I apologize for my absence. I've been gone for a while, but things came up and I got really sick. And I've also had no motivation to write. xD
This chapter is pretty short, but I'm hoping to update again within the week.
Oh, before I forget, a disclaimer... I don't own Shugo Chara! or any of its characters.
Enjoy?
Rima stopped outside of her house, shivering. Nadeshiko was holding the umbrella above their heads, sniffling every few seconds.
The shorter blonde quickly fished the house keys out of her bag, unlocking the door and stepping inside. Nadeshiko followed her, but not before closing her umbrella and setting it down on the porch.
The instant warmth provided by the heating relieved them as they set their bags down, but it still didn't feel like enough. "I'll go get some blankets. Are you sure you don't just want to go home and rest?"
"No, Rima-chan," she mumbled, shaking her head and sneezing again. "I'm fine."
Rima shrugged. "If you say so." She disappeared down the hallway, and Nadeshiko could hear the closet door open followed by a frustrated sigh.
"Nadeshiko-chan?"
"Yes?"
"I know that you're sick and all, but would you mind helping me with the blankets? With my crutches, I really don't have enough hands to carry them..."
Nadeshiko stood with a small smile, "Sure, Rima-chan." She walked down the long hallway until she reached the girl, looking toward the open closet door. "Which ones do you want me to get?"
Rima paused, frowning at the selection. It seemed like she was looking for something. "You can get whichever one you want, but... do you see the white blanket with the multi-colored polka dots on it? It's kind of...mine," she blushed sheepishly.
Nadeshiko searched for the aforementioned blanket, spotting it a few shelves above Rima's line of vision. "Yeah, it's up top. I'll get it down for you." She stood on her tip toes, plucking the soft fabric down easily with a bit of a satisfied smirk. She quickly wiped the expression off of her face when she turned around, only to find her friend sulking. Probably because she had been too short to retrieve her possession.
"I think I'll keep it in my room from now on," she mumbled.
Nadeshiko couldn't hide the faint smile that crept onto her lips; she pretended that she hadn't heard RIma's little comment. "Which blanket do you think I should get, Rima-chan?"
The girl perked up as she was addressed. "Um... Maybe that light blue one? With the dark purple flowers on it?"
Sure, why not. Nadeshiko almost sighed. "Sounds good, Rima-chan. Thanks." She grabbed the blanket off of the shelf. Rima reached out to close the door, and the two headed back toward the living room.
They collapsed on their respective couches, looking across the space at each other. "How does some TV and a nap sound?" Rima asked, already reaching for the remote nearby.
Nadeshiko shrugged indifferently, though she was grinning. "Sure." She proceeded to wrap herself up in the blankets as the TV was turned on. She noticed Rima doing the same, the small girl changing the channel to something comedy-related.
Nadeshiko was the first one to fall asleep; Rima was attempting to watch the entirety of the show, but her eyes soon slipped shut and her breathing evened out.
It was the most peaceful she'd felt in a while.
.~*~.
The first thing Rima realized upon waking was that it was no longer raining outside.
She smiled a little as she sat up, her polka-dotted blanket still wrapped securely around her shoulders. She took her phone out of her pocket and checked the time. 6:30.
Nadeshiko was still fast asleep, turned so that she was facing the couch rather than the television. Her breathing seemed a bit heavy, and she was snoring lightly.
Rima thought about what had gone on with their friendship since the purple-headed girl's return. Rima didn't want to forgive her so readily, but Nadeshiko was her oldest friend, and before the other day, she had never bothered to listen to her side of the story. Maybe she had blown the whole situation out of proportion. Maybe not. The only thing she knew for sure was that she'd be willing to try her hand at friendship once more.
Quietly getting up so that she wouldn't disturb the light sleeper resting on the other couch, Rima moved over to the television (albeit slowly) and turned it off. She went upstairs to her room, turned on some music, and browsed the Internet for a little while. About a half-hour later, she decided she would start on her homework on the couch downstairs. Nadeshiko hadn't come upstairs, so she figured the girl was still asleep.
She stepped back into the living room and plopped down on the couch, fiddling with a strand of her hair that refused to remain in place. Eventually deeming it a lost cause, Rima leaned back against the couch and stared determinedly at the assignment in her lap, pen uncapped and tapping relentlessly against the paper.
She was well into the fifth short answer question when she thought she heard mumbling from the couch Nadeshiko was sleeping on.
With a shrug, she turned back to her work, trying to ignore the nearly coherent noises. So what if the girl talked in her sleep? She'd let her be.
And so, for the next forty-five minutes, Rima tried and failed to concentrate on her Chemistry homework, the question of what Nadeshiko had been mumbling about floating through her mind.
.~*~.
By the time Nagihiko forced his amber eyes open, Rima was already sitting up on the other couch, her homework resting on top of the blanket and in her lap. He felt a little dizzy, and opted to close his eyes again, but RIma had already spotted him. She looked distracted.
"You're finally awake, Nadeshiko-chan. How'd you sleep?"
"Well," the boy mumbled, opening his eyes once more. "I'm a little surprised that you managed to wake up before me, Rima-chan." As he sat up, another wave of dizziness washed over him, and he realized that his face felt a bit hot. If he had been feeling just a little bit better, he might've noticed that there was something on Rima's mind.
