A little while since Konata and Kagami told their families about their relationship passed and now it's almost time for their, mostly, well-earned winter break. It was the last day before the start of the holiday and the girls were currently having their lunch break at school. Something was different, though.
"Hey, where's Miyuki?" Kagami quickly realized that someone was missing when she arrived in the classroom of the others.
"Ah… Yuki-chan emailed me in the morning that she caught a cold and had to take the day off.
"Oh, that's unfortunate."
"Well, depending on how long her cold lasts, she either has the best or worse luck to catch a cold on the last day of school…" Konata naturally had her own way of thinking.
"I'll go visit her today, but knowing Yuki-chan, it's probably not just a small one when she has to stay absent from school."
"You're going to look after her? That's nice."
"An airhead's going to nurse another one, huh? That's pretty moe… I actually almost want to see that…"
"Oh, you want to come with me, Kona-chan?" Tsukasa either ignored or didn't understand in the first place what Konata said. "You as well, onee-chan?"
"Eh… no, we're fine… It's best if you go alone and take care of her on your own…"
"Yep, do your best, sis." Konata and Kagami had absolutely no intention to join because they only would get in their way.
"Okay…"
"Try not to catch her cold, though~."
"Kona… ehm, no… she's right, sis. Take care." Kagami first wanted to complain because of Konata's remark, but after thinking about it, the chance of it is relatively high.
"I'm not sure if I can promise that."
"Oho." It wasn't the answer Konata was expecting, but she wasn't disappointed at all.
….
School ended and Tsukasa had just parted with Konata and Kagami at the station because she decided to immediately head over to Miyuki's place. She arrived there and after ringing the doorbell, Yukari, Miyuki's mother, opened the door.
"Oh, Tsukasa, long time, no see…"
"Wasn't it just like… three days?"
"That's already pretty long for you, isn't it?"
"Uhh…" Tsukasa had no comeback. "… How's Yuki-chan doing?"
"Well… Her cold's pretty bad… She's probably sleeping right now."
"Is it okay for me to look after her for a bit?"
"Actually… I'm also starting to feel a little under the weather… so it even would be a great help."
"I see. Well then, please take it easy and excuse me." Tsukasa took off her shoes and went to Miyuki's room. She entered and sure enough, Miyuki really was asleep. Just like Yukari said, her complexion looked really bad. Judging by how she was sweating in her sleep and how red her face was, her fever seemed to be pretty high. Tsukasa sat down next to her bed and decided to quietly wait until she wakes up.
An hour passed and Miyuki finally started to wake up. She opened her eyes and blinked a few times because she saw something unexpected.
"Eh… Why is Tsukasa-san here…?" She looked at the girl next to her bed, who was currently resting her head on the blanket while peacefully sleeping on her own. "Ah… I see… My fever's so high that I'm hallucinating already, huh?" Miyuki placed her hand on the head of the 'illusion', but it felt strangely real for some reason.
"Mhmng…?" Tsukasa let out a cute sound that loosely resembled a yawn after she felt something on her head and woke up. "G-Good morning, Yuki-chan… Hmm…? Oh, it looks like I fell asleep on my own, huh? Wait… That's wrong… Good evening, Yuki-chan." That wasn't the problem at all, but she still corrected herself.
"Ah! It's the real Tsukasa-san!"
"Eh?! W-Was there a fake one here before?!"
"N-No… I just wasn't expecting you and thought my fever's playing a trick on me…"
"Ah, no, it's definitely the real me." Not that a fake one would say anything different, but that's not important.
"That's very nice…"
"So, how are you feeling, Yuki-chan? Not that I really have to ask…"
"Well… I've slept for the entire day and so, right now at least, it's… okay, but overall, really not good… My fever's pretty high… my throat's sore… cloggy nose… All in all, a best of collection of everything…"
"Yeah… I can see and hear most of it." Miyuki looked and sounded sick after all. "Is it okay for you when I stay?"
"I'm probably going back to sleep soon. I think it could get pretty boring for you…"
"Don't worry about it, I brought some manga I borrowed from Kona-chan a couple days ago to read… I just wanted to keep you some company because being alone when sick is never nice…"
"T-Thank you very much… Feel free to stay as long as you want then…" Miyuki was actually happy about her fever right now because her face was already red.
"Ehehe… So, is there anything you wa-…" Tsukasa was about to ask if she needs something when Miyuki's stomach answered her already.
"I-It's a bit embarrassing, but I haven't eaten anything at all today…"
"That's a start. How does some rice porridge sounds?"
"I would like that very much. Can I trouble you with it?"
"Of course! There's no need to be so reserved."
"Thank you very much."
"It's probably going to take half an hour, so wait a bit, okay?"
"Sure… Maybe I'll just take another short nap then."
"That's a good idea." Saying so, Tsukasa left the room and headed over to the kitchen.
A little over 30 minutes passed and she came back with a pot of perfectly cooked rice porridge.
"Welcome back… Tsukasa-san."
"I'm back~. Sleeping wasn't possible?"
"No… It seems that I'm actually too hungry to sleep…"
"Good thing it took just half an hour then." Tsukasa walked to Miyuki and sat down next to her on the edge of the bed. "Here, say 'Ah~'." After gently blowing on it, she put a spoonful portion of porridge next to her face and waited for a reaction.
"I-I can at least eat on my own…!"
"Is that so?" She was doubting her words.
"Y-Yes." Miyuki tried to lift her body in a sitting position and grab the spoon, but she had already failed at lifting a single arm.
"Ah~." Tsukasa saw her futile attempt and was rather satisfied with the outcome.
"Okay… Ahn…" Miyuki gave up and obediently let Tsukasa have her way with feeding her. The hunger won over her dignity.
"Yay~!" She happily started feeding her, but also got a little worried about Miyuki's fever getting stronger because it looked like her face was getting redder.
The most embarrassing ordeal of eating something, in Miyuki's eyes, took almost 15 minutes, but thanks to having something in her stomach, she was feeling a little better for the moment.
"T-Thank you very much, Tsukasa-san, it was really good."
