Chap 01 – lisa's freckles make the heart go dududu
Eight years ago…
Yukina felt her nails almost pierce through the blankets, her gaze never once leaving the closet opposite of the curtained windows. Every few seconds a faint flicker of light bounced along the walls, followed by a muffled crack of thunder. She gripped the blankets tighter and tighter each time but never made a sound, not even once. Papa never cried or complained, and neither did Mama. She was getting too old to act like such a child all the time; no one would ever take her seriously if she never tried facing her fears.
Still, though…she still couldn't knock off this feeling of irrational discomfort. It'd been going on for a while now, and she still couldn't get out of bed at night, especially when it stormed like this. Multiple times she woke up as early as she could, just so she could wash her soiled nightgown and sheets before she had to eat breakfast and go to school. It was embarrassing, but being responsible was one of the Minato family's key strengths, so she refused to let her parents know. Face her fears…be brave…be a leader…
When the phone rang, her eyes bulged and she bit her lip to hold her gasp. Only one person ever called this late, and luckily her parents were heavy sleepers. She willed herself to untuck the blankets just a bit, maneuvering her arm close enough to the phone. Wincing as another flash of thunder appeared, she pressed the phone against one side of her face and pressed the enter button. "Lisa. I keep telling you not to call me so late at night," she mumbled.
"You're always so busy during the day, thouuuugh," Lisa's whine through the phone sounded as if she were right in the room with her. Yukina tried her best but failed at suppressing a small smile. "Besides, we're both up right now, so why not make the best of it? Are you having a hard time sleeping?"
"…no," Yukina lied flatly, pulling the blanket back over her head. "I was just about to fall asleep when you called."
"But you answered anyway, haha. What's keeping you up? The thunder?"
Yukina bit her lip. Lisa acted like an airhead sometimes, but she was smarter than she let most people believe. "No. Well, the loud noises make me a little bit uncomfortable, but there's been something that's been bothering me.'
"Oh?"
"But you can't tell anyone," Yukina added quickly, puffing her cheeks. "Your mouth's gonna fall off one of these days with all the talking you do at school. This is…a big kid problem."
"I'm not, I'm not! Your secrets are the only secrets I keep to myself, Yukina-chan!"
"…..that's reassuring." Not sounding reassured at all, Yukina let out a quiet sigh and rubbed the bridge of her nose. She knew Lisa meant well, which was why she trusted Lisa with this problem more than anyone else. "Lisa, I'm convinced there's something in my closet. The inside's been looking pretty creepy at night. My mom's been getting mad at me because I've been a little scared on opening it up during the day, too. I thought I could suffocate whatever might be in there."
Lisa's tone was now serious. "Did you check to see if anything was there?"
"Well, I took a glimpse or two. Everything's a lot scarier in the dark, Lisa. I've been trying to build up my courage to check soon."
There was a long silence on the other end. Then, "I can help you. Just leave it all to me. Hey, you got your window open, by any chance?"
"…yes. It's raining, but it's still a little stuffy in here. I require only the freshest of air."
"'Kay. Don't mind, Yukina-chan, I'll save you!"
"I don't need sav- click -…Lisa?"
Met with the sudden dial tone, Yukina wriggled under the covers to properly hang up the phone. Honestly, Lisa was always so unpredictable. She didn't remember how long they'd been friends, but she knew her parents were surprised that they became so close from the beginning. While Yukina was always the quiet, studious bookworm at school, Lisa was the popular one, able to make friends with anyone and everyone. It was something about her smile that attracted Yukina to her, and often they wound up getting in trouble at school. Yukina's parents weren't exactly…thrilled about Lisa, but they tolerated her because she was Yukina's only friend. It was nice.
Yukina looked up at the ceiling, watching another flash light up the middle. Then, there was knocking. A shiver went up her spine and she shut her eyes tight, frozen in place. If the knocking went away, it meant the monsters were outside instead and she could sleep in peace. They wouldn't go away completely, but it would give her more time to make a plan. Perhaps this would be the time she settled things with them.
