[Though from the way the words almost catch in his mouth, from the blush lighting up his own cheeks, from the way his gaze is back to the sky, off to the side, on anywhere but her, it certainly doesn't seem like nothing to him, no matter what he says.
[ He's not letting go of her. Not that it's a bad thing, quite the opposite - although she can't fully put her finger on just exactly why, although she figures that maybe it really is that she likes being this close to him. But he's still not letting go of her, and with how practically minded Saitou is most of the time, it's still telling that he doesn't. (Should she bring it up? No, that'd probably be rude no matter what, and it's not like she wants him to let go, so..)
For a few moments she just stands there quietly. But the silence gets a little awkward to her after those silent moments, so Chizuru speaks up, hoping to fill that silence up again. ]
.. It's pretty warm like this.. [ A little shyly, though, since she is braving this topic in the end. ]
[Oh thank goodness, she's provided him with exactly the out he was worried about finding - because Saitou hardly has the presence of mind to trust his arms to do what he tells them to, when she's this close and the feeling of her body pressed against his is occupying damned near every corner of his thoughts.]
So that's why Saitou isn't letting go of her? Since he's trying to protect her from getting a cold? Of course, she should have realised as much, Saitou is always someone who thinks practically and of others' well being like that, and..
.. it almost makes her feel a little stupid for feeling so flustered about this. With any common sense she should be realising that he must feel the same with his blush from earlier, but alas, sometimes Chizuru is painfully thick about this kind of stuff, like in this situation. But at least that thought reminds her of something else-- ]
How is your cold then, Saitou-san..? [ Yeah, because you were blsuhing earlier? She still hasn't forgotten about that, nope. ]
Eh? [ The sound of surprise leaves her fairly instinctively since she really was so convinced he had a cold judging by the color of his cheeks.. but now he's saying it's nothing like that at all? She blinks to herself, wondering if she mistook the sight earlier and he really wasn't having red cheeks at all.
Chizuru's starting to doubt herself a little the longer she thinks about it, and she figures looking to make sure (because Saitou probably wouldn't be too likely to admit it if he had one, right?) might be the best thing to do here.
So the girl turns her head to look..
.. but with the two of them still being this close, their faces are awfully close when her head turns like that. Much more so than Chizuru imagined, and her face is definitely very red at the realisation of just how close they are. Her heart pounds so loudly that she's almost afraid he can even hear it. ]
[He can't hear her heartbeat - or if he does, he's assuming it's his own, because he's no better off than she is. In fact, he might be worse off, because as soon as he suddenly finds himself face to face with her, there's a rather audible sound from him, somewhere between a gasp and a small eep.
Chizuru's surprise from meeting his face this close is only doubled when she notices Saitou - Hajime Saitou, of all people - actually let out a gasp. And she's not sure how to interpret that sign at all, considering it's not something she's actually heard a lot from him. She doesn't move, per se, but her gaze at least lowers so they're not staring straight into each other's eyes while they're this close - she's trying to stop it from being too awkward, but..
.. well, she just has to know-- ] S-.. sorry. [ Because his face is still red too, so-- ] Saitou-san doesn't dislike being this close, right..?
[ Please don't let her have read into this the wrong way, please don't let her have been inconsiderate by saying something that forward.. she bites her lip, her heart still pounding. ]
[He's bright red and his heart is going a hundred beats a minute but - somehow, it's not a lie, or an attempt to convince himself that there's no problem because he'd prefer to save face rather than admit to being nervous. It's not even an attempt to convince himself because he doesn't want to upset her (although he doesn't, either).
He doesn't know how to describe what he's feeling, but he doesn't dislike it at all.
His gaze moves to the side and stays there, awkwardly fixed on some random point on the street -
[ In the little silences where she considers his answers, the sound of the downpour fills the pause. Slowly Chizuru's gaze moves back up to stare at him, seeing how he looks away yet blushes, how tiny droplets of water drip down from his hair. If he's saying it's fine, then he doesn't mind, but.. if he's not completely like his usual calm, then maybe there's something a little more about it after all. Then maybe she's right, and maybe she doesn't have to feel selfish or like an idiot for the way her heart feels like it's stuck in her throat.
