Work Text:
The day isn’t exactly as pretty as it could be, more clouds than sun, and Mika wonders if it’s enough that it might even rain. Honestly though, she’s more worrying than wondering since she hadn’t thought to bring an umbrella.
For now, she’s focused working in their school’s garden terrace with not much in the way of Valkyrie activities or otherwise to attend to; instead, she’s picking at weeds, a small trowel in hand. There aren’t many people around without the sun to motivate them there, as if the flowers had lost their lustre along with its disappearance. That doesn’t seem to stop one ray of sparkling sunshine from arriving, though.
“Mika, is that you?” A voice sounds, pulling her immediately out of her work reverie, and she looks up to see Arashi leaning over, inspecting her work. She looks as stunning and put together as always, while Mika is sporting gardening gloves, her pants dirtied with soil, and a pile of weeds lying forlorn on the paved ground beside her. One is being held hostage in her hand, roots dangling, apparently the most recent victim.
“Eh? Oh hey there, Naru, yeah, ‘s me,” she answers in a mumble, tossing it in with the rest of the pile.
“Is this your job? Or one of them,” Arashi asks, friendly curiosity colouring her tone, and Mika relaxes somewhat from the unexpected interruption then, standing up and wiping at the dirt on her clothes.
“Yeah, I help with the gardenin’ here, since there’s a lotta flowers n’ shrubs ‘n all,” she answers, taking a glance up at Arashi before sliding the gloves off of her hands.
“This seems fun… All these beautiful flowers give you a sense of rejuvenation even on this gloomy day, don’t they? Do you ever get to keep some of them, or even just the rejects if they’re starting to wilt?” Arashi asks, stepping around to Mika’s other side. Before Mika can react, she’s bent down to pick up the discarded weeds. “I can help if you want.”
“Wh- well, it’s a job so ya’d hafta register for it, but- they go in the compost. Same with wilting flowers, if they have no hope of gettin’ back to good health. I’m not all that sure about ‘rejuvenation’, but they’re nice t'look at.”
“Maybe I’ll check it out then… I wonder if it’d be helpful to help with rebuilding Knights’ reputation, you know, wholesomely taking care of our school’s wonderful garden. And I’d be working alongside you! It’s an ideal situation no matter what. If they aren’t still accepting paid workers, then even just volunteering would be fine,” Arashi goes on, borderline muttering to herself in thought.
“That’s smart of ya, Naru. I never even thoughta work as somethin’ to get more fans. I just do it for money, really,” she admits, still brushing at the dirt on her clothes, more absentmindedly now.
“Then it’s a deal! You might even see me here tomorrow!” Arashi’s beaming as she speaks, forgetting about the weeds in her grasp and accidentally shaking leftover dirt from them onto her own uniform. They both pause to look at each other before Arashi starts laughing a bit, Mika grinning with her, and then she stops to sigh at herself.
“I’ll definitely be more careful, though. We don’t have to wear our school uniforms to work, right? They’ll probably give me all the information I need… I’ll leave these to you then, Mika, until I return.” Arashi drops the weeds back to their previous spot and then turns, waving. Mika waves back, somewhat awkwardly, though she’s smiling more to herself in the time afterwards, in hope and wait at the prospect of Arashi coming to join her.
“You sure do know a lot, for this just being an odd job,” Arashi comments, crouching down to inspect the petals of a mixed white and red lily.
It’s the day after next since they last met there, their allotted times for working at the garden mainly on Tuesday and Thursday after school. Arashi had kept her overall promise though, properly signing up for the job through the school and appearing with a proud beam of a smile before Mika. There was enough money she gained through idol activities and occasional modelling, but she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t thinking of the extra snacks and cakes she’d be able to afford there.
"This’s just part of doin’ it properly, so," Mika says, waving the compliment off. Or at least she assumes it’s a compliment with the way Arashi was speaking of it, though it could easily be construed as something weird, too.
“S’not all that hard- there’re some areas that need more water than others, or less, but s’all arranged for it t'be easier ta remember. There’s the actual gardeners too, we’re just extra help for simple stuff like tearin’ out weeds, or another pair of eyes t'spot dyin’ flowers, or things that need a trim. Most of the time, if yer dealing with stuff like PH balances in the soil, or water systems, drainage n’ all that- that’s their job.”
After going on for so long, it takes Mika a second to gain back some awareness, looking over to realize how attentively Arashi is watching her as she talks.
“... So yeah, ’s about all. Just simple stuff.”
“Still, I think it’s admirable how dedicated you are,” she presses, turning back to the lilies she was inspecting before. “Now that you’ve explained all that to me… it’s time for us to get to work, right?”
With that, Arashi rolls up the white of her sleeves and starts heading back towards the shed.
Something in the way that she says that, says us, gives Mika a sense of- what was that she said that time before- rejuvenation, more so than any of the flowers could.
“As you could probably see, I forgot to bring a change of clothes, and if I went back to get them I’d be late on my first day, but washing machines exist for a reason, huh,” Arashi says, but she’s not done talking there, filling the silence Mika’s gotten used to when the traffic of people had died down.
It’s not so unusual for Arashi to be sticking to her to figure stuff out, being a newcomer, but it makes Mika all that more self-conscious and hyperaware of Arashi’s existence beside her. All of her talking makes Mika want to say more too, and so she does, tentatively.
"Ta me it’s sorta like… carin’ for these is like havin’ a pet or somethin’. Master wouldn’t let us have any, even if I could pay for it, so this makes up for it a bit. Sometimes it’s nice ta think that I can take care of stuff, with all that I have ta rely on Master n’ my family n’ everyone for so much. I can look at the flowerbeds n’ feel a bit of pride.” Mika slows then, catching herself. “Ah, sorry, I started to ramble there huh. Actin’ like I did all this when these flowers n’ plants are more the gardener’s hard work..."
“What, not at all, it’s nice hearing your thoughts. And I think your help has just as much an influence as what gardeners do, or you wouldn’t be here, right?” Arashi says, smiling at her. “I’ll hug you if you keep downplaying yourself like that.”
“H-hey, what kinda threat issat supposed to be, Naru?”
