If Jealousy Could Kill

Mami leaned her body onto the kitchen table, her eyes peering across the table at the couple who had their arms wrapped tightly around each other. After Mami’s talk with Miyuki last night at the store, Mami couldn’t look at the two of them the same way again. Mami knew Miyuki only meant well with what she was doing but Mami couldn’t help but feel a bit bad that she was tricking Rina like this. Miyuki and Rina’s date was Mami’s idea and if things ended badly between them, Rina would be in even more pain and Mami would be solely responsible for it.

Still… Rina did look happy. Mami couldn’t tell if Rina’s happiness was faked or not, but her giddiness and smiling whenever Miyuki would hug and kiss her seemed honest enough. The blonde let out a soft sigh, maybe Rina really was falling for Miyuki slowly. She didn’t want to think like that, she didn’t want to think that she had passed another chance at love because of her own silly insecurities. It could very well be true though and Mami knew she had to remember that. Mami didn’t like attempting to live in some fairytale and deny reality.

Mami could hear the plates clattering behind them, the product of Haruna harassing Tomomi as she attempted to cook. Haruna had claimed she wanted to help Tomomi cook and maybe she had, but it didn’t mean she would be of any use. From the sounds of the clattering and the complaining from the younger girl, it sounded like Haruna really wasn’t being of much help after all. It didn’t surprise Mami or Rina though. Haruna never was much help in the kitchen. This all, of course, was if Haruna even wanted to truly help or if she just wanted to give Tomomi a hard time.

Miyuki glanced over at Mami, giving her a small and sympathetic smile when she saw the blonde staring at them. Miyuki really did feel sorry for Mami; she knew the blonde had to be going through a rough patch right now. After Miyuki had deduced that Mami had liked Rina, she had decided the other woman must be Tomomi. When she deduced that, she thought to the conversation Mami and she had had only minutes prior when Mami confessed to having set up Tomomi and Haruna.

That’s what made Miyuki hurt the most. Mami had been in love with her but she still sacrificed her own happiness to give her friends’ happiness. That was just the person Mami was though. She may be rough on the outside and acted like she didn’t care, but she would be willing to do anything for her friends. Mami was about as loyal as a friend could ever get.

Miyuki wished there was something she could do for Mami but there really wasn’t anything she could do if Mami continued to refuse to pursue Rina. Once Miyuki had gone home, she thought back onto the conversation and decided that if Mami was truly going to pursue Rina then she would back off. She would willingly let Mami have Rina but if Mami wasn’t going to do that then Miyuki wouldn’t back off. She wouldn’t let Rina go. She would only let go if she knew Mami would take over where she left off. Until she had that security though, she would continue to actively try to make Rina hers for real.

The older girl let her eyes break away from Mami, looking behind the blonde and over to the happy couple near the stove. She could see Haruna reach over to put something in the pot, only to have her hand slapped and pushed away by Tomomi before she could drop whatever she had into the pot. Normally when Miyuki would see a couple that happy, it would make her smile, but seeing Tomomi and Haruna didn’t do that for her.

This whole thing was one big, complicated mess. Miyuki was beginning to wonder why she ever got involved in this in the first place. When she wondered that though, she would always look down at Rina and remember instantly why she had. Even when she had her moments of regret for getting involved, she could never stay too regretful for long.

“Yo, are you two lovebirds almost finished with the food?” Mami asked loudly, breaking Miyuki’s attention.

“Patience!” Haruna shouted back to her. Mami laughed softly, turning her body so she was sitting sideways in the chair, looking over at the couple. Haruna was standing off to the side now, her hands clasped behind her back as she watched Tomomi diligently work.

“So what happened to you ‘helping’?” Mami asked, using air quotes around her last word. Haruna shot her a pointed glare for her sarcastic action, to which the blonde only grinned at her. Mami’s emotions were bouncing so back and forth that Miyuki was having a hard time keeping up. She always was a hard one to read, ever since the first day she had started working at the shop.

“Tomomi didn’t appreciate it,” Haruna stated. Tomomi responded to her with a gasp.

