactly," Maya chuckled. She then noticed the clock and rose to her feet. "I have to go now, you kids be good."
"Aaaw," they chorused.
A nurse wearing teddy bear-printed scrubs entered and thanked Maya for visiting. "Ever since you started coming here to play and read to them, they've been recovering faster than ever. And thank you again for the donation, you have no idea how much you've helped Yuuei."
"It's my pleasure."
Akane tugged on Maya's blouse. "Miss Maya, what's the next book gonna be about?"
Maya knelt down in front of her. "There's a more important question here, Akane-chan: why would I spoil you?"
Some of the boys booed and Maya laughed, patting Akane's shoulder. "I really do have to go now."
"Of course. Please take care on your way home, we're expecting heavy rain today." The nurse gently led Akane away. "Come now, kids, say thank you and goodbye to Miss Maya."
"Woof!"
"And to Boba, too."
The small patients bowed their heads. "Thank you, Miss Maya! Thank you, Boba! Please take care."
Maya waved at them, put on her mask and walked out of the pediatric floor with her dog and two bodyguards, greeting everyone she passed as she made her way to the hospital parking lot. Every single staff, from the janitor to the dean, knew who she was, not just as the remaining heir to the [Lastname] Corporation, but more from her very personal contributions to the hospital. In addition to playing with the kids here, Maya spent time with every patient who didn't have families or visitors, and she donated half her earnings from Yuki the World-Hopper to Yuuei (the other half was for Sanctuary, her charity organization dedicated to helping victims of abuse and bullying).

YOU ARE READING
QT: The Secondary Character Counterattacks (Obey Me! characters x Reader)
FanfictionYou open your eyes one day and find that you're already dead. But instead of Heaven or Hell, you find yourself bound to a mysterious voice ... [I'm the Secondary Character Grievance Delivery System and now that your physical body is dead we're bound...