Work Text:
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The blood vessel corridors were a little quieter than usual that morning. Hushed and subtle.
Colorful Tanabata decorations hung between housing complexes and tissue buildings. Paper streamers, light small chimes, and tanzaku strips swayed gently above the steady flow of cells passing by. Small bamboo branches had been placed throughout the pathways overnight. Their leaves rustled softly whenever uneven currents drifted through the blood vessels. A single yellow tanzaku strip twisted sharply in a passing breeze before settling once again.
Further out into the distance, an overhead panel crackled briefly with static before correcting itself. But no one seemed particularly concerned about it. With increased traffic moving throughout the body for the festival, such little irregularities were very easy to overlook.
And like familiar duty, routines continued as they always did for every cell. Inside one apartment, the same applied to the two blood cells that lived there.
They were still curled together warmly within their sheets. The bedroom was quiet and serene. As always, intimate.
1146 was the first to be awake. He was used to being up well before dawn. To him, this time was peaceful and special. A moment to be treasured. He lay still as always so AE3803 would not be disturbed next to him.
She was still deeply asleep, her arms nestled against him as she was nuzzling closely against his chest. She hardly stirred. Even as he gently brushed his fingers through her hair.
Her comforting stillness brought a sense of peace to him. His fingers lightly combed her cowlick, causing her to shift herself slightly against him.
"Mmm… White Blood Cell…" she softly cooed in her sleep.
It was so precious that it was almost a shame that she would have to eventually wake up and they would need to prepare for work. He almost wished that the morning would wait even just a little longer. Just a few more minutes. Please.
For the next several seconds, he kept his eyes on her. As if his gaze alone was protecting her in her sleep, keeping any bad dream at bay.
She then began to stir a bit and slowly open her eyes. And seeing him there right beside her as always brought a soft smile to her face.
"Good morning, White Blood Cell," she softly greeted, giving him an affectionate cuddle.
He leaned even closer to her.
"Good morning, Red Blood Cell," he whispered back, giving her a tender kiss.
For a moment, the two of them briefly remained in each other's arms before they finally began their day to get ready for work.
They dressed into their work uniforms and headed into the kitchen to prepare their morning tea as always.
1146 filled the kettle up with water like he did every morning as AE3803 prepared the cups with the tea.
Their movements were in practiced coordination. They each gave subtle glances to one another before the other noticed. Only little smiles that touched their faces gave them away.
He then clicked the kettle on to begin it. And as they waited for the water to be heated, it was a tender free moment to themselves. Something each of them always valued together.
They held each other in an intimately close embrace, gently swaying their hips together in a light dance for a moment. Their eyes softly locked on one another in a loving gaze with smiles across their faces.
He did a subtle triangle glance along her face.
"I love you, Red Blood Cell," he whispered.
A faint touch of warmth met her cheeks as she smiled sweetly. Her arms brought him slightly closer.
"I love you too, White Blood Cell," she softly cooed back.
He gave a quiet purr as he leaned in closer to her face. His lips pressed gently against together with hers. Time seemed to slow slightly as the kiss tenderly lingered until the kettle clicked itself off. It was almost painful having to return back to reality.
AE3803 shifted over slightly back towards the counter. She poured the hot water into the cups to make the tea.
"Here you are," she warmly said, handing one of the cups to 1146 with a chuckle.
He smiled as he accepted it from her.
The two of them took their time as they sipped the tea, resuming with their routine.
Before heading out, they put on their hats and jackets. Each of them adjusting and straightening subtle folds on the other that didn't really need it.
Once outside, they began their usual walk together through the blood vessels. They were greeted with the vast array of color surrounding them.
AE3803 admired each decoration they passed with visible delight. A cheerful smile beamed across her face.
"Today is so lovely, isn't it, White Blood Cell?"
1146 enjoyed the brilliant displays as well. However, he was more controlled about it and didn't openly express it as much as she did.
He glanced up above them to look at a few of the bright paper streamers overhead that were swaying in the airflow. Then back at her. His gaze lingered on her a little bit longer than the decorations. He couldn't help but curl a corner of his mouth upward as his expression softened for just a brief moment at her.
