The Sakura Cloud

Felicia M. Banks, Rajah E. Smart

Description

The Sakura Cloud centers infidelity and murder using the legend of the cherry blossom to enter a mind-bending journey into multiverses for penance.
Please allow us to introduce--THE SAKURA CLOUD—a--mystical story about the true price of love.
Rizuu, a Japanese man, knows the precise moment when his world fell apart: the instant his longed-for daughter was born and he saw her dark skin and curly hair. He and his wife, Ayami, had been trying for years for this pregnancy. Ayami confesses that she has been unfaithful, and the child is not Rizuu’s. Rizuu seethes with anger. He has spent his entire married life working hard to give Ayami everything she could ever want, and she has betrayed him. He will never forgive her or accept the baby. After taking her life in a moment of rage, he has a series of impossible events that always begin with the aroma of cherry blossoms Sakura flowers, the symbol of life and love. The dreams take him on a journey that shows him what life would be like without Ayami and baby Amaya.

Sujets

• Fantastique
• Romance fantastique
• Romance
• Fiction
• Fantasy

Informations

• Publié par: AuthorHouse
• Date de parution: 24 novembre 2022
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781665576239
• Langue: English

Extrait

The Sakura Cloud
 
 
 
RAJAH E. SMART and FELICIA M. BANKS
 
 
 

 
AuthorHouse™
1663 Liberty Drive
Bloomington, IN 47403
www.authorhouse.com
Phone: [phone]
 
 
 
 
© 2022 Rajah E. Smart and Felicia M. Banks. All rights reserved.
 
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.
 
Published by AuthorHouse 11/17/2022
 
ISBN: 978-1-6655-7624-6 (sc)
ISBN: 978-1-6655-7623-9 (e)
 
Library of Congress Control Number: 2022921795
 
 
Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.
Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.
 
Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.
Contents
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1

R izuu sits in anticipation of the birth of his first child. After an initial premature loss, he feels great about going full term. The loud fluorescent lights heighten the shine on his white teeth, as he smiles from ear to ear on this joyous day. The sun has faded, and the last rays of light break through the glass to create a perfect view on this busy afternoon. Rizuu stares through the glass, fighting the beams of fluorescent light that reflect from the panes prevents him from seeing. The sterile feel of the environment and the lingering hospital smell don’t affect him as he clutches his wife’s hand. Finally , he thinks. With the loss of my parents, I finally have the family I’ve always wa nted .
He watches the orderlies and nurses walk past the door, tending to their duties. The nurse assigned to their room enters and closes the door with a light push, cutting off his view of the hallway. He stares at the sweat pouring from his wife’s brow, takes her favorite washcloth to dab at it gently. Rizuu notices her long black hair clinging to her neck, while her bangs are glued to her forehead from the sweat. A huge smile forms on his face at his beautiful wife.
The pain is greater, and he can see it in her face. Her grasp on his hand feels painful. The sweat from her tired and dehydrating body is on the white pillowcases, along with strands of thin black hair. It’s all so busy as the nurse and doctor talk to one another, but Rizuu is feverishly focused on his wife. He’s worried, anxious, and nervous about the birth of his child due to their previous pregnancy. The pain in her eyes keeps him anxious, but she carried full term.
For a moment, he thinks about where they are now in life. He has his best friend as his wife. They met in freshman year and became best friends that shared everything until they decided to date in their senior year and marry soon after. Rizuu is a successful tax attorney and enjoys his planned life. Ayami, his wife, worked as an accountant for a corporation. According to Ayami, they have the perfect boring life. She always says Rizuu has a plan for even going to the bathroom, clearly a bit unsatisfied with the monotony. He has planned their life together down to the birth of their child.
He’s one of the youngest lawyers and appreciated for his attention to detail. I’m a successful young man in my own right, working as a tax attorney for a corporation. Who could ask for more? The plan worked, and my life is exactly the way I need it to be. Granted, Ayami and I are a little distant since we’ve been trying to get pregnant, and she’s been dishonest at times, but this will make us a family again. My parents would be proud of me if they were still here . I gave up silly dreams ranging from being a soldier to a cartoonist to be responsible, and it worked out.
With his boyish looks and large smile, he glances at the nurse staring at him. Rizuu smiles, feeling proud of the job his pregnant wife has ahead. Rizuu stares at her jet-black hair, round open eyes, and soft features. He notices she doesn’t look her best, especially since she’s been in labor for some time.
“Taoru o onegaishimasu?” The nurse asks slowly.
“I speak English,” Rizuu responds.
“Oh, I’m sorry, sir. Would you like a towel?”
Rizuu smiles at the nurse.
“No, thank you, but where did you learn to speak Japanese?” Because she’s a small Colombian woman, he’s curious as to why she chose to learn the language.
“Years ago, I took up the language in college and actually studied in Japan. The culture is just fascinating, and so were the landscapes, at least where we were staying.”
“Okay…Anata no onamaehanandesuka?” He asks her name to try to be personable.
“Natāsha,” she responds.
“Thank you, Natasha, for your help...hope to talk to you again.”
Rizuu notices Ayami is in greater pain and uncomfortable in bed, tired as the doctor begins to deliver. Seeing her discomfort and anguish, he takes the washcloth to rinse it, to place it across her sweat-beaded head. Going into the bathroom, he’s almost sure there’s another one not so sweat-ridden available somewhere, considering that this hospital is like a five-star hotel. Grabbing another washcloth off the stainless-steel rack, he sees the little fountain sink finds the right mixture of cold and hot water to soak the washcloth. Wringing it carefully, he can hear Ayami calling him to come back. While rinsing, he glances in the mirror, thinking, I’m going to be a father. Wow... I’m actually going to be holding a daughter in my arms after all this time. This has been too long a road and I did it with my best friend after all the hurt.
Rizuu refers to the fact that it has been difficult for the two of them to conceive. A loss in the second month of pregnancy paralyzed his plan. The difficulty has caused some distance in an otherwise decent relationship. They have been lucky throughout their relationship, lucky to have one another. They don’t laugh like they used to or cuddle on the weekends as much, but he loves her so much. “Rizuu!” The yell is much deeper than before, which snaps him into reality and back to her side. With the towel in hand, he moves quickly to her side and dabs the damp washcloth upon her brow to cool her slightly.
“This hurts so bad,” she says to him in all the chaos.
Rizuu places the palm of his hand on her forehead and pushes her hair back, placing a small kiss upon her brow. Ayami stares into his eyes, as he locks on to the roundness of her left iris, exposed by the bright light.

