a series of (fortunate) events
Kanade winced as she stepped outside, the blinding sunlight making her squint. For a moment, she considered going back inside, but forced herself to continue forward. I’ll just be out for a little bit, she told herself. Then I can get back to work.
She clutched a short grocery list in her hand. Usually, she would usually just order food or leave this kind of thing up to Honami. However, Honami was busy preparing for a Leo/Need event, and Kanade wanted to surprise her with a full pantry the next time she visited.
A part of her was ashamed at how difficult she was finding this simple outing. Besides Kanade’s desire to constantly be working at her general dislike of public places, her physical health was also not great. Her lifestyle was not very… active, to say the least, and that combined with her lack of self-care forced her to pause and catch her breath whenever she walked for an extended period of time.
Oh well. Maybe this little shopping trip will be good in the long run.
She started to make the short trek to the store, trying to hide her raspy breaths from passersby. It probably wasn’t a good idea to wear a hoodie on such a hot day, but she hadn’t had the motivation to change earlier. She sure was feeling the effects, though.
Finally, after what felt like hours, Kanade arrived at her destination. Sure, her head hurt and her vision was a little blurry, but she could deal with it. After all, she only had to be here for a few minutes, right?
Wrong.
Grocery shopping, Kanade learned, was more difficult than she anticipated. There were so many aisles, and so many sections within those aisles, and-
Maybe she just wasn’t good at shopping.
Kanade gripped her grocery cart with both hands, partially out of anxiousness and partially for physical support.
Fifteen minutes later, Kanade had a grand total of two items in her cart- a box of cereal and a roll of towels. She could feel her body begging for a break, but she kept going. She struggled to read her list, though she couldn’t tell if it was her handwriting or growing fatigue. There were just so many shelves, and boxes, and-
Pretty girls?
Or, more specifically, pretty girl, singular- Hinomori Shizuku. Kanade had met Shizuku before, and had even spent some time with her in group settings, and she couldn’t help but gape at her beauty each time.
Even in the casual outfit she was wearing today, she was still radiant. She had on a simple white blouse and pale green skirt, both of which complimented her hair perfectly.
You’re staring. Stop it.
“Ah, Kanade! Hello!” Shizuku noticed her and smiled, the simple gesture making Kanade’s heart skip a beat. “This is such a pleasant surprise.” She moved towards Kanade, the flowing of her skirt making it seem like she was gliding. “What brings you here?”
“Just, um. Picking up some groceries,” Kanade replied, her voice quiet and raspy from lack of use. She glanced at her barren cart. “It’s not going too well.”
Shizuku followed her gaze and laughed. “I can see that.” Her voice was in no way mean or even teasing- it was genuine, which was surprisingly endearing. “Would you like some help?”
Kanade’s eyes grew wide. “No! I mean, I would love your help, but you clearly have something you need to do, seeing as you’re at the store…” her voice trailed off as she stopped herself from rambling.
“It’s really no problem!” Shizuku took a step closer, and Kanade felt her arm brush against her own. “I had nothing important to attend to anyways. I would love to spend some time with you.”
Did she… really mean that? No. She was just being nice, no need to overthink it. Before Kanade could object further, Shizuku placed a hand on her cart. “Let’s see… Do you have a list?”
Wordlessly, Kanade handed over the now crumpled piece of paper. “Wonderful! Now, let’s go.” Shizuku started pushing the cart without warning, eliciting a soft yelp from Kanade as she was pulled along. “Cooking wine… ah, I know where that is,” Shizuku murmured, thinking aloud. Kanade noticed how she brought her fingertip up to her chin as she thought, ever so slightly tilting her head to the side.
They continued on like this for a while, efficiently going through the rest of the items on Kanade’s list. However, due to Shizuku needing to lead but Kanade needing the physical support of the cart, they ended up in a position where they were each holding the handle. Shizuku’s left hand found its way onto Kanade’s right, and though she knew it was unintentional, Kanade couldn’t stop the blush that crept onto her cheeks.
After they paid, they were able to (finally) step outside the confines of the store, and Kanade had never been so relieved to go outside. Three small bags were piled in the cart, and Kanade’s stomach churned when she realized she would have to carry those home.
“Well, it was great shopping with you,” Shizuku said. “I hope we can- Kanade, are you alright?” Her voice was suddenly concerned, a stark shift from her carefree tone.
Kanade opened her mouth to reply, but a familiar feeling had already spread throughout her body. Black spots obscured her vision, and her body felt light. Please, no, this can’t be happening now.
It was happening. Her body was swaying, and her head began to droop. She felt something on her back, steadying her. Shizuku. Even so, it was too late. She got one more look at Shizuku’s worried, shocked expression, before she felt the world grow dark.
