Chapter Text
Rika was sitting on the soft bed that carried Momoe’s scent, leaning back into it as she stretched her body, letting out a long yawn prominent of exhaustion. She decided to already lay down on it, making herself comfortable as she waited for time to pass by. And just as her mind was drifting off into slumber, engulfed in the scent of the girl she loved, the door was quietly opened. Momoe peaked her head out from the opening, wanting to check on Rika so that in case the girl was already sleeping, Momoe wouldn't risk the chance of waking her up.
But turns out, she didn't have to take that risk at all, given how very much awake Rika was as she lifted up her body, turning to her side to face Momoe as her weight was supported by her arms. Momoe felt the other girl's eyes as she was staring at her with a questioning look.
"What are you waiting for? It's your room, just come in."
"Oh! I just wanted to make sure whether you were already asleep or not, that's all."
As she spoke, Momoe stepped into the dimly lit room, illuminated by only a few fairy lights hung up around her room. She then considered the idea of how they might be bothering to sleep with for Rika, and went on to ask,
"Do you want me to turn them off? The lights, I mean."
For a few seconds Rika thought about the offer, lifting her head up to look at the soft blue lights. She decided to decline the offer, feeling as if the lights added on to the comfortable atmosphere surrounding them. She knew very well that blue was supposed to be cold, unwelcoming, but for some reason, the lights in Momoe’s room were different. They were completely the opposite, warm and welcoming, and more beyond those words.
“Nah, they're fine. They kinda add to the mood.”
Momoe smiled at the response, nodding happily to Rika’s words as she made her way towards the other girl to lay beside her on the bed. The bed creaked slightly at the added weight of Momoe’s body, she tugged up the crumpled up blanket to cover both her and Rika in its warmth. Once again, Rika laid her head on the pillow, nuzzling against it to regain the comfort that was lost upon Momoe’s entrance. She watched the other girl lie down as well, a small smile displaying how pleased she was.
She sighed, her eyes staring up at the ceiling,
“You know, it's been awhile since I've done this with somebody.”
“Oh? Doesn't our lovergirl have enough to choose from?”
Said lovergirl turned her head around, wearing an expression that tried to convey just how upset and angry she was, but it was only that, a try. Instead, Rika found her to look extremely childish with the insulted glare and pout she was putting on. Extremely childish, but also extremely cute.
After noticing how her anger wasn't taken seriously, Momoe gave up on the glare, puffing out the pout. But still, a small frown remained on her face as her eyes looked into the dark that carried the familiar blue hue to it,
“Come on, it's not like that… it's just that, ever since Haruka, well.”
For a moment she paused, exhaling a small breath she didn't know she was holding in,
“This stuff, talking about all sorts of things, playing video games, staying up until it's way too late and falling asleep together…”
As she went on to list memories of past activities with Haruka, a small smile formed on her face, growing to bear a gentle expression. For a few seconds, she let herself remember. Remember the love, the care and fondness she held for these moments. But the reminiscent gaze in her eyes went away in a blink, and returned with a melancholy as they fluttered open.
”I only did that with her.”
During that time, Rika simply watched the girl, carefully listening to every word, every break and breath she'd take. Instinctively, she reached out her hand in search of Momoe’s, to grasp and hold it in her own, brushing her thumb gently over the backside of it.
“Now, you have somebody else to do it with, and that's okay.”
Rika felt a small squeeze against her hand, reassuring her that the gesture was appreciated and welcomed. Momoe turned her body to the side, so she could face her. Green eyes looked at blue ones with an overwhelming sense of gratitude, the warmth carried in them almost melting into the rest of the eyes. Helplessly, Rika could only gaze back into them, feeling a blush creep up on her face as she seemingly got lost in them. Suddenly, she felt a little too hot under the blanket shared between her and Momoe.
Soon, a thick air of comfort and affection developed around the pair. Eyes now roamed around the face of the other, discovering small scars carried from their battles in the other realm, and other things, such as specks from a paintbrush, painted in light browns on the taller girl’s face.