“Don’t try to play the victim here, Haruna! You weren’t helping at all.” Haruna crossed her arms over her chest now, pouting at the girl who was still focusing on what she was cooking.

“I was trying to be helpful.” Tomomi glanced over at Haruna, smiling at the sad expression she was sporting now. She giggled softly, letting the spoon go and settle in the pot. She leaned closer to Haruna, giving her a gentle peck.

“Thank you, sweetie. But you’re not very helpful,” Tomomi told her.

“Covering your brutal honesty with kisses, huh? I’ve taught you well,” Haruna said in a proud tone.

“Taught her well? You’ve corrupted the poor girl,” Mami cracked off, earning herself another glare from Haruna. Tomomi giggled again, giving Haruna another peck before asking her to go sit down.

The eldest girl agreed, finally leaving Tomomi’s side and leaving her to cook in peace. She pulled out a chair next to Mami, slumping down in it. Miyuki could see the way Haruna and Rina connected eyes for only a second before Rina quickly turned her head away from Haruna, laying her head down on Miyuki’s shoulder. Miyuki gave her a small kiss on the top of her head.

Haruna had noticed the break in eye contact too but she kept a straight face despite how much it hurt. Haruna couldn’t help but feel a little bit betrayed. She had thought about it overnight and Haruna was really beginning to get the feeling that Rina wasn’t supportive of her relationship with Tomomi, and that is what hurt Haruna. Rina was her best friend; shouldn’t best friends be supportive when their friends fall in love? Haruna felt bad that her relationship might be hurting Rina and maybe it was selfish of her to feel betrayed by that, but she couldn’t help it. She expected differently from Rina.

Across the table, Miyuki began to stroke Rina’s hair gently, trying to help the younger girl begin to ignore the unrequited love sitting across from her.

“It’s okay, I’ve got you,” Miyuki whispered so only the young girl could hear. Miyuki could see the smile come to Rina’s face and in turn, that made Miyuki smile. Every little step was an improvement with Rina. She was beginning to see how her affection was starting to make Rina happy. She didn’t know if that meant Rina was falling for her or not but she hoped it meant something.

She hoped it at least meant that Rina was finally getting over Haruna.

***

“So did you miss me yesterday?” Tomomi asked as she collapsed onto the bed next to Haruna. The couple hadn’t seen each other at all yesterday other than an hour before Tomomi left for school and work.

The two girls were now holed up in Haruna’s room, Miyuki and Mami having left some time ago while Rina had chosen to depart to her room as well. The eldest girl did want to talk to Rina but she couldn’t find a time to do it. There was always someone else around and Haruna didn’t exactly want to bring up a subject like that when others were around. Haruna pushed herself onto her side so she was facing Tomomi with her hands under her head.

“What would you do if I said no, I didn’t miss you?” Haruna asked. Tomomi whimpered softly, bringing her hands up to her chest and clasping them together as she pouted at Haruna.

“I would cry,” she said sadly. Haruna grinned at her before scooting her body over so the two girls were lying closer together. She reached her head out, giving Tomomi a kiss on the nose.

“Of course I missed you, I hardly saw you at all yesterday,” Haruna admitted. This time, it was Tomomi’s turn to grin. She reached out and wrapped her arms around Haruna, pushing their bodies together. Haruna leaned her head down onto Tomomi’s chest, gently nuzzling her. “It’s weird not having you around these days. You’re always around anymore.”

“Well I do have a life, sweetie. I’ve got work and school. Besides, we could have spent more time together had you just got your lazy butt out of bed a bit earlier,” Tomomi teased her. Haruna glanced up at her with a raised eyebrow before shaking her head and looking back away from her.

“Blaming it on your lonely girlfriend? How terrible,” Haruna mused.

“Lonely? Aw, sweetie! You missed me that much?” Tomomi cooed, giving Haruna a tight squeeze. Haruna yelped from the sudden squeeze, hearing Tomomi laugh when Haruna had done that. Haruna growled lowly only to have Tomomi kiss the top of her head. “Don’t be mad.”

