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“You can use the bed in the other room, for the time being.” Kanade was talking to Mafuyu after she had suddenly ran away to her home.
“Okay. Thank you.” Mafuyu responded with a somber tone. She had dried tears on her face, but mostly appeared to have calmed down after a while.
They both sat in silence, as Mafuyu had just told Kanade why she ran to her home in the first place. However, something else seemed to bother Mafuyu at the moment. It wasn’t obvious at first, but it felt as if she was trying to keep her face from reacting.
“Mafuyu?” Kanade noticed, and immediately became concerned.
“Huh?”
"Are you ok?"
“Yes, I’m fine. I think I just need rest.” Mafuyu insisted on it, as she could tell that Kanade was concerned by the way she looked.
“Okay, that’s good.” Kanade's face turned to that of brief relief.
“I’ll be in my room composing, please knock if you need anything, ok?”
“Okay.” Mafuyu nodded as Kanade left the room.
It was quiet, and Mafuyu laid flat on the bed to think for a moment. There were a lot of emotions running through her head, but none of them actually showed on her face. She felt miserable, but at the same time, she felt comforted, safe, now that she was in Kanade’s home. Mafuyu didn’t dwell on it for much longer, and decided to think of something else for the time being, with that something else ending up being Kanade.
“(Kanade…)”
“(She really cares a lot for me. I don’t know where else I could have gone to besides Ena’s but…)”
Mafuyu held her chest while making a disgruntled look, identifying why she feels the way she does.
“(Does Kanade care about herself…?)”
(“She didn’t smell good at all. She smelled terrible. Not to mention…)”
Mafuyu looked back to how Kanade looked when they first met in person, all the way when she wanted to disappear. She then remembered all the memories she had with all the other Nightcord members.
“(I don’t think Kanade has ever once smelt good or looked clean since we met. I continue to see the dandruff in her hair or stains on her clothing.)”
Mafuyu was stuck, as she already had a lot to think about. But the nagging feeling of Kanade not taking care of herself felt immense to the point where she felt like she HAD to do something.
“(If she still smells bad now, then she hasn’t taken a shower in a long time…)
Mafuyu stopped for a brief moment, realizing the circumstance and what she felt like she needed to do.
“(I need to tell Kanade to do so, now.)”
Kanade was continuing to compose. Her attention felt unbreakable, constantly moving bars up and down and making sure that each part of the instrumental felt necessary. If it wasn’t, it needs to be removed immediately. That’s how focused Kanade really was.
“No, this isn’t right. This isn’t going to save anyone.” Kanade speaks with a disgruntled look to her face. She seemed to have felt frustrated ever since she got back to working on composing.
“Kanade. Can I come in?” Mafuyu knocked softly on the door.
Kanade didn’t respond, as her attention was just that impenetrable.
“(She’s not responding… maybe she’s busy… but…)” Mafuyu’s nagging feeling just wouldn’t go away. She felt as if this was something she had to do.
“I’m letting myself in.” Mafuyu opened the door, where she saw a heavily concentrated Kanade, and the same awful smell. It felt a bit worse too as Kanade’s room was an absolute mess.
“Kanade.” Mafuyu called out to Kanade again, but she was still unresponsive despite being in the same room as her now.
“Kanade.” This time, Mafuyu put her hand on Kanade’s shoulder.
“Huh?!” Kanade would jump back a bit and remove her headphones, but immediately calmed down once she realized it was just Mafuyu.
“Oh, it’s just you Mafuyu.” Kanade had a look of relief on her face.
Mafuyu’s face was the opposite, however. She looks disgruntled, despite having her usual neutral face on display. It was clear to Kanade that she was concerned about her.
“I was really focused… I’m sorry.” Kanade’s face changed from relief to a bit of a somber one.
“It’s ok.”
They were both in silence again, but this time, one of them had decided to actually speak up this time around.
“Kanade.”
“Y-yeah?” Kanade was still a bit shaken from Mafuyu’s sudden appearance, but figured she was just going to ask for support or something else.
“I have to ask, have you not been taking a shower?” Mafuyu’s face didn’t change when she asked this, but it was clear that this was something she had been meaning to ask for, at the very least, a while.
“Huh?”
Kanade seemed a little shocked at the question.
“(Why is she asking me this?)” Kanade couldn’t understand what led to Mafuyu confronting her about this.
“You still have the same stains on yourself from a while ago, you have a lot of dandruff, and you don’t smell particularly good.” Mafuyu’s face was noticeably pensive as she said this, which made Kanade feel a bit more guilty as she realized Mafuyu was genuinely concerned for her well-being.
“(She’s genuinely concerned for me. But…)”
“I believe that since we’ll be living together, that it’ll be fair if you take a shower.”
Kanade, while appreciative of Mafuyu’s concern, just didn’t feel like it was necessary to her. She hadn’t taken a shower in what feels like forever, so it didn’t seem like it'd make much of a difference if she did it today.
“Thanks Mafuyu, but I’m fine.”