But maybe it's because being this close is making her self-conscious or maybe it's since.. well, it's Chizuru, but she can't help but apologize all the same. ]
I'm sorry if it's selfish [ even accepting the fact there's nothing else he can do right now since running back with his division to the headquarters right now will just give everyone a guaranteed cold or worse, there's maybe the fact that something about it bothers Saitou instead of him feeling the way she does-- ] but.. I really like it. It's really warm like this..
[ And not just from body heat or anything, but also from the doki doki shoujo feeling that's spreading in her chest like a true otome protagonist. ]
[He reaches up to rest one finger against her lips to quiet her - and then immediately turns a bit redder and tenses just a little bit before lowering it again.
Try again with words, Saitou, they'll probably do you at least marginally better.]
You have nothing to apologize for.
[Saitou, on the other hand, clearly might, with all these unexpected physical liberties he's taking, and he swallows hard and takes a deep breath before saying -]
[ Yeah, good job on that finger, because the touch of it against her lips only makes her cheeks more red from the close contact.. and it pretty much stays that way, even when he tries saying it with words instead. All she does is lightly - but quickly, as if she wants to make sure he absolutely doesn't do anything unnecessary like apologizing for this - shake her head after he speaks. ]
N-.. no, there's nothing questionable about it at all..! [ Or so she thinks, anyway, but-- ] I..
[ Is this too bold to say or not.. only the two of them combined can something as small as this sound like something super scandalous. ]
.. I-I suppose that means I like Saitou-san's questionable conduct, then.. [ It's probably a good thing no one can see or hear the two of them like this, huh. ]
Here he is being downright shameful in the liberties he's taken, and she must surely think less of him than she ever has for behaving so improperly, and he can already picture the things anyone else would say if they overheard this or saw something, the disappointment from his superiors, the -
[ The fact that he asks - and stammers, even - makes her a little more embarassed about it, but.. well, this is Chizuru, she's not going to back down on what she just said, at least. Especially since she's at least sure of what she just said, so she gives a small nod and works up the courage to look at his face again, trying to catch his gaze. ]
I do. For some reason [ which she isn't entirely sure of, either ] right now, like this.. I feel really happy.
[ That's a word she can stick for sure on the warm feeling in her chest. ]
So then there's no need to apologize for anything, even if Saitou-san thinks it's questionable, right..?
That's not something to misunderstand, is it. Well, she supposes he could want to make her happy regardless, but.. Saitou isn't the kind of person who'd usually say that out loud, and.. ]
Me too. I'd like to make Saitou-san happy as well.. [ Which is a much more normal thing for her to say out loud about people, but her tone and the blush on her face at least indicate it's something a little more than just her usual friendliness.
Then again, she probably hasn't caught on to just how thick he is just yet. Give her a few moments. Bring out the bottle of sake. ]
[Saitou, even if he's too thick to notice - or at least to understand - the difference in her tone and the blush on her face, is nonetheless also so used to thinking so little of his own needs that even without reading an amorous intent into any of this, he's still quite flustered at the prospect.
And a little confused, because wait, since when has his happiness mattered?]
[ "Why?" is such an odd question for Chizuru. Especially when it comes to a matter like this. Sure, there might be a little more than just her usual reasons in her desire to see Saitou happy, but even if there wasn't, she'd still want him to be happy all the same. She wants the same for all of them, for everyone - but especially the men she might not exactly have started out on the right foot with, but who eventually have come to accept her and help her this much.
But at least in this case, she has a little more of a reason. Actually saying it is where the difficult part lies, though, so she starts out with the obvious part. ]
Because.. you've always helped out take care of me. And I know you're actually a really kind person [ even if it might not always be apparent at first, but once you get to know him-- ] so you deserve it.
[ But those are all the things that are natural to her. There's more to it, much more, but when she starts on that, her tone is softer and she's staring at her feet. She doesn't want to go out of line, she really doesn't, but.. ]
.. And.. when Saitou-san holds me like this, my heart starts pounding really loudly, too.. So.. that kind of feeling tells me I really want to see you happy. [ ... ] Is it really that weird?
[No, part of him wants to say, that isn't weird at all.
Or at least, if she's strange for thinking such a thing, then that must make two of them, because he's certainly having odd and difficult feelings about holding her this way, and he wants to do right by her, and -]
I thought that was my heart that I felt.
