"Her eyes…"—Aeshi
[march 15th, 2025]
I could hear the rain drumming off the top of the ambulance as I sat parked in the field.
As I looked into the mirror at myself, I could see the eye bags under my eyes. Surprisingly, my EMT hat that had kept the rain from ruining my makeup was nowhere to be found.
These jobs were always nerve-racking; at literally any instant, you could be dealing with quite the explosive scene, literally and figuratively. That fact alone left a chill sensation in the air; you'd almost always have goosebumps the whole time. Goosebumps, not because I was scared, but because at any moment you could have a blazing fire and risk being maimed by an explosion. That fact left you with a good shot of adrenaline. This job was especially miserable, though, because it was at night, and I already barely got enough sleep to begin with.
I don't remember exactly when, but at some point in my life, I stopped being able to go to sleep when I wanted to anymore. It never happens at a reasonable hour. It's always past midnight or around three AM that I'd fall asleep. It almost felt like a guard shift while I lay in my bed. I'd lie and do nothing for hours. Listening to my air conditioner turn on and off. Speaking of my AC, every time it turned on, it blasted me with a jet of cold air, and when I was younger, god forbid I touch that AC. Luckily, though, since I'm older, I don't have to deal with that part. Nonetheless, the wakeful sleep never stopped for me. I tried music, but that just annoyed me because I couldn't hear anything else very well. I tried an eye cover, but I couldn't stand something covering my eyes. And so here I sit in the front seat of an ambulance, fatigued, cold, and partially wet from the rain.
At least I had a few partners with me, though, and a good view of the track in front of us through the ambulance's front window.
Megumi: "smack"
Megumi gently tapped the top of Aeshi's head with a folded paper.
Aeshi: "What the hell is that?"
Megumi "Ohh i dunnoo~"
Aeshi: "...."
Tap Megumi tapped the top of her head again.
Aeshi looked at Megumi out of the corner of her eye, not even turning her head.
Megumi: "I think you should take a look."
Aeshi sighed, "Sure, hand it over now". Her neck leaned counter to Megumi's direction with a limp hand extended.
Looking at the paper, her eyes read a few words and gazed upon a few pictures
Aeshi: "Maeda Point? That's quite a journey."
Megumi scratched her nose and nodded. She was nervous, and she grabbed a meek hand with the other.
Megumi: "Yeah, but I mean, look at it. Aren't the reefs so pretty? They look like a colorful box of markers."
Aeshi: "Why not someone else?"
Megumi: "Well, aren't you my friend?"
Aeshi: "I am"
Megumi: "Well, I noticed you seemed a little more silent. Once you settle at your new job, maybe we could go?"
It was clear that Megumi was a true friend, a ray of light.
Aeshi: "It is very pretty, but…I could never see myself going,..."
Megumi: "Oh"
Megumi's face turned downcast
Aeshi: "But…that isn't a no."
Megumi's eyes lit up like a sparkler, her smile went ear to ear, showing her shining joy. She leaped at Aeshi and gave her an embracing hug, though Aeshi was as stiff as Rebar the whole time.
Megumi "Really!? Aeshi!"
Aeshi: "You're too tomboyish for a girl with pigtails and glasses, you know."
Megumi:"Like you're one to talk, you're basically a damn walking model. You have blue eyes, long lashes, and a pretty face?! And on top of ~Alll that, YOU'RE TALL! Yet you chose this job !?!"
In reality, Megumi was not wrong; Aeshi was indeed gorgeous. Her hair length fell in parallel with her jawline, which accentuated her slim face, creating an atmosphere of elegance. Her blue eyes were tantalizingly sharp, and had lashes so long that they created a sort of natural, elegant eyeliner. Her lips were so seductively plump and shapely that even a man would be envious of their beauty, which in reality is quite the feat for those dunces. Aeshi's figure was slim and sleek, perfect for a slit dress. In reality, she was a man-eater. But strangely, she never quite went for anybody.
Anyway, after Megumi teased Aeshi for her gorgeous looks, she took a little pause and pouted with her arms crossed before starting to speak again.
HMp.
Megumi: "But in all seriousness, why did you decide to get your hands dirty as a medical marshal? I was surprised when I saw you fireman carry a driver out of a car. "
Aeshi: " I'm only 5'5."
Megumi: "By the way, what happened to that uju guy? The one who carried out the fire. Did he ghost you after he won first place?"
Aeshi: " he didn't ghost me, I cut it off. I wasn't interested."
