NeonHorizon: If you're also reading my story "Warmth" then there's a bit of a spoiler in this chapter. Not a huge spoiler since it doesn't reveal everything, but yeah. Here's a cute chapter~
Shirayuki glanced over at the boy walking beside her as she fidgeted with her hairband. She was always nervous about someone visiting her house. High school had brought her so many friends, but she was still struggling to get used to it. This was a little different from when her other friends visited, though.
He's an upperclassman and…we've worked together. We both…want to work in Fat Gum's agency when we graduate. Her face heated up to pink when she felt him looking over at her. I'm…really nervous.
They turned the corner to her street and Amajiki's steps slowed. He reached out and gently took her hand to stop her from going further. "That…that woman from the last time is back," he stammered. He kept a protective grip on her hand, edging closer so he was partially in front of her.
"…woman…?" She hesitantly lifted her eyes and frowned behind her mask. Shirayuki had been afraid it was her mother; planning to force her to go somewhere with her. Instead, she found a welcomingly familiar face accompanied by two strangers.
Her cousin Sayuri was turning away from the gate in front of the house to talk to the taller figure in a jacket with his hood pulled up. The neckline of the jacket was high and concealed his nose and mouth. Sunglasses hid his eyes from view. The third figure was much smaller than both of them and was holding Sayuri's hand. Wearing a long-sleeved hoodie that looked big enough to be Sayuri's and a disposable medical mask over the lower half of their face.
When the pale-haired young woman caught sight of Shirayuki and Amajiki, her expression turned from desperation and panic to relief. She said something else to the taller figure, who lifted the smaller one, she and hurried over to Shirayuki. "Ume! Oh? Oh!" She grinned as she looked at Amajiki. "This is your boyfriend, right? Sorry to bother you guys, but-!"
"N-no, we're not…um…" A reddish hue spread across the boy's face to the tips of his pointed ears and he lowered his head, looking away.
"Oh? You're holding hands so I just figured…? Anyway, I need to ask a favor, Ume. Aunt Sumire isn't answering the door. You have a key, right?"
"…Grandma…isn't answering…?!" Shirayuki's fear overshadowed her nervousness and she pulled her hand away from Amajiki's. She sprinted down the sidewalk, not even flinching when she passed Sayuri's two companions, and dug in her bag for her keys.
The gate was soon open and she rushed to the door as Amajiki caught up with her, Sayuri close behind. Shirayuki unlocked the door and bolted into the house, her heart hammering in her chest as she feared the absolute worst. She called for her grandmother and checked the sitting room first and then the kitchen. As soon as she saw the note on the fridge, she almost cried in relief.
"She…went to get cake?" Amajiki read the note and let Sayuri take it from him. "S-see? She's alright, Yuki."
"This is still a problem, though." Sayuri ran a hand through her hair as her two companions stepped into the kitchen. She looked from them to the two teenagers and her expression showed she was uncomfortable with what she was about to say. Almost fearful. "Ume? I need to ask a huge favor from you, okay? I wanted to ask Aunt Sumire, but since she isn't here…"
"...Sayuri-chan…?" Shirayuki saw the tall, hooded figure look toward her and frowned behind her mask. He was wearing sunglasses, but peered at her over the edge of them now. Startlingly bright blue-green eyes met her gaze and she felt like she had that same shade of blue-green in someone else's eyes, somewhere. The skin beneath his eyes looked dark and purplish; like bruises almost.
The taller figure set the small figure down on their feet and pushed up his sunglasses again. "We need you to babysit," he said in a sort of raspy voice.
"…I've…never babysat before…um…"
"Ume." Sayuri held the girl's shoulders and there were tears in her lilac eyes. "Please. You're…the only people I can trust to protect her in my place. Please. You're…so much like Umetarou was and I need someone with his strength to protect her until I come back."
"W-we can watch her," Amajiki spoke up. He lowered his head to avoid Sayuri's gaze, frowning. "I'll…I'll stay here and help protect her. Until Yuki's grandmother comes home. I'm…close to graduating and joining a hero agency. I'll help protect her."