"Yeah, it is."
Along their path, there was a nearby bamboo display with a few cells gathered around. They were writing and hanging up various tanzaku strips on it. The display was fully decorated with paper ornaments and small chimes that softly tinkled in the light breeze.
AE3803 noticed it immediately and skipped over to it.
"Hey! Look at this, White Blood Cell!" she called out to him.
He did not rush. He kept his even pace and eventually arrived at the public display.
She gestured at the various strips. Her smile from earlier still stayed. If anything, it was even brighter and full of amusement because of them.
"Everyone is writing their wishes down for the Star Festival," she commented, grabbing white and red strips, "Let's make ours too. It'd be fun!"
With that, she handed him the white strip with a soft giggle.
"Knowing you and duty, this one really suits you. Maybe you can make one about it."
A tiny huff of a chuckle escaped him. Not so much because the idea itself was absurdly funny. But because she was right. He accepted the strip from her.
They each discreetly stole glances of the other before writing down on the papers.
AE3803 finished first, coyly looking over her written wish for a moment. She gently hugged it as if fondly embracing the very wish itself.
"There!" she gently exclaimed, hanging up the red tanzaku on one of the branches, "You better take this seriously too."
She let out a soft giggle, glancing over 1146.
"I hope my wish comes true."
He looked over at her and smiled as he turned towards his. A warm expression touched across his face.
"Yeah… I hope mine does too."
He then hung his tanzaku on the adjacent branch next to hers. The white and red strips dangled close together on their branches.
"…Both of ours."
Afterwards, he gently placed his arm over her shoulder. And they both resumed their way as the breeze began to pick up, twirling their strips. A slight hum of static briefly buzzed for a second above the display.
Over in the lungs, they reached their usual parting spot.
AE3803 let out an exhale to get herself motivated for the rest of the day ahead.
"Alright! Time for work!"
She had only taken a step forward when 1146 called out to her.
"Red Blood Cell…"
She turned to face him.
"Yeah?"
"Later on… Do you want to meet in the stomach for lunch?"
A small blush touched her cheeks as she smiled brightly and returned closer to him. Enough that the space between them was now non-existent.
"I'd really love that, White Blood Cell," she whispered.
The promise settled naturally between them in the tender kiss they shared.
"I'll see you then," she said softly with a smile to match.
He smiled back with a gentle expression.
"See you later then."
He subtly watched her walk over towards the posted assignments list on the other side of the corridor until she was blended among the rest of the other red blood cells. And it was only then when he finally turned and started on his patrol routes for the day.
Neither of them noticed the buzz of static that stretched between a couple of the route's markers overhead.
The morning assignments were as routine and expected as they've always been. Oxygen and nutrients arrived at their destinations. Pathogens were swiftly contained and routes remained clear. The route markers occasionally crackled with static and it forced minor detours throughout that morning. However, the body still continued forward.
1146 noticed that it was getting close to around the time both of them would have their lunch break. He realized that he would be able to get to the stomach in time from his location if he were to begin walking there now.
He had only walked a few steps before he got a message from his radio transceiver. It came in with heavy static.
*stch* All neutroph—- … —n the right clavi— … —ver to the shou— … —ection dete— … —ain immed—! *stch*
The transmission was too difficult to make out clearly.
"Repeat," he spoke into it.
However, the message came out even worse.
*stch* All neu— … —jury in th— … —ected and mu— … —ately! *stch*
He was still unable to comprehend what was being said. It was quite unusual. But before he could request for another repeat, he noticed several other white blood cells rushing by. One of them noticed that he was just standing there.
"Hey! What the hell are you doing just standing there?! Didn't you get the transmission?!"
After they passed him, he ran to catch up with them.
"I only got static. What's happening?"
"There's been an open injury over at the right shoulder! All of us have been called over there to deal with the pathogens before those damn things cause an infection!"
The other neutrophil then ran forward faster before he could respond.
For that moment, 1146 felt torn between his duty and the promise he had made earlier that morning. He didn't like breaking his word. Especially towards AE3803. He had always fallen through with everything with her. And the infection site was in the opposite direction. Not far from where he currently was. But still an inconvenience nonetheless.
