Next up, Atsuko_love
KORIIIIINNNNNNN~~~~~~ Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year~! I was supposed to send this up on Christmas day but I forgot about it and went on a holiday.. lulz
Welp, I'm back here finally so, here's my present to you..an Atsumina fluff.
Hope you will like it~
A month with the Takahashi clan
Atsuko was sitting in her room, listening to music, and working on a bit of Math homework, when she heard a knock at her door.
"Come in!" she called, turning her music down to a lower level, so that she would be able to hear whoever it was that wanted to speak to her.
Her mum made her way into her room and sat down on the edge of her bed, "Atsuko, you know your sister's looking into a few different Unis, right?"
Atsuko nodded, scribbling down the answer to the Math problem she'd been working on and then turning to face her mother.
"We've got to go off and take a tour of a few of them, and we've got to go out of Country."
"When?"
"We're leaving Saturday."
"How am I getting out of school?" Atsuko inquired.
Her mother shook her head, "That's the problem, Atsuko. You can't skip school. You've got to stay here."
"Oh." Atsuko said. "Alright, I should be fine on my own. How long will you be gone?"
"A little over a month, love. She's got a couple of Unis to look at in France, and three in America, so we'll be gone for a bit. And I don't want you staying home alone for so long, so I've called Mariko and she said you can stay at hers."
Atsuko tried not to roll her eyes. Mariko was her mum's best friend, and she got on with her alright whenever she'd stop by for tea or whatever. But the problem was that her daughter, Minami was an obnoxious little brat. Minami and Atsuko had been going to the same school for a while now, and she'd seen her around. Atsuko's mum and Mariko had made friends when the Takahashi's had moved into the area a few years ago, and Atsuko and Minami had hated each other ever since. There was just something about Minami that irked Atsuko to no end, and it seemed as if Minami felt the same way about her.
"So you don't trust me to stay home by myself?" Atsuko asked.
"For a little over a month?" Atsuko's mom asked. "It's not that I don't trust you, Atsuko. It's just that you'll need someone taking care of you and buying groceries while Ami and I are gone."
"Mum, I'm going to be old enough to live on my own in two years. I think I can handle being on my own for a month."
"You haven't got a job, Atsuko. How would you afford food?"
Atsuko sat there for a moment, deep in thought, "You could give me money."
"Atsuko, there's no use in that. Mariko's offered to let you stay with her, and she's a lovely woman. You like Mariko."
Atsuko shrugged, realizing she was fighting a losing battle and deciding to give up before she just made herself and her mother upset.
"Okay, fine."
"We'll only be gone a little over a month. I'm sure you'll be fine until then."
"Yeah, I'm sure you're right." Atsuko said, though she really didn't believe the words.
"Ami and I will drop you off on the way to the airport on Saturday, alright?"
Atsuko nodded, turning back to her Math homework, assuming that the conversation was over. her mother got up, kissing her on the temple before leaving the room. She let out a deep sigh and slammed her head against the desk. This was going to be a long month.
~~~~
On Saturday Atsuko's mum drove her over to the Takahashi household in the mid-afternoon, seeing as she and Ami had a flight to board by seven, and they wanted to get there quite early, because getting properly boarded took ages these days. She walked with her up to the front door, carrying one of the two duffel bags she'd packed, and she rang the doorbell once, hearing footsteps quickly approaching. Atsuko let out one last slightly defeated sigh, and then the front door opened, and she was greeted by the familiar face of Takahashi Mariko.
Mariko smiled. "Atsuko! So good to see you."
"I've got to be off." Atsuko's mother told her. "I just wanted to bring her up and give you a quick hello." She handed Atsuko her second duffel bag, and she threw it over her shoulder.
"You and Ami have fun looking around at the Unis, yeah?" Mariko smiled. "I'll take take of Atsuko here, don't worry."
Atsuko's mom gave her daughter a quick kiss on the top of the head, having to stand up on her tippy toes to do so, because she'd grown quite a lot in the past year. She told her to be good and then told Mariko to call her if anything important happened, and then she was headed back to the car, where Ami waited patiently in the passenger's seat.
Atsuko and Mariko both stood there, waving until the car was out of sight, and then Mariko ushered Atsuko into the house.
"Minami's out with the girls at the park, but you'll be sharing her room while you're here." Mariko said jovially. "She's got a bunk bed in there, so you won't have to sleep on the floor or the couch out here or anything." She smiled.
Neither Atsuko's mum nor Minami's mum knew that the two of them hated each other, so Atsuko just smiled back, nodding her understanding, and then following Mariko up to what would be her room for the next month or so. It was a nice size. Big enough that she and Minami wouldn't have to cross paths too much. If they each stayed on separate sides of the room aside from at night when they were sleeping, it'd probably be fine. The walls were a light blue, and the floors were wooden. All in all it was an okay living space. It was just rather shit that she'd have to be sharing it with Minami. Atsuko dropped her duffel bags down in the corner of the room, and Mariko smiled at her, signaling for her to follow her. They walked all the way down to the end of the hall and she pointed to a door.
"This right here is the bathroom. All you kids have to share This one. And then my room's at the other end of the hall. Yui's is here, Jurina's is there, and Yuki and Mayu's room is right there." She informed her, pointing to the room right next to hers, the room right next to Minami' and the room directly across from the bathroom respectively.
Atsuko nodded, not really sure why it mattered what room belonged to whom, but figuring it was good to know, just for reference.
"The television's down in the front room. I'm sure you saw it on your way past. Then we've got the kitchen, and the drawing room. You're welcome to snack throughout the day, but just make sure you're still hungry when supper time rolls around, yeah? I always do quite a bit of cooking at dinner, and it irks me when the children have stuffed themselves full of crisps and chocolate."
Atsuko gave her a small smile, "I'm not one for eating too much between meals."
"Brilliant." Mariko smiled. "You make yourself at home, Atsuko. I've got some tidying to get done, but Minami and the girls should be back soon and I'm sure they'll have ways to keep you company."
"Thanks, Mrs. Takahashi." Atsuko said, rather certain she'd much prefer to sit around and read than spend any time with Minami.
"You can call me Mariko, dear. You're going to be here for long enough. There's no use in using formal titles."
Atsuko nodded, "Got it."
"Good." Mariko gave her a pat on the back, and then walked away, heading down the stairs, going to get whatever tidying she needed to do done.
Atsuko made her way back to the room she was going to be sharing with Minami and tried to determine which bunk was meant to be her, but to no avail. There was no real difference between the two, so there was no way to tell which one was inherently Minami's. She found a chair sitting at the desk that was set up against the far wall, facing the window so that the sunlight spilled over the hardwood surface. She pulled the chair away from the desk, grabbed the book she'd been reading out of her duffel bag, and plopped down into the chair, beginning to read. She only got a few pages in when she heard the front door open downstairs, and then nearly half a dozen pairs of feet stomped into the house loudly. she then heard a few pairs of feet running up the steps, and she prayed that none of them belonged to Minami. Her prayers were not answered, however, because mere seconds later the door to the room was flying open and Minami was stepping inside.
"Damn. Forgot you were going to be here." Minami said, more to herself than to Atsuko.
"Sorry to burst your bubble, then." Atsuko said. "I don't want to be here any more than you want me here."
Minami rolled her eyes.
"Which bunk is mine, then?"
"Bottom." Minami told her. "I can't stand sleeping underneath other people."
"Got it." Atsuko said, flipping her book open again and beginning to read. Minami climbed up into her bunk, glancing over at Atsuko and scoffing loudly for seemingly no reason, before putting her headphones in and beginning to listen to some music that Atsuko assumed she herself would probably hate if she were to take a listen to it.
~~~
Nighttime was a bit awkward, because Atsuko didn't really want to change in front of Minami. It wasn't that she had an issue with Minami seeing her naked. It was just because she didn't like Minami, and she didn't like the idea of feeling vulnerable around her. So she went to the loo to change, putting on a pair of sweats and an old ratty t-shirt, seeing as she usually slept in the nude, she didn't really have any jim jams to speak of.
Minami climbed up to her bunk, and Atsuko flopped down on her, and there was an awkward bit of silence where it was obvious that neither of them was asleep yet, but neither of them were saying anything, nor were they doing anything, and it just gave Atsuko a sense of discomfort. she hadn't been able to fall asleep until well after Minami.
~~~~
The rest of the weekend went by fairly okay. Atsuko stayed in the room and read and worked on her homework, and Minami worked on her homework down in the kitchen and played with her little sisters, and they kept their distance and everything was fine.
As they were lying in bed on Sunday night, stuck in the awkward 'not quite asleep but not doing anything' stage, Minami spoke. It was the first time she'd spoken to her since she'd told her which bunk would be her yesterday afternoon.
"Mum says I ought to drive you to school tomorrow." Minami's voice was a little scratchy with sleep, and Atsuko had to ignore the way her heart fluttered a little happily at the sound. Minami hated her, and she hated Minami, and there was no room for fluttering hearts when it came to hatred.
"Yeah, alright."
"Shit, everyone's going to think we're friends now."
