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“Thank you for coming with me again today, Mafuyu.” Kanade looked up at the taller girl and smiled.
“It’s nothing, really. I like seeing your father.” Mafuyu grabbed her hand and pulled her closer.
Kanade clung to her arm with both hands, looking down and blushing for a moment. He was finally regaining his memory, thankfully, and he had recognized Kanade for the first time in years just a few days ago. The joy she felt was palpable, and getting to introduce Mafuyu to him was an even better feeling. It seemed like everything in their lives were looking up, and for the first time, Kanade felt like she could relax.
“Whoa-!” Kanade yelped, falling to the ground and hitting her chin on the pavement.
“Watch it!” Yelled an older, deeper voice. The man started walking away with a look of disgust on his face.
“Kanade?!” Mafuyu knelt down and helped her back up.
“Ow…” Kanade groaned as she stood up, her chin started dripping tiny drops of blood.
Seeing this, Mafuyu felt a visceral rage build up inside her. Though, she herself couldn’t tell what it was because she’d never felt this before, all she knew was that she hated it and she wanted to punch someone to get this feeling out.
Mafuyu whipped her head around to the man and walked over to him, grabbing him by the shoulder and turning him around.
“What the fuck—?!”
He was cut off by Mafuyu punching him in the nose hard enough to break it.
•••
“Hold still.” Mafuyu grabbed Kanade’s chin hard so she wouldn’t move again, wiping the rest of the blood off and reaching for a bandage.
Kanade whimpered quietly at the force Mafuyu was holding her face with, and the feeling of the wet towel wiping the wound. “Y-you don’t have to do this… and you didn’t have to punch that guy either.”
“I don’t care.” Mafuyu carefully places the bandage on Kanade’s chin, covering it perfectly. “He deserved it.”
“No he didn’t, Mafuyu.”
“Yes he did.”
“No, he didn’t.”
“Yes he fucking did!” Mafuyu spoke with malice, glaring at Kanade and gripping the edge of the couch tighter.
Kanade’s eyes widened, then she looked away, upset by how angry Mafuyu was. Mafuyu felt a wave of guilt wash over her, an emotion she was way too familiar with.
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to get mad at you. I just… don’t like seeing you hurt.”
“…” Kanade looked down, holding her arms.
Mafuyu felt even guiltier. “Please don’t look away from me, that expression you have makes me sad.”
Kanade looks back at her, then sighs. “Just… don’t do that again. Please.”
Mafuyu nodded. “Okay, I’m sorry. I won’t hurt anyone again.”
“Even if they hurt me first.”
Mafuyu paused for a moment. “… I’ll try.”
“Good.”
Mafuyu moved some hair out of Kanade’s face and kissed her forehead. “Let’s go to bed.”
Kanade leaned into the kiss, clearly tired. “Okay.”
Mafuyu stood up and picked up Kanade as she did, carrying her bridal style to the bedroom. Kanade sunk into her arms and rested her head against her shoulder, arms wrapped around the girls neck. This was a normal thing for the pair, whenever it was time to sleep Mafuyu was always the one taking her lover to bed, it’s not like Kanade had the strength for it to be the other way around, anyways.
“You’re always taking care of me… thank you.” Kanade smiled, eyes closed as she let her girlfriend do the “heavy” lifting.
Mafuyu smiled as well. “You saved me, it’s the least I could do.”
That sentence made Kanade’s eyes shoot open to look up at her. “What…?”
Mafuyu looked down, face plastered with the stupidest, most sincere smile she could possibly have. “You saved me a long time ago, actually.”
Kanade was at a loss for words, eyes wide, heart racing and mouth agape. Her mind was completely blank, except for one question that lingered. “Is that true?” So that’s exactly what she asked.
“Of course it is, I wouldn’t say it otherwise.”
Kanade couldn’t help but smile and hide her face in Mafuyu’s shoulder, holding onto her tighter. Despite this, Mafuyu could still see the wide smile on her face and the red tint on her ears. Kanade’s teeth grazed against the fabric of Mafuyu’s shirt, an uncomfortable sensation, yes. But she didn’t pull away, it wasn’t like she could anyways, as she didn’t want her lover seeing the embarrassing look on her face, and could she stop smiling either.
“I-I’m glad.” Kanade managed to say, trying to keep the excitement in her voice to a minimum.
Mafuyu held her closer as she carried her up the narrow staircase of their shared home, a place that was once a house too cold. But now? Now it felt as safe as a weighted blanket wrapped around one’s body after a day full of stress, knowing there’s nothing to do the next day.
Reaching their bedroom, Mafuyu asks: “Could you open the door for me, love?”
“Y-yeah.” Kanade reached over and turned the handle, hand trembling slightly.
Mafuyu lifted her up to whisper into her ear. She knew she liked that, probably an extension of her love of praise. “You okay? You’re shaking.”
“Sorry, I’m just a bit overwhelmed from… everything…”
Mafuyu placed Kanade on the bed, laying her back against the headboard and hovering over her. “You’re surprised you saved me.”
“Yeah…”
“You didn’t think you could?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know, I did’t think I had the ability to.”
“You underestimate yourself too much.”
Kanade went silent, staring into her eyes for a moment. She licked her dry lips because the feeling was uncomfortable, making Mafuyu’s eye’s flicker down to them for a split second. Kanade noticed and got redder, her own eyes diverting to Mafuyu’s lips, but her’s instead lingered there. Mafuyu looked back down, and leaned in. Kanade pressed her lips together in a thin line, hands gripping the sheets. Mafuyu moved closer. Kanade’s jaw clenches.
“Considering you just now found out you’ve successfully saved me, that mean’s you’ve still been trying to do so for all these years. It’s my turn to heal you.” Mafuyu whispered, her breath mingling with her savior’s.
“What are you…?”
“Relax tonight, love, let me do all the work.”