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It was another day in the Astral Express…or so Dan Heng and March 7th thought when later that afternoon, their redhead navigator paid them an unexpected visit.
“Heya Himeko!” March greeted with her usual friendly wave. From the other side of the table sat her polar opposite Dan Heng who remained cool and collected, not bothering to chime in as he was preoccupied with his book.
“What brings you here?” She asked aloud, eyes shining. “Oh, let me guess! We’ve got another mission coming up?”
Himeko made a strained smile. “No, I’m afraid we won’t be arriving at our next destination for a while.”
March’s visible excitement fell. “Oh.” And then plopped back down on her seat. “So then…what’s up?”
“Well…” Himeko moved closer to their table with her arms crossed. From the looks of it, she seemed rather conflicted.
Taking note of her suspicious behavior, Dan Heng closed his book and met her gaze. “Is everything alright?” He asked, wasting no time.
Himeko smiled, her long and wavy hair swaying slightly from shaking her head. “No need for your concern.” She assured and then added, “Though I suppose it’s best to get the cat out of the bag. I hate to disturb your lovely day, but a little birdie brought up something that deserved my attention.” She paused. “And it involves the two of you.”
March frowned deeply. “What do you mean?”
“There’s no beating around the bush,” she said, her voice becoming somewhat stern. “I’d like you both to be completely honest with me.”
March and Dan Heng exchanged glances.
“Oookay?”
“Alright. Let’s hear it.”
Himeko produced a measured smile. “Good.” She cleared her throat, ready to say her piece. “March, Dan Heng…” She began, turning serious. “Is it true that neither of you know how to perform CPR?”
“ARGH!!! I CAN’T BELIEVE YOU!”
“Of all things, was it really necessary to tell her that?”
When no answer followed, the usually cheery pink-haired girl snapped. “STELLE! ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING?”
Their target in question—their newest crew member Stelle, finally blinked and looked up, their faraway gaze registering two familiar faces. “Hmm? What was that?”
“AHHHH, come onnn! Don’t play dumb with us!” wailed March loudly, not having it. “I thought we were friends here!”
The ashen-haired trailblazer blinked, frowning. “But we are, aren’t we?” said Stelle simply.
March scrunched her nose. “’ Course we are, but not like this!” She reasoned, waving her hands dramatically in the air. “Friends are not supposed to tattletale, but you did anyway!”
Hearing this, Stelle’s eyes widened, the dots inside their head finally connecting. “Oh, I get it now…” They muttered, nodding. “Himeko must’ve told you.”
“Cut the crap, Stelle,” interrupted Dan Heng, clearly peeved. “Must she really need to know that tiny detail? Why couldn’t you just leave that one part out?”
“You’re right, I should’ve…” murmured Stelle, bobbing their head in agreement. And yet, looking back on said memory, the small curve of their lips slightly went upwards. “But you know, she had the right to at least be aware.”
“About what?” March exclaimed.
“About you two failing on the art of CPR,” stated Stelle. “From what I recall, March said she didn’t know how to. When I woke up, that’s when Dan Heng was already leaning in. From what he was trying to do, I wouldn’t exactly consider it ‘lifesaving’.
Stelle sneakily glanced over to the dark-haired man nearby who stared back in quiet fury. The rare sight of him frustrated made Stelle produce a tiny smug grin, which gave a somewhat mocking “told you so” sort of expression.
Clenching his fists, Dan Heng quickly looked away; his cheeks apparently flushed from the reveal of his mistake.
March stood nervously between them, stepping forth to be their buffer. “So that’s why we’re here then, huh? For you to show us the ropes?”
Indeed, they were.
Not long after their conversation with Himeko, Dan Heng and March were quick to locate their new friend who happened to be casually lounging inside their new room.
Stelle glanced at the bubblegum lass and smiled, nodding. “Himeko gave me the briefing.” They said and gestured to the floor. “Take a seat.”
Dan Heng said nothing and proceeded to sit down upright and crossed-legged.
March followed suit, tucking her hands under her legs and bringing them close to her chest. Noticing how her bare knee was nearly kissing Dan Heng’s, she blushed and shyly scooted closer toward Stelle, keeping a good distance away from the latter.
Dan Heng himself was quick to take note of this, giving her a curious side glance. Before, March was always eager to be around him. This time, it was different. This time, she chose Stelle over him to sit next to. And for some reason, it irked him.
He looked away, his calculating eyes veering to the floor, trying hard not to look defeated.