~~~
Shizuku had meant to go out for a quick grocery run. That was all- she was running low on produce.
So how had she ended up with a girl she barely knew passed out on her couch?
Maybe that was harsh. She and Kanade had spent time together a few times, but only because their social circles overlapped a bit, with Ena being friends with Airi.
Despite this, a part of Shizuku wished they were closer. She and Kanade were different in almost every conceivable way, from their personalities to their clothing, and perhaps that was what drew Shizuku to her.
However, she definitely hadn’t expected them to grow close like this. She hadn’t expected to run into Kanade in the store, and she hadn’t expected the girl to quite literally collapse into her arms. So, in the moment, Shizuku had done what any person in her situation would have done: she carried Kanade to her car and brought her to her house.
What was she supposed to do? She didn’t have her phone on her, and even if she did, she doubted she could figure out how to call medical services. And she just did what any friend would do. She and Kanade were friends, right?
But now, looking down at Kanade’s small form passed out on her couch, Shizuku began to wonder if she had done the wrong thing. No. I did what any friend would do- Kanade will understand.
“Eh- where am I?”
Kanade’s weak voice caught Shizuku off guard, and after she gathered her thoughts, she noticed Kanade was starting to stir. Slowly, confusion began to cloud her gaze- confusion which quickly turned to fear and shock. “Shizuku? Why am I… why did you…”
Sensing the poor girl’s growing panic, Shizuku scrambled to explain herself. “Kanade! I can explain.” She raised her palms, showing she did not mean any harm. “You passed out, and I-”
“Am I in your house?” Kanade finally seemed to connect the dots. “Oh my god. I passed out on you, and now I’m in your house.” She shot up into a sitting position and pulled her knees to her chest. Now it was Shizuku’s turn to be confused. What was she doing? But then she heard Kanade struggling to suck in breaths, and saw her chest heaving. She knew what was going on.
Shiho used to have frequent panic attacks- she still had them, actually, but they were thankfully few and far between. Regardless, Shizuku had quite a bit of experience with them. Settling down next to Kanade, she spoke to her with a gentle yet even tone. “Can I touch you?” Maybe that was straightforward, but she felt that in this situation she needed to be.
Between breaths, Kanade gave an almost indiscernible nod. Smiling, Shizuku shifted closer and clasped one of Kanade’s hands in her own. “Okay. You don’t have to speak, but try and breathe with me, alright?”
Shizuku exaggerated her breaths, squeezing Kanade’s hand with every inhale and relaxing with every exhale. To be honest, she couldn’t tell if she was helping, but at the very least things didn’t seem to be getting worse.
To her relief, in a minute or two Kanade’s shaking subsided and her breathing slowed to a normal rate. She saw her eyes dart down to their joined hands, and Shizuku quickly unlaced their fingers. “...Are you feeling okay?”
Kanade blinked, then folded her hands neatly in her lap. “Yes.” Her monotone voice was a stark contrast to her panicked state moments prior. “I apologize for that.”
“It’s no problem,” Shizuku assured her with a smile. “As long as you’re feeling better.”
Seeming to take that as her cue, Kanade ran a hand through her hair. “Well, I do feel much better now. Thank you for all the help- I’ll pay you back sometime. But for now, I’ll leave you be.” She stood up abruptly, and proceeded to flop back down onto the couch immediately afterward.
Shizuku rushed to grab Kanade’s shoulders in order to steady her. She knew that the girl was in no real danger- she had the couch to fall back on- but something within her still sent a wave of concern throughout her body.
“I don’t think so,” Shizuku chided. “At least let me make you some tea and a little snack- there’s no way I’m letting you leave in this condition.” Her voice held a quiet power to it, and she saw Kanade raise her eyebrows in response.
“Okay.”
Shizuku was beginning to learn that Kanade was someone of very few words.
Nodding, Shizuku hurried upstairs and quickly made two cups of chamomile tea and sliced up an apple. She was nothing if not a good host, and she was determined to ease at least some of Kanade’s stress.
She returned to the living room to see Kanade in the exact same position she had been in when she left- sitting cross-legged with her arms hugging her body. Her eyes had a vacant look in them, and Shizuku had to admit, the expression was a little unsettling.
“Oh, hello.” Kanade noticed Shizuku’s arrival and tilted her head to the side.
Shizuku blinked. “Er, hi!” She placed the plate of apple slices and the two cups of tea on the small table. “Here you go.” Kanade didn’t move at first, instead fiddling with the sleeves of her hoodie and repeatedly glancing from the food to Shizuku.
