Akira laughed, head thrown back against the seat and hands up in the air. She lowered her arms and opened her eyes (closed momentarily against the bright sun) to ask Hakuba a question.
Or she would have.
Adrenaline floods her system, opening the channels of her mind to a man in Nashville, Tennessee, wondering if he just met the girl of his dreams because he’s never felt like this before and he’s never believed in love at first sight and a woman (also in Nashville) who dares to believe in it and a woman in Washington (somehow connected to the woman in Nashville) who cries with joy and a touch of sadness and relief but mostly joy and Akira reels with emotion. A child cries for his mother; an elderly man cries for his on his deathbed; a girl attends senior prom; a boy shuffles in the corner of the prom alone.
She heard the thoughts of millions.
And then she heard nothing, because the hood crumpled and Hakuba cried out and she felt removed from the scream that had to have come from her but she cannot remember screaming she cannot remember and the world goes black.
.
. .
…
Sirens. Voices.
Oh God, pain.
Hakuba lifted his head, aware of the ragged sound of his gasping breaths and the sunlight that was much too bright. He shuddered, staring at the blood on the steering wheel, feeling the blood in his mouth and nose as it poured. Numbly, he wiped at it with his sleeve, groaning in pain while his other hand searched for the handkerchief in his pocket. There wasn’t enough room to move adequately; which might have been because the car was now entirely the wrong shape.
With a sputtering cough, he turned toward the girl in the seat next to him, mind flooded with words, though none of them made enough sense to form coherent thought. Something was wrong, he knew that. Handkerchief, now on his lap, was forgotten in favor for searching for his phone, despite that paramedics were there, on the scene.
“Stay calm, Hakuba-kun.” The voice belonged to someone that he didn’t immediately recognize. “Paramedics just arrived; just hang on a few more moments while we get you out…"
His vision doubled. Akira sat between the seats and against the door, leaning too much to be enjoying the view. The detective dialed 119 and lifted his phone to his ear. "Akira…” he shuddered again. "Akira-kun, st-stay.. calm…“