Kitahara Jo messaged his brow as the doctor finally concluded his long-winded explanation. "So she's fine?" He said, a grimace on his lips.
The doctor sighed, seemingly as distressed as he was. "She is. Or-, at least she is for now." He collapsed into the steel bench they'd been standing next to, and whatever doctoral dignity he had promptly melted as he slouched into his seat with defeat. "If I may be completely honest, Kitahara-san?" His smile was crooked as he threw his clipboard onto the floor. "Your trainee makes no sense."
Kitahara laughed tiredly as he picked up the thrown clipboard. "Yeah. I know." He said, his smile both fond and wry as he skimmed all the haphazard scribblings written on it. "She's been surprising me from day one."
And as he said that, he couldn't help but sneak a glance at the person in question.
Blossom Star was back in the ICU, and this time she'd been placed into a completely isolated room, filled with nothing but the machinery to keep her alive. The respirator over her mouth was connected to five different oxygen supplies. Over a dozen IV drips were connected to her arms, struggling to keep up with her metabolism that'd suddenly gone into overdrive.
But the most eye-catching thing was the fact that Star was glowing like a lightbulb. The cracks that'd spread across her entire body had become active once more, and that terrifying golden light was seeping from within her body once more. But unlike before, instead of tearing her body from the inside out, the light seemed to just be a byproduct, somehow created from means unknown.
If he hadn't been here to know just how close Star came to actually turning into a bomb, he would've found the sight mystifying. Beautiful, even, But as it was, the only thing he could feel was a mounting dread as Star continued to glow like the sun.
Alas, he wasn't allowed inside; entry was only allowed for doctors and nurses. The most he could do was stand in front of the window peering into the isolated room, forced to remain a passive observer as Blossom Star seemingly underwent some sort of metamorphosis this world had never seen.
His smile softened for a moment, before his expression hardened. "How many people know about this?" He asked.
The doctor unconsciously straightened. "Most of the staff are in the know." He said, gulping slightly at the strange weight pressing into his neck.
Kitahara hummed, slowly raising a hand and placing it on the glass. "That's a lot of people. Too many." He whispered, eyes narrowing. "And right now, Star doesn't deserve that attention." He wasn't sure where his confidence stemmed from, but he just knew that this was a process that couldn't be interrupted, no matter what.
The doctor quickly nodded. "Don't worry. I believe everyone has been sworn to silence." He said, finally managing to smile.
"Hmm." Kitahara nodded, though he himself wasn't so sure. Even if everyone who'd witnessed this got slapped with an NDA to keep them quiet, news would inevitably escape. After her win at the [Japan Cup], Star was the most sought after umamusume in Japan, if not the world. There would always be someone that tried to get more information about her, and there would certainly be someone who gave in to the temptation to share.
Maybe it wasn't really as dire as he was making it out to be, but he'd rather be safe than sorry.
Star was his trainee, his partner, his friend, his daughter—his family. And as unqualified as he was, he was her trainer.
And though he couldn't make claims as outrageous as Nase Fumino, he could promise that anyone who tried to make trouble would be in for a bad time.
The doctor quietly inched away. He could've sworn that, at that moment, Kitahara's shadow had seemed to stretch. It almost looked like a pair of leathering wings had stretched across his shadow's back. But when the doctor looked again, Kitahara's shadow looked utterly ordinary.
The doctor sighed as he rubbed his forehead. All the stress must be making him hallucinate slightly.
Kitahara stared at Star for a few seconds longer, before he shook his head with a rueful smile. He wasn't sure if Star was conscious when her body started glowing like a golden disco ball, but she'd probably be embarrassed to hell and back when she woke back up. Hell, maybe he could make her pose as an actual lightbulb if this golden glow became a regular thing!
…or maybe he shouldn't. Belno would probably kick his ass if he tried, and his behind still ached slightly as he thought her kick from a few days back.
He didn't blame her, of course. He knew she was under a lot of stress due to everything that was happening.
But still, ouch.
"Ah, excuse me, mind if I make a call real quick?" Kitahara asked as he pulled out his flip phone.
The doctor nodded and smiled. "Go ahead, Kitahara-san."
Kitahara returned the nod as he quickly dialed in a number, and he waited for a few seconds for the call to connect. And then–
Click!
"Salutations! I hope it has been a wonderful morning for you, Kitahara-san!"
He smiled as he heard the Director's cheerful voice, completely missing the way the doctor's eyes went comically wide. "Ah, yeah. Good morning to you too, Director." He paused for a moment, before he spoke. "It's-, um, I might need some help about something?"
"Curiosity? What might it be?"
"It's like this…"
So he laid out everything that'd happened in the past couple hours. He didn't hold anything back; he told Director Akikawa about Star's coma in lengthful detail. And after that, he shared with her his worries about Star's condition, and how her current fame might attract unwanted attention from unsavory groups.
And once he finished explaining, he heard the Director hum. "Agreement! Blossom Star's recovery must not be interrupted at all costs."
He smiled. As expected, the Director was immediately on board the moment the possibility of an umamusume being troubled was mentioned. "Do you know what we can do? I mean, we can't just silence everyone, right?" He said casually, not realizing his words caused the already pale doctor to turn as white as a sheet.
"Offering! I can have my Workforce protecting the hospital while Star continues to recuperate!"
Kitahara blinked, and blinked, and then raised an eyebrow. "You mean you'll let your PMC patrol the hospital?" He asked incredulously, confused as to why she would suggest the exact opposite of what he'd been hoping for.
Thankfully, the Director was more than happy to provide an answer.
"Excitement! As you have said, hiding Star's metamorphosis is an impossible hurdle, and so the only thing we can do is to divert the river that follows! If we cannot control the people's hearts, and so we must instead create a mystery their minds cannot let go of!"
It took Kitahara a few moments to parse through Director Akikawa's rather convoluted explanation, but he eventually nodded. "So you mean we throw out a smokescreen." He concluded, smiling slightly. "Make it so that the world knows that we're serious about keeping whatever's happening under wraps, and then use it as bait."
"Indeed!"
He hummed as he rubbed his chin. It was the exact opposite of his initial idea, but as she'd said, trying to completely hide Star's condition was an unwinnable battle. And hey, it wasn't as if he had any better idea to offer. "Then I'll have to trouble you, Director."
The Director's cheerful laugh echoed from the flip phone. "Happiness! It is my honor to be of help, Kitahara-san!"
He chuckled. "Thank you, Akikawa-san." And saying that, he finally cut the call and placed his flip phone back into his pocket. He smiled wryly as thought about the incoming media storm that'd soon follow, but it was no longer his problem. Director Akikawa had promised that she'd keep Star protected, and the Director had never let him down.
He took a small breath as he glanced at Star for a moment, before he turned away. "Sorry for that abrupt–" He paused when he saw the doctor sitting at the very edge of the bench, his face pale white and covered in sweat as he looked at him like he was some sort of monster. "What is it?"
The doctor stuttered, and then his eyes rolled back as he collapsed onto the steel bench.
Kitahara was left staring in confusion, before he shook his head. "Poor guy." He whispered, wondering just how stressed the doctor had been.