The sunlight spilled down at an angle from the side of the wicker chair, perfectly covering Qiluo's crossed calves. The warmth slowly seeped into her skin, feeling as comfortable as soaking in a hot spring.
Resting her hands on the armrests, she leaned her head against the back of the chair, her eyes half-closed.
“I want to sleep for a bit. The sun is so nice, it would be a waste not to take a nap.”
Rin stood up, preparing to head back to her bedroom.
She wanted to take one last look before leaving the balcony.
When she walked over to the wicker chair, she found that Qiluo's eyes were still open. She was looking up at her from beneath half-lowered eyelashes, a hint of newly formed sleepiness and a playful, mischievous smile lingering deep in her pupils.
She hadn't closed her eyes yet.
She just lay there with her eyes half-open, waiting for her to walk over.
“Didn't you say you were going to sleep?” Rin stood frozen in place, finding herself unable to think of any other line to say at that moment.
“I am, but I saw you walking over, so I wanted to see what you were up to.”
Qiluo rubbed her cheek against the back of the wicker chair, finding a more comfortable angle, her eyelashes half-drooping.
She opened her eyes a crack, meeting Rin's gaze as she stood there.
Qiluo didn't look away. She simply maintained her lazy posture, her head resting against the back of the wicker chair as she watched her with half-open eyes.
“Last time at the hospital, when Rin-jie saw me fall asleep, didn't you want to drape your coat over me? The sun is so nice today, why aren't you doing it now?”
Hearing her voice laced with sleepiness, soft and sweet, Rin couldn't tell if she was acting spoiled or just teasing her.
She couldn't just stand here like a fool. She had to do something.
“I'll go get a blanket,” Rin said. She turned around and walked toward the balcony door, deliberately controlling her pace.
The sequence of opening the glass door, crossing the living room, and walking over to the sofa was done in complete silence.
It was only when her fingers touched the thin blanket folded over the armrest of the sofa that she realized her heart was racing.
She recognized this blanket.
It was the one she always used herself. Now, she was holding that very same blanket, about to drape it over someone else.
Rin returned to the balcony and unfolded the blanket.
Qiluo's eyes were already closed. Rin leaned down and gently draped the blanket over her. Her fingers paused on the edge of the blanket for a moment, making sure her shoulders and arms were fully covered before she stood back up.
“...Thank you,” Qiluo murmured without opening her eyes, her voice drifting out from beneath the edge of the blanket.
Rin gently pulled the glass balcony door shut. Her steps were fast—so fast that she realized she looked like she was fleeing from something, forcing herself to slow down to a normal pace.
Pushing open her bedroom door, the moment the lock clicked into place, she leaned her back against the doorframe.
She looked down at her hands.
The sensation of the blanket's edge brushing against the back of her hand still lingered, along with the faint warmth of accidentally touching Qiluo's chin when she had pulled the blanket up.
She knew she must have looked incredibly strange on the balcony just now.
Qiluo Tian Gong seemed to possess a natural gravity, effortlessly making people want to take a look, then another, only to realize they couldn't tear their eyes away.
Hers wasn't a loud, striking beauty; it was the kind of beauty that made you want to keep looking, until eventually, you forgot what you were even staring at.
But she was Yuki's friend.
Rin slowly unclenched her fists, her nails leaving faint red indentations in her palms.
She looked down at the red marks, feeling that she was probably the worst older sister in the entire world.
As the glass balcony door gently closed and Rin's footsteps faded into the depths of the apartment, Qiluo finally pulled the blanket up, burying half her face in it.
The blanket carried a faint scent, the exact same fragrance that lingered on Rin.
She withdrew her consciousness from her body on the balcony and sank into Star-trail.
Star-trail was currently lying on Yuki Kurokawa's pillow, curled up into a perfect ball of fluff.
Even back when she was on the balcony, voices had been popping up in her head from time to time.
Now, she switched her focus over to Star-trail.
Kizuna's voice flooded directly through the contract mark again, bursting with an excitement she had held in all morning:
“Star-trail, Star-trail! Sis just left! She had to go to the agency to handle some work she postponed earlier. Right now, I'm the only one in the hospital room!”
“Didn't you say you'd take me to the Association to register once I recovered? I'm all better now! We can do it today! Can you come pick me up, please?”
Star-trail's ears twitched.
Ever since they finalized their temporary contract, the girl had become more proficient with their contract communication by the day.
Recently, she had even self-taught herself the trick of projecting her voice directly into the depths of its consciousness.
However, she had a good sense of boundaries, only sending messages during the day and never disturbing it at night.
“Did your sister say you could get out of bed today before she left?” Star-trail stood up on the pillow and shook its fur.
“She did! She said I could walk around the hallway, just not too far. Going to the Association isn't far, right? It's just a car ride, walking a few steps, and then another car ride back. Plus, I won't be alone, I'll have you with me!”
“Your sister just walked out the door and you're already plotting this.”
“I am not! I just thought of it!” Kizuna's voice immediately rose half an octave, before softening again with a hint of pleading. “Come on, please~ I've really had enough of lying in bed.”
Star-trail leapt gracefully from the bed, turning into a streak of silver light that slipped through the gap in the window.
In the top-floor room of the inpatient department, Kizuna had already changed out of her hospital gown. Wearing a light purple cardigan left by her sister and a long white skirt, she sat on the edge of the bed, idly swinging her legs.
Seeing Star-trail squeeze through the window gap, her eyes lit up. She reached out to catch it, placing it on her lap.
“I knew you'd come! You're the best, Star-trail~”
“Your sister is going to be angry when she gets back.”
“I'll coax her when she gets mad. I'm pretty good at that.”
Kizuna tapped Star-trail's nose with her finger. “Besides, I'm not sneaking out, I'm going to register. Registering is official business. When Sis finds out, she'll probably praise me for being sensible.”
Star-trail jumped off her lap and landed on the nightstand.
“Before we head out, let's verify a few things first. Stand up and take a few steps for me.”
Kizuna immediately stood up from the bedside, stepping barefoot onto the floor. She walked a few paces and spun around.
The hem of her light purple cardigan fluttered gently with her spin.
“See? Perfectly fine. I even did a few squats in the room, and I didn't feel dizzy at all.”
“...When did you do squats?”
“While Sis went to the nurse's station to sign some papers. I took advantage of her absence to quietly test how many I could do.”
Kizuna sat back down on the edge of the bed, stretching her legs out, tensing and relaxing her toes as if conducting a final muscle test.
“I ended up doing fifteen, five more than yesterday. The nurse said my muscle strength is recovering incredibly fast. She thinks it's a miracle, but I think it's you.”
Rate on N.U.
