HanTsuki:Volume 1 Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Akiko-san, a girl and Akutagawa Ryunosuke (亜希子さんと少女と芥川龍之介)

1

"Fhuu---"

The breath I breathed out freezed immediately and dissolved into the air. I stopped and looked up in the sky. Although it was already five o'clock, the deep, dark winter morning sky was filled with lots of pridefully shining stars.

The star shining the strongest is called Sirius and is placed in the Southern Sky.

I don't know much about the names of those stars, but Tsukasa, a friend of mine, is pretty schooled in this field, so he teached me lots of things. Well, the only name I still remember is Sirius, though. I've compleeetely forgotten the rest.

After a short walk, I arrived at the shopping street.

It's eerily silent under this arcade.

It feels as if it was dead.

No---

It really is dead.

The area a bit off the station around here has grown lonely. Originally it was a lively shopping street, but now half of the shops have been shut down. The once brightly colored shutters are now covered with rust and aren't even opened during the day. Some are calling them in the sad way "The shops with the silvermantled shutters".

It wasn't like this, when I still was young. The people living in the center of the city came shopping in this street. There always were lots of guests enjoying the shopping, and merchants running about busily all the time because of this. I got excited just by walking below this arcade.

There is a scene that's still fresh in my mind. I think it was when I was about four or five years old.

I was walking around holding the hand of my mom. A lot of people were there and on high spirits. Just by enjoying the atmosphere I was already having fun and looked with big eyes at the people passing by and the shops. The the shopping street sure felt like the heart of the city.

Now it's just shadow of its former self...

I've only lived 17 years, but there are many memories of this arcade-covered shopping street. It was the book shop in this street, where I bought my first book. I went buying it with a thousend-yen banknote in my hands. It was in this street when I first went watching a movie in a cinema. A Sci-Fi movie, in which a smuggy ship's captain was the hero. It was the Sushi bar in the the heart of this street, where I drank sake for the first time. I think I wasn't even in elementary school at that time.

My dad made me drink the sake.

"That stuff's delicious! Want some?"

As the pure young boy I was then, I believed his words and drank off the about half-filled cup of original japanese sake.

Of course I broke down immediately after having done that.

My eyes spinned around, the world was shaking and everything became flabby. Even now I still remember it clearly. Looking at me collapsed on the floor, he started guffawing. Really, the worst dad existing.

Anyway, I've got many memories of this shopping street. So I feel a bit down seeing it dying out. A wind of the same kind as the one that is blowing though the street below the arcade, was also blowing through my heart---

Though I was quite fond of this time in the morning, when the city's still covered in darkness without any sign of life. That is because it's the only time I feel the things are at their right place, in contrast to when everything feels wrong in this world.

But of course that's just my subjective impression.

Biro---n! Biroroooo----n!

"U-Uwah!"

Because of the music playing all of a sudden I raised my voice unconsciously.

The source of the sound was my mobile phone.

I thrust my hands in a hot haste into my pockets, and cut its energy. I stopped it on the dot. It's not like someone called me. It was just the alarm clock function I set to five o'clock,

Fear started to well up within me.

(Oh shit, Akiko-san will get angry if I don't return soon...)

Driven by this fear I dashed off.

After slipping out of the shopping street, I hit upon an about waist-high gate, on which other side's the parking lot of the hospital. Several cars were stopped on there; I guess they belong to the night shift employees. And beyond this parking lot is the small hospital, which consists of three stories.

Behind several windows I could already see the light turned on.

Bearing the tension I quickened my steps. Leaving the main gate as is, I proceed to the right side of the building. The main entrance is locked at this time. I walked around to the back side, where I stumbled upon a brown door.

I open the door carefully... very carefully.

This is the sole place where you can pass through during the night.

I was prudent.

One time Akiko-san was lying in wait for me and attacked me with the bottom of her slippers the moment I entered. She blazed with anger and gave me a sermon for more than 20 minutes, while having me kneel on the hard ground. I was then lectured for more than twenty minutes. I mean, I am sick after all, so I wish that she'd be a little more caring.

Leaving the door open, I froze.

(Is it alright--?)

I paid attention to the noise I made.

I poked my head inside.

There was no-one there, just benches lined up neatly. It was the lobby. This place, which was so busy during the daytime, was now, as expected, quiet.

I breathed out in relief.

The first obstacle has been crossed.