“Well then don’t tease me,” Haruna countered her. Tomomi giggled, giving Haruna another tight squeeze and kissing the top of her head. Haruna was too much fun to tease, her reactions were quite priceless. The two girls fell in a comfortable silence, Tomomi lightly rubbing Haruna’s back while the older girl simply enjoyed being held by her beloved.

Haruna would gently nuzzle her head against Tomomi’s chest, a content sigh passing her lips. Her body relaxed into Tomomi’s touch, letting the younger girl know how much she was enjoying her touch.

“Haru, can I ask you a question?” Tomomi asked her in order to break the silence. Haruna glanced up at her before nodding her head, giving her the silent okay to continue with her question. “You’ve never told me, what do you want to do for a living? Do you have any dreams?”

Tomomi decided that if she and Haruna were going to get more serious then she wanted to know more little details about Haruna. The topic of dreams and what the two girls wanted out of life had never really been brought up in a conversation; Tomomi thought that now was as good a time as any to bring it up.

Haruna sighed softly, pushing herself out of Tomomi’s arms and away from the younger girl. She sat up, crossing her legs and laying her hands down onto her lap. Her head bowed downwards and Tomomi was getting the sinking feeling that her simple question had brought up some bad memories for Haruna.

“Haruna…?” Tomomi asked softly. She pushed herself up into a half sitting position, only being held up by her hands.

“You know, my dream has always been to be a musician… But I guess I’ve never been any good at it. I’ve always wanted to be a singer or be in a band. Just something making music. I’ve tried but I’ve been rejected every time so… I’ve just accepted those dreams won’t come true. I’ve just kind of given up,” Haruna answered her with a shrug.

Tomomi didn’t know what to say. She knew that Haruna had a love for music but she never realized how deeply that love ran. She never knew Haruna had ever tried to break out into the music scene and how much disappoint had followed her. That was just another thing Haruna had kept hidden from her.

“Music has been the only thing I’ve ever wanted to do so I… I don’t really know what else to do with myself.”

Tomomi gulped, pushing herself up into a full sitting position. She moved her body closer to Haruna, laying a hand on her shoulder. The dejected older brunette looked back at her, clearly trying to hide what her real emotions were. Tomomi was noticing when Haruna did that a lot more often lately; she had never noticed it too much before.

“You should never give up on your dreams,” Tomomi told her lightly. Haruna scoffed, turning her head away from Tomomi. She felt so weak and vulnerable right now but she also felt like Tomomi deserved to know. She really liked Tomomi and she wanted their relationship to get a bit more serious. She knew she had to give Tomomi her utmost trust if they were to do that.

“You do when you’re no good at your dreams,” Haruna responded bitterly. Tomomi pouted at Haruna even if she couldn’t see it. She didn’t like when people talked so lowly of themselves, especially not if it was coming from her own girlfriend.

“Who says you’re no good? I think you’re wonderful.”

“You’re my girlfriend, you’re supposed to say nice things about my skills,” Haruna said, brushing off her girlfriend’s encouragements. She could hear Tomomi give a frustrated sigh but the younger brunette wouldn’t give up. She let her hand drop from Haruna’s shoulder, letting it glide down to one of her hands and lacing their fingers together.

“Haruna, I’m not saying that as your girlfriend. I’m saying that as a human. You’re good at what you do. You’ve got the voice of an angel and you’re guitar skills are incredible. You’ll make it one day.”

“I’m twenty-five, Tomomi. If I haven’t made it yet, I’m never going to make it.” Tomomi really hadn’t meant to upset Haruna like this; she never could have imagined that this would be the reaction she would have to such a lighthearted question. It shouldn’t have surprised Tomomi though; she knew there was still a lot Haruna was holding back from her.

“Age doesn’t matter.” Haruna scoffed at her girlfriend’s attempt to console her.

“Yeah. Go tell that to the record executives, they’ll tell you differently. Face it, Timo, I’m getting old. No one is going to want me.”