“Oh, it’s not a threat, it was more like an excuse,” she says, winking, and Mika has to turn her head away as red dusts her cheeks. She wants to retort something, like how shameless Arashi is, but she can’t bring herself to in her embarrassment.
As the evening continues on, closing in on the end of Arashi’s first shift there, Mika finds herself glancing more often to where she is across the yard; she notes how Arashi seems to get distracted often, watering the flowers but then stopping as if to talk to them. Seeing that, Mika can’t help but also stop in the middle of spraying some light fertilizer and do the same, secretly, hoping Arashi won’t see and comment on that as well.
“The school wants us to collect the berries for ‘em, but they don’t mind if we keep some for ourselves too,” Mika explains as they stop near the section of various fruit bushes. She glances sideways towards Arashi afterwards, and it’s as if her eyes are sparkling. It’s obvious even to Mika that she’s probably entertaining the thought of eating some of the specially grown fruit.
“This is such a great idea! I had no idea they had all these kind of berries here… I mean, I knew some of them at least, but all this variety is a bit of a surprise,” she says, tapping fingers against her chin in thought.
“Hey, Naru,” Mika starts, crouching down while Arashi follows her lead. “Here, s’all good for ya to have some, if ya want…” She offers, holding out a raspberry between her thumb and index finger, gently picked, a lopsided smile gracing her face.
“Oh! Thank you for this,” Arashi says, her expression smoothing from surprise to a fond smile.
Before Mika can even think to react, Arashi leans in, eating the raspberry right from her hand. With some delay, Mika’s expression goes from an easy smile to almost frozen in some kind of shock.
“Ah. That’s not what you were thinking there was it, ah, Mika? Are you okay?” She ventures, Mika’s face starting to redden more as she stays motionless. I hope that didn’t somehow break her, Arashi thinks with slight amusement, but also a bit of worry.
“S’fine… ’m just …” Mika ducks her head, hiding her face in her arms. “I- I didn’t expect that.”
“Oh, I’m sorry I caught you off guard, but see- it wasn’t such a big deal now. Here, do you want me to feed you one too?” Arashi moves to pick a berry as well, holding it in front of her.
“E-eh, what makes ya think I’d eat one outta your hand too?”
“Aw, c’mon Mika, they taste good right? And it’d be an eye for an eye.”
“If it’s that then wouldn’t that be botha my eyes then? Since I’m the one all embarrassed n’ yer the one who seems to be havin’ all the fun,” Mika says, a whine, but then she stops for a moment. “... Though if you were really takin’ them, s’not like I’d actually mind since all they do is cause trouble for me. ”
“Suddenly so morbid! That’s okay though, I’m not actually taking any of your eyes. I happen to like them on you very much. They give you a unique kind of charm, regardless of if people can see and appreciate that,” Arashi says, then holds the raspberry out to drop into Mika’s palm instead. Mika looks over at her, still somewhat flustered, but gives in after a moment, holding out her hand.
“There, it’s delicious right? Though you’ve probably had a lot of them by now, but still, it’s a freshness I don’t feel I’d ever get tired of.” Arashi asks, smiling fondly again and waiting for Mika to finish so they can start gathering what they should.
Mika’s still somewhat pouty after, head bowed as she follows behind Arashi to the shed to collect some of the buckets they’d need. She’s not the type to hold back, true as she was called ‘stupidly honest’, but she can’t help think back to- admittedly, wanting to have eaten the berry when Arashi first offered it.
Catching herself, Mika shakes her head, like she can shake those thoughts right out of through her ears; Arashi notices the movement out of the corner of her eye, chuckling to herself at how unthinkingly cute Mika is.
A couple of shifts had already come and gone, Arashi familiarized with enough that she was now taking it upon herself to tease Mika more, plunging into some of the extra discarded plants that were trimmed for growth.
“Eh? What issat? A flower?” Mika asks as Arashi tucks it behind her ear, hoping for it to stay in place.
“Yeah, see? It suits you,” Arashi says, pulling the clasped mirror out of her back pocket and reflecting Mika’s own image back towards her.
It takes Mika a moment to drag her eyes from Arashi’s face to her own. The image wasn’t what she was expecting, a bright blue wildflower with a vivid ring of yellow in the middle. Something about it is striking, albeit in a simple way, and Mika wonders if there’s a deeper point to it just as Arashi resumes talking.
“I thought the colours matched your eyes, right? So then I looked it up, and it seems these are called ‘forget-me-nots’. That’s such a sadly romantic sounding name, don’t you think?” She takes the mirror away then and closes it. Mika’s heart thuds heavy in her chest, pulse loud in her ears as she ghosts her hand over them, a beautiful likeness to the mismatched eyes she normally abhors so much.
“I mean, searching information about it also told me it’s more related to people going to war, but I bet many have also used it towards love, as if it were a rose.” Arashi continues to prattle on, but Mika’s barely registering the words, instead getting distracted by her energy, her closeness. She has to look away before Arashi can notice and tease her, even the thought of her noticing making her ears grow a bit hot.
"If- If I'm a forget-me-not then..." Mika mumbles, then turns her head to scan the flowerbeds and walk over specifically to a section of bright yellow flowers. She begins to reach out, as if to pick one from its stem, but she stops herself.
"I thought it before, that these remind me of ya," she explains as Arashi goes to join her. "Though I dunno a lotta meanings or nothin'. I only know how to take care of ‘em. These’re, ah, daffodils?"
"What, really? These are a spring flower, huh," Arashi says, leaning down closer to inspect them. “I almost expect you to know everything about flowers by now, but it’s fine, I can search it up on my phone here. Daffodils…”
“Ah, yeah, most of the stuff I learned from the gardeners tellin’ me,” she admits, picking at her sleeve. “It really was all basic stuff I remember, enough to keep the plants all alive and whatnot.”
“You keep saying that like you don’t really know anything of worth yourself, Mika. Did you notice?” Arashi says, stopping to look up at Mika from her phone, a hint of concern in her eyes.
“Well, but ’s the truth. I dunno what else to say,” Mika answers, turning her head away. Arashi continues to look at her, hoping for a point of connection, but after a few more empty moments she stops with the signal of a small sigh, standing back up.
“I know it’s not like I can change your mind, but have a bit more faith in yourself Mika. I’ve learnt so much from you helping me here. I really appreciate it all,” Arashi says, her tone softer than normal.
