Marmalade Boy Fan Fiction ❯ Lonely Hearts ❯ Attraction ( Chapter 7 )

There is something indescribable about watching a woman lost in contemplation. She is at once vulnerable and impervious, secure in thoughts of her own devising, and utterly alone. I spent countless moments watching Akizuki in the library, and it was in those stolen moments that I grew to care for her. Wandering about one of the busiest museums on the continent I saw many people, but they seemed dabblers, affected only superficially by the art around them. Leaving Bill and Brian to fight their way towards the Vatican frescoes, I struck out on my own, seeking solitude, not solicitude. Walking slowly through the lesser-populated galleries, I was lost in thought, particularly about the musical we were to attend that evening, when my gaze was drawn by darkened gallery that I was in the process of passing.

Pausing in the doorway it took a moment for my eyes to adjust to the dim lighting inside, to protect the paintings, no doubt. I was walking farther in, so see why the lighting was so dim, when a flash of white caught my eye. Lifting my head I saw a young woman standing near the center of the room, just outside the puddle of light around a single painting. She was wearing dark pants and a blazer with a crisp white shirt. It was the latter that had caught my attention. Not wanting to disturb her concentration I leaned against the wall and watched her. As my eyes grew accustomed to the gloom I was able to discern her profile.

I should have been mildly surprised to recognize Elizabeth Fairfax's profile, but I was not. After all the time I'd spent alternately worrying about her and desiring her it was a wonder that I hadn't seen her sooner. She was very deeply involved with the painting she was gazing at. I watched her profile go through confusion, admiration, desire, pride, and satisfaction. I could not see the painting, but she was too interesting for me to interrupt her silent communion. I wanted to know what she was thinking, and what she desired. I had scant hope that she was thinking of me. After some time had passed I caught her lifting her arm. When I saw her hand, illuminated by the painting's light, a faint bluish white, veined like fine marble, I could not help but gasp.

At the sound she turned to face me. My heart was in my throat as I felt her eyes search my figure. She wore a look of apprehension that tugged at my throat. Surely she wasn't afraid of me? Belatedly I remembered the lighting difference, and that she could not, in all likelihood, see my face. Standing suddenly I bowed, a mute apology for upsetting her, if I had done so, and swiftly walked back to the gallery in which the frescoes were on display. Finding Brian and Bill once more I remained with them in the crowded hall and the afternoon was soon spent. Returning to the hotel we found Yuu and the girls there, already getting ready.

"We're back." I called out.

"Good. The girls were worried that you'd be late. Did you guys get something to eat?" Yuu asked me, from his seat on the sofa.

"No, can you order something from room service? I'll eat while I change."

"Sure, how was the museum?"

"It was full of timeless, poignant beauty. I was moved, on many levels." It was utterly true, if a bit misleading.

"The frescoes were stunning. I can see why Doris was so interested in them." Brian picked up the conversation and expounded on the topic he'd been so excited about since we left the museum.

"Yuu, what's the musical about?" As Brian fell silent I heard Miki's call from the room she and Meiko shared.

"I've heard many good things about it, and not just because Jinny's mother is the director. It's about a young woman who is torn between love and responsibility, the latter to her teacher, the elusive ghost of the opera house, and the former to a young man she grew up with."

"It all comes down to love, doesn't it?" I asked myself softly, not intending for the other men in the room to hear me. Bill, however, did. Slinging an arm over my shoulder we walked together into the room I was staying in.

"It's really all that matters, in the end, I think. No matter how much you try to pretend, or how much you wish things were otherwise, eventually it all does come down to love." His voice softened on the last bit, and I looked up at him. The gleam in his eyes told me more than his words, and I silently grasped his hand, understanding, is not really agreeing at the moment. I had seen what love could do, but even with Akizuki, I don't think I'd ever felt something that compelling. Ah well, that is what art is for, is it not?

