Fortune's Favor Pt. 3

Eventually, the battle of the goddesses began to lose steam, mostly because the stall owner threatened to stop serving us if we broke even one more chopstick in dramatic flair. Alice and Lana retreated with exaggerated pouts and muttered sass, while Chloe quietly slipped away from the table, only to return a moment later—standing beside me with a faint tug on my sleeve.

"Um... Aikami? Do you mind coming with me? Just for a second."

Her voice was soft—too soft for anyone else to hear over the white noise of the market. I blinked and glanced over at her, confused, but she didn't meet my gaze. She just waited.

"…Sure."

I followed her past the stalls and into a quieter part of the festival, where the lanterns glowed dimmer and the air wasn't so cluttered with the smell of grilled food. Chloe stopped beneath a leafless tree wrapped in fairy lights, her hands folded behind her back.

For a while, she didn't say anything. Neither did I. The silence wasn't awkward, though. It made the noise in my chest slow to something more manageable.

"I'm sorry," she said at last, looking up at the sky. "About earlier."

"Sorry? For what?"

"For making things weird. I didn't mean to say it like that, about Alice leaning too close. It just... came out."

I let out a small chuckle. "Chloe... You know, you did this last time too."

"Huh? I did?"

"Yeah. When Alice and Lana gave me the cold shoulder after that dumb joke I made. You were the first one to check on me, and the first to apologize... even though it wasn't your fault."

She looked away, clearly embarrassed, but I smiled.

"You've got this thing where you say sorry for issues you're not responsible for. I don't think you need to keep doing that."

"But... isn't it always my fault that these things happen? Last time, I laughed at your joke. This time, I spoke up. Maybe I should just—"

I interrupted her. "Don't."

I said that with a sterner tone than I wanted, and Chloe noticed. It doesn't matter, though, because this is something I need to clear up while I have her alone.

"Whatever you were gonna say, don't," I continued. "There's no need for you to take responsibility for your sisters getting worked up over me. That's for me to handle."

"...You shouldn't even be in that position in the first place..."

"Maybe, but that's not on you. I'll figure out a way to handle it, so in the meantime... don't change anything for my sake. Just keep being yourself, because no matter what, I won't blame you. Not for this. Not for anything."

Chloe's eyes widened slightly, and then her expression softened. "...Really?"

"Heh. Really."

She looked down for a second, like she needed a moment to take that in. When she looked back up at me, there was the tiniest upward curve to her lips. It wasn't her usual bashful smile—it was brighter. A little more sure.

"I was afraid I said too much…"

I shrugged. "I think it was the perfect amount."

Her cheeks turned a soft pink, and she looked down. "Alice and Lana... they're always so much louder than me. So much more confident. I don't usually speak up like that."

"Yeah, well... That's what made it stand out."

She paused, then smiled again—small, but genuine. Then, she took a deep breath and let it out, her eyes carrying the same serenity they always do.

"I guess I just wanted to make sure you were okay, Aikami. Sometimes it's hard to tell with you. You have this... quiet way of enduring things."

I hesitated. No one had ever said it like that before. Not like anyone had ever noticed before.

"Is it really that bad?"

She gave a tiny nod. "Mhm. Even if you're not showing it on your face, I can kind of feel it when something's bothering you. But it's okay. That's not a bad thing. I just need to try a little harder to notice it."

I didn't know what to say to that. I didn't know if there was anything I could say.

So instead, I just looked at her—this girl who seemed so timid most days, yet had this strange ability to see right through me when it counted.

"Thanks, Chloe."

She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and smiled again, this time a little more sheepish. "Hehe~ Of course. I'll always look out for you, Aikami."

For a while, the two of us just stood there, quietly watching the world go still. Suddenly, a thunderous boom shook the skies. Then… came rainfall.

It happened so quickly that I didn't even have time to react. One second, it was a peaceful afternoon through the lantern-lit sky—and the next, thick droplets of rain came crashing down like someone had flipped the weather switch in a hurry.

Without wasting another second, I slipped my coat off and raised it above Chloe's head, angling it just enough to shield her from the sudden downpour.

"A-Aikami!" she gasped, half stumbling toward me in surprise.

"It's fine," I said with a grin, already feeling the rain soak through my shirt and drip down my neck.

"But… you'll get wet! At this rate, you're gonna catch a cold!"

"Don't worry. I won't." I glanced over at her, giving her a soft look. "Now come on. Let's get somewhere dry."

She looked conflicted—clearly wanting to argue but hesitating. In the end, she just nodded, staying close to my side as we half-jogged through the crowd of people who were now scrambling to find cover under stall awnings and parasols. The festival buzz had been replaced with splashes and startled shouts, but I didn't really hear it. I was too focused on the girl beneath my coat, clinging gently to my sleeve with a worried expression.

We eventually found a small rest area near the edge of the festival grounds—a tucked-away bench beneath a modest wooden roof, barely wide enough for two. I quickly dropped my coat to shake off the water before hanging it over the edge to dry. My shirt was clinging to my skin, and my bangs had turned traitorous, dripping little streams of rain down my face.

Chloe sat beside me slowly, looking up at the roof as the rain continued to pound against it like an angry drumline. Her hands were fidgeting in her lap.

I let out a small laugh and leaned back against the bench.

"Phew! Not gonna lie, that was kinda fun."

She turned to me, eyes wide. "You're completely soaked…"

"Well, I mean, yeah. But you're not. So it's fine."

She didn't say anything at first. Her brows furrowed just a little, lips pressing into a faint pout. Her expression wasn't angry, but it wasn't the timid, flustered Chloe I was used to either.

"…You shouldn't do that," she mumbled.

"Do what?"

"Put yourself in uncomfortable situations just to protect me." She fidgeted with the sleeves of her sweater, voice barely above the patter of the rain. "It's not fair. You always smile like it's nothing, but it's not nothing…"

That caught me off guard. There was a faint heat to her voice. Concern, maybe. Maybe even frustration. But it wasn't the kind that pushed me away. It was the kind that made me want to reach out, even more than I already had.

"I don't really think about it like that," I said. "When you're next to me, I kind of forget if I'm cold. Or tired. Or soaked to the bone, apparently."

She looked up at me quickly, eyes wide.

There was silence again—thick, warm silence, like the kind that settles right before a confession. I leaned my head back against the wood behind me and closed my eyes, still smiling.

"As long as you're fine, Chloe... it's okay if I get a little wet."

She didn't respond. Not at first.

But I heard the quiet shuffle as she moved slightly closer on the bench. And then—barely noticeable—a tiny weight pressed against my hip.

"…Thank you," she whispered.

The rain kept falling. But under that little roof, in that quiet corner of the festival, I didn’t really feel it anymore.