Before Mika can voice any more denial, Arashi clasps her hands over Mika’s, warm and encompassing. Mika tenses up in response, moving her eyes to meet Arashi’s, except it’s too late. Her eyes are closed like she’s in thought, and in the moment Mika’s thoughts get pulled elsewhere, her heart racing quicker as she hyperfocuses on her hands in Arashi’s. They’re obviously smaller and a bit colder in Arashi’s grasp, and her thoughts wander- what would it would be like to actually hold them together, fingers intertwined; what kind of face Arashi might make in response, and would she even let them stay like that, the promise of more...
She almost physically shakes those thoughts away, a repeat of her mind getting away from her. It doesn’t work all that well.
“I… You’re actually really difficult to handle,” Arashi finally breathes out, opening her eyes to return Mika’s gaze. “Not that I mind, actually, it’s quite the opposite. I stick around because I like you so much.”
Mika sputters to say something, anything, but her flustered tongue betrays her, and only meaningless stuttering comes out.
Arashi smiles and ruffles Mika’s hair, secretly admiring how soft it is.
“We don’t have to keep talking about it, of course, so long as I think enough of you for the both of us,” she says, moving her hand away. Now Mika’s truly speechless, barely stopping herself from biting her lip.
“Naru... I hope ya know… the same goes from me ta you.” Mika finally musters a response, her voice rising a bit.
“Aww, y’know, that makes me so happy,” she says, bumping her shoulder against Mika’s. With a small shout of surprise, Mika stumbles over one step, causing Arashi to reach out and grab her arm to steady her.
“Geez, it’s almost like one small gust of wind could blow you over.”
“H-hey, weren’t ya just praisin’ me, what’sat comment for,” Mika whines, rubbing her shoulder. All Arashi does is chuckle behind her hand, forever glad for Mika’s reactions, meaningful or cute or both.
At the tone of the bell signalling their lunch break, Arashi stretches her arms out before getting up to leave the classroom. She’d brought less food than usual, resorting to grabbing a quick drink from a vending machine outside.
There are other students milling out of the room when Mitsuru spots her at the end of the hall, and runs for her amidst everyone.
“Oh hey! Arashi! What’ve you been doing lately? You’ve been away from the club more than usual. Well, Souma did say he saw you headed towards the garden one day, I think… Still, it’s been lonely without you, yeah.”
“Ah yes, I’ve been working there lately. Being surrounded by beautiful flowers for so long keeps my skin glowing and my vitality up, it’s like I’m absorbing their power through proximity,” she says, a finger up to her mouth like she’s telling a secret.
“What, is that a real thing?!” Mitsuru yells in shock, and Arashi laughs.
“Sadly, no, but their beauty does inspire me. And to let you in on a real secret, dear Mitsuru, there’s really just an important classmate there to keep company, you see? I have to keep a bit quiet about that, but I’m also trying to work for the sake of our group’s reputation, if that’s any help at all,” she explains, and Mitsuru’s mouth is still in the shape of an overly impressed ‘o’.
“Ehhh? What’s that, what kind of important classmate?” He asks, his voice lowered somewhat now, but his eyes sparkle at the prospect of being entrusted with important information from her.
“Well, I did say it was a secret. I can’t go giving you all the details. Anyways, I hope you aren’t causing too much trouble for Adonis and everyone?”
“What, don’t go changing the subject! But no, I haven’t, honest- anyways, who is it that you’re talking about?”
“Oh my, look at the time, I really should go now. I do have to eat sometime, after all. It was nice talking to you, Mitsuru! I’ll stop by the track club soon,” she says quickly, waving with a smile and turning back towards her original destination.
Mitsuru’s left alone to ponder her words, thinking she seemed more serious than normal somehow. Not that he was the greatest at reading situations or people, but she had mentioned them being ‘important’ at the very least. She had also talked about the Knights, too- logically, Mitsuru’s next train of thought is of course that Arashi was watching over this classmate because they were actually a threat.
He almost yells out at the prospect, but quickly covers his mouth, still being in the hall filled with people and everything. If it was a secret, he’d have to be more careful, as if his life were at stake-
He’d have to check the situation out for himself.
It’s gloomy by the end of the day, clouds a blanket over the sky in contrast to the clear blue that it was in the morning, showing no signs of budging. As Mitsuru makes his way to the garden, he continues checking over his shoulder every few moments in paranoia that Arashi will show up and catch him trying to snoop. Part of him feels bad, but if there really was some new potential threat then it’d only be helpful to figure out who. There are some other people around, but the real standout is a dark-haired kid leaning over a section of flowers, checking the dampness of the soil.
He heads right for them, more motivation than normal in his step.
“Hello! You… you’re Mika, right? In Arashi’s class?” Mitsuru asks upon approaching her, noting some familiarity. There were at least one or two times, he remembers, with Nazuna.
“Ah- oh, yeah, ’s me,” Mika responds, startling a bit at Mitsuru’s sudden appearance. He seems intent on making straightforward eye contact, so she turns her head slightly away instead, staring right back down at the flowerbed.
“I think I’ve met you before! I’m Mitsuru Tenma, Arashi’s junior in the track club. Oh, and Nazuna’s junior from Rabits!” He goes on, and Mika turns her gaze back for a moment.
“I think so, yeah. I remember ya, but only a tiny bit. … Did Nazuna send ya to tell me somethin’? Or was it Naru... I know she told me she had Knights stuff to do today, but… I’m not always good at rememberin’ things, even if it’s important…” She says, scratching at her cheek sheepishly.
“Oh, Nazuna didn’t send me! Arashi didn’t either! She just told me about how she picked up this job here, and mentioned you, so I was curious and wanted to see who,” Mitsuru explains, hopping down to poke at some unassuming flowers.
“Issat so… though there’s not much here to find out about, s’just a regular old part time job, doin’ garden work.”
“Ah, well that’s good but I meant- I’m more curious about the kinda person Arashi would put herself to work in the dirt for, yeah- Mika... What do you think of Arashi?”
“Eh, that’s sorta a loaded question don’tcha think? But if I had to say… she’s pretty ‘n talented, though that’s just superficial stuff, I guess, since ya could call a lotta people here pretty ‘n talented… But she’s comfortin’ to talk to n’ she helps out a bunch so it’s nice to have her around.”
