Roommates

Chapter 4 Marylin

Her bed was too comfortable; more comfortable than usual. She loved sleeping in on Saturday mornings, especially after a night of drinking. It had been a while since she had hung out with the majority of her friends, especially after college. Sometimes, it was strange seeing them all hanging out after a full day of work and not while studying for a midterm exam. However, it felt nice seeing everyone enjoying themselves and not have to worry about school anymore-
Ino's eyes opened at the sound of her ringtone. And it wasn't just her regular ringtone. Oh no. She had a specific ringtone for whenever Doctor Tsunade, aka her boss, would call her. The specific ringtone would give her a heads up whenever the strong-headed woman called her.
Lifting her head up, Ino grabbed her phone and looked at the time: six in the morning...
Swiping her phone to the right while clearing her throat, she had no chance to greet her boss before the woman's overbearing voice was heard.
"Ino, I need you at the hospital asap!"
"Wh-What's the issue-"
"Just get here! I need people!"
Rubbing her eyes a couple of times as her boss disconnected the call, she quickly got off the bed and groaned as her head quickly swirled in circles. Damn hangover. Ignoring the impending headache, she quickly changed her clothes into a regular black t-shirt and blue jeans.
Working with her for over eight months now gave Ino the ability to distinguish the different tones of Tsunade's voice. There was the simply Tsunade tone, which the woman used only twenty percent of the time. Then there was the overly strict Tsunade tone, which was sixty-five percent of the time. And finally, there was the under-pressure super strict panicking Tsunade tone, which was fifteen percent of time. And right now, as of six-fifteen in the morning, Tsunade's tone was definitely in that fifteen percentile.
Once her hair was pulled up in a high ponytail, Ino opened her bedroom door and jogged towards the bathroom, ignoring the loud snoring coming from Kankuro's mouth. She remembered how he had bumped her head against the doorframe while carrying her to her bedroom. Placing the toothpaste on her toothbrush and quickly brushing her teeth, Ino stepped out of the bathroom and glared at the sleeping man. Part of her wanted to whack him over his head while he laid there, face down, on the sofa. However, Tsunade's voice was still in her head and she knew that she had to get to the hospital as soon as possible.
Ino spat the toothpaste out and washed her face, quickly grabbing her phone and small purse and running out of the apartment.

"So far, two-hundred and three passengers are still unaccounted for."
"According to several eyewitnesses, one of the wings scraped against the runway before the crash."
"One eyewitness, who was standing on the east side of the airport, said that he noticed smoke coming out from one of the engines shortly before the plane took off."
"As you can see here, the National Aviation Safety Administration is already on the scene while firefighters are still trying to put out the fire."
"Twenty survivors, including three crew members, have been taken to Grace Mary's hospital for severe burns. Almost all of them are in critical condition."
Ino navigated through the crowded hospital lobby as the multiple televisions hanging around the large area showed different news stations reporting the incident. Her eyes scanned around the area, watching as family members bombarded the four front-desk receptionists with questions.
Reaching the locker room, Ino quickly changed into her blue nurse scrubs before running back out.
"Ino, I need your help here!"
"What's happening?" she asked Shizune.
"An airplane crashed. Don't know much about the details. They are bringing everyone here!"
That was all Ino needed to know in order to understand that the incoming patients would have burn and physical wounds while also possibly smoke inhalation. Putting on rubber gloves, the blonde quickly began helping her colleague with tending one of the first survivors of the crash. The woman, who happened to be in her late seventies, had severe burns on the majority of her body and was semi-conscious.
The wide doors opened again and in came Sakura with a large coffee in her hand. Pink hair tied in a low bun, the young woman helped Dr. Tsunade with a screaming patient, whose whole right arm was bruised and bent in odd angles.
The following five hours afterward were the most challenging for the blue-eyed woman. Throughout the middle of it, Ino pulled her long hair into a high bun. The inflow of victims brought to the hospital immediately caused nurses and doctors to treat multiple patients at the same time. What made the job more challenging were family members physically trying to break into the E.R. just to know whether their loved ones were part of the deceased count or not. Police officers soon had to keep those back and threaten them with arrest. Most family members quickly remained calm in the lobby, but not one man whose shouts disturbed the patients more than help.
The man refused to bring his injured daughter via an ambulance, citing that there was too much traffic since multiple local and national news vans were spread throughout the city. Instead, he had taken his badly bruised daughter off the ambulance near the airport and driven himself to the hospital.
"I need a fucking doctor, now!" the man had yelled to the front-desk receptionist.