[...wow, that's not what he should've said at all, is it.
Way to admit what a flustered loser you are, Saitou.]
[ It's probably a good thing that Chizuru is one of the last people to ever fault anyone for being a loser of any kind, let alone a flustered loser.
But Chizuru, at least, isn't stupid nor oblivious enough to not know what that means. It means he's feeling the same way she is right now, and he's feeling it for her.. It's a little bit of a strange idea, the man who first just seemed distant and maybe a little frigid but then far kinder than she ever could have imagined, that person feeling this way about her. And if he can feel this too, if his heart is pounding this way too, then surely he must also be okay with--
Her heart pounds more and more rapidly. Not just from the feeling, but from the nerves that the idea brings to her as well. Maybe she's wrong, maybe she's making a really, really stupid decision.. ]
.. Um.. in that case.. Saitou-san, would you mind closing your eyes just for a moment..? [ She doesn't think she can actually manage to do this while he's actually looking, anyway. It's already difficult enough without that. ]
[ For a moment or two she just stares, still hesitating a little bit. Technically there's no way back now, it'd seem weird if she asked him to close his eyes for nothing, and she does really badly want to, even if she's still a little nervous about what his reaction might be, and..
.. well, standing there and just staring isn't going to do anything. Maybe for once she should just go for it.
Chizuru leans up a little, standing on her toes slightly so she can reach up - he can probably feel the way she shifts against him thanks to his hold, even if it's just slightly. She decides the lips are a little bit too much dangerous territory for now, but then-- her hand reaches out to cup the cheek opposite to the one she's going for. His skin is a little softer than expected, different than the hands she could feel holding her, rougher from years and years of training. Wet and a little cold too thanks to the rain, but Chizuru doesn't mind. And she doesn't let it distract her. Instead she moves her face a little closer as well to place her lips against his cheek, softly and gently. His lips are a little bit too much of dangerous territory for now, but she can gather up enough courage for this much, at least.
When she pulls her face away again after a moment (her hand lingers a moment longer before she pulls it back, almost as if she doesn't want it to leave his face) her chest feels oddly tight with the nervousness over how he'll react, and she stares at him expectantly. ]
[It takes a moment for Saitou's brain to catch up, to take the sensations and assign them probable causes and turn that into a viable mental picture of what just happened.
But once that moment has passed, and he's reached the conclusion that yes, that was her hand and yes, those must have been her lips and yes, that means she just kissed (!!) him -
His eyes snap open and he turns his head to stare back. Dumbfounded, blushing -
But from the arm that tightens around her waist, he doesn't seem displeased by their proximity at all.]
[ Her heart is pounding so loudly in her ears from anticipation (and nervousness) at whatever his reaction to all of that might be that she responses instinctively when she hears him say her name. ]
Y-.. yes! [ Only Chizuru would kiss someone and then still respond as if she's expected to be given some sort of order any minute now. Even despite the fact they're still standing there that close and his arm still sure is around her. ]
As if he could give orders about this - as if his heart weren't pounding just as hard and as if he weren't just as nervous, because he thinks she's giving him a clear signal here but he still feels so - so improper trying to do a thing like this, even if he's already looked back and forth to see that nobody's still in the street anyway (they all had the sense to get inside by now, clearly) and so it's not as though he's making a horrible public display of this but still -]
May I...reciprocate?
[You can't just kiss girls in the street like it's nothing. You have to ask permission, clearly.]
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[Though from the way the words almost catch in his mouth, from the blush lighting up his own cheeks, from the way his gaze is back to the sky, off to the side, on anywhere but her, it certainly doesn't seem like nothing to him, no matter what he says.
...should he let go?
What if she falls again?
She doesn't seem to be trying to move -
His arm stays where it is.]
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For a few moments she just stands there quietly. But the silence gets a little awkward to her after those silent moments, so Chizuru speaks up, hoping to fill that silence up again. ]
.. It's pretty warm like this.. [ A little shyly, though, since she is braving this topic in the end. ]
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I would not wish to see you catch cold.
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So that's why Saitou isn't letting go of her? Since he's trying to protect her from getting a cold? Of course, she should have realised as much, Saitou is always someone who thinks practically and of others' well being like that, and..
