Work Text:
They'd been at the arcade when the storm began – well, of course they were at the arcade. Even before they begun to date, around three months earlier, it had basically been a second or third to the two of them. If they didn't have the club to go to, or they didn't have to study (or in some cases, even if they had to study), they were usually here, hanging out. It'd been a pretty normal day at the arcade – Rina was destroying the new difficulty levels on a rhythm game, whilst Ai was shrieking with delight at a horror gun game.
Rina and Ai both knew that the storm was coming, but the news had understated the sheer ferocity of the rain and wind, and hadn't been totally accurate with the time. Thankfully, Rina noticed before it really started to pour, thanks to a special weather app on her phone and so, asking Ai if she wanted to wait out the storm with her at her house, they made a hasty retreat. Rina clung tightly to Ai as they moved through the burgeoning storm, much to her partner's delight – sure, it was late November, but it was insanely freezing, due to the cold front making it's way across the city in tandem with the storm.
It was good that there wasn't far to go – mere minutes after making their way into Rina's apartment, the thunder and lighting started. Rina didn't say anything, but she could see Ai twitch and squirm with every boom – so after they made some food for an early dinner, as once again, Rina's mother wouldn't be home til late, they settled into comfort with each other, cuddling up against the rather unseasonable cold, hot food, hot drinks and warm blankets surrounding them utterly.
They'd been watching a movie in the living room, comfy in one anther's presence, when there was an earth-shatteringly loud sound of lightning, and they were plunged into darkness. Ai had let out a little gasp and gripped Rina a little more tightly, her partner silently opening her phone to work out what's happened. It seemed like the storm had knocked out power for a significant portion of the city, and it'd probably stay off for half the night. Ai groaned audibly this news – she'd mentioned off-handedly once in the past that she wasn't the biggest fan of the dark – a rather notable exception to her otherwise unassailable defences.
“Do you wanna stay here tonight?” Rina asked, holding her hand tightly for support. It was weird, her supporting Ai, for once. Normally it was completely the other way around.
“Y-Yeah.” Ai said almost instantly. Rina nodded thoughtfully.
“Not as if you'd have any other options, unless I made you trudge through a blacked-out city, in poring rain and near-freezing temperatures.” Rina said, almost off-handedly, as if if that wasn't a horrifying task.
“I'll absolutely stay here for the night.” Ai said, even more firmly, holding Rina's hand so tightly it almost hurt.
“Cute.” Rina thought to herself, delighted with this new bit of characterisation for Ai.
Either way, with the heating off from the power outage, the living room was far, far too cold to stay in, so Rina and Ai moved into the former's bedroom. There, using her phone as a light, Rina had pulled out and set up the futon on the floor so Ai had somewhere to actually sleep. It was only around eight at that point, Rina noted, so there was no point sleeping yet despite how dark it was. And so, drawn like a moth to the flame, Rina just climbed into the bedding she'd made for her friend, patting the other of the pillow, inviting her to join.
“Come on, jump in.” Rina said, sliding under the blankets. “We can just talk for a while.”
“You sure that's okay?” Ai asked, raising her eyebrows incredulously. Rina cocked her head, not following.
“Why wouldn't it be? It just talking.” She said flatly, also buried up to nearly her neck in warm blankets. Ai, knowing better then to look a gift horse in the mouth, promptly shut up and joined her partner under the bedding, wrapping an arm around her tightly in the wonderful warmth. “Comfy...” Rina sighed, burying herself a little deeper. They'd done this a few times, wrapped up in bed in the warm, just to cuddle. Usually at Ai's house, since Rina's mother was a little more... protective of her daughter.
The sound of the rain was almost hypnotic, the deadened lights of the outage-effected city making those fewer lights seem all the most atmospheric. A thin sheen of condensation coated the window from the heat the two teenagers were radiating beneath the blankets. It was one of the things Rina hadn't ever really given much thought to – sleeping next to someone else –, but she could certainly see the appeal.
