No. It couldn't have been.
That couldn't have been her train.
She wasn't dead.
She couldn't be.
The remote held in the girl's hand was thrown aside as she bolted up and paced around the room in utter fear.
The thought of losing her lover so suddenly and without any sort of notice completely sent her mind spiralling down. With a lifeless shuffle, the girl trudged her way into their previously shared room; tears spilling like a waterfall as she collapsed into the bed in a horrible, emotional mess.
"W-why did you have t-to die, Nicocchi..."
God, how stupid could the trains be today? Nico was supposed to be home cooking nearly an hour ago, but obviously nothing went Super Idol Nico-Nii's way, as she sat in the train, attempting to check her phone before finally realizing that it had already died. The groan of annoyance she gave was interrupted by a message on the intercom, something about a train that had derailed and fallen down. She had froze up at the news, it wasn't often that an accident like that happened, and a lot of people probably got hurt. As the train resumed its path bringing Nico home, she said a quick thanks to whatever gods protected her, as her girlfriend often reminded her to do. No matter how silly or far fetched her ideas could be sometimes, Nico absolutely could not live without Nozomi in her life, and she was more than sure that her girlfriend thought the same way.
Nico made her way back to their little apartment, arms full of groceries that she would much rather have Nozomi do, because she was much stronger than her, and Nico could never resist staring at her arms whenever she was lifting things, which made gym dates extremely hard for her. As she unlocked the door, she was curious about the state of the house; lights off, with the TV on, and her girlfriend nowhere in sight. She placed the bags on the countertop and made her way to a noise coming from their bedroom door, which was closed shut.
"Nozomi, I'm home, sorry I'm l-" Nico announced as she opened the door, before she looked at the sight before her. Nozomi, her girlfriend was curled up in a ball in the corner of their room on the bed, long purple hair disheveled and drapes all around her, sobbing and wailing, with tissues scattered all around her. "Nozomi! What happened? Did something happen when I was gone?!" Nico said, racing over to the bed before being interrupted.
"NO!" Nozomi screamed out, a guttural cry choking her words "GET OUT OF MY HEAD! NICOCCHI IS ALREADY DEAD, STOP TRICKING ME!" She flailed herself around, making Nico take a step back just in case, before Nozomi let out a small sniffle, collapsing back into the bed.
"Wait, what? I'm right here Nozo, what do you mean I died?" Nico answered, slowly making her way to Nozomi through the piles of tissues surrounding her. She slowly made her way behind her, but was interrupted as Nozomi bolted right up out of nowhere.
"B-but that isn't N-N-Nicocchi, it's c-couldn't be," Nozomi mumbled, shaking uncontrollably, eyes still covered under the mass of tear-matted hair, "S-she's d-dead, she died in the t-train." She barely managed to choke out the sentence before letting out another wail and had slumped right back down, tears staining the already damp covers.
"What are you talking ab-" Nico attempted to answer, before finally putting the pieces together about what was happening. Her poor girlfriend had thought that the train that had fallen off was hers, and thought that Nico had died. Nico's eyes welled up as well; she knew exactly what Nozomi was feeling at that moment. If she were in her shoes, she knew she'd be in the exact state she was in, and all she wanted to do right now was tell Nozomi she was there. She wrapped her arms around her girlfriend, grasping around before finding the hands that she loved more than anything, and gave them a tiny squeeze. "Hey, I'm right here, Nozomi," Nico spoke, laying her head against the crook of Nozomi's shoulder, "I'm right here, I'm real, and I'm alive, ok?" Nico let herself stay like this for a bit, feeling Nozomi's exasperated, choked breaths, using all the power she could muster in her body just to make her girlfriend's pain go away. After a while, she had felt Nozomi begin to shake, the sounds of crying coming back, but this time, much softer and more relieved than her wailing before.
"I thought you w-were dead, Nicocchi," Nozomi sniffled. " I was so scared, I thought you were gone, and I got scared that I wouldn't see you ever again, and I didn't know what to do anymore and-" She stammered out before turning around and hugging Nico, crying tears of joy. "You're alive and you didn't die and you didn't leave me and you here!" She blabbered, pulling her hair back a bit before nuzzling Nico.
"Silly Nozomi, w-why would I l-leave, I would n-never leave you, you dork," Nico replied, her own tears starting to flow as she watched her girlfriend at a point between laughing and crying, who looked happier at this point than any point she had known her. They laid there for a long while, Nico letting herself be tightly embraced by her girlfriend before Nozomi loosened her grip and slowly laid beside Nico.
"I'm sorry I freaked out so much Nicocchi, you probably think I'm crazy right now," Nozomi apologized.
"Don't be so ridiculous, I probably would be much worse than that if something ever happened to you," Nico answered, "C'mon, you seem like you've had a rough day; I'll make you some soup and we can sleep on the couch watching movies, if you'd like." Nico got up out of the bed, and gently helped Nozomi up after her, outstretching her hand to her. "Let's go, I'll walk you to the couch, and I'll get you your favourite blankie," she said with a heartwarming smile. She took Nozomi's hand, blushing ever so slightly at how adorable her girlfriend looked as she cutely held Nico's hand with both of hers, looking like she never wanted to let go. Nico sat Nozomi down on their couch and came back a few seconds later with a purple and pink quilt, something the two of them had made one weekend after a particularly stressful work week, and switched the TV to a movie, which had seemed to be a Ghibli movie. Nozomi grinned and snuggled a bit closer to the blanket draped around her; she was absolutely weak for this side of Nico: the extremely gentle and caring girl who knew just what to do and did everything in her power just to make sure you were feeling better. She began to doze off, fatigue after today's events taking a toll on her, before she was waken up by a soft kiss on the cheeks. "Hey, the soup is done, babe," Nico softly told her, putting the two bowls down on the table, "is there enough space for a Nico to snuggle in?"
"Mhmm, get in here already, I already miss you, " Nozomi gestured, lifting her arm up invitingly for Nico, who sat down and nestled herself against Nozomi, laying her head down on Nozomi's lap, happier than anything that both her and Nozomi were still both here. Nozomi smiled and petted her girlfriend's head before taking a sip of her soup; more thankful than anything about the girl curled up on her right now.
Nozomi couldn't have been happier about being so wrong a few hours ago.