﹙ ⒈ ﹚ from the car window, she watched the water-colored sky; almost saw jia’s chubby hand and the canvas’ still blank side. right then, japan slept profoundly, but qing had to be at the office next morning. and she always had to be with qing, that was how a family worked, if someone ever asked her. it hadn’t been long since they all left the big borrowed room, the earliness and the car’s soft vibrating made her all mushy, her consciousness too. so much that she did not embarrass everyone when alice started stomping on her feet a little, she kept calm. anyway alice had ‘bigfoot’ and three people in one backseat meant she’d be the middle ‘sitter.’ the sun wouldn’t climb up, qing and alice wouldn’t talk. no wonder her head got heavy, then her eyes. next thing she knew, qing was pressing her lips against her forehead… which wasn’t usual; well, outside it was. in return, ko pressed her head harder into qing’s shoulder, sighing. only then she realized neither the driver nor alice were inside. they were fumbling with bags, qing telling her it was time to go, with her hands tugging down her thin vest in a way that didn’t let know she’d been slouched for an hour. three seconds following, alice popped her head in the open door’s frame, ❛ god just shake her or something. ❜ ﹙ ⒉ ﹚ qing hardly ever tells them when she participates to a fashion event, or she announces it with the intricate makeup she bothers putting on hours ahead. lips like apples, eyes like fire, and clothes more uncomfortable than the ones she wears for work. in any case, she doesn’t know if qing finds them fun, or stressful, or a strange mix of both. she hopes the others attending will tell her she is stunning, beautiful, gorgeous, wonderful. more than the models. more than them. more than anyone she knows ( yes, even ella ). because ko can’t do it, there is a metaphorical load of clothes, a mouthful of nutella in her mouth that won’t let her say it. though from downstairs, she hears qing asking her to retrieve her coat, and she does, quickly at that. if it was alice she’d finish her current tennis game on the wii. and she’d throw it down the stairs without a word. but it’s qing. so, holding the large coat for her to slip her arms into the holes made for them, kohaku bites her lip. honestly, she’d like if she could come… but she knows fashion events are not really for her. and now qing turned to face her, she’s buttoning up; she doesn’t realize she’s also pulling. when she does, and close like that, she wants to taste the gloss, if she can’t go with her she can at least get that, right? … instead she just kisses her nose. ❛ i don’t want to mess up your face. ❜ ﹙ ⒊ ﹚ one day, she discovers a puppy sleeping in one of the machine at the laundromat and decides to bring it home. yet the little creature won’t cooperate, growling, and she’d rather not get bitten by a puppy. that’d be humiliating, and who knows if it’s either sick or contagious. though the next time she needs a clean bed, there’s a cucumber sitting on her sheets that she plans to use as bait. however the pup doesn’t even flinch at the sight of a delicious… healthy.. cucumber. it curiously cock its head on the side, watching from the other side of the room, its dark eyes full of laughter ( seemingly ). she asks meixiu over text, what could can you give to a dog; she’s studying to be a vet in university, but in qing’s head, she’s always been, even when they were little girls, with their silly games. peanut butter should do the trick, she answers, but not too much. qing decides she’ll answer the ‘why’s that?’ later, if her plan succeeds. and a few days later, when her clothes are whirling in soapy water, she slowly unscrews the cap of the pot, slides it in the middle of the room. with the spoon she brought, she hits the floor to call the puppy, it goes ‘ko! ko! ko!’ and it takes no longer for it to approach with its large paws and meager body. to qing’s despair it lunges at the pot, manages to hold it in its mouth, and flashes towards the exit. only to bang its head on the glass, fall on its side and whine. the puppy fails to budge when she kneels next to it, hand stretching towards the inviting fur. the canine looks back with an expression that’s almost like… a frown, but it still lets her pat the painful area. after a while, the creature is on its back, wriggling and licking the inside of her hand between spoonfuls of peanut butter. ﹙ ⒋ ﹚ qing’s hands are up her shirt in no time, so she assumes jia’s asleep. ❛ did auntie hurt her neck? ❜ comes the little, unexpected voice and she swears she almost bit where she was just kissing. ﹙ ⒌ ﹚ they attend the same school, are in the same class. they partly get along… so kohaku asks if they can go to the party together. she’s never seen the girl at a party, it could very well change her life. to warm up the fun, they begin by playing konpa and sipping some tepid beer. most of the people here are the guys on her taekwondo team, and as soon as one of them gets to be the ‘king,’ they ask the two girls sitting next to each other to kiss. and while kohaku isn’t shy, she’s heard of consent and would rather not initiate it, she’d get made fun of for it, anyway. puppy eyes on, she looks over to qing, she’s well — lost would describe her expression, somewhat. she should be compassionate towards her semi-friend, but anyone having an occasion to kiss her should be overjoyed, no? the whole team then makes up a chant, some of them even kiss her on the mouth, not like it’s anything to them or her, to show how easy it is, to kiss her. and while the others are too occupied cheering them on, qing leans in, barely touches her cheek with her lips and looks awfully relieved when she’s done. ko shrugs, ❛ you could’ve at least enjoyed it… ❜