People explained childbirth to her, but she never expected it to be this way. Ayami lifts and drops her head back, staring at the ceiling as a contraction begins to take hold. She clinches Rizuu’s hand again in reaction to the intense pain. Their life together flashes before her eyes as she thinks about the past five years, and how tough it has been to follow “his” plan. She loves him very much but often feels under so much pressure and stress under the plan. The last two for her have been very tough, as even now she contemplates leaving because of the staleness in their relationship. She could tell him anything and enjoy the smallest things with him, but that faded. She has always wanted a child and knows they have that in common, but lately, that seems to be all due to the plan. Luckily, money isn’t an issue for them because of their success. Once Ayami became pregnant, she took leave from a very prominent accounting firm in Toronto to avoid risking any complications or causing stress-induced labor. “Work in itself is like a kid due to all the silly people who act like children,” Ayami always says.
She watches her husband filled with excitement, but then chooses to stare out the large window that runs the length of the room to take her mind off the pain. She is not only in pain due to labor but also something she’s been keeping a secret. The panoramic view of Lake Ontario is her focal point. She doesn’t feel Rizuu knows she’s unhappy or that something is bothering her. In all the labor chaos, she thinks he interprets her mood as labor pains talking. Ayami feels a contraction coming faster. The pain is almost unbearable. The finale of the pregnancy is here.
The time has come for their child to come into the world. Intensity surrounds the room with Ayami screaming at the top of her lungs, intensely pushing the baby out of her small body. She hears the doctor gently talking to her, but it all sounds like babble with the pain she’s experiencing. She feels Rizuu wiping the sweat off her forehead and clutching her hand. The words of encouragement that have been missing from their relationship, she hears now.
She doesn’t want him to feel useless, but the pain is too great for her to care deeply about his encouragement. The doctor asks her to push again, as Ayami screams. She hears the doctor instructing her softly but ignores his words as her focus is on seeing a head emerge. With one last successful push, the baby emerges, covered with fluid. Ayami rests her head on the pillow, exhausted from the ordeal, crying and sweating. Taking a breath, she lifts her head to see this blessing that has been bestowed upon her family. The baby has beautiful thick, ebony, curly hair and a darker complexion than expected, which changes the emotion on Ayami’s face. Rizuu looks at the baby and Ayami’s face. She feels like the look on her face is telling him something, so she takes his hand to say something. She realizes that he is oblivious but is sure she needs to be honest