A Helping Hand
"Somebody help me!", this iconic catchphrase was exclaimed by the one and only Hanayo Koizumi.
"I'm a somebody! What do you need Kayo-chin?", announced Hanayo's best friend Rin as she made her way from Hanayo's bedroom doorway to a cozy, compact kotatsu that was situated in the middle of the room. Hanayo was already sitting under it with the blanket draping over her lap. On top of the kotatsu were sheets of drawing paper, pencils, ink pens, a small bottle of black ink, textured paper, a tool used to cut said paper, some kind of special glue, and a heavily used white eraser. A manga was in the process of being constructed.
As soon as Hanayo was aware of Rin's presence she shuffled a few pages that she had been working on beneath a couple that were still blank.
"R-Rin-chan, what are you doing here!?", asked a disrupted Hanayo.
"Oh, can I not be here? It looks like you are in the middle of something so maybe it would be a good idea if I just left huh...", said Rin who seemed quite disappointed as she stood up to exit the room.
"No, don't leave me!", Hanayo yanked Rin's wrist causing her to fall down and bump her head on the edge of the kotatsu.
"Ow, that hurt Kayo-chin! First you tell me to go away and now you're using violence to keep me here? What's wrong with you? This isn't the Kayo-chin I know."
"I'm so sorry Rin-chan. I didn't mean for this to happen. It's just that I wasn't expecting anyone to come over and when you came in I was doing something that requires a lot of attention so when I noticed that you were here I got surprised and acted kinda strange."
"It's okay Kayo-chin, I forgive you. You said you needed help with something right?", asked Rin kindly.
"Um no n-not really." Hanayo was becoming a bit shy now.
"But why would you yell, 'somebody help me!' if you didn't need any help?", questioned Rin who was totally thrown off by Hanayo's odd behavior.
"I'm not sure. I guess I just say that when I'm under a lot of stress."
"That's not good! Why are you stressed out Kayo-chin? Would you like Rin to give you a massage?"
"No! T-that would be...I mean, no thanks Rin-chan.", Hanayo would love a massage right now but getting one from her childhood friend/crush would probably kill her due to sheer embarrassment, that or Rin would apply too much pressure and the artist would be in worse shape than before.
She changed the subject by answering Rin's other question. "Anyway, this one magazine I read had a doujinshi contest so I decided to enter and the deadline is coming up soon and I'm still not done yet."
"Uh oh, that does sound like a problem. Rin can help! I'll do whatever I can. You're my best friend after all and best friends gotta give each other a hand once in a while."
"Give each other a hand? Yeah, it would be nice if we could hold hands...", Hanayo thought this out loud with a dreamy look on her face and as soon as she said it Rin placed her hand on top of Hanayo's which was under the kotatsu's blanket.
Hanayo instantly removed her hand from the warmth of both Rin's hand and the kotatsu as if she'd touched a hot frying pan or something. Rin had a puzzled look on her face. She was only doing what Hanayo wanted.
"Okay Kayo-chin, now you're acting super weird and it's kinda scaring me. You said you wanted to hold hands with me so I did that and you freaked out. I'm so confused."
"Oh my, did I really just say that!?"
Rin nodded.
"Um, I didn't mean it that way."
"What do you mean by 'that way' ?", asked Rin who was simply lost at this point.
"Never mind Rin-chan...How about we work on that doujin together? You can apply the toner paper."
"Sounds good to me, nyaa!"
At first Hanayo didn't want Rin to know that she was making a manga at all since this particular manga was a yuri doujin and she didn't want Rin to think she was gross for liking that kind of thing but she figured it didn't matter anymore since she embarrassed herself enough already and she could desperately use the extra help, although, she was worried about Rin's ability to use art supplies. Rin didn't seem like the type of girl who could have the patience and the precision to do that sort of task but Hanayo took the chance anyway.
"Am I doing this right Kayo-chin?"
Rin was cutting and pasting like a pro. It was an incredible sight, so incredible that Hanayo almost spilled her ink when she looked over at Rin to see how she was progressing and she was progressing indeed. A tinge of jealousy struck Hanayo but it quickly washed over her once she realized that Rin's skill was being used to assist her and her alone. Rin belonged to her for the time being. Hanayo wished that Rin belonged to her forever but that was a thought she had written off the moment it was conjured. They couldn't be together like that...could they?