“I know what you mean! Oh wait, did I lose track of time already?! I forgot I’m supposed to meet Nazuna and everyone to practice. I better run off or else Nazuna’ll be even angrier with me.”
“Eh, Nazuna… tell him hi for me, would ya, if it ain’t too much trouble?”
She turns her eyes back down, somewhat awkward.
“Yeah, I will, it’s no trouble at all! It was nice talking to you!” He says, running off while waving. Mika looks up again and waves in return, although he’s already gone, as if he was a quick gust of wind rather than a person.
“I wonder what all those questions were about, huh…” Mika mutters, looking back towards the flowers she had been tending to.
“Oh well, no point gettin’ distracted, I still have a buncha work to finish.”
Somewhat late to start, Arashi gets to the garden just in time to see Mika’s fallen asleep, drifted off next to two watering cans full with water. Her sleeping face is just as endearing as it normally is, if not more, along with the light sleep talking she can hear. Arashi grins to herself, wondering what course of action she should take- to call out and wake Mika up, or fix the slight mess that is her bangs, or possibly take up a seat next to her to let her finish her nap-
She isn’t able to finish those thoughts as Mika jolts awake. It takes her a moment to blink sleep out of her eyes, taking in her surroundings before glancing up at Arashi. It takes one more blink before red seeps into her cheeks, embarrassment permeating her bones.
“Ah, I didn’t mean ta-“ She stops, quickly pulling her legs up to hug her knees and hide her face. Hiding a giggle behind the back of her hand, Arashi moves to sit beside her, only a small space between them.
“Hey, it’s fine, you’re always working so hard, and the sun along with a slight breeze can make a small nap irresistible. Here, c’mon,” she pats Mika’s shoulder lightly, looking for some reaction. All she gets is a shake of the head, and it takes her a lot to not ruffle Mika’s hair.
“I don’t think anything of it, actually, I’m the one who’s late and we have a lot to do, don’t we?” Arashi continues prodding, moving back to stand up, facing towards her.
Mika hesitantly looks up then, her face significantly less red but infinitely more pouty. Arashi can’t help think about how cute Mika is, really. Saying that out loud would be fun, as entertaining and true as it may be, but she doesn’t want to ruffle Mika any more than she already is, like a formerly stray cat teased too much.
“Here, I’ll help you up so we can get a start,” she says instead, bending down slightly and offering a hand. Mika looks at it for a moment, as if she’s waiting for it to somehow disappear, before conceding and stretching her hand out in return.
“Oh, I also forgot to mention I made lunch for us. An Arashi Narukami bento special. It’s not like I haven’t made it before, but it’s been a while, I think. I put them in the terrace kitchen for us to have later.”
“Eh, what? C-can I even accept somethin’ like that?” Mika asks, suddenly flustered again.
“I made them because you always look so thin. I know that 'master' person- Itsuki was it?- helps you with food too, but I just want you to know you can rely on me. We can even make one together sometime.”
“But that’d mean acceptin’ even more goodwill from ya, Naru. Ya already made it, so it’d wouldn’t make a tonna sense to let it go t'waste, but there’s no need ta trouble yerself over doin’ things for me. I’ve got plenty of energy from these candies I have,” Mika says, pulling one out from her pocket.
“It’s like you haven’t changed this whole time, ever since last year! Candies are nice for a snack, but you shouldn’t be sustaining yourself on just empty sugar for most of the day, Mika. Honestly, that really won’t do much for your health- I’m surprised you haven’t gotten sick before, and especially before you had Itsuki to help you,” Arashi says, frowning and crossing her arms.
Mika closes her mouth in a pout, but thinks better of that after a second. Arashi’s gaze is a strong weight on her, and she knows she's not going to be able to get out of this easily.
“If yer gonna be that obstinate ‘bout it then fine. But that means I'm gonna pay ya back, okay, even though I don't got much, but s'only fair,” she counters, and Arashi sighs.
“I can't say I completely accept that kind of proposition... I don't want to pry into your life too much if you're troubled by it, but I want you to be taking proper care of yourself, at the very least. I care about you and this worries me, Mika, and I don't want you to feel indebted about it either."
"But... Naru, like I said, I'm already indebted to ya so much already-" Arashi cuts her off, already knowing where she's going.
"But that's just friendship, right? I could say you do a lot of things for me as well, because you do, and none of us are counting it as an amount to be repaid."
There's a long moment of silence, Mika biting her lip, her gaze pointed elsewhere. It's incredibly hard for Arashi to hold herself back, to not take Mika by the arms and stare into her eyes and express how much she deserves, how much Arashi would be willing to give for her- how she should be able to lean on someone, for once.
"I-I get it, 'kay?" Mika finally responds, although she's still not looking back towards her. "I get it, so- just know, if I could, I'd be givin' ya the whole world n' then some, honestly."
Arashi doesn't say anything right away, but she relaxes a bit, her frown softening to a warm smile.
"Mika... Mika, I hope you know you already have," she says, and Mika isn't prepared as she pulls her into a hug. This isn't unusual, with Arashi one for frequent shows of affection, but it seems to hold more weight behind it, her hold tight and lingering.
"I guess... we should get to work before we get in trouble for slacking off, shouldn't we? Let's start with watering the plants,” she says, hesitating a beat before stepping back and reaching for one of the watering cans. “I’ll take that section, and you do this one this time?”
“Eh, ah, sure... anythin' s'okay with me so long as yer fine with it,” Mika answers, grabbing the other quickly.
“... Hey, I was also thinking we could bake something together sometime, using the berries if the school lets us. Ah, although, you don’t like generally well-made sweets, do you...“
Arashi starts, thinking aloud as she starts to pour water out over some of the flowers.
"Well, I can try ta make somethin’ like that. I don’t need ta eat any, but...” She interjects, but then adds on in a mumble after, “I can make ‘em for you, if ya want…”
“Huh? What do you meant? Baking stuff all on your own isn't any fun,” Arashi asks, her head tilted in obvious confusion.
“N-no, s’not like that...” She mumbles, turning her head away just enough to break eye contact again.
