Beyblade Fan Fiction ❯ Afriad of the Light ❯ Wrap Up ( Chapter 20 )

Epilogue:

Kai walked into the waiting room with Rei and the others, taking a seat beside his boyfriend. He had already been at the hospital, his family just about to leave when he saw them all rushing into the hospital. Ozuma lay on a stretcher screaming his head off that he couldn't see; the medics had to hold him down. The other stretcher had a girl whom he'd never seen before, she looked completely blacked out as they tried their hardest to cover her with blankets.

After them came Rei and Zeo, and people whom he could only assume were Ozuma's parents. Rei was crying and ran right into his arms. Zeo was crying as well, though, a lot harder than Rei. He was comforted by Mrs. Balaji. Rei explained what happened when the doctors asked them to wait, Mrs. Balaji wouldn't hear of it and followed the doctors into the operating room with her son. Mr. Balaji stayed to hear what had happened. As Rei explained the police made a report of it.

They also told what happened and how it was possible for the girl to have stayed in the house. All the time there was a crawl space underneath the house, she had gotten in when she heard the family walking around and knew the doors were opened. Zeo was sad hearing this, knowing that she had gotten in when he and Ozuma went to the lake that day and Ozuma had come so quickly, he must have left the door unlocked.

The operation was touch and go. But eventually the doctor announced that Ozuma would be just fine, and they could go in to see him when he awoke from his sleep. Dawn died on her way to the hospital.

So now they sat around and waited.

"Here's your drink." He handed a can of ginger ale to Zeo to settle the boys stomach. He had thrown up twice since they got there, and luckily the bathroom was right around the corner.

"Thanks." He opened the can taking a quick sip from it. He wasn't sure he could keep it down really, but it was the thought that counts, right.

The silence was overwhelming for a while, then Rei spoke up. "I never should have let him go home alone. I should have been there."

"Rei, don't blame yourself." Kai rubbed his back. "You couldn't have known what he was gonna do."

"But I knew that he'd do something, at least with me there she wouldn't have hurt Ozuma." He placed his face into his hands ready to cry again.

"......I don't understand why she was so obsessed with you anyway." Kai hugged his boyfriend, slightly rocking him back and forth.

Rei shrugged. "I was the only friend she had, and then I ditched her. I never should have just walked out without an explanation."

"You didn't owe her one. She was insane.... you don't know how to handle someone like that so you did the only thing you could do."

Himani listened to the boys talking, shaking his head. "If it's anyone’s fault, what happened to my son, it's mine." He sniffed back tears. "I never should have slipped him those sleeping pills, I never should have left without him.... I just thought he needed some rest," Tears streamed from his eyes. "My son could have been killed and it's all my fault."

Zeo held onto the man. "Mr. Balaji, I'm sorry too. We never believed Ozuma saw the things he said he did.... We could have helped him somehow."

"Zeo!" Max called.

Everyone turned their heads seeing the little blond rushing down the hall toward them, Tyson bringing up the rear, carrying a little red box in his hands.

"We came as soon as we found out what happened. They showed it on the news." Tyson stopped running to catch his breath. "We brought chocolates. My mom got them on the way."

"Balaji, Ozuma." A nurse called.

Everyone stood to hear what she had to say.

"Ozuma is awake now, you may come to see him."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief and followed the nurse to his room. The room was well sized with two beds in it, the other wasn't occupied. In the middle of the room on the other bed lay Ozuma, Tsugani sat beside him on a stool. She had her hand running through his red and gray hair, saying soothing words to him.

"Ozuma," Zeo ran over to the bed and took the boys other hand. "I'm so glad you're alright? I was so worried about you, when I heard you shouting from the window."

Ozuma turned his head to where the boys voice came from. "Zeo? I can't see you. You have to come closer."

"If I were any closer we'd be kissing," He laughed, sniffing back his already falling tears.

"Hey, I wouldn't mind that." He teased right back.

There was a low chuckle in the room. Ozuma turned his head to where the sounds were.

"Who else is here?"

"Me, Max." He walked over to the bed.

"And me too, buddy...." He lowered his head shyly. "I'm sorry about the way I treated you before. But man how freaky was it having someone living in your house."

"Freaky." Replied the Balaji boy, warily.

"I brought you some chocolates." He blushed handing the box to Ozuma's mother. "I kinda wanted to take a taste, to make sure they were fresh!" He tried to save himself.

Ozuma laughed quietly, and held out his hand. "Can I have one?"

His mother picked out one with a good filling and handed it to her son.

"Ozuma,"

"Rei?"

"Did the doctor say... I mean, when do you think-?"

"My mom said the doctor told her that my vision should come back in a day or so." He smiled. "So the blindness is nothing permanent."

"That's good." He sat on the end of the bed.

"You were pretty brave to go through all that alone, Ozuma." Kai spoke up.

"Thank you."

Kai made a quaint smile that went unseen by the recipient.

"My mom made a place for you and your family at my house," Rei looked at Mr. and Mrs. Balaji. "If you don't mind staying with us, that is."

"No. That sounds very nice, Rei." She touched the boys hand.

Ozuma frowned. "I can't help but feel sorry for her though." He almost whispered.

"How come?" Asks Zeo.

"Because all she wanted was a friend. I know how she felt.... I wanted to be accepted by everyone only to be pushed away...." A smile tugged at the side of his mouth. "I guess you can say we had something in common after all...."

Everyone looked around the room of faces rather uncomfortably, seeing the odd smile on Ozuma's face. It wasn't like him to smile like that. But then again, after what he had been through who only knew what was going on in the boys mind.

...................

Ozuma stayed with Rei's family up until the Balaji's could find a new home. There was no way they would continue to live in that house with a lost family that might never find their way. While they stayed there the family had a wonderful time, their parents hit it off nicely, just as their kids have.

Ozuma's crush on Rei never left, but it dwindled, as he watched him interacting with Kai. They were so much in love it would be a shame to break them up. Rei told him about the fight he and Zeo had, and the reason for it.

Ozuma felt a bit embarrassed knowing that Rei knew about his crush, but the Chinese boy told him that he had nothing to be embarrassed about. And that, as a friend, he loved him.

The mixed boys vision had slowly began to return just as the doctor said it would and eventually he was back to perfect sight. His friendship with Zeo continued as the two recaptured what they had as pen pals. He remained guarded around Tyson and Max but eventually he warmed up to them as well.

Once his family found a new house, they had moved out of the Kon's home and started a new life there. The house was safe and sound and luckily nothing went, bump, in the night. The perfect place for them.

Ozuma obtained four new pen pals of Rei, Kai, Max and even Tyson. And when he could, because they lived so far out, he would visit them all and he had a great time. He really liked Kai in the end, they had a lot more in common than he thought. They both like pretty much all the same things. And Tyson was a lot nicer than he let on too.

Yeah, everything was nice and perfect. But he couldn't help but wonder, what happened to Dawn's spirit after she died. Is she resting in peace? Or did she return to her home with her parents? Either way, Ozuma couldn't look back to those times. It made him feel lonely, sometimes abandoned. He didn't know where all these feelings were coming from exactly, but sometimes.... late at night, he can still hear giggling in the back of his mind.........