Natsuki slid the bathroom door open, towel draped over her shoulder. Living alone had the wonderful perk of being able to sit around as naked as a newborn baby.
"Hello, Natsuki."
"Whaa-!"
Shizuru was sitting at the kitchen dinette, a cup of tea in her hands.
"Shizuru!" The towel suddenly flew over Natsuki's body, her face beet-red. "What are you doing in my apartment?"
Shizuru smiled. "You don't appreciate unexpected drop-ins from good friends?"
"No! Get out! Get out, get out!" Natsuki flailed her arms in the direction of the apartment door.
"Hmm," Shizuru sighed. "That's too bad. I thought you'd be happy to see me."
"How did you even get in here?" Natsuki screamed.
Shizuru smiled. "Natsuki lent me a key to watch the apartment when she was out of town for three weeks. Remember?"
Natsuki deadpanned. "Oi, I forgot." She straightened up, one hand keeping the towel wrapped around her naked body. "That was almost a year ago. You still haven't returned it?"
"Nope! And I'm not going to!" Shizuru grinned.
Natsuki slapped her forehead in frustration. Suddenly the towel around her slipped and dropped to the ground. Her faced screwed in shock and shame. Shizuru's eyes bulged, a huge grin on her face, as Natsuki bolted back into the bathroom and slammed the door shut.
"Shizuru! Get out right now! I need to get my clothes from my room!"
There was no response. "Shizuru? Shizuru!" Nothing. She slid the door open a crack to see that the kitchen table was vacant. She slid the door further and took one cautious step forward. Then another. Suddenly Shizuru's face appeared from around the corner with a handful of folded clothes.
"Th-thank – you – Shizu – ru," Natsuki sputtered, covering her bare chest with one hand and taking the clothes in the other.
Shizuru spun around and sat back at the table, humming contentedly, while Natsuki changed into her clothes. Sometimes that woman made Natsuki want to shoot herself in the foot.
-o-o-o-o-o-
That afternoon Natsuki tore through the streets of Tokyo – Shizuru clinging to her waist on the passenger seat of Natsuki's bike – and pulled up to a vacant spot by a park. There were a few diners and an ice cream shop along the street across from the green. Shizuru disembarked nervously, followed by Natsuki.
"We should get something to drink," suggested Shizuru, already heading towards a cafe. Natsuki shrugged and followed.
They sat on the patio at the side of the cafe, Shizuru with a hot cup of green tea, Natsuki with an iced mochaccino. She was still a little disturbed about being caught completely nude by the woman who so obviously lusted after her. But at the same time, the memory almost made her blush.
"Natsuki, your face is red," Shizuru mused. "Is something bothering you?" Her bare foot gently caressed Natsuki's leg. Her face turned an even deeper shade of red.
"Shizuru, what are you –" Natsuki paused. The woman was gazing at her with intense admiration. Natsuki's heart fluttered and she shook her head to rid herself of her shameful feelings. She shifted her leg under her chair. "Shizuru, stop that."
"As you wish, my love."
Natsuki looked away across the street to the park. A few dogs scampered about, happy to be off their leashes. Near the centre of the park was a small salt-water pool, designed to mimic a natural pond. A few children played by the water. Couples strolled along the paths, hand-in-hand, unaware of anything but themselves. Natsuki scowled. Love was so selfish.
"Shizuru, about this morning –"
"Is Natsuki still bothered?" Shizuru teased.
"I don't want you barging in unexpectedly like that."
"So Natsuki doesn't want anyone to disturb her personal naked time?"
Natsuki gave her friend an irritated glare. "I just want to know when I have the place to myself, that's all! That's why I got my own damn apartment in the first place!"
"Feisty as always. You're lucky you're cute when you're mad."
"Shizuru, please," Natsuki begged. The constant flirting was almost getting to be too much. She missed the days when Shizuru was more subtle.
"How will I ever convince you of my love, Natsuki?" whispered Shizuru. "I know you can share my feelings. Remember when you kissed me?"
"That was a long time ago, Shizuru. You're a dear friend to me."
The two sat in silence for some time while they finished their drinks. For anyone else, Shizuru's constant showering of adoration would probably drive them off. But really, Natsuki didn't mind. It was guilt she felt, not discomfort. To be honest, she occasionally did find her mind drifting off to that "what if" scenario... Kind of like she was now. What if she did feel some small reserve of infatuation for the honey-haired, ruby-eyed Goddess? What if she did kiss her once and still thought about it to this day? What if she sometimes imagined Shizuru taking her clothes off for Natsuki? What if ... she really did love Shizuru back?