"Ehehe~, I'm happy to hear it." She had a bashful smile on her face. Praising really works on her. "Anything else you need?"
"W-Well…" She was reluctant to continue.
"There's no need to hold back, Yuki-chan."
"I-I'm feeling rather sweaty, so… a change of clothes would be nice, b-but…"
"I-I see…" She started to understand why Miyuki was hesitating. If she can't even eat on her own, there's no way she can change her own clothes. "O-Okay, new pajama's coming right up…" Tsukasa went to the drawer and fetched a new one. After going back to the bed, she was unsure how to continue. "Uhm…"
"I'm sorry, b-but I really need help after all…"
"Yes…" Tsukasa swallowed her hesitation and gently grabbed Miyuki's arms and lifted up her upper body. Then she went behind her and while facing her back, Tsukasa helped Miyuki getting rid of her top by lifting her arms. Seeing her bare back made it a little complicated to continue, but she decided to do her best for Miyuki's sake. "U-Uhm… should I wipe your back now that we're at it already…?"
"That would help, bit… if possible, just my back… okay?"
"O-Of course…" That was all Tsukasa could handle anyway right now. Miyuki's complete defenselessness, thanks to her being sick, was pressuring her quite a bit. She grabbed a nearby towel and quickly rubbed her back dry, without ever forgetting to be gentle, of course, and then she helped her put on a new pajama top.
"T-Thank you very much, Tsukasa-san."
"T-That was nothing…" She couldn't even deceive herself. For some reason, she looked even more tired than the sick Miyuki. Tsukasa left the bed and quickly sat down on a chair. To direct her attention to something else, she grabbed a random manga she brought from Konata and hid her face in it. The room stayed silent for a while and the mood was a little weird. Five more minutes passed until Tsukasa finally noticed that she was holding the manga upside down.
"Hey, Tsukasa-san… Is it okay for me to sleep a little? I'm feeling a bit…"
"O-Of course. There's no need to pay attention to me."
"Okay…" Miyuki closed her eyes soon after and Tsukasa was concentrating on her, now the right way facing manga.
About an hour passed and it somehow seemed that Miyuki's condition was getting worse because her breathing sounded rougher. Tsukasa noticed this, put her manga away and moved to the bed. She looked at Miyuki's face and saw that it became even redder and she also noticed that she was shivering quite a bit.
"Are you okay… Yuki-chan?" While looking at her state, Tsukasa had gotten worried. Hearing her voice, Miyuki started to wake up.
"Uhhh... I-I'm feeling really cold… Could you be so nice and bring me another blanket?"
"Sure… Wait a moment…" She was about to go to look for a blanket when he suddenly stopped while looking like she just had gotten a better idea. Tsukasa faced the bed again and suddenly climbed into it. She crawled next to Miyuki under the blanket and hugged her out of nowhere.
"W-W-What are you doing?!"
"Hugging you…"
"I-I can see that much, but why…?" Miyuki had a hard time keeping up with the situation.
"B-Body warmth's more effective, right? Also, it feels n-nicer, doesn't it…?" Tsukasa acted without thinking and now was starting to get embarrassed at her own action, but helping Miyuki right now had a higher importance. Although, it was rather questionable whether her idea actually helps with Miyuki's condition or not.
"T-That's true… but you do know that I have a cold, yes? Doing this is basically a guarantee that you'll get infected… I don't want you to get sick as well…"
"I don't care about that, Yuki-chan. I just want you to feel better. Catching your cold is a little price to pay."
"B-But…"
"Until you say you hate me being here, I'm not going to yield."
"W-Why are you so stubborn?"
"I don't know… I just can't see you suffering on your own here…"
"Okay… I'll accept your kindness, but please don't complain when you really get infected with my cold… and try to wait until I get better so that I can help you in return then…"
"Ehehe~. Tsukasa increased the intensity of her hug and looked really happy.
"Haa…" Miyuki sighed, made a mental note that she has to stop spoiling her so much and tried to sleep. It was a promise she often did to herself, but one look at Tsukasa was always enough to immediately break it again. Feeling the warmth of the girl next to her made Miyuki extremely drowsy and quickly lured her back into the land of dreams. Tsukasa saw the relaxed look on her sleeping face and she immediately knew that she's not going to regret catching a cold. It didn't take long until she got sleepy herself and before Tsukasa realized it, it became the morning of the next day.
Miyuki was doing a little better in the beginning, but as the day progressed, she basically felt as bad as the day before. To get over it, she more or less slept the entire day while Tsukasa took great care of her. Evening arrived and thanks to Tsukasa taking a liking to what happened the day before, Miyuki's bed was again a little more cramped than usual. Miyuki actually was feeling a little cold again and so, she said nothing when she noticed Tsukasa crawling into her bed and she just let herself get hugged by her. Enjoying the warmth once more, both fell asleep really quick.
…
The next day arrived and Miyuki immediately realized that she was feeling better than yesterday, but something wasn't right. She moved around a little in her bed and quickly found out what was bugging her. Tsukasa, who she slept together in the bed with, was missing. Miyuki sat up straight on her bed and looked around in her room, but there was no one.
"Sorry it took so long… for some reason, I'm a little slow today…" The door suddenly opened and Tsukasa entered the room while holding a tray in her hands.
"Ah… uh, no, I just woke up two minutes ago, don't worry about it. What are you holding there, Tsukasa-san?"
"I made breakfast for us. Your complexion earlier looked way better than yesterday and so I thought you would like to eat something else than porridge. Well, it's still only toast, eggs, and stuff like that, but I guess that's already something." Tsukasa handed over the tray to Miyuki and sat down next to her on the bed.
"Thank you very much." Miyuki happily accepted it and the two started eating.
"So, are you really feeling better today?" Tsukasa asked so after the food was gone.
"Hmm… I definitely am not fully recovered yet, but it does feel like I'm on a good way."