Shaking off Bill's arm I nodded to him and began to dress for the evening's activity. I had been planning on wearing my black suit, and was surprised to find the coat missing. Shaking my head, I remembered that I had yet to retrieve it from Elizabeth. I grinned and dressed in the other suit I'd brought, a navy blue one, eschewing a shirt and tie for a simple turtleneck. My dinner arrived shortly after that, and I ate while Miki and Meiko put the final touches on their toilette. It was in a rush that we all descended to the lobby and climbed into a pair of taxis, heading over to Yuu's dorm. Happily, though, we arrived precisely when we'd said we would. Jinny and Doris were already waiting in the front room. As we walked in I caught the phrase "Metropolitan Museum" on the lips of one of the women, and immediately walked over to join them.

"The jewelry was just fabulous." Jinny was gushing. "I couldn't believe the other two didn't want to spend more time there."

"Did you go this afternoon?" I queried

"Yes, I really wanted to see the Vatican frescoes, but it was simply too crowded. I think we're going to return in the middle of the week when fewer tourists are there." Doris answered me.

"I don't know if I'll go back. Elizabeth's story frightened me a little. I'm not going to be walking alone in that place for a while." Jinny gave a delicate shudder and hugged Bill's arm.

"Elizabeth's story?" I asked Doris.

"She said that someone had been watching her in a dark gallery, and that he vanished. I didn't want to say anything, but I think she may have let her imagination run away with her."

"Why do you say that?" I was curious, especially that Doris thought I had been a figment.

"She was shaking like a leaf when I saw her, and Jinny said she was talking about Hades and demons. Perhaps she's still more ill than we'd thought." Her words sent a stab of guilt through my midsection.

"If she went with you two do you think she'd like to come along this evening? Jinny was saying that the show hadn't even come close to selling out." I asked, surprised at my own desire to see Elizabeth again, this time to reassure her.

"Actually, she said she had plans this evening." Doris tried to remember, but shrugged. "She didn't say what she was doing."

"Is everything all right with Miss Fairfax?" Akizuki walked up to us and asked.

"Why do you ask?" Jinny countered.

"I just saw her coming down the stairs, rather quickly. She was dressed in a pretty formal dress, and I thought she'd been asked to join us. Why I started to go ask her she just looked at her watch and smiled at me, then left out the back door. She looked a little pale, but she was moving pretty quickly."

"No, we knew she had plans, but she didn't mention anything to us. Maybe she has a date." Yuu scoffed at Jinny's suggestion, rejoining the conversation with Miki on his arm.

"I don't think that's very plausible. The poor girl's been sick for more than a week. You all saw how ill she was after dinner on Friday. No one in his right mind would ask her to come out while she's still ill. There has to be another explanation." My own opinion was cut short but Akizuki's gentle hand on my arm. Drawing me aside, she spoke softly.

"You're upset. I can see it in your eyes. I'm sure she'll be fine. She looked relatively healthy to me."

But she was so lost in the museum. I wanted to cry out. Instead, I tempered my words. "You of all people should know how I feel about smart, pretty girls that I think might be in trouble." She had the decency to blush then, and we left with the rest of the group, proceeding to a lavish theater where we enjoyed Andrew Lloyd Weber's musical.

As the play wore on I was shocked to find myself identifying with Christine's young suitor. The thought puzzled me until I realized, suddenly, that my heart was being slowly drawn to an inexplicably driven young woman. When the realization struck I reeled slightly. I had known I was attracted to her, but over the past few days she'd become a puzzle, more so even than Akizuki had presented. Only time would tell if this seed would take root, but I found myself not adverse at all to the idea of falling in love with her.

While returning to Yuu's dorm after the performance, Brian turned on the radio. The familiar voice of the campus night DJ filled the vehicle.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen, it is approaching eleven o'clock this fine evening, and it looks like we have a caller. Good evening, thanks for calling Joel's nightly ramble and rant, how may I serve you?"

"Good evening." The reply was delivered by a female voice that sounded roughened by tears. I was surprised when Joel greeted her as his mystery lady. As the conversation wore on her voice gradually improved, but her anguish was clear.

"Poor girl." Bill remarked quietly.

"She seems very troubled." Akizuki replied in a knowing voice. "Sometimes it's hardest to know that something is coming, but not be able to anticipate or avoid it."