“We’ll both make it together, okay, and if all you’ll accept for yourself is some burnt amateur baking then I’ll make one just like that for you,” She offers, grinning now, and Mika turns her head back, unwittingly catching the beam of Arashi’s smile. She means entirely well, and Mika pauses in her thoughts, wonders about if her own intentions would just be pushing her own feelings onto Arashi. If it’s for her sake it isn’t that bad, but…
“N-Nah, I mean, what I was wantin’ to say issat…” She starts, grabbing her right arm and squeezing it lightly. “I wanna make somethin’ especially for ya, as thanks for helpin’ out… n’ also c-carin’ about me.”
“Aw, what, that’s so unfair! You’re always so good to me, and in such a cute way too.”
“H-hey, don’t go callin’ me cute-” She isn’t able to finish her objection before Arashi has her squeezed in a hug again.
“We definitely have to bake things together, and I’ll let you make something for me and I’ll make something for you.”
There’s so much excitement in her voice that Mika can only nod in response, blushing, not a word of complaint on her tongue.
It’s after school, no obligations to be had as Mika leans against the wall in the hallway, thinking about leaving to go somewhere with less people, but mostly something to plan for Arashi. She would’ve made a move to leave sooner, but it wasn’t like there were too many people around at that time, at least, and she had her eyes closed in thought anyways. Happening to look up, though, she sees Mitsuru just as he’s passing by in the next hallway.
“Oh- issat that one kid, Mitsuru… somethin’ or other…” She mumbles, catching his eye accidentally before he continues on walking.
“Ah, it’s Mika! Hi! Were you saying something over here?” Mitsuru asks, running up to her. She doesn’t answer immediately, at first scratching the back of her head and making a conflicted noise, but then she sighs in defeat.
“Sorta… I’d say it’s a secret, but really, there’s nothin’ much ta hide- I’m tryna think of somethin’ cheap n’ easy ta bake for Naru as appreciation. Yer close to her, right, d’ya have any ideas?” Mika asks, crossing her arms and closing her eyes again to think a bit harder.
“Ooh I see! I dunno, probably something sweet… But you’d probably thought of that much, huh, what about something like crepes then?”
“Oh! That’s good thinkin’, Mitsuru. I can put berries in that stuff easily, n’ I know Naru likes ‘em,” she says, beaming now. “Since ya’ve been such a good help I’ll let ya in on the plan, if ya want?”
“Wahhh that’d be great! Of course I want to help you do something for Arashi! I’m glad she has such a good friend like you, too,” he says, bouncing on his feet.
“Eh s’not much at all… and honestly, I was just plannin’ it to be the two of us sittin’ down, but if ya wanna have a crepe or two ya can help yerself, too,” she offers, and Mitsuru smiles even brighter, if that’s somehow possible.
“That’d be great! But, I might have club… or idol practice… but I’ll see, okay!”
“D’ya wanna go n’ grab some stuff with me at the store? I already have most of the ingredients, since I know crepes are simple n’ the terrace kitchen’ll have it, but I need to get whip cream n’ powdered sugar.”
“Yeah! I have some time today at least!” Mitsuru almost shouts, and Mika goes to pat his head.
They’re still talking somewhat loudly as they walk down the hallway, any meaning of ‘secret plan’ not a thought in their minds as Arashi stands just out of sight around the next corner, smiling to herself.
“Somehow I made all these pretty quick n’ set everythin’ up, so where’s Naru at now…”
Most of the crepes are stacked on one plate, with one each on both of theirs. The amount they had made was really only some fraction out of all the attempts, both Mika and Mitsuru generally failing at the prospect of crepes until Anzu had run into them, and quickly managed to show them how to salvage some from the remaining batter.
A third plate sits forlorn on another table, Mika thinking back to teary eyed Mitsuru who needed to be around for track club practice. As much as he’d like to skip out like Arashi, he didn’t want Adonis to think she was starting to be a bad influence or anything.
Mika promised to save him some, too, but it wasn’t really the same after the effort they both put in, and the time they spent looking around in the supermarket. She was sure that no one would really fault him for skipping out just once, but he ran off before she could get anymore words in. Even Anzu’d been given somewhat of an invitation by Mika, but she had to run off to deal with her own business.
Instead of continuing to dwell on it, though, Mika turns her thoughts to everything laid out there on the table, and forward to Arashi who was hopefully on her way. She had managed to secure an empty classroom for a while, tossing a note to Arashi in class to meet her there a bit after school.
It doesn’t take much longer for Arashi to show up.
“I’m so sorry, Mika, I got held up talking to someone on the way here and-” She starts, somewhat breathless from hurrying there, but then she freezes at the scene in front of her.
“Hey, Naru. Sorry ta keep this a secret from ya but-” Mika goes to speak, but Arashi immediately interjects.
“This is so much! You really set all this up, just for me?”
“Well, of course. I don’t think they’re all that warm now but they should still be good. Mitsuru n' Anzu helped n' I even got ta use these berries from the school. I’m hopin’ there’s enough for ya,” she smiles, pulling out a seat for Arashi.
Arashi sits down, still a bit too overwhelmed to do anything besides thoughtlessly add some toppings onto the crepe and take a few bites. It’s not like she hadn’t overheard the conversation between Mitsuru and Mika before, but for her to actually see the result...
“Honestly, I don’t think I can eat all of this on my own,” Arashi comments after she’s finished the first one, looking over to where Mika hadn’t actually touched hers. It seemed the one on her plate was placed there more for appearance than to actually eat it.
“Eh, but I dunno if my stomach’ll take well to this kinda food, n’ I don’t wanna go messin’ up my stomach now-”
“There has to be one in here that you cooked less than perfectly, if that’s the issue you’re talking about- not that I doubt your cooking skills, of course, what I’ve eaten so far has been really tasty!” She says, picking through some of the stack. “Ah, here, this one should be good.”
“No matter how good a cook you are, it’s said that the first pancake usually doesn’t turn out that great. I’ll just make this up for you now,” she says, grabbing the crepe at the very bottom with a look of triumph.
Mika’s mild whining is drowned out by Arashi’s unyielding enthusiasm as she quickly fills it with berries and whip cream, topping it off with some powdered sugar.
“And it’s done! All for you,” she finishes, smiling.
