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The sun had already gone down when Lucio knocked on Djeeta’s door. From the other side, the girl’s voice ringed clear.
“Come on in.”
The girl sit in front of a mirror. The night was warm, and she wore a thin white one piece, showing her severely bandaged body. A towel was laid over her shoulders and her hair was still damp from being washed. On her hand was a hair comb.
“Lucio?” Djeeta seemed surprised at his visit.
“Good night, Djeeta. Katalina said you asked for these.”
On his hand were a few sheet papers. According to Katalina, the captain had asked for a list of materials to be acquired while she was recovering.
“Oh! Thank you for your trouble.” The girl smiled.
“I thought you would be in bed. Are your arms better?”
A few days ago, Djeeta got injured, but her arms had by far the worse injury and still hadn’t completely recovered.
“It’s much better now. I will go to bed after I’m done with my hair to look over those papers.”
Her eyes back on the mirror, she raised her arm slowly and run the teeth across her golden hair. Lucio couldn’t miss the slight tremble of her arm and, before he noticed, he was grabbing her wrist to stop her movement.
“What is it?” Djeeta raised an eyebrow.
“Your arm is hurt. Please don’t push yourself.”
“This doesn’t hurt, really! Although it’s a bit tiring. My hair is short, I will get it done quick. If I don’t my hair will look like a mess tomorrow. So… you can let go.”
“I see. There is no way around it then…”
“Then-“
“I will do it for you.”
“Heh?”
Lucio took the comb from Djeeta’s hand and carefully turned her face to the mirror. She didn’t try to resist, but from the reflection in the mirror she shyly observed Lucio’s hands. He held a lock of her hair and brushed down. He was rather awkward, and tremendously slow. His lips pursed when he hit a big knot of hair, afraid to continue. Djeeta, her tension disappearing, cheerfully laughed.
Lucio frowned, “Am I doing bad?”
“You are doing well. Hold the hair above the knot and feel free to pull.”
“Like this?”
She made a sound of agreement, but Lucio didn’t seem convinced.
Holding the teeth to her scalp and combing down, carefully avoiding her ears, the act was repeated many times over. Time passed slowly as the same gestures were performed to the sound of small talk.
“Lucio?”
“Yes?”
“Have you ever brushed long hair?”
“I don’t know what makes you think that, since I think I’m doing very badly right now, but yes, I have. My own hair, I mean. It grows long quite easily.”
She turned her head back and looked directly at him, no longer at the reflection in the mirror.
“Mm… Lucio with long hair… I would like to see it.”
Lucio chuckled, “I will show you one day.”
He held her head and turned back around. It took not much longer before he put the comb down on the table.
“Done.”
He picked a lock of hair and run his fingers through it, letting it fall back down. Djeeta’s mind stopped at the gesture, unsure what to say.
“You have beautiful hair. It’s soft and its golden color like the sun fits you very well.”
Djeeta’s face flushed red.
“Djeeta? Are you blushing…? Does my praise make you embarrassed?”
“O-Of course!” She gaged, twirling a strand of hair on her finger, “If you praise me so suddenly like that… I, I…”
"It's really pretty."
"Gosh, now you're doing it on purpose..."
Lucio's expression relaxed as he let a breathy laugh escape him, “Ah, it’s got quite late, I should go. Good night.”
Djeeta hurriedly jumped in front of him and saw him to the door, earning a reproachful glare from Lucio, who thought she moved too fast even though she was injured.
“Good night. And… Thank you for helping me, Lucio.” Her lips hooked up into a beautiful smile.
He too smiled stunningly, “You can call me if you ever need anything.”
The door closed. In the corridor, Lucio covered his face with his hand. The girl’s face at the end was just not fair.