Alice in Borderland

Chapter 53 - Powerlessness

When I regain some semblance of consciousness, I find myself in my hotel room, lying in bed. I keep stepping away when my head starts to throb or the pain overcomes me again. I hear what the others are saying and catch a few glimpses in lucid moments, but I can't tell if I'm asleep or really awake.

I notice Ann next to me as she starts an IV and hooks it up. As soon as she turns on the valve of the solution, I feel it get a little colder where the needle goes into my skin. I see Izumi and Yuudai leaning against the wall, with my friend eyeing me anxiously and biting her fingernails. As I close my eyes again, I hear Kuina's voice and I can picture herself nervously chewing on her straw. I feel someone take my left hand in theirs and for a second I relax a little. But I realize that Chishiya would never take my hand in the presence of so many. Therefore, I turn my head to the side and realize that Katsu is squeezing my hand lightly.

I briefly consider pulling it away, which would be rude since he caught me. But it just doesn't feel right, and that feeling spreads from his touch to my marrow. I want to release our grip, but a wave of pain comes over me and I cramp under it. My body jerks uncontrollably and my grip around Katsu's hand automatically tightens. I groan repeatedly under the pain and clench my teeth tightly to keep from screaming. I feel Ann place a new IV on the back of my hand and pump a new fluid into my body.

As soon as this fluid takes effect, I calm down a little and open my eyes, exhausted. My gaze falls on the man in the chair. His white-blond front strands frame his face and I'm unsure, but I think I see an angry expression in his eyes. But he's not looking at me, he's watching the man next to me. A new attack of pain seizes me and I largely lose consciousness again. I only catch a few scraps of words, most of which have no connection to each other.

"She has a wound on the back of her head. I had to loosen one rib a bit," I hear Ann's professional voice.

"She said she spit up blood," Kuina says with a swell of concern in her voice.

"Blood?", I hear Chishiya's voice and my eyelids flutter a little. I'd like to look back at him, but I'm too weak to open my eyes.

"How is the smart little head?", I hear Satoru.

"When will she wake up?" chimes Izumi at some point.

Darkness envelops me for a small moment and then I startle. I immediately wrap my arm around my stomach and cry out softly. I already want to fall back into my pillow, but I notice that the room is empty. I was only out for a minute I thought, but no one is here anymore. Not Satoru, not Kuina, not Izumi or Yuudai, not Chishiya, not Ann, and neither is Katsu.

There's a knock at the door and I just say come in. A man I know in a yellow robe and sunglasses with round lenses enters. Behind him, Aguni also comes into my room and I try to lean against the wall behind me.

"Sayuuri dear. When I heard you were unwell I came straight here," the Hatter says with a sweeping gesture. I notice that Aguni's attention is focused on the ointment he has opened, and when he looks to me, I nod in thanks. The Hatter pours a drink, as he does every time we talk, and hands me one of the glasses.

"There's another one in the cabinet there if Aguni wants to join me for a drink," I say, and Aguni smiles at me. He doesn't seem to get invited so nicely very often, so I can understand why he always looks grim. The hatter just nods and fills his glass as well. After he hands it to Aguni, he sits down on my right side of the bed and holds out his drink for me to toast. The alcohol can only ease my pain, so I finish my glass in one go. The Hatter laughs in amusement and takes it from me to refill directly.

"How long was I out?"

"About nine hours"

I accept the glass and drink it down again. As the alcohol runs down my throat my ribs burn all the more. But as soon as it reaches my stomach, the pain subsides a tiny bit. Hatter takes the whiskey bottle and places it on my nightstand so I don't have to get up again.

"It's always nice to talk to you" the Hatter laughs and I pour myself another refill, "We seem to have the same taste"

"In matters of alcohol, not women," I answer jokingly and he laughs with a mixture of cordiality and acting. Even though I haven't known him that long, I get the feeling that he's distancing himself more and more.

"Tomorrow as soon as you can leave your bed, you'll get your new room. One floor up, more spacious and with an integrated bathtub"

"Sounds good, thanks," I say politely.

We have two more glasses together before he has to follow his schedule and had something to do. By the next morning, all my friends or acquaintances were visiting me: Ann to check on my readings. Aguni to bring me a new tube of ointment, Izumi to bring me a cold tea and cheer me up a bit. Yuudai to challenge me to a new round of foosball, Kuina to bring me a new book. Katsu with a tray of fresh food, Satoru to make me laugh and Niragi with a snarky comment. The only one I haven't seen is Chishiya.