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“And now you let go!”
“Let go?! Are you insane, Angie?!”
“It’s the only way you’ll learn how to swim, Tenko! Plus, Himiko is way too tiny and innocent to keep you afloat.”
“N-nyeh, I don’t want to get my head under water…”
“And don’t think about stealing a floating tube of mine instead!” Keebo stressed. “I need all 5 of them or I'm going under instead!”
Shuichi sat at the edge of the pool with his legs in the water, watching Angie and Himiko try to teach Tenko how to swim - with an emphasis on try.
Them and Keebo met up here a bit ago as Tenko wanted to have herself a celebrity day. Said day ranged from drinking while laying on a sunbed to getting a professional massage from Kirumi. Once Tenko mentioned she really wanted to swim but didn’t know how to, Angie offered to teach her. And well, one thing led to another.
As for Keebo, he joined swimming to prove himself to be just as human as anyone else, whilst also being deadly afraid of sinking to the bottom. It led to him floating around half paralyzed by the pair of floats on each of his arms whilst a large floating tube carried his upper body. While it must have been incredibly uncomfortable to him, Shuichi would be lying if he said he wasn’t amused by the sight.
Anticipating where this could go, Shuichi rolled his pants up as far as possible. A somewhat welcome act considering the heat the giant roof class created. If he hadn’t taken his jacket off earlier he wouldn’t have survived a second longer and had to leave early. While he wasn’t sure what to expect when being pulled in by delivering an umbrella, he was glad to have been invited.
The past days had been difficult for obvious reasons he didn’t want to think too much about. But sitting in the sun like this, his legs moving around in the water, was kind of calming.
As he watched Tenko’s separation anxiety over Himiko in action, a sudden shadow came over Shuichi from behind. It blocked any of the warmth gathering in his dark locks and extended right into the pool. In any type of movie this would be the introduction of a looming threat, but here it was simply the arrival of Kirumi.
He turned his head to look at her, blinded by the light glowing from behind her silhouette.
Her presence stood over the group like a tower, diligently watching them. The way her back had been straightened like a board and her eyes kept sharp as a hawk’s, almost seemed akin to a security robot scanning the area. Which, maybe, wasn’t too far off from what she intended.
Kirumi had been someone who stood watch since the beginning of waking in the dome. She spoke, of course, but much of the time she simply stood there, ready to jump to someone’s needs. It was a somewhat logical reaction to being thrown into a killing game, at least for a person like her. But even now, in spite of how everyone was having a great time and surely did not require her help for a while, she still stood there. Waiting.
Shuichi lightly tilted his head at her and called her name, hoping it’d draw her attention to him instead. “Hey, Kirumi, everyone will be busy swimming for a while. Do you want to join me?” He lightly patted the spot next to him as a request to put her legs in the water alongside him.
While her eyes moved to look at him, her posture remained that of a statue. “Thank you for your invitation, but a maid on duty is not to rest. Should anyone require my help, I must be ready.”
Again, considering the situation, it was a ridiculous desire to have. If someone were to possibly drown, it surely would have happened by now. At the same time, this was exactly how Shuichi knew her to be.
He looked back at the water and gave himself a sheepish smile in her stead. He remembered how, when he simply wanted to get to know her, Kirumi delivered an armada of scones and cupcakes alongside her finest tea to consume, all while never joining him in the act. She claimed to keep standing there in case he needed something. A situation awfully similar to the current one. There was no changing her mind.
Though, when he really thought about it, she did end up coming back to him the next day at her own accord. She brought up her love for detective novels to him, wondering if he also read them. And in that moment, it almost seemed like she’d reflected on her behavior from the previous day, wanting to make amends. Secretly she had craved to hang out with him all along.
What were the odds of the same thing applying now? But unlike then, Shuichi rather had her join while they were still here.
He returned to look her over, trying to find that one weak spot to change her mind. He lingered from up to down and just when he arrived at her heels…
Her right foot attempted to find new stability, a light shake indicating she had difficulty mounting herself in place. It was a sign of weakness which Kirumi would surely never willingly show. Because of the constant movement in the water - and earlier ‘cannonballs’ from Angie in specific - water covered the light brown tiles.
That’s it!
The water made the floor slippery. Even on bare feet it felt incredibly unstable to walk on, let alone when in high thin heels. Despite what Kirumi’s neutral facial expression said, her legs must be having a difficult time due to muscle strain.
“You know,” Shuichi began, “I’ve been training with Kaito lately.”
“Have you?” she replied, her eyes by now having returned to watching the others.
“Yeah. It’s been pretty tough. My legs especially ache.”
Her body perked up and shifted all its focus to him, “Is that so? I wish you’d told me sooner, Shuichi. I know just the way-”
“But,” he quickly interrupted before she’d ruin his plan, “sitting my legs in the water like this is really therapeutic. It’s… relaxing.” He drew light circles in the water, creating a ripple effect that echoed a soft sound of whimsy. “Actually, do your legs ever hurt, Kirumi? Since you stand around all day.”