"Don't worry, I'll be sure they don't." Atsuko said, rolling her eyes, the fluttering her heart had been doing at Minami's sleepy tone quickly subsiding.
"Alright." Minami sighed heavily.
"Alright." Atsuko said. After that, they drifted off into the awkward stage yet again, where they were awake but not saying anything, and for a brief second Atsuko considered at least telling Minami goodnight, but thought better of it. Eventually she was able to fall into a mostly peaceful sleep.
~~~~
On Monday morning, Atsuko woke up a tad later than she'd planned, and found that Minami had already vacated the room. She got up, throwing on a pair of black jeans and a flannel shirt, combing her hair a bit, and heading sleepily down the stairs. As she made her way into the kitchen, she was surprised to find that Mariko had made a nice little breakfast for all of the children, whereas Atsuko herself was used to grabbing a quick bowl of cereal or an apple before school, as her mum hadn't the time to cook anything.
She sat down at the end of the table, which was where she had taken to sitting. It landed her across the table from Mariko, and not directly next to any of the children. It wasn't that she didn't like the girls, but she just didn't know them very well, and so the end of the table felt a little more secluded, and she preferred to stay there. They all sat there, munching away at their breakfast, most of them silent, aside from a few offhand comments from Jurina about some project she had due today that she was very certain she was going to get an A on.
Once they were all full and Atsuko was quite certain she and Minami were going to be late for school, they headed out the door. Atsuko and Minami's school started a bit earlier than school started for the younger sisters, so Mariko would be taking each of them to their respective schools later, as they didn't live quite near enough for a bus to come past. The ride to school was silent and awkward, and Atsuko almost felt as if she'd rather have been late and waited for Mariko to drive her later. Minami' gaze was placed firmly on the road, and yet Atsuko couldn't help but feel like she was watching her. She felt almost exposed in a way. Once they arrived at school, however, everything went on as normal, aside from a little extra attempt from Atsuko and Minami with avoiding each other.
After school, the ride home was just as awkward as the ride there, and then Atsuko made her way up to their room to hide out and do homework until dinner time, and then heading immediately back up into hiding after finishing the meal, grabbing a quick shower before bed, and then drifting off to sleep a little faster than she had the first two nights, getting a bit more used to the sleeping arrangements.
~~~~
The rest of the week went on in much of the same fashion, though Atsuko slowly found herself spending more and more time downstairs with the rest of the family. She felt that it was rude to hide away in her and Minami's shared room, because for one thing, it meant Minami couldn't really spend any time in her own room, as they didn't like to be alone together in the small space. And on top of that, she thought herself a bit rude for staying hidden away when Mariko had been so nice as to offer her home to her for over a month.
Atsuko started studying downstairs, the sounds of Mayu and Yuki giggling not distracting her quite as much as she would have expected. She began helping Mariko with dinner each night, for which she would thank her profusely, and she'd tell her it was the least she could do to repay her for offering her her home for such an extended period of time. she knew that she and her mother were best mates and had been for ages, but she had five children of her own, so taking in one more had to at least be a bit of an inconvenience, even if she'd never tell her so. She also just so happened to spend a great deal of time observing Minami's interactions with her younger sisters. It wasn't that she actively seeked them out, wanting to see how they got on. It was just that they were always right there, skipping about or playing Barbies, and sometimes Minami would be having hushed conversations with Yui, and Atsuko would wonder what they were discussing. Each time she saw Minami interacting with one of her younger sisters, Atsuko's heart swelled. Because this wasn't the Minami she hated. This was a sweet, gentle, caring, older sister Minami, who put her sisters before everything.
As the days passed, Atsuko wondered why exactly it was that she and Minami hated each other. They'd never gotten on, never since the beginning of her mum and Mariko's friendship. There'd practically always been a strong dislike there, and when Atsuko thought about it, she couldn't pinpoint why. And every time she saw Minami with her sisters, a little of the hate dissipated, being replaced with something that felt quite like fondness.
~~~~
On Saturday when Atsuko awoke, she found that it was nearly lunch time. she hadn't intended to sleep so long, but she'd been up late reading in the glow of a flashlight, her mind overwhelming her with too many thoughts for her to be able to sleep easily.
She headed downstairs in her sweatpants and t-shirt, feeling a little more comfortable here after her week long stay. It didn't take her long to warm up to people, especially children, and as her hate for Minami slowly ebbed away, she became more comfortable with the whole household. She reached the bottom of the steps and scratched her stomach, heading into the living room and plopping down on the couch next to Mayu, who was watching some silly cartoon that Atsuko vaguely remembered from her own childhood.
Suddenly, Yui was storming into the room, sighing angrily, as young teen girls do, and Atsuko gave her a small look of bewilderment. Of the children in the house, she was the one she'd spoken to the least. "Something the matter?" Atsuko asked.
"Everything's the matter!"
Atsuko was rather certain she heard Mayu sigh, and then she was turning off the television and quickly fleeing the room. Smart kid, really.
"You can talk to me, if you'd like." Atsuko offered lamely.
"I've got my best friend's birthday party in an hour and Minami's not home to do my hair like she promised she'd be and mum's too busy cleaning and wrapping the present that I'm meant to take with me and I hate them both."
"Hey, that's not nice." Atsuko said, trying to defend Mariko (And maybe Minami, though she'd never admit it, because she was supposed to hate her, too). "What exactly is it that you want done with your hair?"
"Well, there's this boy who's going to be there, and I really like him." Yui began shyly. "So I wanted something sort of elegant that would look nice with my dress, but I don't know what. I just really want her to notice me, so I thought if my hair was nice then maybe she would." She let out a deep sigh.
"Alright." Atsuko said. "First of all, boys shouldn't be judging you solely by your hair. But, that being said, I think I know just the thing for you."
"You do?" Yui asked, sounding astonished.
"I do." Atsuko nodded affirmatively. "I've got an older sister who used to force me into giving her makeovers practically once a week. Once you've done a shit job...Er, a bad job. Sorry. Once you've done a bad job enough times, you start actually learning how to do things properly. I felt quite accomplished when Ami came to me to style her hair for prom instead of going to some fancy salon that would charge her way too much."
"Well, what is it then?!" Yui asked, smiling widely.
"I think you're in need of a fishtail braid, my dear Yui."
"A what?"
"You've never heard of a fishtail braid before?"
"No." Yui shook her head. "Could you give me one, though?"
"Of course. Have you got a hair tie?"
Yui held up a simple black hair tie, and Atsuko patted the seat next to her on the couch, signaling for her to come over and sit down. She made her way over, plopping down on the couch next to her and looking at her expectantly.
"Turn around. You can't be facing me, silly."
Yui quickly turned herself 'round so that her back was to Atsuko, and she took the hair tie from her, slipping it around her wrist before pulling all of her hair back behind her shoulders. She handed her a brush which she'd been holding in her left hand, and she took it, running it through her hair. It'd been a while since Ami had had her do anything like this, and she'd missed it.
"Alright." Atsuko said, taking chunks of hair and weaving them together. "So this one's a nice look if you're aiming to get a stupid boy's attention, because it's rather unique. It's very eye catching, I think, and it's a tad sophisticated while still being young, you know?" Atsuko said, quickly moving her nimble fingers along, finishing up the braid and tying it off with the hair tie. "All done."
Yui sprang up, running to the downstairs bathroom to take a look in the mirror, and Atsuko heard a soft shriek, and then quick footsteps heading back in her direction. "It's so lovely, Atsuko!" Yui squealed. "Thank you!"
"No problem." Atsuko beamed back at her, feeling more at home now than she had since she'd first arrived here one week ago.
"I've gotta go show mum!" Yui shouted, running off to show her mother.
Atsuko sat back, turning on the telly and flipping through the channels, when suddenly Jurina was running into the room, plopping down next to Atsuko and shouting at her, "Give me a salmon braid!"
"A what?" Atsuko asked, momentarily perplexed. "You mean a fishtail braid?"
"Is that what you gave Yui?"
"Yeah." Atsuko nodded.
"I want one! Please, Atsuko. Pleasepleaseplease."
"Alright, alright. Hand me the hair brush and turn around." Atsuko instructed, and she did as she was told. "Have you got a hair tie?"
Jurina nodded, handing her her hair tie, which she put around her wrist. As she was brushing her hair, Mariko came into the room, followed by Yui.
"I've got to get Yui to that birthday party and run a few errands. Will you be alright alone with the girls until Minami gets home, or shall I bring them with me?"
"I'll be fine with them here." Atsuko smiled.
"Alright." Mariko nodded. "Mayu! Yuki, get in here!" The girls skittered in from wherever they'd been hiding around the house. "I'm going out, so you stay in here with Atsuko and Jurina and you two be good, alright?"
They both nodded, and Mariko gave them each a kiss on the head before they scrambled into a chair, sitting half on top of each other, and turning on some old episode of Scooby Doo. "Thanks for doing Yui's hair for me, Atsuko. You're a life saver."
"Anytime." Atsuko smiled.