I came inside, and after closing the door softly, I took my shoes in my hands and tiptoed down the dark corridor. About ten meters down, there was a left fork. It went on to become a slightly inclined slope. It was a slope for wheelchairs. For safety reasons, the floor of the slope was covered with rubber, and that made it hard for my footsteps to reverberate.

But, there's a difficulty with this slope.

Around its middle, the slope winded hard, and after that, everything was clearly visible from the nurse station.

I stood at the corner, and peeked around it. The lights were on in the nurse station, which was located at the end of the hallway. The nurse on duty was awake.

It was around ten meters from the corner to the nurse station.

I call it the 'Ten Meters of Terror'. There's nothing that I can hide with there. It's all over if the nurse looks this way. That line of sight would accurately blow me away.

Taking just one deep breath, I leaped out. While keeping my posture as low as possible, as well as making sure that my feet didn't make too much noise, I sprinted forth.

Ten meters.

Seven meters.

Five meters.

My heart pounded. Beacuse I was too hurried, I stumbled, about to fall. But, I somehow managed to regain my balance, and I put on more speed.

Three meters.

One meter.

And I burst out into the hall. One more obstacle down. I immediately turned to the left. The third door from here is my room. A sense of accomplishment welled up within my chest.

But!

Just as I put my hand on the door.

"Yuuuuiiiiiiiichiiiiii!"

Behind me, somebody shouted.

Turning around in a panic, as I thought, Akiko-san was there. Her left leg was raised, and her right arm was pulled back. In short----she was winding up. For a girl, it was a rather amazing pitching stance.

I stood there, waving my hands desperately.

"A-Akiko-san, it isn't what you think! I-I-I-I-I-I wasn't sneaking out or any-!"

My desperate explanation was interrupted.

Bsssssssshhhhhhhhhhh--------!

Raising an impressive noise, something brown----that is, a hospital slipper (the bottom of one), scored a direct hit on my face.

First, I had a fever.

My body felt heavy.

I thought it was a cold.

This was about two months ago.

Colds get better with sleep, and both my mother and I didn't really like the hospital, so I just continued to sleep without going to the hospital. Every day, I slept about twenty hours, I think. Sleepiness dwelt in the core of my body, and I could always sleep. Thinking about it now, I should have realised that something was strange about then.

My body didn't get better no matter how much I slept. Though my temperature went up and down, it was always above thirty-eight degrees, and the sluggishness of my body didn't go away. At that time, even raising my arm was tough.

At the point where I had continued like that for a week, as expected, we realised that it wasn't a cold. Even then, I had no intention of going to the hospital----I really, really hate the hospital----but my worried mother suddenly started to panic, and finally I was forcibly brought there.

After finishing my checkup, the doctor immediately said this:

"You're going to be hospitalized."

And really, immediately.

"For at least two months."

The name of the disease was acute hepatitis.

It's a disease that comes about from viruses, so it's kinda the same as a cold, but this virus rendered my liver virtually useless. Well, though I say that, it isn't really that serious. It's completely healed in about two or three months, and there're no aftereffects at all.

However, in that two or three months, exercise is completely forbidden.

It seems like stress isn't good either.

At any rate, continuing to sleep without having a care is the best treatment.

But, and I say but.

After a month of hospitalization, my body had mostly gotten better. Normally, I didn't feel sick at all. Furthermore, I'm a seventeen year old high school student. There's no way I could just lie in my bed and sleep.

In general, the hospital is a horribly boring place. First of all, at 9:00 PM, all the lights go out. From then on, you can't turn on the TV or radio either. It's completely dark, so you can't pass the time by reading either. Anyways, it was just free time and free time and free time.

Eventually, I started to sneak out of the hospital at night. Happily, my friend's house was close to the hospital, so I escaped there. If I go to his place, there's TV, there's video games, and there's manga; compared to the hospital, it's heaven.

Of course, for the nurse Akiko-san, she can't just look it over.

That's how it is.

So, during what seems like every night, my epic battle with Akiko-san unfolds.

Life is something that doesn't go your way.

Those words were something that my father always muttered----usually after he had bet on the wrong horse. Now, I was seriously feeling that. Really, life never goes well...

"You know, Yuuichi."

While hitting me on the head with the head of her slipper, Akiko-san spoke.

"How many times am I going to have to say this before you understand?"

