++”Humans are creatures who inevitably think about things in terms of gains and losses. It’s unavoidable. It can’t be helped, but if there’s someone in need right in front of you, be the kind of person who can reach out to help them without thinking about gain or loss.”++

Those were words my father, who died in an accident while protecting a child, often said, and I still remember them clearly in my mind.

There may have been big or small problems, but I thought I had done what I could to the best of my ability. However, as a mere child, there was only so much I could do.

In other words, I had never encountered a situation that exceeded the limits of what I could handle.

But there was one thing I had realized.

That was, there’s no time to hesitate.

“What happened?”

“…I don’t know.”

We heard a man’s voice from a short distance away, and Shuka and I ran towards it.

A crowd of people had already gathered there, buzzing with chatter. Wondering what was going on, I tried to look beyond the crowd and saw a person lying on the ground through the gaps between people.

“Mom! Stay Strong! Mom!”

A high-pitched voice rang out. It sounded like a mix of various emotions—agitation, fear, confusion.

“Hey, what should we do?”

“What do you mean ‘what should we do’? I don’t know.”

“Why don’t you call an ambulance?”

“Why me? You do it.”

“Isn’t that girl cute?”

“This isn’t the time to be saying that. But I get it.”

The people around us exchanged words as they pleased, but no one made a move.

There were two girls who seemed to be the daughters of the woman who had collapsed. I felt like I had seen those girls somewhere before.

“Onii-chan, over here!”

Before I could get a closer look, my sister called me. Indeed, now was not the time to be concerned about such things.

I realized Shuka was already ahead of the crowd. The people weren’t completely surrounding the woman, but rather forming a semi-circle around her.

So, we crossed that line and headed towards the collapsed woman.

“Shuka, ambulance!”

“Y-yes.”

Since Shuka was still a middle school student, she didn’t have a mobile phone. I took out my smartphone from my pocket and handed it to her with those instructions.

A person has collapsed. What should I do in a situation like this?

It’s not like I don’t know. I had seen it on TV and had heard about it from my father many times. But I had never actually done it before. I didn’t have any assurance that I was doing it right. There was even a possibility that my actions could make things worse.

The anxieties were endless.

The more I let my anxiety grow, the more it would cling to my feet and weigh me down. If that happened, I would surely freeze up and be unable to move.

So, before my head could be consumed by anxiety, I decided to take action.

“Hey, Yuzuki, what should we do? What’s going to happen to Mom?”

“I-I don’t know. S-somebody…”

“Excuse me..”

I arrived at the two girls who were expressing their anxiety near the woman and slipped into the empty space.

I looked at the woman’s face. As expected, she was unconscious.

I took a deep breath.

++”Listen, Ao. If you ever come across someone who has collapsed, make sure to check if they are conscious.”++

I remembered my father’s words.

“Are you okay?”

I tapped her shoulder. The first time on the left side, the second time on the right, and the third time on both shoulders simultaneously. I called out to her each time, gradually increasing the strength of my taps.

Depending on the symptoms, there was a possibility that some of her body’s senses were paralyzed, so it was better to change the tapping position. He had said something like that, too.

I tried calling out to her several times, but she still wouldn’t regain consciousness. I hoped she would open her eyes, but judging from the fact that she didn’t move even though her daughters were making a fuss earlier, I knew that was unlikely.

Now, the next step…

++I think I need to arrange an ambulance…++

“Excuse me. Could someone bring an AED?”

An AED, or automated external defibrillator. A device that automatically measures and analyzes the electrocardiogram and, if necessary, delivers an electric shock to restore normal heart rhythm.

It’s used for emergency treatment in situations like this, so it’s apparently installed in various facilities.

“Anyone?”

My call was heard. But for some reason, none of the people around me moved. It was understandable that they couldn’t move when suddenly asked, but the situation was urgent.

Murmurs rippled through the crowd.

++Should I go get it myself?” No, there are other things I have to do. Should I ask her daughters to go get it? No, they were in no mental state to do that.++

“Onii-chan!”

At that moment, my sister arrived with an AED in hand. Judging by how quickly she arrived, she must have anticipated it would be needed and retrieved it after calling the ambulance.

++She’s definitely our dad’s daughter.++

“Shuka, can you prepare that?”

“Y-yes.”

Shuka looked anxious. No wonder. Being suddenly thrust into this situation and doing something for the first time—my heart was pounding too.

That’s why I needed to maintain my composure. If I let my anxiety show, it would spread to others.

“…Okay.”

I checked her breathing. He said you could tell by watching the chest for movement. If there’s no movement in the chest, it means the person isn’t breathing.

++…It’s not moving.++

Things were heading towards the worst-case scenario.

At this point, the only thing left was to perform chest compressions. It’s commonly known as CPR—the movement you see in dramas where someone presses on the chest rhythmically.

I placed my left hand on top of my right hand and brought them to the woman’s chest. Placing my hands between her breasts, I used my body weight to start chest compressions.

