Kindness

Takina checked her phone one last time before putting it in the pocket of her skirt. “Chisato?” She walked towards the closet and took a foldable umbrella. “Are you not bringing an umbrella?”

Chisato stretched her arms above her head as she opened the door of the cafe slightly, peeking at the cloudy sky. “Nah~ I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

“The forecast said it’d be raining by noon.” Takina walked towards her as Chisato held the door open for her. “It would be best to bring two umbrellas.”

“It’ll be fine~”

“…It’s not fine.” Chisato sighed as she held the umbrella between her and Takina in a torrent of rain. “Ugh. I hate wet socks…”

Takina watched Chisato with a frown. “I told you to bring another one…”

Chisato pouted at her and stopped walking. “I knoooow~~” She looked at the sky. “I believed in you, traitor weather!”

“Don’t shout at the sky…” Takina closed her eyes and sighed.

“Takina.” Chisato looked at Takina, then behind her. “We have time, right?”

“Yes. We don’t have any other duties for today, and today’s a slow day for the cafe too. We have time.” Takina blinked at her. “Is something the matter?” Chisato only smiled at her then looked behind her. Takina turned around and saw what Chisato was looking at.

There was a small girl taking a shelter at the nearby bus stop. She was worriedly looking around her, then the sky, then a sigh. Chisato and Takina approached her as Chisato closed the umbrella she was holding, taking shelter.

“Hey. My name’s Chisato. What’s your name?” Chisato handed Takina the umbrella as she crouched by the girl.

“I’m Takina.” Takina nodded at the girl.

“Rika.” The girl replied curtly as she looked at the two of them.

Chisato smiled softly. “Are you okay? Are you lost? Can you tell this Onee-san what’s wrong?” Takina stood to the other side of the child as she watched the two of them interact.

The Rika looked at her first. Wary, but also worried, and confused. “…I ran away from home.”

“Ahhh…” Chisato looked at Takina who nodded. “Did you get lost? Do you remember your way home? Or anything about your home? Your home phone number, your mom’s name?”

“…I know how to get home, I’m not lost.” The young girl pouted at her. “…I had a fight with my mother, but I thought that maybe she would be happy if I brought home a gift for her. I bought this doll keychain but when it started raining really hard, people started running and I lost the other one…”

“It was a pair that was for you and your mother? That’s sweet.” Chisato smiled as she looked at the keychain. “Do you remember where you were?”

“I was in the park. I wanted to go search for it but the rain won’t stop…” The girl looked like she was about to tear up. “I need to go home soon or my mother would scold me again…”

“Okay, no worries. Leave it to Chisato Onee-san!” Chisato grinned at her. “Can I take this one so I can find it? Could you tell me more about the other one?”

“It was the same thing but a blue one, because my mother likes the color blue.” Rika sniffed as she wiped her eyes and handed Chisato the keychain. “Are you really going to find it?”

“I got it.” Chisato winked at her. “Takina, stay here, okay? I’ll be back soon.” She handed Takina her bag and phone and immediately dashed into the rain.

“Ah, Chisato! Take the umbre– And she’s gone.” Takina blinked as she stared at the umbrella in her hand, then to the child. “Should we sit down?”

Rika nodded at her. The two of them took a seat at the bus stop’s waiting area.

“Is she really going to find it?” Rika asked as she looked up to Takina.

Takina smiled at her and nodded. “Yes, she will.”

Chisato narrowed her eyes as she covered her face with an arm from the rain. She looked at the empty and lonely looking park. “…Should have asked where she was…” She looked at the pink keychain in her hand and started looking.

Since it was raining, it might have fallen onto the floor, and got covered by mud. Chisato looked at the ground as she slowly walked through the park, each rain drop hitting her body.

She spent a long time looking at the floor. Chisato looked up the angry sky raining on her and shook her head from rain. “Couldn’t you like calm down a little or something?” She looked further into the park and saw a familiar shape. She ran over to it and looked at it carefully.

It was black and covered in mud. She compared it with the doll key chain in her other hand and smiled. “Yes!”

“Takina Onee-chan.” Rika looked up the black haired girl next to her. “Are you sure she’d be fine?”

After sitting there for an hour, surely, even Takina was a little bit worried but above it all, she was confident. “She will be.” She smiled at the girl as she heard familiar footsteps nearing them.

“I got it!” Chisato arrived in a slide stop in front of them. “Whoa whoops.” Almost splashing them with some water. “Ah choo!”

“Get in here.” Takina stood up and pulled Chisato under the roof by her sleeves.

Chisato knelt by Rika and opened her hands. “Err… It’s a bit, well, sort of, uh, very dirty but it’s this one, right?”