Stelle, on the other hand, saw right through his act and tipped their head, smiling.
How interesting, they thought, their golden eyes shifting from the smiley-looking March to the obviously quiet (and slightly annoyed and discouraged) Dan Heng.
“Remind me again why you will be instructing us?” asked Dan Heng, breaking the silence.
On cue, Stelle shrugged their shoulders. “I don’t know. Guess it’s 'cause I’m the only one here who’s certified to save a life and not you?”
Dan Heng snorted and once again, looked away.
Watching the two bicker like kids made March laugh.
“Lighten up, Dan Heng~” She teased, giving him a light jab on the shoulder. Shifting her attention to their new friend, she grinned. “Alright! Please teach us, o’ great Stelle!”
Joining them on the floor, Stelle cleared their throat. “Welcome to the Art of CPR 101,” They announced, clapping their hands together in a dramatic fashion. “Here, I’ll show you everything that is to know on the do’s and do nots of CPR. So, who wants to go first?”
They decided on rock-paper-scissors to declare the first victim.
Dan Heng won.
“How do we do this?” He asked, changing his sitting position to make himself more comfortable.
“Well first, we need a dummy to practice with…” Stelle murmured, looking around the room….except there was barely anything here at all (save for the blanket, pillow, blanket, and lamp on the bedside).
Eventually, Stelle’s golden eyes landed on a particular set of iridescent ones.
“How about it, March?”
March blinked, confused. “Who, me?” She echoed, pointing to herself.
Stelle nodded. “Yeah, why not?”
Understanding the implication, March burned red. “W-woah, hold on! Don’t you think we should maybe try first with a pillow or…?” She suggested, eyes frantically darting about.
Stelle frowned. “Well, I figured, since the two of you never did CPR, it would’ve made sense for you to practice with each other.” They explained and then added, “Also serves as a good punishment too.”
“But that’s…” March trailed off, still blushing. She pressed a hand to her chest, lips quivering at the thought of having to suddenly get intimate with a certain you-know-who.
“You know, you don’t have to do it.” Dan Heng advised without looking at her. “I failed at CPR so if the opportunity strikes again one day, I must prepare myself.”
March stared at him, eyes twinkling in admiration at his declaration.
“No, I…I wanna do it.” She said, convincing herself. “I wanna save a life too, you know!”
The pair glanced at each other, putting on their game face.
“March, can you come here a sec?”
Dan Heng stayed put, eyes narrowed as he watched March curiously move a bit closer to Stelle, nodding as the latter whispered something in her ear. Truth be told, he felt oddly cynical by their strange closeness. March used to be like that around him but…well, since Stelle arrived, March herself stopped hovering or invading his personal space.
Not that he’d mind.
Though it did feel a bit nice to get her attention every now and then. Dan Heng cast another quick look at the lively pair one more time. He could feel it, somewhere deep in his stomach, it was nauseating.
He shook his head, trying to get rid of any intrusive thoughts.
There’s no way I’m—
“AH!”
Dan Heng tensed, his ears immediately picking up an all too familiar-sounding cry. Blinking, he turned, just in time to witness March collapse backward.
All at once, fury seeped through his raven eyes. His hand twitched, calling off Cloud-Piercer and then rushing to her side.
“MARCH!” He cried out of urgency.
All at once, he felt a mix of emotions come loose. For once, he wasn’t thinking rationally. Right away, the first thing he wanted to do was—
“What. Did. You. Do?”
He glared at the nonchalant-looking Stelle who simply looked back at him with no respite.
“Ask questions later!” Stelle started, her voice suddenly authoritative. They rushed to his side as well, placing their hands on his shoulders and then pushing him forcefully down to meet with March. “Don’t think! Do now!”
At first, Stelle’s words weren’t making sense in his head. Then it hit him.
Did the lesson start?
Despite his suspicions, Dan Heng did so anyway, putting away his weapon and then kneeling over. He carefully moved March to lay her comfortably against the hard floor. His hands hovered over her knocked-out form, unsure of what to do.
“Check her pulse. Is she breathing?”
Stelle’s reminder brought Dan Heng back and he nodded, getting right on it. He leaned forward, pressing his right ear against March’s chest. Ignoring the deep blush gracing his cheeks at the surprising softness, he directed his full attention to check on her heartbeat.
Ba-bump, ba-bump.
It was beating a little too fast, but it was there.
Her heartbeat was there.
A tired, relieved breath escaped from him. March was okay.
