Leaving the Mask Behind ~ Kanamafu

It's Normal.

     Mafuyu and I turned around in fear, only to face Mafuyu's mother, the one she had ran away from only last night. Immediately I grabbed Mafuyu's hand and whisked her and the cart around to another isle closer to the bathrooms. I was hoping, no- praying- her mom didn't follow us. I looked up at Mafuyu. She seemed to be a bit shaken, but not terribly upset. I let out a breath of relief, just happy she wasn't too upset. I waited a moment before Mafuyu asked if we could leave, to which I said yes. I headed to the self-checkout and paid for the groceries. We left, and luckily didn't run into Mafuyu's mom again that day.

      The walk home was silent. When we got home, a sort of awkward feeling lingered in the air. I'd never really had friends over before, let alone living with me. I had no idea if I should do something, or just leave her alone. The silence was broken by Mafuyu's stomach rumbling. I remembered we hadn't eaten breakfast, and it was past noon at this point. I was going to offer to make lunch, but I didn't really know how to make anything. So, I asked, "Mafuyu, can you cook?" I was slightly embarrassed, but she shortly responded. "I can make us lunch. We should have ingredients for sandwiches. Could you cut the vegetables? I will prepare the meat." Mafuyu swiftly walked to the kitchen and began to get the ingredients out of the grocery bags. I grabbed a knife that seemed to be suitable. She handed me some cucumbers and lettuce and I began trying to cut them into small pieces. I didn't really know what I was doing, but not long passed before I nipped my thumb on the knife. The cut wasn't deep at all, but it was still bleeding. Mafuyu looked over, and asked if I had a first aid kit. I nodded, but I didn't really think this small cut needed care. I handed her the box and she wet a piece of cloth and stopped the bleeding. Then, she took a small piece of bandage and wrapped my thumb in it. When she was done, she went back to the cutting board and gestured for me to come over. Slightly confused, I walked over to Mafuyu. Without saying any words, she grabbed my hand and used her own to position my fingers on the knife. She used her hands to guide mine, the knife gliding over the fresh vegetables as if it was nothing. I don't know what was going on in Mafuyu's head, but I sure do know what was going on in mine. I was blushing. My heart was racing. All I could think about was her hands on mine. They were cold but made me feel warm inside. But the warmth also came with this sense of nervousness. It was that same feeling I got when she held my hand in bed last night. 

     But I couldn't.

     I had to push these feelings away. If I kept pushing my feelings aside, I wouldn't feel them anymore. Right?  It had to be right. It was all I could think of. When she was finished, I stood frozen for a moment. One I had snapped out of it, the sandwiches were ready. We sat at my dining table and ate mostly in silence. I would've tried to talk, but it seemed like Mafuyu was thinking deeply about something. Something I didn't want to bother.

     The rest of the day went by pretty normally. Mafuyu didn't seem to want to do much, so I stayed at my desk and worked like I would have any other day. Then it was time to get on nightcord. I gave Mafuyu my laptop so she could join on there while I went on my desktop. When we logged in, Mizuki and Ena both noticed Mafuyu was clearly in my room. "Woah, why's Mafuyu at your house, K?" Mizuki asked. "Uhhh, you know, that might be a bit personal..." Ena stated quietly. it seemed she already had an idea of what was going on. Mizuki got the message. "Oh, well, if you ever wanna talk about it we can meet in Sekai!" Mizuki exclaimed with a smile. I gave a light smile while Mafuyu stayed silent. The rest of the call went on like any other night. When we were done, I decided to get ready for bed. Mafuyu and I took turns in the shower, and she wore some of my pajamas again. Mafuyu got in my bed and looked at me. "Please stay. Don't leave," she whispered. Her words lingered in my mind. I hesitated, but then I remembered the look on her face this morning. I took a deep breath, pushing away any of my selfish thoughts. got into the bed and Mafuyu clung to me, more desperate than before. I wrapped my arms around her, taking in her scent. She smelled like me now. It was comforting in a way. 

     But was this really normal for friends to do?

-------a/n-------

hey again pooks uh. updates r gonna get slow because marching band and other stuff (fun fact: I wrote the first half of this at a football game in the stands lmao)