Shirayuki nodded her agreement and found herself pulled into a tight hug by her cousin. "…Sayuri-chan…where are you going, though…?"
"If a man shows up and claims to be her father, don't let him take her." This was said in a whisper, too quiet for Amajiki to hear. She pulled away and gave her cousin a half-smile. "My boyfriend and I have to go take care of some stuff, but we can't take my daughter with us. I'll be back tomorrow, though! I promise! Right?"
When Sayuri looked over her shoulder at the taller figure, he shrugged. "I'm probably gonna take longer," he admitted.
"…what's her name…?"
Sayuri crouched down and gently lowered the medical mask on the smaller figure's face. She lowered the hood next, revealing that this little girl was wearing an adorable hand-knit beanie with cat faces on it. Shirayuki stared down at the child, red eyes meeting red eyes. Sayuri gave the little girl a smile and smoothed her long, pale hair. "Emi. Right?" The child gave a nod, but she looked like she was going to cry. She hugged the little girl and assured her that she would be back soon, that she would be safe with Shirayuki.
When Sayuri and her boyfriend had left, Shirayuki was unsure of what to do. The child looked to be around five or six. She had never babysat a human child before; only babysitting cats. Amajiki seemed just as uncertain and rubbed at the back of his neck as he looked from Shirayuki to the girl.
"…um…d-do you…like cats…?" she finally asked, looking at the girl's hat again. It was pulled down so it almost reached her eyebrows and there was a strange bump near her right temple. What…is that?
"Cats?" The little girl "Emi" tilted her head.
"Cats…um…Yuki has seven of them. Right?" Amajiki looked to her for confirmation and got a small nod. "Uh…I really…I don't know how to babysit," she confessed to Shirayuki.
I don't know, either. When I babysit cats…I feed them, brush their hair, and make sure they have water. Do I…? Is it okay if I just…pretend she's a cat? She remembered how Sayuri had talked to the girl and summoned forth some courage. Sayuri-chan…didn't Grandma say that she's a teacher? So she knows how to take care of children. I'll just…I'll try to be like Sayuri-chan.
She gently took the child's hand and smiled, but she was still wearing her mask. "…do you…want to watch tv…?" She felt relieved when the little girl held onto her hand and nodded. Shirayuki led her to the sitting room and got her settled on the couch before turning on the television. This summoned all of the cats to the room and the little girl jumped, her eyes wide with alarm.
"…it's…it's okay…Emi-chan…these are my cats…um…here…Maru…will sit with you, okay…?" Shirayuki lifted the largest, friendliest cat onto the couch and it immediately plopped onto the girl's lap, purring at making a new friend. "…are you hungry…?"
She found Amajiki timidly searching for something they could cook. He had taken off his blazer and left it draped over the back of one of the chairs, his sleeves rolled up. He blushed pink when she came into the kitchen and lowered his head. "I'm sorry. I-I really don't know what I'm doing. Mirio is better at this kind of thing."
"…I…I still…appreciate your help...Tamaki…" She tugged at her hairband and was glad that her mask was able to hide the pink shade of her cheeks. The girl found the ingredients to make something simple and started preparing dinner for the little girl and her grandmother.
Amajiki watched her work and a small, shy smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. "Yuki…you're really good at cooking."
"…wh-what…no…um…I'm not…not as good as my grandmother or…other people in my class…" She felt butterflies in her stomach when he ventured a bit closer, watching her plate the food.
"Your cooking. Wh-when you made those cookies…they were really good. And you…you seem like you know what you're doing. I'm sorry. That didn't come out right. Ngh. This…this is difficult." As she left to get the child, he went to the the wall and rested his forehead against it. "I'm not good at this. I don't…know what to say. This situation is too difficult. H-how do I just say that I like her?"
Shirayuki paused in the hallway, pressing a hand over her heart and feeling her pulse skip. What…? She bit her lip behind her mask and looked over her shoulder toward the kitchen. He had been quiet, but she still managed to hear him. Heat was spreading across her face rapidly and she had to steady herself in the doorway to the sitting room.
