Notes:
Have you read Feelings Under a Mask or Masquerade?
Well this insert belongs to that "saga", feel free to check them out if you have any doubts!
Please enjoy~
Rated M for next chapters
Lies Under a Mask.
Chapter 1.
It was something weird, somehow the time flew like an arrow and in no time they needed to go in separate ways.
She felt a pinch in her heart, she wanted to stop time and enjoy more time at her side; it was something warm, fresh, new, sometimes scary, but good.
It was a feeling that filled her with anticipation, excitement and strength.
For her, now waking up every day and going to practice had a new meaning; see her smile and fill her soul with her presence.
Maybe this feeling was...
Love.
—**00**—
It was a hot and suffocating summer afternoon; the hot sensation increasing because of being trapped in a crowded train. Warm sweat falling from her temples, and the sticky feeling on her hands grabbing the safety bar only reminded her that August was here, meaning just one thing for Suwa Nanaka; training camp.
Project Sunshine finally kicked off in Dengeki G's Magazine; the presentation of the 9 members, plus the cast, had been revealed a few issues ago, and the release for their first Cd/Pv was announced for October.
The production set from the beginning a 3 days and 4 nights training camp for the 9 members in August, to help them bond with each other, plus working on their stamina for an event in January 2016.
This training camp was really important, because despite the whole time they have to practice until the event on January, the 9 girls were really having problems with their first single, not only because almost all of the cast was new and inexperienced in dancing and singing, but because there weren't any bonds between them.
As for Suwa Nanaka, after realizing that she didn't have the stamina and energy her character, Matsuura Kanan, had, nor the voice the production wanted for the character, her self confidence was a little bit shaky.
A few months ago after a dance practice where she was really struggling with the choreography, Saito Shuka, kindly offered her some dance classes to help her overcome that situation. And she agreed.
Once a week, Nanaka went religiously to Shuka's house to practice the choreography for their first single and to gain more strength in her legs.
This was the main reason, but after the second session in Shuka's house, where she taught Nanaka rigorously but kindly, her attention went from practice to just spend time with Shuka. Nanaka wasn't the sporty type of girl and her stamina was very low, so in no time the practice session became a talking session; in Shuka's defense, well, her attention span was like that of a fly, so she ended talking and laughing with Nanaka, while dance practice was long forgotten.
The previous week, Shuka had been very clear that they need to have a final practice session before training camp, and she couldn't pick another day but the day before it.
Nanaka sighed heavily.
She was trapped in the train on her way to Shuka's place. Despite the fact she was feeling uneasy and was actually excited to see her, she wasn't very happy to practice a day before of the training camp itself. How sore would she be the next morning? And this week had been hectic for her, due to her other jobs, so today should had been a day to rest, do her luggage, read manga, sleep until late and play video games.
But no. She just couldn't resist Shuka's puppy eyes and said yes; let's have a dance practice on the day before training camp.
The train made its stop in Shuka's neighborhood; with difficulties, Nanaka made her way out through the door without disturbing too many people with her bag.
She walked through the platform at her unique and slow pace; she stopped in front of a convenience store, blinked a few time, watched the time in her watch and smiled faintly, she still had a few minutes left, without thinking it too much she entered the store.
She was greeted by the wonders of the air conditioning; she closed her eyes and made a big smile, receiving the cool air for a few seconds. It was refreshing.
She blinked and then continued inside the store. She thought of buying something for Shuka, maybe a snack or something sweet.
I could eat some ice cream... wait, it's for Shuka not for me, does she likes ice cream?
Nanaka hummed in her thoughts, and kept walking slowly through the corridors, looking for something to catch her eye. She saw a variety of salty snacks, sweet things, and things she never heard of before.
She likes hamburgers... I can't give her a hamburger... Oh!
She stopped near the entrance of the store, where she saw cute little packages over the magazine rack.
'Umeboshi~' uh, I like that, the package is cute too...how much is it? Uhm...uhm...uhm...ok I'll take one!
She grabbed one package and smiled happily. Then she lowered her sight, saw if she could catch another thing on the shelve, and something else caught her eyes.
Oh~! It's out!
She didn't hesitate and grabbed the latest issue of Dengeki's G Magazine, October issue. She blinked a few times and with her heart pounding she went through the magazine looking for the Love Live! Section.
First, she found out that the costumes of their first PV were featured in a special session illustration, of course, with "seconds years", she hummed about it.
Why always "second years" first?
She turned the page, and her eyes widened as big as two fried eggs.
Oh...Kanan, what the hell?...
She was greeted by a full page illustration of Kanan, on her knees opening her diving suit really sexily, showing her bikini, and showing off her "nice body" while winking.
That was indeed really sexy and suggestive.
Nanaka tightened her lips and opened her eyes wide in disbelief. How could a teenage girl of 17 years old pose like this?
Oh my god, when the rest of the girls see this I'll be mocked the rest of the day... maybe the whole month...
"That's really sexy"
She heard on her right; Nanaka jumped in her spot, almost dropping her pack of "umeboshi" and trying to close the magazine as if it was porn. Nanaka looked at her right with her eyes wide open, just to see a smiling girl dressed in a sports outfit and a cap. They shared a look for a few seconds, and suddenly she saw the girl's smile fading; a smile she knew just too well by now.
"Oh my God, Osuwa!"
"Shu...Shuka..." said Nanaka with some embarrassment in her voice.
Shuka laughed with a big smile on her face and moved closer to her.
"I didn't recognize you! What are you doing here?"
"What are YOU doing here? You should be in your house..."
"Oh! Right I..." she started to scratch the back of her neck" ... I came here to buy something..."
Nanaka raised an eyebrow, of course, they were in a convenience store, and of course, she was there to buy something.
"Okay..." she said putting the magazine on the rack once again.
"What are you doing here? You should be on the way to my place..."
"I stopped here to buy too... What do you need to buy? You should have asked me and I would pick it up for you" said Nanaka with a smile.
"Eh, I came here to buy..."
She said looking straight at Nanaka's hand, where the pack of "umeboshi" was, she made a bitter expression and then smiled wide.
"...Milk! I came here to buy milk!"
"Milk..." Nanaka repeated.
"Yes, my mother needed milk..." she said nervously "what about you? What would you need for practice?"
Nanaka blinked a few times and smiled cutely; she showed the pack of "umeboshi".
"'Umeboshi~'" she said in her singsong voice.
Of course, she wasn't going to tell her that she was there to buy her a little gift, like a snack or something.
"You sure are addicted to that stuff... " Said Shuka in awe.
"Nah, I believe Aida-san is worse..." said Nanaka, turning around and moving forward.
"Hey, I want to buy this now..."
Said Shuka in a happy tone; Nanaka stopped and looked at her, Shuka was taking the magazine with her.
"Really?" asked Nanaka, Shuka started walking towards her with the magazine in her hands, searching for, Nanaka assumed, the Love Live! Section.
"Oh my, oh my, O-Suwa, you definitely should try a diving suit" she said stopping at her side with that page open; Nanaka frowned.
"The hell I will, I don't have her nice body..."
"Of course you do," she said with confidence, but never taking her eyes away from the magazine, Nanaka deadpanned her.
Is she for real? I don't have her muscles, body, boobs, or her anything...
Nanaka turned around and decided that it was enough, so she went to the cashier to buy her snacks. Shuka stood with her in line, still reading the magazine and teasing her more about the illustration.
"Are you not going to buy the milk for your mother?" Suddenly Nanaka interrupted her.
Shuka unglued her eyes from the magazine, stopped teasing her and looked at Nanaka with her eyes wide open.
"Oh, Yeah you are right... The milk... Be right back!"
She closed the magazine and quickly moved to the back of the store.
Nanaka sighed in relieve
And this is just Shuka... When 'first years' see this illustration... Oh!
She looked at the rack just beside the cashier; it was the sale's corner of the store.
