A/N: Chika and You are both 10 years old.
One More Time
Chapter 1: Never Let Me Go
Since they were children, they had always shared a special connection that others couldn't understand. Whether they were playing, arguing, or sitting silently, something about the way they acted around each other was different from how they were with everyone else.
"Oi, You-chan!" The orange ball of energy jumped from the swing she was on and ran towards her friend swinging on the monkey bars.
The ashen haired girl swung her head back, not wanting to lose the progress she had made so far. "What is it, Chika-chan? Can't you see I'm almost at the end?"
Chika ran directly under You and jumped up to grab her dangling legs.
"Wai- Chika-cha-!" The two fell to the wooden chip covered ground and struggled to pick themselves up.
With a long 'uwah' the two of them slowly stood and brushed off the dirt on their clothes.
"You-chan! You fell on my arm!"
"What? You're the one who latched onto me out of nowhere!"
Chika threw her arms behind her ahead "Ehe, oops." You huffed and continued to brush herself off. She watched her friend do the same and couldn't help but smile to herself.
"Anyways, what did you call me for?"
The orange orbs on Chika's face lit up and turned her face into a wide grin. "Let's have a sleep over tonight!" She held out both of her thumbs and put on her typical Chika expression. Radiant happiness.
She held that position for a few moments before opening one of her eyes. The last thing she saw before hitting the ground was two glowing blue eyes rushing towards her.
"Uwah! Hey!"
You sat on top of her and giggled to herself. "Sure! A sleepover sounds fun!"
"Sorry that it has to be at your house, You-chan. Mito-nee has her boyfriend over and is worried I'll embarrass her." Chika huffed.
With her typical salute, You told her it was fine and the two of them ran upstairs to her room. After hours of watching movies and playing games, the two of them decided to call it quits once they had to be spoken to a second time by You's mother.
Chika pulled the futon out from under You's bed, as well as the spare pillows and sheets. "Sorry for making your mom made at us." She rubbed the back of her head and gave her best innocent face.
The girl already lying in bed giggled. "I'm just as much to blame as you are, Chika-chan. Now go to bed so we can get up and go to the beach tomorrow!"
The orange haired girl agreed with a salute of her own and snuggled up into her bed. Just like each night she fell asleep, she was grateful for her best friend.
Chika rubbed her eyes, letting them adjust to the morning light. She looked to You's bed and saw that she had already gone.
In fact, everything was gone. You's bed, tv, booksheld… even the futon Chika had been sleeping on. She ran down the stairs, looking to find someone.
Once there, she saw You and her parents moving boxes into a van. Chika ran up to her and pulled on her shirt. Without thinking about anything she had seen when she woke up, Chika excitedly asked about their plans for the day. "Are you ready to go to the beach, You-chan?"
"Huh? Chika-chan…"
"I'm sorry I overslept! But I think we can still hit low tide! Come on!" Chika began running off with You's arm in her hand.
However, You pulled her arm back. Chika stopped in her tracks and looked back. "What's wrong, You-chan?"
Her friend wore a terribly confused expression. "Chika-chan… I'm leaving today. My family is moving to a different country… remember?"
That's when it all came crashing down on her. The sky got dark. Nothing around her made any sense anymore. She watched as her best friend got into the car and began to drive away.
"No… no… You-chan… you promised we would always be together!" She chased after the car, screaming anything she could to get it to stop.
"Come back! Please… don't leave me…"
She crumbled in the middle of the road, crying hopelessly.
Her best friend was gone.
Gone forever.
She woke up screaming. Tears streaming from her eyes. She looked around the room frantically, feeling for her futon and pillows. She immediately turned her attention to the bed next to her and saw a concerned face looking down at her.
"Chika-chan… what's wrong?"
She sprung up off her feet and threw herself on top of the girl beside her. She buried her head deep into You's chest, clinging to her shirt.
This had never happened to her before. The two of them had slept over each other's house countless times and never had Chika woken up in the middle of the night acting like this.
You wrapped her arms around her friend, drawing circles on her back to help calm her down. The sight of seeing her friend so upset was something she had hoped she never have to see.
"Chika-chan… talk to me…"
Chika lowered her head further and shook her head. You lowered her chin to touch the top of Chika's head. She moved her hand behind the head of orange hair, running her fingers through it over and over.
She held her friend tighter and attempted to get through to her again. "I'm here, Chika-chan."
Chika moved away slightly, allowing herself the room to breathe and speak. "Y-you aren't… moving away… right? You… aren't leaving me b-behind?" Chika felt like an idiot, barely being able to get those words out with her shaky voice.
You tilted her head, unsure why her friend was asking these things. She continued to hold her friend for a few more moments before scooting down to where she was on the bed. With both of her hands, You softly cupped Chika's face and touched her forehead with her own. Chika opened her eyes and stared into the blue eyes that had started to form tears of their own.
"I will never leave you behind, Chika-chan. If I ever do, I want you to grab onto my leg and never let me go."
Chika's face broke into a smile. Her face was covered in tears and snot, but she didn't care. She cupped You's face in return and squeezed her round cheeks. "I'm going to hold you to that."
The two of them laughed and continued to hug until they had both regained their composure. When getting ready to head back to bed, You noticed that Chika was hesitant to get off her bed. "Chika-chan…"
Chika continued to breathe heavily. She sat there clutching the bed sheets. "You-chan…"
You crawled back over to Chika and put her hand on her shoulder.
Chika fidgeted in her spot a few times and lowered her head. "C-can I… sleep with you? I-I…" Tears had started to fall from her eyes again. You moved closer and wrapped her arms around her friend's neck.
"I-I… don't want to lose you again."
You tightened her arms further and pressed her face up against the back of Chika's head. "Of course. I'll keep you close so it's impossible for me to go anywhere."
The two of them got under the sheets and found a position that would be comfortable for them both. Before finally settling and trying to sleep, You used both her hands to take one of Chika's. She watched as Chika slowly fell back asleep, never letting go over her special friend's hand the entire time.
From that day forward, whenever they had a sleepover, Chika never wanted to sleep without You directly by her side.
A/N: Thanks for reading! I decided to change things up and work on something different. Since Love Live! Sunshine! aired a year ago I have admittedly become a massive ChikaYou fanboy to the point where it is by far my favorite ship. This story probably reflects that. This will be one or two chapters longer at max. I plan on writing more shorts like this one as ideas come to me. Thanks again for reading and please review if you enjoyed it or have criticism. It's greatly appreciated.