"Maybe if I deal with this quickly, I might still make it to Red Blood Cell," he thought to himself.
His running then increased in speed. And as much as he wanted to keep his word, the denial of being unable to uphold it riled him. Enough for him to want to take out his frustration on the pathogens that took that time away from him.
As he rushed towards the shoulder, several route markers from overhead buzzed from heavy static.
Meanwhile, AE3803 was heading back towards the lungs to check her next delivery assignment. She had remembered noticing a nutrient delivery around this time. Perfect. On the way to the small intestine to pick up the order, she could meet up with 1146 over at the stomach.
She soon approached the task list and scanned down the assignments. The screen faintly flickered as she looked over it.
"Okay, so I just did this one…" she said to herself, "And now…"
What she saw next confused her.
"Huh?"
It wasn't the nutrient delivery she had seen from earlier that morning. It had changed sometime between then and now.
"Oxygen delivery over to the larynx?" she frowned slightly, her mind wondering why the change had happened.
Another red blood cell was looking over the list as well.
"I can't believe these sudden changes," he muttered in frustration, his fists pressed to his sides.
AE3803 grew curious on what he meant.
"Wh—what's going on?"
"Oh, there's been a small abrasion over at the right shoulder and several million blood cells were lost to it," he explained as he looked over at her, gesturing at the list, "So now the squad chiefs need to make these adjustments to make up for the loss."
He let out a sharp exhale as he looked over his own delivery assignment.
"Good luck with yours," he told her before leaving.
"You too," she said before staring back at the list.
It seemed like there was nothing that she could really do about it. Although she had hoped to have found the convenience for following through her earlier commitment.
She took a deep breath and headed over to an alveolus to pick up the order for oxygen.
While she waited for the machinery to dispense the tanks, she glanced over her map, studying over it to find the most efficient route to the throat.
"Hmm… If I were to take this one artery up from the aorta…" she pondered as she memorized the paths, "I think I can still make it over to the stomach if I make it quick."
She scanned over the route again, planning out the pacing. It was a long shot, but still possible if she tried.
The machine then beeped as it dispensed the filled iron tanks.
"Right then!" she exclaimed as she quickly began packing the box on her cart.
She then briskly made her way through the left side of the heart and up the aorta as fast as she could to the upper body, passing by several overhead directional signs that scintillated a couple sparks.
The abrasion site over in the right shoulder was frantic. Groups of little platelets rushed in with rolls of fibrin. Hordes of bacteria cumulated from the opened wound. Neutrophils coordinated their strikes in order to keep pathogenic numbers down. The sounds of blown whistles and pinging receptors echoed throughout the battlefield as announcements crackled overhead.
A group of platelets were hard at work connecting the fibrin with coagulation factors and setting it down along the edge of the opening.
One of the bacterium took notice of them and leapt at them.
The little girls screamed in a panic before the germ ended up slashed in half from 1146's blade.
"Th—thank you, Big Brother!" the platelets gratefully exclaimed.
He stood back up straight, panting.
"It was nothing. Just hurry!"
With that, he rushed back into action to fight. Compared to the rest of the other white blood cells, he kept his motions faster as he eliminated as many germs as he could.
He even intercepted one that was already being currently targeted by another neutrophil before darting to the next.
"Hey! Leave some for the rest of us, 1146!"
But he didn't hear him. His primary focus was to get the site cleared and back to normal as swiftly as possible. He had to.
However, the swarm of bacteria seemed to never end, easily overwhelming the number of neutrophils fighting there.
At that same time, the artery heading towards the throat was heavily packed with red blood cells from the reroute. The density made any quick flow adjustments impossible. Red blood cells were forced at a steady pace, trying to figure out their directions as posted signs kept buzzing in and out.
AE3803 sighed. She pulled out her map and checked to see for an alternative route to bypass the traffic.
She found one. But it would add too much time.
Still…
She scanned the area for the branch.
"Ah, there it is!"
She maneuvered as best she could towards it and took the detour, hoping that it'd take her to the larynx faster.
After several minutes of jogging through the alternate route, she eventually made it there.
