Author's Notes:
I don't own Citrus or Netsuzou Trap, or any of their characters, no copyright is intended!
This fic is a sequel to another story of mine called, 'Citrus Trap' so I would recommend you go and read that fic before reading this one, in order to be up to speed on everything that's happened.
This is a crossover story with Citrus and NTR (Netsuzou Trap) by the way. ;)
Warning: This contains yuri (girl x girl) pairings as well as pseudo-incest, don't like? Don't read simple, otherwise enjoy. ^_^
...
Late evening was now slowly beginning to set in while Mei was busy in the kitchen cleaning the dishes from dinner, looking to the soapy plates and sighing a little. Hearing her elder sister happily humming to herself as the blonde was still sitting at the dining table, having been constantly looking at her phone for almost an hour now. Mei just rolling her eyes at her sister and going back to her task at hand.
However the blonde distracting her again as she chuckled slightly, and now Mei turned round to face her sister, calling to her in a low voice, only to get silence in response. Glaring to the blonde now as she walked over to the other side of the dining table and slammed her hand down on the wood, causing Yuzu to jump in surprise and look to her now finally.
"S-sorry were you calling me Mei?" the blonde asked, smiling nervously upto Mei now, as she held her phone close to her, almost having dropped it a second ago.
"I thought you said you were going to help me with washing the dishes," Mei stated with a slightly annoyed tone as she reminded Yuzu of the fact that she had promised to wash the dishes along with her tonight, however now she had seemed to have forgotten such a fact.
"I am…I just got a little caught up talking to Harumin. I'll help now,"
Yuzu answered as she now quickly stood up from where she sat, and made her way into the kitchen. Starting to help with the dishes right away, while Mei just looked over to her with a raised eyebrow slightly, knowing that the blonde was more focused on something else then washing dishes right now.
Shrugging her shoulders slightly Mei just walked back over to the kitchen sink, washing the dishes along with Yuzu now, easily guessing what was on the blonde's mind right now, as she sighed a little, and continued with cleaning a dish that Yuzu had already started on, but hadn't really done all that good of a job on.
"Are Taniguchi-san and Matsuri still coming tomorrow?" Mei asked now, not looking to Yuzu as she was merely only striking up a conversation so that she wouldn't have to listen to the repetitive happy humming that Yuzu was still doing, it now starting to give her a headache.
"Yep, and they said that Nene would be tagging along as well," Yuzu happily answered with a smile as she dried the plate that she had just finished washing, putting it back down onto the counter to be put away, although it still needed to be dried a little more.
"Great,"
Mei replied in a low tone, already guessing that tomorrow was just going to be a bother to her, only having agreed to it in the first place because Yuzu had begged her, and now she couldn't back out of it, otherwise she would have to listen to the blonde moan and beg her all over again to come along.
"Okazaki-san, and Hotaru-san know where to meet us right?"
The younger girl asked her expression blank now, as she didn't seem interested at all about what they were talking about, but still thought she might as well keep the conversation going so that there wouldn't just be complete silence between them. Which Yuzu would most probably fill with more of her cheery humming within no time.
"I think so, I texted Yuma-chan earlier and she said they knew roughly where it was, so I'm sure they can find their way around there tomorrow," Yuma stated, smiling to Mei but then seeming a little unsure of herself for a moment, holding a plate tightly in both hands as she looked a little worried now.
Looking to Yuzu with a slightly curious expression, Mei got the feeling that the blonde was worrying herself a little now, looking back to the dishes that she was washing again, "Why don't you just ask them to meet us here at our house instead? They know where it is after all," she simply suggested, drying off the plate she was holding, before putting it to the side and picking up a glass to clean next.
"That might work better actually. Thanks Mei, I'll talk to Yuma-chan about it later…err if she's still awake that is," Yuzu stated, mumbling that last part under her breath, looking back to Mei with a smile now, and Mei just simply nodding back to the blonde as she seemed like she was no longer worried about tomorrow.
"Isn't this exciting Mei? All of our friends will get to meet Hotaru, and Yuma-chan tomorrow, and we can all hang out together finally," Yuzu asked as a bright grin was now resting on her lips, excited to be seeing the friends that they had helped again, and also feeling happy about the fact that their other friends were going to be able to meet their newer friends and they could all spend some time together.
"What do you mean? Nomura-san is the only one that hasn't met them before now,"
Mei reminded the blonde as she now dried her hands and looked to her sister's hands, sighing slightly when she realized that she had been washing the same plate for a while now, almost seeming like she didn't want to part from it, or was just too distracted by her own thoughts to notice what she was doing right now.
"I know, but Harumin and Momokino-san only met them for a little while, and they don't really know them all that well yet," Yuzu pointed out, as it was obvious that she had been waiting for this day to come, and now was overjoyed that it was finally going to happen. Hoping that Hotaru and Yuma had been able to sort everything out with Hotaru's boyfriend, and everything would go smoothly from here on out now.
Going quiet for a moment Mei looked to the sink that now only had a few glasses that needed to be washed, dried and then put away, thinking to herself about everything that had happened before with Hotaru and Yuma, and even though she guessed that that had all been fixed now, there was still a bad feeling inside of her that caused her to feel a little concerned.
"I just hope that they don't cause any trouble like they did for use before,"
The younger girl now sighed under her breath, as she put down the towel she was holding, and rested both of her hands on the sink for a moment. Knowing that it was her own fault for agreeing with Yuzu to help those two girls work through everything. But then again it wasn't like she wasn't glad that they were able to lend a hand where it was clearly needed, it was just that she was hoping she wouldn't have to deal with all that drama once their two new friends came walking back into their life's again.
Yuzu looking to Mei and smiling slightly, as she knew that they had both struggled through helping Hotaru and Yuma with their unhealthily relationship, but she kept hopeful that things were looking much brighter for them both now, "Well all seems to be going relatively well for them since they went back home, at least that's what Yuma has been telling me through her texts. But I'm still not sure if everything went okay with Hotaru's boyfriend just yet," she stated feeling a little concerned herself now, but then just smiled and patted Mei's shoulder in a comforting way.