I listened not to the caller, but to Joel's replies. I was nearly certain that he'd fallen partially in love with his caller. And the wistfulness in his voice seemed to confirm it. When her soft 'good night' was followed by a horrible series of wracking coughs he forgot himself, calling out her alias as if they were not on the air.

"Tsutami, are you all right? For the love of God, please answer me. Tell me you're fine. Please." His cries were met only with a cessation of the coughs, and the gentle click of the receiver being replaced.

"He loves her." I remarked to the car in general. "I can only hope to spare him the pain of an unrequited love." With a knowing smile at Akizuki I fell silent, thinking of Joel, of his caller, and of the look on Elizabeth's face when she'd turned toward me, thinking I was a demon. The last filled me with remorse. I should have approached her, but I had not had the courage.

Sleep came only fitfully, and at dawn I finally rose and stood on the balcony of my suite, wondering what I should do next.

For that day at least, I had little choice. My father had called some of his business associates in the area, and made appointments for Yuu and myself. Ostensibly the appointments were for me to communicate for my father key information on projects, but I knew my father had wanted to identify Yuu as his protégé. By doing so Yuu's employment opportunities would increase drastically, but it would also increase the pressure on him to excel. Late that afternoon, after going to six different firms Yuu and I finally stopped a sidewalk café for coffee and a break.

"Wow, when your father said that he'd help me I never expected anything like this. It's incredible."

"He likes to help aspiring architects. He received a lot of help from his mentor when he was young, and it suits him to pass the tradition along. When I decided to study business he did much the same, sending me around to all the men who'd commissioned building from him. It's his favorite way of showing affection." Yuu stirred his coffee thoughtfully.

"I'm almost surprised though, that he'd do this for me after my ulterior motive for meeting him."

"Don't be." The vehemence of my voice startled him. "In the first place my father never offers his support unless he sees talent or promise in the individual. Secondly, the no matter why you wanted to meet him, you did, and he's acting on that. Truthfully, I think he's ashamed that he might have done anything to suggest that he was your father, and he trying to make amends in some way. Most importantly, though, just like I'd have liked to have a brother like you, I think that he would have liked to have a son like you."

"Thank you." His response was simple and heartfelt, and no further talk was needed.

"All right, now that we've successfully begun your career, what's on the agenda for tonight?"

"Well, Miki and Meiko are going to a concert with Jinny and Doris, and then going out to visit a nightclub. That leaves us all to ourselves."

"Well, I guess that makes our decision easier. Let's go find an arcade."

It turns out there was one, over by the campus, with a convenient pizzeria next door. The next several hours were spent in friendly competition, while we both tried valiantly to play video games and eat enough pizza to sate an army of twelve-year olds. For a time we were both free of expectations and responsibilities, acting like the brothers we'd once thought ourselves to be. It was just short of nine when we decided to hang up our joysticks and hail a cab. The time was not wholly coincidental on my part. When we hailed a taxi and told the driver our destination my first action was to request that the radio station be tuned to the campus one. Just as the radio was turned up a fanfare announced the DJ.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen." Surprisingly enough, this was delivered by the voice I could now recognize as Tsutami, once again clipped and precise. "You are listening to MSAC, your campus station, hosted tonight by the fabulous Joel and his amazing foreign correspondent, coming to you direct from a phone booth located at a well-lit street corner whose street signs are lamentably absent."

"For everyone just tuning in, I wish you all a good Monday, or a good riddance to Monday, as the case may be. I'm here tonight with Tsutami, who will be put on the studio payroll as soon as she turns in an application. Speaking of, m'dear, we do need a telephone number to reach you at, in case of emergency." Joel picked up the thread smoothly.

"Terribly sorry Joel, I'm afraid someone's stolen the plaque off of this phone. I have no idea what the number is." The woman sounded amused. "Furthermore, I didn't know you were trying to pay me to be your friend."

"That's not it, really. If you don't need a job here, then perhaps you'll favor us with a rare thing, a fact about you, and tell us where you do work." Joel's voice held just a hint of strain, buried within the joviality. When the woman sighed I heard her voice soften, losing its clipped nature and confusing her accent once again.

"Please don't Joel. We can talk about anything, anything at all, just not me. Is that a great deal to ask?"