"We'll be back in a few hours. Try not to let them destroy the house. I'm sure Minami'll help you out when she gets home from wherever she's run off to."
"Sure thing."
"Bye, Atsuko!" Yui called as they walked towards the door. "Thanks again for my fishtail braid!"
And then the door shut, and they were gone. Atsuko resumed brushing through Jurina's hair, and then went on to execute another perfect fishtail braid, with only minimal complaints of her tugging too hard on her hair. Once she was done, she ran to the nearest mirror to examine herself, giving out a similar shriek of excitement to the one Yui had presented her with just a bit earlier.
"I want a fishytail braid!" Mayu shouted.
"Me too!" Yuki said. "Give me braids like a fish, Atsuko! Please?"
Atsuko chuckled, "Alright, you two. Get over here."
They scrambled over, and Atsuko took her time getting all the tangles out, the twins having been cursed with typical young girl hair. In that it was very easily tangled, and they wasted no time in doing so. Atsuko finished Yuki's braid nice and quick, seeing as the twin's hair was a bit shorter than the older girls', and she was working on Mayu's when the front door opened, and Minami made her way inside.
"What's this?" she asked.
Atsuko shrugged, "You weren't here to do Yui's hair before that birthday party of hers, so I offered to take your place. Then your sisters all saw what I'd done and wanted matching hair styles." Atsuko almost chuckled, thinking for a second that perhaps she should become a hair stylist and call her shop Atsuko Hair Styles, but she pressed her lips together firmly, not wanting anyone to ask why she was laughing, because it was quite dumb in actuality.
"She's quite brilliant." Jurina said. "Look at what she's done! It’s a salmon braid!"
"What is that?" Minami asked. "Quite original, yeah?"
"It's a fishytail braid, Minami!" Mayu shouted as Atsuko tied off the end of hers, finishing up.
"Yeah, she's put fishtails on our heads!" Yuki laughed. "It's silly."
"A fishytail braid?" Minami raised an eyebrow at Atsuko condescendingly.
"To be fair, it's technically just a fishtail braid. Ami taught me how to do them so I could do her hair up for her when mum was too busy."
Minami nodded, humming to make it clear that she'd heard her.
"Have the girls eaten?" Minami asked.
Atsuko simply shrugged. she had no idea.
"Nope." Jurina shook her head.
"I want lunch, Minami!" Mayu whined.
"You girls know I'm horrible with cooking. When's mum back?"
"Not for a few hours." Atsuko said. "I'll make the lunch. You keep the girls busy."
"Are you sure?" Minami asked, and Atsuko couldn't help but notice that this was the most they'd spoken in one day since she'd arrived.
"Positive."
Atsuko made her way into the kitchen, finding a few boxes of macaroni and cheese and whipping them up real quick, bringing plates out into the living room so they could all eat and watch Scooby Doo together, though she made sure that she and Minami were on either end of the couch, the three young girls between them.
~~~~
By the time Mariko and Yui arrived back from Yui's friend's party, Atsuko was putting the finishing touches on dinner, and Mariko made her way into the kitchen, sighing with relief at the fact that she wouldn't have to slave over a hot stove after she'd just spent hours and hours running errands. "Thank you so much." Mariko smiled. "Why can't my own kids be so helpful?"
"They probably would be, if they were staying at someone else's place."
"Very insightful." Mariko nodded.
She then went off to tell the kids to wash up, and Atsuko served up the meal. They all gathered 'round the table, and Atsuko sat next to Yui rather than in her usual seat, because she'd insisted she do so. Apparently she had a story she wanted to tell her or something like that. Once they were all sitting down and eating, the table broke off into various conversations, as seemed to be common in this household. But Atsuko generally wasn't part of any of them, aside from a few questions from Mariko about school. Today, however, Yui scooted her chair close to her, and simply leaned in and said, "Thanks for the fancy new hair style. We have more to talk about later. Come up to my room after dinner, please, Atsuko, please. I've got a really good story."
It felt nice, being included like This, and so Atsuko nodded, "Of course."
Yui clapped happily and scooted her chair away from her, digging into the food she'd made.
After dinner was over, everyone went their separate ways, and Atsuko ended up making her way up to Yui's room, because she figured whatever her story was, she'd seemed eager to tell her.
"Close the door!" She said as Atsuko set foot inside.
She nodded, closing the door behind her and standing there awkwardly. It wasn't like she felt creepy or anything. She just felt slightly awkward.
"Come sit in that chair and shut up because boy have I got a story for you!" She said.
Atsuko chuckled. Just This afternoon they'd had yet to really have a proper conversation, and now she was treating her like she was her best girl friend. Not that she minded at all. Quite honestly, she was intrigued about this story.
"Before I start." She said. "I can trust you not to tell mum and Minami this, right?"
"So long as you aren't in any danger, yeah." Atsuko nodded.
Yui scoffed, "There's no danger here."
"Then absolutely. You can trust me."
Yui nodded, sitting on her knees on her bed and facing her, moving around a bit in an excited manner. "So, at my friend's party today, her mum and dad were gone, right? And so we were playing spin the bottle, and when it was my turn I just was hoping with all of my heart that I'd land on the guy that I like. So I spun, and guess what!"
"You got him?!" Atsuko asked, ashamed of herself for just how excited she was about this.
"Yeah!" Yui squealed. "But then guess what happened after that!"
"I haven't a clue."
"Well, obviously we kissed, because we had to. But then after we were done with the game, he came up to me, and said 'That's a really nice braid you've got there. It looks soft like your lips. Um, you're Yui, right?', and I tried to stay calm but I think a little squeaked slipped out and I said ''Course I'm Yui!'"
"Go on." Atsuko said, nodding a bit.
"And he said, 'Well, it was really nice kissing you, Yui. I know I've seen you around at school, but there's just something different about you today. You seem more confident.' And you know what, I was more confident. And it was all because of my hair, because sometimes it can be a bit stubborn and even when Minami does her best it looks a mess, but you made it look perfect. And so I said, 'Gee, thanks.' and then he asked if I'd like to go to the cinema with her next weekend and I said yes!"
"You got yourself a date?!" Atsuko asked.
"Yeah. All thanks to you."
Atsuko shook her head, "Nah, it was all you, Yui. My magical hair styling skills may have helped to give you a confidence boost, but in the end it was all you, yeah?"
Yui shrugged.
"It was." Atsuko told her. "How come you don't want anyone else to know about this?"
"If mum or Minami knew I'd been playing spin the bottle I'd be grounded until I turned thirty. I'll tell them about the date soon enough, but I wanted to tell the whole story to someone, and since it's all thanks to you, I wanted you to be the person I told."
Atsuko smiled widely, "Thanks for confiding in me, Yui. I'm glad you felt like you could trust me."
"I know we don't know each other very well, but you feel a bit like a sister to me." Yui shrugged, coming over to her and giving her a hug. "Thanks."
Atsuko felt her heart swell at that, hugging her back, "Anytime, Yui."
Yui pulled away from the hug, "I'm going to get some reading done now, I think."
"Alright." Atsuko nodded. "I'll see you tomorrow or something."
Yui nodded, and Atsuko left the room.
~~~~
By the time bedtime rolled around, Atsuko was exhausted. That was the most time she'd spent interacting with the Takahashi family since she'd started staying with them, and they were a rather tiring bunch. She slipped under the covers of the bottom bunk and closed her eyes, prepared to fall asleep quickly. But, of course, Minami would pick the day that Atsuko was actually certain she'd be falling asleep without the awkward 'not asleep not saying anything' phase, Minami decided to talk to her. "Atsuko?"
"Hmm?" Atsuko hummed, slightly annoyed.
"I, um...I just wanted to thank you."
"Thank me for what?" Atsuko asked. She heard shuffling on the bunk above her, and when Minami began to speak again, her voice was louder, so Atsuko opened her eyes and saw Minami hanging over the edge of the bunk.
"For doing Yui's hair today when I was too shit of a sister to remember to be home. I was out playing football with my mates." Minami sighed heavily.
"It's not a problem." Atsuko said. "I liked doing it."
"Still, just...Thank you." Minami smiled. "You know, she told me over sundaes that she got a date out of it. I told her I didn't think the hair was all that important in the grand scheme of things, but she insisted it was the hair."
Atsuko chuckled, "Yeah, she told me about that as well."
"Is that where you two disappeared to after dinner?"
Atsuko nodded before realizing that Minami probably couldn't see her well enough in the dark to know what she was doing. "Yeah." she added.
"Damn." Minami said thoughtfully. "I used to be the only one with the privilege of secret Yui conversations."
"Sorry, mate." Atsuko said.
"No, no." Minami said dismissively. "It's fine. Just...You must be really great. Yui's picky about who she associates with."
"I try." Atsuko shrugged.
"Hey, Atsuko?"
"Yeah?"
"How come we hate each other?"
"What do you mean?" Atsuko asked, her heart quickening a bit.
"Just...Exactly what I said. Why do we hate each other?"
"I dunno, really. It's just...We always have, haven't we?"
"But why? What was the reasoning? We hardly know anything about each other."