"But it's good to stay positive, and we can still ask them about it tomorrow after all," the blonde added as she was hoping to lighten her sister's mood a little. Mei just nodding back to her as she looked to the plate that Yuzu was still holding onto in her hands.
"You know if you hold that plate any tighter, you're going to break it,"
Mei stated gesturing to the plate that Yuzu was holding, as the blonde looked down to the plate in her hands and just smiled nervously. Now finally putting the plate down knowing that she herself was worried over how things had been going with Hotaru and Yuma as well, but as long as those two kept talking to each other, she believed they could make it through anything.
The two now finishing off with the dishes, as a silence fell between them, Yuzu thinking of bringing another conversation up so that it didn't seem as quiet anymore, but just as she was about to open her mouth she and Mei heard a loud knocking at the front door.
The two looking to each other for a moment, "Who could be knocking here at this time of night?" Mei questioned as she looked to the door, Yuzu doing the same as she gestured for Mei to stay while she went to answer the door instead.
"Don't know, Mom said she wouldn't be back till early morning right?"
Yuzu asked as she shrugged her shoulders, getting a nod in reply from Mei. As the elder girl now just walked to the front door and grabbed hold of the handle, pausing for a moment, until she heard more loud knocking, and opened the door in response.
Her emerald eyes now going wide upon seeing the exact two people that she and Mei had just been talking about now standing at their front door,
"Hey Yuzu-chan sorry to bother you so late but…" Yuma trailed off nervously as she gestured to Hotaru, who was being held up by her, the dark haired girl holding her hand to her side, and looking like she was in pain right now.
Looking surprised at first, Yuzu was a little speechless. Until she noticed that Yuma was holding Hotaru up, almost like the dark haired girl was finding it hard to keep standing, "What are you two doing here? And Hotaru what happened, are you okay?" the blonde asked, looking worried now as she glanced to where Hotaru was holding and could clearly see that she was hurting right now.
"It's kind of a long story, can we come in?" Yuma asked as she looked to Hotaru for a moment, the dark haired girl just looking back to her with a slight smile, seeming to be pretending like everything was fine for her at the moment, when it obviously wasn't.
"Y-yeah, of course,"
Yuzu nodded quickly as she helped Yuma to guide Hotaru inside, quickly walking her to the sofa in the lounge and sitting her down. Yuma sighing as she crouched down in front of Hotaru and looked to her with a worried expression now, Hotaru just smiling back to her slightly, trying to make the blonde less worried about her.
"Mei could you come in here for a moment?" Yuzu called to her sister as she looked to Hotaru with a concerned expression, wondering if she was okay, and dreading to think if this was anything to do with that boyfriend of her's.
"Who was at the door Yuzu?" Mei asked walking into the lounge now, looking surprised as she saw Hotaru sitting on the sofa, and Yuma crouched down beside her, "What happened?" she asked coming to stand beside the sofa now.
"Hotaru's been hurt," Yuma stated as she looked to the other two girls now, moving Hotaru's hand out of the way, as she lifted up her shirt slightly to reveal a large bruise that was covering a large part of Hotaru's side, redness forming around the wounded area as it was still quite sore looking.
Seeing the bruise Mei quickly looked serious now as she told Yuzu to go and sit with the other two, "I'll go and get a damp cloth," she stated, before leaving the room to go and grab a cloth to nurse Hotaru's wounded side with, while Yuzu now came and sat beside Hotaru on the sofa, glancing to her side still, and hoping that it just looked bad and it wasn't causing the dark haired girl too much pain right now.
"Does it still hurt?" Yuma asked looking to Hotaru with a worried expression still.
"I told you Yuma-chan it's just a bruise," Hotaru answered smiling to Yuma slightly, knowing that she was worrying about her, and trying to make it seem like she was fine, hiding the fact that she actually was in quite a bit of pain right now.
Mei now came walking back into the lounge quickly, damp cloth in hand as she came to sit on the other side of Hotaru, laying the cold cloth over Hotaru's bruised side as she glanced to her smiling expression, and knowing that she was forcing that smile.
"Thank you Mei-san, but it really doesn't hurt that much," Hotaru stated smiling to Mei as she thanked her, wincing at the cold feeling of the cloth on her skin, her bruise stinging a little, as she took a deep breath, relaxed against the cushions on the sofa, and breathed through the slight pain in her side.
"How exactly did this happen?" Yuzu asked hoping that things were going to become a lot clearer to her and Mei as to why the two had both turned up at their front door at this time of night, and why Hotaru had been hurt.
Not answering for a few moments Yuma nervously looked to Yuzu, before she turned to look to Hotaru again, almost as if she was checking to make sure it was okay for her to tell the other two about what had happened. Hotaru just nodding to Yuma with a slight smile still, understanding that Mei and Yuzu were very confused right now, and deserved some explanations.
"Was this something to do with Hotaru-san's boyfriend?" Mei asked, her and Yuzu seeming to be thinking about the same thing now, while Yuma just nodded slightly, taking a deep breath, before she started to explain just what had happened.
"We told Fujiwara about everything, how you two had helped us work everything out between us, how Hotaru and I confessed to each other, and…Hotaru even told him that she didn't want to see him anymore," Yuma explained, glancing back to Hotaru for a moment, the dark haired girl now having a slightly nervous expression on her face, still wincing a little at the feeling of the cold cloth resting against her skin.
"And?"
Yuzu asked, feeling a little more worried now, but wanted to hear just how things had ended up in the way they had. While Mei sat listening intently, still holding the cold cloth to Hotaru's wounded side, and glancing to her to make sure she was okay. Hotaru seeming okay for now, but Mei wasn't certain if she was still masking the pain she felt behind her smile.