Seemingly extremely angry, Akiko-san's voice was low.

By the way, I was kneeling in front of the nurse station. My back was completely straight, my knees were perfectly straight in front of me, and my hands were laid upon them----something like that.

Well, it's something that I'd like to show off.

An old granny was pointing at me and giggling, and a child patient was asking his mother: "What's that person doing?". The mother quickly said: "Don't look!", and hurriedly passed by me, dragging her child behind her.

Ahh, this is hell...

Even though I knew it was useless, I forced a smile.

"Ha-Hahahaha. That's not it. I was just going for a walk."

I can't do this; it feels like I can't even smile correctly anymore.

Akiko-san narrowed her eyes.

"Aha? A walk? You disappeared right after lights out, didn't you?"

My heart nearly skipped a beat, but I told myself to calm down. It could be that this was just a leading question, couldn't it?

"N-No way. I was sleeping."

Emphasis.

Akiko-san's eyes narrowed even further.

"Yeah, sleeping. Your bag, that is."

"Uu----"

Before heading out, I pushed my bag under my futon. So that it'd look like someone ws sleeping. The fact that Akiko-san knows that means...in short----

She knows.

All of it.

My knees trembled. Panicking, I pushed down on them with my hands. Even while getting nervous, I looked up and Akiko-san was smiling ominously.

'Hehe', her cheeks pulled up.

"Ha-Hahaha."

Without thinking, I returned the laugh.

"Ha-Hahaha."

It was something like, there was nothing else I could but laugh.

Akiko-san is a nurse at this hospital. She has a rather pretty face, so if she kept quiet, she'd have a bit of that impressive beauty feeling, but this was really scary. If you listen to the rumours, the Akiko-san in high school was bad.

I've seen a picture of Akiko-san in high school just once.

On the clothes the seventeen year old Akiko-san was wearing:

"Ise gulf bikers, please take care of me"

or

"A seventeen year old girl really loves you."

or

"Fighting elite : None can match me"

Stuff like that was sewn into it.

Well, the point here is, she was that kind of person.

Now she's a nurse, so she mostly treats patients with a gentle expression, but when she gets angry, her nature comes out.

I continued to laugh.

"Hahahaha."

Akiko-asn also continued to laugh.

"Hehehehehehehe."

"Hahahahahahaha."

"Hehehehehehehehehehe!"

"Hahahahahahahahahaha!"

Akiko-san and I just continued to laugh.

How do I say this, it was kind of weird and bizarre.

Bsssssssshhhhhhhhhhh--------!

About seven seconds later, that weird and bizarre scene was interrupted by that noise.

"O-Ouch..."

I clutched my head.

My head was smashed full on with the bottom of a slipper. Seems like the angle was just right; the place that was hit ached.

Akiko-san's anger filled shout descended upon me.

"Just because your body's gotten a little better, don't just decide by yourself that you're gonna go out walking! If you keep doing stuff like that, you'll never be able to leave the hospital!"

"A-Akiko-san..."

"What is it!?"

"You're speaking like a guy..."

"Huh?"

I'm being glared at. What amazing pressure. Still smiling awkwardly, I froze. Just like how a frog freezes when being stared at by a snake, I guess.

"Yuuichi."

"Y-Yes?"

"Make me a promise. Never sneak out of the hospital again."

I nodded my head up and down.

"I won't, I won't."

"Really? If you break this promise--"

"If I break it?"

"I might make you dance the Bon Festival dance naked."

"Naked!? The Bon Festival dance!?"

"Horrible isn't it? That'd be sad, wouldn't it?"

She smirked.

The smile of the devil.

"Do you want to do it? A nude dance?"

That's gotta be just a threat...thinking that would be a stupid mistake. Akiko-san's a woman who'll really do it if she says she will. At that moment, the image of me dancing the Bon Festival dance while naked appeared clearly in my head...

"I-I don't."

I somehow made my face spasm, and answered.

Akiko-san nodded.

"Then, keep your promise. Whatever the case, there's a girl in this hospital too."

"Y-Yes."

I nodded earnestly, but I felt that there was something off with what Akiko-san had said.

There's a girl?

The Municipal Wakaba Hospital in which I was hospitalised was pretty small, so there's got to be at most a hundred patients. More than half of those are grandmas and grandpas over seventy, and the remaining half is mostly people over thirty.

Was there a girl here?