During the process of setting up the bedding, she got a few text messages from Kasumi and Shizuku, asking if she'd lost power as well. After Rina told them she had, they both, separately, asked if they wanted them to come over so they wouldn't be alone in the dark storm, and also that the school was going to be closed for the next day due to minor storm damage.
It was only when Rina told them that she had Ai with them that their messages got sillier, joking about what could happen in the dead of night, deep in a storm. Rina sent them a wall of angry emojis, ending the conversation besides a mutual exchange of 'lols' and whatnot. Her friends meant well, as always, but they loved to mess with her, just that little bit. Everyone was always like that a bit when Rina and Ai were alone together – everyone assumed they'd get up to no-good, and everything that came with it. Rina, at least, wasn't like that. Sure her brain didn't run at the same frequency as everyone else, but when she said she'd was 'hanging out at night with Ai', actually meant that – though her friends always pressed her for details that didn't actually occur. It was madding.
They both lay there, in silence for sometime. Ai still seemed in low spirits, which worried Rina, but she just chalked it up to the sudden power outage and the still-booming thunder. Either way, she wriggled a bit closer to Ai, silently supporting in her own special way.
“Hey, Rinari?” Ai said quietly, shifting against her. It'd been a good ten minutes since she'd said anything, so it surprised Rina more then a little
“Mm?”
“Where do you think you'll go, after high school?” Rina made a long 'hmm' noise at her question, wriggling onto her back as she thought.
“I want to do something with tech. Maybe design work? I'd like to design some technology to make it easier for certain disadvantaged groups and people to access and use it. I'm not sure on specifics, but something like that?” Her cheeks flushed ever so slightly, invisible in the darkness. She'd almost gone on a lot longer then just that quick summary – she'd thought a lot on her future, ever since she'd met Ai and the other girls, and felt she had a future worth working towards.
“A-Ah, I see.” Ai said, a new, more worrying emotion clear in her voice.
“Why do you ask?” Ai just seemed more awkward then when she first asked the question. Ai groaned a little again, rolling onto her back to stare at the vague shadows dancing across the ceiling.
“So you think about the future a lot?” She said quietly. Rina didn't say anything for a moment. Of course she thought about the future a lot – Rina was surprised everyone didn't constantly pay the future heed. Though, she guessed Ai meant it in a more specific sense – after school, not how Rina had to constantly plan excursions outside and social engagements way in advance.
“I haven't thought a ton on working in the future, but I do think about it enough, yeah.” Rina said quietly, worried about Ai. This wasn't like her at all. Touching Ai's arm lightly, Rina shook her gently. “Ai, um, are you... okay?” It felt weird to say that – Ai was always okay. It was like her superhero power. Slowly, Ai turned over to face her partner, worry coating her face, making Rina's stomach drop.
“We were talking in class today, about plans for the future. What kind of jobs we wanna do, stuff like that. Everyone had an answer, and they had so much passion and pazazz for what kind of things they wanted to do... and then it was my turn.” Ai sighed loudly, shaking her head. Rina gently reached out to stroke the back of Ai's hair, trying to comfort her in her own small way.
“Couldn't you think of anything?” Rina asked quietly. Ai shook her head.
“Nothing came to mind – I just said some sport or something, just so they could keep going. It's stupid, but it really scares me that I haven't found a direction in my life beyond little hobbies and stuff. Nothing like your tech stuff, or Karin's modelling, or anything like that. It's just so...” She grumbled again, going properly prone. Rina held her a little more tightly, trying to soothe her however she could.
“But don't you run around to all the different clubs?” Rina told her, rubbing the back of Ai's head awkwardly. “Everyone in the sport clubs talk about how much you help them out whenever you turn up.” Ai just sighed sadly once more.