"And surprisely he seemed to take it really well, better than expected even. But then Hotaru decided to go and see him again earlier today, which I told her not to do- Yuma stated, seeming like she had more to say, but Hotaru cutting her off before she could continue.
"I only went over to make sure he wasn't going to do anything rash," Hotaru stated, knowing that it was her own fault that she got hurt, thinking that she shouldn't have gone over to see Fujiwara again after all, but she didn't trust that her now ex-boyfriend would just leave things the way they were and be fine with it all. And she couldn't be more right about that.
"It's a little late for that now though, after all you got hurt again, plus he…" Yuma paused as she felt nervous about revealing what else had happened. Mei and Yuzu seeing just how angered Yuma was by all this, clearly she still held a great hatred for Fujiwara, and understandably so with all the things that he had done to Hotaru.
"He what?"
Mei asked, her and Yuzu both looking to Yuma for her to continue, while Hotaru just sighed slightly, her pain subsiding now, knowing that things weren't looking good for her and Yuma right now, but wishing that Yuma didn't worry over her so much, she didn't like seeing her like this.
"He leaked the picture of Hotaru and me to everyone and exposed us to the whole school," Yuma now said as she looked away from Yuzu and Mei, her voice going a little low, while her fists clenched tightly and she felt her blood boiling over just from thinking about Hotaru's ex.
Yuzu and Mei now looked to each other taken aback, and concerned again, knowing that having their secret relationship exposed was the last thing Yuma and Hotaru had needed, guessing that going to school would now be almost like they were walking right into a interrogation where most likely everyone would be judging, and questioning them on their relationship.
"And because of that Yuma-chan and I haven't been able to go to school in a few days, I went round this afternoon to try and talk to Fujiwara about what he had done…but he just got angry at me instead," Hotaru explained, knowing that she and Yuma had made Fujiwara mad and he was simply doing all this to get back at them both.
"And then I find you on my doorstep in pain again because of him…" Yuma paused, gritting her teeth together tightly as she didn't want to see Hotaru get hurt like this again, her voice now shaking as she could feel tears welling up in her eyes, "I…I want to protect you Hotaru, and I…I don't want him hurting you anymore…I don't want to just sit back while you're the one suffering," the blonde said in-between slight sobs, choking back her tears, as she looked to Hotaru and wished there was some way she could make it all better for her.
Yuzu looked to Yuma with a worried expression, knowing that the other blonde wanted to be there for the one she loved, but at this point she no doubt felt like she had failed at that task. Hotaru getting hurt again made her feel guilty for her not being there when she needed to be.
"Yuma,"
Hotaru whispered out as she reached her hand out and gestured for her girlfriend to come closer to her. Yuma wiping her eyes as she now leaned into Hotaru more, and widened her eyes when she felt Hotaru's hand resting over her cheek, the dark haired girl now smiling to her kindly.
"You shouldn't feel like you're responsible for this, it was my own fault for going to see him again," Hotaru stated as she stroked Yuma's cheek lightly, "And I'll admit that although it does hurt a little, I promise that I'm okay," she added moving her hand to brush Yuma's hair out of her eyes. Yuma now tearing up again as she looked to Hotaru's reassuring smile, wrapping her arms around her girlfriend a moment later.
"You know you really scared me Hotaru?"
Yuma asked in a low voice embracing Hotaru tightly, while Hotaru just smiled and hugged Yuma back, resting her head on the other girl's shoulder for a moment, as she rubbed her back in a comforting manner, and could hear her sobbing slightly still.
"I know, I'm sorry Yuma,"
Hotaru replied as she let out another slight sigh, and smiled for a moment, before closing her eyes and nuzzling into Yuma's neck. Yuzu smiling slightly to the hugging couple as she was happy that even though the two had been going through a lot lately, it was clear that they still wanted to be with each other. And it was obvious that they had been talking a lot more than they were before.
An idea now coming into Yuzu's mind as she wanted to help Yuma and Hotaru, but wasn't exactly sure how to until she thought of something, and now caught the two's attention, "Hey why don't you two stay here for the night?" she suggested, Yuma, Hotaru and Mei now all looking to her with the same surprised expression on their faces.
"I mean we were already going to be meeting up tomorrow right? So wouldn't it be better for you to stay here rather than go back home, after all our Mom isn't coming back from work until morning, so that means there's a room free for you two," Yuzu explained her idea, wanting to help the two girls again, and make sure that they wouldn't have to go through this all alone anymore.
The other three girls looking a little speechless as Yuma and Hotaru weren't too sure how to answer, and Mei just seemed a little taken aback by the fact that Yuzu proposed such an idea so suddenly, but then she guessed it wasn't all that surprising, knowing that all Yuzu was trying to do was help the other two girls right now.
"Oh no, thank you Yuzu-chan, but we can't impose on you like that," Hotaru stated denying the offer, as she smiled to Yuzu slightly, knowing that the blonde wanted to help, but not wanting to trouble her and Mei again with her own problems.
"But Hotaru what if Fujiwara comes looking for you again, he knows where both of us live after all,"
Yuma stated as she pulled away from Hotaru now, seeming to have calmed down a little, but was worried over the fact that Hotaru just might get hurt again if she let her go home alone tonight. Plus it wasn't like she could fend off Fujiwara if he did happen to come looking for Hotaru, so just her staying with the dark haired girl wouldn't be enough to insure her safety. Also she didn't want to have to bring her Mother into all of this so Hotaru staying over at her's didn't seem like a good option either.
"He's not a stalker Yuma-chan," Hotaru smiled as she tried to persuade her into deciding to let her go home for the night, not wanting to be a bother to Mei and Yuzu again.
"That doesn't matter Hotaru, he could still hurt you again," Yuma stated looking back to Hotaru with a serious expression now, thinking that Yuzu's idea just might be a good plan after all.