“They have no idea what they’re talking about!” Tomomi said in a sudden loud voice. Haruna’s body whipped around, her eyes staring widely at the girl behind her. “Haruna, you’re amazingly talented and if they can’t see it then that’s their problem. But you shouldn’t just give up on your dream like that. You have talent and someday I know you’ll make it, but you’ve got to keep trying. So make me one promise, okay?”

“What promise is that?” Haruna muttered. She attempted to turn away from Tomomi but the younger girl wouldn’t allow it. Tomomi captured Haruna’s face, cupping it with both of her hands and forcing the older girl to look at her.

“Promise me you won’t give up. If you promise me that then I promise I’ll help you along the way. We’ll help you make it together,” Tomomi proposed to her. Haruna smiled at her girlfriend’s offer. This was why she fell for Tomomi; she was undeniably and indescribably sweet.

“All right, Tomomi. I promise I won’t give up again,” Haruna promised. Tomomi gave her a wide smile before leaning in and giving her a deep kiss.

“That’s my baby. I never want to see you give up again,” Tomomi whispered to her lightly. She let her hands fall away from Haruna’s face, the older brunette turning away from her again.

“You’re such a dreamer,” Haruna murmured. Tomomi giggled at her words. She was a dreamer and she intended to help Haruna become one as well. She was going to give Haruna the hope and confidence she seemed to lack. But for now, she just wanted to focus on cheering her up.

“Now come here,” Tomomi said. She wrapped her arms around Haruna’s waist, pulling her backwards onto the bed. Haruna let out a yelp from the sudden action she hadn’t been expecting. When Haruna was forced back laying down, Tomomi came to hover over her, grinning at her.

“Don’t do that again!” Haruna scolded her, slapping her on the shoulder. Tomomi huffed and pouted at her, moving her body so she was sitting down next to Haruna. She reached over, poking the lying girl in the ribs. When she saw the way Haruna’s body lurched forward from the touch, her eyes lit up. She hadn’t noticed that reaction before.

Tomomi’s curiosity got the better of her and she poked Haruna again, the brunette having the same response. Haruna’s eyes snapped over to Tomomi, her eyes narrowing into slits as she gave her girlfriend a warning glare.

“You’re ticklish?” Tomomi asked.

“Don’t you dare,” Haruna growled out, enunciating each of her words. Tomomi got a mischievous grin on her face as she once again crawled closer to Haruna. Haruna’s eyes widened as Tomomi came to hover over her again. “Tomomi, I swear to god, if you--” Haruna wasn’t able to finish her sentence before Tomomi ran a hand up her side, Haruna slapping her hands over her mouth to stop the laughter.

“Oh this’ll be fun,” Tomomi said slyly. She crawled on top of Haruna, straddling her girlfriend as her fingers began to play with Haruna’s sides. Haruna did her best to keep her mouth covered but the more she felt Tomomi tickling her, the harder it became.

Eventually, Haruna let her hands drop from her face, her body squirming underneath Tomomi. She couldn’t stop her laughter anymore, it was too hard. Haruna had always been a very ticklish person and she hated people figuring out that she was. Every time someone did, this is what happened. She could still remember the time Mami had found out about how ticklish she was. The blonde terror might have had a bit too much fun tormenting Haruna for weeks after that.

“Tomomi, stop it!” Haruna managed to get out in between her laughs. Her body continued to squirm, her hands flailing out in front of her and smacking Tomomi on the chest and shoulders. The younger girl didn’t falter from her hits, only laughing at the way her girlfriend was reacting to this.

“Not a chance,” Tomomi teased her.

It continued on for minutes but soon the tickling came to an abrupt stop, Tomomi’s hands moving to place themselves on either side of Haruna’s head. The younger girl bent down, bringing the two girls’ faces close together. Haruna’s breathing was heavy as her laughter slowed down, the older girl calming down from the fit of tickling Tomomi had just gotten through with.

“You…are horrible,” Haruna breathed out. Haruna let her head fall to the side, her eyes closing as she continued to try and calm her breathing. Tomomi giggled, bringing one hand up to Haruna’s face. She turned the girl’s head back to her, her eyes opening so the couple was staring face to face again.