Melon bread.
Nanaka smiled wide, took a few packs of melon bread with her, and in no time it was her turn to pay.
Shuka came up to the cashier with two boxes of milk, just in time when Nanaka was receiving her plastic bag with her purchases.
Shuka bought the milk plus the magazine, and the two of them started walking to Shuka's house.
On the way home, Shuka took out the magazine once again, mocked Nanaka a few more time; she stopped teasing when Nanaka told her that she got something for her, but if she didn't shut up, she might just throw it away. This made Shuka behave and stay quiet for once.
She kept the magazine in her hands and moved forward to other pages of the magazine; they started to discuss the other topics of it; at the end of the Love Live! Section there was a feature of the final design of each member's costume.
"I think you will look adorable on this outfit," said Shuka showing Nanaka the illustration of Kanan.
Nanaka just raised her eyebrows
"Well, it suits 'Kanan', I don't know if it's going to suit me... She looks so energetic... How can she dance in that?"
"How can you say that? Have you seen yourself?"
Said Shuka with an amused tone, Nanaka just looked at her with concern; for her, the outfits were just too much, they didn't seem comfortable, and to think that she would have to wear that in front of people...
"Suwawa, I didn't recognize you today because of your clothes and hairstyle; I'm used to seeing you in training clothes and your ponytail! and between the designed outfit and your actual clothes—"
"Yes, but I don't dance in this clothes..."
Retorted Nanaka with her "Suwa tone", trying to end the topic. Indeed she was with her girly outfit as always, and a cute hairstyle.
"Will you be able to dance in that too?" asked Nanaka quickly, " Look, 'You' has a hat, you need to do a leapfrog with that on"
Shuka smiled and looked carefully at the magazine.
"Oh, you are right... Well, never mind, I'll do it!" she said with an energetic tone,
"I don't know if you have noticed, but it seems that 'You-chan' and 'Kanan-san' are always close..."
Shuka said with a soft tone, showing Nanaka the magazine, Nanaka looked at it with her "Suwa face" and hummed, of course, both characters were in the same page and near each other.
Yes! Of course, I noticed! Since the first key visual event in our first PV, they shared the screen!
"No, really?" she said, lying in her "Suwa tone", Shuka made a sad face.
"Oh, I thought it was obvious..." Then she laughed nervously; she closed the magazine and put it away in her plastic bag with the milk boxes.
"Oh Oh!" Said Shuka suddenly; Nanaka looked at her with a smile.
"I stopped teasing you, what did you bring me?!" She said so excited and doing little jumps around Nanaka.
Like a puppy. Cute.
Nanaka felt a weird feeling in her belly, the same one she had been feeling these last months; she smiled wide at her, and stopped walking, she opened her plastic bag and took out one of the melon bread.
"Here, for you"
Shuka's eyes widen up sparkling, she smiled happily with her teeth.
"Awww!" She said doing little jumps "Osuwa~ aww I love those!"
Shuka took the package, jumped a few more times and then clung to Nanaka's arm.
"Thank you so much~"
"You're welcome" Said Nanaka with a shy voice, her cheeks becoming red and that feeling in her belly became more like kicks.
Shuka started walking again with her arm entwined with Nanaka's.
She is like a little girl... Cute...
They walked like this a few blocks, Shuka kept talking about how good the melon bread was, and in fact, she didn't want to wait and opened the package right there.
"Oh, I didn't tell you, but... Mama is here today." Said Shuka stopping at the entrance of her house, Nanaka stopped completely and raised her eyebrows.
They had always been alone in previous training sessions. Shuka's siblings were always at school or out, and her mother was always out as well. But now it was summer, of course, everybody would be home.
Nanaka left Shuka's arm immediately; Shuka just gave a big bite to her melon bread and then smiled at her.
"Don't be afraid, mama is harmless..." she said opening the door; Nanaka swallowed hard.
Good thing today I look so girly and cute, I should give 'mama Saito' a good impression...
"Pardon the intrusion...~," said Nanaka in small voice entering Shuka's house.
"I'm home!" Shouted Shuka without a care in the world, closing the door behind herself; they were greeted by a small but cute little dog; Shura.
Shuka immediately started petting him; Nanaka smiled faintly, no matter how many "melon breads" or hamburgers she gave Shuka, Shura would always be better.
Nanaka blinked a few times, and started taking her shoes off.
"Shu-chan!" They heard a rude-like voice.
The call came from the kitchen; Shuka stopped petting Shura and stood up straight, Nanaka stopped taking her shoes off and looked at Shuka, of course, that voice was so like a mother. And it seemed as if she was angry.
Shuka quickly took her shoes off, gave Nanaka an apologetic smile, grabbed her bag and went into the kitchen, with Shura close behind.
Nanaka stood there in awe a few seconds.
Harmless my ass...
She took her shoes off, and started walking with her own pace to the kitchen; she could hear some of the conversations.
.
"Where were you? Why didn't you answer me?"
Nanaka could tell that was mama Saito's voice
"I was out..."
"Out?! Why?"
Buying your milk?
Nanaka thought, then she stopped fully at the entrance of the kitchen.
"I needed to," said Shuka quickly, putting the bag on the counter.
"Why are you wearing those clothes... eh? What's this?" asked mama Saito looking at the bag.
"I told you, Suwa-san is coming to practice today..."
"Right...and where is this 'Suwa-san'?"
Nanaka froze in place; should she come in or should she wait...?
"Oh, she–" Said Shuka looking at the door, and saw Nanaka standing there with a pale face, "She is right here..."
With that cue, Nanaka nodded, swallowed hard and entered the kitchen with her "Suwa face", bags in hand.
"Good afternoon, thanks for letting me stay," she said politely, and then bowed.
"Oh, she is real" Mama Saito said in a small voice, and then smiled wide, just like her daughter usually did.
The older woman introduced herself and bowed too; Nanaka opened her eyes wide and quickly said,
"I'm Suwa Nanaka, nice to meet you..." she had forgotten to introduce herself before.
Mama Saito smiled wider.
"She is even cuter than what you have told me...indeed she looks like a doll..."
"Mama! Ok, shhhhhh" said Shuka with embarrassment, giving her mother little hits on her arm. That was classical "embarrassed Shuka" style. Nanaka smiled faintly.
"Ok so what's this...?" asked the older woman opening the bag and taking one of the milk boxes out. The older woman frowned, Shuka opened her eyes wide and before she could speak her mother spoke.
"Why did you buy milk?"
Nanaka opened her eyes wide and raised her eyebrows.
"That...that's the milk you asked me..."
Said Shuka nervously, walking towards the bag, she wanted to close the bag before her mother said anything else, but mothers are always faster.
"Asked you? Shu-chan this is soy milk, we don't—"
"Yes! You did..." said Shuka with bitterness, closing the bag and giving her mother a look; they fell silent.
"Yes Yes, the milk..." said the older woman suddenly, acting "natural", then she took the boxes out of the bag and walked towards the fridge; she opened it.
"So...I'm guessing Suwa-san is staying for dinner? We have soy milk!"
Said mama Saito, placing one of the boxes in the fridge and looking at Nanaka, she smiled sweetly.
No, hell no.
"I would love too... but we have the training camp tomorrow, and I would like to leave early to prepare myself..."
"She is adorable!" said mama Saito to Shuka.
Shuka smiled proudly, she then realized that Nanaka was standing there looking and hearing everything; her cheeks became wild red.
"Ok, ok, enough with this,"
Said Shuka with impatience, walking to the fridge moving her mother away,
"You got your milk... eh, soy milk, and I will leave with this bottles"
Shuka said closing the fridge, with two bottles of water in her hands. She looked at Nanaka.
"Are you ready?"
"I need to change..." said Nanaka, then took out her plastic bag.
