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Haruka and Makoto sat shoulder to shoulder on the sand, with the cool night air tickling their naked chests. After the life-threatening rescue mission Makoto and then Haruka went on, they were happy to sit in silence for a little bit. But that didn’t stop Haruka from looking over at her partner, who she knew was shaken up about the ordeal. Her heart was still pumping from earlier, when she dragged Makoto to land and almost had to perform CPR on her.
She decided that it was better to just ask then try to telepathically get across to Makoto her worry. Haruka sucked in a breath.
Makoto turned to look at her. “When I saw Rei drowning… the memory of that day came back to me. It was frightening, and I froze up.” Haruka expected the self-blame underlying her words. She reached out and held the other girl’s hand, hoping it would be comforting. “It’s not your fault.”
Makoto leaned into the touch of her partner. “Sorry,” she let out, instinctively.
Haruka squeezed her hand. “I’m here for you,” she reminded her. “I’ll always listen.”
They stayed curled up next to each other for a bit, a comfortable silence floating into the air once again. Makoto was glad she was here with Haruka, because she knew she got it. She was there for her back then, when the news about the fisherman’s boat came in, when the people dressed in white walked across the boardwalk. Haruka had held her hand in a way that told her instantly how sorry she was.
Makoto drew lazy circles on Haruka’s palm a couple times before Nagisa and Rei found them, who she waved over smiling. Haruka got up and kept Makoto close to her. Her consideration made the smile on Makoto’s face grow a little more.
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They looked around the abandoned rest house, Makoto being on edge the whole time. Haruka tried to not pull Nagisa’s leg about ghosts when Makoto chilled against her. It took very little from Haruka to. She kept her pinkie linked with Makoto’s as the group ventured forward.
Nagisa pointed at the kitchen they had found. “I’m starving,” he patted his stomach. “Let’s find something to eat!” They roamed the room, before Rei stiffened.
“You’ve got this, Rei!” He encouraged.
Rei shivered in front of the rusty fridge. They muttered something under their breath before throwing the doors open. Nothing was there. “Oh, thank goodness,” they sighed.
“Hey, look!” Haruka held up some mysterious cans and meat up in her arms.
Haruka had found mackerel and pineapple somewhere, serving it out to her friends and placing the pineapple smack dab on top of the fish with such skill it left the group speechless. They looked down at the food and aired their grievances before taking a bite. Surprisingly, Makoto didn’t vomit. It was actually edible enough that she was able to finish it off.
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After the way too personal game Nagisa wanted to play and telling her teammates about what had happened, why Makoto was acting strange, Haruka pulled Makoto aside. “Are you sure that was okay?”
“Yes, it was.” It was more than relieving. There was a weight on her shoulders that eased itself once she let her friends in on what was bothering her.
Haruka moved in and bumped shoulders with her. “Let’s go.” She gave her a warm smile. She extended out her hand.
Makoto couldn’t have been more happy to grab her hand and follow Haruka out.