AE3803 let out an exhale as she hustled through the larynx.
"At least I made it… I bet I can still get this done in time."
She scanned around for the drop-off location, trying to look for the cell that the oxygen was to go to.
A cell outside his housing unit was soon in sight.
"Ah, there he is!" she noticed, quickening her stride towards him.
The cell was about to greet her. However, she spoke first before he had the chance to.
"Hi! Oxygen delivery!"
Her tone was hasty as she offered the box to him.
"Uh…" the cell stammered, "But I already…"
Another cell then approached them.
"Hi. I think that actually goes to me…"
His tone wasn't harsh. It was just informative in correcting the mistake.
"Oh, I—I'm sorry…" AE3803 apologized, handing the box over to him instead.
The second cell accepted the oxygen and stamped her receipt booklet. They each said their thanks and she began to walk off.
She had only taken a couple steps when she heard the two cells conversing behind her. One line in particular caught her attention.
"Yeah, I heard that too. There was a lot of bacteria that really overwhelmed all those white blood cells! Like, more than an abrasion should have."
The words had caused AE3803 to quickly turn her head.
"Huh?"
She walked back towards them.
"What about the white blood cells?"
The first cell explained the situation to her.
"When I got my delivery, the red blood cell told me that there was this wound over at the right shoulder. Lots of bacteria got in. But there weren't enough white blood cells to fight them off. A lot of them didn't even make it out alive and some even got sent to the infirmary in the bone marrow. I think just a couple managed to finish the rest of the germs off."
Her heart immediately sank.
Knowing 1146, she knew the likelihood of the chances that he'd be involved with that.
"Did… Did that red blood cell know any of the surviving numbers involved?"
Her question came out hesitantly, scared of the response. Desperately hoping that one of those numbers happened to be 1146.
"N—no, sorry. She didn't. Just that there weren't too many of them left afterwards."
Her chest tightened.
"I… I gotta go!"
She then bolted off, leaving the larynx.
Things have calmed down over at the shoulder. The static and interference were still noticeably louder whenever it buzzed through. But the fibrin mesh now stretched over the vast gap. Macrophages were arriving to clean up the bacterial debris. The remaining white blood cells continued to scan the area in case of any stragglers that they may have missed.
1146 stood for a brief moment to catch his breath from the intensity that he'd been through, quickly looking over the area to ensure everything was back to normal. Just enough.
Nearby, two other neutrophils discussing their report findings with each other.
"So… What are the losses?"
"Several million. According to earlier reports, units C and F were on patrol through here as well as squads BA, KS, GP, and AE were en route with oxygen deliveries when the scrape opened up."
AE squad.
1146 immediately shifted his focus towards them.
"How many in AE?!"
The other neutrophil was caught off-guard from his sudden outburst.
"Uh! I—I don't know. Maybe two or three million red blood cells?"
Something unsettling twisted inside 1146. His vision nearly blacked out from such news. Yet he still tried to swiftly search the area. Thinking, hoping, that maybe she was caught in the fibrin instead with the other blood cells in the clot.
AE3803 wasn't anywhere. Again, he looked. Nothing. Again. No.
There was only one way to confirm it.
1146 darted his way back to the lungs where the assignment list was posted.
Run faster!
He panted once he arrived. His eyes desperately scanned each squad list. The screen for AE let out a spark, catching his attention. He immediately focused on it.
3800… 3801… 3802…
There! 3803!
He skimmed over her assignments from throughout that morning.
Diaphragm… Nutrients… Complete.
Left kidney… Oxygen… Complete.
Pancreas… Nutrients… Complete.
Thalamus… Oxygen… Complete.
Larynx… Oxygen… Complete.
Right clavicle… Oxygen… Incomp—
He instantly stopped right there. He couldn't bear to finish.
His mind raced faster than his body was able to process. He suddenly felt heavier than his legs could carry. They grew shaky as his eyes began to blur from focus.
He leaned forward, his arms braced hard against the screen with his head lowered forward. For several seconds, he stayed completely still.
"Red Blood Cell…" he uttered under his breath.