“And I like doing that, I like helping people, I really do, but...” Ai groaned quietly, burying her face in Rina's shoulder. “I don't have anything that defines me. I'm good at sports, but not good enough to stand out in a team, actively. I do well on tests and stuff, and I'm good at singing and dancing, but it's nothing I'd want to devote my life to like some of the others would. It's scary that I don't know. It's scary to think I won't find something, that'll I just wander through my post high-school life, doing some dumb part-time job, as I see everyone I know finally reach their goals, as I screw around in circles, over and over again.” She shuddered a bit, holding onto her partner tightly. Rina's heart was breaking a bit – hearing Ai so torn up... “It makes me hate myself. I know it's silly, but I just...”
“Don't hate yourself!” Rina said, probably a bit too loudly, considering how Ai jumped more then a little bit.
“R-Rinari?” She said, a little surprised. Rina felt her resolve threaten to tumble, but she seized her momentum. She had to say this now
“I don't know if I'll be able to do what I want, but that doesn't matter right now.” Rina said defiantly, holding Ai tightly. “But I can't let how scary the idea of not doing what I dream of doing – of doing anything at all - control me. It was you who told me I wasn't defined by how I see myself – that I was a lot more then just what my stupid brain thought I was.” Leaning up, Rina felt a surge of bravery and planted a light kiss on Ai's forehead. “That's true for you, Ai. You might not find something today, or tomorrow, or next week, but you'll find something that you'll truly want to do in the future, I know it. After all, you can do more then anyone else I know.” She felt Ai shudder a bit against her, emotions usually held beneath the surface threatening to bubble out. She wriggled out of Rina's grip a little, looking back, her eyelids wet with barely held tears.
“Rinari...” She mumbled. It was frustrating how stunning Ai looked, even on the verge of tears – Rina felt a little guilty thinking that at this moment.
“I'll be here, anyway.” Rina said, matter-of-factually. Ai glanced back, half-confused. “Always.”
“Huh?” She said, almost silently.
“I said I'll be here, anyway.” Rina said again, pulling herself a little tighter against Ai's frame. “I-I mean, I don't plan to break up with you, or a-anything – I-I mean, if I broke up with you, I'd probably be alone for the rest of my life, so...” Rina's eyes went a little wider as she realised how that sounded. “N-Not that I want to break up or anything!
“It's... it's okay.” Ai said quietly, stroking Rina's hair, calming her down. “I know what you mean, I...” She took a deep breath. “I get it. Thank you, Rinari.” She lent forward, resting her forehead against hers. “The future's scary, isn't it?” She added, a little breathlessly.
“Really scary.” Rina said, with total honesty. She wasn't scared of what her future, in regards to what she wanted to do, entailed. No, it was just about every other facet of the future, unrelated to the conversation, that terrified the hell out of her.
“It's a lot easier to tackle knowing I've got someone like you in my corner, though.” Ai grinned a little bit into Rina, shuddering a bit from the emotions making their way through her. A few moments passed, and her body quieted, finally relaxing.
“I always will be. You won me that big round bird when we first met. We didn't know it then, but that was the contract that connected up forever.” Rina wished she was better at talking – that felt stupid thinking it. Ai giggled in response.
“Aww, Rinari, you're so cute!” Rina wiggled a bit from embarrassment, which just severed to make Ai laugh even more, but then eventually settled into comfy silence for a few more minutes, listening to the still rather strong rain as it lulled them into serenity.
“Hey, Rinari?” Ai finally said again, Rina shuffling a little bit in the blankets again as she did.
“Mm?”
“I love you.” She whispered, hugging her tightly, her cheeks warm from embarrassment and all she'd admitted. Rina noted with no small interest she hadn't thrown her name as a pun into that little declaration for once. That alone spoke volumes, almost as much as the statement itself.
