Chapter Text
As it started, so it ended. The revues concluded and the broken tower grew smaller in the distance as they took the train back.
Junna sat next to Nana, quietly watching the other girls in the cart. Unlike the way there, this time they all chose to sit with those they were closest to, each of them wrapped up in their own little bubble.
Kaoruko and Futaba dozed off leaning against each other, Karen was quietly crying into Hikari’s shoulder while Mahiru rubbed her back, trying to calm her down, and Claudine and Maya were tentatively holding hands while avoiding eye contact.
As for Nana… she’d been quiet, brows knit and eyes focused on a fixed spot ahead, though Junna supposed that shouldn’t be surprising. Whatever happened during the revues, whatever resolution each of them had come to, it was a lot to think about. They hadn’t quite yet graduated — inevitably, they’d go back to their shared dorm rooms and pretend as if nothing had happened until it was time to leave. Or, that was how she assumed it would go, the same way they had avoided talking about the giraffe's auditions in their second year.
But she looked around again, and her troubled expression mimicked Nana’s.
They wouldn’t ignore it. They weren’t — she could see it, and if her own revue with Nana was any indication and all of them focused on their relationships with each other…
Maya grinned to herself and whispered something to Claudine, who gasped and smacked her on the shoulder with a furious blush and a “Méchante va!” that broke the melancholic mood for a moment. At least things seemed to have worked out well for those two.
Out of all of them, Karen appeared to be the most shaken, but judging by the gentle smiles that Hikari and Mahiru were giving each other over the girl’s sobbing form, Junna guessed it was the good kind of shaken, the kind that meant acceptance, growth, catharsis.
Nana had cried, too.
But, in a fashion that she’d come to expect of Nana, she regained her composure all too quickly. As soon as their revue concluded she closed in on herself, thoughts facing inward, and Junna couldn’t help but wonder what was going through that head of hers.
How much did she really know about Nana?
Over two years of living together — for her, but for Nana it had been more than that. Much, much more than that.
Until today, Junna had never seen her this driven, this aggressive, this…terrifying. This went far beyond what she thought a stage girl was capable of. It blurred the line between acting and reality, between what was a part she had played for the revues, and what she really, truly felt.
She knew Nana was the best of them. She must have been if she kept winning the auditions over and over, and over again…
But only now did she fully come to realize what that meant.
She couldn’t read Nana. Couldn’t ever understand her, really. She’d never been one to pry, letting Nana share as much as she felt comfortable with; never pushing, be it about mundane things, or her past, or the auditions and what repeating the same year over and over actually did to her.
This time, though, she wanted to know. Because Nana had said some hurtful things, and some confusing things, and Junna was finally forced to confront how much she didn’t know.
If they were meant to part ways, she didn’t want it to be like this.
The train rattled on.
The walk to their dorm was a slow one, the weight of their shared experience keeping them from talking for most of the way.
Except for Maya and Claudine, who were walking three steps behind everyone else and bickering more than ever. What in the world happened during their revue to bring them even closer? She didn’t think it was possible, they had already earned themselves the reputation of the most notorious pair of Seisho — notorious for only having eyes for each other. And yet.
Junna bit her lip. It wasn’t like her to wish herself into someone else’s shoes, but if Nana and she could be like that…
She sighed. Their relationships were so different she couldn’t even picture what it’d be like. She felt like she knew less about Nana than ever.
Once they entered their dorm’s building and began changing their shoes, Mahiru spoke up.
“I think we’ll call it an early night,” she said and glanced at Hikari for confirmation. She received a nod.
“That’s a good idea,” Futaba agreed while trying to shrug Kaoruko off her back. “Crazy day,” she summed up.
“Sure was,” Karen said with a tearful grin, earning herself another head pat from Mahiru.
Junna looked at Nana, trying to gauge her reaction, but to no avail.
She couldn’t help but feel that Nana and she got the short end of the stick in terms of what their revue led to. At least, so she guessed judging by how the others acted around each other.
Even though they undeniably did make some progress, putting some things out in the open and deciding to move on with newfound resolve, Junna didn’t quite feel like they were done. She had questions. And doubts.
Did Nana really accept their conclusion? Or was it another act that she failed to see through?
Too soon, they reached their respective rooms.
It wasn’t even that late, but Junna guessed the others also had things to talk through. Or do. She didn’t really want to dwell on what the two top stars would be up to, she saw Maya follow Claudine into her room…
The door closed with a click after she entered, and she turned around.
Her chest constricted at the sight.
Nana crumbled in front of her, eyes momentarily glazing over, overfilled with a deep sadness that took Junna aback — like she’d been carrying all the pain in the world and was on the verge of giving up. She had to do something, tell Nana it’d be alright, reach out, step forward-
“Nana-”
“Junna-chan.” Nana gave her a shaky smile. “I’m sorry. My reproduction ended but I still-” She interrupted herself with a sob, tears again streaming down her face.
Junna moved without thinking and brought her hands up to Nana’s face, trying to brush the tears away with her thumbs. “Did you hold it in until we were alone?” she asked carefully, and Nana nodded slightly.
How could she possibly push Nana for answers when she was this fragile? This wasn’t the right time. This Nana needed comforting, not questioning.
She reached down for Nana’s hand and led her towards her own bed.
“Junna-chan…?”
Even though Junna would usually try and look for the right words to say, a quote she thought might resonate at the moment, she felt like it wouldn’t be right this time. Not after the revue they’d shared.
Nana’s words still rang in her head, cold and sharp as the dual blades she wielded. They nagged at her and filled her mind with doubts, but she tried to push them aside for now.
Trying a different approach, she let go of Nana’s hand and sat down on the mattress, spreading her arms towards the girl in silent invitation.
What she didn’t expect was for Nana to tackle her with such strength she ended up pinned to the bed under her whole weight.
“Nana- you’re heavy!” Junna forced out before she ran out of breath.
“Sorry!”
Nana quickly propped herself up on her arms, bashful. She laid down on her side instead, and Junna mirrored the action, her hands wrapping around Nana and pulling her back in. Nana returned the embrace in a heartbeat, strong arms tightening their hold while she tucked her head under Junna’s chin.
How could this be the same person Junna saw on stage today? The one who fought them all so fiercely?
“Thank you, Junna-chan,” Nana mumbled against her neck as her breathing calmed a bit, and Junna wondered about the full extent of what Nana meant by that.
She’d ask, but not right now.
And maybe she had needed comforting, too, because she could feel her own barriers coming undone in their shared warmth. A knot lodged itself in her throat and she suspected that if she tried to speak, her voice would come out shaky.
She closed her eyes and hugged Nana tighter.
Tomorrow.