Before the timid middle-aged woman could respond, her brown eyes watching the angry man in front of her, Ino quickly jogged towards them with a gurney.
"Sir, please place her here!"
"Are you a doctor?"
"No, but I'm a nurse-"
"I said I need a fucking doctor!"
"I'm qualified for this!" Ino screamed back. "And if you don't hurry up and let me treat your daughter, she will die!"
Ino didn't want to say such things in front of the little girl, whose blue eyes were wide in fear and shock as she laid weakly in her father's arms. The man's frown deepened, a growl coming out from him before he obeyed and gently placed his daughter on the gurney. Afterward, Ino and an assistant nurse began pulling the gurney towards an operating room.
She shouldn't have been surprised, really, considering the man's terrible attitude. But Ino mentally cursed once they reached the doors that lead towards the operating room. Sighing, she turned around and faced the father, who stood a good five inches taller than her.
"Sir, you cannot enter. You can wait in the lobby and I will let you know once-"
"The HELL I'll be waiting outside! I don't trust you doctors and nurses! How do I know that my daughter will be getting the best care?!"
"Sir, you need to trust us that-"
"Fuck you!" the man shoved Ino to the side and opened the doors to the operating room. He was quickly met with a very angry Tsunade, who had no issue pushing the man back into the hallway.
"Stay in the lobby before I have police arrest you for touching one of my nurses!"
The man let out an angry breath, eyes traveling from Tsunade to Ino before finally walking backward. "I want a status in thirty minutes."
"We don't report to you. Now go wait with the other family members before I have you arrested!"
The man didn't say anything as he finally walked back to the lobby, shoving sobbing family members with his shoulder who happened to be in his way.
"Ino, come help me with her. I just got word that ten more passengers were found, alive, but severely burned. They should be arriving in another ten minutes."
"Can Shizune and Sakura handle them?"
"Unfortunately, not. They are currently treating a man that has a piece of metal going through part of his head. We suspect it must be one of the propellers since he was sitting right above the wing."
For the next half hour, the two blondes worked on the seven-year-old girl, who miraculously had remained conscious from the moment the plane fell back onto the Earth. Marylin, her name was, had told them how everyone began screaming once they felt the aircraft descending back down. As Tsunade, Ino, and the nurse assistant removed the girl's ripped clothes and tended her burned body, Marylin continued talking, which amazed them considering how badly injured she was. The girl talked about how her parents had divorced a year ago, and she was on the flight to see her mother. A family member, who passed away on impact, had been sitting next to her.
"Are you in pain?" Ino asked a third time, smiling at the little blonde girl.
"No, but I feel sleepy. The flight was too early."
"Don't worry, we're almost done here."
Most of the burned tissue was scraped off, including parts of the small girl's head. Bandages were then wrapped around the girl, who was now asleep thanks to the medication.
Three hours later...
The remaining passengers and crew members on flight A239 were finally brought to the hospital, and unfortunately, most of them had passed away before even reaching the building. The lobby was now filled with crying family members, demanding why and how such a horrendous accident even happened. A fourth of the original passengers brought into the hospital passed away as well, burns in their bodies having affected vital organs.
It was approximately three in the afternoon, and Ino was exhausted. A few of the passengers who were still alive had been placed in a medically induced coma. Tired doctors and nurses sat on the floor of the hallway, talking to each other about how the number of casualties would have been less had the aircraft had less fuel. Since the plane had crashed just minutes after taking off, the large amount of fuel had helped spark the fire near the engines instantaneously.
Doctors and nurses from other clinics and private practices began volunteering at the hospital, allowing Ino a chance to rest while they continued to check on patients. Thinking about the little girl, Marylin, Ino entered the room and smiled as the small human being was still asleep. Some intuition told her to stay in the room, and paying attention to it, Ino grabbed an empty chair and sat beside the sleeping little girl. It was the first time in eight hours that she sat, and upon sitting, a welcoming sign escaped her. She was glad that the crazy father was still in the lobby with one officer watching him closely in case the man decided to barge through the doors again.
Pulling out her phone for the first time in the day, Ino noticed an unread text message from her roommate. He had sent her the text seven hours ago...
"I read that a plane crashed this morning after takeoff and everyone is being sent to the hospital."
Sitting cross-legged, Ino began texting back. "Yeah, it was a hectic day today. My feet are killing me... I am sitting down right now for the first time today. And I am regretting taking shots for you last night... lol."
"I'll make you dinner for that." Came the reply, which made Ino smile.
"Deal. And no beef tongue please!"
"...Fine...."
"Are you texting your boyfriend?"
