Chapter Text
The sun beamed heavily down on Inazuma, with no clouds to obscure its warmth; with nothing but a bright blue sky for miles, Kamisato Ayaka felt her heart lift at such an obvious sign that their plans were going to work out. Her and Lumine had conspired to drag Ayato and Thoma on a trip across the country, to one of the most popular tourist spots — Narukami City — intent on taking a week off from their busy lives to relax, and simply enjoy the summer sun.
They had initially intended for Lumine’s brother, Aether, and his boyfriend to join them as well, but they had decided to go in advance, planning on meeting the quartet at their hotel. (That was fine with Ayaka. She didn’t think her car could fit six people, and, even if it could, the thought of being in a car with Aether’s boyfriend… She didn’t particularly relish it. She then immediately regretted having that thought, mentally apologizing to him.)
She sat in the shade of her brother’s porch, leaning against the railing and taking sips of the water in her hand as she watched her girlfriend lug two suitcases behind her, towards the blue car sitting in the driveway, mouth twitching into an entertained smile. She had offered to help, but Lumine had shut that down instantly, saying that she could handle it by herself; this in mind, Ayaka felt no guilt giggling to herself as she watched Lumine struggle, the blonde stopping in the middle of the driveway to double over, catching her breath as the suitcases laid on the concrete.
Ayaka waited for a moment before hopping down the small staircase, squinting under the beaming sun as she stopped next to Lumine, kneeling down to offer her girlfriend some of her water. The blonde didn’t even hesitate before taking the water and downing all of it, letting out a loud sigh of relief as she shook her head to clear it, flashing Ayaka a grin, which was returned with an exasperated smile. “At the very least, if you won’t let me help, you could let Thoma…” She started to say, being cut off by Lumine shaking her head quickly, picking up the suitcases and puffing out her cheeks from exertion as she started heading for the car.
“No can do! I’ve got it handled, babe. Just… oof… gimme a sec.” Ayaka crossed her arms, sighing and watching as Lumine sat the suitcases down to open the trunk of the car, raising an eyebrow as the blonde started lifting them in. “Hey, ‘yaka, quick question, the fuck did you pack in these, cinderblocks??” Ayaka clapped her hand over her mouth to stifle the very unladylike giggle that bubbled out of her, shaking her head. “It’s everything I thought we needed for a week’s trip. Clothing, toiletries, beach supplies, entertainment for our calmer days…” She trailed off at the look Lumine gave her, one of complete fondness; it was so warm, so kind, that Ayaka’s face heated just at the sight of it.
“Have I ever mentioned how cute you are when you’re planning?” Lumine’s words made Ayaka’s blush deepen, despite herself, and she averted her gaze, making her girlfriend laugh. There was a grunt of exertion as Lumine shoved the second suitcase in, and as soon as the trunk was closed, Lumine pulled Ayaka into her arms; instantly, any tension in Ayaka’s body faded, and she sighed happily as she rested her head on Lumine’s shoulder, arms wrapped securely around her. “I’m really proud of you for doing this,” Lumine whispered in her ear, and Ayaka felt her heart flutter. “What do you mean?” She asked, and her girlfriend pulled away a little, allowing Ayaka to see the soft smile on her lips and the glimmer of warmth in her golden gaze.
“I know how much your work means to you, so you taking a break to recover from everything it asks of you is a big step. You’re doing great, Ayaka.” Lumine’s soft words caused Ayaka to feel weak in the knees, such a genuine expression of care almost overwhelming to her. She glanced away for a moment, before staring into Lumine’s eyes again, small smile on her lips. “Of course, my love. Anything for you.” She whispered, and leaned in, pressing her lips to Lumine’s softly.
There weren’t any fireworks, no lights behind her eyes; merely a pleasant warmth suffusing her body as they kissed for what was probably the ten thousandth time, joy filling every inch of her, even now. She couldn’t imagine a world where kissing Lumine didn’t make her feel as though she was on cloud nine.
These thoughts were interrupted by the door to the house opening, admitting Thoma; she pulled away slowly, their eyes fluttering open as they looked over at the source of the noise. Ayaka almost snorted when she saw he was covering his eyes, and Lumine called over, “What are you, 12? Watch out, you’ll get cooties!” Her voice turned playfully threatening at the exclamation, and as Thoma lowered his hand to shoot a pout in their direction, Ayaka struggled to keep down her giggles; Lumine and Thoma broke into a joking argument, including waving hands and declarations of war, which only intensified her amusement.
Being here, in Lumine’s arms, with the people she loved… she wasn’t sure things could get much better.
Ayaka’s car rumbled along the road, passing by tranquil plains and empty fields, the environment seeming untouched by man aside from the asphalt cutting through the trees. Birds flew by, the sun shone above, and the occasional cow lazily glanced up from the grass to focus on the car before continuing to eat.