"That's very reassuring to hear. Do you perhaps mind if I turn on the TV? Actually, there's a drama I usually watch around this time…"
"Not really, no, I think I also could use a change of pace." Miyuki grabbed the remote from her nightstand and handed it over to Tsukasa, who turned on the TV and changed the channel to the one she wanted. After that, she made herself pretty comfortable under the blanket and concentrated on the TV. Miyuki, maybe because of still having a fever or maybe because of something entirely else, said nothing and instead, actually inched closer to Tsukasa before also starting to intensely look at the TV. Although, if you would ask her later on what the drama was about, she would have a very hard time with answering.
A considerable amount of time passed and the drama Tsukasa wanted to watch was already long over, but the two hadn't realized that at all. Both had fallen asleep at some point and unconsciously focused on providing warmth to each other. Experts on the subject, namely Konata and Kagami, would say there were simply cuddling with each other, but that was only one way to look at the situation of Miyuki and Tsukasa tightly hugging each other in the bed.
Another hour passed and the two were awake again by now. The actual act of waking up was a little awkward, but that was nothing they couldn't overcome or at least, skillfully ignored.
"Weird… Somehow, I feel more tired after the nap than before…" Tsukasa most likely wanted to have an extension.
"You do? Actually, I feel really refreshed, though…" Miyuki's recovery was progressing well.
"Hmm…" Tsukasa looked at her and then she placed a hand on Miyuki's forehead in order to check her temperature. Afterward, she placed her hand on her own forehead to compare the temperature. "Oh, your fever's gone, Yuki-chan. That's one speedy recovering you're having today."
"Uhh… While I'm indeed feeling better, I really don't think my fever's already gone…"
"We're having exactly the same temperature, though. At least that's how it feels to me…" Tsukasa was a little confused after her diagnosis.
"Uhm…" Miyuki, on the other hand, had a bad feeling about it. "Hold still for a minute…" She grabbed the thermometer she still had on her nightstand and took Tsukasa's temperature with it. While doing so, her face quickly darkened.
"What's wrong, Yuki-chan?"
"Ahaha… Well, as it looks like, we both are right…"
"Eh?"
"You see… I still have a slight fever, but at the same time, we do have the same temperature…"
"You mean…"
"Yeah, I'm very sorry that you caught my cold after all in the end…" She looked a little sad and guilty.
"But I'm feeling gre- ACHOO!- at, though." Talk about great timing.
"You were saying?" Miyuki dubiously looked at her while handing a tissue over.
"N-Nevermind… Thanks… Looks like you could be right… There's no need to feel dejected about it, Yuki-chan. You're not at fault at all. It was my own decision and I'm not regretting it in the slightest. After all, you're already feeling relatively good again and it was faster than you thought, right?"
"T-That's true, but… still…" She was touched, but couldn't really accept it.
"Everything's fine." She insisted on it.
"Okay… Hey, but now I can take care of you when it's getting worse like promised and repay you, right?" Miyuki still looked sad, but the thought of helping Tsukasa made it a little better and she almost started to look forward to it.
"There's no need to repay me, but I'm counting on you then." Tsukasa smiled at her and the mood brightened up again. They were still talking about Tsukasa's condition to worsen and her getting pretty sick, but that didn't seem to be much of a problem.
"A-Anyway…" Miyuki felt like they had gotten lost somewhere along the way. "Do you want to watch some more TV or maybe take a nap?"
"TV doesn't sound so bad."
"Okay, is it okay if I read a book in the meantime?"
"Feel free to do whatever you want." Tsukasa concentrated on the TV again and Miyuki started reading a book she had placed nearby before. And so, without ever leaving the bed again, a little over an hour passed, but then Miyuki suddenly felt a weight on her shoulder. When she looked to her side, she saw that Tsukasa started resting her head on said shoulder.
"Is everything okay?" She wasn't thinking about it much, but after actually looking at Tsukasa's slightly pained face, she got a little worried.
"W-Well… I'm starting to remember that having a cold actually… pretty sucks…"
"I'm very sorry, but yeah, that's indeed true."
"It feels like my temperature's rising… I feel bad and I'm suuuper tired…"
"You know, it's maybe a little late, but wouldn't it actually be better if you were at home now?" Miyuki thought she would prefer fighting a cold in her own home, but was greatly mistaken.
"Eh? N-No way! I want to stay here, together with Yuki-chan…" Tsukasa strongly objected and Miyuki had nothing more to say in that regard.
"Okay…" The pleading face of Tsukasa is way too effective on her.
"Y-Yay… I would like to take a nap, though…"
"Of course, don't let me hinder you." Miyuki put her book away and was about to leave the to give her some room, but Tsukasa had other plans.
"Thanks…" She snuggled closer to her, in fact, so close that Miyuki was unable to move and then Tsukasa closed her eyes. Unable to react in time, she could only watch her falling asleep in a matter of minutes.
"Haa… I wonder if she's doing that on purpose… or is that just how she is… being that cute, it is…" Miyuki continued to watch the sleeping girl next to her with a gentle smile on her face. As time progressed, she started talking to herself again. "What a girl… Taking care of me for over two days, catching my cold in the end, and not a single complaint… She's just happy to be of use, huh? Not that she was ever not useful in my eyes, though… I'm really grateful for having her… as a friend… I never had a less annoying cold… I have to make sure to pay her back and praise her a lot, that makes her the happiest after all… What a lovable girl… Haa…" Miyuki could only sigh when she looked at Tsukasa again. "Just what is our relationship exactly? We aren't just friends… are we?" Instead of finding answers, the questions just continued to pile up. "But, just like Konata-san said some time ago, we also aren't a couple… right? In the first place, do I want us to be one? It's true that I'm extremely curious and interested in the whole matter, but… Huh? Wait, there is no but, isn't there? Tsukasa-san's definitely a jackpot… My feelings for her are strong and sincere, but is it really like that? Do I really like girls? It's true that I'm incredibly envious of Konata-san and Kagami-san and the mere thought of Tsukasa-san having a similar relationship with someone else…" Her face suddenly looked scary. "Yes, I don't like it… It feels painful and I really don't like it at all, no, I hate it! That's not for me to decide, though… I know that she has a favorable opinion of me and it feels like I'm special to her. She's, just like me, also envious of her sister and Konata-san, but is that really enough? Let's step back a bit… Do I really want to progress our relationship? Do I really want to go further? To where exactly in the first place? Aren't I satisfied with things are right now? Aren't I having fun Tsukasa-san every day? Isn't it fulfilling enough already? It's not like I'm missing out on anything, right? Right…?" Just when she was trying to believe her own deceivings, she felt Tsukasa next to her moving and before she knew it, Miyuki felt the girl's arms wrapped around her body as Tsukasa increased her embrace. "… W-Where was I again? Ah… I'm definitely missing out on something, right?" Something changed in her statement. "H-Huh? W-What's going on…?" Due to Tsukasa embracing her and the flood of questions tormenting her, Miyuki suddenly felt dizzy and it seemed like her fever was increasing again. Thanks to that, because she didn't want her health to further deteriorate again, she gave up on her thoughts about Tsukasa, that were going nowhere anyway, and decided to copy the girl and also take another nap to fully recover. Because if she isn't healthy soon, she can't properly nurse Tsukasa. Throwing all those confusing and difficult thoughts in an empty corner of her head, Miyuki simply returned the embrace of Tsukasa. After enjoying the warmth of a very important person for a while, she also fell asleep. Just like that, another day passed.