Oh. She wants me to eat first. Shizuku grabbed a slice of apple and took a sip of her tea, eyeing Kanade as she did so. To her relief, she seemed to be comforted by her actions, and did the same. They ate in a comfortable silence for a while, the only sounds being the muffled whirring of the fan. Finally, Shizuku decided to take a leap of faith.
“Does this happen often? The fainting, I mean.” Kanade pursed her lips together, and Shizuku was sure that she would just avoid the question.
“I suppose so,” Kanade said eventually, catching Shizuku off guard. “You could say that I struggle with self-care a little; I have a housekeeper to help me with that.”
Shizuku hummed, her brows furrowing in concern. “I see.” She didn’t question further- those few words told her all she needed to know. “Well, if you ever need anything, I’m always here.”
For a brief moment, Kanade’s expression shifted to some intense emotion that Shizuku couldn’t place, before it switched back to its usual tired appearance. “Thank you.” Their eyes met, and something about Kanade’s soft blue eyes made it impossible to look away.
An unexpected comment broke Shizuku out of her daze. “Do you… can you… are you doing anything later today?”
~~~
Why did I say that. Why did I say that. Why did I-
“No, actually! I’m free for the rest of the day. Why do you ask?”
Well, she couldn’t back out now. Something had possessed her in that moment; a sudden surge of boldness overtaking all logical thinking. But Shizuku was looking at her expectantly, and Kanade knew she had to continue.
“I was thinking- if you want, of course- that we could do something together. Hang out.” Those words seemed foreign on Kanade’s lips. Her only real friends were Mafuyu, Mizuki, and Ena, so this wasn’t something she did often.
Shizuku clasped her hands together and smiled. “I would love to! Did you have a place in mind?”
Kanade hadn’t thought that far. Honestly, she had been prepared for outright rejection. “Um… the arcade?’
Less than a half hour later, they were at the arcade.
Though Kanade didn’t get out of the house often, she had been here more than a few times. Something about virtual worlds was enthralling to her- there was always a set number of possibilities, and specific methods to get to them. The real world was so… unexpected.
Shizuku nudged her. “I have to admit something. I… have never been to an arcade before. I’m a bit out of my element, to be honest.”
For once, Kanade was confident. She knew this place. This was familiar. “C’mon.” She took Shizuku’s hand, pulling the taller girl through rows of machines until she reached her destination. “Here. This is one of my favorites.” It was one of the many rhythm games, and it was one that Kanade had gotten pretty decent at. “Do you want me to, ah, show you how to play?”
Shizuku nodded, her face an adorable mix of confusion and excitement. “I would appreciate that,” she said.
As Kanade selected a song, she couldn’t help but feel a bit nervous. What if she performed poorly? Would Shizuku judge her? She knew she wouldn’t, but a part of Kanade also wanted to impress her. Maybe that was pathetic- wanting to impress a pretty girl with a rhythm game- but Kanade didn’t have much practice in the “girls” department.
But games? She could do that.
She let her brain turn off, letting herself operate on pure muscle memory. Kanade’s hands flew across the buttons in tandem with the music, until the clicks seemed to become a part of the melody.
[FULL COMBO!]
Kanade didn’t fully come back to reality until she heard excited clapping. “That was wonderful! You were moving so fast- it was like magic.” Shizuku’s eyes were wide with awe, and her smile was full genuine joy.
A blush spread across Kanade’s pale cheeks. “Oh… it was nothing,” she assured. But she couldn’t help but smile as well. “Would you like to try?”
Shizuku hummed her assent, and stepped up to the machine. She stared blankly at the screen for a few moments, and Kanade realized she probably still didn’t really understand how it worked.
“Uh, here,” Kanade mumbled, taking Shizuku’s hand in her own. “This is the select button-” she moved her hand to a green button near the top. “And these are the buttons you press during gameplay. The colors correspond to the colors onscreen.” She grazed her hands over each one, before quickly pulling away and clearing her throat. “You can select a song now.”
Shizuku nodded slowly and followed her directions, choosing one of the easiest charts. As the song began, Kanade found herself focusing less on the game and more on Shizuku. Her expression, her movements… it was all so graceful. Even with something as casual as a rhythm game, she did everything with such poise. She squinted her eyes in concentration, making sure to press each button with purpose.
As soon as the chart finished, she turned to Kanade. “How did I do? Did I do well?” Though she didn’t finish with a full combo, she did pretty good for her first time.
Kanade smiled and squeezed her shoulder. “Yes. Yes, you did very well.”
They played for a while longer, with Shiziku quickly improving until even she managed to full combo a song. Thoroughly satisfied, they began to look around for another game to play, when an idea crossed Kanade’s mind.