“That’s- thank ya, Naru,” Mika responds, accepting the plate as Arashi passes it forward to her.
It doesn’t take much longer for both of them to be finished, Mika still picking at one warily and Arashi reaching her limit. After one last bite, she wipes at her mouth with a napkin, letting out a heavy, contented sigh.
“I’m so grateful, Mika! Really, for you to set up all this just for me, I’m so touched I don’t know what to say. Honestly I can’t believe it, really, and I feel bad because I keep thinking I should’ve been the one to arrange something for you…” Arashi stops, looking down with an obvious expression of slight displeasure.
“It was you who helped me out the most, and we haven’t even baked those things together that I said we would, yet,” she finishes in slight complaint, crossing her arms and looking up to meet Mika's eyes. Mika opens her mouth to speak, but stops with a lack of words, closing it instead and clenching her hands in her lap for a moment.
“Ya… Ya say all that, Naru… ya say it like ya didn’t do any good by me, or that ‘cause of that ya don’t deserve this- after preachin’ all that stuff to me before, about my own well-bein’-” Mika takes a breath, braving a look up at Arashi.
“I know I’m not all that bright- and that's not me being hateful of myself, s’just the truth- but even I can see that about ya. Ya said it yerself before, that ya wanted t'work with me ‘cause I was here, n’ then ya gave me more kind words n’ even some advice...” She trails off, not sure of what else to say or where she was going to end up with it.
"T... this's the start of me tryna give ya the world, I s'pose."
At that, Arashi stands up suddenly, making Mika jump; her eyes are closed, her head lowered, heavy seriousness in her posture. She follows the edge of the table, moving towards Mika until she’s standing right in front of her. Mika looks up to see the expression on her face, her mouth a downward curve of a frown. It was so strange to witness in comparison to her typical cheery demeanor, different from the other times when she was only vaguely dissatisfied.
“To think you’d say all that for my sake…” She begins, and her mouth quirks now as if she’s fighting to keep it in the shape of a frown. Mika’s left with no time to think as Arashi flings herself to Mika’s side, trapping her in a hug.
“Sometimes I- I really feel like what you’re thinking is an enigma to me, even though I know you aren’t that type of person at all, Mika,” she says, sniffling, emotions clinging to the inside of her sleeve but to no avail. Mika slowly returns the hug, trying not to jostle her too much; it feels like if she were to move too much it’d snap, lost forever.
“Naru…” She starts, and she feels herself tearing up somewhat, too; how ridiculous they must seem in that moment, the crushing but gentle warmth of Arashi’s embrace along with her theatrics. It feels bad thinking of it as ‘theatrics’, though, when it’s coming from her emotions, strong but genuine, so completely her.
She's distracted tenfold with Arashi's closeness, too; caught not just in the hug, but in the thudding of her own heart, heat spreading through her veins. But worst of all is the impulse to pull back and stare into Arashi’s eyes, memorizing every detail of her face as if they have eternity. It’s more than anything else she’s felt up to this point, that she knows was meant as something more. It was just difficult to admit, really, and it'd make everything so much more difficult.
By now, Arashi’s made it onto Mika’s lap, her arms still wrapped around her, trying to fit both of them on one chair.
“Hey, Naru, my legs are... sorta fallin’ asleep.”
“Hm? Are you insinuating I’m heavy? That isn’t the kind of thing you should be telling a girl,” Arashi whines in a faux pout. “But it’s okay, even if I didn’t weigh that much your legs would still fall asleep after a while, wouldn’t they?” She continues, her tone too light, and it seems it’s in an effort to not be displaced from Mika’s lap.
“That’s true n’ all, n’ if ya don’t wanna move ya can just say so, but they’re really gettin’ tingly.”
“It’s okay, I wasn’t actually planning on staying for too long anyways,” she says, releasing her hold and standing up then. In a moment of quick revelation, though, her hands fly up to test at her eyes, the outburst of emotion and tears an apparent mistake.
“Ah, ‘s everythin’ alright?” Mika asks, not entirely sure what it meant in terms of either embarrassment or possibly makeup. The whole arrangement of their food was forgotten by that point as she stands up too, hovering and waiting for Arashi’s response.
“I really messed up didn’t I? Oh well, it’s no matter, because I- we got closer. Or at least I’d like to think we did. I still just can’t believe you did any of this for me...” She trails off, still wiping somewhat at her eyes. “Mika… can I hug you again?”
“Eh? Of course ya can, ya don’t even hafta ask. And really, I’d like ta think we’re close too, Naru, this whole time actually,” Mika says, her voice almost muffled now in Arashi’s shoulder as she’s enveloped again, and Arashi hums.
“This whole time…”
“And- actually, if there’s anythin’ anybody has ta say that’s bad about ya, it’ll all be worthless ‘cause I’ll- I’ll accept all of ya, ‘cause you’re Naru.”
“Mika… If you keep saying all of these intricately kind things to me, I might just have to spin you around and kiss you,” she says, chuckling and holding her tighter. It’s a critical hit, though, and Mika blushes all the way from her ears down to her neck.
“This’s startin’ to feel like deja vu, but issat actually a threat now?”
“Not really, it’s still… an excuse.”
“E-eh, what're ya sayin'?”
The seconds pass as if they’re ethereal, Arashi pulling back to see her, stroking her thumb on Mika’s cheek. It doesn’t last, though, Arashi dropping her head to lean on Mika’s shoulder almost immediately after.
Mika doesn’t say anything, doesn’t even breathe for a long moment as her mind tries to compute what’s currently happening.
“Ah... as I thought, I wasn’t able to keep this up.”
“W… what’s this about, Naru? A-are ya okay?”
“... If I said I liked you, how would you react, I wonder? … Would you still want to be friends with me...? Be around me?” Arashi asks, and Mika never wants to hear the same kind of light hopelessness in her voice again.
“I-I already said it, didn’t I, that I like ya… Or maybe I meant it different then, but ‘s even more now.” Mika puts a hand on Arashi’s shoulder, pulling her back to look at her face, into her eyes. It’s easier now to not avert her gaze, even though this situation is so entirely different from any others.