Sayuri's daughter had acquired even more feline friends while Shirayuki had been cooking. Almost as if the cat Maru had convinced the other cats that they were supposed to be babysitting. The little girl had Maru on her lap, a cat on either side of her on the couch, one cat sitting on the back of the couch behind her, and the other three were gathered around her feet on the floor.
She's…so cute. Shirayuki saw a faint smile on the child's face while she pet Maru and her large red eyes seemed to twinkle when a cat treat commercial came on. "…Emi-chan…it's dinner time…" She felt a little bad for interrupting, but she wanted to make sure the food was still warm when she ate.
As the little girl was sitting at the table in the kitchen, Shirayuki's grandmother returned with a cake from the bakery near the station. She paused in the kitchen doorway; puzzled to find a small child and a teenage boy she had never formally met.
"Oh my goodness! Well, I'm glad that I got a large cake. Ume, can you grab some plates?" The old woman beamed after hearing the explanation and set down the cake box on the table. "Emi-chan? Do you like cake? I'm sure Sayuri wouldn't mind if you had a slice. It's a special occasion, you know."
"…special occasion…?" Shirayuki brought over four plates, giving Amajiki an apologetic glance for making him stay for so long.
"You had your exams today, didn't you?" She opened the cake box and revealed the surprise. A round cake with light purple frosting; decorated with dark purple flowers and candy pearls. In white writing it read "Congratulations Ume!"
Tears rolled down her cheeks, wetting her mask, and she lifted a hand. She pulled her mask down a little, displaying her smile. "Th-thank you…Grandma."
"So pretty. Can we…really eat it?" The little girl studied the flowers with wide, sparkling eyes.
"Of course. Now, I'm not sure how it's going to taste. The cake is vanilla, but the frosting is supposed to be lavender-flavored. Let's see how it is."
Amajiki sat tensely next to Shirayuki at the table. Slouching, his head down, glancing toward his underclassman every so often and fidgeting with his fork. "C-congratulations, Yuki."
"…th-thank you…" She lowered her head, letting her dark hair fall around her face to hide how red it was. Remembering what he said when she left the kitchen. What do I say? He…likes me? Really? I don't…I don't really know what to say.
Her grandmother put cake slices in front of everyone, beaming at how their adorable houseguest was marveling at the cake and how Shirayuki glanced toward her friend. "Ume, you have some free days before your summer training camp, don't you? Are you going to make plans with your friends?"
"…I…I'm not sure yet…" she admitted. She had almost forgotten that Togata planned to call everyone to try to make plans.
"Yuki, I-I wanted to ask you something." Amajiki lowered his head a little more. He was trembling with anxiety as he tried to push himself to keep talking. "I, um, I have tomorrow free so do you…?" His words caught in his throat and he shook his head. His shoulders drooped and he turned his head away from her. "Do you w-want to go with me…to see Mirio and Nejire tomorrow?"
She set a reminder on her phone, blushing when he said he would come to pick her up in the morning. I should make cookies for everyone. Togata-senpai and Nejire-senpai…and Tamaki…they're all always so nice to me. And Togata-senpai is always so sunny…A small smile curved her lips as she thought of the sun-shaped cookie cutters she had bought on impulse, but never used before.
Shirayuki walked with Amajiki to the gate when he had to leave. The sun had set and she was worried about him walking home alone, but he told her that he would be okay. She opened the gate for him and paused, fidgeting with her hairband. "…T-Tamaki, I…wanted to thank you…for helping me today…um…I don't know if I could have s-stayed calm…if I was babysitting alone…"
"I-I didn't really help, though," he protested, rubbing at the back of his neck. "I didn't…know what to do so I froze up. I'm sorry, Yuki."
"No!" She bit the inside of her cheek and looked down as his eyes widened. Taking a deep breath, she lifted her eyes to meet his. "You were here…and supported me in your own way. And I…I really appreciate it."