Tearing away from her chest, Dan Heng looked over to inspect March’s relaxing face. Whether she was playing along or not, the simulation and dire emergence of it all was working on him.
“March? Can you hear me?” He whispered, shaking her body a little. “Wake up! This isn’t funny!”
No response. Now what?
“If she’s not responding, there’s only one thing left to do, right?”
Stelle’s encouraging words gave Dan Heng the means to at least give it a try.
“Okay.”
Dan Heng readjusted the ‘unconscious’ girl on the floor, bringing her closer to his chest. His narrowed eyes never once left her rosy-cheeked face. For a girl who controls ice, she surprisingly had the warmest body temperature.
“Pinch her nose closed and tilt her head up a little.” directed Stelle in the background to which Dan Heng nodded firmly. Without delay, he did precisely that.
“Okay, now lean in and…”
Dan Heng didn’t let his friend finish as he shut his eyes closed and nose-dived in. His lips met March’s and just like that, time stopped.
Wow, she was soft.
Really soft.
Like a cloud of cotton with a hint of raspberry… He mused thoughtfully. The base of his growing flush sent heat waves traveling from his ears to his neck.
No, he needed to focus! To save a life, he needed to get used to this close intimacy. Whether it be March or Stelle or a stranger, he needed to perfect it.
Five seconds in and no response from March.
Maybe he was doing it wrong?
Even so, he wasn’t giving up.
Slowly, Dan Heng snaked a hand over to her head, holding her tenderly. Eyes still closed, he pushed his lips further against hers, hoping for some sort of reaction out of her.
…She made a small puffing noise. She was breathing! Okay, at least that was a good sign.
“Dan Heng?”
When he failed to respond, Stelle panicked. “Hey!” Quickly, the trailblazer hurried over, shaking his shoulders to arouse him. “You can stop now, you know?”
Paying no attention to his friend’s protests, Dan Heng continued pressing his lips against March’s.
“DAN HENGGGG! STOPPPP!”
This went on for the next fifteen seconds.
“WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU? Y-YOU SHOULD’VE STOPPED!?”
Dan Heng gave the pink-haired girl a not-too-sharp glare. The obvious pink tint across his cheeks screamed something else, which was strikingly unfitting his cool, reserved image.
“…A simple ‘thank you’ would be nice,” He murmured softly, turning away.
Luckily, March heard it and her face exploded red. Aughhhhh! How in the world is he this stupid and cute?
“W-well yeah but still!” March squealed, tripping over her words, only to stop and mull it over.
According to Stelle, all of this was supposed to be quick and easy.
After agreeing to pretend and ‘die’ and holding her breath for as long as she possibly could, March wanted to give the best performance of a lifetime and get Dan Heng to practice his CPR on her (and get to see the priceless look on his usual controlled face).
Everything was supposed to go well too…until he decided to go straight for her lips, and it was at that very moment, a sudden realization overcame her but it had already been too late.
It was the very same memory from the time they met Stelle.
That’s right, Dan Heng was the same dumbass who mistook a kiss for a lifesaving technique!
And of course, to her dismay (and low-key glee), the same result happened again.
Dan Heng kissed her in front of Stelle and kept going…for two minutes straight!
She traced a finger over to where their lips had touched earlier. It was still tingling.
At least he wasn’t a bad kisser. March thought assuredly, albeit somewhat in a lighter mood. Wait, was he even aware of it? Did it even go through that thick skull of his?
More importantly, did he realize that that was her first kiss?
“Why are you looking at me like that? I saved your life!” argued Dan Heng, still oblivious to what had transpired.
Oh, how March wanted to low-key punch and then kiss him senselessly after (luckily Stelle was here so at least that made her restrain herself from ever trying that last part out).
“Okay, enough arguing! Now it’s March’s turn,” announced Stelle from the edge of the bed, already calculating and scoring the first session’s performance.
March blushed, suddenly becoming self-conscious of everything.
The very thought of her having to relive this experience all over again was not only some short of a miracle but also downright embarrassing.
Except it would be her this time, initiating it!
“I-is there another way we could do this?” March suggested in hopes to divert the topic elsewhere (but failed). Y-you know, like with a pillow or something?”
Stelle thought for a moment, humming. “Huh? But I thought you enjoyed being the dummy for—”
March shot her friend an icy glare.
“Oh, then…” Stelle cleared their throat. “If you feel uncomfortable doing it with Dan Heng, you could always use me—“
“NO!”