"And I can't just let you two go back home and deal with all this by yourselves when I know there's a way for me to help you. And I don't have a problem with you two staying here for the night honestly," Yuzu reassured the other two as she smiled to them, wanting to do what she could to help, even if that meant just having them be around their friends at a time like this.
"That is really kind of you Yuzu-chan, but…" Hotaru paused as she now let go of Yuma, and leaned closer to Yuzu, whispering into her ear, while she glanced to Mei for a moment who still seemed to be taken aback by all this,
"...do you think that Mei-san would really be okay with this?" Hotaru asked in a quiet voice, causing for Yuzu to widen her eyes in realization, looking to her younger sister now as a slightly nervous expression formed onto her face.
"Umm…what do you say Mei, can they stay please?" Yuzu asked looking to Mei with a pleading expression now, Yuma and Hotaru just looking to the black haired girl with nervous expressions on their faces, wondering what her answer would be.
Mei raised her eyebrow to Yuzu, as she thought for a moment, knowing that letting Yuma and Hotaru stay would be the right thing to do, after all she also did want to help the other two girls, being concerned over the fact that all these new problems had opened up for the two when they had only just gotten everything worked out between them.
Sighing now slightly, Mei gave in, "Fine they can stay, but just as long as it's for one night," she said agreeing to Yuzu's idea, and deciding to let the other two girls stay for just tonight, after all they were going to be spending most of the next day together anyway.
"Really Mei-san, you'll let us stay?"
Yuma asked with hope-filled eyes, while Hotaru just smiled to Mei and thanked her politely, thinking that these two really were too kind with all they had done for her and Yuma. Yuzu's face now lighting up with a smile, as she was happy to see that Mei also wanted to lend a hand where it was clearly needed right now.
"I don't see a problem with it if it's just for tonight, but this doesn't mean that you two can misuse our Mother's bedroom just because she isn't going to be here tonight," Mei pointed out, letting the two girls know that sleeping and sleeping alone would be all that they would be doing while staying in their Mother's room tonight.
"Of course, after all I'm too tired to do anything but sleep tonight," Yuma nodded quickly as she got the message as to what Mei meant, and knew not to go against her words.
"Me too," Hotaru agreed as she smiled to Mei. She and Yuma thanking her greatly, letting her know just how much they really appreciated this from them both.
Mei just nodding to the two of them simply in reply, glad that if they were both here then at least she and Yuzu wouldn't have to worry about them tonight. Yuzu now sighing with relief as she smiled to Hotaru and Yuma, and then looked to Mei again, taking note to the fact that she herself would have to thank her later as well.
Smiling over the fact that things would seem to turn out okay now, Yuzu then widened her eyes as she thought of something and looked to Hotaru's wounded side that was still being covered by the cold cloth that Mei had rested on there, now wondering if the dark haired girl would really be okay for tomorrow or not, especially since she had trouble walking earlier and Yuma and her had to help her inside.
"But wait, Hotaru are you sure you're going to be okay for tomorrow, wouldn't it be better for you to rest instead?" Yuzu now asked, worried that Hotaru's condition might worsen if she pushed herself, the other three girls now looking back to Yuzu again.
However Hotaru just smiled, leaning over as she rested her hand on Yuzu's shoulder, "It's okay Yuzu-chan, it's not that serious. And besides I want to go and have fun with you all tomorrow," she stated, reassuring Yuzu that she was going to be okay, and she didn't need to worry about her. Yuzu looking to Hotaru's smiling face and seeing that right now she couldn't be more truthful, smiling back to the dark haired girl as she nodded to her in reply.
All of them now happily falling into a more happy-toned conversation about what tomorrow was going to be like for them all, laughing and talking together, before they soon all decided to head off to bed for the night, since they needed to be up early the next morning.
….
Now standing in her and her sister's bedroom Yuzu quickly changed into her pajamas for the night, looking to Mei with a smile as the younger girl was sitting up in their bed already changed and ready for bed, waiting for Yuzu to come and join her now.
"Well this sure feels familiar, huh Mei?" the blonde smiled as she now came to sit beside Mei on the bed, smiling to her sister as she thought about how similar this was back to when they had first helped Yuma and Hotaru out, only this time it was with slightly different troubles that they were going through.
"It seems that we might have just jinxed this, since we were talking about how we hoped everything had turned out okay for them, and then they come knocking on our door, almost as if on cue showing us that we were wrong with our thinking," Yuzu added as she smiled nervously now, speaking in a slightly lower tone, Mei just looking back to the elder girl with a blank stare for a moment, before she just shrugged her shoulders a little.
"As long as they're both okay then everything's fine right?" Mei asked looking to Yuzu with a slightly curious expression as she wondered if the blonde was still worrying about the other two girls that would most likely be sleeping soundly in their Mother's bedroom right now.
"Yeah you're right, and thank you for letting them stay tonight Mei," Yuzu smiled as she really was glad that Mei agreed to her idea, when she could have easily just said 'no' and turned the other two girls away, but Yuzu knew deep down that Mei wanted to help them too, even if she didn't admit it. The blonde now climbing onto the bed along with Mei.
"Well I could see that they needed help, and you were right Yuzu, they shouldn't have to go through this alone, after all they are our friends, right?" Mei asked as she looked to Yuzu with a soft expression now, causing Yuzu to now smile brightly back to her and nod her head happily.
"Right,"
Yuzu replied, before she now hugged Mei tightly, Mei relaxing as she hugged Yuzu back. The two sharing a warm embrace and a sweet kiss goodnight, before both of them then laying down to drift off to sleep together, the two of them genuinely looking forward to tomorrow, knowing that it would surely be hectic, but also quite interesting no doubt.
…...
"Yuzu, are you coming now?"
Mei called upto her elder sister as her, Yuma and Hotaru now stood in the front doorway, all dressed and ready to leave, all of them having already had breakfast, and now waiting for Yuzu to come and join them as she had been 'getting ready' for the last twenty minutes or so, spending way too long in their room now in Mei's opinion.