Rika blinked, realising that those specks were freckles sprawled across Momoes face, reaching her cheeks, nose and a bit of her eyes and forehead. A once soft gaze, filled with love and admiration now turned into a squint caused by disbelief over what she saw.
“Since when did you have freckles? And why haven't I noticed until now??”
At the question presented, Momoe rapidly blinked with her eyes wide in surprise, stopping after a while to just tear them away from Rika. She felt heat spread out quickly through her whole face, glowing red in embarrassment as she felt the other girls eyes stare harder at her in obvious confusion. With a shaky voice, she stammered out her response,
“Uhm, I usually cover them up so… that's why you haven't seen them, even though I've had them since forever.”
Not quite satisfied with the answer Momoe offered, Rika pressed on,
“Why do you cover them up then?? Isn't that kinda a hassle to do every morning?”
Momoe’s hand slipped out of Rika’s, so she could fiddle with it as she usually did when a feeling of nervousness passed her. Her eyes still did not meet the curious blue ones that looked at her, awaiting an answer to the questions asked earlier. Instead, she fixated them on her hands, watching the movements of her own hands. In hopes to release some of the tension building up in her insides, she chuckled a bit.
“Yeah, it is kinda a hassle to do it every morning… I just cover them up because, well, they don't really fit me, you know?”
Once curious eyes now stared in offense, the overall expression carried on the blonde’s face scrunching up, as if the words spoken by Momoe were just as bitter and sour as lemons. And so, with little belief in the last thing that was said to her, she cried out in upset,
“That’s stupid as hell! What kinda dumbass told you that?!”
As a way to tame some of her anger, Rika let frustration pass by letting out a heavy sigh,
“Seriously now, you can't tell me you genuinely dislike having freckles.”
The clarity of Rika’s voice took Momoe back, snapping her out of her anxious state of self-defensiveness. Her eyes flashing up to look at the girl laying beside her, who held up her eyes fixated on her own pair. Momoe could feel her facade slowly crumbling under the strong stare, falling apart into little pieces. But before she could succumb to the destruction of it, she forced herself to tear her eyes away, gulping down the knot that formed in her throat.
“I… I don't really mind them if I'm completely honest… It's just that, well, girls from my class were talking to me, asking how I get my hair to look so soft, when suddenly, one girl pointed them out.”
She knew very well that during her ‘confession’ her eyes kept pacing around, changing their object of viewing ever so often. She knew very well how Rika’s glare was growing stronger, irritation building up more and more as she went on to explain herself. Nevertheless, she continued recalling the event to Rika,
“After that, they stared at me for a moment so they could notice them. They… got weirdly excited about it? I don't know, it's just that after it, one of them told me they didn't really fit me, since cute stuff doesn't really fit me and all.”
Silence settled it, Momoe patiently waited for a reaction from Rika, feeling as if the girl’s stare softened up a bit, throwing away the anger and irritation which filled her up before. Daring to check on the blonde’s face and the exact emotion she displayed, she moved her eyes to look at her, finding blue eyes still fixated on her with an expression unreadable for Momoe.
Suddenly, she could feel hands reaching up to cup her cheeks, realizing how Rika’s face was now closer than it was before. From the sudden surprise and closeness her cheeks started to heat up, a blush forming under the warm small hands that held them softly.
“I'm going to say this once, so listen carefully.”
Momoe nodded along, confirming to Rika her attention was fixated on the following words.
“They’re wrong. Dead wrong. Cute stuff fits you, very much even. So, going by that logic, those cute and adorable freckles of yours also fit you very very much.”
The tall girl could only watch as the next moment passed. She felt a soft stroke on her cheek, which filled her with a warmth reminiscent of a heartfelt welcome. The pillow quietly rustled as Rika lifted her head, getting even closer to Momoe, not stopping until they could share the same air. Lips close to each other, one small tiny motion away from pressing against one another, which is when Rika paused, giving Momoe a gentle look as if she was asking for permission.
