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Tsubaki was currently standing in front of that person's door. She paused for a moment while taking a breath because she ran to this place. After calming down enough, she rang the doorbell.
Not long after, the person came, inviting Tsubaki in.
"Tsubaki-chan, come on in,"
"Sorry to disturb you Hiiro,"
They entered the living room, and at that moment Hiiro asked.
"What's the matter Tsubaki-chan? You look so scared. Tell me about it."
Tsubaki fell silent. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly; trying to calm herself down.
After that, she then told her what happened.
"Maybe I was a witch unknowingly and because of that, I hurt Aimoto-san. So, can you help me Hiiro?"
Instead of receiving an answer, Tsubaki was confronted by Hiiro who was looking grumpy after hearing Tsubaki's story.
After clearing her throat and regaining her composure, she opened her voice.
"Listen to this carefully Tsubaki-chan,"
Tsubaki looked at Hiiro seriously, making the girl feel a little uncomfortable. However, she continued.
"You don't need to worry, and you're not a witch either. You could say that what Rinku-chan is experiencing is something... natural... under certain conditions,"
Tsubaki looked incredulous.
"The point is, don't worry and just behave normally with her. Okay?"
Giving up, she accepted Hiiro's advice. After that, she said goodbye as she did not want to disturb Hiiro's rest time.
It was getting dark, she decided to stop by the supermarket to buy the ingredients she would use later.
Fate brought the two of them together. Inside the supermarket, she met Rinku who also seemed to be shopping for ingredients.
From what she saw, Rinku seemed to be okay. Maybe what Hiiro said was true. But she was still confused about the meaning of the call earlier this afternoon.
She decided to greet Rinku to confirm her condition. She tapped Rinku on the shoulder and called her name. That immediately made Rinku jump in surprise. Tsubaki hurriedly apologized.
"It's okay Tsubaki-chan. Oh yeah, what's the need to call me?" she said putting on an innocent face.
"About the call earlier this afternoon, are you okay? Because you hung up quickly and when I tried to call you back, you didn't answer at all,"
"Eh?" Rinku immediately checked her phone, but found that it was out of power. "Ahh, sorry Tsubaki-chan. My phone ran out of power and I haven't had time to check it again. I'm sorry,"
"So, what was the meaning of your call?"
"I-I was told to call you, but because I was surprised I reflexively hung up. But, I'm okay Tsubaki-chan, so you don't have to worry," she said showing her bright smile.
Seeing that made Tsubaki breathe a sigh of relief. At least, she was sure that one of her acquaintances was not in trouble.
She was about to leave and pay for her groceries, until her eyes caught some instant noodles in Rinku's shopping cart.
"Aimoto-san, what did you buy there?"
"Instant noodles?"
"I mean, are you going to eat those for dinner?"
Rinku scratched her head as she grinned, "Ehehe, I usually cook myself, but due to some things I didn't have time, so I decided to buy instant noodles,"
Tsubaki looked thoughtful, then suggested something. "How about you stop by my room, I'll cook for you, my apartment happens to be nearby,"
"E-ehh, bu-but I don't want to trouble you,"
"I insist Aimoto-san. At least it's still better than eating instant noodles. So, let's go,"
"Ye-yes,"
After they paid for the goods (with Rinku insisting on splitting the bill), they headed to Tsubaki's apartment.
Without wasting much time they started making the food. Tsubaki initially told Rinku to wait, but she insisted on helping. Saying that she didn't want to just sit around.
The cooking session began. They did it without making any conversation. Which made Tsubaki feel a little strange, because it was unusual for someone like Rinku not to make any conversation. However, she decided to ignore it and focus on what she was doing.
"Ouch," came the sound of a groan from someone beside her, as fresh blood flowed from her hand. Tsubaki quickly pulled Rinku's hand away and lick her finger to stop the bleeding.
After the bleeding stopped, Tsubaki immediately realized what she had done and immediately turned around while holding her chest which was pounding.
After that incident, they ate dinner with a more awkward atmosphere.
Afterward, Rinku thanked her and was about to leave. However...
"...Why don't you stay the night here, since it's getting late too...but, that's if you want to. I can also take you home," Tsubaki said suddenly. A blush appeared on her face.
Not wanting to inconvenience Tsubaki, she accepted her invitation.
The futon was set up, and Rinku immediately laid down and fell into a deep sleep, remembering all the events of the day.
Tsubaki was also about to sleep, before she was startled again by what Rinku said in her sleep.
"...I...love you...Tsubaki...chan,"
Successfully making Tsubaki unable to sleep that night.