Back in Time [WMatsui fanfic]

CHAPTER 8

Rena didn't know how to interpret Jurina's strange behavior when they made their way to the office. Since the moment they woke up, Rena could tell something was off with her girlfriend. Not only she spoke very few words, it was evident she was stressed. When she witnessed those signs, Rena questioned her in concern, the latter brushing it off with a small nervous look. Nothing serious, Jurina assured her. This morning, she had a lot on her mind because of the monthly meeting regarding the advancement of the time machine.

Rena chose not to insist – remembering indeed the important meeting was supposed to happen this morning – even though she couldn't shake the feeling that Jurina wasn't telling her the entire truth. To add to her skepticism, she recalled vividly the short conversation that took place between Jurina and her robot before leaving the house. Rena was waiting patiently a few feet away for the other girl to finish her chat with him, and the very last words they exchanged brought a frown to her face. Even though she was too far to catch the whole conversation, she still managed to catch snatches of it, and heard Jurina asking Alfred to wish her luck.

Wish her luck? But for what?

Rena's first thought was to assume that it was related to the time machine. Had Jurina managed to make significant advancements lately? An incredible breakthrough she wished to announce later at the office? Rena couldn't fathom what else it could possibly be. At some point, she almost broached the subject but refrained herself at the last minute, guessing Jurina had a good reason for not telling her. Maybe she wished to make it a surprise? If that was the case, then she was going to act completely clueless, and let the other girl announce it when she deemed the time was right.

This morning, the sky was cloudy and dark, and Rena was more than grateful for her mini-collapsible umbrella when droplets of water started to fall in the streets in Tokyo. It wasn't much and she didn't believe things would escalate further than that, but she placed nevertheless the umbrella above their heads as soon as it started to rain. Of course, Jurina had all-forgotten about the mixed weather when they left home. Not that she expected any less.

Jurina was a very reliable person, whether in the workplace or in her personal life. However, if there was one item Rena knew she couldn't dispose of, it was her faithful mini-collapsible umbrella. After three months of living under the same roof, one thing became more than obvious: she absolutely couldn't trust Jurina when it came to the weather forecast. Didn't she pay attention, or didn't she really care? Up to that day, Rena still didn't have a clear explanation.

When they entered one of the elevators at Matsui Corporation, Rena was starting to seriously doubt the credibility of her theory regarding her girlfriend's peculiar behavior. They had a morning routine. Each time they found themselves alone in the elevator – which was now the case, as many people had descended at the previous floors – Jurina wouldn't wait to engage in a conversation with her, flirt with her and kiss her. Not this time. In fact, Jurina was keeping her distance and looking anywhere but at her – visibly finding the change of floors numbers very interesting – and appeared increasingly more restless, her fingertips tapping frequently against the handrail of the elevator.

The more Rena studied her, the more she was convinced it couldn't be related to the time machine. Not once since the younger girl joined the company, had she seen her acting so nervous because of work-related matters. In the professional field, Jurina was a confident person. Now fearing something serious may have happened to her on a personal level, Rena couldn't help but get really worried. Somehow, she could sense it was an important matter. But why would her girlfriend hide something from her? At the very early stages of their relationship, they had promised to always be honest with each other.

Rena was at an impasse. Stealing a brief glance at the numbers, she noted that they were halfway through their final destination. Until now, she had chosen to keep her thoughts to herself, believing it was probably an innocent matter, but she couldn't stay quiet any longer. If Jurina was in any kind of trouble, she needed to know.