Kirumi glanced around for any mess-makers. She let out a breath of relief, and finished the last of her cleaning.
As per usual, just as she finished, someone had to come and ruin it- at least it was someone who'd feel bad about it.
"Ah- Kirumi, I'm sorry! I didn't see you were cleaning in here, I stepped in your pile…" Rantaro glanced up from the now broken up pile or dust and dirt to her with a sheepish smile.
"Yes, well it's quite alright. Do you mind waiting outside while I sweep this pile back up?" Kirumi asked, her expression seemingly troubled.
"Right- Sorry." He stepped outside, obviously feeling guilty even though others had done worse. She quickly finished cleaning and exited the music hall. She placed a just cleaned sign on the door. "You think that'll keep 'em out?"
"Hopefully," Kirumi answered, "Sorry I'm keeping you out as well, I'm sure you and Kaede were going to play piano together today."
He rubbed his neck. "No… I was gonna try practicing by myself actually. But, it's alright, cleanliness should be a priority." He gave a dazzling smile, it kind of just came naturally to him.
She nodded back. "Thank you… If it's any consolation, I'll come take this sign off later and you can practice later. I'll even sit in and listen. I heard you play some the other day, it was lovely."
"Really? Thank you, Kirumi." Rantaro said, like a giddy little kid. She smiled.
"It's no problem." There was silence between them for a moment.
"Do you uh- Have anywhere else to clean?" Rantaro asked.
"Well. I must clean the dishes from this morning. Why do you ask?" She raised a curious eyebrow.
"I uh- Just figured I could help you clean some to make up for stepping in your pile."
"You really don't have to, but I appreciate the sentiment." She paused. "I'll take the help gladly."
He smiled and motioned to the kitchen. "Shall we?" They made their way to the kitchen. Upon arrival, Kirumi sighed at all the newly added dishes in the sink. "I never realized how much of a mess we all make." Rantaro said, his face held an air of distaste.
She chuckled weakly. "Yes, well, it's less than usual since I haven't eaten today." She approached the sink, and he was at her side in a moment, concern in his eyes.
"Do you… skip eating a lot?" Rantaro questioned.
"Sometimes. I forget sometimes, and other times I refuse to eat until late if I'm busy. But I do eventually eat." His expression grew more concerned.
"Come to think of it, you're always busy. I almost never see you eat in the mornings anymore, how long has it been since you last ate?" It was nice he was concerned for her well-being. But she would be fine.
"Rantaro… Calm down. I appreciate the sentiment, but I ate last night and after we clean these dishes I'll make us some food, hmm?" She just had to hold out a little longer.
He eased up and nodded. "Alright, let's get cleaning then." They cleaned in silence, only the sound of running water as she cleaned the dishes and handed them to him to put away. It was a surprisingly faster process with a helper.
"Mind putting those pots on the stove? Thank you for your help, by the way."
"No problem, Kirumi. And sure." He did as she asked, his stomach grumbling. Jeez, he was such a hypocrite.
"What are you in the mood for?" Kirumi asked, setting up the stovetop.
"Mm… Curry sounds amazing- but I bet you don't want to make that already, it's barely past One o' clock." Rantaro said, pursing his lips.
"Actually, that's fine. I'll make it now, and warm it up for supper later." She started grabbing some ingredients from the cabinets.
"Thanks, Kirumi. You're amazing, you know that?" She swept her bangs to the side and smiled.
"I'm just human, talent or no. I'm not that special."
"You move like something special…" He murmured. Her eyes widened. "I-I mean you're so fast and efficient, it's cool!"
"Yeah… Well thank you. Mind handing me the chicken from the fridge?"
"Sure." He felt like a doofus as he grabbed ingredients for her. She explained her version of the recipe to him as she put in the separate materials and eventually mixed them together. He watched, trying to remember every step to be able to help with cooking some days.
"So, what, may I ask, were you planning to practice on the piano?"
He shrugs. "Just a sappy love song."
She nods slowly. "Ah…"
"Not that I don't like love songs- I just have been practicing a lot of them."
"Kaede's got a lot of those to show you, huh?" She sounded a little angry…
"Yeah- most of her repertoire is arrangements of love songs. But hey, I can play them for you, If I learn them." She furrowed her brows but remained silent. Shit, did he fuck up? "Kirumi…?" The clunking of her flipping the ingredients slowed to a stop. "Kirumi- "
She wavered a little bit before full on collapsing, he caught her luckily "Shit- "He carried her up to their dorm and laid her in her bed. She probably lied earlier… "Damn it, why hadn't I noticed sooner?"
He made sure she was comfortable before leaving their dorm and going to get her a glass of water. He came back to find an annoying sight. Everyone's laundry was outside their door, and so was Ouma and Iruma.
"Kirumi, Open up, open up!~ Me and Iruma need help on how to uh- Clean up an oil leak."
"Yeah, sorry to bother, Kiru, but we got other stuff to do, and we suck at cleaning so- You'll have it done in no time though, you move like a well oiled machine~ You in there?" Iruma knocked on the door.
