Suicide Girl (A Diabolik Lovers Story)

Chapter 18: Resolve

Resting his head on the pillow, he caught a whiff of Ren's scent which lingered behind. It was a alarmingly sweet smell that somewhat soothed Shu's anxiety over their separation. Shu felt that Ren was a strong individual despite her suicide attempt. He didn't believe that she'd crack beneath the pressure at a time like this. He just had to be patient and he would see her again soon.

~~~

That night at school, Shu was more nervous than usual. It had only been a week but it might as well have been a year in the human world. He still felt strangely eager as he waited outside of Ren's classroom, hoping to pull her aside. However, she didn't appear to be in the classroom. Sighing in frustration, Shu approached some girls in the classroom and asked them if they had seen her at all.

"She disappeared for a long time then showed up for only a couple days," one girl explained nonchalantly. Apparently, she wasn't very social in class, which came as no surprise to Shu. Frustrated, he continued to persist in asking questions before one of the girls mentioned something of interest.

"I actually heard there was an accident outside the school the other day," a girl with red hair explained, "They said there was a student involved in a car accident. It could've been the girl you're looking for. She might be in the hospital."

Stricken with more than a little bit of anxiety, Shu hurriedly thanked the girl for the information before storming out of the school. Reiji, however, attempted to stop him and ask where he was going.

"Out of my way," Shu warned wearily, not wishing to get into a confrontation with his younger brother.

"Are you that worried about that girl? Talk about being unhinged," Reiji commented before shrugging off Shu's glares and stating, "Do what you want but don't expect there not to be any consequences for missing so much school."

"Whatever," Shu scoffed before making haste in heading to the hospital. Upon arrival, he immediately asked the front desk where he could find a Ren Shizumi. After rigorous searching in their system, they located a room number. She was staying in the youth ward.

As Shu walked down the pasty white hospital corridors, he felt very tense. Not knowing any details regarding the accident, he expected the worst case scenario. However, that fear dispelled itself as he grew closer to the youth ward. Down the hallway, he heard a familiar voice singing in the distance. It sounded almost angelic as he neared closer to a large recreational room with windows to look through. He peeked through to find Ren, with bandages on her face and arms, holding a small harp and playing a song in front of a small audience of children. As she sang, she expressed a wholesome smile that was almost contagious. Shu felt a smile creep onto his face as he waited until she finished before knocking lightly.

As Ren looked up, her eyes almost sparkled in seeing Shu standing there. She stood up, bowed quickly before grabbing a set of crutches and limping over to him. Seeing her this way, he embraced her suddenly and sighed heavily.

"Shu," she murmured, seemingly surprised at his openly affectionate gesture. Looking down at the small girl in his arms, he softly asked, "Are you okay?"

Ren made a pinched expression before admitting, "Well, I've had better days."

"What happened?" he pressed further, his brow furrowing as he eyed her bandages closely. With a sigh, she crutched herself over to her hospital room and sat down on the bed before explaining, "It's kind of crazy how it happened, but basically a guy plowed through a red light at the crosswalk while there were kids crossing. I pushed them out of the way but ended up being the one who was hit the hardest. I have a concussion and I fractured my left leg but other than scratches and bruises, I'm still alive."