Megumi:" Oh, come on, that's all you're gonna give me? There is more to it! I know it! ~MRS.NONCHalanTTT~. Boop"
Aeshi: "Hey, hey, don't start again, you didn't need to touch my nose, goofy. Gezz, fine, I'll tell you."
Megumi: "Whoopsies"
Aeshi: "I think he just wanted to have sex. But I'm not just a piece of meat, so I told him we'd have to stop stalking, using my career change as an excuse. And his ego bought it. He's none the wiser, "
Megumi: "Wow, Aeshi, you're scaryy~ you knoww"
Aeshi "that's Mea-"
An inferno scorched the scene.
VRMM
Aeshi"megumi, get your helmet on"
Megumi: "Wait, wh–"
Aeshi: "GET IT ON HURRY PLEASE!"
Megumi: "Okay, you stiff."
Knocking on the back of the cabin, I yelled toward the back: "Hey, newbie, brace yourself, we're up!"
Newbie: "YES, MA'AM!"
The car that had just passed in this pitch black night of rain was nothing short of a supernova of flame, which bathed the track in flame.
Aeshi: It was surely not my imagination that the car sounded messed up
When that car passed, it wasn't the usual roaring of an engine; it was a beast. Its purr sounded something akin to when a frayed bow screeches along the strings of a busted chelo. And the light was blinding as if Hades had risen from Tartarus. As red as the light of a dwarf star, it bathed the world in the light of wrathful flame.
That omnipresent adrenaline that came with the job tripled itself and began to course through my veins as I could start to hear my heart beat grow deafeningly loud like the beating of war drums. The pressure in my veins grew so high that I could feel my pulse throughout my whole body, along every vein of my arms and legs. It felt as if my head were about to burst solely because of the sheer amount of adrenaline in my veins.
With panicked breath, I reached below my seat and quickly tossed my helmet on my head. Putting the ambulance in drive, I vigorously jolted the car forward, stomping on the gas. You could hear the waves of supplies crashing behind us as we lurched. The ambulance wasn't very fast, but as I turned it onto the track that followed turn 3, you'd think it was just another race car. You could hear the tires screech as if they were yelling for mercy, but in a game of life and death, there was no time for sympathy.
As the engine of the ambulance was pushed so far as to vibrate the whole car, you could see the inferno brewing at the 4th turn. The trees adjacent to us became nothing but blurs until I slammed on the brakes, causing the car to nearly flip. But I could never be so reckless after years of this; my body morphed with the vehicle. I knew exactly how much the car would lift off the ground before I even pressed that brake.
As we stepped out of the ambulance, you could hear the rain hit your helmet. It sounded like the tapping of thousands of fingers on the shell of the helmet, echoing. Each drop of rain that collided with the helmet sounded as if the applause of the heavens echoed within that helmet. As I turned my head, I found my movement staggered as the first step of my run slipped in the mud. Tripping, I fell to my hands and fore feet, soaking my hands in mud. But I pushed forward. With each step, you could feel the mud retaliate as if it were a knight of death keeping you from the king of flames' prey in front of me. Each step felt as if I were pushing a boulder through the mud. Akin to Sisyphus, with each step forward, the mud would tackle you a half step back. The sound of my breathing and heartbeat echoed in my helmet, causing the most gruesome of migraines, but my job demanded I persist, and so I did so regardless of how miserable I truly felt. I clawed through that mud until finally I found myself face-to-face with that grotesque beast of flames. The beast of the 4th turn. Which had flames that enveloped the whole wall of the grandstands that lay in front of me in a brutal flame
The flames burned so brightly that you could not see anything within them except the black silhouette of a car and a motionless driver draped in black. Faced with that explosion of flame which seared the air, leaving a rancid smell of burnt rubber, I took but a single step forward. That step was faced with an explosion of heat caused by the stoking of fire due to fuel reserves being burned. That heat wave physically staggered you, thrusting you backward as if you were pounced on by a phantom. Taking one last glance at the flame, the true severity of it dawned upon all who bore witness. Each of the flames shot into the sky like a beacon from hell. The flames had several heads, and as the fire team doused it in water, several more would appear. It was a monstrous hydra, an absolute abomination. And yet, despite being bathed in those flames, that black crusader of speed who seemingly caused this crash flickered to life in a jolt
As he looked at his hands, dazed and confused, you could see the flames that lay before him reflected in his visor like the shaking rattles of snakes. With no one able to reach that driver, he was his sole hope of salvation…. Until his body went limp
Everyone surrounding me stood still for just a second as if all hearts had stopped. Until… the body of the driver jolted to life and vigorously pried at the belt which imprisoned him. He viciously clawed at those restraints until they were released and he was free, then gripped the chassis, which surely seared his hands through his gloves.