"But you're breaking the pattern. Mysterious figures belong in books, or films."

"Or museums?" she prompted.

"Yes, safely hidden away where people can puzzle about them at their leisure. You are causing a great deal of speculation to run rampant as to your identity. It's not good for the blood pressure." I wasn't sure if his pontification was genuine or feigned, but I was now firmly convinced that he cared a great deal for this woman, and that she was either utterly unaware of it, or was merely pretending innocence. The second thought was unpalatable to me. I would prefer that she be a pure intellectual, not just toying with a man's emotions. I was a bit puzzled, however, as to why I found myself caring.

"Can you honestly say that it doesn't thrill you to know that almost any woman you walk by might be me? Perhaps you walk a little straighter, hoping that I'm watching, even if you don't know it? Mystery breeds romance, my darling, and that's why we all cling to it. Heaven only knows you shall never understand women, not even one of us, so what does it matter if you know my name?"

"I think you're hitting below the belt again."

"I beg your pardon. All right, change of topic. These blasted, thrice cursed streets." Her voice suddenly regained its customary crispness.

"What?" Joel was obviously confused.

"Everywhere I've tried to run tonight has been completely covered by traffic. I'm sick to death of motorists thinking that they own the sidewalks too."

"Traffic hasn't been heavy at all since about seven though. How long have you been out running?"

"A while, I suppose." Her voice was nonchalant.

"Tsutami." Joel exploded. "You admitted yourself that you had pneumonia last week. You were in quite an emotional state last night, and I could barely recognize your voice. Now you tell me that you're trying to run yourself to death again. What in the name of all that is good and holy on this earth do you think you're doing to yourself?"

"Keeping sane." Her reply seemed to echo after his outburst. "Might I make my request now."

"Only if you'll give your word to go home now."

"Done. Can you play She's Like the Wind, sung by Patrick Swayze."

"I suppose this is another one of your hints."

"Sorry to disappoint, but I really do just want to hear it right now. Until tomorrow then." A slight lilt crept into her voice and I leaned forward, hoping to hear more, but was met by only a dial tone. As we continued back to Chidester Hall, where Yuu lived, one line from the song haunted me. "Just a fool to believe I am anything she needs." The image of Elizabeth delivering her tour of campus mocked me. She was obviously self sufficient. Why did I feel something within her crying out to me? What was making me want to protect her from the brutal blows of her own dedication? Shaking my head, I repeated the line as the song ended, hearing Joel mumble the same thing on the air.

"Just a fool."

"Do you want to just sleep here? Bill can sleep in Brian's extra bed, and you wouldn't have to go all the way over to the hotel." Yuu offered, interrupting my reverie.

"I'd like that." We both climbed wearily up the stairs.

"Oh, I'd almost forgotten. Miki wouldn't be happy."

"What?"

"I promised her I'd ask Elizabeth to have dinner with us tomorrow. I think there might be an ulterior motive, but she won't tell me. All she did was giggle. I don't want to bother her though." We continued up to his room in silence, while he contemplated his options. Upon our arrival he sat down at his desk and penned a quick note, then folded it and handed it to me. "Could you just run over and slip this under her door? Bill and I will get everything ready for bed."

I walked down the hall and paused before a familiar door. She'd put up a nameplate, just a simple engraved sign with "E. Fairfax" in simple block letters. The lights were out and I heard no movement from within, so I contented myself with the thought that she was already in bed and slipped the note under the door. As I returned to Yuu's room I thought I heard the front door close, but when I stopped there was no further noise, and I decided I was merely overly tired. Acting accordingly when I arrived in Yuu's room I collapsed almost immediately onto Bill's bed, made hastily with fresh sheets, and was asleep in less time than it had taken me to disrobe.

The next morning dawned crisp and early. I was awoken by Bill's searching in his closet for some piece of apparel.

"Sorry." He apologized sotto voce.

"It's all right. I'll just head down and have breakfast."

"Good idea. There are bowls in the upper cabinet, and cereal is to the left of the door."