Another knock, then another. Finally, the knocking became so persistent that Yukina opened her eyes and got out of bed, daring to let intuition influence her judgment in order to preserve keeping her parents asleep. Balling her hands into fists, the girl took heavy steps as she walked to the window, grasping its edges as tightly as she could as she stared right into the huge, gray eyes of Lisa. The other girl was soaked/i. "Lisa," she mumbled.
The gray eyes blinked twice in apology. Yukina remained stone-faced as she opened the window and grabbed cold, wet hands, pulling her friend inside her room. Lisa dropped to her knees, letting a flashlight roll away from her legs, panting. After she caught her breath, she looked up at Yukina and gave a small smile. "Sorry. I botched the momentum."
"Lisa, you can't climbing up my house like this. Our parents are going to get mad. Why are you here?"
"Gonna check for monsters, of course. I told you I was going to save you."
"That's pretty bold of you, Lisa. They're not going to stay still while you check the closet."
Lisa tilted her head. "They will. Stay behind me."
There was a vacant look in her eyes that made Yukina agree. She was on the opposite end at first as Lisa crept closer to the closet, flashlight turned on and bright. Then before she knew it, she was pressed right up against Lisa's back, her arms wrapped around the brunette's waist, shivering. All of that fear within her came rushing back, knowing that someone else believed in the possibility as well.
At least Lisa was strong…
She screamed and held on as tight as she could as soon as Lisa flung open the closet doors, frantically waving the flashlight back and forth. Her parents would come in any minute, but she had to find out the truth. If anyone was brave enough to find out the truth, it'd be Lisa. She didn't even realize how tight her grip was until Lisa's hands covered her own, gently prying them away from her neck. "There, there, Yukina-chan, they're all gone," she said gently. "No monster crud, either."
"It's..over? Already?"
The lights turned on in the bedroom. Yukina finally realized that she had wrapped herself around Lisa like a koala bear and failed to stop the blush that quickly spread across her cheeks. Letting her legs relax and dangle over her friend's hips, she shyly glanced over at Lisa, who returned it with a sheepish grin. "The day is saved! Oh, Mr. and Mrs. Minato! Sorry to wake you up…"
Eight years later…
Yukina leaned against the concrete wall and crossed her arms, shutting her eyes as she basked in the warm sunlight. An occasional breeze blew through her hair, giving her slight comfort. Outside, she was the calm, collected leader of Roselia, but inside she felt knot after knot tumble in her stomach. Usually she only made wise decisions, meant to further the goals and ambitions of the band. There was a neat, color-coded calendar and planner on her bedroom desk, keeping track of all of Roselia's individual activities, practices, and sporadic off days. To consider this as a rare off day was…questionable. Unthinkable.
She hoped Sayo wouldn't be too hard on her.
They came within a few minutes. On time, even on an off day. Ako could be heard from across the street, skipping and dancing and taking an occasional sip of her fruit smoothie. Next to her Rinko practically blended in with the scenery, giving Ako her full attention by not saying much and occasionally smiling in response. They goofed around a lot, but they often cheered Yukina up when she needed it the most. Not far behind them was Sayo on her bike, a contrast of cool and careful with her long hair flying in the air under a Hello Kitty bike helmet. The stiff, serious expression on her face meant that even though it was an off day, Roselia was her primary thought.
Sayo was not going to approve of this….
Yukina greeted them with a wave and a smile. Instantly Ako was at her side, wrapping her arms around her neck in a tight embrace. She flinched but patted the younger girl's shoulder, mostly used to her overly affectionate personality by now. Holding Ako up in her arms, she looked like a lost mom in the woods while the others surrounded her. "….hi," she finally mustered.
"Yukina-san, it's been forever since we've hung out on an off day!" Ako cried, grinning. "You still gotta try the game with me and Rinrin!"
Rinko nodded. Sayo worked on placing her bike safety gear in her bike basket before responding with a curt, "Hi. Where's Lisa?"
There it was. Yukina kicked herself for not being mentally prepared with an answer, but it was never going to happen. All she could do was say the truth; she was probably overthinking this. Lisa would say she was overthinking this, she was sure. Stretching her face into a painful smile, she squeezed Ako's waist and looked in Sayo's direction without actually having to look at her straight in the eye. "Well, Lisa should be right in her house right here, as long as she hasn't gone out while I wasn't looking. She….broke her arm the other day. She had a swinging competition with some of the local kids and lost. The doctor joked that at her age, it should've been her head."