Her lips pursed, “Standing all day could indeed create strain in the legs.”
That expression, combined with her politically correct answer, spoke volumes. But she wasn’t about to give in just yet. He needed to fire one final shot.
Shuichi held his chin and lightly caressed it, “It must be difficult to serve your master when your legs hurt… Maybe you should consider relaxing your legs more often. That way, when your master has a request, you’ll be able to help without any issue.”
She still hadn’t let go of the pursing lips. In fact, her hands came to join her internal turmoil by grabbing at her dress. A few seconds ticked by when, “If my legs hurt from constantly standing and my master then needs me to do something that requires a lot of walking or running, that would diminish my ability to serve them… For everyone’s sake, I should make sure this cannot happen.”
While doing so with difficulty, Kirumi had given in to Shuichi’s words. She would join him.
Proud of his achievement, and not wanting to make Kirumi uncomfortable, he turned back to the pool with a smile. It was amazing how she proved to be such a complicated but also such a simple person at the same time.
Kirumi’s shadow grew smaller as her heels left her feet, only to grow again as she closed into the pool’s edge. She bunched up her dress and she lowered herself to sit next to Shuichi, sliding her now naked legs into the water.
The sight was incredibly peculiar. Every little detail of Kirumi’s outfit aided in her professional demeanor, but the removal of her iconic ribboned heels and even her gloves took away from it. The troubled face she gave as she searched for the perfect way to make sure her beautiful dress wouldn’t get caught in the water, made her look so much more simple. More human. Cute, even.
She shivered lightly once her lower legs fully submerged, “The water is colder than I expected.”
“Don’t worry. You’ll get used to it.”
They didn’t speak for a while, simply swirling their legs around in the water in a light but constant movement while watching Angie’s swimming lesson bear its fruits.
Kirumi was the one to break the silence. “Do you swim, Shuichi?”
“Sometimes,” he replied, “but I’m not big on it or anything. Why do you ask?”
“Because you didn’t join the others in swimming.”
He laughed awkwardly, “If I did, Tenko would probably slam me to the bottom of the pool for whatever degenerate male behavior she associates with it.”
A laugh also escaped Kirumi’s throat, though it was more like a soft repressed chuckle. The signature one she always gave when wanting to remain polite. “I suppose you have a point there. But it’s not the only reason, is it?”
Not understanding what she meant, he gave her a confused look, to which she did not look back at him. With the way her hair blocked the side of her face, he couldn’t even read half of her expression to get an answer instead. And just when he wanted to ask what she insinuated, she changed the subject.
“It is safe to say this pool event has been a success. Although I do not wish to be distracted from escaping, I sense as though this was needed. Perhaps there is something else we can organize to provide the same rest to the others.”
While Shuichi was still hung up on Kirumi’s previous words, he decided to wave them off. She probably didn’t mean much by it. “Actually, a couple of days ago we 'organized' something along the lines… I’d found some kind of medal that could apparently unlock a special type of game at the casino which would give out a lot of money. Miu wanted me to come use it. I only really went because I was worried, but Kaito, Ryoma, Kyo and Kokichi ended up being there as well. We held a sort of slot machine competition… It was pretty fun.”
“A slot machine competition?”
“Kaito lost from Ryoma by a landslide and threw himself on the floor in agony,” he smiled. Kaito could act so cartoonish. “But with how great of a time everyone had, we could round everyone up again and you can join.”
“Hm…” Her brow drew together, looking up a bit. “I do not feel like starting a gambling competition.”
When he actually thought about it, Kirumi wasn’t the type to be standing in a casino of all places, even if it was all meant to be fun and games. Throwing her in an environment like that wouldn’t work, especially with certain people watching her movement. “That's fair. Besides, Miu and Kokichi would probably never let the sight of you losing to them go.”
“Losing is not something I am worried about.”
Shuichi leaned over to Kirumi with a raised brow. Normally he’d expect her to mean she wasn’t a sore loser - it’d be unbecoming of a maid to be otherwise, after all - but considering what sentence she was replying to, that couldn’t be it.
Would she expect to win?
“Don’t tell me you have some kind of gambling luck.”
“No, no,” she shook her head, a light smile appearing on her face. Something was definitely going on. “That’s not it. Although it is all chance at the end of the day, persistence is important as well.”
That only piqued Shuichi’s interest more.
She spurted a giggle at his continued stare, “Your detective senses are tingling, aren’t they? Well, I suppose there is no point trying to close Pandora's box once you've opened it. I…” Her eyes rolled to the side as she bit her lip. She looked strange for her doing; she looked embarassed. “I had a gacha addiction in the past.”
What.
“It was a very popular and typical gacha game. Nothing too special. But I was… completely obsessed. There were several characters I really wanted to have, so I spent a good fortune gambling hours away. While the machines at the casino are different, it would be detrimental for my services to decline due to becoming glued to a machine.”