"These are for you and your family," She said, bringing out the left over melon bread packages and placing them on the counter.
"Aw, Osuwa! You are so kind!" Shuka said while jumping in excitement.
"Aw, this is lovely; she is lovely," said Mama Saito
"Ok stop, here,"
Said Shuka with embarrassment, she took out the magazine from the bag and gave it to her mother,
"Read this, the latest news of our project"
Mama Saito took the magazine and smiled wide
"I'll love too~" She said in a singsong voice; Shuka took this opportunity to flee with Nanaka to start dance practice.
"Suwa-san! I'll ask you later if you want to stay for dinner~"
They heard from the kitchen while moving towards Shuka's room. Nanaka couldn't help but giggle.
.
Nanaka stopped by the bathroom first; she stayed in the dressing room of course. She changed into her training clothes and then undid her hairstyle for her now typical ponytail. In no time she was out and into Shuka's bedroom, she could hear Shuka playing with the music.
Nanaka said a cute "pardon the intrusion" and entered, indeed it was big enough for her to call it her "dance practice room"; the first time she was there, she couldn't fail to notice a cute and old wardrobe with a Tom & Jerry sticker on it, she found it really cute, and made her vision of Shuka become more adorable and sweet.
This time Nanaka just ignored that cute detail in Shuka's bedroom for a bigger one; the big mirror on the back of the room. Nanaka left her bag beside Shuka's bed and looked in awe at the big mirror.
"So? How is it?" asked Shuka full of excitement in her voice and a big smile.
Nanaka was speechless.
"I ... I really wanted to show you this..." said Shuka shyly," ...that's why I asked you to come today..."
To show off your mirror?
"Wow..." Nanaka walked to the center of the room where Shuka was standing.
"It just came yesterday! And I want to make the windows soundproof, but maybe later... I really wanted to show you this! Now we can practice like pros!"
Nanaka blinked a few times.
We don't even have a mirror in the studio and she is talking about practicing like a pro...
"I don't know what to say..."
Said Nanaka looking at herself in the mirror, then looked at Shuka
"Your room seems bigger"
"Yes, that's true...so? What do you think?"
You ruined my day off, of rest and playing games to show me your mirror?!
"You will dance like a pro now..." she said in her "Suwa tone".
"We will dance like pros" she corrected her and then smiled proudly.
"Ok.." said Nanaka "shall we begin then?"
"Of course! let's start with the warm-up routine"
"Ok..."
Said Nanaka never changing her "Suwa tone"; it seemed as if her energy had jumped out the window.
.
They started a few exercises from the warm-up routine, then stretched their leg muscles, both of them were sated on the floor.
"By the way, I'm sorry about my mother?" said Shuka softly.
Nanaka looked at her with no expression at all.
The fact that you lied to me about the milk? Or her being just a good mother...?
"What about her?"
"Well you know, she can be a little bit annoying..."
"Ah, Well, I didn't think that... She is really nice..."
"Really?" Shuka said with a smile on her face.
"Yes, she is...she seems kind," said Nanaka with her monotone voice.
"She is my number 1 fan!"
Nanaka didn't answer back; she continued her stretching exercise.
"You should stay for dinner..." Shuka said with a sad tone, Nanaka looked at her through the mirror.
"Uhm, it would be nice to have a homemade dinner for once... "
"Doesn't your mother cook for you and your family?"
Nanaka snorted and sat straight, then looked at Shuka right in her eyes.
"I'm an only child, and I don't see my parents very often...so no"
Shuka stopped stretching and gave Nanaka a sad look.
"O-Suwa I'm sorry..."
Nanaka stood up and gave her a smile.
"Don't worry, I'm used to it by now, it's not a big deal"
"You definitely must stay for dinner then!" Shuka said with determination.
Nanaka sighed.
"If you get me to succeed at the damn leapfrog for once, maybe I will"
Shuka smiled wider.
"Challenge accepted!" Shuka said standing up and looking straight into Nanaka's eyes; she felt that kick in her belly again.
.
Of course, they didn't start the dance practice with the leapfrog; they started with the first verse of their only song yet, "Kimi no Kokoro wa Kagayaiteru kai?".
For Nanaka, it was amazing to figure out that Shuka not only learned her own steps, but almost all of Nanaka's. In the choreography, they had parts were all of them did the same dance, but there were others where every character did something different.
When Nanaka pointed that out, Shuka just laughed nervously and told her that it was obvious, if she was going to teach her and help her with dancing, she had to learn "Kanan-san's" part as well. Nanaka felt a major kick in her belly that day, but she thought it was because of her lunch.
Thanks to the big mirror, now both of them could do the choreography, almost in sync, and for Shuka it was a better way to point out when Nanaka got something wrong.
At the end of the first chorus, Shuka stopped the music, Nanaka stopped completely on her spot and looked at her puzzled.
"What?" asked Nanaka, Shuka just walked towards her.
"Why are you so stiff?"
"Stiff?" asked Nanaka softy.
"Yes, look,"
Said Shuka grabbing Nanaka's hips; Nanaka jumped in surprise, and as a consequence, she stiffened even more.
"You have to move your hips like this"
Shuka moved Nanaka's hips in a circular motion, slow and sexy. Nanaka started sweating bullets.
"Got it?" Asked Shuka and then gave a look; Nanaka was red like a tomato. She just nodded.
"Ok, let's do the chorus again..." said Shuka with a big smile, and she started clapping and singing.
Nanaka snapped out of her embarrassment and started following Shuka's claps and to sing with her.
"Good, now, sexy hips!"
Shouted Shuka in the right moment. Both shook their hips the way Shuka had taught her.
"Oh yes! Doki-Doki sunshine~" both sang following the choreography, then stopped.
"Good! You are really doing it better!" priced Shuka.
Nanaka stood there drying her sweat.
"This is embarrassing..." she said softly.
"Oh, Really?" asked Shuka taking one of the bottles and giving it to Nanaka; she accepted it kindly.
"I'm a radio personality... I'm not used to working with my body..." she said opening the bottle.
"I see…" said Shuka taking a few sips from her own bottle.
"But you know, I really think you are doing better, there's this thing called muscular memory? You have done at least the first verse and chorus a thousand times by now, so your body has learned those movements."
"But I still can't do it right..." said Nanaka, taking a sip from her bottle.
"I think you need to loosen up a little, you know, feel the music~"
Shuka did a smooth movement with her body.
"We should go out to dance someday..."
Nanaka opened her eyes wide.
"Eh?! I think those kinds of dances are different..."
Is she asking me out?!
Shuka laughed and left her bottle aside.
"It's because of the choreography, but what I'm asking you, is for you to loosen your muscles, to feel the music, you look like a log Suwawa, and you need to look sexy"
"A log...?" Nanaka asked with bitterness.
"But a cute one..." Shuka said smiling.
"And sexy?"
"Yes, 'third years' are kinda sexy, don't you think?"
Shuka asked, walking towards Nanaka and took her bottle away from her; Nanaka looked at her puzzled, not because of the statement of third years being sexy, but because Shuka took her bottled water away.
"Let's try something..." Said Shuka leaving the bottle and then walking towards the speaker, she restarted the song
Nanaka looked at her with her "Suwa face", Shuka walked towards Nanaka and stood behind her, Nanaka followed her looking through the mirror, of course, she couldn't see her.
"Close your eyes"
Said Shuka softly, Nanaka sighed and did what she was asked.
"Trust me..."
She said whispering in her ear; that made Nanaka shiver, she felt the kicks in her belly getting worse.
Shuka grabbed her shoulders and softly started to move them in circles, following the music.
"Listen to the music, relax..."
She said again in her ear, she shivered again, making it impossible for her to relax.
She felt Shuka grabbing her hands, she entwined her fingers with hers; Shuka started to move her hands, trying to make Nanaka's arms to loosen up a bit, but Nanaka seemed to stiffen even more.