"I think it's just...When I first met you, I just sensed that you didn't like me, and we didn't talk that day, and then we just...We just never tried to get to know each other, and I had this weird sense that you didn't want to get to know me, so I developed an aversion to knowing you, and eventually that all developed into hatred on both sides?" Atsuko suggested. "Unwarranted hate, I think."
"You mean my hate for you was unwarranted?"
"I mean the hate from both of us was unwarranted." Atsuko corrected her.
"Oh." Minami said softly, and then Atsuko heard her lay back down, and she assumed they were going to go to sleep now. But a few moments later, Minami spoke again. "So you don't hate me anymore?"
"...No." Atsuko said softly. So softly, in fact, that she wondered if Minami could even hear her.
"Why not?" Minami replied, just as softly.
"Because...Just...After seeing you with your sisters, the way you get on so well, and how nice you are to your mum...I still avoided you at school, you know, but after a while I started watching you from a distance, when you passed by at the other end of the hall, and I noticed that you were one of the good people, I guess. You don't bully people, and I saw you helping a younger kid with glasses who'd dropped her books yesterday. And I realized that you aren't any of the things that I hate. You're just Minami. You're just someone I judged too quickly based on nothing but a bad vibe the first day I met you."
Minami was silent for a while before saying, "I think I disliked you for the same reason. I wonder which one of us started it. Like...One of us had to be moody first, and then we gave off that vibe, and so the other one of us decided we didn't like the other, and it just caused that whole mess. I wonder which one of us caused it." she mused. "But I don't hate you either. I never did, really. I don't often hate people, and I don't think you do either or you wouldn't have come around so quickly. I think we're both just a bit daft." Minami chuckled.
Atsuko chuckled along with her, "I think I agree with you on that one."
"Want to come to the park with me and the girls tomorrow? I'm sure they'd love that."
"Yeah. Yeah, I'd like that." Atsuko let out a loud yawn. "I'm going to get some sleep now, okay? Your sisters wore me out today."
"Try living with them every day of your life." Minami chuckled. "Get some sleep, Atsuko."
"'Night, Minami."They both slipped into silence, then, and in moments, they were both fast asleep.
~~~~
When Atsuko awoke, she felt lighter, like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders, and that was when she remembered the conversation she'd had with Minami last night, and their plans to go to the park with the girls today. She stretched her arms out, yawning loudly, and heard a creak as Minami made a startled jump in the bed above her.
"Must you yawn so loudly?" she asked. "You scared me and I nearly fell off the bed."
Atsuko wanted to comment on how amusing that would've been. That's what she would have said if one of her mates had nearly fallen off a bed. But she didn't know if she and Minami were exactly mates as of yet, and she didn't want to push it and give Minami a real reason to hate her. "Sorry."
"It's alright." Minami said, hopping down from her bunk. "The girls are up, I've heard them skittering around. I figured we could pack a picnic and take them to the park for some lunch and maybe fly a kite?"
"I've never flown a kite before, but it sounds like fun." Atsuko said.
"You what?!"
"I've...I've never flown a kite?"
"That's insanity." Minami shook her head. "We're definitely teaching you how to, then. In repayment for that, you can make the lunch, because I'm absolutely shit at making anything even remotely resembling food."
Atsuko chuckled, and she was rather happy at how easily and quickly things between her and Minami had gone from being heated and tense to being friendly. She was glad things had worked out like This. It would make the rest of her stay here much more enjoyable.
"Alright. Sounds like a deal."
Atsuko left the room to change. She didn't really have a problem with changing in front of Minami, but she was worried that Minami might have a problem with it. After she changed her clothes, she dropped her sweats and t-shirt off in hers and Minami' room, and then made her way downstairs. She sat in the living room with the girls, watching the television and chatting amicably until she figured she ought to start working on making their picnic lunch. She made a few different kinds of sandwiches, not sure what anyone in This family liked, but hoping she had enough variety that everyone would be happy. she then whipped up a rather quick and easy pasta salad, as well as a thermos of lemonade.
"Alright!" Atsuko said, coming into the living room with a picnic basket in her hand. "Who's ready for a day at the park?"
Mayu and Yuki squealed in delight, and Yui and Jurina smiled excitedly. Minami popped up with a kite in her hands, and then the six of them were off. Atsuko held the picnic basket in one hand, and Mayu's hand in the other, while Minami had a kite in one hand, and Yuki's hand in the other, while Yui and Jurina skipped along ahead of them. The walk to the park took a little longer than was probably necessary, because the little ones kept stopping to pick up rocks and bugs, and occasionally Mayu would tug on Atsuko's hand so hard that she nearly fell over, balance never really having been her strong suit.
Once they made it to the park, they found a nice little picnic table and Atsuko set out all of the food that she'd made, and they munched away on it happily, Mayu sitting in her lap, and Yuki in Minami'.
"You're a great chef!" Yuki shouted from just across the table, causing Atsuko to laugh a little.
"I'm far from being a chef, but thanks, girls."
"I agree with Yuki, though." Minami said.
"Oh, shut it." Atsuko chuckled.
"I'm serious, though."
Atsuko smiled brightly and continued eating her food. Once they'd all had their fill, Atsuko packed what was left back into the basket and they left it on the table, everyone dragging her off to learn how to fly a kite. Minami gave her a few examples, running with the kite to get it up into the wind. It looked easy enough. Atsuko soon learned, however, that it was much more difficult than it looked. After about twenty minutes of running around like an idiot, watching the kite nose-dive every time, Atsuko was about to give up. They wouldn't let her, though, and Jurina showed her a few techniques that worked a lot better than what she'd been trying, and she finally managed to get the kite up off the ground, sailing it around for a few minutes solid before it fell back to the earth.
"Good job, Atsuko!" Minami said, patting her on the back.
All of the girls crowded around her, giving her congratulations, and she felt a bit like a child, but in the best way possible. After that they made their way over to the playground, and Atsuko and Minami pushed Mayu and Yuki on the swings while Yui and Jurina took turns pushing each other. Every once in a while, Atsuko would look over, finding Minami' gaze on her, but Minami quickly turned away each time, and Atsuko figured it was probably better that way, lest they end up making any awkward eye contact. Once the girls were worn out and Atsuko and Minami were both so tired they thought they might collapse, they all headed back to the Takahashi household. When they arrived back, they all flopped down on various furniture and places on the floor and just sort of stayed there, everyone worn out from their long day of running around outside.
~~~~
That night when she and Minami were both snuggled comfortably under the sheets, it was Atsuko's turn to start a conversation. "Hey, Minami?"
"Yeah, Atsuko?"
"I had a really great time today."
"I'm glad." Minami said, and Atsuko could hear the smile in her voice. "I wish I'd known I didn't hate you before now. We could've been having so much fun the whole time you were here."
"We've still got three weeks left." Atsuko said.
"Yeah..."
"Goodnight, Minami."
"Sleep tight, Atsuko."
~~~~
The next week went by much more easily than the first. They talked to each other on the way to school instead of sitting in awkward silence. They did their homework together and chatted with each other and played with the girls together. They stopped avoiding each other at school, though they did both stay in their respective group of friends, not venturing out of their way to spend time with each other, but saying hello whenever they passed in the halls. They stayed up later than they probably should on school nights, just chatting in their bunks. They talked about anything and everything, from childhood to their future plans. Their coming out stories, their favorite books and films. They talked about their families and their friends and their dreams, and Atsuko really really liked it.
she might even go so far as to say that she really liked Minami.
It was a Saturday night now, and she and Minami were each lying in their respective bunks. Atsuko had been out with friends all day, and so she hadn't seen any of the Takahashi bunch, aside from dinner really. After dinner the girls had all flocked to their rooms, and Atsuko had picked up a book and sat down to read, and she hadn't stopped until her eyes were foggy with sleep. Atsuko's eyes were fluttering open and shut as she tried to fall asleep, her brain flooding with thoughts when she'd really rather it just be empty. She was thinking about how much she'd missed Minami when she was out with her friends today. She'd missed everyone in the Takahashi clan, really, but she'd missed Minami the most. And she'd missed her in a different way. The feelings were stronger and...Different, somehow.
"What's up?" she heard Minami ask softly.
"What do you mean?"
"You're quiet, but it's a funny kind of quiet. Sort of like when you first started staying here, but not quite as awkward. More thoughtful."
Atsuko wondered how exactly Minami had gotten all of that just from her silence, but decided not to question it.
"C'mon." Minami prompted. "Tell me what's on your mind."
"It's nothing, really."
"But it is something." Minami said. "I can sense it. Don't question me."
"Just...Things."
Minami was silent for a moment then, and Atsuko thought that she was going to drop it, but then she heard rustling, and then Minami was jumping down off of her bunk and crawling into Atsuko's, slipping under the covers next to her.
"Um...Minami?"
"Tell me what's on your mind."
She couldn't. She absolutely could not tell Minami that what was on her mind was Minami herself. And especially not when Minami was now lying in the same bed as her. That would be creepy and weird and she couldn't do it.
