Chapter 03: Wayward Heart

Having woken up at some point, Mai groggily stared at the wall before her. Wait, where is sh—heaving upwards, she blindly searched within the darkness. Where's… eventually she spotted Yuuichi who was on the floor. Curled up with an extra blanket and pillow, he snored softly. Oh… Brushing her fingers through vermilion tresses, Mai sighed tiredly. Clearly she had fallen asleep and Yuuichi had moved her in here. Another panicked thought came to mind abruptly. Smearing her hands to her torso, she anxiously studied herself. Neither had he undressed her. Releasing a breath of relief, she sat there idle for a time.

She wondered whether she should get up. Actually, what time is it? Reaching for the nightstand, Mai eventually found the clock. Hitting its light, she strained as she checked the time. 4am. It will start getting bright soon. Should she wake up Yuuichi…? Deciding against it, she hauled herself from bed and lumbered towards the bathroom. Flicking the light on, she winced at the fluorescent brightness. Why did lights have to be overwhelming? Couldn't the academy install dials so you wouldn't get blinded? Apparently not.

Reaching the sink, Mai clutched the basin tiredly. Peering into the mirror, she stared at her bedhead hair. Oh, she looked the state. Brushing her fingers through her hair, Mai mused. Yesterday went by surprisingly well. It seems they may have gotten over their fighting. Or, 'least for now. Lest she goes and does something stupid, of course.

Twisting the water on, Mai cupped lukewarm water into her hands. She, ah… Mai felt the need to advance their relationship. But, was it too soon…? They hadn't really done any 'couplely' things yet. Apart from the occasional kiss, that is. Though that had been during the Carnival, when tensions were high and loss was fatal. Rinsing her face, she leaned into the basin. Without the Carnival, what would their relationship have been like? No doubt it would have been drastically different. This was unhealthy, she should stop before she gets caught up in her own head again.

"Mai? 'You alright?"

Oh, he's awake? "Yeah, I'm alright." Switching the water off, she reached for the towel. "You can come in."

Sliding the shoji door open, Yuuichi carefully entered. "I need the toilet." Bypassing Mai, he opened the toilet's door and left Mai to her own devices.

Hm. Mai studied her own reflection momentarily. Visiting Yuuichi's dorm made it feel like they were truly a couple. She liked that, she cracked a smile. Well, now wasn't the time to be glum. Spinning on her bare heel, she left the light on and exited. Sitting herself down upon Yuuichi's bed, she wondered what to do. Though, before she could think about that, Yuuichi soon reentered the bedroom. They stared at one another for a moment, until Yuuichi sat himself down beside her.

"What's up?"

"Huh?" Taken aback, Mai blinked unresponsively. Oh. "Hm, nothing much. It's just being here, it feels like we're more of a couple?" She wasn't really sure how to explain it without sounding lame. Either way though, Yuuichi was grinning.

"Hey well, I can't complain about that. We haven't exactly had time to do anything yet—for obvious reasons." The Carnival had royally screwed them both up in more ways than one. But it seems they are recovering now. Sweeping his gaze to the clock, Yuuichi hummed. "S-say."

A tension rose in the room abruptly. Eyeing Yuuichi briefly, Mai's violet gaze transferred towards her lap. "What?" She forced herself to ask, feeling her throat tense up. Her heart started racing, as though engulfed afire within panic. S-she… "I don't want to go back to sleep." She confessed, edging closer.

Oh? Staring down at Mai's face, Yuuichi's brow twitched from the internal strain. If he could read the atmosphere, he sure as hell knew Mai could.

"I… h-uh." Mai unconsciously twisted her torso, then moved an arm around Yuuichi. With both hands grounded either side of him, she skirted closer. She could hardly dare even ask Yuuichi how he was feeling. Let alone t-to… to what? To… "D-do you want to…?" The question faded from her lips, fingers clenching apprehensively into the blanket beneath them.

"I-ah…" Yuuichi nervously swallowed, a lump clogging inside his throat. He was very aware of how his body responded to Mai. Especially when Mai straddled his lap. Hands hovering behind Mai, their eyes pulled down between them. "Guess I'm happy to see you?" He joked, a blush in response plastering across his face. They continued staring between them, an evident bulge forming inside his pyjama bottoms.

"O-oh…" Mai could only mumble semi-coherently, her face also flushing brightly. What should… she do? Hands creeping towards Yuuichi's waist, she froze. "I don't know what I'm doing." She confessed, nervously laughing afterwards.

"I mean… neither do I."

A/N: The MA version is up on Ao3! archiveofourown dot org / works / 31671659 / chapters / 78383720.