Work Text:
I’m meeting Hisame-chan at the park.
I’ll be fine.
It’s okay.
The problem wasn’t in the words that Nana spoke. To her credit as an actress, the way in which she delivered her words were convincing enough. That is, convincing enough to everybody else but Junna. What gave Nana away was her smile, a smile that didn’t quite reach the emerald green in her eyes.
It was Nana’s lopsided smile that had Junna bolting out of the Starlight Dorms after her.
It was Nana’s smile that had Junna in the position that she was in currently.
She was at the park where Nana and Hisame were meant to meet up. She could see the two from her hiding spot. To her knowledge, the spot where she was crouched behind a row of shrubs, was inconspicuous. It wasn’t. If either of the pair were actually paying attention to what was across them, they’d see a head of purple hair and a pair of golden bells. Luckily for Junna, both Nana and Hisame were fully engaged in their conversation.
From her position Junna couldn’t quite hear what was being spoken between the pair, which was something she was thankful for. It would be impolite to eavesdrop on their conversation. She wasn’t there to intrude. Junna wanted to be there for Nana, should she need it, that is.
The little things about Nana that Junna was beginning to understand was that she had the tendency to bottle things up. To put the needs of others above her own. To choose to isolate rather than seek help from others. Junna herself knew how hard it was to ask for help when she needed it. That’s why she was here. She didn’t want Nana to feel that way. Junna wanted to be there to support Nana, to remind her that her feelings were just as important.
The other thing was that when it came to Honami-san, Nana always had this faraway look in her eyes. Nana had yet to fully speak about her past, a past that was shrouded in white but from what Junna could gather was that whatever had happened between Nana and Honami-san was… complicated to say the least. Although their reunion during the exchange program had ended on amicable terms, this would the first time that the two would formally meet. Junna could only hope that things would end just as well this time.
But if Junna was only there to show her support for Nana than why was she hiding? It’s not like she had any reason to be ashamed of what she was doing. She was there to support her roommate. Her friend. Her…
Her…
They never really talked about what they were. Or if they were anything more than just friends.
Regardless, Junna didn’t need any reason to help someone that may be in need. This was just the responsible thing to do. At least, that’s what she kept telling herself.
The bespectacled girl was too deep in thought to notice the individual that was walking towards her hiding spot. Before Junna could take notice, the approaching individual was already next to her. It was too late for the poor girl.
“Hoshimi-san? What are you doing down there?”
“AHHH!!!” Shrieked Junna, jumping in surprise. She turned to her head to look towards the cause of her sudden increase in heart rate.
It was Yanagi Koharu. She stood there unphased by the noise that came from Junna, looking down towards the girl with nothing to prompt an answer to her question except for the intense look in her crimson eyes. Junna stood up as to not make this encounter any more awkward than it already has been.
“Yanagi-san, hello, yes. Uh- I was on my way to the library to pick up a reference book and uh- ahh- and it would seem I had dropped something on the ground. I was just looking for it!” Junna adjusted her glasses. It’s not like she had a reason to lie. But how could she explain the position she was in and to someone she barely knew. She pinched the bridge of her nose. There was no way Yanagi-san would believe that ridiculous excuse.
To Junna’s surprise, Koharu nodded in understanding.
“I see. I would expect nothing less from Seisho’s class representative. I admire your dedication to your studies.”
“Thank y-”
“Your dedication is commendable, but it is not above your health. I would caution against wearing that kind of footwear in below zero temperature.” The quiet girl gazed pointedly down at Junna’s choice of footwear.
It was only then that Junna noticed that in her haste to follow Nana to the park, that she forgot to change out of her dormitory slippers. She must have some sort of increased tolerance level, likely due to Karen, because only now did she feel the beginning of a headache forming.
“Thank you, Yanagi-san. I will take that into consideration next time I’m outside.” Readjusting her glasses again, Junna tried to change the subject to not further embarrass herself. “Anyways, what are you doing here at the park?”
“I am waiting for Hisame. She wanted to confess something important to Daiba-san.”
“C-confess!?” Junna’s heart jolted.