…
The morning of the following day. Miyuki was feeling rather good and also her fever was nearly gone. She remembered her monolog from yesterday, together with how Tsukasa was still tightly hugging her in her sleep and the fact that Miyuki was finally able to clearly grasp the situation after recovering, she suddenly felt extremely embarrassed. If anything, she just wanted to hide somewhere for the time being. In order to do so, she was about to leave the bed, but when she took a better look at Tsukasa, Miyuki promptly stopped. She looked really bad. Her entire face was red, her breathing extremely rough and she was completely covered in cold sweat. Taking her temperature would just be a waste of time. As if feeling the stare on her, Tsukasa soon started to wake up.
"G-Good morning… Yuki-chan… How are you feeling… today?"
"It should definitely be me who's asking this question, Tsukasa-san! Then again… I don't really need to ask…"
"Ehehe… Y-Yes, I feel really terrible…" Tsukasa could only laugh at herself, but Miyuki somehow didn't find it funny at all.
"That's nothing to laugh off! Quickly take some medicine, please!" Miyuki directly grabbed the medicine she was taking until yesterday and together with a glass of water, she made Tsukasa swallow it.
"Thank you… and I'm very sorry, Yuki-chan…"
"I-It's not your fault… After all, it's my fault you're having…"
"… Don't forget it was my decision to risk it." Even while being sick, Tsukasa made sure that Miyuki didn't blame herself for the situation right now.
"Yes… You really are an incredible girl…"
"What was that?"
"N-Nothing!"
"Really? I thought I heard something…"
"You're probably just imagining things."
"Ahaha… My fever's pretty high, isn't it?"
"That's true… Hey, I have to ask again now that it got much worse… Wouldn't it really be better for you to be at home, Tsukasa-san? I'm sure my mother could drive you…"
"N-No, I absolutely… don't want to leave! Being alone when sick… I don't want that! I'm going to be way too lonely! No… I'm staying with Yuki-chan…" Despite being really weak at the moment, Tsukasa's refusal was backed up by a great amount of force.
"Haa…" Miyuki could only sigh in defeat. She already knew the answer and saying no to her was impossible in the first place. Deep down, she actually felt happy that Tsukasa wants to stay with her no matter what. "Okay… but be sure to sleep a lot."
"Yes!"
"What a stubborn girl… So, now it's really my turn to take care of you, huh?"
"I'm looking forward to it~." She's still as playful as ever.
"Please have high expectations." Miyuki was pretty happy to return the favor. "Do you want to eat something?"
"Something soup-like would be nice… I would love to help you, but I neither can nor should leave the bed…"
"It's good that you realize it yourself. Well then, I'll head to the kitchen for a bit. Try to rest in the meanwhile for a bit, okay?" Miyuki went to the kitchen and started preparing the soup. Half an hour passed and she came back to her room with a bowl of simple vegetable soup. "So… How do we…" Miyuki wanted to ask how Tsukasa's going to eat, but the answer was a bit complicated for her.
"Ah~…" She just opened her mouth and waited to be fed.
"R-Really…?" Miyuki just realized that taking care of Tsukasa might be harder, or rather, more nerve-wracking, than she initially thought. Despite that, she still sat down on the bed next to her and started feeding the girl. While doing so, Miyuki made another important discovery; Feeding someone is about three times more embarrassing than getting fed. Thanks to that, her face became even redder than that over the fever-stricken Tsukasa.
"Ehehe~, thank you very much, Yuki-chan." She was enjoying the situation. Miyuki, on the other hand, looked rather relieved when the soup was finally gone.
"B-By the way, have you called your house already? You should at least tell them that you're sick."
"Urgh! C-Could you… do that for me?"
"Are you fearing that they'll take you home by force when they hear your voice?"
"H-Huh? Uh… Yes! T-That's exactly it." Apparently, that wasn't the reason. Tsukasa was behaving suspiciously, but Miyuki had no reason to refuse and so she grabbed the phone and called Tsukasa's house.
"Good day… Yes, this is Miyuki speaking… Yes, it's about Tsukasa-san… No, nothing that sort happened. It's just that while she was looking after me, she somehow ended up catching my cold and now… Eh? How she caught my cold? Ehm… H-Huh?! T-That's not what… Ah, it probably happened when we slept toge-… NONONO, I didn't mean it like that… I was just feeling cold due to my cold… Really! … A-Anyway, it looks like she wants to stay here with me no matter what, so… Yes… It means that I'll be taking care of her until she recovers… Absolutely… I-Is that so? … I'll do my best! G-Good bye…" Miyuki was having a hard time on the phone and when she finally ended the call, she looked very tired.
"Y-Yuki-chan?" Tsukasa seemed worried, but for some reason, she also couldn't look her in the eyes.
"Your mother is… interesting, to say the least…"
"Ahaha… *cough cough*… au…" Tsukasa could only laugh dryly because she knew that Miki was behaving a little weird lately, but immediately started coughing afterward.