"Atsuko, you can trust me. We're friends now, yeah?"
"Yeah." Atsuko agreed.
"So, tell me. What's on your mind?"
Atsuko took a deep breath, bracing herself to force out one simple word, "You."
"Me?" Minami breathed.
"Yeah, you."
"What about me?"
Atsuko shook her head.
"Oh, c'mon." Minami said. "You can't just tell me that you're being all pensive about me and then not tell me what it is. Did I have something stuck in my teeth at dinner? Did I wear a dirty shirt to school yesterday?"
If Atsuko hadn't been freaking out, she might have laughed at that.
"Just...Just that I missed you today."
"Because you were out with your friends?"
Atsuko made a little affirmative humming noise.
"Well, I missed you, too."
"Somehow I think it's different." Atsuko told her.
"Oh?"
"Yeah." Atsuko breathed out, rolling over onto her side and facing the wall. She hadn't expected the older lad to turn over on her side as well, spooning Atsuko just a bit and resting her head on her shoulder, but that was exactly what Minami did.
"Do you like me, Atsuko?"
"I thought we'd already established that." Atsuko said, her heartbeat pounding loudly in her ears.
"No, not like that. I mean do you fancy me?"
"What would make you think that?" Atsuko asked, trying to slow her erratic heartbeat, nearly certain that Minami could feel it.
"Because you said the way you missed me was different from the way I missed you, but I think you're wrong."
"And you fancy me?" Atsuko asked.
"Yeah." Minami said simply.
"Oh." Atsuko said, shocked at how calmly she'd said it. "You...Oh."
"So, do you fancy me then, Atsuko? Yea or nay?"
"Who even says yea or nay anymore?" Atsuko chuckled.
"Answer the question."
"Yea. Er...Yes. Yeah, I do."
"I was hoping so." Minami said, nuzzling a little closer to Atsuko.
"That's it then?"
"What's what?" Minami asked.
Atsuko felt dizzy. she wasn't sure what was going on, "I, um...I'm not sure?"
"No matter. I'm sleeping here tonight, okay? You're cozy."
"O-okay, yeah. You're cozy, too."
"G'night, Atsuko."
"'Night, Minami."
~~~~
When Atsuko awoke the next morning, she was highly confused. There were arms wrapped around her, and it took her a while to register that they belonged to Minami. Once it sunk in, though, her eyes flew open, and her heart began to pound in her chest a bit. She slowly turned around in Minami' arms, finding that the older boy was already awake.
"Morning."
"Good morning." Atsuko said.
"You're nice to sleep with." Minami said, before a slightly shocked expression graced her face, and she quickly said, "That came out wrong. I just...I meant it's nice to sleep in the same bed with you? You're nice to hold. I...I like cuddling with you."
Atsuko chuckled, "I knew what you meant, Minami."
"Oh. Good, then."
"And I like cuddling with you, too, for the record. It's nice."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah." Atsuko nodded a little, and Minami leaned forward, resting her forehead against Atsuko's.
Just then, Atsuko's phone began to ring, and she scrambled over Minami and off the bed, picking her phone up from Minami' desk where she'd left it. "Hello?"
"Atsuko! It's mum."
"Oh, hey, mum." Atsuko smiled. She'd had a few excited texts from Ami about one uni or the other, but other than that she hadn't heard from either of them since they'd left.
"How are things with the Takahashi's?" Atsuko's mom asked her.
"Great, actually." Atsuko said, smiling.
"Told you you'd have a lovely time."
"Mhhm." Atsuko hummed. "The girls really love me, and the feeling is mutual. Minami and I are friends now as well. And Mariko's just as lovely as she's always been."
"Finally."
"Finally what?" Atsuko questioned.
"You and Minami becoming mates. You've only known each other for forever."
"Exaggeration, mum. But yeah, I suppose it was high time."
"I'm glad you're having a good time, Atsuko." Atsuko's mom said. "I've got to get going. Ami and I have a meeting with some board members here soon and I want to look nice. I'll try to remember to check in soon."
"Alright. You and Ami have a good time."
"I'm sure we will." She told her. "I love you."
"I love you, too, mum. Bye."
"Bye, sweetie."
Atsuko hung up the phone, setting it back on the desk and returning to her bunk, flopping down on her back next to Minami.
"High time for what?" Minami asked, snuggling up against Atsuko again, causing her to smile widely.
"For us to be friends."
Minami hummed in agreement, "What do you say we have a lazy morning and cuddle for a while, friend?"
Atsuko grinned, "I say that sounds fantastic."
Minami wrapped her arms around Atsuko and rested her head on her shoulder, and Atsuko sighed happily.
"Hey, Yui's date with that guy was yesterday, wasn't it?"
"It was." Minami confirmed.
"How'd it go? I was out and she didn't tell me anything about it after I got home."
"They're officially boyfriend and girlfriend now." Minami chuckled. "Relationships move insanely quickly at that age."
"I suppose that's true." Atsuko mused. "I hope things go well for them."
"They're young. They'll probably break up twelve times in the next week. But yeah, I hope so, too."
Atsuko fell silent after that, and Minami began tracing little patterns across her stomach with her fingertips, and Atsuko held back a shiver at the sensation. After a while, she spoke. "Hey, Minami?"
"Hmm?" Minami hummed, her breath ghosting along Atsuko's neck.
"Never mind." Atsuko said.
She'd wanted to ask them what they were. What this was. But if they weren't anything, she was afraid she'd ruin whatever it was they had going on, and she didn't want that. she liked being wrapped up in Minami' arms. she felt safe here.
"You sure?"
"Yeah, it's nothing."
"If you insist." Minami sighed. "I'm nearly certain the girls will have devoured all of breakfast by now. Come make me something to eat."
Minami shoved Atsuko towards the edge of the bed, and she wobbled precariously before falling off with a thud.
"Ow!"
"Oh, that didn't hurt, you baby. C'mon, I'm starving."
"You've bruised my butt, I'm sure of it." Atsuko said, rubbing her backside a little as she stood up.
Minami snorted.
"Oi, get your mind out of the gutter, Takahashi."
"Can't." Minami said, practically skipping out of the room and down the stairs. Atsuko followed her into the kitchen, grabbing out a pan and a few eggs, opting for some simple scrambled eggs, because if she was being honest, she didn't feel like doing much today.
she could feel Minami' eyes on her as she cooked, and normally that would have made her uncomfortable, but with Minami she didn't really mind. When the eggs were ready she served them up onto two plates and set one down in front of Minami, sitting next to her at the table rather than as far away as she could, like she usually did. As they were eating, Yui made her way into the room, plopping down in the chair on Atsuko's right.
"Atsuko! I've just realized I didn't tell you about how things went yesterday."
Atsuko grinned a bit at Minami, already knowing the good news of the story, before turning back to Yui to hear it from her herself. "Go on, then."
"He's asked me to be her girlfriend! His real actual girlfriend! Can you believe it?!"
"Of course I can believe it. He'd be stupid not to ask you." Atsuko smiled at her fondly.
"It's all thanks to your hair styling skills, though, really."
"I'm still not convinced of that." Atsuko chuckled.
"Oi, neither am I. If my hair styles couldn't hook you a boyfriend, how come Atsuko's can?" Minami scoffed.
"Atsuko's just better at it than you." Yui said, with a small laugh.
"Hey! she is not!"
"Alright, children, let's not fight." Atsuko said, teasingly.
"You are not better than me." Minami grumbled, taking an angry bite of her eggs.
"Sure I'm not." Atsuko laughed.
After that, they spent the rest of the day sitting next to each other on a pile of pillows on Minami's floor, sitting a bit closer than was probably necessary as they got their homework done for school tomorrow. They sat next to each other at dinner, and Mariko seemed to notice how close they'd gotten, but she didn't mention it. She was probably just glad, like Atsuko's own mother, that she and Minami were getting on nicely now.
Before bed they took turns getting showers, and Atsuko let Minami go first, so by the time she made her way into their room, she expected Minami to be asleep. On the contrary, however, the lights were on, and she was sitting in her bunk, her headphones in, and her head bobbing to the beat of whatever she was listening to. As Atsuko made her way into the room, however, Minami pulled her headphones out, smiling at the younger lad.
"Hello!" she said cheerily.
Atsuko chuckled a little, "Hey."
She threw her towel onto the back of a chair, after drying her hair with it a bit, and climbed into the bottom bunk. Minami turned the light off and settled down in the bunk above her, but Atsuko could sense that she wasn't ready to sleep yet. she sort of wished she'd climb down there and cuddle with her, or ask her to come up there, but she didn't want to ask if they could cuddle, just because she didn't really know what their boundaries were yet. Maybe Minami didn't want to cuddle.
"I think Yui likes you more than me." Minami said matter of factly.
"Don't be stupid. You're her sister."
"Yeah, so she has to like me. She chooses to like you."
"She does not have to like you, trust me. You two have got a really great relationship."
"Still, you stole her affections from me."
Atsuko wanted to tell Minami that she may have stolen Yui's affections from her, but Minami had gained Atsuko's own affections. However that was yet another thing that she wasn't sure would be appropriate to say.