She never completed the delivery. It never finished. He couldn't stop his mind from filling in the rest.
His fists tightened as he clenched his eyes shut.
Meanwhile, the bone marrow infirmary over in the right shoulder was rather busy. The nurses were all at capacity on their workload with injured white blood cells from the abrasion site.
AE3803 stopped upon arrival, scanning back and forth to hopefully find 1146.
But he was no where in sight.
One of the nurses nearby was studying a screen with patient conditions. It soon began to flicker uncontrollably, frustrating her.
"Oh, come on…" she muttered, tapping it to get it to stop the fluctuation.
She paused for a short moment when she noticed AE3803 anxiously approach her.
"Yes? Can I help you?"
AE3803 swallowed as she tried to form her words together.
"I—I was just concerned about what happened with the scrape wound… I… I was wondering if you can maybe see if… If someone in particular could be in here, maybe?"
She tried to keep her voice steady. But it was as jittery as her nerves.
The nurse checked over at the screen to see if it had returned. It flickered for another second before it normalized once again. She then glanced back at AE3803.
"Who is it that you're looking for?"
She paused for a brief moment. But it was now or never to get some form of confirmation.
"Neu—Neutrophil, U-1146?"
The nurse began the search with the screen, fighting against the occasional flicker.
"There seems to be a lot of the U team neutrophils… Seems like a majority of them actually…"
A hard lump formed in AE3803's throat. She held her breath. Her arms tensed as her hands fisted.
"Please be here…" she thought to herself repeatedly.
The nurse continued to scan the screen. Even double-checking to be fully sure.
"Hmm… It… Doesn't appear that there is a 1146 listed on here…"
Because she could see how uneasy AE3803 was, she looked over it again.
"No…" she confirmed as she glanced back at AE3803, "I don't see a U-1146 listed here…"
Her heart suddenly dropped as the world around her fell dead silent. For what felt like forever, she just stood in shock.
She blinked and felt tears trail down her cheeks.
"I'm sorry!" she uttered before rushing out of the infirmary and bone marrow.
The last shred of possible hope still clung to her. Maybe—just maybe—he was at the abrasion site.
She ran past everyone until she finally approached the recovering area.
Her eyes scanned the entire zone for white uniforms. However, each one she saw wasn't 1146. None on patrol. None standing guard. Not even in the fibrin was he there.
She hitched her breath.
"White Blood Cell…" she uttered under her breath.
Her body tensed up as her eyes shut tight. She tried to fight the urge to cry. But failed. Tears still escaped her nonetheless.
Overhead, screen displays and route markers continued to throw out sparks and buzz louder as static and interference kept running through the body. The flickering was becoming disruptive as it caused multiple delays and reroutes for many of the blood cells.
1146 carried on through the blood vessels. He tried to keep the possibility that maybe she was still somewhere within the body.
As if by instinct, he kept his eyes and ears on alert for any familiarity he could spot. Every soft voice. Every red uniform. Every possibility of even her little cowlick. He checked every badge on the hats of passing red blood cells. Hundreds of squads. Thousands of numbers. Millions of cells.
Not there.
AE3803 walked through other corridors. The fragile hope desperately clung to her that perhaps he was just somewhere inside the body.
Whenever a glance of white caught her eye, she peered over to check. Every chime from a neutrophil receptor, she turned towards its direction. She peeked through migration routes as she passed by them.
Not there.
Every so often, he randomly stopped some red blood cells. Each time, he asked the same thing to them.
"Have any of you seen number 3803 of the AE squad?"
But he would receive the same response to it.
"No, I haven't."
Trying to retain a controlled composure, he would then move on until he needed to ask again.
She had to be around somewhere… Right?
At the same time, she would approach other white blood cells. Every encounter, she asked the identical question to them.
"Have any of you seen Neutrophil number 1146 of the U division?"
But she would simply get the same answer to it.
"No, sorry."
Her heart sank a little further down each time. With each denial. Eventually she was finding it increasingly difficult to keep going until she had to ask again.
He had to be around somewhere… Right?
And alongside their steps, the static kept following them closely.
The questions from each of them repeated innumerably throughout the body. Hours passed. And still nothing. No sign of the other. No confirmation. No progress. Just nothing.