A confession? Honami-san wanted to confess to Nana? Was there really something going on between Honami-san and Nana? Did Nana feel the same?
_ _ _ Nana?
No.
No. She had no right to make that assumption.
“Yes, Hisame was quite adamant about telling Daiba-san how she felt.” Koharu remain as stoic as ever, even when the topic was apparently about the matters of the heart. She was calmer than the girl across from her, who was predicting every possible outcome on the two at the park. Not noticing Junna’s distressed state, Koharu took Junna’s silence as indication of the end of their conversation and turned towards the two and waited patiently for them to finish up of their own conversation.
The pair in question had suddenly stood up and looked towards the sky. It had begun to snow; a single snowflake paved the way for more to come. Both girls reached out towards the flakes of white, likely remembering their shared history. But the purpose of this meeting wasn’t to rewrite history or relive it, today was the first step towards the future. To a future that was filled with much more colour than the two could have ever imagined on that fateful day when they had first met.
Junna was shocked out of her distressed state by the next turn of events.
Hisame took hold of Nana’s sleeve, gently tugging the taller girl down to her height. Nana, confused by Hisame’s actions but didn’t see a reason to refuse, obediently leaned down. Despite the attempt to decrease the height difference between the two, the shorter of the pair still had to lean up to reach the taller girl. Although the two were technically alone, Hisame still cupped her hands around the side of Nana’s head, whispered something into Nana’s ear. And kissed the blonde’s cheek. Hisame with pink cheeks of her own, left the shocked girl frozen in place. She quickly walked away and headed straight towards Junna and Koharu. Junna tried to hide her disbelief of the events that had just transpired with a strained smile that she had hoped was convincing enough to the unfamiliar pair.
“Koharu-san, thank you for waiting and for offering to walk me back to the-” Hisame looked up in surprise when she noticed that it wasn’t just the two of them. “Hoshimi-san! What a surprise to see you here.”
“Yes, it would appear that I am quite the enigma today…” Laughing at her own attempt at making the situation any less awkward didn’t help like she thought it would have. She cleared her throat and continued. “I was telling Yanagi-san here about how I was just on my way to the li-”
Junna stopped. No. She couldn’t do this anymore. If this was going to work, she had to be honest. And the first person she was going to be honest with was herself.
“I came here because I was worried about Nana. It was nice to see you both but if you’ll excuse me, I’ll be seeing Nana now.” She quickly bid the two farewell and walked towards the girl in question, who was still standing in place where Hisame had left her.
-
“Nana!”
“Junna-chan! What- But I thought-” Nana was at a loss for words. She wasn’t sure where to start. First, Hisame-chan surprised her like that and now Junna-chan. “What are you doing here?”
Junna could just barely hear the next part, “You didn’t have to come.”
“I-I know I didn’t have to! I’m here because I want to be here!” Junna’s determination evident in her jade green eyes. “I was worried about you. About how you’d be after your meeting with Honami-san.”
“Junna-chan… Geez you worry too much. Look, I’m fine.” Nana chucked and held her arms wide to show Junna exactly how okay she was, physically that is. “The talk with Hisame-chan was really nice. I’m glad that we can still be friends.”
If things were as okay as Nana claimed them to be than Junna would have stopped there. But something about Nana’s smile still wasn’t right. Something was still bothering the tall girl. And Junna didn’t like to leave things unresolved.
“Nana…” Junna paused, trying to find the right words to properly convey her feelings to Nana. “It’s okay to rely on us, you know. You’re always looking out for us. Taking care of us. But we’re okay on our own. We can stand on our own feet. Even Karen has been getting better at acting every day and she’s not just saying it anymore, she’s truly giving it her all. So, please let us be there for you. Because you are just as important to us as we are to you. Would you let us take care of you for once?”
“Would you let me take care of you for once?”
It wasn’t Junna’s intention to make Nana cry but she knew that when the girl did cry, that meant that she was ready to be the most open, the most vulnerable with herself. Nana was crying and to Junna that was sign of progress.