“I’m sorry, baby,” Tomomi cooed to her. Tomomi didn’t give Haruna a chance to react before she pressed the two of them together in a heated kiss. Tomomi let her hand drop from Haruna’s chin, placing it back on the bed where it had previously been to help hold up her hunched over body.

Tomomi separated the two girls, a soft laugh escaping Haruna. Haruna moved her hands up to Tomomi’s waist, wrapping them tightly around her. Tomomi pushed them together again in another set of small, feverish kisses. Haruna smiled into the kisses, enjoying the dominance Tomomi was displaying again.

“Tell me, Timo… How did your idiotic tickling lead to this?” Haruna murmured softly to her. Tomomi chuckled softly, bringing a hand up to gently stroke one of Haruna’s cheeks.

“I blame you for being so gorgeous all the time,” Tomomi said back in a similar tone.

“Using cheesy pickup lines now? I thought that was supposed to be my thing,” Haruna countered her. Tomomi simply shook her head at Haruna’s comeback before picking up where she left off with her kisses.

The younger brunette slowly trailed her kisses down Haruna’s jawline, her hands beginning to roam down the older girl’s body. Haruna smiled when she felt Tomomi nip at her neck.

“Going for a second?” Haruna mused softly. She heard Tomomi giggle against her neck.

“Sort of.”

“Sort of? What’s that supposed to mean?” Tomomi giggled again before running her tongue up the side of Haruna’s neck. She could feel the older girl shiver below her.

“I leaned that from you,” Tomomi murmured in her ear, completely ignoring Haruna’s last question. Haruna’s body shivered again when she felt Tomomi nip at her earlobe. She loved it when Tomomi got like this. It was different but it was a good different, it excited Haruna to see her innocent girlfriend do a complete 180 in personality.

Haruna let a small gasp escape her when she felt Tomomi’s hands dip under her shirt, lifting it up her abdomen a bit. Tomomi smiled at the reaction Haruna had to that before she went back to sucking and nibbling at Haruna’s neck.

“Tomomi, you don’t have to do this,” Haruna murmured. Tomomi abruptly stopped her actions, sitting up and cocking her head to the side in confusion at Haruna’s words. Haruna’s eyes looked away from Tomomi, the shyness coming back to her. “I know you don’t like it…”

“Who said I didn’t like it?” Tomomi asked, cutting off Haruna’s scared ramble. Tomomi leaned closer to Haruna, dipping her head to the side and whispering in Haruna’s ears. “I love it.”

“But, Tomomi…”

“I said it was still new to me, not that I didn’t like it,” Tomomi told her in a louder volume. She moved her head back up again so the two girls were looking at each other now. “I love you, Haruna. I really think we’re ready to start getting more serious, don’t you?”

“We haven’t been together that long…” Haruna let her sentence trail off as she saw the look on Tomomi’s face drop.

“I know but… Does it matter? I know I love you and you love me, isn’t that what matters?”

“Tomomi, I just… I don’t want to make a mistake…” Haruna knew she would regret those words the instant she saw the saddened expression come to Tomomi. In a matter of a few seconds, all because of her words, Tomomi’s mood had completely fallen.

“A mistake? Was it a mistake to you?” Tomomi asked. She couldn’t hide the hurt in her voice. She would never consider that night a mistake. She would always cherish it as the night Haruna let her in. But if Haruna saw it as a mistake… Tomomi didn’t even want to think of that.

“Of course not!” Haruna responded quickly. “God, I’m sorry, Timo. I’m so stupid. I wasn’t thinking when I said that. Making love to you was never a mistake, Tomomi. I just don’t want to get left again.”

Tomomi gave Haruna a sad smile. She was slowly putting together the pieces of Haruna’s past and she was beginning to think she knew what had happened between Haruna and that guy. She was beginning to see how far Haruna had let it go before she had found out the truth about him.