Exhaustion was easily taking over hope. Until…
1146 approached a passing red blood cell. He opened his mouth, but the question never came.
"Sorry…" he quietly said instead before moving on.
AE3803 walked up to a neutrophil standing on patrol. She opened her mouth, but the question never came.
"Sorry…" she hushedly uttered instead before retreating away.
…Hope eventually extinguished from its already frail existence.
The static buzzed faintly overhead as they continued walking. Neither of them asked again after that. And since that moment, the searching grew quieter.
Eventually, the urge of seeking the other tapered away from them into capitulation.
The wheels from passing carts carrying oxygen blended into background noise in his ears. And the pinging from receptor chimes no longer caught her attention.
What was once the faintest glimmer of delicate optimism between them had now became reduced to one simultaneous conclusion in a shared perspective…
"Maybe… Some things just can't stay that certain forever…"
AE3803 trudged slowly through the blood vessels. Focus was no longer a part of her that even the hum of nearby static didn't register to her.
Her mind was exhausted and numb, yet still continuously thinking about 1146. About their past together. About the future that she had hoped to have with him.
Her eyes softened as she kept her head tilted down to the tiled pathway. Her melancholic expression was enough to never want to smile ever again.
What was the point anymore?
She wandered aimlessly, not even caring where her step even led to anymore. Even if she were to encounter a pathogen, it wouldn't matter. She wouldn't even bother to run away if that were to happen.
To her, a life without 1146 in it with her was simply just… Empty.
And the mere thought of it forced her eyes shut for a long moment as tears escaped, trailing down her face. She wasn't sobbing. Just weeping.
For several minutes, she languished aimlessly around the body without realizing where her steps were taking her.
A steady stream of airflow circulated from nearby as AE3803 kept drifting in her steps. Her cowlick subtly wafted as the breeze passed by her.
The quiet sounds of chimes then began to tinkle beside her. Out of everything that her mind had drowned out with a numb haze clouding her thoughts, the gentle soft sound of the chimes somehow managed to reach her ears.
And for the first time since beginning work that day, she stopped in her steps and paused. Really paused.
She blinked. And without turning her head, her eyes shifted towards the sound.
There, next to her, was the bamboo display. The very same one from earlier that morning. Still brightly colorful and beautifully adorned. Still holding on to various tanzaku strips. And on adjacent branches, two very familiar strips still hung on beside each other.
She slowly turned to face the display as she kept her focus on the white and red tanzaku strips.
Her eyelids lowered slightly. A small tear lightly trailed down her cheek.
"White Blood Cell…"
Her voice was barely audible above the faint hum of static that briefly thrummed close by.
The static rolled stealthily across the blood vessel, eventually passing by heavy footsteps trudging slowly through the corridor.
1146 found increasing difficulty in trying to hold himself with each step he took. More effort became required for a balanced composure that he no longer had control over.
The only thing that was keeping him grounded was his lowered gaze towards the vascular pathway beneath him. But even that was insufficient enough to quell his thoughts of the ripped life he had. The life he wanted. The life he was hoping for. The life with her.
His eyes clenched tightly as he stopped in his steps. Movement became painfully unbearable for him now.
"Red Blood Cell…"
His low voice struggled to keep steady as his hands firmly gripped at his pockets.
Seven platelets then lightly scampered from behind him. They were walking one by one in a line, each carrying a lengthy roll of pink fibrin in their arms.
"Oh! Excuse us, please, Big Brother!" the one up front said.
1146 flinched from being caught off guard with her piping voice.
"Huh? Oh… Uh, sure."
He stepped aside, letting the little girls walk by.
"Thank you!" they all exclaimed, "Coming through!"
The little group continued to march spiritedly onward.
His eyes watched as they paraded through the blood vessel's pathway. His focus followed them until it caught onto something more important to him yet unexpected.
It's…
His breath hitched sharply as if his breathing itself forgot its natural rhythm for a second.
The train of platelets soon approached AE3803.
She picked up on their little chants of "heave-ho!" and she moved half a step out of their way as she turned towards them, allowing them to pass on by.
