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Nene couldn’t get the events of today out of her mind.
She had witnessed a fight, specifically one between a certain Shinonome Akito and a few bullies. It was about Mizuki; a classmate that she, Akito, An, and Rui considered a friend, but who had been bullied over their personal identity.
It ended interestingly; Akito was on cleanup duty for the next 2 weeks, and the bullies were expelled for the rest of the school year. An, Nene, and Rui, who were watching and telling the teachers what had happened, had no punishment. She couldn’t help but sigh in relief.
The fight began because of Akito witnessing the bullying.
Nene couldn’t get Mizuki’s face out of her mind; dark, devoid of any emotion. How long had Mizuki been dealing with these bullies? She didn’t know, and judging from their expression, she didn’t think it was appropriate to ask.
Today was also the day of a WxS brainstorming session. They were planning out the specifics for the next show, which would be their first show in Wonder Stage since the night show. Fueled with creativity after visiting various places, the troupe had been brainstorming throughout the afternoon, leading into the evening. The session turned into a sleepover, the four staying at Rui’s house for the night.
Tsukasa and Emu fell asleep quickly, Tsukasa because of routine, and Emu because she could sleep anywhere comfortably. The two slept on the opposite side of the room. Nene was on the other side of the room, Rui beside her in a separate futon.
Nene tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep, unable to feel comfortable enough to. The events still lingered in her mind, making her unable to succumb. The diva looked over at Rui, who was asleep, comfortable and peaceful. She was envious of him, able to fall asleep after everything that had happened.
Was that just another day in the life of Rui Kamishiro? Nene chuckled internally at the thought.
However, when she laid back down and faced the ceiling, she felt a hand in hers; colder than hers, yet comforting. Was he awake?
“I know you’re awake,” he whispered, startling her. “But that’s alright.”
“You were awake the whole time?” Nene replied.
“No, but I had a feeling that you were.”
She frowned. “Sorry for waking you up then.”
“It’s okay, Nene. After everything that’s happened today, I don’t blame you.”
She immediately felt bad when she heard his voice; it was rough, tired, deeper than his usual voice was. If it were a different situation, Nene would look at this tired Rui as cute, but right now? All she could think about was the guilt of waking him.
“What exactly is keeping you up?” Rui murmured, turning on his side to face her. She did the same.
“Mizuki’s face… when she saw Akito watching the bullying happen. It was so dark.. like she didn’t want that part of herself to be shown off, to anyone. And I started thinking about our middle school days, and how you could have made that face if you didn’t meet Mizuki.. What if you didn’t get help? What if it got so bad that you made a face like that? It freaks me out, Rui.”
The inventor sighs. In truth, when thinking about it, it made a lot of sense.
Mizuki was a reason he wanted to get help with his depression. It had made him reach a point where it scared everyone; where he spaced out in conversations, where others worried if he was eating right, where he had to be with someone when going outside because no one had a clue what he would do on his own. Mizuki had their own set of problems, some including bullying and mild depression, and the two promised each other to get help, including helping each other if needed.
In a way, they had saved each other. Rui helped Mizuki with their identity and everything related to that, while Mizuki helped Rui with taking care of himself, asking him if he ate, making sure he gets sleep; Rui laughs at the thought of this now, Mizuki would joke about those times all of the time.
If he didn’t meet Mizuki, he would be in worse shape than he is now. Nene was right about that.
But what else could he say?
“I understand what you’re saying, and I get it. Mizuki not being there could have been a lot worse.. But she was. I know that’s not the most helpful thing to say, but what matters was that she was there, and that all of those "what if's?" never happened, never will. Mizuki will be fine too, the bullies won’t bother her anymore, so please, don’t worry.”
Was that the right thing to say? He didn’t know.
“I know Rui, and thank you …” she sighed. “I just want these thoughts to go away. I want to sleep, but I can’t close my eyes without thinking about them.”
“Then… why don’t you come here? Maybe I could help?” he gestured to his futon.
“Are you sure?”
He only nodded, not wanting to say anything further.
The diva relented, getting up from her futon and making her way to his. The other moved to accommodate her as she tucked herself beside him. She laid on her side, facing Rui as her mind started to drift away.
How long had it been since she slept with someone close to her? Even more specifically, with Rui? They had done it before, on nights where they decided they had to sleep together at Rui’s house just to spend more time with each other, on nights when reality was too much for them to digest, on nights when Nene was convinced she had to watch over him before he did something stupid.
“It’s been a while since we’ve slept together like this,” he noted. In response, she nodded, smiling softly.
It had been quite some time indeed. However, to her, this situation felt different. As the intimacy of sharing a futon with each other felt more impactful now that they were older, a new feeling sprouted in Nene’s chest. She could only describe it as fuzzy, warm, and soothing.
It felt comforting.
She felt an arm wrapped around her shoulders, pulling her closer to his chest, unable to understand what had happened. “Wh-Why?” was all she could mutter.
The other chuckled softly. “Just because.”
Rui wasn’t the warmest person most of the time, but due to being under the blanket, he had gotten warmer than usual. The warmth was reassuring, a reminder that no matter what issues plagued her mind, she would overcome them, not needing to worry about them any longer.
Nene yawned. “You’re..warm.”
“I’m surprised hearing that from you, but as long as it helps you fall asleep, I don’t mind,” he whispered to her, running his fingers through her hair.
“Thank you, Rui, for everything,” she whispered back to him, her eyelids shutting as she tried to fall asleep once more. He continued to run his fingers through her hair until she had fallen deeply into sleep.
‘Her hair is so soft.’ He smiled to himself and looked at her for a few more moments. She was quietly asleep, and he was mesmerized by her relaxed, almost innocent expression as she slept. He was slightly entranced by the moment, and could only think about how cute she could be in that moment.
Rui gently wrapped his arms around her and held her close for a few more moments. It was true that if it weren’t for Mizuki, he may have been in a worse place than before, but the girl in his arms reminded him that maybe fate did exist. Maybe some being up above had willed it, that WxS would be the four of them, that he would meet Mizuki and get through the hardest times in his life. That there was a plan behind every decision he faced.
But midnight wasn’t the time to be worrying about that.
He yawned, finally feeling tired from the events of the day. Once he was sure Nene wouldn’t be waking up, he kissed her forehead, closing his eyes as well.
“Goodnight, Nene.”