Yuma and Hotaru just looking in the direction of where Mei and Yuzu's bedroom was, waiting patiently for Yuzu, while Mei was getting a little annoyed and impatient now, not hearing a response from her sister so she called out again, but louder this time.
"Yuzu will you hurry up, all the others are going to be waiting for us!" Mei now raised her voice as she called to her sister again, getting tired of waiting for her now, and just wanting to get going already.
"I'm coming now!"
Yuzu said as she suddenly came running out of her and Mei's bedroom, quickly coming over to stand beside her sister, nodding to her with a nervous smile. While Mei just rolled her eyes slightly and started to head for the door now, Yuma and Hotaru smiling and chuckling to Yuzu a little, before they started to follow Mei. Yuzu sighing happily as she just smiled, walking behind the others, but then stopped and looked to Hotaru now.
"How's your bruise today Hotaru?" the blonde asked, feeling a little concerned for the dark haired girl, as she didn't want her to think she had to come when really she could just stay and rest if her side really was hurting her.
However Hotaru happily just smiled to Yuzu, "Still a little sore, but it doesn't hurt anymore. Don't worry Yuzu-chan I'll be fine," she answered, letting Yuzu know that she was really okay, and she didn't need to worry about her so much. Looking to Yuzu with a reassuring smile as the blonde now smiled back to her.
"I'm glad,"
Yuzu replied, as she nodded to Hotaru with a smile, noticing that her and Yuma were holding hands right now as they both smiled to her and starting to walk out the door and follow Mei. Yuzu looking down to her own hand now as she thought for a moment, wanting to hold hands with her girlfriend as well, however being dragged out of her thoughts as Mei called to her to 'Hurry up' again.
The blonde now quickly following behind Hotaru and Yuma as they all left the house together, hoping that they hadn't kept the others waiting for too long, but at the same time knowing that they were going to be much later then they said they were going to be.
….
Meanwhile standing outside the shopping centre in town Matsuri, Harumin, Nene and Himeko all awkwardly looked to each other, having been waiting for the two missing people that were meant to be here joining them quite a while ago, knowing that they were also bringing two other people with them, but were now were just wondering where they could all be.
"Yuzucchi did tell us to meet here right Matsuri?"
Harumin now asked as she leaned against the tall building they were all waiting outside of, the brown haired girl looking to the middle schooler with a slightly raised eyebrow, folding her arms as she wondered if maybe she had gotten the meeting place wrong.
"She said for us to all meet in front of the clothing mall,"
Matsuri stated as she too was wondering if maybe they were in the wrong place, sighing as she looked to her phone and saw the text 'No new messages' on her screen, thinking about if she should just text Yuzu and ask what was taking her and the others so long.
"Maybe they're just late, I'm sure they'll be here soon enough," Nene chimed in as she tried to sound hopeful, when she herself didn't know if what she was saying was actually going to turn out to be true or not, looking around as her eyes shifted a little, hoping that Yuzu and the others would show up soon.
And luckily for her it didn't seem like they had to wait much longer, as within a few more moments of them all standing and looking around, Matsuri now heard a faint, familiar voice calling out loudly to them all. Turning to look in the direction of where she heard the cheery voice come from, smiling now as she spotted the exact four girls that they had been waiting on for, for a good while now.
"Looks like you were right Nene,"
Matsuri stated with a smile, as she now gestured to the group of four girls that were quickly making their way over to them all. Harumin, Himeko and Nene all sighing with relief and smiling as they all waved to the approaching girls, all of them quickly going over to greet them now.
"It's about time you all got here, just what was taking you so long?" Matsuri asked as she looked to Yuzu with a raised eyebrow and a slight smile, Yuzu just smiling back to the younger girl nervously now.
"Well let's just say, we spent a bit more time getting ready than we should have, right Mei?" Yuzu asked as she looked nervously to Mei now, smiling still, while Mei just stared blankly back to her for a moment before answering.
"I'm not sure what you mean by 'we', you were the only one that was taking a long time, while Okazaki-san, Hotaru-san and I were all ready to go, and had to wait for you," Mei stated her expression not changing as all the others just smiled at the way the two step-sisters acting as they always did, glad to know that they were only late because Yuzu was taking too long, and there was nothing for any of them to worry about.
"It's good to see you again Matsuri-chan," Hotaru greeted her old friend as she smiled to her happily, waving to the younger girl, and Matsuri just smiling back to her in return.
"You too Hotaru-chan,"
Matsuri greeted back with a smile, as she looked to Yuma who was standing beside Hotaru right now, noticing that the two girls were holding onto each other's hands tightly, their fingers interlocked, causing Matsuri's eyes to widen a little. Before she just smiled and guessed something good had happened that she did not yet know about, but she did intend to find it out soon enough.
"Hey it's been a while you two, I was a little surprised to hear that you two were coming shopping with us today, but Yuzucchi told me that you actually became good friends with her and the Prez while you were here last time. Do you still remember me?" Harumin asked as she greeted Hotaru and Yuma, smiling to them both, recognizing them from that time she had met them that now didn't seem all that long ago.
"Of course, Taniguchi-san right?"
Hotaru asked as her and Yuma now slowly let go of each other's hands, smiling to and greeting Harumin, recognizing who she was easily, and also remembering Himeko as they looked over to her and smiled. Harumin just happily nodding to Hotaru as she also looked over to Himeko and gestured for her to come over to them.
"Well I wasn't expecting to see you two again, and especially not like this, not that I'm complaining though. It's good to see you both again," Himeko stated as she now came over and greeted Hotaru and Yuma, smiling to them politely as she too had been surprised to hear about these two girls that were coming along when they were once strangers to Mei and Yuzu, but were now good friends with them both, although she didn't mind spending time with them again, just as long as they didn't lie to her like when they had first met her.
