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"Put me down!" shrieked Kurara. "Unhand me at once, you lecherous pervert!"
"Ah! Lady Kurara! If you keep squirming, I'm going to drop you!" exclaimed Kyoshika. She grabbed on to Kurara even tighter, as Kurara wiggled around like a ferret trying to escape.
It was a rather silly scene. They were in the library. Kurara had been too lazy to move the ladder once she spotted the book she wanted, and shimmied her way over by stepping on one of the shelves. One fallen ladder later, and Kurara was trapped, knocking books over with every knee jerk reaction. Literally.
Instead of moving the ladder, Kyoshika had wrapped her arms around her, determined to pry her off like a cat stuck in a tree.
A small laugh escaped Nozomi's lips.
"What's so funny about this?!" Kurara snapped. She had finally stopped trying to escape and relaxed into Kyoshika's arms. The green of her tomato mask had started looking a bit ripe, which was always a dead giveaway that she was embarrassed.
"Nothing's funny, I just thought it was cute," said Nozomi.
"C-cute?! There's nothing cute about being picked up and restrained by another girl, being absolutely helpless to do anything against her. You're being weird!" exclaimed Kurara, airing her fantasies to the rest of them. Thankfully for Kurara, Kyoshika wasn't the sharpest sword in the sheath, and the words went right over her head.
"Lady Kurara is so small and easy to hold!" exclaimed Kyoshika, giving her a big squeeze.
"H-hey! Someone's going to get the wrong idea about us!" Kurara squealed. "Stop being such a creep!"
"A creep?!"
It was then that Kyoshika finally dropped Kurara. She hit the ground on her rear with a thud. Kurara held her mask tightly onto her face to make sure it wouldn't come off.
"Lady Kurara! My apologies!" Kyoshika said with a bow. "She managed to slither out of my grasp. I will commit ritual seppuku to amend—"
"Please don't! Are you okay, Kurara?" asked Nozomi. She knelt down on the ground and offered Kurara her hand.
Kurara turned her nose up at the gesture.
"An Oosuzuki can right herself just fine!" she snapped. She went to push herself up off the ground, but tripped on her long dress and fell on her hands and knees. "Argh! Stop watching me!"
Kyoshika and Nozomi nodded at each other, then each grabbed one of Kurara's arms. The two of them pulled up, righting Kurara to her feet.
"I could have done it without help!" she snapped.
Nozomi couldn't help but giggle. Kurara could get so feisty sometimes, just as spicy as her curry.
"It must be nice to be so small," said Nozomi, crossing her arms. Both Kurara and Kyoshika were a lot shorter than her with petite frames. Being taller herself, Nozomi didn't really have the chance to get picked up like that. She was even taller than most of the boys, which she tried not to think about too much.
Maybe she wanted to be a bit smaller, and cuter… Or at least feel that way.
"Lady Nozomi's height is one of her traits of beauty, like a birch tree in the forest," said Kyoshika. Nozomi nodded her head.
"Nah, Nozomi, you're perfectly sized!"
Nozomi turned around, cheeks pink as she saw Moko standing at the entrance to the library. She always knew the right thing to say to cheer her up. And it felt genuine too. She could always trust that Moko meant whatever she'd say.
"Thanks, Moko…" said Nozomi, a little embarrassed at her earlier comment now that Moko was here.
"Never be ashamed of how tall you are," said Moko. "It's not something you can change. It's just you. And I like you, Nozomi."
Nozomi looked up at Moko with her eyes wide. That was such a nice thing to say…
Her little moment was cut short.
"Lady Kurara knocked over all the books," blurted out Kyoshika. Kurara's mask turned even redder.
"Actually, that was your fault! I didn't start dropping books until you tried to take me off the shelf!"
"It's okay, let's just round them all up," said Moko, diffusing the situation. "I was going to come and use them to do some weighted lunges anyways, so it's like you picked out which ones I'd be using for me!"
Nozomi bent over to pick up a book, and handed it to Moko.
"You know there's weights in the gym, right?" said Nozomi.
"Sure, but it's fun to mix things up! I can't build muscle if I'm bored. Besides, books feel way different than weights do. Every heavy thing I pick up isn't going to have a nice and easy handle to grab," explained Moko. Nozomi nodded her head. It made sense. Every day objects came in all shapes and sizes that weren't easy to predict. Training for versatility was smart thinking.
Maybe someday, Moko would use her for training. To be scooped up and held in her arms! Nozomi could only wish.
She snapped out of her thoughts when all three of the other girls looked at her.
"Need something, Nozomi?
Yes, obviously, for Moko to pick her up and hold her like a princess.
As if Moko read her mind, Nozomi was suddenly swept off her feet. She wrapped her arms around Moko's neck, scared at first that Moko would drop her. She squinted her eyes, then relaxed when she realized Moko wasn't even breaking a sweat holding her. She opened her eyes.
"Ah?! Sorry Nozomi, you just looked like you really wanted to be picked up," said Moko, her own cheeks pinkening.
"Aha, I did, a bit," said Nozomi shyly, minimizing her desire so Moko didn't feel weird about her little crush on her.
"See how it feels to be picked up?!" Kurara said, pointing at her as if this was a negative thing. "Her hands are all over you!"
Yeah, they sure were. Nozomi grinned to herself. One of Moko's hands were on her arm, the other on her legs, holding her tight against her chest.
"It feels pretty good, Kurara, I don't know what you're talking about. Maybe it's because you get picked up all the time…" Nozomi teased. Kurara stomped her foot, then left the library in a huff. Kyoshika followed suit, asking Kurara why she didn't like being picked up if she was so pick up-able in both size and shape.
Moko set Nozomi down on the ground.
"Thank you for that, Moko, it felt really nice," said Nozomi.
"I'm sure one day you'll find a strong, handsome man who can pick you up all the time." Moko's smile stretched from ear to ear in genuine sincerity. "You deserve it, Nozomi."
Nozomi's smile cracked. It wasn't Moko's fault. She couldn't know that any talks of a hypothetical boyfriend weren't quite what Nozomi was looking for.
"Yeah I… I suppose I do."
"I'd like to be picked up someday too, but all the guys around here are total WIMPS," Moko said, hitting her fist into her open palm. "How do they expect to treat a lady right with those noodle arms?!"
Nozomi laughed through her disappointment. She knew Moko didn't mean anything negative by her comments. She probably just wasn't into women, though Nozomi desperately wished she was. Still, she was glad they were friends. She didn't know what she'd do without her.
"They really don't, do they," said Nozomi, joining back in to the conversation. "Maybe you can encourage them."
Moko handed Nozomi a few of the books from the stack she was using.
"I'll encourage you too. Everyone should work their muscles when they can! Here, join me," said Moko. Nozomi took the book from her hand, and held it tightly. She couldn't pick up Moko now… But at least this could be a start.