Stelle’s eyes widened, surprised to hear that the loud rejection came from none other than—
“Hey! You can’t tell me what to do, Dan Heng! I get to choose who can be my dummy!”
“I didn’t have the option, you know.” Dan Heng retorted, getting annoyed but also…wait, was he lowkey fighting for a spot to be hers?
Stelle watched as her two friends lively bickered back and forth. As quickly as they reacted, they were also quick to turn away, faces hilariously matching each other. Red was all Stelle could see from the pair and that alone was enough to make the last piece fall into place.
A wicked smile slowly made its way across Stelle’s lips. Oh, they were too obvious.
“So, you’re forfeiting, March?”
“—Wha?”
“You know if you do back out, you’ll have to redo the whole lesson again,” Stelle explained, straining the importance of the session. “Hey, it’s okay if it’s not up your alley—“
“NO, NO, WAIT! I’M GONNA DO IT!” cried March, almost pleading. “Please, I don’t wanna redo this lesson all over again! Pleaseeee!”
Stelle smiled, then snuck a glance over to their quiet raven-haired friend. Usually, he’d be adding an extra comment or two after March but this time, he didn’t.
“How about we spice things up a bit?” Stelle offered, standing up from the bed and approaching them. She stood closer to the pink-haired girl, smiling. “Since you were Dan Heng’s dummy, I could maybe take over and—“
“I’m doing it.”
Both Stelle and March gawked, surprised to hear another answer coming out from the quiet guard.
March blushed redder. “No, Dan Heng, you don’t have to—“
“We started this together March,” Dan Heng explained and brought a hand on her shoulder. He stared at her, eyes softening a little. “It’s okay. I’m allowing you to use me as your practice CPR dummy.”
Stelle inwardly smiled, taking a step back and watching the chaos slowly reveal itself. “Just let him do it, March. He seems determined to do it anyway.”
March opened her mouth to retort, only to close it, and then sighed.
“Alright, let’s do it.”
And so, it was March’s turn.
Dan Heng politely refused Stelle’s offer to get hit by the bat and instead, laid himself down.
“You know what to do March,” He encouraged her before closing his eyes shut, hands folded over his chest. He remained like that, waiting patiently for her to make her first move.
Meanwhile, March was mentally screaming inside.
Oh GOD, this was really happening.
Could everybody hear her heart racing three times as fast?
“You need a minute, March?” offered Stelle who noticed her poor friend’s frozen stance.
The pink-haired girl shook her head, grinning away. “No worries! I got this one in the bag!” and returned her gaze to the sleeping beauty before her.
Bracing herself, March finally leaned in.
The closer she got, the more she noticed a few things about her absurdly handsome crush. Wow…his eyelashes are super long! His nose too! She noted, biting her lower lip in an effort not to let a giggle escape lest she’d ruin the mood. And his lips, why were they slightly parted and inviting?
…Nope, nope, nope! She needed to concentrate!
Taking another deep breath, March went in. Pinching his nose, she puffed her cheeks and down she went, placing her lips softly against his.
…It was nice.
Better than nice.
It was—
Perfect.
Brushing aside her intruding thoughts, March recoiled away and settled her hands against his chest to begin the compression. A few times she slipped (like knocking their foreheads a bit harshly), but as she paced herself, she managed to pull off a good few seconds of decent CPR procedure.
…That and weirdly enough, Dan Heng did a pretty good job too (for a volunteer dummy).
“…March?”
March stopped what she was doing midway and looked up, lips puckered. “Yeah?”
From the amusing look on her friend’s face, March knew right away.
“You’re doing it wrong,” Stelle pointed out, covering their mouth, and trying not to laugh. “You’re sucking on his lips, not pumping in the air.”
Realizing this, March hysterically screamed, quickly removing herself from Dan Heng.
Dan Heng felt her cold touch leave his body and he opened his eyes, frowning in confusion. “Hmm? How come you stopped?” He asked innocently, somewhat in a daze.
March glanced at her two friends, one who was clearly teasing her and the other completely out of the loop (and not taking the hint!)
“AGHHH! I CAN’T TAKE IT ANYMORE!” March suddenly cried, “Ahhh! You guys are the ABSOLUTE WORST!” And off she ran and into the halls.
“MARCH!”
Stelle stepped forth, prepared to run after her…only to get pulled back.
“Don’t worry,” assured Dan Heng, rising from the floor. “I got this.”
And he, too left as well…leaving Stelle by their lonesome and pondering if perhaps, maybe all this mishap was a bit too far.