Kirumi was… an ex-gambling addict? And not just any type of gambling addict, but a gacha addict?
“You’re kidding,” Shuichi said, staring at her in disbelief.
“I am not.”
No way. There was just, no way.
In Shuichi's head Kirumi now sat behind a big monitor, sealed in the dark like a typical basement nerd. Her desk’s filled with empty cans of energy drinks and instant ramen packages. She’s been staring at the screen with pretty girls and handsome guys for so long that her pupils have turned into squares, and she hasn’t noticed days went by without her changing out of her old hoody.
The image didn’t leave no matter how hard Shuichi tried. He couldn’t help but start laughing at how ridiculously contradictory it was to the professional Kirumi he knew.
To which she raised her brow, “What’s so funny?”
“It’s just,” his lips kept curling upward with every word he spoke, “I’m- I’m seeing this nerdy cave dweller with her eyes glued to a screen 24/7 in front of me.”
“Excuse me?” her voice raised an octave in offense. “I will let you know I kept my room perfectly clean…! Whyever would you picture me that way?”
“It’s the picture you are giving, Kirumi.” He continued to smile, “So, about this whole getting your favorite characters part. Did you at least end up getting them without spending too much money?”
A bead of sweat ran down her temple, “I did. … After a few thousand yen, that is…”
Another laughter spurted from Shuichi, and this time around, Kirumi couldn’t help but join.
Kirumi’s laughter was one of a kind. She tried to repress it, but her long hairswipe bouncing along with her shoulders gave it all away. At this point she should know how useless restraining herself was. Eventually, she’d expose herself to Shuichi like she always did.
He liked learning about the stupid things in her life. On a regular basis she stood so far away from the group, having detached herself on purpose, that it was hard to connect with her. Only in moments like these Shuichi felt she wasn’t that far away from them after all, or more mature than any of them. She was a teen, just like him.
It was wonderful to see this side of Kirumi.
A side Kaede would have loved to have seen too.
Shuichi stopped laughing
…
Kaede.
Kaede’s wish was to befriend everyone, to stand tall together. What would she have thought about this pool event?
Would she have joined Angie and Himiko in teaching Tenko how to swim?
Would she be trying to assure Keebo robots - probably - don’t drown?
Or would she be sitting here on the side of the pool right alongside him?
Knowing Kaede, she wouldn’t agree with Kirumi standing around to serve instead of having fun either. But unlike Shuichi’s subtle nudging method, she’d simply pull Kirumi down by the arm and force her to sit with them. She would very much have enjoyed laughing over Kirumi's problematic nerd side as well.
Kaede… should have been here with him and Kirumi.
“Shuichi, are you okay?”
But she wasn’t. All those ‘woulds’ were nothing but what-ifs, ones that will never be answered. She’d never get to see any of this, she’d never go home. Kaede was dead, and there was no way to turn back time and bring her to the present tense.
Shuichi felt the tears grow in his eyes as his facial muscles twisted in grief. His body wanted to do nothing more but cry out. The overwhelmingly heavy air in his chest proved as much; a large clump of clay with no physical manifestation, and as such, no way to get rid of.
“... Shuichi?”
Just 30 seconds ago he was laughing with Kirumi for the first time in who knows how long, and in a snap it had all vanished. That moment of happiness never seemed to exist in the first place. Nothing but a light destined to be deafened for no apparent reason. All he wanted was to feel good, but he wasn't allowed to.
It wasn’t fair to him.
Nor was it to Kirumi.
He insisted on having her relax with him, and now his stupid brain flipped it around to show his grievances. And then what? Kirumi'd have to sit and bear it? Return to her role of maid and comfort him? That’s not what he wanted for her.
“... Shuichi, please say somethi-”
“I-I’m sorry...” His voice hitched trying to speak without letting the tears escape his eyes. His hands clenched to the edge of the pool before getting up. “I need to- I-I have to go, I have this thing I-”
But before he could fully get on his feet, Kirumi’d already taken him by his arm and stopped him in his tracks. He quickly looked at her, met with eyes that pleaded him not to go.
“Please know, I will gladly accompany you, by the water.”
"…"
He sat down again, slowly returning his legs to the water. It sloshed against his skin in comfort. After a few more seconds passing, he couldn’t hold it back anymore, and a thick tear ran down his face to join the pool.
Kirumi scooted closer to him and put her hand on his. She squeezed it. The feeling was familiar, only heavier.
Her voice lowered to barely above a breath, “I miss her too…”
They stayed in silence for a bit, eventually daring to discuss all that weighed on their mind, only to manage new laughter when Keebo suddenly spinned 360 degrees in and out of the water like a turning wheel. Whatever help he tried to beg for got mushed away as soon as his face went under again.
For the rest of the afternoon, amusement and pain passed their batons between Kirumi and Shuichi in no clear pattern.
But one thing remained for sure; they held hands till the very end.