Tomomi brought a hand up to Haruna’s face again, brushing some strands of hair behind her ear. Haruna looked up at Tomomi, her apologetic irises staring into Tomomi’s. The younger brunette leaned down, giving her a gentle kiss.

“I’m not like him, Haruna. I will never leave you, you can trust me,” Tomomi assured her. Tomomi could see the tears welling in Haruna’s eyes. She wrapped her arms around Tomomi’s neck, pushing the two of them in a desperate and needy kiss.

“I trust you,” Haruna whispered to her when the two of them separated. Tomomi smiled, pecking her on the nose before sitting up.

“Good. Now that that is settled, why don’t we get rid of this dreary atmosphere?”

“How do you propose we do that?” Haruna asked. She brought a hand up, wiping away the tears that had come to her. Tomomi felt like she should bad for making her cry but she knew Haruna’s tears were out of happiness, so it didn’t make her feel too bad.

Tomomi brought a hand up to her chin, tapping her chin and pretending like she was thinking. Haruna bit down on her lip to stop herself from laughing at the comedic gesture.

“Where we were? Oh right, I remember now. This was coming off.” As Tomomi finished her sentence, she gripped the bottom of Haruna’s t-shirt again, yanking it up Haruna’s body in a swift motion so she would have no choice but to let Tomomi take it off.

“Hey! That’s not fair!” Haruna protested. Tomomi giggled at her protest.

“Are you complaining?” she asked with a raised eyebrow. Haruna gave her a sly smile, pulling her down for a kiss. Tomomi would take that as a no, she was not complaining.

The two girls were so wrapped up in each other that neither one had noticed that bedroom door be pushed open only slightly, a pair of brown eyes peering in. Rina hadn’t meant to start spying on them; she only wanted to know if Haruna was still home. She had taken a small nap and she didn’t know if Haruna was still here or not.

When she got to Haruna’s room, she could hear the laughing and shouting. She got entranced by the sight and got too scared to actually go in, she was curious as to what they were doing. Now here she was, crouched outside the bedroom, fighting back the tears as her right hand clawed at the wall.

How dare she? How dare Tomomi touch her like that! What was Haruna thinking? She shouldn’t be letting Tomomi touch her like that. Didn’t she learn her lesson? Tomomi was only going to leave her, just like he did. She wasn’t going to be any different. Rina knew she had to stop them, for Haruna’s sake. There was no way she was going to let Tomomi touch her Haruna like that – not again.

In a swift action, Rina pushed herself off of the ground, storming out to the living room. She furiously wiped away the tears as the jealousy brewed in her heart. She should be the one holding Haruna like that, not Tomomi. It wasn’t fair for Tomomi to be doing this. So maybe she did want to stop them for her own selfish feelings as well, but it was really all mostly for Haruna. She was only trying to protect her.

Before Rina could think about anything else, she found herself in the kitchen, the haze creeping back into her mind. She tried to fight it but could feel herself losing control of her body already. She could feel herself slipping away from reality.

The last thing Rina could remember was reaching for a single glass.

Back in the room, Haruna had her arms wrapped around Tomomi’s waist with her head tilted to the side. Haruna’s eyes were shut lightly as Tomomi continued to suck and nibble at her neck. She could feel the younger girl beginning to slip her hand up Haruna’s skirt. Haruna didn’t wear skirts very often but today was one of the days she had and now she was glad she had… At least, that’s how Haruna wanted to feel.

Haruna wanted to enjoy Tomomi’s touches and her kisses, but she wasn’t. With every touch, every kiss, and every bite the guilt grew in Haruna. She couldn’t stop thinking about her altercation with Rina last night. She kept thinking about how upset Rina was and the possibility that it was this relationship making the young girl so upset. She didn’t know what to do and she couldn’t get it out of her mind. She didn’t want to give Tomomi up but she didn’t want to keep hurting Rina.

The elder girl could feel the tears come to her as she felt Tomomi snake a finger into the waistband of her underwear. She didn’t want to hurt Tomomi by rejecting her but she also couldn’t let Tomomi go through with this, it wouldn’t be fair to the younger girl. Haruna was too distracted and she wasn’t enjoying this anymore.

