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Nijika woke up with a groan. It was far too warm for it being this early in the morning, her pajamas were drenched in sweat and she felt about as sticky as-
Her expression softened, significantly. Kita clung to her side, head resting atop her chest. That's why she was so hot, Kita's excess warmth had poured into her over the night. Despite knowing, how much worse this would make the heat, Nijika wanted to throw caution to the wind, roll over and embrace Kita in turn; but, perhaps for her own good, her other arm was occupied by Bocchi having wrapped herself around it. Once more, Nijika sighed affectionately.
Completing their constellation, Ryo sprawled out sideways across their legs in a way that looked like it could not possibly be comfortable in any fashion; but the sole member of their relationship who suffered more from the heat than Nijika did was sleeping peacefully in her lingerie-she-swore-was-to-keep-cool.
Nijika attempted to get a little bit more sleep as well before her girlfriends woke up, but all she managed was a light doze while her heat-addled mind threw a barrage of nonsensical dreams at her.
She remembered saying something utterly incomprehensible while her mind sorted out, what belonged in a dream and what had relevance to the real world; much to the amusement of Kita, who had only asked, when she wanted to have breakfast.
Shaking her head to clear it a little, Nijika formed her first lucid sentence of the day: "I think we should take a shower."
Pajamas (or what passed for them in this weather) tossed into a to-be-washed pile in the corner of the bathroom, Nijika looked the other three over with kind eyes. Despite this being hardly the first time her girlfriends saw her in the nude, Bocchi attempted to be shy about it; Kita and Ryo, however, had other plans, enclosing her in a hug and leading her along into the shower, where Nijika received them with open arms. All four of them were a tight fit, the appartment's bathroom not really equipped for that amount of people - but as always, they had found a way to improvise and make it work. For a few heartbeats, they simply stood together, sticky skin against sticky skin for whatever enjoyment could be gotten out of cuddling under the circumstances.
Each of them breathed a sigh of relief when Kita turned the shower handle, and a cascade of cold water poured out over them. Reveling in the feeling of it running down their bodies, rinsing off the sweat and summer grime, they finally could huddle as closely as they wanted to.
Minutes passed wordlessly, all four of them simply enjoying to exist in each other's presence; a warm, fluttering core amidst the pleasant chill of the shower.
Eventually, Bocchi broke the silence, awkwardly shuffling around as she did. "Nijika-chan," she mumbled, "I don't feel my feet anymore."
"Oh!" Kita exclaimed before Nijika had a chance to respond. "Why didn't you say anything sooner, Hitori-chan?" Her words carried no accusation, but that didn't stop Bocchi from apologizing anyway; Ryo teasingly poked her cheek for it.
Nijika's and Kita's hands met on the handle, turning it to a slightly warmer setting. The water coming down on them now merely cool instead of cold, they could still continue their snuggle.
Nuzzled up against all three of her girlfriends, Nijika felt her eyes grow heavy and gave herself over to a little standing nap.
By the time she woke back up, Ryo had grabbed the bottle of shampoo and had begun massaging it into Bocchi's hair, handing it off to Kita; obediently, Nijika bowed her head to allow her easier access. Soon after, Nijika returned the favor to Ryo, leaving Bocchi to do the same for Kita. Once more, water ran down all four of them, helping each other rinse out their hair.
Giggles and blushes abounded as they applied body wash to each other, then forming a loose circle around whoever was being rinsed off, before returning to the huddle.
As far as Nijika was concerned, they could have spent the entire day like this; but just when she was at her most comfortable, her stomach made herself known with a loud rumble.
Loosely toweling off their bodies, but leaving their hair wet for the much-needed cooling it provided, the four of them quickly threw on whatever clothes were light enough to wear in this weather, and opened the shutters just enough to let a little bit of light in without exposing the apartment to the full wrath of the scorching sun.
Steps taken to ensure that only one further shower would be necessary today, Nijika, Kita, Bocchi and Ryo descended in order on the kitchen and living room to prepare their breakfast; Bocchi and Kita prepared the food, Nijika set the plates, Ryo stood there looking good (and also set the glasses and poured their drinks of choice).
All four sitting down around the small table, Nijika regarded them each with kind eyes. This was home. This was happiness.