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Mafuyu sits on the bench, fiddling with her hands. What a coincidence, it’s the same bench Kanade found her on when she got sick that time.
What’s also similar, is the way she feels. She doesn’t feel physically sick, and all things considered, she does feel better compared to that time. However, just like then, her hands feel so cold.
She’s touched them to her arm, and in actuality, they aren’t all that cold. Just a tad chilly, but they feel like there’s ice in her blood.
What could it be? It is autumn, but she has warm clothes on and she’s all bundled up. As for emotionally, nothing truly bad happened today, she just went to school as always. So why is she sitting on the bench, hands freezing, and heart freezing too?
“Mafuyu?”
She looks up to see a familiar face, the girl she loves, Kanade Yoisaki. The ice on her heart seems to loosen a bit upon hearing her soft voice.
“Kanade.” she greets. They stay silent for a second, until Mafuyu speaks up.
“What are you doing here?”
Kanade’s expression turns solemn. “I was visiting my father.” Mafuyu looks at her curiously. The ice on her heart loosens again.
“How was he?”
She perks up a bit and manages a soft smile. “He didn’t really remember me…but he seemed better.”
Her smile grows, seemingly happy that Mafuyu asked her, before falling and changing to a curious look.
“How about you, Mafuyu?”
Mafuyu sighs. She’s not really sure what she was doing here in the first place. She just remembers her hands feeling cold, and her heart along with it. It got too much to ignore, so she sat down.
“My heart…felt cold.”
Kanade gives her a sympathetic look. For a moment, it looks like she’s choosing her next words carefully, before deciding on what to say.
“Alright. Do you want me to sit next to you?”
Mafuyu hums. It feels almost like there’s a strong sense of stay in that one hum. How can something like that be expressed through a simple hum, though?
Kanade obliges, and sits close to her, so close their thighs are touching. The ice seems to loosen again, but her hands remain cold.
Neither of them speak, just sit in silence for a minute. It’s a bit refreshing, being with Kanade like this. Her thoughts are interrupted, however, by Kanade shivering.
She looks over to see her clutching her arms, and shaking slightly. Ah, Mafuyu thought. It is fall, and while finally putting on something other than sweats for once, she’s still underdressed. She sighs and gets up. Kanade looks up at her.
“You’re cold, Kanade.”
“Mm…”
She reaches out a hand to help her up. Kanade takes it, and Mafuyu wraps her arms around her, and lets her girlfriend warm up a bit.
This is…nice, I think…
Mafuyu feels warm for a second. Holding Kanade always makes her feel better. The way she buries her face into Mafuyu’s neck, and how she can feel her smile against her skin.
Eventually Kanade lets go, and she looks a bit less pale.
Still, they can’t stay here or Kanade will catch a cold.
“We should get somewhere a bit warmer.”
“Yeah…it’s way too cold here..”
“We could go to your house?”
Kanade perks up at this. Mafuyu feels like this truly is similar to that day. Kanade finding her on a bench, and Mafuyu going to her house…
Kanade nods, and smiles a bit.
For a second, Mafuyu feels warmth again. The ice loosened before, but now, she can swear she feels it melting.
However, the most important thing is getting both her and Kanade somewhere warm. “Let’s go, then.”
“Mm.”
———
Mafuyu and Kanade breathe a sigh of relief as they set foot inside her house. Kanade because she was cold, Mafuyu because the sight of Kanade’s house soothes her soul.
Kanade still shivers a bit, however. Mafuyu makes a mental note to buy some warm clothes for her sometime.
“Are you alright?” she asks. She feels like there is emotion behind those words, but her voice comes out monotone.
Kanade hums and they make their way to her bedroom. Mafuyu takes off her coat and sweater, and sits down on the bed, Kanade sitting beside her.
“Hey, Mafuyu?”
“Hm?”
“You said your heart felt cold earlier. Did…something happen?”
Ah. She had forgotten about that, her mind occupied with trying to get the both of them to a warm place. But, her heart and hands still feel cold. Less than before, but still cold.
“I don’t know. I just…feel cold. My heart…my hands.”
“Mafuyu…”
Kanade stares a bit, then hums, then moves closer to her, taking her hands in her own. She gives her a kind look, then presses a kiss on her right hand, then another on her left. Then, finally, one on her palm.
And suddenly, Mafuyu feels a warm sensation. Kanade’s hand is cold, but it makes her feel warm nonetheless. All the ice has mel-No, that’s not right. A good amount of the ice has melted. Her hands feel warm, and so does her heart, as if a tiny flame that was Kanade’s kisses was melting the ice that cut so deep into her.
There aren’t many words being said. But Mafuyu doesn’t mind. She simply sits there, holding Kanade’s hand. It’s a similar feeling to when they played the piano together after coming back from Shibuya Festa, or when Kanade held her hand that time in Phoenix Wonderland.
After a long silence, Kanade speaks.
“Mafuyu?”
“Hm?”
“Are you feeling better?”
A pause.
Then, she opens her mouth.
“I’m not completely sure. But…I’d like to hold hands like this just a bit longer.”
Kanade smiles.
“Alright.”
Mafuyu kept comparing today to that time when she got sick and Kanade found her, but today’s different. Compared to back then, she has grown.
So, she simply rests her head on Kanade’s shoulder, and lets her melt the bitter ice, and warm her cold hand.