Shuka left her hands; Nanaka could hear a discomforted "hum" from behind. Suddenly, she felt Shuka's fingers on her neck; she started to gently caress it.
Nanaka felt her temples get soaked, her heart pounding very hard.
Shuka started to massage Nanaka's neck, and then she moved it in circles.
"Relax..." she heard Shuka's husky voice in her ear.
HOW CAN I RELAX LIKE THIS?!
She freaked out.
But Nanaka being Nanaka, didn't even hesitate about it, and on the outside, she looked cool. She actually tried to relax, but she was still so nervous...suddenly she felt one of Shuka's hands on her belly.
"Take a deep breath..." Nanaka's eyebrows rose and tried to do what she was told.
"Now, loosen up a bit, shake it out!" said Shuka, grabbing Nanaka's hips again and shaking them fast.
"Hey!" Said Nanaka opening her eyes wide, Shuka just giggled and separated from her, sticking her tongue out.
What a tease!
"Ok let's continue..." Shuka said walking to the speaker again and stopping the music.
"Shukashuu, Why are you helping me?"
Asked Nanaka with concern and in a soft tone, Shuka turned around and gave her a smile.
"Why not?"
"I'm helpless... at dancing..." said Nanaka softly.
"Do you like dancing?"
"Yes I like it, but–"
"Then that's it, if you like it, then you are not hopeless"
"Shuka..."
"Suwawa, when I offered my help, I really meant it... you were... well, are struggling so hard with this, and you have been so kind to me, you helped me out since the first day, on the day of voice check, on the recording session, do you remember?..."
Nanaka stood still; Shuka just scratched the back of her neck.
"I'm so scared Suwa-san..."
Shuka said, her voice trembling, Nanaka thought she was going to start crying, so she walked a few steps forward towards Shuka, but then stopped. They shared an intense look.
"This...this is my first role as a seiyuu, I'm the youngest among us, the most inexperienced of us, yet you are always looking out for me, taking care of me...so if I can help you out with something..."
Nanaka blinked a few times, she felt the imperious desire to hug her. But she stood there. Frozen.
"Dancing is the only thing I'm good at, so please, let me be useful and let me help you..."
Shuka had a sad face, Nanaka blinked, let out a small sigh and closed her eyes
She is so damn cute...
"Ok, fair enough, shall we continue?"
She said with a soft smile, Shuka answered with a big and wide one.
She hummed energetically and turned around to turn on the music once again.
.
They did the choreography from the beginning to the second chorus a few more times; this time, Nanaka put all of her will to do it right, and to not ruin it. After a few attempts, she forgot that she had low stamina and kept trying, maybe this was the longest practice session they actually had so far, but Nanaka was enjoying it.
"Ok, the moment of truth!"
Said Shuka stopping the music once again.
Nanaka sat down on the floor with a loud thump, exhausted.
"Oh God, are you ok?" said Shuka with a worried face walking towards Nanaka.
"I think I have never practiced this long..." she said panting hard, she was soaked.
Shuka smiled at her and sat beside her.
"You have been doing great Suwawa"
"Thank you, I think it's all because of you..."
"Me?"
"Yes, practicing with you every week made me increase my stamina... and I hope my leg strength..."
Shuka gave her a smirk.
"Well, now that you say it... It's time"
Nanaka opened her eyes wide.
"Time for what?"
"Stand up!"
Shuka said standing up almost with a jump, and extended her hands to help Nanaka stand up; Nanaka gave her a painful face, but finally gave Shuka her hands; she stood up with difficulty.
"You must master the leapfrog"
Said Shuka, with Nanaka's hands still held in hers, she looked at her right in her eyes.
"I can't even jump," Nanaka said dryly.
"I know," Shuka said getting closer to her, their faces were a few inches from each other; Nanaka's mind went blank.
"Tomorrow, the lead teacher will make you do at the training camp, and you will do it, I'm not gonna stand there and see her messing with you again, and..."
"And...?"
"I really want you to stay for dinner..."
Both shared a smile, then some giggles.
"Ok..." said Nanaka softy.
Shuka let go of her hands and walked a few steps back; Nanaka felt a little bit empty without Shuka's hands.
"Ok we will do it without music of course"
Said Shuka with her hands on her waist, Nanaka just nodded.
"You are jumping over Rikyako, I know I'm not her height, but we don't have another choice..." she said giggling.
"You are shorter, it should be easier..." said Nanaka with some amusement in her tone.
"Are you mocking me about my 5 cm?..."
Nanaka smiled wide, but didn't say a word.
I believe her height is adorable... I love short people... Aina is short... Aina.
Shuka did an offensive sound, and a dramatic pose, that snapped Nanaka out of her thoughts.
"Osuwa you offended me..."
"Bend down already,"
Said Nanaka with her "Suwa tone", it sounded like a command.
"You know," said Shuka bending to her right and losing sight of Nanaka, "you can't even jump over Aiai...what makes you think you can jump over m—"
A kick to her shoulder and a knee in her stomach cut off Shuka's words.
Both felt onto the floor.
"Oh my, Shuka, I'm sorry!"
Said Nanaka crawling to Shuka, she was just on the floor sobbing her stomach, and her shoulder.
"Maybe this is better with a real easel..." Shuka said with difficulties.
"Are you alright Shukashuu?" said Nanaka sobbing Shuka's belly with her right hand.
Shuka looked at her with wide eyes, it seemed that Nanaka's touch was giving Shuka some good sensations. Shuka's lips started to shiver while her sight was lost in Nanaka's eyes.
"Shuka, did I hurt you somewhere else?" Shuka didn't answer.
Nanaka blinked a few times still sobbing Shuka's belly, without thinking, she moved her left hand towards a few strands of Shuka's hair and pulled them behind her ear.
"Shuka..." Nanaka called softly, looking into her eyes.
Shuka blinked a few times and smiled wide, she snapped out of her own mind.
"Sorry,"
She said standing up really quickly, leaving Nanaka sitting on the floor once again.
"Let's do this again," said Shuka, walking fast to the center of the room.
"I don't want to hurt you" said Nanaka standing up again.
"Imagine I'm Rikyako"
Nanaka deadpanned
Why would I want to hurt Aida-san?
"If you fail the leapfrog on the stage you will hit Rikako, not me," said Shuka giggling.
"If I fail the leapfrog on the stage, you can't do yours..."
Said Nanaka with her "Suwa tone", giving Shuka a clue as to notice the nonsense she was talking.
"Yeah, you are right..." Shuka said with a sigh.
Both stayed quiet looking at each other for a few seconds.
"Ok, let's do it again!" Said Shuka taking her position.
"Oh.. oh ... ok..." Nanaka said softly, with a lot of doubts in her tone.
Nanaka shrugged, then blinked a few times. She ran towards Shuka.
A big thump was heard even in the kitchen.
.
They kept attempting it for a while; on the studio, Nanaka just couldn't jump. By the time she needed to do the leapfrog, her legs were so tired because of practice, that she couldn't jump. Aida Rikako was the happiest because that meant she was safe from kicks and knees. The one who wasn't happy was Anchan; she was supposed to be the easel for Aina to jump, and Aina being so short, and with little strength in her legs, ended falling on the floor with Anchan and kicking her on her ankles.
The lead teacher ended every dance practice with an expression full of disappointment, and facepalming about every five minutes.
"I think we should stop here..."
Said Nanaka faintly; she was crouching, trying to catch her breath with both hands propped on her knees.
"I refuse!" said Shuka sobbing her hip " C'mon Osuwa! You can do this!"
Nanaka looked at her with pleading eyes.
"You need to lift your legs!"
"I tried...and I've been kicking you all this time!"
Shuka hummed.
"You are missing something..." said Shuka thinking
"What?, the fact that I can't jump?"