"Thanks." Pulling on my pants from the previous night and a shirt of Yuu's that he'd left out yesterday I headed downstairs to the kitchen. Once down there I realized that the kitchen had no less than three doors, and while I checked to the left of each, no cereal was to be found. Bowls also proved a precious and rare commodity. After nearly quarter of an hour of fruitless searching I was reduced to staring into the refrigerator, contemplating the feasibility of mysterious foam boxes containing breakfast food.

A large thump startled me. Peering over the edge of the open refrigerator door I saw that I had been joined in the kitchen by Elizabeth, as well as her formidable book bag. I watched as she went unerringly to a cabinet and pulled out a bowl, and, bending slightly, also produced a box of cereal.

"Excuse me." My voice had been unexpected and caused her to jump a bit "Could I trouble you to retrieve a bowl for me as well? Bill tried to give me directions, but the little beasts seem too wily for me this morning."

"Certainly." Suiting action to word she handed me a bowl, then stepped next to me in front of the open refrigerator and reached past my torso for the milk that I had missed, having been hiding behind the take-out containers. Her nearness gave me a hint of a gentle lilac scent, which stirred the beginnings of arousal deep within me. "You startled me. I wasn't expecting to meet anyone down here. Did you spend the night?"

"Yes. Yuu and I were out all day, and when we finally got back it was too late to go to the hotel. We're in a suite, and I didn't want to risk waking anyone up." I attempted to squelch my budding desire by preparing my own breakfast.

"That's kind of you. I had a roommate like that once, but she learned pretty quickly that I can sleep through almost anything. It's one of the perks of sleep deprivation." In between her words she was eating neatly, but rapidly.

"You seem to be in a bit of a rush. I thought classes didn't start until next week."

"I'm going over to set up my lab this morning. I need to get some of my experiments running again. If I don't start now, then I might not ever get the time."

"Are they making you bring your own chemicals?"

"No, why do you ask?"

"I heard you drop your bag when you came in. That thing must weight more than you do."

"Oh, that's not for the lab. I'm teaching as well, and I don't like the assigned book, so I'm putting all my old texts in my office. That way I can refer to them when I'm trying to write my lectures."

"Did you have to take this class several times? You have an awful lot of books there."

"Certainly not." Her eyes flashed indignantly, and I couldn't help it. I began to chuckle.

"I beg your pardon, Miss Fairfax, honestly I do. I meant no offense. I've just been trying to imagine you carrying that enormous thing, and it seems to violate the laws of physics." Her eyes relaxed.

"You're not the first. Luckily, if I carry them over now, I shan't have to move them until the end of my teaching stint. The exercise is good for me though. It helps ensure that my shoulder muscles are big enough to hold up my head." As she stood and cleaned her bowl and spoon off I was entranced by this playful facet of her personality that I'd discovered. So delighted was I that I almost missed her departure.

"Wait." She paused in the doorway, her shoulders squared underneath their burden. "Please, allow me to help you." Her eyes were a bit sad, I thought, as she replied.

"No, thank you. I can't accept." Turning quickly, I heard her walk to the front door, open it, and shut it firmly behind herself.

"Why can't you?" I whispered to the empty air. Why was she so determined to not only do something, but to refuse help? Was there someone she was involved with? I could barely give credence to the thought, but something was holding her back. Thinking along those lines I was suddenly reminded of Yuu's note from the night before, and cursed myself for not getting an answer from her.

Not too much time passed before Yuu joined me in the kitchen, and before he'd finished eating the rest of our informal group descended en masse. As we were swept out the door I gathered that we'd be visiting Coney Island that day. As with other tours we'd gone on, Akizuki and I walked close by each other, watching the others' reactions to the sights and sounds of the old amusement park. I think I may have been even more distant than usual, but Akizuki didn't press the point. I'm glad she chose not to, it would not have been comfortable for me to admit that I was merely biding my time until we could return and collect Elizabeth for dinner. Of course, she hadn't actually agreed, but I took her acceptance for granted. She had to eat, after all.

It was very close to dinnertime when we finally returned to Chidester. Somewhere along the way the decision had been made to order takeout and spend the evening watching American television.

"Yuu, did you ask Elizabeth to come eat with us?" Miki asked him, fairly dancing with impatience when Elizabeth was nowhere to be found in the common rooms.