“Ya said I was difficult, that time before, but ya can be just as difficult,” she says, looking at her fondly. Arashi pouts in return. With everything happening, Mika can feel her cheeks burning more than ever, but she feels comforted in how much Arashi’s blushing, too.
“Really? Looking right at me like that but then you say I’m difficult, and here I was thinking, well, that you might- kiss me,” Arashi admits after a pause, looking away now.
“K-k-kiss? I-I wasn’t thinkin’ about anythin’ like that! Somethin’ like that’d be rude without any warnin’ too, b-but-” She cuts off, turning away and covering some of her face with her hand.
“So does that mean you’d want to wait for me to kiss you instead, then?” Arashi asks, tilting her head with a small, mischievous smile on her face.
“E-Eh? All this talk about kissin’... s’not like I’m all that prepared for that... Or s’more like I didn’t expect any of this. Not like I don't… want it or nothin’,” Mika says, mostly a mumble, and Arashi can tell with all the pauses how much she’s trying to think about what she’s saying, probably trying to not dissolve into a mushy puddle on the floor.
“So basically what you’re saying is- you want to kiss me?” Arashi grins just a bit more, leaning in closer.
“W-what now, I didn’t say nothin’ like that-”
“Well, it’s no matter if you aren’t ready,” she interrupts, leaning back now. “I wasn’t actually expecting you to be, but, well... anyways, to make sure, that is to say- you do like me in return?”
“T-this’s all sorta complicated to me, Naru... I don’t have any experience with this kinda thing,” Mika answers, averting her eyes again.
“Mm, I keep getting ahead of myself, honestly... If you want space or time I can leave you be-”
“Nah, don’t leave Naru, s'fine I just… if ya want me to be honest n’ say what I feel then I can try. I just…” She trails off, and Arashi’s staring at her intently, hanging on every word; Mika turns her head away a bit, her eyes darting back nervously for a second.
“I... I do like ya, the kind where- if ya’d have me, I’d want to be with ya.”
Mika’s almost too afraid to glance back again, more scared to face her now than ever, as if this entire meeting is going to turn out to be a bad joke somehow. It’s not like Arashi would do anything like that, not in a million years she knows, but some part of her doubts herself more than she trusts Arashi.
“Sayin’ that out loud is... sorta embarrassin’, but… I don’t want to make ya unhappy or nothin’,” she finishes instead, then finally braves a peek back to see- Arashi, with the brightest smile she's ever seen on her face.
“Mika… Mika- Mika, Mika!”
“N-Naru?”
“Do you really mean that? All of it? In complete seriousness?”
“I said I’d tell ya honestly, didn’t I-”
Before Mika can end her sentence, Arashi’s trapped her back in a hug, even more enthusiastic than the first one.
“I don’t know what I expected… I’m so happy… I don’t know- I don’t know what I’d do without you, Mika,” she says, a catch in her throat.
“Hey, s’okay,” Mika starts, trying to reach around and pat Arashi’s back tentatively. “Naru, I-”
“Ah, Mika, Arashi!" The door to the classroom suddenly slides open with a bam, revealing a flushed Mitsuru.
"I’m sorry, I didn’t want to interrupt but… Adonis really wanted me to get you- Actually, it’s probably more like Knights’ business, but they asked Adonis so I took the message from him but it’s really from them- Anyways I’m still really sorry, yeah! Because you planned for this so much, Mika-”
“Now now, you can relax a bit, Mitsuru, it’s okay,” Arashi interrupts, breaking away from Mika to give him a pat on the head. “You can go back to the track club and tell Adonis I got the message, and I’ll go back to my groupmates to see what the matter is, okay?”
“Yeah! I got it! I hope you all had a good snack anyways. ‘Kay, I’m off!” Mitsuru shouts, turning to run as he waves. Arashi smiles and waves back, then turns back to Mika with an unhappy sigh.
“Duty calls~ and all, it seems. I would’ve liked for us to talk a lot more right now, but I shouldn’t slack off too much. For all I know our king has gone missing as always, or Ritsu, or Izumi’s gone off and done who knows what... they sure can be a troublesome bunch sometimes. That might go for me as well, though.”
“Ah, Naru, s’fine. I c-can clean up here, since I don’t have any obligations for the day…” Her eyes are pointed back towards the ground as she plays with the end of her sleeve a bit, red still colouring the majority of her face.
Unsure of what exactly to do, Arashi lets out a tiny huff, then steps back towards her.
“Hey, Mika,” she starts, her voice playful, grabbing Mika’s attention (and her eyes) back. “I love you, you know? So I’ll certainly be back for you.”
Despite her light tone, her cheeks are flush with red too. Before Mika realizes what she’s about to do, Arashi's leaning in, hesitating just a moment before sneaking a quick kiss on her cheek. Shocked, Mika barely gets a stutter out of her mouth before Arashi steps back, turning quickly to head off and deal with her sudden responsibility.
Watching Arashi leave, Mika’s cheek burns even more where Arashi kissed, soft and unexpected. It’s enough that she wonders if it might actually catch fire, and she touches her hand to it now, still somewhat stunned.
As she starts to clean up, she notices how fast her heart is still beating too, and- it really dawns on her, everything that just happened, what both of them said and what that must’ve meant, and Arashi’s parting words...
Only the automatic routine of cleaning up their dishes and food keeps Mika from covering her face and collapsing on the ground in embarrassment.
Heading off to meet her group, Arashi stops for a moment, slapping both of her cheeks with a loud clap.
“... Ah, so I really am awake. This is all so exciting I don’t know what to do besides talk to myself,” she says, giggling before continuing towards her current obligation. She hopes whatever it is, it’s not too much of an issue, but in light of recent events it’s not like she can leave everyone too much to the wayside, especially as the leader. She wasn’t shirking off that much of her duties if she had to say so herself, but Izumi always found a way to nag about something.
There’d be even more responsibility for her now though, she thinks, picturing back to Mika’s blushing face. Her whole body buzzes with excitement, and she feels weightless, like if she were to run in a track competition at that moment she’d beat all the records at once.
“I should hurry and fulfill my promise before Mika decides it’s not worth waiting for me, shouldn’t I?” Arashi sighs, then smiles to herself. To go along with the adrenaline in her system, she moves to stretch quickly, preparing to run out some of her energy the rest of the way to her destination.
