For Better or For Worse

Chapter 152: S2 - For Better or For Worse

"It's been six years since I last saw you, Fraise," Almond said to the pink fairy as the five judges, Team Michiko, and Team Tennouji, watched everything transpire on stage.

Seeing how distracted Fraise was at the sudden appearance of him, she didn't know how to react, after all, she had just admitted a current problem that could've been avoided if she'd spoken up sooner.

She just couldn't face anyone, so her light pink hair covered her distant blue eyes.

"You must think it's my fault, too, Almond," Fraise muttered as her head was turned away from him.

His deep blue eyes couldn't turn away at this spectacle. Her words were cold and her expression grew darker by the second. No longer was she cheery or energetic like he'd once known.

"No, I don't—" Almond began but was quickly interrupted.

"It's fine. I don't need words of comfort. After all, I am at fault either way," Fraise said bluntly.

Although she felt the team she'd been on for quite some time was against her, she couldn't blame them. After all, the leader that led them to victory by busting her butt off every single day to achieve this win was on the brink of death. Even an outsider to this situation could pin it all on her.

"Miss Fraise… just… why didn't you say something before?" Caramel asked the pink-haired fairy who hid her grieved expression.

"I-I… didn't want to be thrown away again," Fraise admitted before gritting her teeth.

"What do you mean?" The Sweets Princes' sweets spirits asked in confusion.

For some reason, there seemed to be some underlying reason why things couldn't be prevented.

"I was scared Keiko was going to get mad at me again…. Right after you guys completed the first test-run of the cake, Keiko stayed after to write some notes," Fraise explained to which the boys and their spirits nodded their heads along.

They did recall that night where Michiko Keiko stood after in the cooking lab to provide some notes the next day.

"That night, we got into an argument," Fraise said as she remembered every last detail of that argument.

---

"Keiko, why can't you understand that I'm worried for you? I know you find me annoying when I tell you this but you have to understand that what you're doing right now isn't healthy… If you don't give your body a break or pay attention to your health, I'm afraid that you might… y-you might…"

"Might what? Die?" Keiko said with no emotion in her eyes with a disturbing, nonchalant smile.

"You've changed… Just what happened to that joyful young girl that I watched years ago?! Is she gone, too?" Fraise questioned, raising her voice at the girl.

"Well, so what if she is?! It doesn't matter anymore! If you're still looking for that kid who enjoyed life years ago, then I'm sorry to say that she died alongside her mother!" Keiko raised her voice back.

"Your mother wouldn't want you to be this way. Why can't you just understand that?!" Fraise was also yelling now.

"What do you know about my mother? She's been dead for 6 years now! Why can't you just leave me alone?!"

It was then that Fraise looked at her seriously with her bright blue eyes. And at that moment, the human girl felt completely and utterly petrified… as if she was facing another version of herself.

Fraise hesitated, holding back her tears, but she stood her ground.

"All I know is that if your mother was here now… she'd be greatly disappointed in you," Fraise said, before turning her body around to leave through an open window.

---

"I remember the harsh words I said to her that night. I was trying to look out for her health, but it's hard to help someone that doesn't want to help themselves. Keiko was focused on winning, so even if she lost hair or sleep, she'd make sure to win no matter the cost," Fraise said, making the guys and spirits ponder.

"You might not have noticed, but it's probably because Keiko is great at disguising. She would put on concealer to hide the circles under her eyes, and she would wear baggy, long sleeves to hide how bone thin she'd gotten. If anything, all the signs were there… no one cared to acknowledge it," Fraise said honestly.

After her words, the people that were left on stage couldn't help but feel heavy guilt. Those on her team felt even more at fault since they were the ones working next to her.

She was right. How could they not have noticed?

"On that night when we argued, I watched her right outside the cooking lab's window… Originally, I had planned on leaving but I knew that Keiko's actions were unpredictable. As I saw her, she was standing alone at her station." 

As Fraise spoke, the ears of those on the stage listened closely to the contents of what she was about to say.

"She laughed to herself endlessly, but when I saw her face, there was no hint of emotion there. Then… while she kept laughing, she began coughing violently into her arm and she couldn't stop. After a minute or so, I could see that her right sleeve was filled entirely with blood…"

"B-blood?" Kashino asked grievously.

"It f-filled h-her entire a-arm?" Hanabusa stuttered trying to imagine the scene as he covered his mouth in horror.

"Yes. Without thinking much of it, she quickly washed it out and threw it into the soiled jackets bin… and she continued as if nothing happened," Fraise admitted as she gritted her teeth, remembering those horrifying details.

'I watched everything that happened that night, but still… I didn't say anything. WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH ME?!' Fraise shook her head as tears started to form.

After hearing that story, the sweets princes do recall there being a large stain on Keiko's right sleeve, but she brushed it off by saying she spilled "hibiscus tea" on it.

---

"What's up with your sleeve? That wasn't there yesterday," Kashino pointed out first, which made Keiko look down at her right arm.

The stain was a light pink, which was still obvious on the white jacket, but as if forgetting everything that had happened earlier that morning, she brushed it off and kept her words short.

"I had hibiscus tea and accidentally spilled it all over my arm. I tried to wash most of it out, but I guess it wasn't fully removed," Keiko briefly explained to the team who believed her words.

It didn't seem out of the ordinary since hibiscus tea had a sort of red or dark pink color to it. They didn't question it any further and just let it go.

---

They believed that just because she hid under a calm face and smile, everything was fine, but they didn't realize just how much she was suffering from herself.

Now, they might not even get to see her alive again.

The anger the boys felt towards Fraise eased as it slowly turned to anger towards themselves. They ganged up on Fraise, but they were just as guilty for letting their teammate work herself to the verge of death.

"I-I'm sorry…" Andou was the first to apologize as he gripped his fists, realizing how pathetic he was.

'I knew she was a workaholic, but I didn't think she'd go that far…' Andou thought.

"Me too. That was uncalled for," Hanabusa said next as he rubbed his forehead.

'Taking notes every night and not being able to sleep a wink… why did we ignore it? Why did we let her keep doing that?' Hanabusa asked himself.

"I, as well…" Kashino said, facing his head towards the ground with his teeth gritted tightly. He would rarely ever apologize, but in the instances that he ever did, it was for a good reason.

'Michiko Keiko… you worked yourself until you dropped… Just for this stupid competition?!' Kashino grimaced bitterly.

Now, all they could do was regret everything. They still had many words to say to her, but now, they might never get to tell her.

They couldn't even do anything to help out in this situation. All of them were completely and utterly useless.

The once-filled auditorium enlivened with energy grew eerily silent. Those remaining did not dare utter a word.

One man in his mid-40s, with dark brown hair, light wrinkles on his face, and green eyes couldn't turn his eyes away from the door the medical team left. His stare never left the door as he heard the pink-haired sweets spirit talk.

'No, Keiko… it's not time to join Ella… why did this have to happen?!' Hisashi Ito gritted his teeth and clenched his hands.

He watched first-hand the girl drop to the ground like she was a lifeless doll. Her head hit the ground first but nobody was there to prevent her fall.

Could she really be dead?

'N-No! She's still young! She has to be alive! She… needs to be alive…' Hisashi Ito finally took his eyes off the door and looked back at Team Michiko's Chocolate Angel. When he looked at the life-like angel on the cake, a tear ran down his cheek and fell to the ground.

The others still left in the auditorium might not have known the girl for long, but Hisashi Ito had known her since her mother started the Fournier Sucre Bakery in Sweets Garden.

Just how did a sweet young girl turn to this extreme?

All they could do now was wait until any news came up at the hospital, for better or for worse.