"You'll have her affections back soon enough, Minami. Go to sleep."
Minami huffed out a sigh, but did as Atsuko had suggested, shutting up and re-situating herself to be able to get to sleep.
~~~~
The next week passed by rather quickly. Atsuko and Minami occasionally went out of their way to say hi to each other at school, but for the most part, they stayed in their respective group of friends. Though Atsuko had to admit to missing Minami a bit every once in a while. Atsuko helped Mariko with dinner each night, and she brushed Mayu's hair before bed while Minami brushed Yuki's, and Atsuko was really quite comfortable here, and it was hard to believe that she'd be leaving in just less than two weeks.
It was Friday now, and Atsuko and Minami were lying in bed, the lights shut off, but neither of them were sleeping, and Atsuko knew it. There was a certain tenseness in the air around them. After a while of the two of them lying there, Atsuko heard Minami hop down off her bunk, and then she was climbing in next to her.
"Would it be creepy to say that I missed cuddling you?" Minami asked, as she wrapped her arms around Atsuko's torso.
"Not so long as it's not creepy that I missed cuddling you as well." Atsuko said, a small grin spreading across her face.
"Not creepy at all." Minami said.
"Good." Atsuko smiled.
They both fell silent for a while, and Minami nuzzled her nose against Atsuko's neck, and Atsuko could feel her warm breath there, and she really wanted to turn around a bit and kiss the older girl.
"Hey, Atsuko?" Minami asked softly.
"Yeah?"
"Want to go to the cinema with me tomorrow? Or...Or out for tea? Or, just, anything you like, really."
"Like a date?" Atsuko asked, her heartbeat speeding up just a bit.
"Yeah, like a date."
"I'd love that." Atsuko said, smiling.
"Yeah?"
"Yeah."
"Um...Tea and a film after lunch?"
"Sounds brilliant."
"Yeah?"
Atsuko chuckled, "Yes, Minami."
Minami gave her a quick peck on the cheek, and Atsuko had to resist making a small little squeaking sound in the back of her throat.
"Let's get some rest, then. I need beauty sleep if I'm going on a date."
"Minami, I've seen you when you've just woken up, I don't think I'm very picky when it comes to you."
"I look brilliant when I've just woken up, thank you very much." Minami said haughtily.
"That you do." Atsuko smiled, taking one of Minami' hands in her and lifting it from her own stomach up to her lips, giving it a gentle kiss.
"You're going to make me blush, you idiot."
Atsuko simply grinned, "Go to sleep, Minami."
"Alright, fine. 'Night, Atsuko."
"G'night."
~~~~
The next day, Atsuko and Minami stayed in Atsuko's bunk cuddling until lunch time, at which point they went downstairs and ate some pasta that Mariko had made, and then they scurried off to their room, both of them getting dressed.
"It's weird getting ready for a date in the same room as your date." Atsuko mused. "I feel like you're watching me."
"I'm hardly watching you, Atsuko. I'm much too concerned with making sure I don't look like an idiot."
"You'll look great in anything you wear." Atsuko told her.
"You flatter me."
"Only because you deserve it." Atsuko smiled at her as she dug through her drawers. Atsuko ended up choosing a pair of simple black skinny jeans and a plain white t-shirt. It wasn't like they were going anywhere fancy, and This outfit had always looked nice on her, if she did say so herself. She opted to not leave the room to change, and just did so as quickly as possible. By the time she was done, Minami was changed as well, wearing light blue jeans and and a dark blue short sleeved button up. she looked quite nice. Not that she ever didn't look nice. Atsuko shook her hair out, pushing it off to the side and out of her face, and then she sat down on her bed, waiting for Minami to style her hair. She'd noticed that the older girl took quite a while with it, when she had the time, but it was actually ridiculous how long it was taking her today.
"Minami, you look fine."
"It's got to be perfect, Atsuko."
"You really don't need to work so hard to impress me. I've been living in your house for three weeks now, I think it's safe to say that if a mediocre appearance from you was going to make me decide you weren't the one for me, I would've reached that point already.
"Oh, shove off."
"I'm serious, Minami. Can't we go?" If Atsuko was being honest, she really just wanted to get out of there before her nerves could get any worse. She knew that she and Minami both liked each other, and they got on well, and they'd been bonding over the last couple of weeks. But she also knew that going on a date with someone and lounging around the house with someone were two entirely different things, and she wanted Minami to like her.
"Alright, alright, let's go." Minami said.
They made their way down the stairs, and Minami told her mum that she and Atsuko were going to go hang out. They didn't tell her it was a date because, well, what was the point, really? Minami grabbed her car keys, and they headed off to the cinema. Atsuko had said they should go see the film first, mostly so she could make sure to have something interesting to say while they drank their tea.
They ended up seeing some dumb comedy, and by the time it was over, Atsuko realized it didn't give her too much to say. The tea shop happened to be in the same little area of shops that the cinema resided, and so they walked over to the tea shop hand in hand.
They placed their orders and received their tea, and went to sit down. They talked about their favorite characters from the film they'd just seen, and Minami quoted a few of her favorite lines, causing Atsuko to laugh so hard that she snorted, which normally would have been embarrassing for her, but she really didn't mind in the least, because Minami obviously wasn't judging her for it. Atsuko had been so busy talking that she'd forgotten to drink her tea, and it had gotten quite cold, but she drank it anyway, because it didn't matter, because she was here with Minami and they were having fun together.
After that they went home and played with Mayu and Yuki until dinner time, and once dinner was over Yui regaled them with stories of how things were going with her and her guy, and how she was pretty sure they were going to be together forever, and Atsuko smiled, because young love was a really great and innocent thing, and she was so happy that Yui was happy. she felt like an older sister to her, and it was nice to know that she seemed to feel the same way.
When it was late and Atsuko and Minami were both tired, Minami summoned Atsuko up to join her in the top bunk for the night, because she really preferred it up there, and so Atsuko climbed up and snuggled in behind Minami, taking the position of the big spoon for once. she wrapped her arms around Minami' waist and kissed her on the top of the head.
"Want to be my girlfriend?"
"What?" Atsuko asked, slightly taken aback by how blunt and almost childlike the question had been.
"You heard me, Atsuko."
"Yeah."
"Yeah you heard me, or yeah you want to?"
"Both."
And before Atsuko really knew what was happening, Minami was turning around in her arms to face her, leaning forward and placing a gentle kiss to her lips. Atsuko closed her eyes, letting the feeling of it wash over her. Minami' lips were soft, and they tasted a little like mint, because they'd both brushed their teeth not long ago, and it was kind of absolutely perfect.
Minami pulled back, a wide grin on her face, "Minty."
Atsuko laughed, shoving at Minami' chest playfully, and then the two of them wrapped their arms around each other, resting their foreheads together and drifting off to sleep with content smiles on their faces.
~~~~
On Sunday they spent most of the day lazing around the house, playing with the girls and sitting far enough apart that no one would suspect anything, but close enough together that they didn't feel like they were separated. Atsuko and Minami had talked a bit that morning and decided to keep their relationship a secret for now, but Atsuko had talked Minami into letting her tell Yui, because she was the first person she told about her date (and the only one who knew about the game of spin the bottle) so she figured it was only fair to return the favor. So when they sat down for dinner, Atsuko made sure to sit between Yui and Minami. As Mariko was serving up dinner, she leaned over and whispered to Yui, "Meet me in Minami's and my room after dinner. I've got a story for you."
"Won't Minami be in the way?" Yui whispered back.
"Nah, she's got plans to play with the girls. And on top of that, she already knows the story, so it's no secret from her."
Yui nodded, and Mariko finished serving up dinner, sitting down as everyone dug in. The table erupted in various conversations, and Atsuko just sat back, listening intently.
She'd always loved her small family, but there'd always been a part of her that had wanted a big family, and so the time she'd spent here had been wonderful once she'd gotten comfortable, and it was hard to think that in just ten days she'd be gone. But then she remembered that she and Minami were together now, and so for as long as that lasted, she was certain she'd be spending a lot more time around here. she hoped it lasted for a good long while.
When dinner was over, Atsuko helped Mariko clear the dishes while everyone went their separate ways, and then she made her way upstairs, finding Yui waiting patiently in her bunk, her legs criss-crossed and a look of intrigued excitement on her face. Atsuko grabbed the desk chair and pulled it over in front of the bed, sitting down on it, "Ready for the story?"
"Obviously." Yui said, rolling her eyes.
"I'm not sure where to start." Atsuko hummed thoughtfully to herself. "I suppose I could just skip the story and come right out with it."
"Whatever!" Yui said. "Just tell me, Atsuko!"
"Alright, alright." Atsuko laughed. "Minami and I are dating."
"You're what?!"
"We're dating."
Yui cracked a huge smile and then began laughing a bit, "Oh, I knew it! Ever since we met you ages ago I knew This would happen. She always said she hated you, but after our picnic I knew I was going to be right." She shook her head fondly. "Mum's letting you two stay in the same room still?"