"Yes, you're doing a great job Rin-chan." Hanayo smiled as she complimented her best friend and Rin returned the gesture with her signature cat-like grin.
They worked for hours on end and the whole time Hanayo was anxious that Rin would discover the contents of the book. Normally anyone could plainly see that it was a girls-love manga but Rin was a bit different than most, meaning that she tended to be unintentionally ignorant of what was going on around her but she always kept track of Hanayo and knew when something wasn't right with the timid girl.
"Yay! We're done!", cheered Rin as she gave Hanayo a high five.
"I hope I win this contest."
"Don't worry Kayo-chin, whether you win or lose doesn't matter that much. What really counts is that you enjoyed doing it. I know I did, especially since I did it with you!" Hanayo caught the double-double entendres that Rin was way too innocent to know she even made.
"I suppose you're right.", said a now blushing Hanayo
"Hey, can I read it?"
"Read what?" Hanayo was trying to play dumb.
"The manga ya silly goose! What else is there to read?"
"I have our English text book in my bag. You can read that if you'd like."
"That's not even funny Kayo-chin! You know how much I hate English."
"Just kidding Rin-chan, you can read it." Hanayo gave up. It would be unfair to Rin if she denied her the right to read the book she worked so hard on.
"Awesome!" Rin snatched up the doujin and opened it, her expression changing each time she flipped the page.
While Rin was reading Hanayo sat at the kotatsu fiddling with one of her pencils with a big red blush on her face as she waited for her friend to finish.
Finally, Rin lifted her head which signaled that she was done reading.
"So, what did you think?", asked Hanayo as if it was a life or death question.
"It was nya-mazing! One of the characters reminded me of you. She was adorable! And one kinda looked like me...Wait, did you draw them like that on purpose?"
"N-no, not at all. It must've been a coincidence.", said Hanayo in a shaky voice with her fingers intertwined.
"Don't lie to me Kayo-chin!"
"I'm not lying..."
"Yes you are. I can tell because your fingers are all crossed. You only do that when you lie."
Out of shame Hanayo went into fetal position and turned around to face the wall. Without hesitation Rin crawled over to her and hugged her from behind. Then she spun her around until both of their noses touched. Rin swiftly gave Hanayo a peck on the lips. The two just stared at each other for a second until Hanayo backed away.
"Why did you kiss me Rin-chan?"
"I was just doing what the girl in the story that looked like me did."
"So you were acting?"
"You could say that I guess."
"Oh, okay, I see how it is..." A few tears formed in Hanayo's eyes. She removed her glasses so she could wipe them away.
"Don't cry Kayo-chin. If you cry I'll...I'll start crying too." Rin was already crying when she said this.
The next few minutes were filled with sobs until Rin broke the atmosphere by quietly asking, "Why are we crying?"
Silence.
Rin approached her sullen friend again but this time instead of kissing her she put on a straight face. Her cheeks were stained with wetness and her lips were quivering but she did her best to stay strong.
"I don't know what I did wrong. Did you not like it when I kissed you? I won't do it again. I promise. Please talk to me Kayo-chin! I can't stand this!"
Hanayo told ahold of both of Rin's hands and looked her directly in the eyes as she prepared to spell out her feelings clearly.
"Listen Rin-chan, you didn't do anything wrong and I'm definitely not mad that you kissed me, in fact, I want you to kiss me again and again and again. The truth is, I love you very much, the same way those girls in my story do. That's why I made the characters resemble us; because I was too cowardly to try to make something like that happen real life. When you kissed me just now and said that you were acting it made me sad, like it was still some kind of fantasy. Anyway, what I really desire most is to make that fantasy a reality so Rin-chan, could you help me do that?
"Of course Kayo-chin, anything for you! I don't really get things like love and relationships and stuff but I think I feel the same way and you can help me understand whatever I don't. I am kinda dumb after all.", Rin sniffled a bit after saying this. She was still crying a little but her tears turned to happy ones.
"You aren't dumb! Don't say those kind of things about the girl I love."
"Okay Kayo-chin, I won't."
Now seemed like the right time for something to happen. Hanayo seized the moment and grabbed both sides of Rin's face gently and kissed her square on the lips. It was a chaste kiss but it still contained all of the passion Hanayo had pent up for many years. When it was time for them to part for air Rin embraced her new lover. She added a little too much force though and they fell to the floor which was thankfully carpeted for their sakes.