Shuka stood there in silence, looking at Nanaka with a thoughtful face. Suddenly, she opened her eyes wide, as if she had had a revelation.
"That's it, the trick is not in your legs; it's in your hands"
Said Shuka with her happy tone.
Nanaka widened her eyes.
"Hands?"
"Yes, the trick is not jumping, you need to give yourself an impulse on the easel to move your body upwards"
"Eh?!"
"Osuwa, you need to use your hands over my back to impulse your body up, and then you have to open your legs"
Nanaka blinked a few times. Then she stood up.
"C'mon Osuwa, you can do this, use my back," Shuka said energetically.
Nanaka stood there still, she was sweating heavily, and she was tired indeed, her muscles ached. But Shuka had faith in her. She had been so patient, teaching her not only the choreography, but to leapfrog, she also had been receiving innumerable kicks and knees from her; yet she was there, standing in front of her with her big and beautiful smile, cheering her up.
Nanaka dried the sweat from her temples with her forearm; then looked with determination at Shuka.
I can't disappoint her...
"Are you ready?" asked Shuka with a smile.
Nanaka blinked a few times and took a deep breath. Was she ready? Probably not; but looking at her, seeing her wonderful smile, the confidence she gave her, somehow she felt strong. She felt that weird sensation in her belly once again; she brought her right hand to her stomach. Actually, it was the first time she was really conscious of it. She blinked once again.
Then nodded.
Shuka bent down, doing her "easel pose"; Nanaka opened her eyes wide, somehow the kicks got stronger in her belly; her heart was pounding.
That actually looks hot...hey! Focus!
Nanaka shook her head.
"Ok, here I go"
Do it for her.
Nanaka ran towards Shuka, this time she didn't hesitate and used her hands on Shuka's back; with all her strength she pushed herself up; almost unconsciously lifted her legs, and in seconds, she was on the other side.
Her feet touched the floor, her eyes widened in amazement; she did it.
She freaking did it!
She felt a little pain in her ankle though, but didn't mind it, she was in awe; as if her soul had left her body, she just fell on her knees.
Somehow, for her time had stopped. Her sight was lost on the floor; she could feel her temples sweating like crazy, her heart racing and her breath agitated. She did it. And all because of Shuka's cheering, Shuka's help, Shuka's patience, Shuka's kindness, Shuka's smile.
Because of Shuka.
She felt that feeling in her belly stronger than ever; she lifted her head, her sight glued to the window. Then she felt a heavy but nice weight on her back, two strong but safe arms surrounded her body and a cute and beautiful tone made time start once again.
"Oh my God! Osuwa! You did it!" Nanaka heard on her right ear.
She couldn't speak; Shuka's body was glued to her back, her embrace was strong but loving. Nanaka lifted her arms to reciprocate the embrace; she wanted to feel it more, to be longer.
It was a nice sensation mixed with that weird feeling in her belly; the sensation that she was feeling since she started these sessions with Shuka, maybe even before that.
"I know you could do it! Aw, Suwawa~!"
Nanaka could still hear those wonderful words escaping from Shuka's lips; those lips, she figured out, she wanted to kiss.
Nanaka opened her eyes wide. She tightened her grip on Shuka's arms.
I... I like her.
She swallowed hard. That was indeed a heavy revelation.
I like her.
She repeated again in her mind, trying to get used to the feeling, now that she recognized it like this, the sensation in her belly was as if butterflies were flying around.
She slowly turned her head around to face Shuka, trying not to break the embrace. Shuka's lovely face greeted her; she was smiling sweetly at her, with her eyes glued to hers.
Maybe they spent a few minutes, maybe seconds like this; Nanaka just couldn't know, she felt lost in those eyes, feeling that she could stay there staring into them forever. Maybe Shuka felt the same, because she didn't move or talk anymore.
Both of them got closer to each other, slowly. Nanaka's heart started to pound faster; her sight went from Shuka's eyes to her lips. Nanaka licked her lips, somehow Shuka imitated her, both of them started to close their eyes while moving her heads slowly towards each other.
They were a few inches apart; Nanaka could feel Shuka's presence on her lips. Nanaka wanted her, she wanted to taste her. But then...
"Shu–chan!"
They heard. Like a cue, Shuka broke the embrace and threw herself to the floor on her back, while Nanaka turned around to look out the window once again; her face red like a tomato.
Mama Saito entered the room without a care in the world; at least she had the decency to call for Shuka before opening the door.
"Shu— What the hell are you doing on the floor?"
Said Mama Saito with clear puzzled tone in her voice, Shuka just laughed nervously.
"Taking a break!"
Shuka managed to say between giggles and looking at the door, Nanaka just stayed on her knees with her head down in embarrassment.
"Ok... I think it's enough practice for you two; don't you think it's time for dinner?"
"Oh dinner!" said Shuka sitting up.
"What do you think Suwa-san, do you want to stay for dinner?"
Asked Mama Saito with a kind voice; Nanaka was still in a total state of embarrassment. Not only she wanted and desired Shuka, but also, she failed in kissing her. And it was so damn obvious.
Her mind was blank, and this nice woman was asking if she wanted to stay for dinner; her answer should be no.
But Shuka said yes to her.
"Of course she would stay! She owes me now," Shuka said turning to Nanaka.
"You sure...?" said the older woman with concern.
"Yes mama, she will stay"
Nanaka turned slightly to see Shuka with the corner of her eye; Shuka was red like a tomato too but she wasn't shy about it. Nanaka frowned; she needed to play it cool too.
She turned around and gave Mama Saito a nice smile
"I would love to stay for dinner, thank you very much"
"Lovely!"
Said Mama Saito with a big smile and turned around; she stopped on the doorframe and turned around once again .
"Go and take a bath you too, I don't want smelly girls at the table!" And then she closed the door.
A thick silence hung in the air.
Nanaka's sight was glued to the door, she was actually afraid of looking at Shuka, and she thought Shuka was equally embarrassed.
Suddenly Shuka stood and walked to her wardrobe.
"You should go to the bathroom first," she said with total embarrassment in her voice
"Unless you want us to share the bathroom..."
Nanaka opened her eyes wide.
WUT?!
Nanaka blinked furiously.
"No, no, I can go first... I'm not used to sharing the bath, I am a demure person..."
She quickly said, hoping that it hadn't sound harsh or something. She couldn't even face her now, how was she supposed to share the bath with her?!
Shuka gave a soft "hum" and took some comfy clothes out. She turned around to face Nanaka; she was really embarrassed, her ears were red just like her face, but even like that, she gave her a smile.
"Ok then, I'll help Mama with dinner while you take your bath..."
Nanaka nodded.
Shuka stood still for what felt like a lifetime, and then she went out of the room.
Nanaka was left there on her knees.
Awkward...
.
This wasn't the first time Nanaka borrowed Shuka's bath; in fact, every dance practice they had, she ended up using it. So she wasn't a stranger anymore.
She found herself throwing a few buckets of water over her head; she needed to cool down a bit.
Oh my God, Oh my God, Oh my God, what was I thinking?! I wanted to kiss her, we almost kissed...! Get yourself together Suwa Nanaka! You are not like this!
She took the soap and started scrubbing her body. To her surprise, she found out that she was scrubbing herself fast, as if she didn't want to be there anymore, as if she wanted to go home now. But she couldn't, she needed to stay for dinner.
She started to fill the bucket again.
She is the youngest among us, I'm older than her, I should be cool with this... not freaking out like this.
She stopped the water and took the bucket with both hands. She looked at her reflection on the water.
Why would she want to be with me anyways? I'm not someone who stands out... I'm the quietest among us, the boring one...I don't have a nice body, nor a voice that stands out...
She threw the bucket over her head again, letting the water just wash away her thoughts.
In any case, this is forbidden...not only because we are two girls...does Shuka swings that way anyways?... if she does... we can't, we signed a contract, we can't date anyone...