Momoe lifted up one of her hands, slowly brushing against Rika’s cheek with nervous uncertainty on how to go on, going on to reach her neck and settling there with a tiny tug. Eyes fluttered shut, the world around them grew quiet, ceasing to exist.
Next thing she knew, was that she felt an indescribable feeling. With a swoop, soft lips pressed against her’s. The love and care made her feel like slimy goo, melting under the overwhelming amount of affection that seeped into her being. She could feel how Rika’s hand trailed into her hair, gently brushing thru it. The comfort that came with this overcame her like an ocean wave, drowning her in it’s love and warmth, leaving her with tears almost forming in her eyes. She felt stupid. Stupidly smitten.
But soon, the wave drew back, sparks of excitement fading away.
Rika broke the kiss, laying her head back down into the pillow, still remaining close to Momoe. Her hand continued to brush through the soft streaks of short auburn hair as she gazed into grass green eyes, which widened after a few seconds passed, realizing what exactly just happened in the last few moments.
The content smile on Rika’s face broke into a laugh, giggling at the shocked expression splayed across the other girl’s face. Momoe was at loss for words, not knowing how to respond to the tender kiss from before, and not knowing how to respond to the amused giggles coming from Rika as of now.
So, she simply continued to stare at the blonde, brows knitting up in confusion, eyes wide as the full moon that shines down this night, her mind remaining blank.
“What, cat got your tongue?”
Rika’s voice rang through the small fits of giggles which were dying down. It took Momoe a second to register the words that were said to her, finally getting a response out of her dry throat,
“Rika…”
The name passed her mouth like a quiet, small grumble. Rika met the small cry from embarrassment with a chuckle, ruffling up the hair of her girlfriend, turning the freshly washed hair into a messy blob.
“Come on, you know I’m just teasing you.”
A sigh escaped Momoe’s lips, rolling her eyes back,
“Yeah, I know, that’s just how it is with you.”
A once annoyed, frustrated face now carried familiar affection. Furrowed brows relaxed, settling back into place, eyes taking on a calm look with eyelids coming down halfways. Instead of the previous shock, tiredness and exhaustion was shown on them, which was also shown in the following yawn from Momoe.
Rika removed her hand from the soft auburn strands, moving down with her arms to capture the tired girl in a light embrace.
“Wanna go and dream a little dream, sleepyhead?”
“But you’re not even tired yet.”
Rika gave out a long, exaggerated yawn,
“Says who? I’m extremely tired from constantly losing at that kart racing game earlier.”
“Oh come on, you're still upset about that? I offered you to play something different when you lost for the third time.”
“I’m not upset, I’m actually super duper exhausted and in need of much deserved sleep.”
With a sigh, Momoe admitted defeat and gave up on staying up longer with Rika. She nudged herself into the mattress, trying to find the most comfortable spot, pulling the blanket up that moved a bit down from past actions, covering both of them up. Her hand found a place to rest on Rika’s waist, gently tugging her closer so they could cuddle while drifting off into sweet slumber.
“Well, good night then. Sleep well.”
“Mhm, you too. Good night.”
Silence settled in, eyes fluttered shut, breaths slowed down. Both of them intertwined in a hold, sharing each of their warmth with each other, creating comfort and peace. During this calm scene, Rika moved her head away from the pillow, laying it near Momoe’s chest. Shifting her head slightly in search of the sound she was so curious to hear, waiting for it to appear, as she finally felt it.
badum, badum, badum
It was faint, but still, a soft rhythmic thud filled her ears. She smiled to herself, being satisfied with finding what she searched for. Her arms wrapped around the sleeping girl tighter, still trying to maintain a gentle touch while doing so. In slow, calm motions she started rubbing circles on Momoe’s back. She breathed in, her senses meeting the scent of freshly cut sweet green apples, held it in, and breathed the air out.
After finally being at peace, she closed her eyes, letting sleep overcome her.