.. it almost makes her feel a little stupid for feeling so flustered about this. With any common sense she should be realising that he must feel the same with his blush from earlier, but alas, sometimes Chizuru is painfully thick about this kind of stuff, like in this situation. But at least that thought reminds her of something else-- ]
How is your cold then, Saitou-san..? [ Yeah, because you were blsuhing earlier? She still hasn't forgotten about that, nope. ]
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[Ah, right. She'd seemed to think he was getting one, hadn't she; how had he forgotten about that so quickly?
(Easily, when they're pressed up scandalously close together.)]
I am not ill.
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Chizuru's starting to doubt herself a little the longer she thinks about it, and she figures looking to make sure (because Saitou probably wouldn't be too likely to admit it if he had one, right?) might be the best thing to do here.
So the girl turns her head to look..
.. but with the two of them still being this close, their faces are awfully close when her head turns like that. Much more so than Chizuru imagined, and her face is definitely very red at the realisation of just how close they are. Her heart pounds so loudly that she's almost afraid he can even hear it. ]
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He's definitely not blushing any less, either.]
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Moe moe professional killer in action.Chizuru's surprise from meeting his face this close is only doubled when she notices Saitou - Hajime Saitou, of all people - actually let out a gasp. And she's not sure how to interpret that sign at all, considering it's not something she's actually heard a lot from him. She doesn't move, per se, but her gaze at least lowers so they're not staring straight into each other's eyes while they're this close - she's trying to stop it from being too awkward, but..
.. well, she just has to know-- ] S-.. sorry. [ Because his face is still red too, so-- ] Saitou-san doesn't dislike being this close, right..?
[ Please don't let her have read into this the wrong way, please don't let her have been inconsiderate by saying something that forward.. she bites her lip, her heart still pounding. ]
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[He's bright red and his heart is going a hundred beats a minute but - somehow, it's not a lie, or an attempt to convince himself that there's no problem because he'd prefer to save face rather than admit to being nervous. It's not even an attempt to convince himself because he doesn't want to upset her (although he doesn't, either).
He doesn't know how to describe what he's feeling, but he doesn't dislike it at all.
His gaze moves to the side and stays there, awkwardly fixed on some random point on the street -
His arms don't loosen their grip on her.]
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But maybe it's because being this close is making her self-conscious or maybe it's since.. well, it's Chizuru, but she can't help but apologize all the same. ]
I'm sorry if it's selfish [ even accepting the fact there's nothing else he can do right now since running back with his division to the headquarters right now will just give everyone a guaranteed cold or worse, there's maybe the fact that something about it bothers Saitou instead of him feeling the way she does-- ] but.. I really like it. It's really warm like this..
[ And not just from body heat or anything, but also from the doki doki shoujo feeling that's spreading in her chest like a true otome protagonist. ]
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Try again with words, Saitou, they'll probably do you at least marginally better.]
You have nothing to apologize for.
[Saitou, on the other hand, clearly might, with all these unexpected physical liberties he's taking, and he swallows hard and takes a deep breath before saying -]
I apologize for my questionable conduct.
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N-.. no, there's nothing questionable about it at all..! [ Or so she thinks, anyway, but-- ] I..
[ Is this too bold to say or not.. only the two of them combined can something as small as this sound like something super scandalous. ]
.. I-I suppose that means I like Saitou-san's questionable conduct, then.. [ It's probably a good thing no one can see or hear the two of them like this, huh. ]
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Here he is being downright shameful in the liberties he's taken, and she must surely think less of him than she ever has for behaving so improperly, and he can already picture the things anyone else would say if they overheard this or saw something, the disappointment from his superiors, the -
- wait, what?]
D-do you really?
[Surely he's misheard.]
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I do. For some reason [ which she isn't entirely sure of, either ] right now, like this.. I feel really happy.
[ That's a word she can stick for sure on the warm feeling in her chest. ]
So then there's no need to apologize for anything, even if Saitou-san thinks it's questionable, right..?
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[Pause.
Wow, he sure did just say that.
Give him a moment to scream internally.]
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Oh.