That black crusader stood outside his car; he was enveloped in flames, for the briefest moment, like the wick of his life just went dark; he did not rush forward triumphantly. Rather, he limped like a husk of a man with his head toward the ground.
Despite being flabbergasted by that mythological beast of flame that hath lain before me. I took a step forward, lurching through the mud in a dash. And when I reached that husk of a driver and flipped its helmet off, my face was not met with a gaze of relief, but rather a gaze of resentment.
*SHOVE*
??? " fuck off"
His force was overbearing. I couldn't have done anything to stop it as I fell to the ground, collapsing. I could not have stopped it.
^^^^*************^^^^^^^*************^^^^^^^*************^^^^
I could not have stopped it.
I couldnot have stopped it.
I COULD NOT STOP IT
Synced with my heart beat which became so loud as to drown out all noise The walls of reality warped, fluctuating from being close to distant they pulsed faster, and faster,
and faster, and faster, and faster, and faster, and faster, and faster, and faster, and faster, and faster, and faster, and faster,
until the walls of reality flickered a stark black with an audible buzz and collapsed onto me like singularity, the heart beat in my ears became so loud as to make my ears ache in pain as the land vibrated so fast as to make my eyes feel like they were being stabbed with needles. Until even the stark void around me collapsed like a trash compactor, suffocating me, all I could hear was my heartbeat and breathing. All I could feel was immense pain. Whether it was physical would be a mystery, but either way, agony. It felt as if the blades of cold metal knives were being thrust into my ears over and over, throbbing with every heartbeat, beat, beat, beat.
Ba-THum Ba-THum Ba-THum
I was on the verge of screaming.
I took a deep breath, ready to howl and
*snap* *snap* *snap*
^^^^*************^^^^^^^*************^^^^^^^*************^^^^
*SNAP*
[reality rubberbanded back into place in a whiplash-like fashion, with the origin being aeshi]
The utter chaos of the scene before me became apparent.
Holding my breath, I could see that in front of my eyes was Megumi.
Megumi: Aeshi, are you hurt? Come on, we need to move NOW! I'm going to prepare the ambulance, so handle him!"
Aeshi:"…:fuck…"
Looking around, I found myself lying on the ground with my back covered in mud. I dug my hands into the ground and pried myself upright, and then finally onto my feet.
The driver in front of me was clearly out of it. He moved like a husk, limply. He moved in circles mumbling mere feet away from the inferno of the car.
Aeshi: "STOP! Come on, you need medical attention!"
Grabbing onto him, I tried to restrain him, but he vigorously pried free while flailing his arms.
???:" No, no, let me back in!"
As he turned around toward his flaming car, I screamed one desperate call. A beckon for sanity.
Aeshi: " YOU CAN'T YOU IDIOT YOU'LL DI—"
???: "KOUGH KOUGh"
With his back toward me, he fell limp, as if a marionette's strings were cut. Like a lifeless doll, his limbs folded on top of themselves. The only sign of life was his incoherent murmuring until he fell utterly silent.
Aeshi; "Megumi! Open the doors to the ambulance! NOW!"
Megumi "Rodger!"
Aeshi: "Come on, get your ass on my back *hugh* come on"
With this withered man on my back, I could sense his life drain and seep into the depths of the afterlife as his body swayed and his arms flailed limply behind me. Each step sent a streak of mud into the air, which covered my clothes and face. It would land in my eyes and on top of my eyelids, blinding me. But stopping was not an option. If I couldn't save this random person, then how could I protect my brother?
STEP
STEP
STEP
…. Out of breath, I took one inhale and inched closer to the ambulance
STEP
STEP
STEP
Upon reaching the ambulance, I had no choice but to lift him onto the stretcher as I tripped into the mud, coating myself in it.
THUMP
Asehi: argh.. dammit…
Aeshi: "Megumi, I'm contaminated, this is up to you! NEWBIE! Get behind the wheel NOW!"
Megumi: "Rodger!"
Newbie: "Rodger!"
While I was heaving myself into the back of the ambulance, my other hand had to claw and pry against the metal to hoist myself in, cutting my fingertips and tearing the very tips of my nails.