Ino jumped in her chair, placing a hand on her chest before looking down at the little girl, who was now wide awake. The girl continued staring at the screen of her phone.
"No, he's my roommate."
"You live with a boy?!" the girl asked, her blue eyes widening. "My dad would never let me live with a boy. He once yelled at my friend, Lucas, for grabbing my hand at the park."
Ino giggled, already imagining the short-tempered man yelling at some little boy. "Yes, I live with a boy. It's actually not bad living with one. He's very nice."
"What is his name?"
"Gaara."
"Do you have a picture of him?"
Ino went to her phone's gallery and frowned. Damn, she didn't have that many pictures of him. Gaara wasn't really the picture-taking type-
"Oh, that's right!" Ino suddenly remembered taking a picture of him, when he wasn't looking of course, and sending it to her mother. The woman had been too busy getting a manicure the day Ino had to move into her apartment. She had called her non-stop for a picture of the boy. And while Gaara had been setting up the couch, she snatched a quick picture.
"Here, this is him." Ino placed the phone in front of her so the little girl wouldn't have to move too much.
Marylin's eyes sparkled as a girlish giggle escaped her. "He's...cute...and... hot!"
Ino giggled at the little girl's response. Even though they were just roommates, Ino couldn't deny that Gaara was good looking... heck, Marylin was right. He was hot.
"Does he have a girlfriend?"
"Nah, he doesn't."
"Then why aren't you two together?"
"He's my roommate...and a friend..."
"So?"
"So...it'll be awkward..."
"My mommy says that if you like someone, you should tell them. She told me that it's something she realized too late..."
Ino didn't blame the woman for leaving Marylin's father. The man was so overprotective that he could become abusive.
The two continued speaking, mostly about Gaara and Ino found it adorable that a little girl was so intrigued with the quiet young man. She asked many questions: what was his favorite show, did he have a little sister, and if he had a car.
It was eight in the evening, and Ino was already on her way home. The city was quiet as people began placing small vigils around for the passengers who did not make it. There was barely any traffic as most decided to stay home, and this allowed the bus Ino was on to reach her designated bus stop faster.
With her phone at zero percent and her keys being forgotten inside the apartment, Ino knocked on the door, hoping that Gaara wouldn't be inside his bedroom doing...whatever he does. Luckily for her, the red-haired young man opened the door a minute later.
"...I forgot my keys inside."
"I figured."
Ino smiled as she walked inside, quickly smelling steak sizzling on the pan. Immediately, her stomach growled, causing Gaara to look at her with the corner of his mouth lifted.
"Don't laugh, it's been a long day and I haven't had anything."
"Go shower, food will be ready by the time you're done."
"Do I look that bad-Don't answer!"
Gaara chuckled lowly as Ino put her phone to charge and ran into the bathroom for a long, warm shower. The shower helped with removing the sweat and tension off her body, and fifteen minutes later, she was out of the shower and freshly dressed in her pajamas: gray tank top with black shorts.
The two began to eat their dinner while Ino played the latest news coverage on her phone. According to the news anchor, it would take several weeks of investigation to truly determine what caused the plane to crash. A lot of different opinions have flown around already: from engine blowing up, part of the wing hitting the ground while taking off, to the pilots being drunk. In the end, most of the passengers and crew lost their lives and the accident marked one of the deadliest accidents to happen within the last twenty years.
"I guess you didn't have time to eat today," Gaara said, watching as Ino was close to finishing her dinner before he was.
"Nope," she replied in between bites, "Patients kept arriving, or their family members would pass out and we would need to tend them as well."
Gaara gave her props for working hard, especially on a day where she was supposed to be free. Socializing was something he wasn't good at, and working at a hospital was something he could never imagine himself doing. In summary, he preferred to stay away from any spotlight and people.
"It was hectic.," Ino said, taking a sip of water.
"I can imagine."
"I did get to treat a really sweet patient though. Her father has terrible anger issues though. He freaking shoved me against the wall."
Gaara's eyes narrowed. "Did you push him back Ino-style?"
At the term, Ino laughed while placing their dirty dishes inside the dishwasher. "Ha, I wish. But I had to remain civil..."
"Hm, point him out to me next time..." Gaara said, causing her to smile. Although he wasn't a violent person, she knew that Gaara was no pushover.
"His daughter, Marylin, is super sweet though. For someone so young, she's pretty mature... And she also thinks you're hot."
"How does she even know how I look like?"
"I....showed her a picture of you..."
"...You have a picture of me?"
"My mom wanted one the day we moved on. So I took one...while you were assembling the couch."