That must be why Natsuki still remained at Shizuru's side like a loyal hound. She wouldn't admit it to anyone else, but she sometimes thought of herself as the stereotypical side-kick – the servant who loyally catered to her friend's needs.
"Let's walk," suggested Natsuki.
The two strolled through the park. It wasn't as occupied as some of the other green spaces throughout the city While there were others around, there was plenty of space to do whatever one pleased without fear of being seen or overheard. The two meandered through the winding paths lined by shrubs and trees to retain a feeling of privacy. They tossed light banter back and forth, recollecting old memories and joking about new situations of their friends. They ended up standing on the small bridge over a shallow part of the vacant pool.
"I can't believe Nao is dating a woman," muttered Natsuki.
"Is that really so hard to believe?" Shizuru responded with a chuckle.
Natsuki let out a laugh. "You're right, it's not."
"Imagine you and I started dating. You know Nao would say the same thing about you."
Natsuki's cheeks reddened again. "And what makes you think we're ever going to date?"
Shizuru gave a singing hum before responding. "I don't know, I suppose I'm crazy. I sometimes think Natsuki is developing a fancy towards the same sex."
"What? How do you figure!"
Shizuru grinned. "Because your face is red right now." She took a step next to Natsuki and drew her face closer. Her eyes twinkled with a loving gaze.
Natsuki's heart beat faster. In a mad fit of panic she pushed Shizuru back, who subsequently let out a squeal when her foot slipped over the open bridge and fell into the pool. Natsuki burst into laughter.
"Sorry!" she shouted at a furious-looking Shizuru. Her grin suddenly dropped away when Shizuru's face lit up with a devilish smirk. "Shizuru, no, NO!"
Shizuru reached up and took hold of Natsuki's wrist, and yanked her down into the water with a splash and a lot of screaming.
"Shizuru - you bastard!" Natsuki hollered through gasps for air.
The two horsed around pushing each other and splashing each other for a while. Finally they emerged from the water, thoroughly soaked.
"I'm glad I only wore jeans and an old t-shirt," said Natsuki, mock-grumbling.
"And I'm glad I wore a white blouse," replied Shizuru, sarcastically. Her bra was visible underneath the clinging wet blouse. She glared at Natsuki and playfully jumped at her, knocking her down. She was surprised how good the girl looked wet. Natsuki's clothes clung to her tight body, her hair was dripping wet. She was outrageously hot. She didn't mean to stare so long.
"Shizuru," whispered Natsuki. "You're blushing."
Shizuru smiled sheepishly and made to move off of Natsuki, but her hand came to Shizuru's shoulder. Shizuru stopped. Her heart pounded. She could hardly resist the urge to throw herself down and make love to her right then and there!
Natsuki moved her other hand to Shizuru's hip, slowly sliding it along her side. Shizuru in turn started to blush. Could this really be happening? Was Natsuki dreaming, or was she actually making a pass at Shizuru? She was soaking wet, and until now Natsuki could not understand the male obsession with a wet woman. She was suddenly overcome with and intense desire to kiss Shizuru. She brought her head closer, closer, gazing into those crimson eyes, and their lips touched. Electricity shot through Natsuki's body, firing an explosion of feeling both in her chest and between her thighs. She kissed Shizuru harder, brought her hand to her face, who in turn did the same. She felt Shizuru's thumb gently press onto her cheek. Natsuki disengaged the kiss, opened her eyes – when had she closed them? – and gazed into Shizuru's.
"Shizuru, I –" she whispered softly. "I love you."
"Natsuki," Shizuru whispered back. She was stunned. Her brain had turned to mush, her heart melted – she was at a loss of words. Suddenly she brimmed with delight. "Natsuki!" She collapsed softly onto Natsuki's wet body and rolled them both over onto their sides. She squeezed Natsuki in her arms in the most loving embrace she'd ever dreamed of. "I love you, too, Natsuki."
She kissed the green-eyed girl with so much electrifying passion that the world completely fell away from the two. And suddenly Natsuki decided she'd been wrong her whole life – love was the least selfish feeling in human existence.