Rika looked at the pair of dolls and smiled brightly. “Yes! It is! Thank you, Chisato Onee-chan!”

Chisato looked at the child in surprise, her expression slowly growing into a big smile with her eyes sparkling. “O- Onee-chan…!”

“Takina Onee-chan said I could call you that…” Rika tilted her head to one side.

Chisato looked at Takina who immediately turned away from her. “Taaaakinaaaaa~”

She was about to lunge at her with her arms open but found her face smashing into a warm and dry towel. “Keep yourself warm or you’ll catch a cold.”

“You brought a towel?” Chisato pulled the towel over her head and shoulders.

“I knew you’d do something like this, so I was ready.” Takina sighed and turned to the confused girl. “Are you going to be able to get home?”

“Y- Yes… but I don’t have an umbrella…” The girl looked at the floor with a frown.

“Is your house far from here?” Takina asked before Chisato could.

The girl shook her head. “It’s only a five minute walk down the road.”

“Chisato. Stay here, I’ll walk her home, then I’ll come and get you.” Takina pushed Chisato down the chair next to their bags.

“Ehhh? I’m already wet from the rain, wouldn’t be much better if–“

“Stay there, and dry yourself before you catch a cold.” Takina only glared at her and opened her umbrella.

“Ehhh? Are you angry?” Chisato tried to peek at Takina’s expression but the umbrella was in the way.

“Let’s go.” Takina patted Rika on the head and urged her to take her hand as they walked towards the road.

“Takinaaaa.”

“Ahchoo!” The bell rang as the door to the cafe opened.

“Whoa, don’t spread some viruses here.” Mizuki immediately sprayed Chisato the air freshener spray that was already in her hands as they clean up the cafe for the day.

“Don’t spray it at me!” Chisato frantically waved her hands away in front of her. “Ahchoo!”

Mika handed Chisato another towel as Takina took the one she was already using. “What happened?”

“We helped a little girl, but Chisato didn’t take an umbrella with her.” Takina answered and helped dry Chisato with another towel from Mika.

“Oh? Chisato, welcome back.” A fresh from the shower Kurumi opened the door from the back room and was surprised to find Chisato getting dried by Mizuki and Takina. “I just finished my bath. The water’s still warm hurry and go in.”

“Ahchoo! Thank you!” Chisato grabbed all of the towels being damped at her and nodded.

“Are you going to be okay?” Takina asked, worry across her face.

“I’ll be fine~ Idiots don’t catch a cold, and all that!” Chisato flexed an arm and entered the back room.

Takina only watched her disappear behind that door with a sigh.

Chisato snored as her consciousness surfaced to a familiar cooking show ringtone followed by her phone vibrating. “Gwah! Takina!” She immediately opened her eyes and answered the phone. “Hello? I answered in one ring!”

“…Chisato, open the door.” Takina spoke into the phone and Chisato blinked in confusion.

“Huh?” Chisato immediately stood up from her bed and headed for the door. She opened it without thinking and immediately saw Takina enter. “Taaakina… Uh? Huh…?” Her vision blurred as she blinked slowly and then everything was darkness.

“…sato? Chisato?” Chisato struggled to open her eyes as worried purple eyes stared into her. “Chisato! I’m glad… You finally woke up.”

“…Takina? Huh?” Chisato tried to get up but only found her shoulders pushed back down to her bed, finding it odd how she wasn’t able to fight her back. “What’s going on?”

“You collapsed at the door way, so I dragged you here.” Takina answered flatly.

“Dragged? Couldn’t you be gentle?” Chisato retorted as she would usually do and Takina smiled. “What?”

“If you’re able to respond to me like then, I suppose I was worried for nothing.” Takina breathed a sigh of relief as she wrung a towel from the bowl of water next to the bed.

“…You were worried?” Chisato stared at her with sparkling eyes.

“I take it back. Go back to sleep, sick person.” Takina sighed as she slapped the wet towel onto Chisato’s face.

“Fwarghggff–Ohh… that’s nice and cold…” Chisato adjusted the towel onto her forehead and looked at Takina who sat next to her bed with her arms crossed. “…I’m sorry I made you worry.”

“Good that you know.” Takina glared at her, then her expression softens. “You’re running at 39C. Everyone already knew at the cafe, so don’t worry about today’s work.”

“Thankshoomuch.” Chisato responded lazily and closed her eyes. “Does me catching a cold meant I’m not an idiot?”

Takina sighed. “If only you had gone to Yamagishi-sensei and taken your vitamins, then you wouldn’t have gotten one.”