“J-Junna-chan.” Nana’s voice croaked as she tried to wipe away her tears to no avail. “I’m sorry, I just didn’t want to be a burden. I-I didn’t know… I didn’t know if I was ready to ask for help.”
“Because you’ve always been on your own?” Junna offered a sentiment that she too felt quite often.
“Yes… But I know now that I’m not alone anymore. I have everybody around me. My Junna-chan is right here after all!”
There it was. The return of Nana’s bright smile. To Junna, Nana’s smile was brighter than any star in the sky. This smile was one that wasn’t forced or held any weight behind it, this smile was one that the bespectacled girl would never get tired of seeing.
“E-Exactly,” Stuttered Junna, she was still stunned by how brightly Nana shined. “so, if there’s anything you’d like to ask me, please feel free to do so.”
“Actually well… there is something I’d like to-to ask you, Junna-chan.” Nana suddenly became shy, lowering her voice just so that it could only be heard by the two of them. “So, the meeting with Hisame-chan was good, great even. I think we were able to understand each other much better now. But at the end, right before you showed up, she wanted to thank me for introducing her to theatre and she…”
Nana paused for a moment; it was almost long enough that Junna thought Nana had lost her train of thought.
“She kissed you?” Junna asked.
“Y-You saw?” Nana’s eyes looked anywhere else but at Junna. She wasn’t sure why she felt embarrassed by it but that didn’t deny the fact that she did.
Junna frantically waved her hands in the air. Now it was her turn to feel embarrassed, it’s not like she meant to snoop. “I-I did! I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to intrude on your meeting.”
“It’s okay… It might be easier this way since you know.” The taller girl took hold of Junna’s hand as she turned red. She was unsure of how to ask Junna the next part.
“Would you kiss me? Right here.” Nana pointed at the spot where Hisame had kissed her just moments ago with her free hand. “I want to make sure of something.”
“Nana!” Junna swore that all these surprises were not good for her heart. Noticing the serious look in Nana’s emerald greens, she knew that the taller girl was not kidding around but she had to be sure. “This isn’t a joke, right?”
“Please.” Nana softly pleaded.
“Okay…” She squeezed her eyes shut and leaned up towards Nana. “Here I go.”
Soft.
Warm.
Laughter?
No… She wouldn’t. Nana would never play a trick this cruel on her.
“No, no. It’s not what you think.” It was almost as if Nana read her mind. “I’m laughing because I should have known this from the start.”
“Known what?”
“That only my Junna-chan could make it beat this fast.” Nana placed her hand against her chest.
My Junna-chan.
It wasn’t only Nana’s heart that was racing. No matter how many times Nana said the words ‘My Junna-chan’, it was always the same feeling and she had hoped that it would never change. Junna had hoped that one day it would be the same for Nana. That maybe one day, she would be the one to say it too.
My Nana.
“Nana,” Junna tightened her grip on Nana’s hand. “let’s go home.”
“Junna-chan, before that,” Nana was hesitant about the next part, “can I ask about your shoes?”
“You cannot!” Junna groaned, just when she thought her headache had finally went away. “We’re going home now!”
-
“Hoshimi-san is a responsible girl.”
Koharu nodded. What little she knew of the bespectacled girl; she at least knew that much was a fact.
“I hope that she’ll be a good senpai to her.” Koharu didn’t elaborate but Hisame knew what she meant. “She reminds me of a certain someone…”
Confused and curious, the shorter girl asked, “And who may that be?”
“You know her.” Again, Koharu didn’t elaborate anymore but this time Hisame wasn’t so sure she understood what the other girl meant.
They walked back to the Seiran dorms quietly, simple enjoying the rare moment of silence without a certain loud but loveable individual.
For once, Koharu was the one to break the silence. “You forgot your gloves.”
“Ah, well I guess I didn’t expect it would snow today.”
Koharu took hold of Hisame’s hand. “They’ll get dry in the cold.”
Not wanting to end Koharu’s thoughtful gesture by reminding her that she was used to this, in fact she welcomed it, winter being her favourite season after all. Hisame simply squeezed the quiet girl’s hand and held on to her tightly until they got back to the dorms.