"Are you okay?"
"Y-Yeah, I'm fine… Well, not really… not in the slightest actually, but you know what I mean…"
"Yeah…"
"S-Speaking of which, is it possible for me to infect you as well again… making some sort of endless loop out of it?"
"Isn't it a bit late for that question? After making it really clear that you're going to stay, that is?"
"Tehe~… I'm very sorry."
"I don't think I'm fully recovered in the first place, but no, it's rather unlikely that the same viruses affect me this much a second time."
"That relieves me very much."
"Your priorities are rather…"
"I'm sick after all~." She wasn't sorry at all.
"Is that so? I think you should rest much then, Tsukasa-san."
"Hehe… Actually, that isn't such a bad idea. I guess I'll take it easy for now."
"You really should." Miyuki finally left the bed, giving Tsukasa more place for herself, sat down on a chair, and started reading a book. Tsukasa made herself more comfortable and because she soon got bored, she decided to continue reading her manga until she got sleepy. When Miyuki saw that she fell asleep, she walked up close again and put away the manga on top of Tsukasa's chest. Taking a closer look at her, Miyuki noticed that it looked like Tsukasa's temperature was rising. Because of that, she fetched on of her leftover cold compresses and placed it on her forehead while hoping it'll help her.
The following hours continued in a similar manner. Miyuki quietly read her book most of the time while occasionally looking after her or changing the compress. At some point, Tsukasa began getting a little restless and faint sounds could be heard from her.
"Yu… ki-chan…" Upon recognizing these words, she immediately rushed to Tsukasa side, but looking at her made clear that she wasn't actually calling for Miyuki, but rather, was having a vivid dream because she obviously was still asleep. Miyuki sighed in relief that she wasn't in pain, but she let down her guard too early. Tsukasa's dreams, especially those induced by a fever, are something else. "N-Not there… Yuki-chan, that's…"
"Eh…?" She just dumbfoundedly stared at her.
"Yeah, there's right…"
W-Where?!"
"Of course… it's okay…"
"What is?"
"After all, we're… now."
"We're what now?" Before she even realized, Miyuki was having a lively conversation with the sleeping Tsukasa.
"Kyaa~." Someone looked like she was having fun in her dream.
"I really want to know what's going on there…"
"You can't~…"
"Is she… Is she really asleep?" She started doubting the whole thing and so she got closer to Tsukasa's face to make sure. Once she was fairly sure that she was indeed asleep, wanted to step back again.
"Do it again~." Tsukasa suddenly wrapped her arms around her neck and the next thing Miyuki realized, was that her face instantly got incredibly close to Tsukasa's. Whatever happened in her dream that Miyuki should do again, it was a rather 'dangerous' thing to do in reality with someone who was, more or less, at least, asleep.
"Oh no!" Just when their faces were about to touch, Miyuki regained her senses and started to struggle. She broke free from the embrace and landed next to Tsukasa on the bed in the progress.
"Ehehe… perfect…" It seemed like things went better inside the dream and there she got her second helping of whatever.
"W-What a frightening girl…" While looking terribly exhausted, Miyuki felt like her heart was about to leap out of her chest. She was extremely curious about the dream, but she already had a rough idea about what's going on there. Thinking about it, it only made things terribly complicated, though.
Tsukasa's feverish ramblings continued for a while and Miyuki started to calm down because nothings she was mumbling made sense anymore, but once more, Miyuki let down her guard to fast.
"… I love you, too… Yuki-chan…"
"W-Wha-?!" Miyuki, who was lying next to her on the bed, gasped and opened her eyes wide in surprise before she turned her head towards Tsukasa. She started at her for over a minute without blinking a single time, but no, she was still asleep. "W-Wait… 'too'?" She noticed something else and her face became even hotter than it already was. Unfortunately, Miyuki never got an answer because the sleeping beauty next to her, stopped her mumblings and thanks to that, the room fell silent.
Half an hour passed and this time Miyuki became best friends with the ceiling of her own room. It was the only thing she could look at for some time, but then her point of view changed to Tsukasa again, though, because she noticed a change. She started shivering and looked like she felt really cold. This only added things to Miyuki's pile of problems her mind was currently fighting. She remembered what Tsukasa did when she was cold. It really helped her and she was inclined to do the same, but hugging her right now was a high hurdle for Miyuki. Sadly, though, for many reasons, Tsukasa's shivering only increased, which left her no other choice. While biting her own lip, she slowly embraced the shaking body of Tsukasa and really hoped it would help because the mental damage she was taking right now was pretty high. Just when she was thinking that, Tsukasa's shivering actually instantly died down. Noticing this, Miyuki felt relieved and her earlier thoughts and concerns were blown away… "Haa… I want to read a book that features that kind of things as a reference…" While she felt like getting a headache, Miyuki closed her eyes and decided to rest a little as well.
….
While the only thing in the room that could be heard were sleeping sounds, it already got dark outside. Tsukasa woke up at some time and looked around. Miyuki had already left the bed again and was currently reading a different book than before on the nearby chair.
"Good… morning, Yuki-chan…"
"It's evening, Tsukasa-san."
"Oh, is it? Good evening then."
"Have you slept well?"
"Hmm… I think I had a nice dream, but… somehow… I think I feel too bad to be able to have a good sleep…"
"That's reasonable… A nice dream, you say?" Miyuki did her best to sound indifferent.
"Uh… I actually don't remember a thing what happened, but ehm… I'm somehow sure it was something great…"
"I-I see…" It wasn't the answer Miyuki was hoping for, but at least it didn't lead to something awkward now. At least, that was the positive thought she had for around two and a half seconds.
"Well, there's also something else that keeps me from sleeping well…"
"Hmm?"
"I'm feeling incredibly sweaty… I really want to take a hot bath…"
"O-Oh…" For some reason, shivers went down Miyuki's spine. "D-Do you think you're fit enough to do that, Tsukasa-san?" She was feeling rather conflicted on whether she should help her with taking a bath or not.
