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The stifling heat beneath the covers was not a great combination with her throbbing headache paired alongside the difficulties with a stuffy nose. Sayo shuffled beneath the blanket, careful not to let the towel on her forehead slip as she tried her best to keep her eyes squeezed shut. She could feel her hands twitch a bit, the bubbling feeling of unrest boiling within as she itched to get her hands on her guitar. Fed up with the inaction, Sayo allowed herself to open her eyes, slowly. They only felt a bit heavy as her ceiling quickly came into view, replacing the darkness. She shifted her head slightly to look around her room to take a peek at her guitar, sitting in the corner as if patiently waiting for her recovery. Faint sunlight filtered into her room through the curtain drawn over her window, a sliver of light atop her guitar as if urging her to get up. Urging her conscience to focus on recovery, Sayo looked back up to the ceiling, wondering if Hina would come to change the towel on her forehead soon as her headache continued with a dull throb. Looking up at the ceiling for a few more moments, Sayo began to close her eyes again after a soft sniff. With the darkness enveloping her vision once more, she let time slip away as her consciousness danced alongside it.
The next time she opened her eyes, the sun’s light had already begun filtering an orange light into her room. Fortunately, the throbbing in her head had lessened and it seemed that Hina had changed the towel on her forehead while she rested. It was a bit surprising to her that her twin hadn’t woken her up in the process but Sayo supposed she had to give her some credit. Before she could try and sit up, there was a soft knock at the door. Perking up a little, Sayo remained laying down, eyes open. Her throat felt a bit dry having just woke up so she wasn’t sure if she would be able to speak properly, but it quickly proved to be unnecessary as the door opened before she could open her mouth.
The blonde hair was immediately noticeable, even under the muted orange light of the sunset. Magenta eyes that seemed to glow faintly in the light as they widened a bit, capturing just a bit more light.
“Ah, Sayo-chan, you’re awake,” her voice came, pleasantly soft as it followed up with an equally pleasant smile.
Sayo nodded to the best of her ability, careful about her headache and the towel on her forehead. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to sit up or not. Chisato opened the door just a bit more, leaning in with some uncertainty.
“May I come in? I have some notes from today’s class,” with a soft rustle, she held up a plastic bag.
Sayo nodded again, still unsure of her ability to speak. As Chisato stepped into her room, she made sure to close the door behind her with a soft click as Sayo wondered if Hina had left her some water. When Chisato was at her bedside, Sayo realized that she probably hadn’t. Slowly, she slid her upper body to sit upwards as Chisato neatly placed a few notebooks onto the desk and took the chair that was situated at her desk to sit near the bedside.
“Oh! Here,” Chisato held up a bottle of water, “Hina-chan told me to give you this. I’ve already opened it for you so it shouldn’t be too much of an issue for you to open it.”
Graciously taking the bottle, Sayo uncapped it with relative ease as she drank a bit of water, allowing it to soothe the dryness of her throat. Taking the bottle away from her lips, she exhaled before capping it again and holding it in her hands.
“Thank you, Shirasagi-san,” she croaked a bit, her voice still congested as the stuffiness of her nose lingered.
Chisato smiled, “No need to thank me, I wanted to visit you anyways.”
Sayo tilted her head a bit, “Is there anything important that you wanted to tell me…?”
The blonde chuckled a little, “No, silly, it’s because I care about your wellbeing.”
“Ah…” still feeling a bit dazed, Sayo couldn’t tell if her fever was acting up again or if she simply felt flustered. Maybe it was a bit of both.
“U-Um, well...thank you for visiting me then…?” she tried.
Chisato laughed a bit, “You’re adorable.”
A bit embarrassed, Sayo looked away from the girl as butterflies flitted about her stomach. As the room settled into a comforting silence, Sayo went back to look at Chisato, gazing into her magenta eyes as the deep orange sunlight made them shimmer. It was hypnotizing, as if she was the embodiment of the sunlight itself. Entranced, Sayo couldn’t help but let the time slip through her fingers as the beating of her heart thudded in her ears. Chisato returned the favor, allowing Sayo to admire her as she admired the guitarist with the same amount of affection. She leaned in a bit closer, equally as mesmerized before she pulled away a bit, breaking the pocket of time as if cutting a thin piece of thread.
“Before I forget, I got you something…” she said, reaching into the plastic bag and gingerly taking out a small jar of what seemed to be tea leaves.
“I thought I’d get you some, it’s nice for recovering after you’re sick,” she held the jar up for Sayo to examine carefully, taking it away after a bit and holding it with both hands on her lap, “I’ll put it on your desk before I leave,” she smiled.
Sayo nodded gratefully, unsure of what else she wanted to say. The two sat in a few more moments of silence, conversing and laughing amongst themselves here and there and ignoring the passage of time.
Before she knew it, Chisato stood up, going to place the jar of tea leaves on Sayo’s desk and returning the chair to its original position as well.
“Well, I suppose I’ll be heading out now, I hope you’ll recover soon,” she said with another smile before turning to head out the door.
Just as she was about to exit, Sayo spoke up.
“Shirasagi-san… No, Chisato-san…”
Chisato turned her head, a bit of surprise on her face.
“Yes, Sayo-chan?”
“...I love you.”
There was a pause that was quickly followed up with another bright smile, one that held the power of the sun’s light yet was still so soft to the eyes.
“I love you too.”