"I slipped a note under her door last night, but we haven't heard back from her."

"Well, I'll just go upstairs and get her." Miki ran out of the room and the light patter of her feet was heard on the stairs. In a few moments she returned, holding a small piece of paper in her hands. She handed it to Yuu. "Can you read this? My English needs a little work." Yuu complied, reading the note out loud:

"Yuu,

Thank you for the invitation. I'd love to join you for dinner, but I will be working in my lab all day. If it's not too much trouble could you call me when you're ready to eat? My number's 478-2311. I understand if it doesn't work well with your plans. If so, I'll just grab something when I get finished. Thanks!

~Elizabeth"

"We need to call her; left to herself I think she'll stay up there forever." Surprisingly, this came from Bill.

"I'll do it." Doris offered to make the call. I heard her in the next room, cheerfully talking to Elizabeth.

"Hi, are you ready for dinner?"

"We're ordering pizza, I think. I hope it's not a problem."

"No, don't wait, you should come over now."

After she concluded her call Yuu ordered pizza and the rest of us began perusing the television listings. We still hadn't come to a decision when a knock sounded at the door. A young man stood in the doorway, nearly concealed by vast quantity of pizza. Standing in the doorway behind him was a tired looking Elizabeth, surveying the chaos of eight people, a half dozen pizza boxes, and possibly three copies of the same newspaper strewn about the room Elizabeth looked like she either wanted to cry or run. I caught her eye before she did either, and she gave a little half-smile.

"How about just watching a movie? It looks like there's a Jerry Lewis marathon just starting. Everyone should be able to understand that, it's a comedy." Everyone agreed with Elizabeth, urgent to make a decision of some sort and start eating. Brian and Doris fetched drinks from the kitchen, and we all settled down to watch the movie.

I was not, to my regret, seated next to Elizabeth. She sat on the floor, balancing her plate on the coffee table next to her. Miki sat next to her, with Yuu on the sofa behind them. I thought to sit next to Yuu, but before I could his classmates crowded around, leaving Meiko and I to share a loveseat. I wasn't as close to Elizabeth as I'd wanted, but I was not so far away that I missed her droll remark.

"Pizza, beer and TV: the way to a woman's heart." After that she was quiet, watching the movie with everyone else, explaining things when people asked her questions. As far as I could tell the film was about a young incompetent at a studio, whose every effort ended in disaster. It was amusing, but did not require all of my attention. The remainder of that was devoted to Elizabeth. I watched her smile, laugh occasionally, and, when she thought no one was watching, her discrete yawns. It made me think she hadn't left the chemistry building since I'd seen her that morning. I planned on asking her about it, but when the movie ended Jinny turned off the television.

"Why don't we all play cards? We could have a spades tournament." Everyone seemed thrilled with the idea and began to form groups of four.

"I think I'll take my leave then." Elizabeth said to Miki.

"Why?" Miki's question was guileless.

"Well, for starters, I'm the odd woman out, and I don't like playing spades, so don't suggest I play as part of a pair. I'm also pretty tired. I was in my lab all day." My suspicions were confirmed, but she left before I had a chance to speak to her.

Once card tables had been procured the radio was turned on and we all set about playing cards. Their tournament rules seemed odd, but when Akizuki and I lost I was more than happy to merely watch the others, avoiding thoughts of the young woman upstairs. Not surprisingly, the radio was tuned to the campus station, and I listened expectantly as I heard the clock tower outside begin to chime nine.

"Welcome, once again to nine o'clock on MSAU, the place where, at least in recent days, Joel gets humbled by his co-host. Highlights include: Joel getting upbraided for believing in love, Joel getting ignored and hung up on, and the ever popular Joel getting told to bugger off. So, Tsutami, what's on the menu for tonight?"

"You make me sound like some sort of harridan." Her voice sounded amused.

"That's show biz, kid. If it's not dreadful, then no one wants to know about it."

"Yes, but you've misrepresented me."

"How so?"

"I wasn't quibbling so much about love, but about its perception."

