#dietted

❝     one of these days i’m going to say the f-word to you !     ❞    yeah , then he’ll be sorry for sure ! 

     ❝Back off, scrawny.❞ Standing tall in her high heel shoes, filled to the brim with conviction, Ai glares fiercely at her opponent. What she’s fighting for is something soft, something beautiful. It’s true love. Cashmere. Limited edition. A scarf. And she can already envision it hanging in her closet. And now, playing tug-of-war for it, she possessively yanks her end closer to her chest. There’s no way in hell she’s losing to this guy. ❝I saw it first, so It’s mine.❞

                        ❝ yuta - kun looks cute like this !!  look at his chubby cheeks , like pyon -- pyon ~ !!  ❞ phone cradled in her hands , nico overlooks the picture she took of the poster back when they first met . sidling closer to him , the girl then attempts to nuzzle into his side , lovingly rubbing the phone against her cheek . ❝ but both yuta - kuns are pretty cute . ❞

                    ❝   YUTA  ?   ❞

           She seems bewildered, posing his name as a question as opposed to an observation. His appearance is somehow more off-putting than some of the other familiar faces she’s seen --- perhaps it’s his  eyes ; they give away an instinctual sort of fear that she hasn’t yet allowed herself to succumb to, but seeing it so plainly written on someone else’s face was already causing a slight lump to form in her throat. 

                    ❝   We don’t know much yet,   ❞  Anne adds carefully,   ❝   but we’re  alive . And there’s  a way to leave ... I’d count those as pretty good signs, right  ?   ❞

Nico stares rather intently when Yuta first moves to reach for the bracelet, her eyes growing just a fraction larger once it’s out in front of her. Spellbound, she admires the way the pastel beads catch the light– the way the bunny looks, dangling alone between Yuta’s bony fingers. Not only that, but to know that it had been sitting in the store, alone and untouched… An emotion she can’t define surges through her in the very same moment that Yuta puts it into words. Lonely. The word itself hits a particularly sore spot, like a thumb to a bruise. It’s almost freaky– like he read her mind– and it gives her goosebumps! This is what it means to be connected, isn’t it!? Though they aren’t connected directly by their wounds anymore, the feelings are still real… at least they are in Nico’s chest. Nico doesn’t know exactly what’s going on in her friend’s chests. Not all the time and not in detail– not like before. Yuta likes to act so cool… but could it be that he feels these things, too? 

In Nico’s case, there’s a swelling with each and every beat of her heart, the excited, toe-curling, shivery feelings that she began to associate with ‘friendship’. And the sort of warmth she can’t find in any blanket or sweater. That feeling grows warmer yet when she thinks back on what he said, the fact that he understands the way her mind works enough to say something like that. Then suddenly her eyes are warm and big, happy tears are slipping down her cheeks.

Nico processes it belatedly… that he quite possibly could have been holding this adorable bunny bracelet out with the intention of giving it to her. It isn’t really Yuta’s style after all. The most he’ll ever wear on his wrist is a plain old watch. ( though Nico absolutely thinks he could pull it off if he really committed to it! ) But still– a gift!? From Yuta!? She’s still trying to process this development! 

Despite the way he acts sometimes, he really is a total softie. 

❝ Oh!? Are you giving this to Nico? Really!?❞ She’s smiling in spite of her obliviousness. Tears are still falling. To be honest, she’s a blubbering mess. If someone were watching from afar, they might think Yuta had just proposed or something. Then she salutes dependably! ❝ N-Nico will befriend this bunny! Of course! Thank you! ❞

Instead of accepting the bracelet at first, she latches onto him, pulling her tiny arms around his waist. She moves so quickly that he really doesn’t have any choice but to accept it. 

❝ Nico worries about what’s inside your chest sometimes– but–❞ Some of her tears are being absorbed into his tie. She’s trying not to giggle, because teasing him nonsensically is a ( self-proclaimed ) endearing facet of their friendship. ❝ Sweet moments like these give her hope, Yuta-kun! You have a really, really good chest.❞