It took only a minute for Dan Heng to find her.
Picking up a muffled sob, he wasted no time and headed straight to the direction of her bedroom door.
“March? Are you there?” He asked, knocking.
“...N-no, I’m not!”
Dan Heng exhaled, relieved. His hand still planted on her door, he mustered up the courage to ask if she was okay.
“Yeah, uh…j-just give me a sec! Just taking a break first, ha-ha~”
Her words struck a nerve inside him.
“Look, just admit that doing CPR is harder than you thought.” He began, getting straight to the point. “Suppose I’m probably better with it compared to you but…” His (not so-subtle and clearly accidental) joke brought out a good laugh from March. Hearing this, Dan Heng felt warm and smiled. Her laughter was a good indicator that everything was going to be okay.
“Yeahhhh, noooo…what you were doing wasn’t exactly CPR.”
Dan Heng leaned his forehead against the door frame, a tiny smile surfacing. “Really now? What was I doing then?”
When she didn’t answer, Dan Heng pushed further. “March?”
An exasperated cry from March erupted, causing the latter to flinch.
Sighing, he recoiled away and then sat down on the base of her door.
“Look, it’s okay to suck at things you’re not good at.” He advised her, his voice soft. “It’s also not a waste of time.”
His ears picked up the return of her sniffling, knowing full well she was listening anyway and so he continued.
“I know you, March. You can be a pain sometimes but…” He trailed off, choosing his words carefully. “I know you can do it.”
From the other side, March nodded along, shyly smiling away.
Looking down, she noticed his pinky sticking out from underneath the door.
“Don’t give up.” He encouraged her, waiting for her to take it. “You…I mean, we got this. Together.”
She hesitated, eyes drifting from her own pinky to his. Smiling, she hooked her pinky with his, squeaking and turning red when she felt his grip squeezing hers back.
“Together.” She echoed back, feeling satisfied like this.
Back to the opposite end, Dan Heng leaned his head back against her door frame, a not-so-obvious smile appearing. How he relished her cold touch mingling with his own warmth.
“If you’re ready, we can go back and finish.” Dan Heng encouraged her, “I’ll join you.”
“…Two more minutes please?” March pleaded, not wanting to let go just yet.
Dan Heng understood this and nodded.
Deep down, he felt the same.
He stared at their joined pinkies, and he squeezed hers, not wanting to break their link just yet.
“Take all the time you need.”
Sometime that evening, Himeko invited Stelle over for a spot of tea in the monitoring room.
“So how was it? Did they pass?” Himeko pressed, interested to hear the results of the CPR lesson.
Stelle pondered for a moment, thinking it over. “I guess so.”
Himeko quirked an eyebrow. “You guess? Why, would you say they failed?”
“Don’t know,” Stelle said matter-of-factly, leaning back on their chair.
Casting a glance over to the big screen where it showed a display of cameras, she spotted a familiar pair in the library room together. From their body language, they looked to be browsing and bickering about something, and yet, at the sight of those two idiots, Stelle allowed a tiny slip of a smile to grace past their stony features.
Himeko noticed this and hummed. “I see.” And took a long sip of her tea...
“I mean, I can’t grade them on their kissing, but—“
—just like that, Himeko spilled out the contents of her drink, coughing brashly. Collecting herself, she shot a startled look at her younger companion, eyes wide as saucers. “P-pardon?”
“Hmm?”
“Dan Heng and March 7th… they were kissing?”
“Pretty much,” replied Stelle matter-of-factly. Leaning over, Stelle snatched a shortbread from the three-tiered tray, taking a big bite out of it. “On the first try, Dan Heng was full going at it. March did well but slipped halfway. They did come back later to redo everything. Well, it took three more takes but hey, at least they managed to figure it out.”
“—Huh, I see…” was all Himeko could say, processing what she just heard.
The thought of the oddly inseparable pair she brought into their crew long ago, and how gradually they got to learn each other since then—from strangers to friends and now possibly more—somehow made her feel warm inside. As weird as it sounded, she felt surprisingly proud of how far they’d gotten.
“The youths these days sure are something,” She commented, chuckling. “Wow, who could’ve thought? Dan Heng and March…” A light, airy laugh escaped her. “Guess this means I win, huh?”
“Oh, was there a bet going on?” wondered Stelle, sounding genuinely interested. Despite the aloofness, the twinkle in their golden eyes showed visible traces of amusement. “If it’s still ongoing, count me in on it.”