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A year had passed since Juno set foot on a planet different from the one she was born and raised on. Now she found herself trying to acclimate to customs and traditions completely different from what she was used to. She had never seen such variety on a single planet, and it left her awestruck, thirsty to learn more, meet new people, and share her knowledge.
In her first weeks on Earth, she attracted the curiosity of most of those who work at Overwatch, but today she is seen as an equal. And she is happy about it. Juno is happy with the connections she has developed over the past few months.
However, sometimes she finds herself with a sinking feeling that consumes her every time she looks up at the starry sky, imagining the family she left behind on Mars. The Martian lowered her gaze, hugging her legs tightly to her body. She hid the thin tears that fought to escape. A feeling of longing and worry grew from within her chest outward, hurting her as much as a knife wound would.
Overwatch had become one of her favorite places, but now it carried pain. She felt the source of it all, the reason for a place that once brought joy, now only carried heavy feelings.
Juno couldn't take it anymore.
She looked up, staring at the starry sky through the clouds once more. It was so beautiful, but it only brought sadness to her heart.
"Uhmm, hey—Is everything okay there?" Out of the blue, a voice emerged. A voice that was extremely familiar and easy to identify. "Juno…! Hey? Earth calling Martian!"
"O-Oh moons…! Kiriko… What a scare—" Juno placed a hand on her chest, trying to calm herself, but not exactly from the shock. "Sorry, did something happen?"
Kiriko Kamori.
The person Juno never expected to become as close to as she did. Perhaps Kiriko's appreciation for the kitsune spirit inherited from her grandmother, her extreme charisma, her interesting family stories, and her somewhat unhealthy addiction to donuts made Juno feel comfortable around her. She adores Kiriko's curiosity about Mars; she was the perfect person to chat with about everything the Martian loves and knows most. Every moment with her was precious, holding a special place in Juno's heart.
"Did I scare you, kitten?" she said, her genuine laughter drifting into Juno's ears like a melody. "My bad. I was just looking for you."
"Looking for me…?" Juno's eyes narrowed as a faint blush crept across the Martian's cheeks.
Juno had never imagined herself awakening any kind of interest in anyone else, perhaps because she'd never met anyone other than her family on Mars. Experiencing such a feeling had been... difficult. After all, she'd never received any insightful instruction manual on how to deal with a racing heart, flushed cheeks, and other various reactions that made her act in ways she wouldn't normally.
What to do in these moments?
What to say?
She'd never even imagined she was interested in girls until she set foot on Earth and found herself wanting to learn Japanese sign language, visit the Fox Sanctuary, and even eat donuts until she developed diabetes. This was strictly not recommended by Dr. Ziegler, who had already diagnosed Juno as a girl with poor health due to having lived on Mars since her birth.
"Yes." She laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of her neck. "We agreed to meet, remember?"
Which was indeed true. Now that her memory had been refreshed, Juno remembered the arrangement she had made with Kamori. The Martian simply didn't know that, because of it, Kiriko had been thinking about her all day, missing her sweet presence in the places they used to frequent together. But she hadn't realized how affected she was by her absence. She only noticed it when she found herself walking the halls of Overwatch, searching for an unexpected, completely random encounter.
Which, in this moment, happened exactly as Kiriko had hoped deep down. However, seeing her hunched over in corners, hiding the pain she felt, that was what worried the girl.
Kiriko's striking smile faded for a moment, causing her to crouch down beside Juno, tilting her head slightly. There was nowhere to run now. Juno knew it wouldn't be long before Kiriko noticed something was wrong; after all, this was Kiriko, one of the best at reading people. The truth is, she had always been cunning, agile, and bold, but the Martian didn't notice how the Japanese woman acted so kindly toward her and easily recognized when something was wrong with Juno.
"Hey… something happened?" Kiriko began. "You don't look so good. Would you like to talk about it? You know, it's always good to get something that hurts you out."
Juno looked away, staring up at the thousands of luminous dots that decorated the sky, thinking one of them might be her old home. Kiriko followed her gaze, her smile returning, trying to bring comfort to the other girl.
"Oh…" She looked back at Juno, slowly approaching as she settled down beside her. "You're missing home, aren't you?"
Juno lowered her gaze. Her body shivered in response.
"I- I just wish... I could see my mother again..." She hugged her legs tighter, pulling them closer to her torso. "...I'm afraid I'll never see her again."
"Juno..."
Kiriko hated seeing people important to her sad, even though she was a person who rarely let herself be carried away by other people's feelings. But this was Juno we were talking about, so Kiriko could automatically feel her sadness spreading through her as well. She was never sure how to handle these situations. Should she just let her vent, distract her with facts about her faith in the fox spirit or martial arts skills she learned from her mother, which could be related to the moment she was in, or comfort her with a hug. Even though Juno seemed like someone who loved tight hugs, which brought her comfort, she thought it best to respect her moment of fragility by giving her space.
"I promised them I'd see them again, but…" Juno's voice returned after seconds of silence. "…but… I hate feeling like… deep down they already knew we wouldn't see each other again."
She sighed.
"Why do you think that…?"
Juno just shrugged, looking away even further.
"It's okay, we don't have to talk about it if you don't want to, kitten," Kiriko replied softly. "I just want you to know that... no matter how far away they are, and I mean really far away... since we're talking about... uhm... Mars," she cleared her throat, "you can always contact them, and heck, with everything we have right now, I don't think it's impossible that you might see them again in the future."
Kiriko needed to do something, needed to help. She couldn't bear to see the love of her life so saddened. With this in mind, she summoned some courage from somewhere to gently touch the Martian's face, guiding her so they could make eye contact again. Her eyes widened almost instantly, the entire universe shining in that simple gaze of the Martian aspiring doctor. Small tears stole some of the shine from the corners of her eyes, running down the young woman's flushed cheeks. Perhaps it was just the moonlight, the light of the stars that were part of that galaxy, the thousands and hundreds of luminous points that might have already died but were still there, reflecting in her gaze. But Kiriko found herself falling in love with that gaze that didn't come from the universe, didn't come from the galaxies, didn't come from the stars floating in the sky, but from Juno herself. From the girl's own bright, intriguing gaze, it all came from her.
"I promise, Juno," she said. For the first time, firmly, taking Juno's breath away.
The warm touch of Kiriko's hand spread across the girl's face, even though she didn't know where exactly the warm sensation came from, after all, she knew very well that she would be blushing at a moment like this and she wouldn't be able to help it.