"It's good to see you too Momokino-san," Yuma greeted back as her and Hotaru smiled back to the other two girls. Yuzu glancing over to the four girls, and smiled at the way they were all getting acquainted again happily, Yuzu believing that they would all get along well.
"Um…Yuzu-Senpai?"
Nene now caught Yuzu's attention as she looked nervously to the elder girl, seeming to be anxious about something. Yuzu looking back to Nene with a smile, wondering why she had such a nervous looking expression on her face right now.
"What is it Nene-chan?" Yuzu asked as she smiled to the younger girl happily, wondering just what she wanted to ask her right now.
"Who are those two girls that you brought along with you?" Nene asked as she pointed over to Hotaru and Yuma, never having seen either of them before, and was surprised that everyone bar her seemed to know them, feeling like she was missing something here right now.
"Oh that's right Matsuri invited you to this at the last minute, you've never met these two have you Nene?" Yuzu remembered now that Nene didn't know Hotaru and Yuma and this was her first time ever seeing and meeting them, while everyone else had met them both before now.
Nene just shook her head slightly, still looking a little nervous as Yuzu now smiled to her again, and walked her over to stand in front of Hotaru and Yuma now. Harumin and Himeko looking to their underclassmen as they also realized that she was the only one that had never met the two girls that they had just been getting acquainted with again.
"Hotaru, Yuma-chan," Yuzu now caught the two girls attention as she smiled to them both, pushing Nene forward a little, as she now introduced her to them both, "You didn't get the chance to meet her before, but since she's here now, you can meet her. This is Nomura Nene, she's an underclassman of ours, and also a good friend of mine, and Matsuri's," the blonde stated gesturing to Nene, while Hotaru and Yuma now bowed politely to the younger girl, Nene smiling back to them, but showing to be happier about the fact that Yuzu just called her, 'a good friend of her's'.
"And Nene these two are Mizushina Hotaru, and Okazaki Yuma, I met them not too long again, and became friends with them both in no time, so I'm sure that you'll get along well with them as well," Yuzu now introduced Hotaru and Yuma to Nene, the younger girl looking back to the other two girls, and smiled to them both politely now.
"It's nice to meet you Nomura-san," Hotaru stated while Yuma also greeted the younger girl, both of them smiling to her kindly now, having not expected to be meeting another one of Yuzu's friends today, but happy to be acquainted with Nene all the same.
"Just Nene is fine, and it's nice to meet you two as well,"
Nene replied bowing back to the other two politely, while Yuma and Hotaru just nodded back to her in return. Matsuri smiling as she now came walking over to stand beside Yuzu, catching her's and all of the others attention.
"Well now that that's out of the way, I believe we all have some shopping to do, and since we are planning to all go to the beach together soon, we should also buy some new swimsuits while we're here too,"
The middle schooler stated with a smile, as Yuzu, Harumin and Nene all cheered together in reply, them all heading into the mall quickly with Mei, Matsuri, Himeko, Hotaru and Yuma following close behind. All of them deciding to go and buy some new swimsuits for themselves first, since they all figured it would be good to get that out of the way first, and then they could go shopping and browsing for other things later on.
The large group now splitting up into much smaller groups as Harumin, and Yuzu went off together, Nene following after them. Himeko went together with Mei as even though the President wasn't really into shopping for clothes, they were going to be all going to the beach soon, so she guessed that she might as well look for a new swimsuit as well, Himeko happily following the dark haired girl around the swimsuit aisles like a puppy.
Which left Yuma, Hotaru, and Matsuri to go off together. Yuma and Hotaru looking at all the different swimsuits together now, looking for the ones they would like to pick out and try on. While Matsuri smiled slightly, walking over to Hotaru, as she caught her attention and gestured for her to come and talk to her in private.
"Hotaru-chan, can I talk with you for a moment," the younger girl asked, smiling politely to Yuma, before she looked back to Hotaru and waited to hear her answer.
Hotaru glanced to Yuma, as if asking if it was okay for her to leave her for a few moments in order to go and talk with Matsuri, which Yuma just nodded and smiled to, Hotaru smiling back as she nodded in return, before looking back to Matsuri again.
"Sure," the dark haired girl nodded as she smiled to Matsuri now, and let her pull her over to the side. Matsuri lowering her voice a little so that their conversation wouldn't be heard easily by any of the others passing by.
"So I'm sensing that something happened between you and Yuma-chan right?" Matsuri asked with a slight smile to Hotaru now, while Hotaru didn't even try and hide the fact that she was completely right, smiling back to Matsuri as she just shrugged her shoulders slightly.
"What would give you that idea Matsuri-chan?" the dark haired girl asked, pretending to play dumb, while Matsuri just raised an eyebrow to her now.
"I saw you two holding hands when you showed up here with Yuzu-chan and Mei-san. And by my guess you two are together now right?" Matsuri asked, already kinda guessing that she was right, Hotaru just sighing slightly as she nodded and smiled, looking back over to where Yuma stood looking at swimsuits for a moment.
"Yuzu-chan and Mei-san really helped us both to work everything out between us when we were here last time, and even though Fujiwara didn't take the news too well, I'm glad I don't feel the need to hide anything from Yuma anymore," Hotaru explained as she truly felt that even though her and Yuma were having trouble with the others students in their school knowing about them, and the fact that Fujiwara was no doubt still angry with them both. She herself was much happier and hopeful now that she and Yuma could get through it all together.
"Well it's about time I say, and I'm glad you two have finally worked it all out," Matsuri smiled as she was glad to see her old friend actually happy for once, and not hiding behind that mask of her's any longer.
"Yeah me too,"
Hotaru replied with a nod, smiling back to Matsuri now, as she looked back to her again, and thanked her for always supporting her through all this, even if they did lose contact for a little bit, but were happy that meeting Mei and Yuzu had resulted in them in being reunited again.