Inside the car, though, was the opposite of peaceful.
Ayaka rolled her eyes as Lumine and Thoma kept nudging each other, fighting over the space in the backseat, and she didn’t even need to look over at Ayato to know he was just amused by all of it. For a while, she simply tried to focus on the music playing, tuning out everything except the pleasant song and the road in front of her, but her attention was torn away when the music changed, the playlist continuing on. As soon as she snapped back into focus on the other people in the car, she heard Lumine grumbling, and Thoma snickering, and she sighed.
She glanced in the rearview mirror, catching Lumine’s gaze, and, as politely as she could manage, she said, “Dearest,” and as soon as the word left her lips, Lumine shot upright, “I seem to recall you teasing Thoma for acting immaturely. Would it not be best if you set a good example for him?” The way Lumine instantly nodded, expression sobering, would have been comedic, if it weren’t so relieving to Ayaka. She had enough to worry about while driving, she didn’t need additional unnecessary stimuli. On the edge of her hearing, she heard Ayato stifle a laugh, and she shot a glare at him as quickly as she could.
“Is there something you would like to add, brother?” She said, remarkably lax, and he held his hands up in surrender, a smile on his lips. “No, of course not. Merely enjoying the in-flight entertainment.” Ayaka couldn’t stop herself from rolling her eyes again.
She was already a nervous driver, and she was surrounded by children.
As they made it onto the expressway, the music in the car shifted from 4NEMO to DCKZ, courtesy of Ayato, sitting in the passenger seat. A twinge of irritation settling in her stomach, Ayaka shot him a look, to which he responded with a tranquil smile; he raised his eyebrow slightly, as if asking her what the problem was. She changed lanes, rolling her eyes as she passed another car. “Don’t look at me like that, you know what the problem is,” she said quietly, so as to not disturb the sleeping Lumine and Thoma in the backseat. Ayato shrugged, smile growing as he leaned back, indigo eyes focused on the road. “Have you ever heard the phrase ‘shotgun chooses the music’, dear sister?”
She didn’t bother stifling the derisive snort that escaped her at that, shooting another look at Ayato before refocusing on the road. “Dearest brother, I am sure you remember that we established an agreement long in advance. We trade turns, opting not to select anything that would particularly irritate the other. And yet, here you are, violating the terms of our extremely clear contract.” He huffed, making Ayaka’s mouth twitch into a smile, knowing she had gotten him. “If the terms are unsatisfactory to you, I would be happy to revisit them with you in the future,” she said, and he chuckled. “So professional… I’m hurt! I thought you cared for me outside of work.”
Despite everything, she couldn’t bite back a small smile, a mix of fondness and exasperation settling on her face. “I’d care for you more if you didn’t deliberately antagonize me.” A look of mock offense crossed his face — she didn’t need to look away from the road to know it was there — and he huffed, “We both know you ‘deliberately antagonize’ me as well, sister.” She merely hummed innocently, smile on her lips, and continued driving.
Not much later, as Ayaka was taking an exit, Thoma cleared his throat behind her; she glanced away from the road briefly to see him peeking his head around the seat, gazing at her in concern. “How are you doing, Ayaka? Need me to take over?” The offer was touching, she admitted; she was rather open about how uncomfortable she was with driving, still not quite used to it, but she shook her head all the same, intent on handling things herself. She knew that this was good for her, the chance to acquire such helpful hands-on experience was one she needed. (She couldn’t help but smile, though.)
“I’m doing alright, Thoma. But I appreciate it, thank you,” she said softly, hoping to not disturb the now-slumbering Ayato next to her. “It’s not as bad as I thought it would be.” Indeed, as much as her hands were shaking when she first started, she slowly gained confidence as the drive went on, the anxiety in her stomach settling into a dim cloud rather than the powerful tempest it was at first. Another quick glance at his expression revealed his proud smile, which warmed her heart. “I knew you could do it,” he said, and Ayaka laughed quietly. “Yes, well, at least someone had confidence in me,” she teased.
He laughed, and she heard shuffling in the seat, which she assumed was him leaning back once again. “I’m gonna try to get some more sleep, wake me up when we get there, yeah?” She hummed, unable to keep down a snarky remark, “No, I believe I’ll leave you in the car, actually.” Thoma deliberately leaned over so she could see his pout, and she giggled, shaking her head. “Of course I’ll wake you up, silly. Get some rest.” He gave a playful salute before leaning back in his seat once more, and it wasn’t very long before she heard his quiet snoring join Lumine’s.
She sighed wistfully as she continued the drive along the Narukami Expressway, an unexplainable warmth settling in her heart.
(she knew exactly what it was. she was in the presence of the people she considered her closest family; she had never been happier.)