It was then when she noticed in the corners of her eyes someone she didn't expect to see. Someone who she'd been desperately searching for.
It's…
Her heart skipped a beat as she remained in place. Her chest tightened in awe.
For a moment frozen in time, neither of them spoke. Their minds were still trying to catch up to what their eyes saw right in front of them. Static faded in the distance as a subtle whiff of the breeze flowed past them.
They were just mere micrometers away from each other. Still inside the body. Still there. Still alive.
Stillness between them lingered for a moment longer before they each softly spoke at the same time…
"I thought—"
Disbelief cut the sentence short. And what they had thought earlier about the other no longer mattered anymore anyway. Not when all the fear and despair that burdened them now disappeared like smoke. Their tension quickly eased.
AE3803's eyelids drooped slightly without losing her gaze. Her jaw relaxed enough to let a quiet exhale escape.
"White Blood Cell…"
She tried to keep her voice as steady as she could as if to attest his presence. Her tone was soft. Just audible enough for him to hear.
And hearing her voice once again. Her saying his name. It was like the very confirmation that he had been so urgently seeking all this time.
Then, as if by instinct, 1146 briskly walked over to her as he kept holding her gaze.
The distance between them no longer existed.
Still astonished by her presence, he lifted his hand close to her. He briefly retracted it before gently placing it on her cheek. A shaky exhale left him as he lightly brushed his fingers through her hair.
She really was there. With him.
"Red Blood Cell…"
His voice was just above a whisper as he pressed his forehead against hers.
She leaned against his forehead as her arms wrapped around him. Her fingers curled slightly in a gentle grip against his uniform jacket.
He really was there. With her.
They held each other close as tears streamed from her eyes.
"I thought you were really gone forever…" she softly cried as her embrace tightened, "I thought that I… I had lost everything…"
His eyes softened from hearing her words. He held her closer as if he was afraid that if he were to let her go, she would simply disappear again.
"I found you…" he whispered, his arms entwining securely, "You're really here… And… You're okay…"
Still enfolding her to him, he held her gaze as he lightly cleared the tears from her lovely face.
For a moment, the two of them remained in each other's eyes before gently closing as their lips slowly drew closer into a relieving tender kiss.
The intimate gesture lingered for a moment longer than necessary. However, neither of them minded.
A delicate breeze drifted by. And only the light tinkles of the chimes in the bamboo display was enough to gently bring them back to the present and turn their attention towards the display. They still stayed close in each other's arms. As if letting go would have the other drift away in the soft draft of air.
The colorful tanzaku strips all twirled and danced from the airflow. And two very familiar strips in particular spun in balanced harmony with one another until eventually intertwining together. And with as they did, it exposed their written sides to 1146 and AE3803.
On the white strip…
"I wish to always be able to return to her."
And on the red strip…
"I wish for us to always find our way back to each other."
The two of them read what the other had written for their wishes.
1146 couldn't help but give a soft smile at the corner of his mouth when he read hers as AE3803 let out a quiet chortle when she saw his.
There was a small pause between them for a brief moment.
He resumed a delicate glance back to her, simply admiring her presence still there with him.
She briefly peered down as she smiled with a soft joyful huff. Her eyes then returned to him, glimmering warmly.
For a moment, they simply held each other's loving gazes.
"You know, White Blood Cell," she began to say in a rather coy tone, "We… Never did get to have lunch together…"
He formed a soft apologetic smile.
"Then…" he told her in a quiet tone, bringing his forehead back against hers, "Let me make it up to you…"
She pressed her forehead back as if to accept his offer.
Their noses lightly grazed each other as their lips softly brushed.
"I love you, White Blood Cell…" she cooed.
He softly purred as he moved half a nanometer closer.
"I love you too, Red Blood Cell…" he whispered.
He tenderly closed the remaining space between them. Both of them melted into the shared warmth of the kiss.
Their parting was slow. As if gradually settling back into reality from a dream.
With one arm around her waist, they both began to saunter off together by each other's side.
Behind them, both of their tanzaku strips remained entwined, unmoved from their meshing as a final light zephyr gently caressed them.
--