"Hey…" Rantaro interjected. They turned to face him.
"Ey, it's avocado boy. Kirumi in or what?" Iruma tilted her head to the side and picked at her nails.
"Nishishi~ He looks so angry, betcha they're on a date and he doesn't wanna tell." Ouma teased.
"No. But you need to stop making Kirumi into Kirumi-ella anyways." Rantaro could hear his anger in his tone when he spoke.
"Woah! Sudden aggression much…?" Iruma scowled.
"It's not just you two. We all pretty much take advantage of her kindness and her talent."
"How, she willingly cares for us?" Ouma asked, not getting the point.
"Ouma… When Kirumi made dinner last night, she gave you the last serving right?" Rantaro asked.
Ouma nodded. "Yeah?"
"Did you see her eat at all yesterday?"
Ouma thought a moment. "No… I saw her clean but not eat…"
"Where's Kirumi, is she-" Iruma asked, concerned.
"No, she's not dead. But she's sick. She fainted in the kitchen while making an early dinner. I'm certain she hasn't eaten in days, and she just… kept on cleaning, exhausting herself to help us. At this point she'll likely be out of commission for a few days." Rantaro explained.
"Oh fuck…" Iruma murmured.
"Well, I guess we gotta figure our own mess out, Iru~" Ouma said.
"After you're done, gather everyone to the kitchen, okay?" Rantaro asked politely.
"Okay, avocado boy. Just let us finish cleaning up our mess so no one dies." They wandered off to solve their own problems, meanwhile Rantaro had a plan. He'd have to take charge, screw a love song, he'd cull the beasts for her.
In roughly an hour they all noisily gathered in the kitchen. Rantaro was front and center, a steely look on his face.
"Alright, listen up!" Rantaro shouted.
"Ooh~ Amami's taking charge how dominant, nishishi!" Ouma taunted, he was met with a cold, serious glare.
"How many of you put your laundry outside our dorm today? Show of hands." Everyone except Kaede, Shuichi, and Rantaro himself. "How many of you have ever helped Kirumi clean, of your own volition?" Only Hoshi, Kaede, and Rantaro this time.
"What is this, an interrogation? You a detective in training now?" Iruma sassed.
"Yes, and no. How many of you help Kirumi when she asks you to?" Kaede, Rantaro, Hoshi, Ouma, and Gonta raised their hands. "Anyone ask her how she is sometimes? Any time lately?" Kaede raised her hand. No one else bothered. By now, some were giving guilty looks.
"Is something wrong with Kirumi?" Kaede asked, frowning. Rantaro gave a slight nod.
"She's pretty sick. She fainted while cooking earlier. I'm certain she hasn't eaten in days… But none of us noticed. I'm not trying to guilt you all. But, we need to change." He hesitated a moment. "How many of you care about Kirumi, be honest." Some hands shot up Immediately. Others a little more modestly. Some begrudgingly. He smiled. "Then you all know what we have to do. Kirumi's out of commission, so let's make her proud. Let's show some initiative."
"I think Kirumi could use some relaxation." Kaede nodded, smiling at the idea.
"Sharing a bit more responsibility should decrease her stress levels." Korekiyo added.
"If nothing else, with all she's done for each of us, a week of cleaning up after ourselves shouldn't be that hard." Rantaro concluded. Excited murmurs and annoyed groans came from the group. "Ouma, since you're the supreme leader, how about you delegate tasks hmm? I got a list of chores here." Ouma was intrigued and hooked. He strode over, and took the list from Rantaro's hands with a flourish.
"Alright. Shuichi and Kaede are going to do the laundry. After dinner, Me and Iruma will clean up and do the dishes. Maki, Kaito, Gonta, and Hoshi will clean up any party messes we make. Everyone else will clean their own rooms. Rantaro, you take care of Kirumi. Any objections?"
None spoke up. "Good. Dismissed." Rantaro nodded. They all left to attend to their own things.
Rantaro got a bowl of curry for Kirumi and went to check on her, he headed to their dorm finding her trying to get out of bed. He sat the curry down on her dresser, and caught her for the second time today.
"Kirumi what are you doing- You're too weak to be out of bed right now." Rantaro scolded.
"I'm fine… I just need to make sure everyone has eaten-" Kirumi murmured. Even her voice was hoarse damn it.
"You're not fine…" He held her tight, and gently picked her up in his arms.
"Put me down… I need to- "
"Damn it, Kirumi no you don't!" Rantaro shouted. She stopped struggling and started crying.
"B-But…" She whimpered. He laid her down on the bed and hugged her.
"Kirumi… You're so weak. Your legs shake when you try to stand… please don't force yourself anymore, just let me take care of you." Oops, a lot came out of his mouth there- He glanced up at her.
"I'm sorry I lied… I thought I could hold out for everyone." Kirumi wiped her tears slowly and frowned.
"I appreciate it. We all do Kirumi. But it's not healthy for you to hurt yourself for us. You're only one person Kirumi. You're amazing, not impenetrable."