“Ohh.” Chisato agreed. “Nope. Still wouldn’t have gone. Agh, gack.” She coughed suddenly, as if the rest of the cold decided to catch up to her. “…Okay, maybe I would have.”

“Do you have some appetite?” Takina ignored all her complaints about getting her physical check up and got up from the chair she was sitting at.

“Eh, you’re going?” Chisato looked at her sadly. “I do feel a bit hungry though.”

“I’m just going to heat up the porridge I cooked. I’ll be back immediately.” Takina left the room without even looking back at her. Maybe because she felt that if she saw Chisato’s lost puppy look again, she’d end up sitting next to her instead of getting her to eat something so she could drink her medicine.

Takina returned in less than three minutes with a tray on her hands. A bowl of porridge atop it with a glass of water and some medicine.

“Here.” She sat back down to the chair and Chisato sat up from the bed without moving. “Chisato?”

“Are you gonna feed me?” Chisato looked at her expectantly.

“……” Takina only watched her in silence, the heat from her chest evident as she blushed. “…Only this time.”

“Hehe. Yaaaay~” Chisato laughed like a child, and although Takina would never say it, she found it cute. “Takina’s cooking~ Takina’s cooking~”

Takina picked up the spoon, and scooped some of the rice porridge. She blew on it a few times, and offered it to Chisato. “A… Ahh~”

“Ahh~ Mm!” Chisato closed her eyes in delight as she swallowed. “That’s delicious! Wah~”

“Okay, okay. There’s no need to fuss.” Takina laughed as she scooped up one more and offered it to Chisato.

“Mm~ So gooood~” Chisato smiled at Takina as she gripped her blanket sitting on her lap. “You’d make a great and amazing wife~”

“Chisato?” Takina noticed immediately the change in her tone and expression.

“Hm-hm. It’s nothing. Just that, you know how we don’t have any family registry? It just meant that we won’t have the opportunity to get married.” Chisato smiled wryly. “I would totally make you my wife!”

Takina blinked at her before raising an eyebrow. “What are you talking about? Do you think there’s someone else around here who could deal with you better than me?”

“Ahh! Is that a proposal Takina-san?” Chisato smirked at her.

“Propo–!?”

“…Don’t you sometimes wonder about what we would have been like if we were normal?” Chisato looked down at her lap. “…If there was something I could do that could make you live a normal life, I think I’d do it.”

“Me?” Takina looked at her in surprise.

“Mm~! Your pure smile, how you do your best at everything… You would have led a nice peaceful life without all the killing, I bet.” Chisato smiled at her.

“…Don’t say that as if you aren’t going to be there.” Takina held the spoon tightly. “Where are you in the picture?”

“Hmm… What do you mean?” Chisato looked at her in confusion.

Takina only stared at her in disbelief. Is this about your artificial heart? Are you excluding yourself from my life because you don’t know when you’re going to die? No, Inoue Takina. This isn’t the time to be engaging her in this conversation, it’s definitely just the cold talking. “Have you ever caught a cold before?”

“Nope!” Chisato grinned at her.

“Here eat some more then drink your medicine.” Takina offered the tray to Chisato and stood up from her chair. “I’ll clean up the kitchen while you’re eating.”

Chisato obliged without saying anything else. She watched Takina leave the room in confusion. “Weird, Takina.”

“Once you’re done, leave the tray on the chair and try to get some sleep.”

Chisato wasn’t sure how long she fell asleep but when she woke up, the sun was already setting. She slowly sat up and looked at the orange sun rays from the window, her gaze settling at the black haired girl sleeping on the side of her bed.

Memories of their recent conversation flashed back into her mind.

“Where are you in the picture?”

“What do you mean?”

Chisato closed her eyes again as the urge to slap her own face surged through her. The hurt expression Takina showed her the moment those words came out of her mouth. What do you get by telling that to someone who loves you?

She stared at Takina’s sleeping face as she gently touched her hair. Chisato gently took Takina’s hand as she entwined their fingers together.

“Mm… Chisato?” Takina lifted up her head and brushed her eyes with her other hand.

“Ah, sorry. I woke you, didn’t I?”

“No. It’s fine. How do you feel?”

“Much better.” Chisato smiled at her. “Say, Takina. I’m sorry about earlier.”

“What are you talking about?”

“When I was talking about what I think you would have been like if you were a normal person.” Chisato stared at her lap. “You know how I have an artificial heart meant I don’t have much time? That was the main reason I lived to do what I want to do everyday. Then you came, then a lot of things changed. It’s the very first time I’ve felt like this.”

“Chisato?” Takina stared at her, confused.