"No problem~." Tsukasa actually managed to leave the bed and was able to make two steps towards the door, but then she started to stagger and was about to fall over. Luckily, sort of, Miyuki was anticipating this already and managed to catch her in time.
"Are you hurt somewhere?" While holding Tsukasa in her arms, she made sure that she's fine.
"Ahaha… It looks like it is a problem, huh? Yuuuki-chan, I reeeaally want to take a bath, so… is it possible for you… Could you help me…?" Tsukasa, still resting in her arms, looked with upturned eyes while a single tear formed in one of them at her. Miyuki immediately turned her face away, but the damage was already taken and it was a critical hit.
"W-Wow…" She learned once more that Tsukasa's a really dangerous girl. Unable to turn her down even in normal circumstances, Miyuki could only give her a weak nod. "O-Okay… I'll accompany you…" Even though she had a really bad feeling about it, in the end, there was no helping it.
"Yay… thanks…" Tsukasa wrapped an arm around Miyuki's neck and with that support, she was able to stand up again.
"S-Sure…" While leaving her room, Miyuki quickly grabbed a couple pieces of clothing and the went to the bathroom together. Inside, Tsukasa faced Miyuki with an expectant look on her face.
"I don't think I can get rid of my clothes on my own, Yuki-chan…" To make her point clear, she weakly raised her arms and waited for Miyuki to continue.
"O-Okay…" She accepted her fate and while thinking about something entire else, Tsukasa's shirt, pants and underwear quickly ended up on the floor. After seeing the stark-naked girl in front of her, Miyuki froze for a couple seconds, but after a reboot of her systems, she quickly made her sit down on a stool and moved behind Tsukasa. While listing prime numbers in her mind, she started washing Tsukasa's hair and back. No matter how sick she was, those were still the only regions she would clean for her, though. After reaching the prime number 1021, Tsukasa finally finished washing herself and Miyuki helped her into the tub. Miyuki was finally able to take a breather because she thought it was over, but she forgot about the sheer danger of the other girl.
"Please join me, Yuuukiii-chaaan~…"
"N-No… nonono…!" Without looking at her, Miyuki strongly refused because her mind already couldn't take up with the received damage anymore.
"Pleeeaaaseee~."
"I really don't think…" Then, Miyuki made yet another mistake. To get her point across, she turned to face Tsukasa, but stopped in her tracks when she saw her. Tsukasa's wet hair, her feverish red face, and her upper body glistening from the water was too much for her. Gulping on reflex, Miyuki answered her before her brain could recover from the sight. "Okay…"
"Yay~." Tsukasa seemed happy and Miyuki slowly started undressing. Afterward, she washed herself and, although reluctantly, walked to the tub. Standing there for a couple moments, she was hesitating now, but because she started to feel cold, thanks to being naked, she entered the rather spacious tub and sat down at the opposite side of Tsukasa. Unsure where to look at, her eyes wandered around the room and with every glance she took, her facial color matched more and more the look of the feverish Tsukasa. She didn't understand why, but when she was in the hot spring with Tsukasa, it felt somehow different and way easier. On the outside, she may have looked perfectly calm even now, but on the inside, Miyuki was extremely happy that counting prime numbers was still working and she was glad that the book on self-restrained she was reading earlier proved to be of use. Tsukasa seemed to not have noticed anything of the inner turmoil of the girl in front of her, maybe thanks to the fever, but she was simply happy that she wasn't alone.
…..
20 embarrassing minutes full of conflict, for Miyuki, that is, passed and the two were back in her room. Both were sitting on the bed and Miyuki was currently drying Tsukasa's hair with great care. Soon after, Tsukasa laid down because she wanted to take another nap after feeling refreshed from the bath. Miyuki dried her own hair and then laid down across the foot end of the bed. Lying there, she was mentally completely finished and her physical condition wasn't much better. Thanks to everything she went through today, Miyuki felt like her cold started to return a little. While thinking about a lot of things, she took a peek of the sleeping Tsukasa and sighed another time. Unable to resist her charm, Miyuki gave up… on everything, stopped thinking, and simply joined Tsukasa's nap. She left from her position at the foot end, moved to Tsukasa's side and because she decided to not think anymore today, Miyuki hugged the girl next to her and easily fell asleep.
…..
Another complicated day ended and the one today was a rather special one. To give it a name, it's Christmas. Even after the slight relapse yesterday evening, Miyuki had finally completely recovered from the remains of her cold and Tsukasa, even if not perfectly healthy yet, was feeling a lot better. Both were awake already and doing nothing in particular until Tsukasa started yet another interesting and especially complicated question.
"By the way, Yuki-chan, what happened yesterday?"
"What do you mean by that?" Miyuki couldn't follow her.
"You see… Maybe it's due to the fever, but my memories of yesterday are rather hazy…"
"I see… yesterday, huh? Yesterday sure was interesting…" Her eyes suddenly seemed when she recalled the events.
"Eh?! W-What happened? D-Did I do something…?"
"Well… You forced me to strip you… and that was one of the least worrisome things you did…"
"W-What?" Tsukasa thought she misheard something borderline dangerous.
"You wanted to take a bath after all… I even had to wash you in the end and you also made me enter the tub with you…"
"Ohh~… You mean we took a bath together… Don't surprise me like that, Yuki-chan." She sighed in relief that it was just a misunderstanding, but suddenly stopped moving. "W-Wait… that really happened? I-It wasn't a dream…?" Facing reality, Tsukasa started to panic.
"No, that wasn't a dream…"
"O-Oh… I'm very sorry for troubling you, so – why did you pronounce you -that- so differently?!"
"I… wonder…"
"Y-Yuki-chan?! W-What did I do?"
"Nothing much… you just mumbled some rather… deeply interesting, eye-opening, things in your sleep yesterday…" Seeing Miyuki's blush on her cheeks even without voicing details, Tsukasa knew that it was something embarrassing and started thinking.
"Now that you mention it… I did have some dream, but I really don't remember what hap-… Ah!" While sorting her thoughts, she suddenly made a full stop. Soon after, her own blush easily overshadowed Miyuki's. It seemed like she remembered her dream in full detail.