"In my own defense, the perception of a thing leads to its reality, so that, in fact, the way we perceive things is the way that they, in fact, are." Joel sounded like he was warming up. "But I suppose I should give you a bit of time to elucidate exactly what you mean."

"Thank you ever so much for your kind concession." Her voice was dry. "Romance is the way that people are taught to express their attraction for another. It's a social construct, designed to help validate and control the sexual impulse. Lust is simply base desire. We need it, not just because it's hardwired into our basic brain structure, but also because it is how our species propagates. Attraction is very real, and can happen at a glance."

"I'm following you thus far, and very intrigued." Joel inserted into one of her pauses. As if she hadn't heard him she continued on.

"Sometimes it can set the stage for further, and more advanced emotional developments. Lust comes first, then love. I suppose that you can have love without lust, as it develops over time." She was beginning to sound as if she were lecturing, but not in an unpleasant way.

"All right, but how does this tie into Saturday evening's discussion?"

"Romance is superfluous. It began as a prelude to the mating act, courtship, for example, but it has become expected, and so entangled with love as to be mistaken for the more genuine emotion. It's as if a symbol, representing something else, is thought to actually be that which it only represents." Passion suffused her voice, I was not the only one affected. Around me I saw cards drop to the table as everyone began listening to her. Several moments went by, before something a bit unexpected happened.

"Then along comes a woman, there's a change in the way that you're feeling tonight." Elizabeth sang a few lines, then resumed speaking. "Chicago wasn't talking about love. That change is the jolt of lust you feel when, for whatever reason, you lay eyes on someone you're attracted to. The earth isn't moving, you are not suddenly and completely a better person and love is not involved." Her voice dropped, almost like she was talking to herself. Once again I found myself wondering about her accent. I was sure that it was the clue to her identity, but I simply couldn't think how.

"Hey, are you all right?" Joel sounded worried.

"Yes, sorry, I think I got a little bit too involved in my own argument. I didn't even give you a chance to reply." A slightly muffled coughing was heard, as if the receiver was being held away while she coughed.

"I'm sorry too, especially if I let you talk too much. Are you feeling all right? You sounded a bit better." Her reply was huskier than her voice had been before.

"It's just a bit cooler out here than I thought, I should have probably worn a jacket."

"I didn't just hear that. You are not outside this late at night. Please don't tell me that you've gone out running again." Only silence greeted him, and he sighed. "Tsutami, go home, before you kill yourself. I'll argue with you tomorrow night, so don't say anything else, just go home. You need to get well before trying to make yourself sick again."

"Good night then." The soft voice could barely be heard, before she disconnected.

"That woman is going to drive me to drink." Joel sounded tired. "For lack of a formal request, here's Then Along Comes a Woman, by Chicago, for those who didn't recognize Tsutami's little musical brief."

I was relieved that my own ill lady hadn't left to go out running. I was seated only a dozen or so feet away from the staircase, I would surely have heard her. I did feel empathy for Joel, it's terrible to know that someone you care about is suffering needlessly. I sent a silent thought upstairs to Elizabeth's room, hoping she was tucked warmly into bed, resting and healing. It was then that I noticed the final spades game had ceased. Akizuki had gotten tired, and when Miki saw this she decided that it was time for all of us to return to the hotel. Our plans for tomorrow's trip to Staten Island were checked with everyone, and I was surprised when Doris offered to invite Elizabeth along the next morning.

"I'd feel horrible if she worked all day again. She looked pretty worn out today, and with school starting next week she needs all the energy she can get."

When we returned the next morning to collect Yuu and his friends, I was disappointed to see that Elizabeth wasn't with them.

"Yuu, is Elizabeth not coming?" Miki asked before I could.

"Doris and Jinny were up late, and they walked by her room and heard her coughing pretty badly. They decided to turn off her alarm clock, so I wouldn't be surprised if she was still asleep." Yuu sounded a bit concerned.

"It sounded like her lungs were almost completely congested." Doris offered. "She must have gotten sick again last night."

"Let's go check on her. Meiko, please?" When Miki pleaded with her all Akizuki could do was acquiesce gracefully. My anxiety rose as I watched the pair disappear up the staircase.