No one responded, everyone wide-eyed. The silence felt more suffocated than Yukina had expected, making her slightly unnerved. Roselia had its issues with Lisa's absences and tardiness before, and nobody liked to admit it, but losing her was pretty demoralizing to the band overall. Lisa wouldn't be able to practice for a while, but she hoped that what she mentioned next would produce some kind of spark within them. "But why we are here today? Lisa's parents had already booked their vacation for this week, and since she did not want to bother them, Lisa decided to stay behind. She's alone. And probably needs assistance. Roselia should assist in her recovery while she's alone so she doesn't slack off and delay the process."
More silence. Yukina held her breath, hoping she worded it precisely enough so that everyone was convinced to help. Finally, Ako leaned back and looked up at her, a determined spark in her eyes. "Lisa nee-chan's always helped me when I'm sick or sad or having trouble studying!" she cried, puffing her cheeks. "She's so helpful, just like Sis! Aaaand~ it's always fun to hang out with her. Right, Rinrin?"
"Y-yeah," Rinko agreed, nodding.
They all held their breath, waiting for Sayo. If Sayo said no, it wouldn't be the end of the world to the plan, but she'd be losing a big source of reason. She gave in too easily to everyone's whims on her own. It looked like Sayo was going to hesitate at first, but finally she crossed her arms and sighed, a small smile on her face. "Well, we don't want her slacking off more than usual. We'll never get anywhere this way."
A solid victory. Now that that was out of the way, Yukina waked over to Lisa's house and hugged herself against the gutters. Sayo raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing, Minato-san?" she asked.
"No worries. Lisa used to climb my house's gutters all the time when we were kids. I think we can manage this if we go up single-file."
Wrapping her legs around the gutters, she lifted herself up a few centimeters from the ground, stretching her arms high in the air. Funny, she was having a hard time climbing up any higher. Lisa always made it look so easy. How could she have climbed so high and keep herself up without her arms giving out to fatigue? Already Yukina's arms felt like pudding, but if she gathered just enough willpower, she could reach Lisa's window…
She shimmied up another few centimeters. Sayo walked up to the front door and knocked.
A few seconds later, a bright-eyed girl with towels wrapped around her head and waist answered the door. Immediately her face lit up a bright red in embarrassment. "O-o-oh, S-S-Sayo-san," she spluttered. "I-I- you're not the pizza man."
Sayo frowned at her. "Why would you answer the door dressed like that?"
"I….never mind, I haven't actually ordered pizza yet….heh…"
"….."
"Lisa nee-saaaan~"
Ako flung herself forward, wrapping her arms around the older girl's neck. Lisa ruffled her hair with one hand while trying to keep her towel up around her waist with her broken arm, pushing the cast against her chest. Her initial shock gone, she did her best to make her makeshift Lisa smile, although she appeared to still be slightly flustered. "Hi, guys," she greeted with a wave. "Nice to see you in the area. Um, there wasn't band practice today, was there?"
Sayo shook her head. "Off day. Minato-san told us about what happened. I'm sorry…" Her voice trailed off as she awkwardly gestured to Lisa's cast. "Minato-san suggested we aid you so don't slack off on your recovery. We…should've come to your aid sooner honestly."
"Thanks, Sayo-san. Where is Yukina, anyway?"
Rinko pointed to the side of the house. Yukina had shimmied her way halfway up the drainpipe and was still holding on for dear life, panting. Immediately Lisa ran out the door, barefoot, looking up with an expression of mixed amazement and horror. "Yukina!" she yelled. "What are you doing up there, honey?!"
Yukina's face scrunched up in utter concentration. She looked like she was about to pass out at any moment. "Lisa," she said quietly. "Do you trust me?"
"Of course I do. You want me to wait upstairs for you?"