Aeshi: "Megumi, he was on fire, and last I saw, he coughed up blood. His airway was damaged and may have been blocked. I couldn't feel his breathing. I'm checking for consciousness."
Balling my hands into a fist. I took my knuckles and thrusted them into his sternum, grinding them against his chest like a knife into flesh with all my weight. An action that would cause one to tremble and gasp in pain.
Aeshi: "he's out like a light, unresponsive to sternal rub! Get your finger in there, Megumi!"
Megumi: " Here goes nothing."
**GLu-ACK kuc gluh*
As Megumi shot her fingers down the throat of the driver, his body began to tremble and spasm as if he were having a seizure, his skin resembling the earth's crust during a gruesome quake as his eyelids tightened and fingers curled. The only thing to be heard was his visceral gagging.
GLu-ACK guu GUU
Megumi: "URGH I hate this part!"
Aeshi: "Enough talk, just clear his airway."
GLAH*
As Megumi thrust her finger back out of his mouth, it was covered in thick, crumby ash down to her knuckle. You could imagine that ash feeling like sand lodged in his throat, chafing his esophagus with every attempt at breathing. It was no wonder he coughed up blood as the ash acted like blades against his lungs, tearing and gushing the flesh, leaving bloody trails along the lining of his throat.
Megumi:" holyshit how the fuck does he even have a pulse?!?"
Eyes widened, there was only one response I could give.
Aeshi:" I don't know, but it's ourjob to keep it that way!"
Aeshi: That is a ton of ash, though we're going to need the suction catheter.
Aeshi: "Megumi! Get the Suction cath—"
Megumi: "Already on it!"
Standing up now, one could only see Megumi's back with her pig tails swaying. You could see that the outward thrusting of her arms followed each sway of her braids as she searched for the catheter. It resembled a mother looking for her child buried in rubble. With each motion, supplies would be thrown behind her. The sweat on Megumi's face was pouring out like the steam of a heated kettle. You could see her whole torso expand and contract with each labored breath as visible air left her mouth. Bottles of medication and empty IV bags were tossed about. As the clock approached midnight, until… she paused
Megumi: "Got it! I GOT IT!"
She jumped up in surprise and quickly sat down. Running out of time, she shoehorned the catheter into the driver's throat, causing another flare of spasms.
GLu-ACK GUU KAHk
Megumi turned on the catheter, filling the cabin with the cacophony of the fans whirring and the vacuum peeling the ash away from the walls of his throat. The machine sounded as if thousands of wasps were flying by your ear. Until the sound came to a halt.
Megumi removed the catheter, causing one last twitch shot throughout the driver's body. And with that, the cabin fell silent. The only thing you could hear was the purring of the ambulance's engine as the vehicle accelerated. No sounds echoed in the cabin. Complete earsplitting silence. For what seemed like eternity, there was no motion and there was no sound. It felt like that place was devoid of any life—Even our own as our skin ran pale.
*{HOUGHHH]*
The silence ended as the driver took his first breath in what felt like eternity. In reality, though, it was only a mere three minutes. And with this sight, I could finally breathe once more myself.
Aeshi: "Megumi? uhh… You can breathe now…"
Megumi: "Ahhh, sorry I forget hehe"
With this silence, I could finally take the chance to reallocate myself. The back cabin of the ambulance looked like the aisle of a grocery store in which a child threw a tantrum, throwing loose items like bottles and bags everywhere.
Looking at the driver's face, he seemed disturbed. His sharp, thick eyebrows were furrowed. His wolf cut was frizzy like he had gotten shocked. Both his ears were pierced. In one ear was a stud, but the other seemed to have fallen out. But what caught one's eye the most was the fact that below his sharp jaw, on his neck, was an array of deep cuts that seemed to be self-inflicted recently, likely right before he passed out.
Megumi: "Geez, that looks painful. Should I apply some ointment?"
Aeshi: "Megumi, everything about what just happened looked painful; it's basically a blessing he's unconscious. But yeah, ointment is probably the way to go."
Megumi: "Ha, yeah, you're right, ahh."
After letting out a relaxed groan, Megumi leaned her head onto the wall of the cabin behind her and giggled to herself with a smile."
Megumi: "ahh, we did it...hehe...….you know the way you were moving out there, I gotta say… You were hot AS HELL! "
Bringing her left hand—which is the one she hadn't used— she let out a little smile and bit her index finger with a giggle.