“Tomomi… Stop…” Haruna murmured softly. Tomomi had heard her words though. She let her hand go, bringing it out from under Haruna’s skirt. She pushed herself back up into a sitting position, cocking her head and looking down at her girlfriend. Tomomi’s mood instantly fell when she saw the tears falling from Haruna’s closed eyes.

“Haruna, why are you crying? D-did I do something that hurt you?” Tomomi asked. Her voice was laced with worry and now she almost wanted to cry from seeing that she had made Haruna cry. She saw the older girl shake her head before her watery irises looked up at Tomomi.

“I can’t do this,” Haruna said softly.

“What do you mean, sweetie? Did I do something wrong? Did I hurt you? Please tell me what’s wrong and I’ll fix it, I promise.” Haruna looked away from Tomomi, sighing softly. She might as well tell her, maybe telling her could help Haruna forget about it for the moment.

“I need to talk to you… About Rina…” Haruna didn’t continue talking when she felt Tomomi roll off of her before she felt the bed shift, a clear sign that Tomomi had gotten off of it. She pushed herself up into a sitting position, scooting back so her back was pressed against the cold wall. “Please listen to me…”

“Listen to you? I’m trying to make love to you and you’re thinking about Rina!” Haruna cringed from Tomomi’s shout and the younger girl instantly felt bad. Maybe she did overreact but it did hurt. Haruna should be thinking about her at a time like this, not about Rina. “How could you be thinking about Rina at a time like this?”

“Please just listen, okay? I’m worried about her. I’ve tried to ignore it but I can’t. I need help with this, Tomomi.” Tomomi’s guilt continued to grow as she saw the tears slip down Haruna’s cheeks again. Tomomi felt like a horrible girlfriend. Haruna barely ever let herself cry like this so Tomomi knew something big had to be worrying her, and her outburst probably had only made Haruna feel worse.

“Tell me what’s wrong,” Tomomi said. She didn’t want to hear Haruna’s thoughts about Rina right now but she also didn’t want to leave her girlfriend so distressed like this. She came back to sit on the bed but she chose to sit on the edge, keeping her distance from Haruna. Haruna wrapped her arms around her torso, continuing to refuse to look at Tomomi.

“Last night… Rina asked me if I was in love with you.”

“What did you tell her?”

“I told her that I was.” Tomomi wanted to smile at the answer but something in her gut told her that this wasn’t going to get better; it was going to get worse. “When I did she… She seemed like she got mad. I tried to brush it off as something went wrong at school or she was just sick but… Today in the kitchen, I don’t think so.”

“What are you trying to say, Haru?”

“I didn’t notice it until now but… I don’t think Rina likes this… Likes us. I think she’s upset that we’re dating. I’m so stupid, Timo. If I had paid more attention to Rina, I would have noticed this sooner…” Tomomi was confused as to why Haruna was bringing this up now. Even if Haruna was oblivious, surely she would have known sooner if Rina truly didn’t like their relationship.

“Haruna, do you remember what I told you at the hot spring? This is all new for Rina. Maybe she does dislike it but I think it’s only temporary. She’s just not used to having to share you with anyone but Mami; I know she’ll get used to it. Besides, she’s got Miyuki, doesn’t she? Miyuki will help her. Rina is going to be fine, I promise you.”

Haruna wanted to say something in response but she was quickly silenced when the girls heard a crash throughout the house. Tomomi looked around frantically while Haruna pushed her body off the wall, immediately darting off the bed and grabbing her shirt. She knew the crash had to have something to do with Rina; she was the only other person in the house.

Haruna quickly made her way through the house, checking the rooms for Rina. She couldn’t find her in any of the rooms; the only place she hadn’t yet checked was the kitchen. Haruna quickly made her way into the kitchen, her heart stopping immediately as she walked in.

Sitting leaned up against the counter was a crying Rina, her hand clutched tightly against her chest as blood dripped down the front of her shirt.