Mei stared long and hard at the kettle sitting on the stove, willing the water to heat up. When the first bubble formed and broke the surface of the water, Mei jumped to serve it.
Carrying two matching mugs filled with steaming tea that was made in record time, Mei made her way over to her wife. Silent, she offered a mug to Yuzu, who accepted it with a smile and a "thanks, Mei." Even as the blonde shivered with a blanket over her shoulders and hair damp.
Mei gingerly settled herself on the floor next to Yuzu, careful to keep her mug steady. "I don't know how you can stay smiling after what happened," she commented, a little put out that she seemed to be the only one reflecting sourly on previous events.
Yuzu blew into her mug, the corners of her lips tugging away. "It wasn't that bad!"
"Yuzu," Mei reprimanded her carefree attitude. "It was 'that bad'."
Yuzu chuckled, rubbing her hands over the warm surface of her mug. "Well, it will be an interesting story to tell in the future!"
"I would rather not remember that at all," Mei mumbled before sipping her tea. It singed the tip of her tongue. It needed at least five more spoons of sugar and milk, Mei noted.
Yuzu's shoulder bumped against her own. "C'mon, Mei. What did my face look like when I accidentally tripped gramps and he landed face-first into that water fountain?"
"Your face?" Mei asked to make sure. Yuzu nodded. Mei thought back to that exact moment when grandfather joined the Aihara family tradition of falling into a water fountain. Of the way Yuzu seemed to scream and gasp at the same time before following him straight into the water fountain. And how Mei walked away pretending she didn't see that whole mess.
"See!" Yuzu grinned wider. "You're smiling! It was funny!"
Mei held her mug to her lips to hide her amusement. "You shouldn't be so flippant."
"Flippant, or flipping Aihara's into water fountains?" Yuzu said much too proud of her clumsiness. Mei was not prepared for a snort to escape the sturdy borders of her face. The sound made Yuzu laugh outright and it was entirely too infectious. Chuckling, Mei leaned on Yuzu's shoulder, feeling the vibrations of her laugh throughout her body, which still smelled of the chlorine from the fountain. It warmed her more than the tea.
"This is the part I'm really going to remember in the future," Yuzu said wistfully as she leaned her head against Mei's. The closeness they were sharing was already etched into her memory.
"I wouldn't be so sure. Matsuri caught the whole incident on camera."
"Crap."