The Liar and The Patient

The Patient

The sun shone beautifully in the sky. Takagi's slightly messy hair and foggy eyes revealed the fact she had just woken up. She was sitting upright in her bed, staring at the tray of  breakfast without eating it. The air conditioning blasted the room with cold air as always, as if to complement the frigidness of the room.

The door slid opened, and a boy peaked his head through the crack.

"Ah, you're awake." After making eye contact with her, Nishikata walked in and sat down at the chair next to the bed. "Good morning."

The room just got warmer.

"Good morning, Nishikata." Takagi smiled.

"Have you read the manga yet?"

She shook her head. "Not yet."

"Ah..."

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing... It's just..." Nishikata paused as a bit of blush emerged from his cheeks. "Never mind..."

"Oh?" Takagi grinned. "What is the manga about?"

"I'm not sure yet. I've only started reading it yesterday." Nishikata said. "I think it's a romance comedy though."

"Eh?" Takagi chuckled in confusion. It was one of the rare occasion where she read Nishikata wrong. "I thought you would buy me something you've already read like the new volume of '100% Unrequited Love'. You haven't seen it before you bought it for me?"

"I wanted to read it together with you." Nishikata said, almost whispering, as he turned his gaze away. "I should've told you about it first though... Now I'm ahead by five chapters..."

Takagi looked at him in surprise. A warm smile appeared on her face along with a slight shade of pink.

"I see now." She said. "How about we both read three chapters a day?"

"Eh?"

Takagi had a look at the content. "The first volume has 21 chapters, so we can finish it in a week."

"What should we do about the five chapters I've already read?" Nishikata said, looking rather sorry.

"How about... you read it with me?"

"Eh?!"

"Read it with me right here." She lifted open a part of the cover and slightly moved to the side, making a space beside her on the bed.

"IIIII can't do that! You are a patient!" Nishikata cried out, all flustered up.

"Are you going to make me go down from the bed?" Takagi grinned as she leaned towards him. "That's no way to treat a patient, you know."

She could almost see Nishikata imagining the image of them being together in the same cover, which caused her to blush a little as well.

"How... How about we sit at the edge of the bed like we usually do?!" Nishikata said out loud, looking rather triumphant from the idea he came up with, which clashed with his flushed over face.

"Oh... I hadn't thought of that." Takagi sighed. "I guess that won't change anything."

She adjusted herself to sit at the edge. Nishikata sighed to himself of relief and sat down next to her. As soon as he sat down, he could feel a warmth pressed against his shoulder.

"Eh?" He jumped a bit, as the blush on his face got redder. "Takagi-san?"

"I gotta get closed to read it with you." She grinned while handing him the manga. "Here, you hold it."

Nishikata looked the other way as he took the book and held it in the middle. He couldn't focus on the book at all. The smell of shampoo and strains of her smooth hair kept taking over his every senses. The embarrassing distance between them caused him to tilt his body away from her.

Takagi of course noticed.

"Nishikata~" She sounded like a mother calling out to her son who had just caused some trouble. "How are you going to read it if you were way over there?"

"I... I've already read it..." He said with his face completely drowned in red. "I'll just hold the book for you..."

"I told you to read it with me, not hold the book for me." She sighed. "C'mon, get up."

Nishikata reluctantly got up as their shoulders touched again. "Is this really necessary, Takagi-san?"

"Of course!" She smiled at him. "Because I really like you..."

"Huh!?"

"...r reaction."

"Eh!!??"

Nishikata's loud heartbeat could be heard through their touching shoulders. His blush looked like it had overflowed with a bit of it looked like it slipped through as a slight of pink on Takagi's face. Her laughter echoed through the room, making the space all the more lively.

The day soon passed, and it was never boring thanks to his presence.

"Your parents still won't be back today?" Nishikata asked before he left.

"It couldn't helped." Takagi smiled wryly. "They have to work very hard to pay the hospital bills."

"I... I'll try to come here later tonight..." Nishikata said with a slight blush. "I think I can... So I'll see you later?"

"Thank you, Nishikata." Her frown loosened. "I'll see you later."

After he left, Takagi reached for the assist bell. Soon, a nurse came in the room.

"You call me, Takagi-chan?"

"Can you help me with showering?" Takagi asked in an apologetic manner. "My parents aren't going to be here today too."

"Of course." The nurse smiled knowingly.

Takagi didn't have the any major inconvenience, but with I.V.T leaving her with only one hand able to touch water, showering was still rather difficult.

"He's coming again for the night?" The nurse asked as she scrubbed her hair.

"Most likely." Takagi said. She was sitting tightly on the stool with her eyes closed like a child. "I tried to convince him I'll be fine on my own but it never works. At some point I just gave up."

"Because you want him to come anyway." The nurse teased.

"You're not wrong." Takagi chuckled.

"Such a kind boy." The nurse smiled as she began washing her hair with water. "I guess you like him?"

"Pretty obvious right?" Takagi sighed. "Only he hasn't notice yet."

"He'll get there." The nurse's slight laughter echoed in the bathroom along with the sound of flowing water. "For now, let's focus on making you smell fantastic for his arrival."