“I was always alone in the cafe, so having someone who worries for me like you do, someone who is always by my side. I thought, am I really allowed to feel this much happiness everyday? Is it really okay? Then it made me afraid.” Chisato looked at Takina with a pained expression as she squeezed their entwined fingers. She clutched her chest with her other hand. “…What if suddenly I’m gone? What about the pain I’m gonna cause you when that happens? I didn’t want to think about it.”

“Chisato…” Takina squeezed back at her hand.

“I’m afraid of hurting you. I feel like you’re the only good thing that happened to me. I don’t want to hurt you.” Chisato lightly tugged at Takina’s hand as she clutched the blanket on her lap.

Takina stood up from her chair and sat down onto Chisato’s bed. She untangled their fingers and wrapped her arms around Chisato’s body, pressing Chisato’s face onto her chest. “Chisato. It’s fine.”

“It’s not fine! I–“

“Stay quiet and listen to me for a moment.” Takina patted Chisato’s head. “…It’s fine. I’m happy that you don’t want to hurt me, but if it was the pain caused by loving you, and being loved by you, I will take it, whenever it will come. That’s why, you have to let me protect you, too. Just as you said… I’m still in the middle. You are, too. From here on, we just move on, together.”

Chisato didn’t say anything for a moment, only wrapping her arms around Takina’s warm body.

“I think it’s okay to be happy. Isn’t that what you wanted? To do what you want to do the most. Then, if being happy now is what you want to do, then so be it.” Takina continued to caress Chisato’s head as she closed her eyes and hugged her tighter.

“Takina…” Chisato lifted her face up from the hug. “Your heart’s beating so fast.”

“Be… quiet.” Takina looked away as she lightly smacked Chisato’s head.

“Takina, what do I do? I really want to kiss you right now…” Chisato looked at her with so much yearning, Takina got worried she might just let her.

“No. I might catch your cold.” Takina looked at her with dead eyes.

“Ehhh~ Just one? Please?” Chisato put her hands together to plead.

“…Once you’re better, you can… do as much as you want.” Takina looked away with a blush.

“Kiss-All-You-Want-Takina!?” Chisato looked at her with a huge smile. “All right.”

Takina parted from the hug and worriedly watched Chisato, as to she seemed like she was concentrating on something. Her eyes closed, without saying anything.

“OHHHH! I’m feeling much better, Takina! I’m all well!” Chisato suddenly flexed both of her arms and smiled at Takina. “Could I kiss you now?”

Takina closed her eyes. “No.”

“Fweeeehhhh?”

“Chisato…”

“Takina.”

Takina turned to look at Chisato.

“Thank you.” Chisato grinned at her. “I’ll do my best so that we can be together for a long time. Will you still have me?”

Takina returned the smile. “Is that a proposal?”

“Ahh~ You’re doing that again! I’m gonna blow you away with a proposal you can’t imagine!”

“Please don’t use a bomb.”

“Don’t be so cold~ Ahh, ow, ow, ow, my head.”

“Chisato!? Are you okay!?”

“Hnnnng~ That side of you that immediately gets worried for me is so adorable!”

“Geez! I don’t know you anymore!”

“Ahhhhhhhh~ Takinaaaa, don’t go~”

“Hmph!”

“I love youuuu???”

“…Fine. I’ll forgive you.”

(Kindness/END)

Omake

“Takina. Are you… going to stay over?” Chisato asked the hanging question as it got darker outside.

Takina took the towel from Chisato’s forehead and dipped it into the basin of water. “…If you stop saying things like wanting to kiss me, then… I will.”

“Eh? Why?” Chisato sat up and looked at her with a worried expression.

“If you… keep on making that expression. I might just let you.” Takina looked away from Chisato and focused on wringing the towel in her hand.

“What expression?” Chisato grinned at her.

Takina glared at Chisato. “I’m not telling.”

“Ehhh~”

“If I do, you’ll just do it to me to get things your way.”

“Gwarghh… Figured out so easily…”

“Your intentions show on your face.”

“Tell me, please?” Chisato furrowed her eyebrows as she looked at Takina with that sad and pleading expression.

“No, I won’t.”

“Takina-sama~”

“I won’t.”

“Ple–wargmhgh.” Chisato picked up the thrown towel at her face and folded it. “Could you please stop throwing towels at my face?”

“If you’re going to be like that I’ll leave now.” Takina stood up from her chair, but immediately felt a tug at her skirt. She turned to look at that genuinely sad expression and immediately sat down on her chair. “I won’t leave.”

“Ehe.”

“…Only this time.” Takina pouted at her with a blush.

(END)