“I love you too, Ai.” Rina whispered back, and taking initiative for once, slowly leaned forward to plant her lips on Ai. The kiss only lasted a few moments, but for those few moments the sound of the rain faded away, the freezing cold relented, and there was nothing else in the worlds sans these the two young woman. And then the kiss broke, and the world returned as it was. A note of... something else hung between the girls, attraction plain as the day they'd first discovered it. Rina's head was buzzing, full of ideas too scary to broach and too exciting to pass on. Though, there was no harm in a little more kissing, she decided. When they'd first started to kiss, it had actually been a little too much for her, the sensation making her feel all over-exerted and what not. Throwing caution to the wind, Rina leaned in, her heart thumping so loud she was sure Ai could hear her as she responded in kind.
And then, their lips mere centimetres apart, Rina's text tone went off, a popular anime theme blaring quietly, utterly shattering any atmosphere set up by the tender moment.
“Hell of a song to play to set the mood, Rinari.” Ai murmured, not moving away. Rina just gave her a hard look, obstinately of frustration. Darting forward, she planted a quick kiss on Ai's lip, before flopping onto her back to check her phone. Ai just blinked a few times, staying silent as she went back to her side, surprised by Rina's little display of affection. “Well, at least I know what to play to get a kiss out of you, then.” She added, teasingly, wrapping a arm around Rina's belly as her partner glared at her phone.
“S-Shh.” Rina replied, obviously embarrassed. It was fun to get those little reactions out of Ai, but it was so hard to really, truly surprise her. Ai was just too powerful, sometimes. Rina needed to be smarter, trickier, to really mess with her the way Ai messed with her. Sometimes Rina wished she was tall and strong, so she could carry Ai around for once. It'd been fun, gripped in Ai's rather-strong arms, being swung around, bridal style. Doing it in front of Shizuku and Kasumi, however, was more then a little mortifying. The little jibes and jabs she got from her dear friends after all that had been unrelenting, even as good-nurtured they were.
“Who's on the phone?” Ai asked. “Kasumi or Shizuku again?”
“It's my mom.” Rina said quietly, eyes scanning the phone's screen. “She says the roads are all messed up, the company says they'll house all the workers for the night until the storm passes. She just wanted to check if I'll be okay on my own tonight.” She started to type out a reply, Ai watching her intently.
“What did you tell her?”
“I said you're here at the moment, and you'll probably stay here for the night since the storm isn't letting up yet.” Rina responded, her eyes narrowing as another text came through. Ai couldn't help but smirk – Rina loved her mother, more then just about anyone else, but the tiny changes in her face she made in regards to her, well, mothering were pretty funny.
“What'd she say?” Ai asked, propping her head up on an elbow.
“Just a lot of stuff that you'd expect.” Rina responded, sighing a little bit. “Don't stay up too late, make sure Ai's got something to eat for dinner and somewhere to sleep and to make sure I sleep in my own bed.” Rina's eyes shifted up to Ai, her partner smirking again.
“Failed that step, huh?” Ai said cheekily. Rina flicked her phone closed, pulling the blanket over her lower face.
“...I'm not asleep, so it's fine to be in here.” She said, somewhat defiantly. “I'm not silly, she doesn't have to send me all this whenever you stay for the night. And it's not like we're doing anything wrong. We're keeping warm. We're staying comfy. We aren't...” She added, rapidly trailing off as she had no idea how to vocalise what she was trying to say, so she decided to try changing the subject, brandishing her phone as she spoke. She really didn't think she was doing anything wrong, and she'd told her mother as much, but Rina had just come to the conclusion she didn't understand what the issue was. She liked Ai. She liked to cuddle Ai. What was the issue doing that wrapped up in blankets on a comfy bed!?
“Has your Mom been worrying that much about us?” Ai asked, making Rina wriggle a bit from embarrassment. “Honestly, my parents have been totally chill about the whole thing – though they still want to meet you sometime. It has been three months, after all.”
“I do want to meet your family, I just gotta work my way up.” Rina assured her, though her lack of eye contact (or as much as you could have in the dark) told Ai a different story. “But Mom's just been after me a bit because I've been sleeping late a lot.” Rina sighed again. “It's just hard to sleep sometimes, she doesn't really get it.”
