² anemone heart | kotoumi ✓

bird of paradise.

the bird of paradise: the flower of joyfulness, excitement, wonderful anticipation, and magnificence.

— in which kotori looks after the girl who sits in the same row as her.

~

the week after, umi wasn't feeling so good. when she sits up in bed in the morning, she feels a dull ache resonate in her bones, heat prickling at her eyeballs, and an incoming headache.

but she was supposed to go shopping with kotori today. no way in hell was she going to let a little sickness stop her.

she slides her legs over the side of the bed, and a groan escapes her lips. the pounding in her head really was beginning to seem like a problem, but she forces herself to ignore it and proceeds to the bathroom to wash up.

when kotori came knocking on umi's door fifteen minutes later, the shorter girl was appalled at how pale her friend's face was. her dulled copper irises were practically screaming illness.

"morning," umi mutters, struggling to hold her head up long enough to maintain eye contact with kotori. the younger girl makes a worried face, and raises her hand to lift the soft dark-blue hair that covered umi's forehead, flinching when she feels how piping hot her skin was.

"goodness, you're burning up!" kotori keeps a gentle supporting arm around umi's weak body, ushering the two of them into the room, and plops her handbag onto one of the chairs nearby, before forcing umi to sit down on her bed.

"it's okay, i'm fine." umi insists, trying to resist, but for some reason, her body refused to obey her, and she was too weak to stop kotori nestling her down into the soft sheets.

"no, you're not." kotori huffs, and straightens, worry colouring her golden eyes as she looks down at umi, who's eyelids were half-closed, appearing extremely frail and tired. "rest for today. i'll–erm–i should probably go get some medicine."

"but," umi protests again, attempting to sit up. "i promised you–"

"–just lie down." kotori said, never being more sure about anything in her life, gently applying pressure to umi's shoulders, coaxing her back onto the bed. "you're sick. we can always have another shopping trip some other day."

umi locks her eyes onto kotori's worried golden ones, and her headache gets the better of her, so she's subdued, and sinks, defeated, into the sheets.

kotori smiles, satisfied. "wait here, i'll go get something for fever. how's your throat?"

"fine," umi whispers, closing her eyes, but she opens them again, something in her not wanting to let kotori out of her sight. "pretty sure it's just a really bad temperature."

kotori's innocent smile switches on. "i'll be right back, okay?"

and umi nods, failing to hide a small grin as kotori's slim figure leaves. sighing, she lets herself relax into the comfort of her bed, closing her eyes for some much-needed rest.

she doesn't know how long she had been out for, but when she awakens, kotori's by her side again, coaxing her to sit up.

"sorry to disturb you," kotori whispers tenderly, as if she were talking to a baby, a spoon filled with pink liquid in her hand. "but this will help with the fever."

umi's gaze flickers to kotori's eyes, which were filled with concern and plain worry, and hesitates at the idea of being fed, but she pushes it aside when she remembered that kotori had probably walked all the way to the pharmacy (about thirty minutes) to get medicine for her.

so she accepts it graciously, swallowing the bitter medicine and her pride down in one go. kotori smiles softly at the sight, and proceeds to get up, leaving umi confused on the bed.

"my mum places a cold towel on my forehead to make me feel better," kotori explains, coming back a while later with a small, soaked, white towel in her hand. "i'm sure it'll work for you too."

she makes umi lie down again, and moves the cold towel onto the older girl's forehead, making umi blush at their close proximity as kotori adjusts the towel properly. at that, umi thinks that a kiss from kotori could probably make her feel better.

but then again, perhaps it'd make her face hotter instead.

"there," kotori leans back in satisfaction, her golden eyes fixating on umi's tired copper ones. "now, rest. i'll be here when you wake up again, okay?"

umi holds her gaze tenderly. "my mum has a really good way of making me feel better, too."

"oh?" kotori tilts her head, eager to do anything to make her friend well again. "what is it?"

"she'd–" umi explains, moving so that was more space in the bed, perhaps enough for two. "–cuddle with me so that i won't feel alone."

at this, kotori blushes a shade of red darker than ripe strawberries, her mouth opening hesitantly. "a–are you sure? i–"

umi's ears were already turning crimson, but she wanted to try. she wanted to experience having kotori beside her, so close to her, that she could breathe in her golden scent and hear her heartbeat against her chest. she prayed she could fake confidence for just a little longer.

"–it'll make me feel better." umi finishes with a heavy breath.

kotori stares at her for a while longer, than at the empty space beside umi on the tiny bed. would she even be able to fit there? she'd have to be awfully close to the older girl — not that it was undesirable. quite the opposite, actually.

so she gives in. "okay."

she lifts a foot up onto the bed, and she notices umi's shy smile when she shifts closer, till their noses were inches apart.

"i hope that this really makes you feel better," kotori whispers, not really sure where to put her hands, so she just rests them underneath her head awkwardly, praying that umi wouldn't notice how fidgety she was.

umi cracks a small, crooked, shy smile, shifting her head a little against the soft material of the pillow. "it definitely will."

kotori returns her smile, and watches as umi's eyelids start to flutter, and soon, they were shut. the smaller girl keeps staring, thinking about how peaceful umi looked when she was asleep. it was comfortable; being here, sharing the same bed, breathing the same air.

"i didn't know that you could be so bold," kotori teases playfully, shifting slightly closer to the older girl, heart beating faster at the sight of her companion's flushed cheeks.

"i didn't know that myself," umi adds, oddly sure of the words pouring from her lips. she wants to stop herself before she said anything embarrassing, but for some reason, she wanted kotori to know this.

"till i met you."

~

hey there! joy here. sorry it took so long to update this chapter,,, i had five on-going projects, so i barely had time for myself, even. thanks for being patient!
- joy
25.7.2019