Femslash February 2020 Day 27: Dress Up.
Matching Masks and Smiles
"Do I-do I look okay? Am I wearing it correctly? Oooh, I should know if I am."
Tsumiki's groan attracted Kimura's attention. She lifted her head and tilted her test tube up, preventing the dark green liquid from accidentally slipping into the beaker. The corners of her cheeks rose, causing her eyes to crinkle with delight as Tsumiki fiddled with the hem of her Hope's Peak jacket.
The spare mask Kimura carried in her pocket was perfect on Tsumiki. The dove colored mask fit around her face without squeezing her skin or appearing too loose. It clipped around her ears, covering her nose, mouth, and chin as Kimura expected it would.
As her ashen-white hair rose like tendrils, she remarked, "Great. You look great."
"A-ah, really?" Tsumiki squeaked, her hands shooting to her chest. She fidgeted with her collar and tucked her chin to her chest. "Oh, thank you, thank you, Kimura-san. I really appreciate your compliment! And thank you again for letting me assist you today, too!" She suddenly bowed, her hair flipping up around her, but in her swiftness, she smacked her forehead on the edge of the table and cried out.
"Oh! Oh no! Are you-are you okay?" Kimura hurried to her side, her words fumbling in her throat. She held her test tube away from Tsumiki, patting her back when she staggered up to her full height. She smoothed back Tsumiki's uneven bangs, gasping against her mask when she saw the red welt forming on her pale skin. Rubbing her shoulder, she said, "Stay still. I have something that will fix this in a second."
Tsumiki stuttered out a weary apology, her hands massaging the wound. Kimura set her test tube back into the rack on the long table where she had been conducting her latest chemical brewing. She hurried over to a closet, her heels clicking on the tiles, and she flung it open, the hinges creaking noisily to match Tsumiki's whimpering.
As she surveyed the rows of glasses and jars filled with multi-colored liquids, her heart panged when Tsumiki sniffled. She glanced over her shoulder, watching Tsumiki paw at her eyes like an injured animal. Snatching a vial filled with a deep sea green liquid, she frowned as Tsumiki cursed herself for acting impulsively.
"It's not your fault," Kimura said, taking Tsumiki's hand and setting the chemical in it.
"B-but I-! Oh, you're wasting this on me," she moaned, her fingers curling around the cool glass.
Shaking her head, Kimura cupped her hands around Tsumiki's. "No, no, not at all. If you need it, then you need it." She tilted her head, hoping she came off as friendly. "If you drink it, then you'll feel better, I promise."
Skepticism crossed Tsumiki's features, but she nonetheless gulped down what Kimura gave her. She shivered from head to toe as the last drop landed on her tongue. She placed the glass on the table, but a wave of dizziness washed over her as she raised her hand, and she stumbled forward into Kimura's arms. She grasped her forehead, flushing redder than the cherry tomatoes she ate for lunch, and she locked eyes with Kimura, who gently pushed her hand out the way and touched the wound.
As Kimura anticipated, Tsumiki gasped and convulsed. Tsumiki's legs kicked out underneath her, gasping as weightlessness seized her. Kimura tightened her grip around her back, watching the wound turn sallow. Her own brow furrowed. The result was not what she expected as Tsumiki panted. She thought she had created a suitable cure. Even if Tsumiki's gaze was filled with enough admiration and adoration to make her heart flutter, disappointment overpowered Kimura's delight.
"It's-it's-I mean, I mean to say, there's no pain," Tsumiki sputtered, straightening with Kimura's help. She pinched her brow, feeling only a trace of sweat left.
"Well, it's not fully gone. Sorry," Kimura replied with a sigh, "for getting your hopes up."
"B-bu-but you cured my injury mu-much faster than-than-than I could have!" She clenched her fists and shook them by her chest, her voice pitching. "That's brilliant, Kimura-san! You're brilliant!"
Before Kimura could protest, Tsumiki threw her arms around her in a tight embrace. A squeak escaped the chemist, whose arms remained as stiff as planks of wood by Tsumiki's waist. She glanced at Tsumiki, the feeling of her deep violet locks of hair brushing against her cheek and neck. Slowly, she brought her arms up and managed to wrap them around her back, her fingers pressing into the ridges of Tsumiki's spine.
Tsumiki nuzzled into her, the sides of their masks brushing together. She snuck a glance at Kimura as she drew back, her hands trailing up Kimura's sides and drifting onto her cheeks. She set them on Kimura's small shoulders, her smile hidden behind her mask while she marveled at her shorter upperclasswoman.
"Hee hee! If you make more chemicals like that, then you could run me out of a job," she said, giggling.
Kimura's mouth quirked. Compliments always made her bashful. In recent days, they were usually spoken to her by a certain confectioner who needed something within a strict time limit.
But hearing it from Tsumiki made her heart skip a few beats. For a moment, she thought she needed to drink one of her chemicals to calm herself, but Tsumiki seemed to sense her wariness and removed her hands. As Tsumiki tucked them in front of her waist, Kimura tilted her head and gestured at the array of test tubes and beakers lined on the table, her eyes widening when she realized her silence might have unnerved Tsumiki.
"W-well, I'd hope not!" She snaked her fingers through her hair. "Especially when you're just as capable as I am, Tsumiki-san."
"K-Kimura-san!" Tsumiki blurted, clapping her hands over her heart. Her mask stretched as her mouth dropped open. She bobbed her head up and down, sending choppy strands of hair flying. "I-I-I agree! Completely! Whole-heartedly!" She clenched her fists and raised them to her chin. "Let's-let's do our best on your new potion! I'll work as hard as I can!"
Kimura nodded and tilted her head. "I know you will."
As Tsumiki beamed, Kimura wished their masks were off. That way, she could have seen their smiling reflections in the mirror adjacent from them hanging on another closet.