That's not something to misunderstand, is it. Well, she supposes he could want to make her happy regardless, but.. Saitou isn't the kind of person who'd usually say that out loud, and.. ]
Me too. I'd like to make Saitou-san happy as well.. [ Which is a much more normal thing for her to say out loud about people, but her tone and the blush on her face at least indicate it's something a little more than just her usual friendliness.
Then again, she probably hasn't caught on to just how thick he is just yet. Give her a few moments.
Bring out the bottle of sake.]no subject
And a little confused, because wait, since when has his happiness mattered?]
Do...you truly? But why?
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But at least in this case, she has a little more of a reason. Actually saying it is where the difficult part lies, though, so she starts out with the obvious part. ]
Because.. you've always helped out take care of me. And I know you're actually a really kind person [ even if it might not always be apparent at first, but once you get to know him-- ] so you deserve it.
[ But those are all the things that are natural to her. There's more to it, much more, but when she starts on that, her tone is softer and she's staring at her feet. She doesn't want to go out of line, she really doesn't, but.. ]
.. And.. when Saitou-san holds me like this, my heart starts pounding really loudly, too.. So.. that kind of feeling tells me I really want to see you happy. [ ... ] Is it really that weird?
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Or at least, if she's strange for thinking such a thing, then that must make two of them, because he's certainly having odd and difficult feelings about holding her this way, and he wants to do right by her, and -]
I thought that was my heart that I felt.
[...wow, that's not what he should've said at all, is it.
Way to admit what a flustered loser you are, Saitou.]
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But Chizuru, at least, isn't stupid nor oblivious enough to not know what that means. It means he's feeling the same way she is right now, and he's feeling it for her.. It's a little bit of a strange idea, the man who first just seemed distant and maybe a little frigid but then far kinder than she ever could have imagined, that person feeling this way about her. And if he can feel this too, if his heart is pounding this way too, then surely he must also be okay with--
Her heart pounds more and more rapidly. Not just from the feeling, but from the nerves that the idea brings to her as well. Maybe she's wrong, maybe she's making a really, really stupid decision.. ]
.. Um.. in that case.. Saitou-san, would you mind closing your eyes just for a moment..? [ She doesn't think she can actually manage to do this while he's actually looking, anyway. It's already difficult enough without that. ]
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So confused and yet there's something in him that's terribly excited by it and he can't explain why.]
Of course.
[And he obediently closes his eyes.]
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.. well, standing there and just staring isn't going to do anything. Maybe for once she should just go for it.
Chizuru leans up a little, standing on her toes slightly so she can reach up - he can probably feel the way she shifts against him thanks to his hold, even if it's just slightly. She decides the lips are a little bit too much dangerous territory for now, but then-- her hand reaches out to cup the cheek opposite to the one she's going for. His skin is a little softer than expected, different than the hands she could feel holding her, rougher from years and years of training. Wet and a little cold too thanks to the rain, but Chizuru doesn't mind. And she doesn't let it distract her. Instead she moves her face a little closer as well to place her lips against his cheek, softly and gently. His lips are a little bit too much of dangerous territory for now, but she can gather up enough courage for this much, at least.
When she pulls her face away again after a moment (her hand lingers a moment longer before she pulls it back, almost as if she doesn't want it to leave his face) her chest feels oddly tight with the nervousness over how he'll react, and she stares at him expectantly. ]
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But once that moment has passed, and he's reached the conclusion that yes, that was her hand and yes, those must have been her lips and yes, that means she just kissed (!!) him -
His eyes snap open and he turns his head to stare back. Dumbfounded, blushing -
But from the arm that tightens around her waist, he doesn't seem displeased by their proximity at all.]
...Yukimura.
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Y-.. yes! [ Only Chizuru would kiss someone and then still respond as if she's expected to be given some sort of order any minute now. Even despite the fact they're still standing there that close and his arm still sure is around her. ]
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As if he could give orders about this - as if his heart weren't pounding just as hard and as if he weren't just as nervous, because he thinks she's giving him a clear signal here but he still feels so - so improper trying to do a thing like this, even if he's already looked back and forth to see that nobody's still in the street anyway (they all had the sense to get inside by now, clearly) and so it's not as though he's making a horrible public display of this but still -]
May I...reciprocate?
[You can't just kiss girls in the street like it's nothing. You have to ask permission, clearly.]
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