"Nanami."
Mashiro was getting somewhat annoyed. This was the tenth time today.
"Huh?," she asked, quickly raising her head.
Something something luggage bags? She handed Mashiro the neatly folded underwear in her hands before it was carelessly dumped inside.
"Hey, that wasn't necessary. Neat and tidy. We've got a lot more stuff to put in-"
"Would you like to visit Sorata?," she interrupted.
It was no surprise to Aoyama that she made it very clear what she was thinking about. If it were up to her, she would be waiting right by his bedside even if the world ended. Waiting patiently, so that she would be the first thing Sorata would see.
"Of course," she sighed, mindlessly folding Mashiro's clothes. "I know it sounds stupid but I just wanna stay there until he wakes up. It's not right to be alone like that."
"Yes."
"Yes?"
"I...want to visit him too," she said, her downtrodden eyes telling more than her voice. She fidgeted with her hair in the same way Sorata would run his fingers through it, every night after her bath. Soon enough she would find it near impossible to draw a single line on her drawing tablet, with her months of painstakingly trained routine messed up like that.
Aoyama stepped over the open luggage bag so that she could pull her friend in for a hug, to which she accepted gratefully.
"I was planning on leaving with you two," she whispered.
"Really?"
"Mhm. I want to show everyone. Some kind of...to get back at them? I'm not sure."
Aoyama kept quiet and ran her fingers through the blonde's hair while she figured out her thoughts.
"England's a nice place. It'll be fun to watch your reactions. The cities aren't too pretty but I live near a forest place. It's beautiful. I paint a lot there."
Aoyama picked up a sketchbook and flicked through its pages. "With Rita?"
She nodded. "Sometimes."
"Sounds like fun. I'm imagining lush green trees, birds singing and a waterfall," Aoyama giggled. She caught a glimpse of her friend's sombre look as she continued to pack her bag.
"Hey...cheer up. At least Rita's coming with you."
"She'll be too busy."
"Busy?"
"Busy. With Ryuunosuke."
A thought of a lonely Mashiro sitting by herself on the plane ride. "Oh," was all she could manage.
The next hour was spent in comfortable silence, ending at midnight with a fully packed luggage bag. As expected, Aoyama was getting clothes and accessories ready on the dresser while Mashiro laid down with an arm over her forehead.
Cicadas chirped endlessly outside, yet the space around them seemed like it was holding its breath. Neither one of them had any plans whatsoever and they only hoped it would come to them during the summer break. Mashiro would head back home and Aoyama would continue with her work.
She paced back and forth at the thought of returning to the studio. The anxiety of being in the repurposed warehouse was worse than not finishing her takes. She didn't even know if she could finish. Her character was in the phase of returning back home after a long and tiresome journey, something she knew she couldn't act in the state she was in.
"What will you do Aoyama?," Mashiro asked, propping herself on her side.
"Me? Work. I guess," she replied without hesitation. "I'll be collecting holiday pay."
"Work. I can't wait to be a cashier again. At least I get to read in silence," she thought.
"What about your family? You're not going home?"
"This is my home. Sappy I know. Besides...I don't think I could look my parents in the eyes right now."
"You killed a man. There was blood everywhere."
The blonde gave a nod, despite wanting to press forward on the matter. She wouldn't mind if her friend broke down in tears, as she seemed to want to, and fell asleep in her arms- but Aoyama already had her foot outside the door.
"Ok. Goodnight Mashiro. I'll wake you up at five okay? Don't want to miss your flight."
She closed the door gently as to not wake the other residents of Sakurasou, before tiptoeing to her room next door. Her signature ponytail was let down, her teeth brushed vigorously and her face washed as she does every night.
Thoughts richocheted off the inside of her head, begging to be let out in one long scribble in her diary.
Just as she entered her room, she yelped in surprise when she bumped her forehead on the figure that was standing there. She fiddled her desk lamp, letting it dimly illuminate his features.
"(Sorata!)," she hushed with a mix of surprise, relief and anger. After all, she had been told this wouldn't happen until a week.
She didn't fight but instead melted into Sorata's chest when he hugged her. Lots of hugs this night.
"(What are you doing here?! Why aren't you recovering?!)"
Without a word he grabbed her hand and guided her outside so that they were far away from the dorm. It was no surprise that they managed to do so without any source of light- only years of habit.
She kept her eyes locked on him like he was about to faint any moment.
"Sorry. I needed to see you," he said. His voice didn't sound hoarse or damaged, much to Aoyama's surprise. It was only quiet due to the damage to her airway.
"Needed?! You're such an idiot Kanda-kun ya' know that?! What if your stitches came out?! Do you know how far it is from the hospital?!," she let out with a heavy kansai accent. She lifted his chin up between her thumb and index finger so that she could inspect the wound on his neck.
"Why can't you just think about yourself for a second?!"
He opened his mouth to say something but nothing came out. Instead a relieved smile appeared in its place because as of now, he was just happy to see Aoyama. Nevermind that she was shouting at him like a mother with her rebellious teenage kid.
"What?! What're you smiling about?! S-Stop that! I'll slap it right off your dumb-"
The yelling was immediately cut off when Sorata leaned forward and kissed her on the lips.
She couldn't move. She forgot what she was thinking or what she was mad about, because her heart had jumped out of her chest. All she could think about, in simple dumb words, was how good it felt.
"Soft...warm...so warm...," she thought. Her beet red face was frozen in place long after he pulled away.
"Oh...my God," he stammered with a face as flustered as hers. "I...don't know why I did that. I'm really sorry."
After a good minute her system booted back up and she finally figured out how to breathe and blink again.
"Y-Y-Yeamm..you s-should be," she stuttered clumsily.
"What the hell was that?! Kiss him again! That felt...too good."
"A-Anyways. I'll be heading off now. I just wanted to see you," he coughed.
"What? You're not staying? Stay with me! I need you! I want to see you too! Please!"
It was like every thought in her mind tried to exit at the same time. He turned around and disappeared into the night, leaving Aoyama with a deep feeling of loneliness she never knew she had until that point.
AN: Heyooo can't wait to finish my assignments so that I can continue writing this! Next chapter will come around 20th! Have a good day or night and brush your teeth and eat healthy and take care of yourself!