Meanwhile Harumin, Yuzu and Nene had already picked out the swimsuits that they liked, now all trying them on together in the girls changing room, Nene already dressed in hers as she stood waiting to see what Harumin and Yuzu's looked like. Hers being a light pink two piece, which was covered in a bright floral pattern that she had liked the look of, more excited over the fact that she was going to see the kind of swimsuits that Harumin and Yuzu had picked out, then what she had picked out for herself.
Yuzu and Harumin now stepping out from behind the curtain together, both of them looking to each other, before glancing to Nene and wondering what she thought of the swimsuits that they had chosen.
Harumin wearing a plain dark purple two piece that hugged her curves and straps that over lapped each other around her back, while Yuzu's was a two piece that had a bright design of differently coloured stripes on the back, while the front was a plain light violet.
"Nice choice Yuzucchi, it suits you," Harumin stated as she smiled to the blonde, while Yuzu smiled back to her and thanked her for the complaint.
"Thank you Harumin, and I really like the look of yours as well," Yuzu replied, as both of the girls seemed happy with the swimsuits that they had chosen, looking back to Nene now, as they heard her say something in a rather low voice.
"I think you both look great," Nene stated, smiling to the two while she was shaking slightly, trying to contain the amount of excitement she was feeling right now, not wanting to lose her composure in front of Yuzu and Harumin.
"Thanks Nene, and yours looks really cute," Yuzu said as Harumin just nodded in agreement, Nene thanking them both, before they both noticed something about the younger girl and wondered if she was okay,
"Are you cold Nene? You're shaking quite a bit,"
Harumin asked as her and Yuzu seemed a little concerned for the younger girl now, Nene thinking of just shaking her head, and continuing to keep control of herself, but then feeling like she wouldn't be able to keep her composure for much longer.
"Maybe a little, I'll quickly go and change," Nene stated in a rush as she ran to hide behind one of the curtains and calm herself down a little, while Yuzu and Harumin just looked to each other shrugging their shoulders slightly.
"So this is where you two were," the two heard a familiar voice say as they now turned and saw Mei and Himeko walk into the girls changing room, the two girls looking back to them.
"Mei, did you and Momokino-san find swimsuits that you like?" Yuzu asked smiling to her sister now, and kinda hoping that she hadn't had found a swimsuit to buy just yet.
"No we came looking for you and Taniguchi-san, and wasn't Nomura-san with you two as well?" Mei asked, while Yuzu smiled at the fact that Mei hadn't yet already picked out a swimsuit to wear to the beach, meaning that she could offer one that she had found to her instead.
"She's just getting changed right now, but since you haven't found a swimsuit just yet, I have one that you might like, so why don't you try it on?"
Yuzu asked as she now grabbed hold of Mei's hand, and took her behind one of the curtains, Mei protesting at first, but then just going along with her sister as she figured it wouldn't hurt to at least try on the one that Yuzu had picked out for her. After all she hadn't found any that she really would like to buy yet, but then she didn't really have much of taste for this kind of thing anyway.
"Were you able to find one you liked Vice Prez?" Harumin asked, as she looked to Himeko now, the other girl glaring at the fact that Yuzu had just taken Mei away from her, before she shook her head and looked back to Harumin now, trying not to let that blonde bother her too much.
"Yes I did actually, it's a checkered black and white one piece, but I haven't tried it on just yet,"
Himeko answered, gesturing to the swimsuit that she was holding under her arm right now, thinking of going behind one of the curtains and changing herself, but kinda wanting to stay and see just what Yuzu had picked out for Mei instead. Harumin just nodding to the other girl with a smile, before her and Himeko heard the changing room door open again, and seeing the other three girls from their large group all walking in.
"I was wondering where you had all wandered off to, where are Yuzu-chan, Mei-san and Nene?" Matsuri asked as she came walking in now, looking to Harumin and Himeko, and wondering where the other three girls were. While Yuma and Hotaru went to go and change into the swimsuits they had picked out for themselves.
"They're just changing and should be out in a little bit, meanwhile what swimsuit did you choose anyway Matsuri?" Harumin asked as she was feeling a little chilly now and folded her arms across her chest, rubbing her arms to keep herself warm, while she thought of going behind one of the curtains in a minute to change as well.
"I just got a white two piece that has nice looking blue flowers covering it," Matsuri stated, figuring that she should just go with something simple since all of them were going to the beach together in a few days, not wanting to buy something expensive if she was only going to wear it for this little trip they were all going on very soon.
"I'm surprised, that's oddly tame of you," Harumin smirked now slightly as she raised an eyebrow to the younger girl, causing Matsuri to just smirk back to her now.
"I'm quite surprised as well, to see you picking out, and wearing such a racy swimsuit Taniguchi-san, are you trying to impress someone?" the younger girl asked as she gestured to the dark purple two piece that Harumin was wearing, noticing the way it hugged her curves and clung to her body, barely leaving anything to the imagination.
"It's not 'racy', it just hugs my body a little," Harumin said her voice raising slightly as she glared to Matsuri now.
"Uh-huh, just a little," Matsuri nodded with a wide grin, while Harumin just folded her arms and turned away from her, not wanting to talk to her any longer it would seem.
"Yuzu I'm not sure this really suits me all that well," Mei now said as she stepped out of the curtain, Yuzu standing behind her, and all the others now looking to the dark haired girl, Himeko's eyes widening when she saw what the President was wearing right now.
"Nonsense it looks good on you, right guys?"
Yuzu asked as she looked to all the others now, while Mei stood nervously in a light green two piece that had a few faint yellow stripes that were going in a diagonal line. Being ruffled at the leg and arm holes, the material hugging her body a little, but also being loose around her shoulders and hips, looking like the swimsuit was simply sitting on where her curves were, showing off her skin, but also keeping most of her body unexposed.
"I think it looks really nice on you Mei-Mei,"
Himeko stated as she smiled and was slightly blushing over the sight of the dark haired girl in what looked like quite the well-fitting swimsuit for her. Cursing under her breath for a moment, about why it couldn't have been her that had picked it out instead of Yuzu.