Megumi: "hehe, don't know if I can hold back anymore, princess hehe."
Aeshi responded amidst a nervous laugh as a bead of sweat dropped down her forehead with both hands facing palm away toward Megumi.
Aeshi: "WHOA ALRIGHT! That is enough of that, please!"
With a flamboyant roll of her eyes and head, she responded with her usual sass.
Megumi: hehe "~finnuh~"
Leaning her head back once more against the wall of the ambulance, she sat silently with a pensive expression on her face.
Her silence left just the hum of the ambulance's engine until she spoke once more.
Megumi: "You know this hot mess of a driver was really flying. He should've known that he wasn't going to make that turn, and —on fire— still tries it. I wonder what the hell was going through his head."
Aeshi: "Megumi. He's a racecar driver. It's part of his job to give Mistress Death a little peck on the cheek."
Megumi lurched her head forward, smiling, and startling Aeshi, making her jump with a sweat bead down her temple and an awkward smile. Megumi's smile screamed a taboo thought not to be spoken...
Megumi: "A little peck?! Hah! He basically made out with her! Foreplay and everything! "
She threw in a wink, then nudged her elbow across to Aeshi as if to say, Come on, it's okay to laugh.
Aeshi's mouth twitched upwards, but she fought it like she was trying to stop a sneeze. In fact, Megumi would be hard-pressed to ever say she's gotten more than that. Over the years of working, Megumi has tried countless times to make Aeshi smile fully; never has Aeshi's eyes moved with that twitch.
With that persiflage, the ambulance began to slow down, causing all that lay within it to sway toward the front of the vehicle. With a subtle pause followed by a sharp right turn. The ambulance could be felt turning in a circle until it had turned itself 180 degrees. Then the ambulance reversed, causing all that lay within to sway back once more. And then finally, the ambulance was brought to a complete halt after rocking for a moment. After a brief moment of silence, the front wall of the metallic cabin vibrated with a knock echoing through the back of the ambulance.
Knock knock knock
Newbie: "We're at the hospital, ma'a.m Let's get that patient to the ER."
Aeshi: "ah..about time, let's go, Megumi."
With the cabin being cramped, I swiftly got up into a semi-crouch position. Turning the lever on the double doors clockwise, I slowly opened the door. As the doors that sealed all outside light opened, the lights of the cabin were flooded by the blinding lights of the old hospital, as if looking at the sun; nothing outside could be seen.
As I began to step out, I was blasted by the cold hospital air, which blew into the cabin. With one foot out of the back of the ambulance, I was stopped as someone grabbed my shirt from behind, from within the ambulance.
Megumi: "Hey, what do you think you're doing, Missy? You're coated in mud. You can't go in there, ClayFace hehe".
Aeshi:" uhhh…*glances down* I guess you're right. Soo ..
You got the rest, then. Good luck, Megumi."
With that exchange, Megumi continued as I watched with a smile. Stepping out of the cramped cabin, Megumi tripped just a little bit on the back bumper of the ambulance, and with a gasp followed by a giggle, she turned around with a smile before pulling out the driver still on the stretcher with the help of a few nurses. After getting the patient out, she began walking at a very fast pace. With the nurses behind the stretcher and Megumi, the front of the stretcher —which was on wheels— with her left hand, began to jog.
As Megumi kept jogging, she passed the reception on her right, then, as she continued, she passed three patient bays to her left. Before long, Megumi passed the patient bay, and when she did, a doctor rushed out and leaned over the stretcher to look at the patient before briefly looking back at the nurses, and when she did, her face became clear.
As time slowed to a halt, you could see that her hair was silky, pure white, she was tall, she had long lashes, plump lips, a slender figure, and blue eyes.
What the hell?
It couldn't be, there's no way.
But her eyes were different, so there's no way those are her eyes!
But that's her face!
"WAIT, STOP!"
/*¡THUMp!*/
"Aurgh, dammit!"
Lurching forward to go into a run, she fell flat onto the tile floor right under the entrance light, which illuminated her like a spotlight. Getting up onto her knees, Aeshi looked down. Upon doing so, she saw an outline of herself on the floor in mud. When she looked up, she found that the doctor was nowhere to be seen. Touching the dimple on the left corner of the left eye in the shape of the right side of the heart, and let out a feeble whisper.
"That couldn't have been her… she's gone… and her eyes were never that color, her hair wasn't that color, oh myeon, where are you?"