The atmosphere in the room became really awkward and the two were unable to look at each other. The room was completely silent for a while and they were just idly fidgeting until Miyuki couldn't bear the tension anymore and made a major topic change.
"H-Hey… Uhm… By the way, how are you feeling today? I assume you're better?" It was a weak attempt, but it was something.
"Y-Yes! I'm feeling relatively well, definitely way better than yesterday, but I guess it would be better if I stay today in the bed as well to be sure…"
"I agree, that's probably for the best." Miyuki agreed with her, but Tsukasa had a complicated expression on her face.
"Yuki-chan… I'm sorry for ruining Christmas… If I wouldn't have gotten your cold, we…"
"You haven't ruined anything. If you wouldn't have taken care of me, I'm sure my cold would still be as bad as it was two days ago. Besides, it was somehow pretty fun on its own…" Even though it was tiring and her mental well-being took great damage, she really enjoyed taking care of Tsukasa and being relied on by her. She also was really happy when Tsukasa did the same for her.
"Ehehe~, I also had fun…" Their chatting turned into something enjoyable and happy again.
"Oh… Right, Tsukasa-san, is it okay for you if I leave you alone for about half an hour?"
"Sure. What do you want to do, though?"
"That's a... secret." It being Christmas and all, Miyuki wanted to do at least something Christmassy and so she wanted to prepare a little surprise for Tsukasa.
"Aww… Well, I guess I'll take another nap then…"
….
It took a little longer than expected, but Miyuki had finished her errand and went back to her room. Inside, she found Tsukasa peacefully sleeping on her bed and seeing that, her cheeks instantly loosened up a little. Miyuki watched her sleeping face for a while and then decided to check her temperature. She placed her hand on Tsukasa's forehead and cheeks and it looked like her temperature went down a good bit, almost being normal again, but for some reason, Miyuki took her time and did a quite thorough job of taking her temperature. She even looked a little reluctant when she finally retracted her hand. Snapping back to reality afterward, she decided to let Tsukasa sleep in peace and Miyuki left the room again. Then, she grabbed her phone and called Konata.
- "Oh my, a call from Miyuki herself, what a rare honor."
"Good day, Konata-san, are you free right now?"
- "Uh… Yeah, I can spare a couple minutes, I guess. What's going on? Oh, how's your cold?"
"Thanks to Tsukasa-san, it's already all gone."
- "Really~? She took great care of you, huh?"
"Absolutely."
- "Must've been nice having a cute girl nursing you back to health."
"It really was nice."
- "Uh… I-I see… No rebuttal, huh? W-Well, enough with the bragging, why did you call again?"
"B-Bragging?! Right… I wanted to know if you have any easy to cook dishes that are fit for a recovering person that I could possibly cook…"
- "I assume you're already past soup and porridge? Wait… Eh? I thought you were fine already and why would you cook for yourself in the first place when you have Tsukasa there?"
"No, it is for Tsukasa… She's down with a cold for the last two days as well…"
- "Tsukasa caught your cold, huh…? Ha… Ahahaha!"
"W-What's so funny?"
- "Nothing… A sick Tsukasa, huh? Last time I saw her like that, she was pretty adorable…"
"Well… Yeah, but she's more dangerous than anything…"
- "Eh?"
"Huh?"
- "What?"
"A-Anyway… about the dish…"
- "Uhh… Whatever… You could make an easy version of chicken rice."
"How does it work?"
- "You prepare the rice like usual, but you also add the chicken pieces, onions and seasonings in the rice cooker to let it all cook together at the same time. When it's finished, you just mix it and it's done. Oh, you can also add vegetable or mushrooms, but don't add too many extra things or the rice won't cook properly."
"Oh, I think I can do that."
- "I'm sure you can. I mean, even Kagamin~ only failed two times before she was able to do it."
"I-I see… Thank you very much, Konata-san."
- "No problem. Well then, have fun with Tsukasa. I'm going to be busy with Kagamin~ today, it's Christmas after all."
"Y-Yes… Oh, I forgot, merry Christmas, Konata-san."
- "To you as well."
Their phone conversation ended and Miyuki went to the kitchen in order to do her best in recreating Konata's recipe.
Exactly following the instructions, the preparations soon finished and after the rice cooker did its magic for about an hour, the dish was done. Being satisfied with the finished product after tasting it, Miyuki started smiling to herself and put the chicken rice on two plates before placing it onto a tray and bringing it into her room.
"Ooh~, something smells good." Tsukasa had woken up some time ago and directly reacted to Miyuki who just entered.
"I tried to cook a little something for us because I thought you're probably hungry."
"I definitely am, thank you very much, Yuki-chan." She received a plate from her and directly tried some of it. "Oh, it's really good."
"The recipe's from Konata-san, but thanks, I'm glad to hear it."
"As expected from Kona-chan. But no, I couldn't have done it better myself, you're great, Yuki-chan."
"T-Thank you very much…" While Miyuki was feeling a bit embarrassed, the two finished eating their meal."
"Haa~, it really doesn't feel like Christmas at all today…" Tsukasa looked as little sad.
"I already told you to not mind it, Tsukasa-san… Right, do you think your stomach can handle desert?"
"Desert, huh? My stomach feels pretty good again already, it should be fine. Why?"
"Perfect. Please excuse me for a moment."
"S-Sure…" Tsukasa was a little surprised that Miyuki suddenly stood up and left the room without answering her question.
"Sorry for the wait." She was only gone for a couple minutes, but she came with both her hands holding something.
"Y-Yuki-chan, is that…?"
"Is it not good?"
"No, it's great! I'm really sad that I couldn't make one of my own this year, but this one also looks great!"
"I'm glad." In one hand, Miyuki was holding two new plates, but with the other one, she was carrying a small, but cute looking Christmas cake. It was a traditional sponge cake frosted with whipped cream and generously decorated with strawberries and chocolate. In the middle of said decoration, there also was a small Santa Claus entirely made from candy.
"Oh, is that why you left earlier?"