"Yeah... I guess I wasn't that tired after all." Rima herself sounded a little distant, but he assumed it was because she was working on her homework. "Do you feel better? It's not raining anymore."
"I'm fine, yes... What time is it...?" he asked first. Then, because he wanted to be able to go home soon, "Is your mom back yet?"
"No, she's not, but she should be soon," Rima said. "It's 7:45 right now; she told me she's on her way back. So... in another thirty minutes, maybe?"
Nagihiko nodded, closing his eyes.
"Are you hungry?"
He shook his head.
Rima frowned and stood, leaning on the side table for support. Nadeshiko was always hungry by this time, and she knew for a fact that neither of them had eaten anything upon getting home. Leaving her crutches behind, she made her way to the other couch in a similar manner and placed the back of her hand on Nadeshiko's forehead.
A pause.
"You're warm. I think you may have a fever."
Nagihiko waved the girl off, opening his eyes and blinking repeatedly. "No, it's probably because I just slept for a couple of hours under an exceedingly warm and comfortable blanket."
There was a moment of silence as RIma turned and pointed to the blanket on the ground. "You kicked it off an hour ago." Her expression softened, albeit only slightly, as she continued. "If you're getting sick, there's no reason to lie about it. It's better if you tell people earlier, before it gets too serious... You should call your mom right now to pick you up. I'll be fine on my own until my mom gets back."
Nagihiko found himself frowning. "You know that I can't- I mean, I'm not supposed to - leave you."
"You can," she said, picking up Nadeshiko's phone on the table and handing it to her, "and you will."
"But your mom-" he protested weakly, reaching out to take the phone anyway.
"-will understand. Trust me, it's not a big deal."
Nagihiko searched Rima's expression for anything that might have said otherwise as he asked, "Are you sure?"
She found nothing.
"Absolutely positive."
With a pitiable sigh, the purple-haired boy slowly dialed his mom's number and held the device up to his ear. "Hello, mother? I'm ready to be picked up now. I think I caught a cold from the rain today... yes, her mom's back... okay. See you soon. Love you too." He hung up the phone and leaned back against the cushions. "There. Are you happy now?"
"Yes," RIma stated. "How can I not be when I know you'll be out of my house in the next five minutes?"
"I thought you didn't hate me any-"
Nagihiko was practically pouting by the time he cut himself off. "You're mean. You shouldn't lie to me like that."
Rima smirked, repositioning herself so that she ended up perched on the edge of the table. "Aw, but I can't help it. You're gullible. At least you caught on. Amu would've taken me seriously," she grinned at the thought.
Nagihiko felt himself blush in embarrassment, grateful that his fever was already making his face red. "Whatever."
"...Are you pouting?" Rima asked, smiling in spite of herself.
"Maybe," he mumbled.
It was RIma who laughed first, but a small giggle escaped Nagihiko moments later and it wasn't long before the two had practically doubled over, laughing hysterically. The laughter eventually dissolved into a companionable silence, which persisted until there was a polite knock at the door.
"That's probably my mother," Nagihiko murmured, leaning against the couch's armrest as he stood. He stumbled a bit, but managed to right himself before he could fall (Rima was grateful for this, because she wouldn't have been able to catch Nadeshiko anyway).
Rima hobbled over to the couch, watching as her friend unlocked and opened the door with a kind smile. As expected, it was his mother, who appeared to be slightly distressed as she fussed over her son-disguised-as-a-daughter. "Nagihiko, are you all right?"
Rima raised an eyebrow at the name, just as he looked to his mother and all but hissed, "I'm Nadeshiko."
The woman looked startled for a moment, but laughed it off nervously and eventually went back to coddling her child. "You feel like you're burning up... At this rate, you won't be able to dance in the show this weekend..."
She blinked as she finally acknowledged Rima's presence in the room and the fact that she could hear their whole conversation.
"Oh, RIma-chan! You're so small, I didn't even notice you there." She laughed, oblivious to Rima's glaring. "It's so nice to see you again - how's your foot feeling?"
"Fine. A little sore, but I know it's healing." A light, mostly fake smile graced her features as she spoke.
"Where's your mom?"
Rima rubbed the back of her neck, looking bashful as she replied with a fluid lie. "She's showering right now. Sorry she's not here to greet you..."
The woman smiled warmly nonetheless. "That's all right. Just tell her I say hi, all right?"
"I will," she nodded.
There was a lull in the conversation before Nadeshiko's mom spoke up again. "Now... it's time for us to be leaving. Thank you for having Nadeshiko call me, and thanks for taking such good care of her. She needs more friends like you."
Rima tried not to look smug. She beamed like an angel as she replied. "Of course. Hope you feel better, Nadeshiko-chan."
Nagihiko wanted to groan in frustration. His mother, of all people... "Thanks, Rima-chan. I'll see you tomorrow if I'm feeling well enough to go to school."
As they said their goodbyes and closed the door behind them, RIma couldn't help but puzzle over just who Nagihiko was.
Don't hate me. It's not very good, and there was so much confusion with the name changes in the last section that I gave up trying to make it make sense. But I'll update sooner this time, I promise.
Reviews are always appreciated. :)