"Well, the rest depends on your attitude. If you break this promise, within that day, you'll be naked and da----"

Akiko-san suddenly screamed: "Kyaaaaaaa!"

Wow, Akiko-san's screaming like a girl! Thinking that, I brought my head up, and standing behind Akiko-san was Tada-san.

He was grinning lewdly.

"You touched my butt, didn't you!"

Once she turned around, Akiko-san shouted, her face completely red.

Tada-san, who should be turning eighty this year, continued to grin.

"Ahh, sorry 'bout that, Akiko-chan. My hand must've touched it just a liiitttlee bit. I mean, it's because this hallway's narrow."

And while grinning, he said that carefreely.

Of course, it was definitely a lie.

He touched Akiko-san's butt on purpose.

I know pretty well since he's in the neighbouring room; Tada-san is a true blue pervert grandpa. In any case, he's hiding a mountain of erotic books under his bed. Human's 'wither' or 'become more reserved' as they gain age, or at least that's what I thought, but after getting to know Tada-san, I've come to revise my opinion.

Obviously, it seems like Akiko-san knows about that too.

"You pervert grandpa! Don't lie to me!"

"Are you doubting a sick grandpa like me? You're a horrible girl..."

"Don't look like you're sick only at this kind of time!"

"Ahh, my heart's pounding. My blood pressure..."

"Liar! Die, you pervert grandpa!"

Watching the exchange between the two (which went on just normal) out of the corner of my eye, I stood up slowly, so I wouldn't be noticed by Akiko-san.

I've got to run away during this opening.

2

Akiko-san's surveillance became more strict.

As might be expected, the personality of a former delinquent is on a different level. When lights out came, she put a bench outside my door. The door's in this hospital open outward, so I could no longer open the door from the inside.

A confinement with which I couldn't argue about.

"What'll I do if I need to go to the toilet!"

When I tried to resist using that method, Akiko-san pressed a transparent container with a weird shape into my hands.

It was a bottle for urine.

Completely shocked at the treatment I was receiving...

"S-Seriously?"

I asked, and...

"Seriously! Have fun!"

I was nodded at, the bottle still in my hands.

Really, as expected, the personality of a former delinquent is on a different level.

It wasn't only at night that the surveillance was tighter. It was also more strict during the day. When I get hungry, I go to the supermarket on the other side of the street to buy bread or sweets, but that was all forbidden. Just going to the lobby, the woman sitting at the reception window would glare at me. And when I tried to circle to the back, this time, my hand was grabbed by one of the cleaning ladies.

"Sorry, but I was asked by Akiko-chan. You get it, right?"

Nodding, I returned to my hospital room like I was running away. Exceeding what I had even dreamed of, the surrounding net was wide and surrounded me perfectly...

"Haaaaah08:58, 29 June 2012 (CDT)"

Letting loose a sigh, I walked down one of the hallways of the hospital.

Now, the only place I could tread carefreely was within the hospital. However, a hospital is filled with doctors, nurses, and sick people, the worst place ever. Just having a young hospitalised patient is in itself rare, so if things don't go well, then the traps which involve groups of grandpas and grandmas dragging me into their small talk are waiting for me. A terrible trap where, once dragged in, it would be at least an hour before I was released.

Despite that, my friends completely misunderstood what hospital life was like.

"Must be nice...there's beautiful nurses, right?"

They said things like that, but that's just a fantasy.

If they wanted to know the reality, they'd just need to be threatened by Akiko-san once.

Then they'd know...they'd be dead, but they'd know.

"Haaaaah08:58, 29 June 2012 (CDT)"

Letting loose another sigh, I plodded down the corridor, which the sunlight shone in.

Really, this is boredom.

At first, I was happy that it was fine that I didn't go to school, but as might be expected just continuing my life of boredom like that and instead I started to miss school, which was rather strange.

Ahh, I want to take a noon-time nap in the afternoon classroom...

The udon of that horrible cafeteria seems so nostalgic...

Eventually, I reached a fork in the corridor.

In Municipal Wakaba Hospital, there's the west hospital wing and east hospital wing. My room was in the west hospital wing, and mostly it was used for the people with relatively light diseases. And, on the other side of the courtyard, there was the east hospital wing. There, the people who're being hospitalised for a long time or have serious disease are housed.

I had decided not to go much to the east hospital wing.

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