"Um, well, she doesn't know yet." Atsuko said. "We're going to tell her soon enough. I just wanted you to know first, since you told me about you and your date before you told anyone else." Atsuko smiled.
"Well, don't I feel special?" She grinned.
"You should." Atsuko nodded.
"You know, I'm glad you had to come stay with us, Atsuko. It's nice having two older sisters."
Atsuko beamed at that, giving Yui a big hug, "Alright, get out of here, you."
"Don't you and Minami do anything gross in here, or I'll come vomit on your sheets."
"What a lovely mental image that is."
"This is not an empty threat, Atsuko." Yui grinned, skipping out of the room.
Atsuko decided to read for a bit, and so she grabbed her book off the desk, putting the chair back in place, and flopped down on the bed. She lost track of time, and before she knew it, Minami was coming into the room, yawning loudly.
"I'm sleepy."
Atsuko looked at the clock, seeing how late it was, and then letting out a yawn of her own, rubbing her eyes, "I'm right there with you."
They both changed into their pajamas and climbed into their respective bunks. After a few minutes, Minami was leaning over the top bunk, and Atsuko could see the whites of her eyes shining out into the room.
"Yes?" she asked, amused.
"I had wanted to make it a rule that we only cuddle on the weekends, but I'm lonely up here."
"Say no more." Atsuko said, clambering out of her bunk and climbing up to Minami's. Minami laid back down properly, and Atsuko scooted in behind her, her front side flush with Minami' back, and she wrapped her arms around her tightly. "Better?"
"Much." Minami nodded, letting out a contented little sigh.
"Do you know what Yui said to me earlier?"
"What?"
"She said we'd better not do anything gross or she'll come puke in our beds."
"Did she really?" Minami asked, laughing.
"She did."
"Well is this gross?" Minami asked, turning around in Atsuko's arms to face her and giving her a soft kiss on the lips.
"Dunno." Atsuko shrugged. "Think this is gross?" she asked, leaning in and connecting her lips with Minami', not pulling back right away, their lips moving together slowly.
"I don't think it's gross." Minami shook her head. "Yui might, though."
"I think she was just afraid we'd start having loud sex in here and she'd hear us."
Minami snorted, "That girl." she shook her head. "As if I'd have sex with you while everyone was home."
"You would have sex with me, though?" Atsuko asked, raising her eyebrows.
"I mean, we are dating, aren't we?" Minami asked. "I wouldn't date you if I wasn't interested in doing that with you eventually. Besides, have you seen yourself?"
Atsuko blushed a little, smiling, "I feel the same way about you."
"I'd hope so." Minami grinned, leaning forward to peck Atsuko on the lips, and then turning back around so Atsuko could spoon her properly. "Sleep now."
Atsuko kissed the back of Minami' neck and then shut her eyes, Minami' rhythmic breathing quickly lulling her to sleep.
~~~~
The next week went by far too quickly for Atsuko's liking. she and Minami had started venturing out of their groups of friends to eat lunch together, and after a while their friends started to get curious, so they'd all follow along to the lunch table at which Atsuko and Minami had decided to sit, and so eventually they were just a big group of friends sitting together. They told them all that they were dating, and both groups of friends laughed for a while, because it wasn't as if no one had known about their dislike for each other. They'd mention it to their friends sometimes, obviously, and so when they announced that they were dating they were berated with quite a bit of teasing, but it was all in good fun, and their friends were supportive of their relationship, so they didn't mind.
It was Saturday now, and Atsuko's mum and Ami would be back on Wednesday, so it was her last weekend residing in the Takahashi household. She'd spent the afternoon out in the yard playing football with Minami and the girls, as they all laughed at her, because she was quite uncoordinated. Honestly, when Mayu and Yuki were better than her and they were both much younger, it was pretty apparent that football was not her expertise.
When they came inside, Mariko announced that they were all going to go out to dinner as one last huzzah before Atsuko had to head back home on Wednesday, and Atsuko insisted that they need not make a big deal out of her, because she was just thankful Mariko had let her stay at all, but she insisted, and the girls were excited about going out to eat, so Atsuko agreed. They all piled into the car and Mariko drove them to some fancy restaurant that Atsuko had never heard of before, and she was quite certain that they couldn't really afford This, not for so many people. But if Mariko wanted to be indulgent, she wasn't going to argue.
They were seated at a large table, and Atsuko ended up between Minami and Yui, which had quickly become her favorite place to sit. The waiter came and took their drink orders, and once she left, Mariko started talking quietly with the twins about what they wanted to eat, and Minami leaned over, whispering in Atsuko's ear. "We should tell everyone."
Atsuko was confused for a moment, and then leaned in to whisper back, "About us? Now?"
"Once our food gets here, yeah."
"You're sure?"
"Positive." Minami nodded once.
Atsuko nodded back, and then the waiter was arriving with their drinks, taking their dinner orders. Atsuko was glad she was last, because she hadn't gotten a chance to look at the menu, and she didn't even know what they served here, so she needed to take a quick look. Once they'd all given the man their orders, she left, telling them she'd be back with their meals shortly, and Atsuko turned to Yui, leaning in to whisper in her ear.
"Minami and I are going to tell everyone once dinner gets here."
Yui squeaked a little, quickly whispering back, "Tell everyone you're dating?!"
"Mhhm." Atsuko hummed with a nod.
"Oh, This is so exciting."
"Stay calm." Atsuko laughed.
"I'm trying, I'm trying."
Minami grabbed Atsuko's hand under the table, and they smiled at each other. Mariko was talking to Jurina about some Science project she had due next week, and the twins were speaking to each other in some secret language they'd invented for themselves, and Yui was looking at Minami and Atsuko's joined hands under the table and grinning like an idiot, and Atsuko thought it was kind of funny how quickly Minami's entire family had embraced her, and she found that she wasn't even nervous to tell them all that she and Minami were together, because she had no fear of rejection or being disliked. It was a really great feeling.
The waiter came back with their food, and they all thanked her, and then she was gone again. Minami looked at Atsuko, squeezing her hand and giving her a bright smile, and Atsuko could tell that Yui was trying to hold back an excited squeak, knowing what was coming next. Minami clinked her fork against her glass, and Mariko looked up.
"Atsuko and I have something we'd like to say." Minami grinned.
"Go right ahead, love." Mariko smiled, cutting Mayu's chicken for her.
"I'd like your full attention, if that's alright, mum."
"Of course." Mariko nodded. "Just a second."
"God, mum, hurry up!" Yui said exasperatedly.
"I need to finish cutting Mayu's chicken, love."
Yui rolled her eyes and Atsuko laughed.
"Alright." Mariko said, setting down her knife and handing the fork to Mayu. "What is it now?"
Minami stood up, letting go of Atsuko's hand, and Atsuko followed suit, standing up next to her. "Would you like to do the honors, Atsuko?"
"Sure." Atsuko grinned. "Um, Minami and I are dating." she smiled brightly.
Yui threw her fist in the air, and Atsuko laughed, because it wasn't like this was news to her. Jurina dropped her fork onto her plate and looked up with excitement in her eyes. Mayu and Yuki didn't really seem to care, but why should they, really? And Mariko was simply smiling brightly at them.
"Atsuko's mom and I always thought this might happen. I think we secretly hoped for it, really." Mariko said. "Congratulations, you two."
"Thanks, mum." Minami smiled, grabbing Atsuko's hand again as they sat back down.
"You'll be sleeping on the couch until Wednesday, Minami."
"What?" Minami asked, shocked.
Atsuko had been expecting this, really. If she was a parent she wouldn't want her kid sleeping in the same room as their significant other.
"I can't have you and Atsuko sleeping in the same room. Who knows what you'll get up to."
"Mum, we-"
"Don't worry, mum, I told them if they did anything gross I'd vomit on their sheets."
Mariko held her napkin to her lips to cover up a chuckle, "That won't be necessary, Yui, dear. Minami's sleeping on the couch."
Minami huffed, "Fine, fine. Alright." she then turned to Atsuko and whispered, "We should have waited until you'd gone back home to tell."
Atsuko chuckled, and they all started eating their dinner.
~~~~
That night, Atsuko climbed into Minami's bunk, partially because she liked the top bunk, and partially because it smelled like Minami up there, and if Minami had to sleep on the couch, she at least wanted to be able to feel as if she was close to her. As she was drifting off to sleep, her phone vibrated. she picked it up, and it was a text from Minami.
To Atsuko: I miss you.
And then, before she could respond.
To Atsuko: I bet you're in the top bunk tonight, aren't you?
To Minami: How did you know? I miss you, too.
To Atsuko: Because I took your pillow and I figured that if you were in your bunk you would have come down and yelled at me for taking it by now.
To Minami: Clever. Now go to sleep so it can be morning and I can see you again.
To Atsuko: Okay, okay. 'Night.
To Minami: G'night, Minami.
~~~~
On Sunday, Atsuko got up and ran downstairs as fast as she could, jumping on a still sleeping Minami, causing her to let out a strangled coughing sound.
"Atsuko, you could've killed me!"