“Onii-chan, it’s ready.”

While I was performing chest compressions, Shuka finished preparing the AED. All she had to do was insert the electrode pads into the device and turn it on. The device’s automated voice would guide us through the process, but even so, it would be easy to panic doing it for the first time.

[Remember to place the electrode pads on either side of the chest. For an adult, it would be around the waist and near the shoulders.]

The electrode pads even had illustrations showing where to place them. I remembered hearing that anything metal could be harmful, but she wasn’t wearing any jewelry like a necklace.

++What about underwear? I didn’t need to remove her clothes, but what about the metal hooks on her bra?++

As I continued chest compressions, my mind raced. But even this moment of hesitation was precious time wasted.

“Shuka, this person’s underwear…”

“Yes, I got it.”

She seemed to understand what I wanted to say immediately. I took off my shirt and covered the woman with it. It was still quite hot, even in short sleeves, so it wasn’t a problem. In fact, I was grateful because my body temperature had risen due to the activity.

“Onii-chan, okay.”

The AED was now reading the woman’s heart rhythm. During this time, I didn’t touch the woman and waited for the AED’s next instruction. If it determined that an electric shock was necessary, it would deliver one. If not, I would continue chest compressions. I would repeat this process.

“U-um…”

A small voice broke through the silence. One of the daughters hesitantly spoke up. It was the girl with the brown, semi-long hair who had been panicking earlier.

“Is Mom going to be okay?”

With tears in her eyes, she asked me, clinging to any hope. I didn’t know how to respond to that.

++Should I reassure her? But would it be right to give her false hope when I didn’t know the outcome?++

[No shock advised. Continue CPR.]

The AED’s automated voice announced. I took a small, deep breath and tried to speak in a tone that would reassure her as much as possible.

“…It’s okay. She’ll be alright.”

It’s said that it takes about nine to ten minutes for an ambulance to arrive after being called. Perhaps it was nearby, because the ambulance arrived soon after, and our role was over.

!next

Neither of us felt like shopping anymore, so Shuka and I walked back the way we came and returned home.

“Do you think she’ll be okay?”

“I don’t know. But I think we did everything we could.”

I wasn’t sure if what I did was right. If she survived, it would prove that it was, but if not…

Even if it wasn’t my fault, the thought of ‘what if’ kept nagging at the back of my mind.

“You did a good job too, Shuka.”

“You too, Onii-chan.”

“How about we get something sweet on the way back?”

I tried to push the thoughts aside, but it wasn’t easy.

At the very least, I wanted to keep my sister from worrying, so I forced myself to act cheerfully.

“Is it on you, Onii-chan?”

“Just this once. It’s a special day, after all. Plus, I’ve got some extra cash to spare.”

!next

The light labeled “In Surgery” went off with a soft ping. A moment later, a doctor emerged from the room.

The brown-haired girl, Kotobuki Hikari, stood up from her chair and rushed over to the doctor. Kotobuki Yuzuki, the black-haired girl sitting beside Hikari, couldn’t muster the strength to stand but anxiously turned her gaze toward the doctor.

“How’s our mother? Is she going to be okay?”

The doctor’s expression was extremely grim. The thought that something might have gone wrong briefly crossed their minds. But they were not yet mature enough to accept such a possibility.

As they silently prayed, ++Please, please, ++ they waited for the doctor’s words.

The next moment, it happened. As if the tension had been released, the doctor’s brow relaxed. He removed his mask and gave Hikari a gentle smile.

“Yes. She’ll be fine now.”

The moment she heard those words, Hikari’s legs gave way and she collapsed to the ground.

“It was really a close call, though. Without the emergency treatment, I don’t know what might have happened…”

“Is that so…?”

Hikari replied in a weak voice. Yuzuki, still seated in her chair, wore a blank expression.

“Yes. You should be grateful to the person who provided the emergency treatment. Do you have their contact information?”

“Um, I…”

Hikari glanced at Yuzuki, but she shook her head.

“I see. That’s a shame.”

After talking with their now-conscious mother and hearing about her upcoming hospital stay, Hikari and Yuzuki found some free time. They bought drinks from the vending machine and sat down together.

Hikari had orange juice in her hand.

Yuzuki had a Fanta grape soda in her hand.

“We should’ve asked for their contact information,” Hikari said, and Yuzuki nodded in agreement. They wanted to express their gratitude and properly thank the person who had helped.

“I was panicking, so I don’t remember clearly…”

“Yeah.”

Hikari nodded at Yuzuki’s words.

“I think that person was wearing the uniform of Omaku High School…”

Omaku High School. That was the name of the school Hikari and Yuzuki attended, where both boys and girls wore blazers as their uniform.

“I thought so too.”

The two looked at each other.

“So that means they’re from our school, right?”

“Yeah. So, let’s find them and properly thank them.”

!next

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