Kanade looked at Mafuyu with a calm smile, as if this was just a regular concern.
Mafuyu gave a more recognizable pensive look when Kanade responded.
“(I should have known this wasn’t going to be easy… but…)”
Mafuyu looked back at all the moments Kanade cared about her, and to say it was a lot would be an understatement. Even if Kanade hasn’t “saved” her yet, she knows that Kanade has always supported and helped her throughout her time with Nightcord, especially now with her running away. To her, Kanade deserves that support too.
“Kanade, I insist you should do so.” Mafuyu started looking more seriously at Kanade, which she noticed, but didn’t look more deeply into it.
“Mafuyu, I know you’re concerned, but I need to keep composing.”
Kanade was continuing to play this off as just a simple concern.
“Kanade. Please.” Mafuyu kept insisting to Kanade, she wasn’t going to give up on her that easily.
“But-” Before Kanade could assert herself…
“Kanade, no. You need to take a shower. Please.”
Kanade took a glance at Mafuyu’s stern expression. She realized that Mafuyu was being serious about this, but to her, there was no real reason to begin with.
“...Hah. But why? It’s not that big of a deal, and…”
Kanade took an obvious pause, with Mafuyu noticing. She wanted to say something, but let Kanade talk as she felt like it was important to know why she was refusing to begin with.
“I haven’t done so in years, I don’t think a day is going to really do much. I still need to keep composing too…”
Mafuyu's eyes widened when hearing this.
“(Years? Then that means…)”
Kanade stares at Mafuyu with a concerned smile. It wasn’t like the world was going to end if she continued to not shower, so why would it matter?
“So, just let me do what I have to do, alright?”
Kanade kept up the concerned expression, but Mafuyu was not going to have any of it. It might be uncomfortable, but it still needs to be done.
“(…she hasn’t been taking care of herself for a long time.)” Mafuyu looked to the side, and thought more about what she should do. She held her chest up for a moment.
“(…I can’t let her suffer like this. I won’t let her suffer like this.)”
“Kanade. Hear me out.”
Kanade put her attention back to Mafuyu, still wondering why she seems so persistent about it.
“I’ve asked for a lot. Especially now. But I can’t let you suffer like this. Even if you might not realize it…”
Kanade listened with a curious and apprehensive look on her face.
“You have cared for me so much, so I believe it’s only fair if you receive the same care as I do.” Mafuyu continued with a serious look, being more blunt about what she’s saying.
Kanade looked a bit upset. She didn’t want to keep having Mafuyu this concerned, but at the same time she just didn’t believe this was necessary.
“I-I don’t know about this. A few years is a lot, y’know… and, I don’t exactly remember what you have to do for it.” Kanade gave another awkward smile, she wasn’t exactly lying here. It really has been that long since she last took one.
Mafuyu noticed the uncertainty in her eyes, and continued to try and convince her more to do so. She held her chest once more, and made her move.
“Do you need help?” Mafuyu asked without any hesitation.
“W-what?” Kanade looked a bit startled. She knows Mafuyu can be blunt with what she says, but here, she couldn’t tell whether she was actually being serious or not.
“Hah… Mafuyu you’re pulling my leg aren’t you? You can’t be that serious…”
It was much of the opposite, as Mafuyu kept the same serious expression even with Kanade reacting absurdly.
“Oh… you’re serious.” Kanade was a bit shaky and still nervous on whether or not Mafuyu was kidding or not.
Mafuyu knew this might happen, but again, she wasn’t one to give up on someone that easily.
“If you’re doing everything you can to help me, then I will do everything I can to help you too.”
“Oh…”
Kanade held her chest. Mafuyu really did want the best for her. Why shouldn’t she be able to do that after all?
“...Alright. I would appreciate that.”
“...!” Mafuyu’s eyes lit up.
“So that means…”
“I’ll take a shower.”
“Thank you. I’ll help out.”
The bathtub is being filled with water, something it hasn’t done in such a long time. Kanade was wearing an oversized robe, while Mafuyu was cleaning some of the untouched floor.
“Thank you for setting up mostly the stuff, sorry that it was… a lot.”
“It’s ok.”
Mafuyu turned the water off, as the bathtub became full of water. Mafuyu glared a bit at her reflection from it, and then took a glance back at Kanade.
“Do you need anything else or should we start?”
“No… I think we can start now…”
Kanade removed the robe and got in the tub, her entire body almost fully sinked to it from neck to toe.
“(The water’s warm… that’s good.)” Kanade was simply thinking to herself as she looked at her own reflection as well from the water. It truly has been a long time since she's done something like this.
“I’m going to put soap in the water, would that be good?” Mafuyu continued looking at Kanade with a neutral glare. She looked completely normal about this compared to her blunt and serious look from earlier.
“...Yeah. That sounds nice.” Kanade had a blank expression. For someone who seemed so against doing anything remotely related to showering, she didn’t have a reaction at all.
Mafuyu poured some soap over the water, and the bubbles started floating to the surface of the tub.