“They have Mario Kart over there,” she said, pointing. “It’s pretty easy to learn, and I don’t really ever get to play it because I don’t usually have anyone to play it with.” Only after saying that did Kanade realize how sad that sounded. It was true, though. She always saw friend groups and couples laughing while racing their virtual go-karts, and then there was Kanade: huddled over her little rhythm game in the corner.
“Well, today you have me! Let’s go.” Now it was Shizuku’s turn to lead, hooking her arm through Kanade’s and hurrying over to the machine. Kanade caught a glimpse of her face as they moved, with her long hair flowing behind her and her angled jawline illuminated by the colorful lights of the arcade.
They reached the game, and Shizuku gestured towards one of the seats. “After you.” Kanade ran a hand through her hair and sat down, and Shizuku followed suit, settling into the one next to her. “The controls for this one are simple. This button uses power ups, this one starts the car, and you use the wheel to steer.” She gave Shizuku a sideways glance. “Ready? I’m not gonna go easy on you.”
Shizuku tried her best to look confrontational. It didn’t work. “You’re on.”
After selecting a track, the game began. Neither of them were all that good at it- Kanade moved at a snails pace and Shizuku kept crashing into walls- but it didn’t matter. They were teasing each other, and smiling, and laughing. And as they neared the end of the last lap, Kanade came to a realization.
I want this.
She wanted to laugh, and smile, and be happy. She wanted to ask people to hang out. She wanted to spend time with Shizuku, in all her blue-haired, cheerful glory.
“Kanade, is something the matter?”
The race had finished: Kanade had come in 12th and Shizuku 11th. Kanade’s eyes were watering.
“No, nothing at all. I’m just having a lot of fun.”
Shizuku laughed, the noise sounding like windchimes blown by a gentle breeze. “I’m having fun as well.”
Kanade didn’t know how long they spent in the arcade. Instead of being measured in minutes or hours, time passed in the form of laughs shared, jokes made, and hands grazed against each other.
At some point, the amount of people started to dwindle, and she sensed that the night was coming to a close. Before it did, though, Kanade had something she wanted to do.
~~~
Kanade and Shizuku stood outside of the now closed arcade, each of them holding a small plastic bag. They were the only people around, which made sense, given the fact that they were standing outside in the middle of the night. But Kanade kind of liked it- just her, Shizuku, and the moon.
“I, um. Got you something,” Kanade said, stammering a little. She handed Shizuku the bag, and watched with bated breath as she opened it. “I tried to pick something you would like.”
Shizuku reached into the bag and her mouth fell into a small “o” shape when she saw what was inside. It was a fluffy blue bunny plush, with floppy ears and a small white tail. When Shizuku didn’t speak, Kanade began to worry that she didn’t like it.
Then, Shizuku pulled her into a hug.
“I love it so much. Thank you, Kanade.” She felt Shizuku’s arms wrap around her, and though Kanade was caught off guard at first, she found the position… comforting. It was a strange feeling, one that scared Kanade with its unfamiliarity. But she found herself reciprocating the gesture, awkwardly wrapping her arms around Shizuku’s waist.
They broke apart after a few moments, and Shizuku thrust her own bag in Kanade’s direction. “This is a coincidence- I got you something as well!”
Confused, Kanade took it peered inside the bag. To her surprise, she reached in and pulled out… a water bottle. Granted, it was a very pretty water bottle- it was adorned with music notes and symbols.
“Let me explain,” Shizuku said quickly. “I know you struggle with self-care, and drinking water is a large part of that. So! I got you this in the hopes that it motivates you to drink more.” Kanade felt a surge of emotion overtake her. This was the most thoughtful gift she had ever received. And beyond that… Shizuku cared. Shizuku cared for Kanade. “I know it’s a bit strange, but I hope you like it.”
Kanade looked from the bottle to Shizuku and smiled. A real, genuine, smile. “I love it. Thank you, Shizuku.”
And then, that was it. They each knew that this was the time when they should be saying their goodbyes and heading home, but Kanade was scared to. What if this was the last time she would feel like this? What if after today, this night would be forgotten?
Shizuku took hold of Kanade’s hands. “I had a lot of fun, Kanade. Thank you.” She began to turn away, but Kanade reached out and stopped her.
“Shizuku!”
The girl looked back, surprised. “Yes?”
She swallowed. “We should do this again. Soon.”
Shizuku smiled. “I would love that.”
Kanade watched as she walked away, the moonlight turning her blue hair a shade of silver. And then, even though she knew Shizuku couldn’t see her, Kanade smiled.