It’s nearly dusk by the time Arashi’s done, but rushing back to where she’d left Mika turns out fruitless.
All evidence of their time spent there earlier was gone, and while Arashi tells herself that logically something must’ve pulled her away for whatever reason- that anyone would’ve left after enough time had passed, regardless of the circumstances- it doesn’t stop the feeling of her stomach dropping any less. She takes a few deep breaths to calm her racing thoughts and heart down, patting a hand to her chest as she turns to walk out of the building and towards home.
It isn’t like they wouldn’t see each other again, with classes just tomorrow, but a sense of awkwardness dwells in that prospect- or rather, a sense of dread at useless thoughts plaguing her for the rest of the night, regardless of how she tried to dispel them.
Some part of her happens to make her look up as she’s walking towards the front gate, any further worries immediately halted as she spots Mika there now.
She’s on the other side of the gate, facing the street with her head down, most likely in the case of anyone passes by. Part of her hurts, acknowledging the reason for that.
So she can’t see that I’m here, huh, Arashi thinks to herself with some amount of mischief after, on the other hand, but she concedes to let Mika off the hook without too much disturbance.
“Oh, Mika, there you are,” Arashi shouts out just as she gets closer, but even with that Mika jumps before turning around to spot her.
“Naru!” She responds, a smile instantly brightening her face. “I was startin’ to wonder if ya already went home n’ I missed ya.”
“Oh no, nothing of the sort. In fact, I thought you were the one who disappeared since you hadn’t been in the same room from before. But it’s fine, since we both found ourselves here together. Now… were you waiting at the gate to walk me home, perhaps?” Arashi asks, grinning as an easy blush creeps its way onto Mika’s cheeks.
“N-nah, I wasn’t intendin’ on that, I was just thinkin’ it’d be better to wait for ya here, since ya said ya wanted to talk more n’ all. I didn’t wanna stay there for too long in case a teacher spotted me n’ got mad or somethin'. Sorry if I caused ya any trouble,” she explains, rubbing the back of her neck nervously.
“Well, it might be strange to talk about personal things in earshot of anyone on the street, but how about you just start with walking me home, then, if you want?” Arashi suggests, stepping away a bit. “It’s this way, and it shouldn’t take too long. I might even invite you in for dinner.”
Automatically, Mika goes to follow in her lead, but then stops.
“Ah, I- I sorta do, really, I wanna go with ya Naru but is this… really… isn’t this like we’re goin’ out or somethin’? R-right?” Mika asks, bringing her hands up to her face that’s now completely deep red. She looks more upset than happy, or at least more teary than anything, Arashi notes, and she quickly turns to her.
“Mika… if that’s what you want… but more importantly, are you okay?”
There’s no response for a moment, but then Mika shakes her head.
“S-sorry, Naru, I k-keep causin’ trouble-”
“No, never, not in the least. C’mon, look at me, hey? It’s alright,” she says, soft, slowly placing her hands on Mika’s to pry them away.
“It’s alright, so let’s walk, okay?” Arashi ventures, smiling fondly as she releases Mika’s hands, then moves to wipe a tear away from the corner of her eye. Mika looks up towards her and Arashi grins even more.
“Have I told you yet how much I love your beautiful eyes?” She asks, her voice full of charm, and Mika can only sputter.
“W-w-what does that hafta do with anythin’?” Mika asks in return.
“Well, it has to do with everything, in fact, it’s just one of the many things I like about you, so I felt you should know.”
“W-what was it you were sayin’ before about walkin’ home, Naru?”
Arashi hides a giggle behind her hand at Mika’s obvious deflection, then turns away again to signal that she’s going to walk.
“I won’t make you come with me, but you’re certainly welcome to,” Arashi says, and Mika looks back at her again, nodding after a moment.
“Y-yeah,” she responds, her voice soft, but there’s a small smile on her face. “Of course I’ll go with ya.”
For a while they walk in silence, Mika to Arashi’s right, and while Arashi’s trying her best to behave and keep her gaze ahead, she can feel Mika fidgeting beside her, glancing over every few moments.
“Hmm, is there something the matter?” Arashi finally asks after slowing down a bit.
She stops to turn, ruffling Mika’s hair with her right hand. Mika immediately whines, reaching up to grab and hold it, much to her surprise. Normally, she’d have expected the whining, but not so much the grabbing, along with the fact that she still hadn’t released their hands afterwards, lowered between them. Was this next level pouting? Was this part of a plan and she was now trapped?
“Naru, why d’ya hafta tease me so much?” She whines, frowning as she looks down towards their hands.
“Ah, well it’s just that you’re so easy to tease, but if it really bothers you then I can tone it down.”
“Nah, s’fine, I mean, so long as ya aren’t bein’ actually mean but…” Mika lets go of Arashi’s hand then, turning her head away. “I… L-let’s just walk to yer house.”
“If something’s bugging you, you can tell me anything,” Arashi says, playing at arranging Mika’s bangs back neater.
She looks up, clutching her hands together for a moment before reaching up again. Instead of seeming like she’s trapping Arashi’s hand now, it’s obvious what she wants, but she breaks away, flustered as ever.
“Hey now, if you just want to hold hands why don’t you say so?”
“‘C-cause it’s e-embarrassin’.”
“Would it be embarrassing if I kissed you, too? You did say that you wanted to, earlier, is that still the case I wonder?” Arashi muses, tapping two fingers to her cheek in mock thought.
“I-I’ll let ya walk home by yerself, if that’s what yer tryna make me do,” Mika threatens, her pout in full force, and Arashi has to stop herself from laughing at how rather endearing it is.
“You’re so cute when you’re embarrassed, Mika,” she laughs regardless, reaching over to grab her hand now, lacing their fingers together. “See, that wasn’t so difficult now, was it?”
Mika huffs more in response, but tightens her hold slightly. She can’t help but look over towards Arashi again, and Arashi winks at her, grinning.
If she only had a limited amount of luck in her life, Arashi thinks as they continue on walking, it must’ve already been used up by that point. Mika’s hands are somewhat small and cold in hers, and she squeezes, hoping that if this is the happiness she gains from it, simple but fulfilling, surely that would last a lifetime in exchange. Mika had said 'the world', hadn't she?