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Asuka lay on her side, watching Rei sleep with a smile on her face as her eyes opened.

'Morning...'

'...morning,' Rei said. 'What are you doing?'

'...nothing. I was just thinking how beautiful you are,' Asuka said and Rei blushed, pulling the sheets up to her chin.

'Come on,' Asuka said, kissing her on the cheek. 'Let's get dressed and we can have some breakfast...'

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'That was delicious,' Asuka said as Tatsumi-San cleared their plates away.

'Arigatou gozaimasu, Sorhyu-San. Are you doing anything today?'

'We're going hiking in the hills this morning and then we'll probably spend some time at the baths...'

'Excellent. Well, enjoy your day...'

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Asuka strode up the hill, stopping when she got to the top, a grin spreading across her face.

'You've got to come and see this,' she said, turning towards Rei. 'It's beautiful...'

She stopped as she saw the albino girl struggling up the hill after her, sweat beading on her forehead.

'You alright...?'

'I'll...be fine,' Rei panted, struggling up next to her and dropping onto a nearby tree trunk with a sigh.

'Here,' Asuka said, handing her a bottle of water and she took a grateful swig.

'Thank you...'

'We're nearly at the top. You can head back, if you want...' She said and Rei shook her head, handing her back the water.

'We've come this far,' she said, standing up. 'Come on...'

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'That's better,' Asuka said, sitting on the bed and removing her trainers, rubbing her feet. 'Well, I think I'm going to hit the baths. You coming...?'

'I think I'll stay here and read for a bit,' Rei said and Asuka frowned.

'...okay. I'll see you later...'

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'Konbanwa, Sorhyu-San,' Tatsumi-San said as Asuka entered the baths.

'Konbanwa,' Asuka said, slipping into the water opposite her and closing her eyes with a sigh. 'These baths are wonderful...'

'Thank you, Sohryu-San. However, may I say that you do not seem relaxed...'

'...I don't know. I mean, we're at an Onsen and all Rei wants to do is sit in her room and read books...' She said and Tatsumi-San smiled softly.

'Sometimes, loving someone means accepting that they don't see things the way you do...'

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'Hey,' Asuka said as she pushed open the door to their room and Rei looked up from her book.

'Hello. Did you enjoy yourself?'

'Yes. How about we get a drink in the bar? You can take your books, if you like...'

'...alright.'

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'Here we are,' Asuka said, returning to the table with their drinks.

'Thank you,' Rei said, without looking up from her book and Asuka frowned as she sat down.

'I don't understand how you can sit around doing nothing...' Asuka said as she took a sip of her drink.

'I'm not doing nothing,' Rei said, without look up from her book. 'I'm reading...'

'...okay,' Asuka said and Rei closed her book, standing up.

'I'm going to have a bath,' she said, picking up another book and passing it over to Asuka. 'Here. You might enjoy this...'

Asuka watched her go, hesitating before picking up the book and starting to read...

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Rei stepped into the bath, breathing a soft sigh of relief when she saw that it was empty. Removing her towel, she sat down on the wooden stool and started to wash. Once she was clean, she picked up the bucket of water and rinsed herself off, heading towards the bath and slipping into the water with a sigh...

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'Enjoying yourself?' Rei asked and Asuka looked up from the book with a start.

'Sorry...I didn't hear you come in...'

'Obviously,' Rei said, her lips quirking into a small smile. 'Come on. It's nearly time for dinner...'

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed it. Any reviews, comments or constructive criticisms are very welcome.