"I agree it suits you quite well Mei-san," Matsuri agreed with a smile, slightly giving a thumbs up to Yuzu, telling her 'good job' on her choice of swimsuit for her girlfriend.
"You think so?"
Mei asked, looking at the two piece, not really feeling all that comfortable wearing it, but she did admit that it didn't look all that bad really, and as long as it wasn't too revealing she didn't mind all that much.
The others all just smiled and nodded to Mei now assuring her that it was a good choice for to stick with the swimsuit that Yuzu had picked out for her, rather than trying to find another one. Mei just sighing as she looked over the swimsuit again and figured that it didn't look all that bad on her, looking to Yuzu's hope-filled eyes and thought she might as well wear it then, since Yuzu had already picked it out for her.
"Fine, I guess I can wear this one,"
Mei stated now, Yuzu lighting up, and cheering happily in return as she smiled brightly to Mei, the dark haired girl just turned her head away slightly from the elder girl while a blank expression was resting on her face.
Matsuri smiled as she looked to Yuzu and Mei, thinking of commenting on something, before she noticed that Harumin was still looking to Mei, seeming a little lost for words. Matsuri smirked as she guessed that Harumin had been staring like that for a good while now, leaning into the elder girl as she spoke to her in a lowered voice.
"What's with all the staring Taniguchi-san?" Matsuri asked with a sly grin now, causing Harumin to come back to her senses as she shook her head, and looked back to Matsuri with a slight glare again.
"I wasn't staring!" Harumin raised her voice a little now, looking to Matsuri with an annoyed expression, gritting her teeth slightly and wanting to make the younger girl stop talking, and teasing her.
Matsuri just smiled back to Harumin, as she was thoroughly enjoying herself right now, finding it fun to tease the elder girl whenever she saw the option to.
While all this had been going on outside the curtains in the girls changing room, Hotaru and Yuma were behind one of the curtains, getting changed into the swimsuits that they had picked out to try on, Yuma looking to the one that Hotaru had picked out for her and sighed a little.
"Hotaru are you sure about this swimsuit that you picked out for me?" the blonde asked as she looked to Hotaru, the dark haired girl turning to her as she had already slipped on the swimsuit that she had picked out for herself.
"I think it'll look great on you Yuma-chan," Hotaru simply stated with a smile and a nod to Yuma, causing the blonde to just decide to try it on and see how it looked on her, before actually choosing to buy it or not.
Slipping the two piece on now Yuma slowly stood up straight, looking at herself in the mirror, still unsure if she liked the swimsuit or not, turning slightly to view from the side, before she froze up at the feeling of Hotaru's hand's resting on her back, and lightly caressing her skin.
"Hotaru, don't…not here," Yuma protested as she looked back to the other girl and was slightly surprised to see Hotaru just looking back to with a curious expression on her face.
"Relax Yuma-chan, I'm only going to tie the back for you," Hotaru stated, as she smiled to Yuma now, and tied the back of the top to the two piece for her.
"Oh right, thanks,"
Yuma said nervously as she blushed deeply now, feeling embarrassed for thinking that Hotaru was trying to tease her or something, when all she was doing was helping her to tie the straps at the back of her swimsuit for her.
"You're welcome Yuma-chan,"
Hotaru simply said as she smiled now, and nodded to herself when she was done tying the back of Yuma's two piece top now behind her back. Letting a small sigh leave her lips as she now wrapped her arms around the blonde's waist and hugged her tightly from behind.
"Hotaru?" Yuma questioned as she looked to Hotaru now with a wondering expression, not expecting the sudden tight embrace from the other girl.
"You were right yesterday I shouldn't have gone to see Fujiwara. Sorry I made you worry," the dark haired girl apologized in a low voice, hiding her expression behind her long hair for a moment, before she lifted her head a little at the feeling of Yuma turning round in her arms, and resting a caring hand on her cheek.
"It's alright as long as you're not hurt too badly, then it doesn't matter, but I don't want you going there again got it?" Yuma now looked serious as she didn't want to see Hotaru get hurt again, knowing that that would be exactly what would happen if she did go against her words and see her ex again.
"Got it,"
Hotaru replied with a smile and a nod, before she brought Yuma into another tight hug, as they both smiled now, while holding each other close. Their loving embrace ending soon as they both decided to now leave the curtain and see what all the others thought of their swimsuits.
The others all now looking to Hotaru and Yuma, seeing them come out from behind one of the curtains, noticing that Yuma was looking very nervous, blushing a little, while Hotaru was just smiling to the blonde, reassuring her that her swimsuit looked good on her.
"Isn't this swimsuit a little revealing Hotaru?"
Yuma asked as she nervously looked to Hotaru, and covered herself a little, getting the feeling that she needed to. Her swimsuit being a white two piece that had small colourful polkadots all over it. However instead of it hugging her body, it was a little loosely hung around her neck, back and hips, Yuma feeling self-conscious and thinking that she should hold up the two piece up, even though she really didn't need to.
"Not at all, it looks cute on you Yuma-chan,"
Hotaru smiled as she looked to all the others for their opinion, the others just smiling and nodding in agreement to Hotaru. The dark haired girl's swimsuit being a plain two piece that was a sky blue colour and it being one that hugged closely to her body, being a lot like Harumin's, expect for the fact that the top didn't completely cover her chest, causing her to be showing off a little more cleavage than the other girls were.
"You see,"
Hotaru stated as she now looked back to Yuma, smiling to her again, and reassuring her that she looked good in the swimsuit she was currently wearing at the moment, and eventually being able to convince her to buy it.
The girls having now all brought the swimsuits that they had needed for their trip to the beach, all of them now agreeing on going to a nearby café for lunch together, before they would all go back to shopping for a little bit afterwards.
This day turning out to be actually quite fun for them all as it ended with them all going their separate ways, ready and looking forward to what their little trip to the beach would hold in store for them all in a few days.