She cleaned the bucket and stood up to get her towel; the towel that Shuka kindly lend her every time she was there.
Date. Do I wanna date her?
She dried herself, rolled the towel around her body and went out to the dressing room.
She felt a soft knock on the door
"Osuwa, are you done...?"
She heard Shuka say softly from the other side.
"I'm done with the bath..."
Said Nanaka in her calm way.
"Can I come in then?"
Asked Shuka shyly; Nanaka felt butterflies in her belly, she felt uneasy there.
"Eh... wait, wait a minute..."
Nanaka panicked and tried to dress really quick in her girly clothes from before.
I'm not ready for this...
A few minutes later, she opened the door to find a very cute Shuka waiting for her, both shared a smile.
"Your hair is wet..." said Shuka sweetly.
Nanaka nodded, of course, it was, she didn't want to stay in the dressing room drying her hair with Shuka getting undressed there, that felt beyond awkward right now.
"Don't you want to dry it...?" said Shuka in an amused and innocent tone.
"It's ok, it's warm outside, and I don't want to delay you...dinner must be ready..."
Nanaka said moving out of the bathroom and letting Shuka get inside; they shared a faint smile, Shuka closed the door, Nanaka walked towards Shuka's bedroom.
This feels weird dammit.
.
In Shuka's bedroom, she did her hair into a bun; she used the giant mirror on the back of the room to do it. She noticed that it was already dark outside, so she quickly went to her bag to look at the time; indeed, it was almost 21:30 pm, it was late.
She bit her lips thinking that she hadn't told her parents that she was coming to dance practice with Shuka today. Nobody was home when she left anyway. So she quickly checked her messages; to her surprise, she had none from her parents, but like 30 from Aina, and like 100 from the Aqours Line chat, but that wasn't a surprise, "first years" were always noisy.
Suzuki-san? What the hell...?
The very first 10 messages were from her just calling her, "Suwawa", "Suwa-san, "Suwaaaaaaaawaaaaaa" and such. The next 10 other messages were from her telling her that she was sorry to disturb her, it was their day off and maybe she was enjoying sleeping in or reading manga. Then she started to comment on some random manga she was reading at the time.
The next 5 messages were to apologize for before. The last 5 messages were to ask her if she could crash in her house tonight, she lived too far from tomorrow's meeting point and was afraid to be late.
Nanaka blinked a few times.
Why me? I don't live particularly close to the Lantis building... uhm...uhm...
With quick taps of her finger she answered;
Suzuki-san! Good evening, I'm sorry I was busy before. ＼(￣O￣)
And I'm sorry but I'm not home right now, and I actually don't know if I'm gonna even make it...(￣ー￣)
Aina sent her some weird emoticons and started to tease her about not being home this late at night, knowing that tomorrow was the training camp.
What dirty stuff are you getting into Suwawa~? §ԾᴗԾ§
Nanaka frowned; she knew Aina was a teaser, and she just couldn't know she was there in Shuka's house, actually thinking on doing "dirty stuff" with her. That thought gave her butterflies again.
She just couldn't handle Aina right now.
So she apologized for not being helpful and told her "goodnight and see you tomorrow."
I'm sorry Suzuki-san...
In the other chat, Aqours were being just as annoying as always; they were talking about the stuff they should bring to the training camp. Nanaka raised her eyebrows.
I haven't made my luggage yet...
"Suwa-san?" She heard from behind.
Nanaka turned around to face the voice, she couldn't distinguish the person on the doorframe of the room, then she realized she had left her contacts in the dressing room. The voice was clearly from Mama Saito.
"Dinner is ready, so you should come"
Nanaka gave her a faint smile and nodded.
Ok, let's end this already...
.
Of course, Shuka was still in the bath, so there weren't any signs of her in the dining room. On the table, there were just three plates. It seemed that Shuka's siblings were out.
Mama Saito was kind and sweet, she offered a chair for Nanaka to sit on, and while they waited for Shuka, they talked about the magazine and the project. Of course, Mama Saito teased Nanaka because of Kanan's illustration.
Shuka came in later, her hair was also wet, but because she wore it short, it didn't need to be made into a bun. She also appeared wearing a cute PJs, just shorts with a really thin and short shirt. Shuka sat at Nanaka's right, she couldn't help but notice the sweet smell of her shampoo, it smelled like fruit, maybe sweet peaches. Nanaka gave her a goofy smile. Then kicked herself mentally for thinking weird things about a shampoo and Shuka's cute little PJs.
Dinnertime was actually really fun, Nanaka really enjoyed it. The food was delicious, the conversation was fun too, Mama Saito really was Shuka's number one fan. For a moment, Nanaka completely forgot about the awkward moment and stopped thinking "weird things", Mama Saito was to be thanked for that.
They ended dinner with Mama Saito telling Shuka that she should be more feminine like Nanaka; Nanaka's eyebrows rose because of that statement, Shuka just pouted and complained that she was feminine in her own "rock star" way. Nanaka giggled and then she offered Shuka that if she wanted, she could do her nails. Shuka gave her a wide smile full teeth to that offer.
Overall; dinner was good and the food was even better.
They were doing the dishes when Mama Saito stroke again;
"Suwa-san, I think you should stay today"
"Eh?!"
Said Nanaka with clear surprise, she almost dropped the glass she was drying, she could tell that Shuka was surprised too.
"It's late, how are you going home?"
"I thought of taking the late train..."
Said Nanaka in her calm way.
"I refuse! It's too dangerous" said Mama Saito looking at the kitchen clock; it was almost 23:30
"I think you won't catch the last train..." said Shuka sweetly.
Nanaka frowned, this had taken her too much time, she should have left sooner, but the conversation was really fun, so of course, they lost the sense of time.
"Besides, the way to the train is dangerous at this hours of the night, it's too dark for a cute girl like you to be walking alone..." finished Mama Saito.
"I can call a taxi, I don't want to be a bother" tried Nanaka.
"Nonsense!" said Mama Saito.
"We are happy to have you here..." said Shuka shyly.
"Of course we are!"
Mama Saito gave her a big smile, just like her daughter.
"I'm sorry, I don't have a driver's license, and a car, of course, I could drive you to your house..."
Apologized Mama Saito "And because you are in my house, and under my care, it's why I won't allow you to go out this late..."
What's this? Am I like 5 years old? I'm 20! I can take care of myself...
Nanaka had a serious expression; she was about to retort Mama Saito's statement, when Shuka grabbed her arm like she was used to.
"Osuwa-san, stay..." Said Shuka sweetly, "I know you can go home by taxi or whatever, but stay..."
Nanaka blinked a few times, hummed about 5 times. She felt kickis in her belly, her mind screaming "no, get out of there!" But her heart was willing to stay. To stay with Shuka.
She smiled sweetly.
"Are you sure it's ok...? I will leave early tomorrow, I haven't done my luggage for the camp yet..."
"Absolutely! You can help me with mine tonight" said Shuka with a big smile.
"I...I don't have PJs..."
Said Nanaka shyly, her cheeks becoming red.
"I can lend you one of mine..." said Mama Saito,
" Shu-chan is too short compared to you, so I believe mine will fit you better..."
"Hey~! No way! I will lend you one of mine! I don't wanna see you with an old woman PJs!"
"Who are you calling old?!"
Nanaka just giggled, and continued with drying duty, hoping that this was a good idea.
.
Nanaka stood in front of Shuka's bed, looking down at the cute pink PJs Shuka left for her there. She blinked a few times, and then picked up the cute little shorts. Yes, she could fit in those, but they were extremely short for her. She then looked at the shirt, it was almost equally short, then she thought that it might fit her, due her almost nonexistent boobs.
I'm just 5 cm taller than her, it's not a big deal... if it was Aina, it would be an issue... she is so damn short...but cute.