"I know… Tell everyone I'm sorry they have to do so much until I get better." She sniffled. He hugged her tight again.
"There's no need. They all care about you. They just want you to get better. I'll take care of you until you're all better." Rantaro assured her.
"Really? That's so… nice. Thank you, Amami." She muttered. He backed off and handed her the curry.
"Eat up. And you can call me Rantaro." She smiled at him before getting to eat. She'd vaguely forgotten how good her own food tasted.
"Rantaro…"
"Yeah?"
"Can you get me some more water?" She asked, sitting aside her empty bowl of curry.
"Of course, you still hungry?" He grabbed the bowl and stood up from her bedside.
"Y-yes…"
"I'll be back as soon as possible, Kirumi." He flashed her another dazzling smile. Damn.
He went and got her another glass of water, and refilled her bowl of curry. He stopped into the dining hall a moment to see everyone enjoying dinner. He came back and gave her the glass sitting the bowl on her lap.
The next few days went virtually the same with him bringing her food and drink. He checked up on the others and made a checklist checking the dorms and the rooms for progress. On the third day, she got up and got dressed, Rantaro still asleep, she went to assess the damage.
She was amazed at how little a mess there was. She couldn't help but smile and get to work on paying them back. They all seemed to merge in the kitchen for lunch, Rantaro getting there last and wondering what that delicious smell was.
"Hello everyone. Thank you for these past few days. You were all very responsible and to show my appreciation I made you all a cake." She tilted her head with an adorable smile.
"Whoa! Cake!" Ouma screeched, flying into the dining hall. Several followed excitedly leaving Kaede, Rantaro and Kirumi. Kaede hugged Kirumi tight.
"I'm just happy you're feeling better Kirumi. Please, take better care of yourself from now on, for your own sake." Kirumi nodded and thanked her, before Kaede left to go get some cake. Rantaro started moving that way, but Kirumi stopped him.
"Since you took care of me, and managed them all so dutifully I have a special token of appreciation for you." She smiled at him sweetly.
"Actually… First, let me fulfill my promise." He took her hand and led her to the music hall. He sat her on the piano and sat down at the piano seat. "I… managed to practice between all the chores and stuff. I said I'd play for you if I learned the songs so here I go."
He played the tune to her favorite love song, she couldn't help but sing along to the tune. When it ended, she jumped down off the piano, and grabbed his hands.
"That was so lovely…" He blushed at her compliment.
"A lovely song, for a lovely lady." Rantaro shot back. She blushed, and pulled him up from the piano seat.
"Rantaro…" She held his hands and took a deep breath. "I really appreciate all you've done for me this week- really, everything you do for me all the time. You're such a good friend. I've never had anyone whose cared for me so much… who hasn't just been using me. I'm really glad we met, you know."
His cheeks warmed from all her sweet words. "Kirumi… Me too. I feel like you really understand me. You're always so kind, I figured for once you deserved the proper amount of kindness back."
She met his eyes and gave a heartwarming smile. He swept her bangs out of her eyes. Her eyes were so pretty... mesmerizing really.
He gently wrapped his hands around her waist, and pulled her in for a kiss. She didn't struggle, in fact she kissed back surprisingly.
He pulled away for a moment but she brought him right back to her lips. He kissed back her arms wrapping around him back, into a longing embrace. Like they had both longed to do this for a while now.
"Kirumi…" He murmured pulling away again."
"S-Sorry… That was irresponsible-" He gently grabbed her chin and angled her face to meet her eyes.
"More like perfect…" He said, cupping her cheek in his hand.
"That's why… It was irresponsible. I mean-" She glanced away. "Look at the situation we're in this is reckless, having these… feelings."
"We can't control them. Life doesn't stop because someone says It should." Kirumi bit her lip.
"Rantaro I- I really like you a lot… It was irresponsible to kiss you I don't want a heart break- "
"I won't hurt you Kirumi… and if I die- I'll have lived the moments of my life how I wanted." She pulled away.
"I'm sorry… I'm too scared. Call me a coward, hate me just- don't kiss me again please."
He grasped her hands in his and sighed.
"Kirumi please… I can't leave without you loving me back. I'm not asking for commitment just- a chance…" Rantaro pleaded, his eyes bore into her heart.
She met his eyes reluctantly and nodded.
"Fine… You deserve a chance. I'll give this a chance. I suppose with how much I like you already, if you died tomorrow or next week or however long from now, it'd hurt all the same…" Kirumi closed her eyes and sighed.
"Kirumi, thank you…" He pulled her into a tight hug, happier than he'd been at any point during this horror show.
"Rantaro, you have to promise me you'll try. You'll try as hard as you can to live."
"You promise me too… I promise." He swore. She nodded and kissed his cheek.
"I promise too." He smiled.
"Good, let's try our best together." She nodded.
They spent the rest of the night cuddling in their dorm away from prying eyes. Iruma would likely find some way to spread rumors about them anyways.