"Are you calling me fat?" Atsuko managed to ask through her laughter as she fell off of Minami and onto the floor.
"No, I'm calling you obnoxious."
"Nah, you think I'm great."
"You keep thinking that, Atsuko."
"I will." Atsuko grinned.
They made their way into the kitchen, where Mariko was working on making breakfast. The girls were gathered around the table, Mayu and Yuki coloring, and Jurina and Yui making charm bracelets.
"Morning." Atsuko said, as she plopped down in a chair next to Mayu.
"Good morning." Everyone replied.
Atsuko grabbed a piece of paper from the table and took a crayon from the little pile Mayu had next to her. she began to draw a little picture, and she could feel Minami's eyes on her, so she looked up and saw Minami staring at her fondly.
"You're cute."
Atsuko blushed, turning back to the picture she was drawing.
"Are you two going to be like this all the time now?" Jurina asked, ending her question with an over dramatic gagging sound.
"Probably." Minami grinned.
"Yeah, I think so." Atsuko said.
"Gross." Jurina said, rolling her eyes.
"I think it's cute." Yui said. "My boyfriend was hardly ever that cute with me."
"He will be eventually." Atsuko said. "He's just got to get used to being with someone as lovely as you."
"Minami, I'm replacing you with Atsuko." Yui said, matter of factly.
"You see!" Minami said, looking at Atsuko. "You see, I told you this was going to happen."
Mariko chuckled, bringing the pan full of eggs over to the table and serving them up onto everyone's plates, sitting down to eat her own breakfast. The girls and Atsuko each set down their respective crafts and set to eating. After breakfast Mariko cleared everyone's plates and then went off somewhere to clean or something, Atsuko assumed. She resumed coloring with the younger girls, and Minami took to making charm bracelets with the elder girls. After a while, Atsuko was handing Minami a drawing she'd just done, and at the exact same time, Minami was handing Atsuko a braided yarn charm bracelet with "A + M" written on it in beads. Atsuko grinned and put the bracelet on, and Minami took a look at the picture Atsuko had drawn.
It was a picture of the Takahashi family, with Atsuko and Minami standing in the middle. It was just stick figures and it felt a lot like a primary school project-esque drawing, but Minami was grinning at it widely, so Atsuko thought it must be alright.
"This is adorable." Minami said. "I'm putting it on the fridge."
"Really, Minami?" Atsuko asked, raising an eyebrow. "I already felt like a child bringing a stupid drawing home from school."
"Hush. It's not stupid. Mum'll love it."
Atsuko smiled as Minami put her dumb little drawing up on the fridge. A while later Atsuko packed up another picnic, and Minami and Atsuko dragged the girls down to the park, Mayu and Yuki climbing all over her as she tried to walk and carry the picnic basket at the same time. Minami had brought a blanket this time, and so they found a nice dry spot in a large field and set the blanket down, and the lot of them clambered onto it, plopping down in various positions. Atsuko unpacked their lunch, and they all munched away, smiling and laughing and chatting about how nice it was, the sun peeking through the clouds, which was a rarity, really.
After they were finished with their lunch, Minami talked Atsuko into playing a game of tag with her and the girls, and they all ran around the field screaming like banshees, and if Atsuko fell over a few times it was definitely because there had been a rock or a tree stump in her way, and not because she'd tripped over her own feet. It seemed like she was the biggest target. she'd been it about thirty times now. It was as if no matter who was it, they always chased after Atsuko. This game was more tiring than it should be.
Once they were done with that, they all ran around the playground, sliding down slides and pushing each other on the swings. Atsuko helped Yuki with the monkey bars, and Minami helped Mayu figure out what sort of species different mushrooms were. Once they were all worn out, Yuki and Mayu climbed on to Atsuko and Minami' backs, so Yui and Jurina were left to carry the blanket and picnic basket.
When they got home, they all dragged Mariko in from the kitchen where she was doing dishes and sat her down on the couch. They all gathered 'round and watched films and ordered pizza for dinner. They made sundaes and if they had a bit of a food fight with the whipped cream, they cleaned it up before Mariko could see. They all huddled together and watched one last film, until everyone's eyes were droopy, and Mariko kept saying "You've got school tomorrow."
They all made their way up to bed, and Atsuko and Minami texted each other goodnight from their separate rooms, and Atsuko fell asleep with a huge grin on her face.
~~~~
On Monday morning, Atsuko's mum called.
"Mariko told me you and Minami are dating!" She said, before Atsuko had even had time to say hello.
"Er, yeah."
"Oh, God. I knew it. I've been waiting for this."
"Glad to know you're happy, mum."
"I'm ecstatic." Atsuko's mom said, and Atsuko could hear the smile in her voice. "I'll see you in two days, sweetheart."
"See you, mum."
"Have a good day at school, love."
"I will." Atsuko smiled. "Bye, mum."
"Bye, Atsuko."
~~~~
It was Tuesday night now, and Atsuko and Minami were sitting together on the couch, the rest of the family having gone to bed already.
"I'm not staying down here on your last night here." Minami shook her head.
"Well, come on then. I'm tired." Atsuko said, grabbing Minami's hand and standing up.
They made their way upstairs and climbed into the top bunk. Atsuko wrapped herself tightly around Minami and peppered the back of her neck with little kisses, and Minami giggled softly, which made Atsuko's heart soar.
"I'm going to miss having you here."
"I'm going to miss being here. I'll probably be over at least every weekend, so you have to promise not to get sick of me."
"I couldn't." Minami said. "I don't want to sleep, because the faster I go to sleep, the sooner you'll be gone."
"Go to sleep, Minami. I don't want you falling asleep in class."
"Fine." Minami sighed, turning her head a bit to kiss Atsuko's arm.
"G'night, Atsuko."
"Sweet dreams, Minami."
"My dreams are always sweet with you here."
"Stop being cheesy and go to sleep." Atsuko grinned, her eyes slipping shut as she fell into a deep, peaceful sleep.
~~~~
The next day at school Atsuko and Minami may have been a little more obnoxious than need be, meeting each other between class for sweet little kisses and to say they hoped the other was having a good day, or being super heavy with the PDA at lunch, Minami actually sitting in Atsuko's lap for a while and causing all of their friends to groan in annoyance. When school was over, they hopped into the car and drove back to Minami's house, where Atsuko's mum's car was already parked out front.
They got out of the car and went inside to find Atsuko's mom, Ami, Mariko and the girls all sitting around and drinking tea. They sat down with everyone, and Mariko handed them each a cup. They all sat there for a while, and Mayu and Yuki ended up climbing into Atsuko's lap, knowing she was about to have to go home. Atsuko's mom and Ami talked about their travels, and Atsuko listened intently, although Minami was fiddling with her shirt fondly, and it was hard not to be distracted.
Mariko told Atsuko's mom about how things had been with Atsuko around, and she told her about how Atsuko had done the girls' hair and how close they all felt to her now, and Atsuko's mom smiled, and Yui grinned and told her about how she'd gotten a boyfriend thanks to Atsuko's fishtail braid, and Atsuko insisted that it hadn't really been because of her, but Ami argued, telling her that she had magical powers when it came to hair.
After that, Minami went upstairs with Atsuko and helped her toss all of her belongings back into her duffel bags. They made their way back downstairs, and Atsuko gave Jurina a hug, and then Yuki and Mayu, who didn't seem to want to let go, and then Yui, who insisted that Atsuko still be around by the time she had prom and for every school dance between now and then, because she wanted her to do her hair, and she chuckled and told her that she would.
She hugged Mariko and thanked her for her kindness and hospitality, and then came Minami. This one shouldn't have been the hardest, because she'd see her tomorrow at school, but it was. They hugged each other tightly and gave each other gentle kisses on the cheek, not wanting to kiss properly with both their families present.
"I'll see you at school tomorrow, yeah?" Atsuko said.
"'Of course. See you tomorrow."
"Okay." Atsuko grinned.
"Bye." Mariko said. "I'm sure we'll see you all soon."
"Absolutely." Atsuko's mom reassured her.
They all waved as Atsuko, Ami and their mum left the Takahashi residence, and as they were driving down the street, Atsuko was fiddling with the bracelet Minami had made for her.
"I'm gonna miss them. They became a little like a second family to me." Atsuko said softly.
"Just so long as they haven't replaced us." Atsuko's mom said.
"Of course not."
~~~~
That night, as Atsuko laid in her own bed, she talked to Minami on the phone until both of them were breathing shallowly and neither one could keep their eyes open. They said goodbye and hung up. And as Atsuko laid there, slowly drifting off into a peaceful sleep, she couldn't help but think how much she missed Minami and the entire Takahashi clan, but she was very glad to be home. As she began shutting her eyes, drifting off to wonderland, her phone vibrated. She picked it up, and it was a text from Minami.
To Atsuko: Psst... I love you. See you tomorrow. <3
And nothing could make her feel happier.
Topic: Secret Friend ADORKS 2014[furuyanagi,atsumina,marimii,yuiparu,saeyuki,yukorena,a (Read 6225 times)