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“That’s both bad for your health and against school rules.” The voice that echoed throughout the rooftop was not Yosano's, which was unexpected since she had locked the door after entering.
She turned around, cigarette dangling from between her lips. “If you wanna take care of someone’s life, get a cat. They have nine of them.”
Ozaki snickered, the sound full of amusement despite the harsh nature of Yosano’s words. The dark-haired teen raised an eyebrow in questioning — aside from being hypocrite would Kouyou also prove to be a masochist?
“Suggestion noted, now…”
“Now?”
“What will you do so I don’t tell on you?”
It was Yosano’s turn to laugh, though the action would be more accurately described as a cackle. She laughed so hard, in fact, that if not for her years of experience she would have choked on the smoke.
“Oh, Kouyou…” Ozaki was a few meters away from her, a distance that Yosano closed with a few quick steps. “The question should be what will you do so I don’t tell on you?”
It was Kouyou’s turn to raise her brows, her expression tinged with disbelief. “Yosano, I’m not the one smoking here.”
“No, you’re not. But as far as I know, the rooftop is prohibited for all students. I wonder how you will explain that you caught me here?”
The redhead’s expression changed as she connected the dots.
“You-”
“Can’t say you saw me at the crime scene without also being there, isn’t that right?”
Kouyou opened her mouth as if to say something, but no sound came out. Yosano, who now had a shit-eating grin on her face, took a drag from the already almost completely burned cigarette. When she exhaled, the smoke hit Kouyou square on the face, the redhead coughing slightly as she took a step back.
“See you around.” Were Yosano’s last words, her pace quick as she walked towards the double metal doors that led to the stairs. Right before she passed through the doorway, she threw the cigarette butt on the ground, the embers still burning brightly.
Yosano didn’t turn around, not that it would be needed — she could feel Kouyou’s piercing gaze on her back, and knew the look was being accompanied by a smile.
Studying in a catholic school, they were used to kneeling. Be it for mass or punishment, it wasn’t unusual to see rows of students with their knees on the ground, heads hung low and hands clasped together.
So, nothing strange with the sight of Ozaki Kouyou on the floor. The fact Yosano was standing right in front of her with her plaid skirt scuffed up so that her thighs were exposed was a mere detail, really.
Neither of them were speaking, Yosano’s eyes on Kouyou and hers, in return, on the tainted skin of Akiko’s thighs. Covering most of the outside of her upper legs, though with a few strays towards the middle, were round scars. The older ones were pale, unnoticeable if not for the raised scar tissue. The newest ones, meanwhile, were an angry color between crimson and purple, as eye-catching as a burning building in the middle of the night. They littered Yosano’s thighs, no apparent pattern to what could only have been caused by lit cigarettes and teenage rage.
Up until now, all Kouyou had done was watch and all Yosano had done was wait, but the latter was growing impatient and it showed. The hands holding the skirt up kept squeezing and twisting the fabric, her legs shaking slightly with the urge to move around. She wouldn’t, though, couldn’t . Despite the lack of prayers, both of them were as close to holiness then as they would ever get — you don’t run around during mass and you don’t move when your best-friend is scrutinizing your scars.
After what felt like eternity, Kouyou opened her mouth. “They look…”
“Gruesome? I know, that’s the whole point.”
Kouyou scrunched up her nose and moved her gaze from Yosano’s thighs to her eyes. “I was going to say they look painful.”
“Well, that’s also the whole point.” There was a certain mirth to Yosano’s voice, an almost laugh. She was smiling as she said all that, too, pride all over her features.
“ Why ?”
Yosano’s smile disappeared. “Everyone asks that, you can do better.”
Kouyou once again looked at the scars, mouth opening and closing as she searched for something to say. She then sighed, apparently having given up, and, despite not looking possible, Yosano’s gaze darkened even more.
Until the first kiss.
Calling it a kiss would be generous, Kouyou merely brushed her lips against Yosano’s ragged skin. Still, that was enough to give back the amusement to the dark-haired student. Her faltering smile only grew in size and steadiness as the redhead kissed her again and again and again and again.
So it wasn’t the first time Yosano had seen Kouyou kneel, but it definitely was the most appropriate one.
The gray clouds were so dark they looked almost black, the only light coming from the occasional lightning accompanied by thunder. The water droplets fell from the sky like knives, just as piercing and sharp when hitting Yosano’s body. Even without the wind she would be shivering from the ice-cold raindrops, but of course this storm also had powerful wind gusts as a complement. Overall, it was the perfect bad weather, the perfect demonstration of nature’s unforgiveness.
Yosano quite liked it.
Perhaps it was a bit too dramatic to stand out in the rain swallowing back her tears, but there was a certain allure to drowning in misery and showing it. She was good — great, even — at pretending everything was fine, but having her walls crumble down was cathartic. Up there in the roof was safe, too, since no one was able to see her and Yosano didn’t have to worry about being vulnerable or weak. She didn’t have to worry about anything at all.
And then the rain stopped.
Well, not really. The skies were still pouring down, but Yosano wasn’t being hit by the water anymore. As if out of a dream, Ozaki Kouyou had appeared with an umbrella, sheltering both of them from the rain.
Yosano looked up towards Kouyou from her spot on the ground, the redhead wasn’t even looking at her, staring off into the horizon. She thought about asking her why she was here or demanding she go away, but remained silent in the end.
Misery does love company, after all.
The moonlight that filtered through the curtains hit Kouyou on the face, her lips looking more red and alluring in Yosano’s eyes. She wanted to kiss Ozaki, to touch her in the way only women can.
“Yosano?” All the staring, of course, was bound to attract her muse’s attention.
“Yes?”
“Do I have something on my face?” Kouyou asked with impossibly big eyes, her pupils looking directly into Yosano’s soul.
“No. Why do you ask?”
“You keep looking at me.”
“That’s because you’re beautiful.”
Kouyou laughed, a sound full of mirth.
“Akiko?”
“Yes, Kouyou-chan?” The way she had been addressed had changed, so Yosano had to match that.
“You are beautiful too.”
Between their sentences, they had shifted slightly. Now, Yosano had her left hand over Kouyou’s waist, bringing her even closer. One of them also kept moving their foot around, but since their limbs were so thoroughly intertwined and tangled it was impossible to tell who. Overall, they were as close as they would ever be. Or, well…
Both had the same idea at the same time, moving their faces closer to one another until there was no telling where Yosano Akiko ended and Ozaki Kouyou started. Yosano could feel Kouyou’s heart beating under her ribs, could feel her own drumming away inside her chest.
Kouyou tasted like lipstick, which was a given since she was wearing a matte-colored one. If Yosano wished to taste what was underneath that, she would just have to kiss Kouyou’s lips clean. As that idea formed inside her head, Yosano smiled into the kiss as she deepened it.
Now, the moonlight shone on both their faces.