"Yes, there's a nice little bakery nearby and they make really tasty things."
"Don't the small bakeries normally only sell cakes on Christmas to those who preordered them beforehand?"
"A-Actually…" Miyuki awkwardly scratched her cheek. "A couple days ago, when you were in the kitchen, I called them and ordered one because… Well, I kind of saw the situation at hand coming…"
"Ahaha… I'm really no match for you, Yuki-chan. Sorry for the trouble again."
"That's my line… A-Anyway, shall we eat?" Miyuki cut the cake into equal pieces and handed a slice over to Tsukasa while placing one on a plate for her own.
"Ooh~, the cake's pretty good."
"Indeed, it's my favorite bakery after all. It can't compare to your sweets, Tsukasa-san, but it's a solid second place." Miyuki let out a pretty smooth line out of nowhere.
"Ehehe…" A bit embarrassed, Tsukasa smiled from ear to ear.
"I hope it restores the Christmas mood you were missing a little."
"Yes, it's great, I'm very happy that you did it, Yuki-chan."
"S-Speaking of which, do you perhaps know what Konata-san and Kagami-san have planned for today?"
"Not really, I only know they're spending the evening in Tokyo… It's probably something grand, though, because onee-chan was pretty excited all week long already."
"Too bad…"
"Well, we can always ask them next week when we're together for new year."
"That's true… No… Actually, let's not do that…"
"Ehh? Why not? I'm also curious about it, you know?" Tsukasa didn't understand the sudden change.
"W-Well… You see… Their presents for each other are surely something well thought out and sweet, but, on the other hand, me, I was totally uncreative…"
"Ah, that's what you mean… Don't worry, Yuki-chan, my present for you is way more boring anyway. I couldn't think of anything at all…"
"I don't think so. After all, I just wanted to go shopping for clothes with you and buy you something nice because you like to go shopping, don't you?"
"Ahaha!" Tsukasa suddenly started laughing.
"S-See?! It's really bad after all…"
"N-No, that's not it… I really like the idea… It's just… I wanted to do exactly the same… You just have to switch the word 'clothes' with something you like, like books for example."
"I-Is that so? It looks like we're both rather uncreative, huh?"
"It can't be helped. Also, spending a day shopping with Yuki-chan, even without getting bought something, is a perfect present in itself already."
"Does that mean we're going?"
"Of course! Once I'm recovered, we're directly going, Yuki-chan!"
"I'm looking forward to it then."
"Me too, I can't wait~." The two spent the rest of the evening with eating cake and planning their, well, shopping date in the near future.
A little more time passed and Tsukasa decided to go to sleep early in order to have a speedy recovery because she wanted to go shopping with her as soon as possible. Miyuki, not having anything better to do, simply went along with her idea. Tsukasa quickly left for the land of dreams once they got ready to sleep, but Miyuki was having yet another problem. The reason for it was simple, but it still took her some time to realize the root of her problem, even though it was rather obvious.
"W-Wait… Why are we in the same bed again?!" Up until now, every time they had a sleepover, one of them slept on a futon. That the two shared the bed the last few days was only an exception because they were sick. Now that both had recovered to at least the point where neither of them needed the warmth of the girl, the futon normally should've gotten back in the game. Yet, as if completely natural already, Miyuki and Tsukasa had simply entered the same bed without even thinking about it. "Well... It's not a bad change… It feels nice having someone you can sleep with… If you can manage to sleep, that is… Somehow, I'm way too nervous to be able to fall asleep…" Miyuki took a peek at the sleeping girl next to her, only the further increase the rate of her already fast beating heart. While her cheeks got dyed in a slight red hue, she continued her mumbling. "While I'm glad that she took care of me and I was happy that I could return the favor… It feels like things have gotten a whole lot more complicated… The things she said when she had a fever… including her dream… The things she did, including the whole bathing incident… How far do her feelings outside of being friends go? She more or less basically… c-confessed in her dream, did she not? How much of it was a feverish delusion and how much of it were her genuine thoughts…? Really… What a dangerous girl… How long will the relationship we currently have continue in the same manner? I honestly don't think…" Interrupted in the middle of it, Miyuki was unable to finish her sentence.
"Yuki-chan… sleep already~…" Completely unexpected, Tsukasa suddenly replied to her monolog. Afterward, she snuggled up to Miyuki and gently hugged her side without ever opening her eyes. At the same time, the room fell completely silent. For a while, Miyuki just stared at nothing in particular with an open mouth, but because the sudden turn of events shut down her brain, she slowly succumbed to the comfortable warmth of the girl next to her before finally falling asleep after a rough night.
.
The 200k words have finally fallen! Off to the 300k!
When one airhead takes care of another… You have to take care of the sugar intake for the rest of the day or loose a leg.
I hope nobody missed Kagami and Konata in this chapter. I wanted to briefly show their Christmas, but the chapter was already more than long enough already. I guess I'll do something in the next chapter about it. Well, I guess this chapter was cute enough even without them. If those two are pure vanilla, Miyuki and Tsukasa are extras sweet vanilla ice with vanilla sauce and vanilla flavored cream on top of it…
Well then, next time… Probably, not sure, though, new year and another, probably failing, attempt at getting closer to them becoming third years.
Lately, I had reread the Lucky Star manga… You know, I was kind of upset how often the author made the joke about the girls finding boyfriends… It somehow felt like it happened 3-5 time a volume… Well, whatever, that's not going to happen. :) I did it because I wanted inspirations for the extra cast and I really took a liking to Hiyori, I'm sure she can warrant a lot of funny situations, so she's sure to appear in the future chapters.
I'm currently creating a more detailed timeline for the main cast's third year with the things I already have planned. There are quite a few holes which I'm currently trying to fill. Because of that, the next chapter probably has to wait a little longer than usual… There's also the thing that I really want to rewrite the first chapters because I'm really not happy with them. Not content wise, but rather how I wrote them. I'm not saying my current style is 'good', but I think it's way better than it was back then. (Always just 'Konata said, Kagami said' instead of actually describing things…) Not sure if I actually do it, though, but this also could delay things.