“I see, I see.” Ai nodded, thoughtfully. “I know a trick to sleeping, if you want?” Rina nodded, beautiful eyes fixed on her partner, waiting for her words of wisdom. “If you're struggling to sleep, sleep on the edge of the bed.” Rina's eyes narrowed ever so slightly.
“Why the edge? Why does that help?”
“Oh, it will.” Ai smiled. “If try and sleep on the edge of the bed, you'll soon drop off.” It was almost a full minute before Rina said something, softly sighing as she cuddled up closer to Ai.
“If I wasn't so tired, I'd get Rina-Chan Board to brutalise you for that joke.” Rina murmured quietly, curling up a bit more tightly under the blankets. Ai just started giggling manically, Rina just grumbling about her bad pun as she wiggled back and forth.
They talked a little more after that, mostly about the plans for school, little bits on each of their respective songs they were working on with Yuu, but there wasn't much to talk on. Emotions, both romantic and more fragile, had been tempered that night, and it had taken a lot out of Rina. She let herself be drawn further into the wonderful warmth of the blankets, room and Ai, and ever so slowly, Rina felt herself drift into the realm of sleep, her dreams of nothing sans the girl she'd fallen in love with.
“...Rinari?” Ai said, quietly. It'd been nearly half an hour since either of them had spoken, and sleep was gnawing at her.
No response. Just the quiet, gentle snores of an exhausted young woman, lulled to sleep by the comforting sounds of the quieting storm, and the warmth radiating beneath the blankets. Ai sighed to herself. “What am I meant to do with you, you cute little bean?” She stroked her brightly-coloured hair gently, her partner stirring quietly, digging herself deeper in the blankets. Ai knew this was going to cause issues in the morning – once Rina's mother came home, she'd have questions as to what her daughter had been up to, as innocent as the answers truly were. Honestly, the smart response would be for Ai to get out off the futon, and sleep in Rina's bed, instead. And whilst that did seem like the smart option... she didn't move. Ai's plans were innocent, too, but she wasn't going to pass up sleeping beside her love, drowning in her body heart, and the blankets, too. Lifting her up, ever so slightly, Ai slipped an arm around Rina, her partner grumbling as she turned over, resting her head on Ai's shoulder. She was so cute, Ai thought. Cuter then anyone she'd ever met, by an order of magnitude. Someone who'd gone through so much in her brain, fighting against herself, and yet here she was, giving her the advice she truly needed. “I really, really love you, you silly sprout.” Ai murmured again, getting herself comfy again. She was exhausted, both from the rain and her worries, and having a lovely girl resting on her wasn't helping.
But still, it took her a long time to drift off, even as Rina's body heat and the now comfy sounds of the dying rain urged her to sleep. So she lay there, for a long while, thinking on what Rina had told her not long ago.
Ai had no answers for her futures. She had hobbies, she had interests, but she didn't really have anything to base her future towards. The fears of a future, marred by uncertainty genuinely scared her, a chink in her armour of radiance and self-assurance.
Rina was right, though. Tomorrow would still happen, life would go, even if she didn't think of a future path on the spot. And most of, she had Rina by her side. The strangest, most wonderful, divinely beautiful person she'd ever met in her life, someone who claimed to express so little, yet sung the most beautifully, expressed herself the most dramatically, in ways no one else could think of. “You aren't defined by how you see yourself.” Ai had known her advice was true when she told Rina all those months ago – she'd never thought she'd been hearing it thrown back at her, truer then ever.
She'd be okay. Even if all her fears came true, she'd still ave Rina by her side. And if that didn't mean it was worth trying, no matter what... nothing really did.
As sleep finally overcame her, Ai felt Rina wriggle again in the sleep, resting her head on Ai's left shoulder, Ai grinned to herself, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. Like they'd agreed, the future was scary. You never knew what was going to happen. Well, Ai knew at least one note, one line of her future. If tonight told her anything, Rina would be by her side, as her friend, as a fellow idol, as her partner, for a long, long time.