29. Exhaustion
Late into the evening, Len's lounging and reading a manga he just bought when Rin enters the house. The door slams with a loud thud behind her, and she staggers into the living room, groaning. She drops her bag to the ground and plops ungracefully into a chair, her eyes closed.
"How'd practice go?" Len asks, eying her exhausted frame.
"Terrible." She mutters darkly. "Miku worked me to the bone. I know the dance steps of 'Summer Idol' are important and all, but if she keeps adding to the moves every practice, I'll never get it down." Rin sighs.
Placing his manga down in his seat, Len rises. Feeling a bit sympathetic, as he knows how brutal Miku can be with her practices, he wanders over to her. "Here, sit up a little," He urges.
"Why…?" She does as he asks even if she's a bit perplexed.
He answers by moving behind her and taking hold of her shoulders, gently rubbing his thumbs along her shoulder blades. She lets out a pleasant noise, relaxing into his grasp and allowing him to continue his ministrations without further inquiry.
He tenderly massages her tense muscles for awhile, working out the kinks from several hours of strenuous exercise, until Rin stops him by placing her slim hand over his. "This feels, like, unbelievably great, but I'm kinda hungry."
"Hold on, I'll get you an orange." Len offers.
"Thanks, Len. You're an awesome brother." Rin says, leaning back into the comfortable chair and re-closing her eyes.
Len retrieves the orange from the refrigerator, but when he returns, he sees it no longer will be needed. His sister's blonde head is tilted to the side, and a light snore exits her slightly opened mouth. Completely, utterly asleep. She must've been seriously tired.
He chuckles slightly, then turns away. Moments later, he returns with a throw blanket, coming over and tucking it around her. Once he's done, he leans down and plants a chaste kiss to her forehead.
"Good night, Rin." He says fondly, sending a sweet smile her way before turning in for bed himself.