She tried to change into the PJs quickly; Shuka had gone out of the room to find a futon and her suitcase, so she could start packing for the camp, so she could be back in no time, and that was exactly what happened, for Nanaka's heart's sake, she was able to change her clothes just before Shuka came with the futon.
"Oh, it fits you..."
Said Shuka with a big grin on her face, while putting the futon down next to her bed.
"It's…short..." said Nanaka, embarrassed, trying to cover her body.
"Awww it looks good on you! Unless you want to use one of Mama's..."
Both shared a look, then giggled.
After wearing the PJs for the first 10 seconds, Nanaka dismisses the chance of changing into other PJs, this one smelled like sweet peaches, this one smelled like Shuka, so no, this PJ was just fine.
While Shuka started to put some stuff in her suitcase, Nanaka prepared her futon, and then sat on it looking at Shuka.
"You need any help with something?" she offered.
"No, I'm fine, just wait for me," she said searching for something in her case.
"Thanks for letting me stay"
Said Nanaka with a sweet tone, then she undid her bun, letting her silky hair down.
"Aw, please, my pleasure! You can do my nails later, and we can talk about boys, like a pajama party!"
It was clearly in an ironic tone, Nanaka snorted about that.
"You know I'm not that girly... I just look like it..."
Said Nanaka shyly, Shuka gave her some glances, then giggled, she continued doing her suitcase.
"What?"
"Well, it was a surprise for me..." said Shuka still concentrated on her clothes.
"Surprise? Why?"
"The first time I saw you, you looked like a tomboy..." Nanaka raised her eyebrows at that statement.
Of course, the first time Shuka saw her was during auditions, Nanaka used tomboy clothes and Kanan's ponytail for the sake of the role. And it seemed that it worked really well.
"That disappointed you?" Asked Nanaka with her "Suwa tone".
"No, not at all, I found you really handsome..."
Said Shuka naturally, then she realized that she might be talking too much.
"Eh, but I like your girly outfit too, you indeed look like a doll..."
She said again without thinking, then she rushed to ask something else;
"What did you think of me?"
Shuka was nervously folding some clothes in her suitcase, not looking at Nanaka.
Nanaka's heart was pounding.
"Uhm I didn't see you in the auditions..."
She said shyly, of course, she didn't see anyone, she was in her own world.
"But now..." asked Shuka shyly, then she looked straight into Nanaka's eyes.
Nanaka blinked.
You are hot, attractive, extremely cute, dangerously sweet, fun, energetic...oh, crap.
"You look like a rockstar" she managed to say, Shuka smiled wide.
"A rockstar...?"
"Well, the first time we saw each other, you had your hair long, your clothes were like a rockstar's, as for now, I think you are a really sweet girl, very energetic and talented"
"Awwww Suwawa~," She said fangirling, doing cute little jumps.
"Cute." Finished Nanaka with her "Suwa tone"
"Aww, ok stop I'm embarrassed~"
Shuka said grabbing her cheeks, Nanaka just giggled.
"And of course a really good teacher...thanks once again for teaching me how to leapfrog, and the dances..."
"My pleasure..." said Shuka smiling wide at her.
"I was thinking that, for me, being one of the tallest of the cast members, was difficult, it's going to be worse for Aina, she being so short..."
Shuka didn't answer; she was focused on her suitcase. Nanaka bit her lips; maybe she shouldn't bring Aina out in the conversation.
"What do think about Aina?" asked Shuka seriously.
Nanaka raised her eyebrows once again.
She is short, extremely cute, dangerously sweet too, fun, energetic, kind...
"Noisy," she said dryly.
Shuka giggled, that was true for all the members. Shuka finished packing her suitcase; closed it and took it off the bed and put it somewhere around the room.
Nanaka got herself inside the futon, while Shuka was turning off the lights. Then walked to her bed and got inside. She turned on the nightstand's lamplight. Nanaka looked at her with concern.
"Are you ok?" Nanaka asked.
"Yes, I just, I wanted to thank you for staying..." she clearly had a sad tone.
"Thank you for letting me stay…" said Nanaka with a sweet tone.
Something was wrong, Nanaka's sixths sense could tell her.
"Shukashuu, it's something wrong?"
Nanaka asked with concern, Shuka just shook her head, Nanaka frowned.
"I'm concerned about what you told me before,"
Said Nanaka looking at her, Shuka looked back at her.
"The fact that you were scared."
Shuka gave her a bitter smile.
"I am. This whole project scares the shit about of me...oh sorry,"
She said and then smiled sweetly at her.
"It scares me too," said Nanaka, Shuka raised her eyebrows.
"What? How? You are lying"
"No I'm not" Nanaka was serious. In fact, she was maybe even more scared than Shuka.
Shuka is still young, she is starting her career, so if she messes up with something, it's completely understandable; on the other hand, if she, Suwa Nanaka, made a mistake, which she already had, it wasn't understandable, because she was older, she had been in the industry before, so she had more pressure to do this thing right.
Shuka gave her a sad face; Nanaka could see her watery eyes thanks to the soft light of the night lamp. She felt a tug on her heart.
"Hey..."
She said sweetly, and without thinking, she got out of the futon and sat on the bed, looking at Shuka, she grabbed her hands with hers. Shuka looked at her with a mix of comfort and sadness.
"You shouldn't be worried, I told you before that you have the role now, in a few month we will have our debut and you will do great"
"I just, I'm afraid I'm going to ruin it... what if I'm not up for the task?" Shuka's voice started to crack.
I was the one who wasn't up for the task...
Nanaka didn't change her sweet face, she needed to comfort Shuka now, not give her more crap.
"I think you were really lucky to portray 'You', she fits you in every sense Shuka"
"Really?"
"Yes, in fact, you are lucky because 'You' is a 'second year', we all know 'seconds years' are like the main year group, so you will have a lot of screen time... and that will be a huge jump for your career..."
Shuka gave her a coy smile, then tightened her grip on Nanaka's hands.
They looked at each other a few seconds, seconds that felt like forever, but none of them was agitated or nervous about it. It felt good, it felt right, and being held by those hands, for both of them, was like being comforted by the other girl.
In that moment every sense in Nanaka's mind just faded. She was lost in Shuka's eyes once again, and she believed Shuka was equally lost into hers. This time she didn't hesitate.
I want her.
Nanaka just withdrew her hands from Shuka's, and went directly to Shuka's cheeks, she grabbed her puffy cheeks, softly, she licked her lips while caressing Shuka's cheeks with her thumbs, and then closed the distance between them.
It was a soft and sweet kiss; Shuka closed her eyes too, and reciprocated the kiss with equal kindness.
Shuka lifted her hands to Nanaka's head, she put some of her bangs of hair behind her ear, then grabbed Nanaka's head, pulling her closer making the kiss stronger.
Nanaka understood that motion, that everything was fine, and that she could move on, she indeed wanted more, so she started to kiss her hungrily, even if it was soft and sweet, they started to increase the speed of the kiss; Nanaka withdrew her hands form Shuka's cheeks to put one hand on the back of her neck, while the other one on her chin, Shuka answered by circling her arms around Nanaka's neck, so she deepened the kiss, without separating her lips, she just introduced her tongue inside Shuka's mouth, Shuka answered by playing with Nanaka's tongue with her own. They were lost in the kiss.
Wet sounds started to fill the room, Nanaka's eagerness for tasting more of Shuka grew without hesitation, they pressed their bodies against each other; Nanaka could feel Shuka's breast against hers, indeed the kissing was doing its job, she could feel Shuka's nipples becoming aroused under her PJs, and she could feel herself getting wet because of it.
She couldn't take it anymore; without leaving each other's lips, Nanaka moved her body up, making Shuka lay down on her bed, she straddled her, making her brake the embrace around her neck, grabbing Shuka's wrists and placing them flat on the bed, above Shuka's head, she separated from Shuka's lips slowly, at the same time, she slowly opened her eyes.