"Kayo-chin, I always knew you were cuddly but now you're like ultra cuddly! I wonder why that is." Rin made this comment while nuzzling herself into Hanayo's pillow-like chest.
Hanayo giggled at her girlfriend's cute remark and Rin squeezed her tighter.
"Hey, Rin-chan?"
"Hmm?"
"Um, I'm sort of getting hungry. I think we should go make some dinner."
"Aww, but I wanted to keep cuddling..."
"We can cuddle some more later."
"Fine, but can we have ramen tonight?"
"Sure, especially since I put you through so much drama. I'll even do all the cooking. I'm still making rice on the side though."
"That's fine with me, but I wanna stay in the kitchen with you while you cook."
"Alright, but don't expect me to wear a naked apron."
"Naked apron? Wouldn't cooking while naked be dangerous? You have a better chance of getting burned that way."
Hanayo laughed at Rin's lack of knowledge in the romantic tropes department.
"Hey, don't laugh at me! That was a serious question!"
"Oh Rin-chan, don't you ever change. Don't worry, you'll find out what I'm referring to soon enough, just not today."
"Uh, okay then...?"
[2 weeks later]
One afternoon our two "newlyweds" were on their way home from school walking hand in hand. Hanayo invited Rin over to her house that day so that's where they were headed. When they arrived, Hanayo's mother greeted Rin and then informed her daughter that a large envelope addressed to her had been delivered. It was the results for the doujinshi contest. Hanayo thanked her mom, grabbed the envelope, and ran upstairs to her room with Rin tailing her the whole time.
"Ah, I'm so nervous! I can't open it. Here, you open it Rin-chan."
"But I can't open other peoples' mail, that's illegal."
Hanayo sort of puffed her cheeks out and said, "Fine, I'll open the envelope but you have to read the results out loud to me, k?"
"I guess I can do that, but only for you Kayo-chin."
"Thanks so much Rin-chan!"
After Hanayo opened the envelope with trembling hands she gave it to Rin who checked out what was inside. Inside was the original copy of the doujin and a short note from the magazine company.
"Hey Kayo-chin, there's a letter in here. Do you want me to read it to you?"
Hanayo nodded.
"Alright, it says, 'Dear Koizumi-san, thank you for participating in The Gayest Yuri Magazine Ever's annual doujinshi contest. We received your submission titled, "RicexRamen" but unfortunately it was not selected to be published in our next issue. Even so, we'd like to applaud the outstanding toning job on your submission. You are always welcome to enter again next year. Keep up the good work and have a gay day! -The Gayest Yuri Magazine Ever"
A bummed out newbie mangaka sat at the kotatsu with her head resting onto her crossed arms after hearing the bad news. Rin, who was also sitting at the kotatsu, scooted closer to her girlfriend and kissed the top of her head.
"Come on Kayo-chin, it's not the end of the world. According to me you're still a winner."
"How am I a winner? You read the note. I lost the contest...", uttered Hanayo who's spirits were crushed.
"You're a winner because you won my heart! If it weren't for this manga then I doubt we would be in the same place we are right now. Don't be so down on yourself."
Muffled laughter was heard coming from Hanayo's side of the table.
"Not this again! What is so funny Kayo-chin!?"
"It's just that...hehehe...I mean it's just... ahahaha!" Hanayo could not stop laughing.
"Nyaow I'm really getting angry!", grumbled Rin who was quite frustrated.
It took some time but Hanayo gathered herself back together and answered Rin.
"I'm sorry Rin-chan it's just that I'm not use to you saying such sappy things like, 'you won my heart' and stuff."
"Don't make fun of me!"
"I'm not making fun of you. I'm just wondering where you learned all of these romantic things from."
"Well, I really liked that manga you made and I wanted to read more like it so I shopped around and found a couple of good ones that Nozomi-chan recommended. She even lended me one of her's. I didn't know she was into yuri too."
"Which one did she lend you?" Hanayo knew this couldn't be good considering it was Nozomi of all people who gave her the book.
"It's called, 'Our First Fancy Feast 18+'. It's a weird name for a manga, right? Like, what's with the random numbers and math symbol in the title? There was a feast though and it even had one of those naked aprons you were talking about. The characters looked like they were having lots of fun too so that's always a good thing."
"Rin-chan, do me a favor and return that one to Nozomi-chan right away. She shouldn't have given that to you."
"Why?"
"Just do it."
"Sure, anything for you Kayo-chin!"