«Perhaps going this way to arrive earlier wasn't such a good idea. Teachers must be searching us now.» Kuzuryuu sits, silently - he knows Peko is right.
They're on a schooltrip, and were passing through a forest. They had to cross it all - a race of some sort. They had maps, but Fuyuhiko of course lost it. It would've been better if Peko held it, but what's done is done.
He wanted to take a shortcut and now they're lost. The moon is already high in the sky.
«If they are we have no reason to worry, don't we?» His tone is full of anger - towards himself; Peko followed him and kept alert for hostile animals, but she had no clue where they were going: she was depending on Kuzuryuu. Peko has no responsibility whatsoever.
It doesn't help her feel less bad.
«I should've asked for another map, so we'd have one each. We wouldn't get lost that way. I'm sorry, young master.» She stands, bowing her head a little. Kuzuryuu doesn't even glance at her, sighing.
«Stop it, Peko. Just fucking stop it. It was my fault and we both know it, descharging the fault on you won't help at all. We're still fucking lost after all, aren't we?!» He gets up and takes some steps around, kicking some stones. It's not much, but it helps him calm a bit.
After a couple of minutes he just sits tiredly on the ground, hanging his head on his hands and sighing again. He looks at the colorful leaves near him before picking up a reddish one and looking at it.
«It's almost the color of your eyes.» He takes Peko of surprise; she just stares at him a bit before getting a yellow one and bring it up close to his eyes.
«And this is almost the color of yours.» She smiles, and Fuyuhiko can't do anything but keep his gaze fixed on her while his cheeks get a bright shade of pink on them.
After a few confused seconds, he turns his head to a side and just murmurs a 'Yeah, yeah', letting the leaf go. He wouldn't ever admit it, but he loves her rare smiles - she keeps her emotions to herself too many times, and knowing he can make her smile sometimes makes him really happy.
«Are you cold, young master? I can start a fire. I wouldn't want you to get ill.» He shrugs his head, but she can notice his hands slightly trembling. That's enough for her to be convinced. She picks up some sticks, and after a minute or two she succesfully starts a fire. Kuzuryuu looked closely, not wanting to miss a single move. The way she looked when she was determined was almost charming, and no matter how much he'd try to hide it, he completely fell in love with her and all the hidden shades of her personality.
«Let's get closer to the fire, or we won't be able to get all of its warmth.» He does as she said, not getting too near her - he'd be too embarrassed to be too close to Peko.
She doesn't have the same idea.
She sits right beside him, trying to be as close to him as possible.
«I heard that if we keep close we'll be warmer.»That's all she says, but a faint blush decors her face.
«I-I guess.» Their shoulders touch. They're both tense, not able at all to relax. Kuzuryuu keeps his head turned, too embarrassed to even say a word.
After some minutes in the silence, sleepiness starts to sink in and their eyes start to close. Without even noticing it, Peko's head slips on Fuyuhiko's shoulder, getting a better position to sleep in. He winces, his gaze quickly turning towards her. Her eyes are closed, lips slightly parted, a peaceful expression on her face. He's suddenly not tired anymore, too taken from the picture of Peko sleeping to actually sleep himself.
He sighs, resting his head on hers and paying attention not to wake her up. As much as he wants to keep watching her - it's rare to see her neutral face go away - he has to sleep. He'd fall asleep anyway, but at least he's now in a comfy position. He glances at her one last time, before closing his eyes. It doesn't take much for him to finally sleep, they walked all day long, but right before he hears Peko whispering his name, causing him to smile and murmur her name back.
Useless to say, when the teachers found them the day after they were holding their hands in their sleep.