Yukina groaned affirmatively. Lisa smiled, ushering the others inside as best as she could. Sayo was the last to go in, giving her one flash of worry before shaking her head. Even she had doubts in her abilities. Well, it wasn't like Roselia's leader was known for unpredictable moves. Grimacing, Yukina pushed forward, pulling herself up with all of her effort. There should've been no rational reason not to just use the front door…but it was Lisa's house. If she could just lend Lisa her strength at least once….but first she had to prove she even had strength.
Strength seemed moderately difficult to obtain.
"Hhh…hhhh…."
Her fingertips brushed against thin air, then something straight and rough. Wood. She made it. Quickly her hands gripped onto the windowsill as she propped herself up on her elbows, panting. Her legs, still wrapped around the drainpipe, felt more and more like jelly by the second; they felt like they would simply fall through at any moment. All she could do was trust in her friend and teammate as she placed her chin on the sill as well. "Lisa…." she murmured weakly. "Lisa?..."
Nothing at first. Then, Lisa's voice could be heard from the other side of the closed window. "Yukina? Are you up here yet?"
"Lisa, I'm stuck…"
Something wet dropped on her head, then another something and a third something. A breeze followed, whirling through her long hair. Rain. It was going to rain. A shiver ran down her spine and she froze in place just as the window opened. In a second Lisa's head popped out and their eyes met, Yukina focusing on her friend's wet hair. "Lisa. Why don't you ever wear clothes whenever your parents aren't home?"
"Hmm? Oh, you know, I get busy…"
"….you're binge-watching dramas again, aren't you?"
Lisa's gaze dropped down to the floor as she blushed. "It's an investment. Hey, it feels like it's going to rain. Can you extend your arms just a little so I can grab ahold of you?"
"I can't. If I do that, I'll fall."
"You can trust me, can't you? You'll be stuck there for a while like a stray cat otherwise."
"…yeah. Don't drop me."
Taking a deep breath, Yukina untangled her legs and let go of the sill, extending her arms to the inside of the room. Immediately her hands were met by Lisa's soft, moisturized ones. Gathering the remaining of her strength, she took a shorter breath and pushed forward, slinking her way through the window. This wouldn't look very proper to the neighborhood. Her rear end still stuck out, although the long pencil skirt and stockings protected her from being completely exposed, but anyone could easily snap a picture of the Roselia leader's butt.
The more important issue, however, was that her bottom was starting to get cold and wet.
Wiggling her butt high in the air, she pressed her feet against the drainpipe to give her that final boost, and- oof.
"Hughhh."
Yukina coughed for a few seconds before catching her breath. Only half of what she laid on felt like carpet, and it didn't feel like Lisa's carpet or her shag rugs. It was…rougher. The other half felt hard and warm. Did Lisa finally get a cat? She knew she had been working on her parents for years, and every year they'd come closer and closer to saying yes. Now that they travelled constantly and Lisa had a part-time job, maybe her wish had finally come true-
Lisa's face. Lisa's face was right next to her own. Her fingers were tangled within Lisa's hair.
She was lying on top of Lisa, wasn't she?
Her heart skipped a beat nevertheless. She was used to Lisa exposing herself by now. Since they were friends from a young age, the brunette felt completely comfortable sharing everything with her. Everything. Over the years they shared baths together, went skinny-dipping together, shared each other's clothes, went to the spa together…all at Lisa's insistence, of course.
Yukina didn't really mind….Yukina didn't really care. As long as she was treated to a bowl of soba or a view of a nice cat, it didn't really matter to her if she was dragged around to wherever. Only now was the close proximity and the floral-scented shampoo …intimidating? Threatening? No, she didn't really feel intimidated or threatened. Perhaps all of that physical exertion was finally getting to her.
Her heart skipped a beat again, and her face felt hot. At the very least, this positioning was extremely uncomfortable.
"Lisa, please put some clothes on."
Hi, this is Am with her first multi-chapter in a...hot potato. I don't really write these too often because I often can't think of scenarios that I could feasibly keep up with for more than a oneshot, but this was really inspired. Bandori's one of the special fandoms that I've been keeping track with lately, and Roselia's my favorite band, so one thing led to another. At the very least, if I make you wanting for more, I think I'm doing this right, eh? Heh.
Here's to me keeping this up probably, yaaaay. \o/