Shuka also slowly opened her eyes, they both looked at each other with love and lust. Shuka was panting slightly, her lips swollen from the intense kissing.
Nanaka gave her a hungry look; she licked her lips, Shuka was defenseless beneath her, Nanaka felt like she was being consumed by lust, and Shuka was just her pray ready to be eaten.
"Suwawa..." she heard being called softly by Shuka.
Nanaka blinked, somehow coming back from her lust, she saw Shuka's face, and she saw happiness mixed with fear. Shuka was afraid.
Nanaka let go of Shuka's wrists and started caressing her cheeks, slowly and lovingly, her gaze softening into one full of love.
They shared a smile, and as if it was a cue, they both closed the distance once again to keep the kissing session going. It started soft and cute again, but of course, a passion grew in their hearts, so they started devouring each other's mouths once again.
Shuka started biting Nanaka's lips, while Nanaka tried so hard to keep her tongue inside Shuka's mouth, somehow the kiss became messy, wet, and hot.
Nanaka's lust consumed her once again; she left Shuka's mouth and started kissing her neck. Shuka's head almost instantly went backwards, allowing Nanaka full access to her; Nanaka placed one hot kiss on her neck, and it was enough for Shuka to moan.
Nanaka stopped instantly. Because right after the moan, she felt Shuka's body lifting from the bed and sticking to hers, and then returning to the bed.
Did she just come...?
Nanaka moved upwards to see Shuka's face; she was panting, her cheeks red and her eyes closed.
"Shuka...are you ok?"
Asked Nanaka sweetly, somehow her lust going away once again.
"I'm... I'm sorry..."
Shuka brought her arm to her forehead, trying to hide her embarrassment.
"Why...why are you– I'm the one who is sorry..." said Nanaka quickly.
"No, no, it's not your fault..." said Shuka quickly, taking her arm away from her face.
"I can't go on... I can't do it yet..."
Nanaka blinked.
"I'm sorry Suwawa..."
"Don't apologize..."
Said Nanaka sweetly, and she livingly started caressing Shuka's cheek.
"I didn't want it any other way..."
Shuka gave her a sad smile.
"I just I don't feel ready..." said Shuka shyly.
Nanaka moved to the side, off Shuka's body; somehow, that pose was intimidating Shuka, more than comforting her. She sat once again on the edge of the bed.
"I'm sorry are you mad...?" Shuka asked sadly.
Nanaka raised her eyebrows.
"No, why would I? Shuka, I don't want to have sex with you..."
Shuka gave her a shocked look, it could had been read as "what the hell happened here then?". Nanaka figured it out quick enough to correct herself.
"Don't get me wrong...I'm not going to push you to do things you don't feel ready to do; I'm not mad, I can't be mad or disappointed or something about it, I just want you to be fine...I don't want you to think I just want sex, cause I don't"
"I'm sorry..." she said again.
"Don't be"
Nanaka gave her a lovely smile, and then she tried to move back to the futon, but Shuka grabbed her shirt. Nanaka stopped herself and looked back at Shuka; she gave her a coy smile.
"Would you sleep with me?..." she said shyly.
Nanaka just smiled sweetly and moved back to bed.
"Of course..."
They got inside the bed, Shuka got closer to Nanaka; and she just cuddled her, Shuka being smaller, found her spot in Nanaka's chest near her collarbone, then they entwined their legs. As if it was meant to be, Nanaka started to softly caress Shuka's back with one hand, while the other was stroking her hair.
They stayed like that, breathing calmly, Nanaka's heartbeats were a sweet lullaby for Shuka; she could hear her mumbling something, but the clearest one was a sweet wish of Shuka;
"I wish we could be in the same subunit at least..."
Nanaka smiled sweetly and gave her a goodnight kiss on her forehead.
I wish that too...
They fell asleep in no time, holding each other bodies, and hopes.
.
.
.
A weird sensation woke her up; it was something wet in one of her hands, it was sticky, cold, indeed it was a tongue.
Nanaka opened her eyes in a panic, realizing "something" was licking her hand. She found out that Shura was greeting her. She was almost falling off the bed, her left hand hanging down, and Shura was kind enough to lick her hand.
Gross...
She looked at the room, everything was blurry, but with light, it was already morning indeed. She just motioned for Shura to go off, and then she stretched her arm to search for her phone on the futon.
Her eyes widened like to fried eggs.
Like if she was possessed by Kanan and her energy, she jumped out of the bed, directly to where her stuff was, she dropped her phone on the futon and quickly started changing into her girly clothes, not realizing that there was someone else in that bed too, and in consequence, in the room.
She finished getting dressed, grabbed her phone and places it back in her bag.
She then turned around to fix the untouched futon, when she found a pair of eyes looking at her, with a big and wide smile.
Shuka laid on her bed in a "beach pose", with her head rested on her hand. They shared some looks.
"You know, I could get used to that..."
She said with a coy smile.
Nanaka turned wild red.
"How long have you been awake...?"
"Since you jumped out of bed..."
She giggled, Nanaka facepalmed, then she remembered that she was late. So she fixed the futon, trying to forget the fact that Shuka saw her undressing and then getting dressed in her girly clothes.
"Why are you leaving?"
Said Shuka sitting up on her bed, looking at Nanaka ready to go
"Shuka it's almost 9 o'clock, I have to go home, do my luggage for the camp"
She said with a panicked voice, but with a soft tone; Shuka rose her eyebrows.
"Oh my God, you are right..."
Both shared some looks, Nanaka stood in the doorframe.
What now? Should we kiss? Should I leave and that's it...?...
Nobody said a thing, but the clock was ticking. So Nanaka, being her cool self, just said;
"Well, see you in a few, thanks for the lesson, dinner and letting me stay..."
"Osuwa," called Shuka from the bed, Nanaka turned to see her.
But she didn't say a thing. Nanaka rose her eyebrows.
"Eh... Eh... Hurry up! Have a good day..." she said.
Nanaka nodded and hummed.
"Say thanks to your mother for me"
And then she walked out of the room, rushed through the corridor and left Shuka's house.
She walked full speed to the train station to catch the first train she could. The meeting hour was at 10:00 am, and she was really late.
On the train, she sat down more calmly, took out her pack of "umeboshi" and started eating them for breakfast.
On her way home she just couldn't think about what happened last night. From her realization after doing the leapfrog, to the intense kissing session later. Of course, now she couldn't deny the fact that she liked Shuka, and of course, that she liked kissing her and sleeping with her, even if there wasn't any sex.
Then again, this was forbidden. They signed a contract and they couldn't date anyone. She stopped to think about the consequences of dating one of the members. This, of course, could compromise the whole group, maybe the whole project, even her career.
But then, the feeling of kissing her, of wanting more of her... She felt uneasy in her seat. But what was important, what did Shuka thinks about it? Did she like it? Did Shuka have deeper feelings? Maybe what happened last night was just a moment of weakness, Shuka was fragile, and Nanaka was just there to comfort her like always. But this time a hug wasn't enough.
What should she do...? Of course, they couldn't talk about anything, she had to rush out because it was late. So she would need to find a good time in the training camp to speak with her, and tell her that this was just too complicated and that it could not happen again. It wasn't worth it to sacrifice the whole project, or their careers, because of a kiss.
She smiled proudly about her "plan". Then the train made a stop, she looked outside to see the name of the station, but to her surprise, she couldn't see a thing, everything was blurry.
Oh crap, my contacts...
She rushed out of the train, hoping that today would be a good day at the training camp, and hoped she was able to have a good lie for being so late.
-0oo0-
Notes:
Training camp it's on Masquerade ch 03 if you want to know what happened later.
I hope you have enjoy this one~!
Stay tune for more inserts and the main story Masquerade.
Series this work belongs to: Part 2 of the Masquerade series