“...Wouldn’t this count as a bath? I thought showers and baths were both different…” Kanade looked up at Mafuyu, sometimes her attention was diverted to the bubbles, just so she could pop a few of them.
“A shower would be better. But I believe it will be best to do this first beforehand, since you only just now started doing this again.”
“Ah…”
Kanade seemed to be in a bit of a struggle, as she was just sitting there looking at the water and bubbles she was in.
“Sorry… I just…”
Mafuyu stared at Kanade.
“...don’t remember exactly how to do this.”
“Then let me help you.”
“A-are you sure? I feel like I shoul-”
“I came here to help, so I will.”
Mafuyu put on some shampoo and went behind the tub to scrub Kanade’s hair, which was littered with a ton of dandruff.
“O-oh…” Kanade shuttered at the touch of Mafuyu’s hands on her head, but decided to just let it happen.
Mafuyu continued scrubbing, getting every small speck of dandruff off, whether it was directly on her hair or on her scalp.
“...Mafuyu?”
“Yes?”
“...Do you like taking baths?”
“...I don’t know.”
“Ah…”
Mafuyu took a glance to the side. She felt like she had to answer Kanade’s question in a fulfilling way, but she wasn’t lying when she said she didn’t know.
“...Sometimes when I take a bath, I glare at myself from the water’s reflection. It eases me a bit. But I wouldn’t say it means anything.” Mafuyu glared down at Kanade this time, with Kanade looking up at her.
“...Oh. Does taking a shower also ease you?” Kanade seemed curious, as this could be a tiny, yet notable step into saving her.
“Sometimes, I think.” Mafuyu went back to scrubbing Kanade’s hair, most of the dandruff had been scrubbed off already. Mafuyu was focusing on the deep part of it now.
Kanade felt light, perhaps it was worth doing this just for another small look into Mafuyu.
“...Thank you Mafuyu.”
“For what?”
“For making me do this. It… feels nice. Especially with you here.”
“Hm…”
Mafuyu took another glance at Kanade. She felt a bit of warmness in her heart when she said that.
“S-sorry… that’s probably weird…”
Mafuyu shook her head.
“Don’t apologize.”
“Huh?”
“You’re welcome.”
Kanade smiled a bit, while looking up at Mafuyu. Mafuyu looked down at Kanade. The warmness in their hearts felt more obvious now, with them both glaring at each other and holding their chests.
Kanade seemed to be mesmerized by this warmness. It felt… familiar to her. Like she suddenly remembered how good it felt to take baths, to take showers. Even if it’s just a brief moment of her day, doing this every time just to relax for a bit felt more riveting than before. Mafuyu was also mesmerized by the warmth in her heart. This bond meant everything to her, and even if it was subtle or small, the fact that she is also giving back the support she gets felt… good.
“I… I think I can take a shower myself now.”
“Did you remember how to?”
“Not completely, but I think I remember the basics… I have to drain the bathtub before though, right?”
“Yes.”
“Alright. I left the soap bar and sponge next to the tub. So look there if you need them.”
“Alright… thank you.”
“I’m going to sleep, please wake me up if you need anything else.”
“Okay…”
Kanade and Mafuyu glared at each other, but before Mafuyu opened the door to leave, Mafuyu squatted down to look at Kanade one last time before going to bed, and gave her a soft kiss on the cheek.
“E-eh!?” Kanade became flustered almost immediately, almost to the point of embarrassment. But Mafuyu showed her usual neutral face.
“Thank you, Kanade.” Mafuyu left the bathroom as soon as she said this.
“Your…”
Even when Mafuyu wasn’t there anymore, she couldn’t help but blush and stare up at the ceiling for a bit before draining the bathtub and actually turning on the shower.
“...welcome.”
Kanade opened the door, feeling more refreshed than she ever did beforehand.
“(That was… actually really nice…)”
Kanade felt at peace with the silence of the house. The only other thing to do was to meet up with everyone else on Nightcord to tell them what happened, but Kanade couldn’t but just stand there, and think about what happened.
“(Mafuyu…)”
“(Even when she was in a desperate and awful time, she still managed to help me…)”
Kanade looked back on how Mafuyu kissed her. She couldn’t help but blush and smile this time around.
“(She really is amazing…)”
Kanade walked to the room she let Mafuyu use, only to find the bed completely empty.
“Mafuyu? Where did she…”
Kanade went back to her room and opened the door, only to find Mafuyu laying face flat on K’s bed.
“(Oh… whew. She’s okay…)”
Mafuyu was sleeping soundly on the bed, still wearing the same school uniform that got drenched from the outside rain.
“Mmm…” Mafuyu was shivering a bit, but she must have felt exhausted to the point of ignoring.
“(She’s probably cold…)”
Kanade went and got a blanket, and tucked Mafuyu in it. Her shivering seemed to have stopped now. Instead of going right back on her chair, Kanade decided to sit right next to Mafuyu, and hold her hand. It felt immensely warm.
“(I am never leaving your side, Mafuyu. If anything happens, I will be there for you.)”