"...I see... So it's only fair that I take a picture of you for whenever my coworkers ask me to describe you."
"Wait, your coworkers ask about me?"
"They are amazed at the idea of me living with a blond young woman from the city."
"...Are any of them cute...and single?"
"No, and no I am not going to ask them for you."
"Fine... You can take the picture for the next time they ask, but I need to be prepared-HEY!"
Ino jumped as she saw the flash from Gaara's phone. "Gaara, I wasn't ready."
"I'm pretty sure I wasn't ready the time you took my picture."
"Ugh, fair. But let me see...."
After turning on the dishwasher, Ino walked over to her roommate and frowned. "That is a terrible picture! I haven't combed my hair, you can see that one blackhead on the side of my mouth and... and I'm wearing a spaghetti strap tank top with no bra and booty shorts! Gaara, delete that!"
"...No."
"Yes! It's too revealing!"
"You know that I have seen you in far less, Yamanaka."
"...Well...you...you're my roommate... and I like to be comfortable when I'm home. At least take a better one."
"...Hm, my phone battery just died."
"...Liar! You always keep your phone charged!"
Before the two continued their bantering, Ino's phone rang and her heart sank at the familiar ringtone. It was Dr. Tsunade. Sighing, she swiped towards the right and placed the phone by her ear.
"Good evening, Dr. Tsunade."
"Good evening, Ino. How are you doing?"
"I'm good, just getting ready to go to bed. It was a long day today." It was a lie. What she really wanted to do next was snatch Gaara's phone and delete that picture. And then watch some TV of course.
"That's good. I'm sorry to be calling you this late but I have unfortunate news for you. Marylin Smith passed away fifteen minutes ago."
Ino's eyes widened, her fingers suddenly shaking. "Wh-What? B-But she was just a kid! What happened!?"
"I'm not sure what happened. One of the volunteer nurses reported it. The father wants to have a doctor not associated with the hospital to perform the autopsy."
She shouldn't have been surprised, really, considering the man's terrible attitude. But having some private doctor perform the autopsy could lead to some forms of malpractice, and the last thing Ino wanted was the hospital being in some long legal drama with that man.
"Anyway, I figured that you should be aware and I will see you on Monday. Get some rest, Ino."
The call disconnected and Ino stared at the floor of the kitchen with wide eyes. Before leaving the hospital, Ino had checked up on the little girl to make sure that she was indeed improving... How could she have died? Even though she had suffered terrible burn wounds, the girl barely cried in pain and was conscious from the moment she was rescued.
"What's wrong?"
"...The little girl...she...died..."
One of the things Ino focused on the moment she became a nurse was to not get attached to patients. Sometimes, things happened and within the next moment, a patient would be gone. Nonetheless, everyone in the medical field needed their heads focused on the patients who still needed them. However, she remembered Marylin's big blue eyes and how she was curious about so many things. How she had wanted to become a pilot when she grew up. The airplane crash had not swayed her opinion at all.
"You're crying."
"Huh?" Ino wiped a tear with the back of her hand. "Sorry... I...didn't know... that... I just can't believe it..."
Ino knew why the little girl's death affected her so much. Marylin reminded her so much of herself when she was younger. Blonde hair, blue eyes, and divorced parents. Those around her always told her that her mind was too advanced for someone her age.
"She was doing well before I left." Ino took a deep breath, rubbing the back of her neck nervously. "I... I even checked up on her myself."
Did she miss something? No, she couldn't have. She always double-checked everything and noted it all down. Even on busy days, she still ensured that everything was correct. But today was a different type of busy... No, even with today's craziness, she still made sure to document everything.
"...H-How could she have died? It-It's not f-fair..."
She tried her best to wipe the tears away, but they wouldn't stop. And damn she didn't want to cry in front of her roommate. "S-Sorry, I didn't m-mean to c-cry in front of you like this. I-I must look like shit now..."
His firm hand on her shoulder startled her, causing her to turn her body around towards him. Avoiding any type of eye contact, she took a step further as Gaara's right arm wrapped around her shoulders, pulling her body right against his. This was something that she never imagined Gaara, more of a roommate than a friend, to do. Yes, he would cook dinner for them, get rid of the bugs in her room, and assemble her furniture... But consolidating? This was new, and instead of stopping her tears, it caused more to continue.
"I have asked myself the same question..." he said.
Ino didn't reply, at first confused at what he meant but then remembering what Sakura had told her: how he had lost his mother at a young age and that caused him to become violent while growing up as a teenager. And with that, she cried for the little girl who passed away today and the little red-haired boy who lost his mother many years ago.