With the Stars and Us - Chapter Seven

The sound of water rushing through pipes above him brought Jin back to the land of the living. Metaphorically, of course. It wasn’t as if he had slipped into a coma or anything. Though, with how tired he was and how worried his Popo was about his sleeping habits, he might as well have been. A groan escaped him as he sat up. His eyesight was blurry even after he blinked a few times. Gray, blue and pale yellow blobs filled his vision. The scent of bleach masked by lavender or herbal tea invaded his senses. It was instantly recognizable.

He was at the clinic.

A weight slipped from his shoulders. The sound of yarn rustling against the smooth silk of his blouse hit his ears and was followed by something soft hitting the ground. He blinked again and looked towards the ground. The motion made his glasses slip down his forehead and onto his nose. The world around him was clear once again!

It was one of the crocheted blankets from upstairs. Who put it on him? Popo? No, she would have woken him up and told him to go move to one of the beds.

He had been working with Mary. Could it have been her?

“Mary…” he murmured. She had to have gone home, right? His arms flung out to his sides and then up to the ceiling. The vertebrae in his back popped as his neck more or less screamed in agony. His fault for passing out like this, he supposed. A loud groan escaped him.

Then, the sound of someone quickly inhaling and also groaning was heard beside him. With how fast he spun his head towards the sound, it was a shock that his neck didn’t just snap in half. He did get whipped in the face by his hair, however. His heart stopped at the sight.

There sat Mary, asleep and about to slip off her chair. Her neck was at a near ninety degree angle with her skull resting against the backrest. Her mouth was wide open as her eyelids twitched and fluttered at a rapid pace. The bottom whites of the clerk’s eyes flickered as if it was a film reel on a projector. An almost frightening sight!

Nostalgia washed over him despite it all. His lips cracked into a smile as memories of Sabrina played in his mind’s eye. She wasn’t the prettiest sleeper either. The first night they had together wasn’t ideal. He woke up in the early morning. The time of day that the tiniest hint of dawn threatened to crack over the horizon. A sliver of sunlight over a sea of darkness. The sensation of Sabrina’s arm around his waist was a comfort… at first. Then he rolled over.

Her mouth was agape with her long, black hair hanging in front of her face and spilling into her mouth. Even through the stark darkness of her hair, Jin could make out the whites of his wife’s half-lidded eyes.

The scream he let out then allegedly could be heard all the way from Toby’s home across the district. It was something the both of them laughed about eventually… but…

Jin’s smile faltered once he came back to earth.

His eyes drifted towards the clock above the entryway. It was three in the morning. Too late for him to get any real work done. Too late and too early for him to wake Mary up and walk her home. Once again, he stretched and finally got out of his seat. He bent down to pick up the blanket. Warmth blossomed in his chest as he folded it over his arm. Giving him a blanket wasn’t something she needed to do but she did anyway. His eyes wandered around the room, purposely avoiding the sleeping woman and the feelings that she unintentionally triggered inside, and noted how cleaner it looked.

Did she clean up? He had to thank her in the morning.

‘Should I just leave her there?’ He wondered. Her sleeping position did not look comfortable at all. A twitch of pain wracked his neck and made him wince. Even without the possible sympathy pain from the future, it didn’t feel right to just leave her there. Softly, Jin cleared his throat and moved towards the woman. “Mary, wake up.”

Her eyelids jittered for a few seconds before opening wide. Round, charcoal eyes stared into his eyes for a long moment before fluttering back closed. A soft mumble slipped from her surprisingly round and plump lips. Jin coughed as if the motion would force that steadily spreading blush to fade away.

“Come on, I’ll move you somewhere else…” he whispered. His hands placed themselves onto her shoulders and slipped under her armpits. She stirred and tried to roll onto her side the best that she could in that chair. He huffed. It looked like he’d have to go about this another way. “Alright… Pardon me.”

One arm tucked itself under her side before pulling her close to his chest. Blood buzzed in his ears as his other hand floated towards her leg. Goddess, forgive him. He swallowed thickly and crouched down to his knees. As his hand inched towards the back of Mary’s knees, he was worried that his heart would explode inside his chest with how hard it pounded. Logically, he knew that wasn’t possible. It didn’t stop his anxiety from eating away at his insides however. The doctor’s eyes squeezed themselves shut and he finally bit the bullet. With a soft grunt, his hands hooked behind Mary’s legs and he hoisted her up.

An incomprehensible babble fell from the sleeping woman as she squirmed closer to him. He held his breath and staggered towards the lone examination bed. As gently as his shaky grip on her could manage, he lowered her onto the crinkly surface with a huff. His hair hung over their faces like a dark curtain as he tried to rest her on the pillow. He could feel the heat of her breath against his sweat slicked face.

Jin scrambled away from her and Mary rolled onto her right side with yet another mumble.

Right. That ought to be better for her. He coughed once more before grabbing the blanket and laying it across her sleeping body. That was enough excitement for one night. His hand swiped itself across his forehead.

Maybe he’d get her breakfast as an apology for falling asleep…

And as thanks.

For every thing.