A/N: I think this is the longest thing I've written in a while! I'm quite proud of it. I hope you enjoy it as well!
A sense of gratitude washed over him, as he crouched by the pond. He had planned to do nothing but sleep that Sunday afternoon, but Mizki had stubbornly dragged him out of bed and forced him to get dressed. She said that they were going to feed the ducks and enjoy the weather if it killed them, and at one in the afternoon after a long night of gaming with some of the Shion boys, he thought it might do just that.
But it was nice. The sun was shining brightly, and the ducks were fighting over chunks of bread, flapping their wings and nipping at each other and paddling away as fast as they could once they got a hold of a soggy piece. "See, this isn't so bad, is it?" his sister said with a slightly smug look on her face, obviously proud of herself for getting him out of bed before three. She threw a whole slice of bread in the water and watched the ducks squabble over it.
He didn't have time to answer her before another voice demanded his attention. "Roro!" That green-haired girl from his math class was running toward them with a kite in her hands. The kite was red with two long pink ribbons for the tail.
"Who's that?" Mizki asked, noticing the recognition on his face.
"Megpoid," was his answer. She nodded and smiled at the girl, who gave a quick wave in reply. "Hey, Gumi. Nice kite."
"Thank you! I was wondering if you would help me fly it." She looked at him expectedly, and he raised an eyebrow as if to ask why she needed help flying her simple kite. Admittedly, it had been years since the last time he had flown one, so maybe he'd forgotten a few of the basics. He turned to Mizki, who casually waved the two off, most of her attention devoted to the ducks.
As they walked away from her, Gumi started explaining herself. "I need you to hold the kite string while I throw it to try and get it to fly." He didn't understand why she couldn't just run with it and hold the string herself, but he figured she was doing it this way to get the kite to take to the skies more quickly. They found a nice little clearing, free of trees and play equipment and anything else the kite could potentially get stuck on. She gave him the spool of string and asked, "Do you do this often?"
"About every decade." Damn, it's been a long time...
She laughed at him. "That's fine." She placed her kite delicately on the ground and demonstrated how he should control the toy, spool in one hand and the thumb and index finger of his free one pinching the string, giving it slight tugs to change direction or keep the kite from getting too out of control.
When she was sure he'd gotten at least the basics, she picked up her toy and ran a few meters from him. He kept his grip on the spool loose, giving her as much string as she needed. She tossed the kite in the air, but it didn't catch the breeze right away and nose-dived back to Earth. It was a gentle crash, though, and did no damage. After a couple more failed attempts, the kite was in the air, and Yuuma almost didn't know what to do with himself, but he remembered what Gumi had told him and rolled the spool back toward him to make the string shorter and used his fingers to make sure the thing didn't get away from him. Gumi let out a giggle that was probably closer to a shriek, and he found himself smiling and almost laughing a little, too.
However, moments later, he experienced a quick burst of pain. It wasn't extreme pain, the kind that would have him doubling over and moaning—or maybe screaming—for help. It was a dull kind of pain that only slightly stung. A sudden change in wind direction had pulled the kite violently sideways, and the kite string, which was more like wire, had cut into his finger. He was so busy examining the scratch that the kite began rapidly descending, and Gumi went running to catch it. When she came back, red kite in hand, she found him with his wounded digit in his mouth. He pulled it out, a little embarrassed, and she asked, "What's wrong?"
"I," he started, and then he lowered his voice like he was afraid she might judge him for messing up, "cut my finger... on the kite string."
"Really?! Let me see!" He was about to tell her that it was nothing but a little scratch, but she already had his hand in hers. "You're not wearing your gloves today... or your jacket!" she noted, genuinely surprised, and he wondered how she hadn't noticed earlier.
"It's warm out."
"Next time, you should wear 'em. I forgot to warn you that my kite is a bit of a safety hazard." There was laughter in her eyes, and he knew she meant it as a joke, but he wasn't sure how much of a joke it actually was, considering the kite did hurt him. "You should come back to my house, and I'll take care of you! I-if... that's, uh..." Her cheeks took on a brilliant pink color. "...okay with you."
He nodded, but then thought of Mizki. Would it be okay with her? He decided it would be, remembering the nonchalant way she waved them off earlier, like she was in her own little duck-filled world. "Yeah, okay."
"Great!" She took the spool from him and began winding up the string. She tossed her head and said, "My house is that way." He didn't know exactly which way she was referring to, but it didn't take long to figure it out when she finished with the spool, turned on her heel, and started walking.
The walk started out very quiet, but Gumi couldn't let it stay that way. He knew she hated awkward silences because she always filled them with something, and sometimes he felt bad that he wasn't an outstanding conversationalist.
"It's bad for them, you know." He looked at her curiously, and she went on. "The ducks, I mean. Feeding them bread like that... I read that it damages their wings and maybe their stomachs."
"Where'd you read that?"
"The Internet."
"Ah..."
"But it's true! I got it from a reliable website with vets and stuff." She seemed to think he had implied that her information wasn't well-researched and that she was a flighty broad who would believe just about anything. He didn't think that at all.
"I believe you. Just... don't tell Mizki. She likes it, and you'll make her sad."
"I won't." They fell silent after that, but not even twenty paces later, Gumi was talking again. "I came with the Kagamine twins."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah. And they left me to go chase frogs." Her tone wasn't bitter, and she had a smile on her face, so he assumed she didn't hold it against them. "I saw you, and I thought, 'Roro will help me fly this kite for sure! Roro will help me with anything!' "
"Not murder."
"Almost anything."
"Fair enough."
"Anyway, I needed your help because flying kites is easier with two people." She paused. "And more fun."
He nodded. "Sure, it is."
"Oh!" She stopped abruptly, laughed, and said, "That was stupid. I almost passed my own house. Home, sweet home!" She made a sweeping gesture with her arm, then pranced up to the front gate. He found the house adorable with its yellow paint and its white shutters and the small garden of tulips that was planted right next to the square, concrete porch. He almost said something about how his house was just three blocks away and how he could easily walk here anytime, but that would be a dumb and creepy thing to say, so he kept his mouth shut.
The inside of the house wasn't much different than the exterior: cheerful and simple. She had him sit on a plain, beige loveseat with a pink plaid pillow near each arm while she went to fetch her first aid kit. He tried explaining that that wouldn't be necessary—he wasn't even bleeding anymore—but she insisted on cleaning it, anyway, because there was still a chance that it could get infected. He had a staring contest with the stuffed kappa on the windowsill across from him and lost. Twice. Maybe three times before she came back with her kit and a damp washrag.
She knelt on the floor in front of him, took his hand in hers, and used the washrag to wipe off the dried blood, then applied a thin layer of Neosporin to the cut. Lastly, she wrapped a bandage around his finger and said, "That should do it!"
"Thanks," he said softly, eyes on her patchwork. It wasn't necessary, but thanks.
"Say, Roro..." Uncertainty crept into her voice, and she focused on her own fingers, which were stroking the carpet. "Are you... doing anything tomorrow?"
"School."
"Besides that."
"No. Just school."
"Oh. Do you want to... do anything tomorrow?" She added hastily, "It's okay if you say no! I won't be upset."
"Like what?"
A shrug of her shoulders told him she didn't know and didn't care. "Take a walk, go to a movie, go out to dinner, whatever. It doesn't matter to me."
"Sure." Her eyes widened, and she blinked twice in surprise. "We'll figure it out at school tomorrow maybe. One condition."
"Condition? What's the condition?!"
"You've gotta finish your homework first," he told her, perfectly aware of the low C she was getting in math.
"Roger-dodger! I'll do that!"