Visible to the Stars

Nitsuki moaned softly as the frigid breeze from the aircon blasted over her entire body. She was hunched over her bedroom's sitting table, splayed out like a limp noodle on the cool, wooden surface. Rays of vermillion sunshine streamed through the window, bathing her in the evening's fading warmth.

"Holy crap. This feels so good…"

Tachibana chuckled, running his fingers through her long, brown locks. They'd just gotten back from a particularly grueling run of errands. The temperature had been scorching, and the air was so humid that it felt as though they'd been wading through a swamp. It was rare for it to ever get this hot up in the mountains, but every once in a while, Mother Nature just loved to spice things up, didn't it?

"How long do you plan on staying like that, Nia?"

"Until I die," she replied, smiling contentedly. "Or until some tasty food is ready to be shoved down my throat. Whichever comes first."

He shifted uncomfortably in his cushion before Nitsuki added, "Relax, that was a joke—the dying part at least. Not the food. I'm actually pretty hungry."

Tachibana's chest deflated in relief. "I swear, Nia, you almost gave me a heart attack. Please don't say such things so casually."

"Sorry, old habit came back for a moment," Nitsuki mumbled. She pushed herself up and turned to sit cross-legged. "Next time, I'll joke about it formally."

"Pfft, that's not how that works," he said. "And don't say it in the first place. It's a horrible thing to even imagine, let alone joke about."

"Fine, fine. If that's what makes you feel better." She smirked. "Thanks for caring so much about me, Tachibana. You're such a sweet boyfriend~."

He coughed, looking a tiny bit more crimson. "It would. I know that you like to joke a lot, but sometimes… well, I worry."

She placed her elbow on the table and propped her face up. "Once again, I appreciate it, but you can relax. I'd rather not kick the bucket anytime soon after everything that's happened."

Her eyes drifted upward as she started thinking of things to reassure him. "Like, I need to be here to see your stupidly-adorable mug; I still have to find a way to get Koji back. And on a more serious note, I have to keep helping out that kid, Yamaguchi, as well as whoever else may join the support group… Hmm, and then there's—"

She paused, noticing that Tachibana's lips had curled into an amused grin. "What? What's got you so giggly right now?"

"Nothing." He shook his head. "It's just… You've changed so much over the past month." His hand traced her hair down to her shoulders. "It's also nice to see that your comedy routine isn't all self-deprecating jokes anymore."

Nitsuki leaned into his touch. "No argument on the first half. However, I'll have you know, I've always had a wide repertoire of material."

"Uh-huh. Sure you do… erm, wait. That might've come out a little sarcastic. I didn't mean it like that."

Nitsuki cackled at his guilty expression. "How could you? I'm absolutely devastated. I thought that you'd love to hear all the sweet puns and dry sarcasm that I could offer, but I guess I was wrong…"

Her smile only grew wider as Tachibana's lip twitched upward. They both knew she was just messing with him now, but he was doing a decent job at playing along.

"Well, if you really think that, then how about we settle this over a game?"

"Hm?"

He suddenly donned a face of steel and braced his hands on his knees. "Loser has to heat up the leftovers and make tea. Deal?"

Nitsuki looked him over a moment as she processed his intriguing challenge.

"What type of game? And please don't say shogi. That's practically cheating considering how much practice you've had against the old man."

Tachibana snickered as the aircon's breeze ruffled his hair. "Whoever laughs first."

Nitsuki's smirk faltered. "…Eh?"

"Exactly what I said. Whoever laughs first loses. Simple as that."

She quirked an eyebrow. "Okay, hold on. 'You' are saying that? My lovable, dumb-grinning boyfriend who smiles and laughs at almost every joke I've made?"

Tachibana's face of steel returned like a shutter had suddenly slammed down. "Yep. This will be a silent duel of resolve. An ultimate test of one's will. Are you ready?"

"Uh, I guess?"

"Good. Let's begin."

The room went silent.

Tachibana was the first to start. "What happens when an egg gets angry…? It retreats into its shell!"

She shrugged, unimpressed as he stared her down. "Eh, you can go ahead and have another shot."

His lip scrunched upward as his hair was tousled again by the wind. "Alright, fine, underestimate me. I'm warning you though, this next one's a killer joke. Every single time I've heard it I've been unable to—"

"Poop."

"…" He froze, his face of steel instantly crumpling like an empty can as he bit his lip to keep from snickering.

"Hey, hey. Don't laugh. This is serious." Nitsuki just stared at him with the most deadpan expression she could muster. "Sorry for the interruption. Go ahead, what's the joke?"

Tachibana took a deep breath and tried to collect himself. "A-Anyways, as I was saying, the funniest joke I've ever heard is—"

"Poop."

*THUNK* Tachibana slammed his face against the table, shaking the wood with a muffled groan before he raised his now extremely red face in defiance. "N-no. I can do this! I'm not giving up yet. The funniest joke is—"

"Poopy poopy poo."

He snorted and instantly slapped his hands over his mouth. His cheeks were flushed from the strain, and he was trembling from the effort to keep it contained.

Nitsuki once again locked eyes with him. Her lips were a completely flat line, but her eyebrows wiggled slightly in anticipation.

Tachibana's voice came out muffled. "N-Nia. No, please. Not like this. Not like—"

"…Poopy poo."

"PFFT—" Tachibana's cheeks burst as he exploded into laughter, rolling off of his cushion and clutching his stomach. His face was bright red, and his body convulsed as he gasped for air and pounded the floor beneath them with one of his fists.

"AHAHAHA! HAH! HAHAHA! W-why did I think t-that this would be—Pffft, ahaha!"

Nitsuki felt her heart flutter watching him.

Aw, look at Tachibana, not even able to complete his sentence. How cute~

She smiled as she stood up to leave and let him catch his breath.

The vane of the aircon swiveled to face her direction, and she basked in the glorious chill of victory.

***

Nitsuki and Tachibana both sat at the low table, the remnants of their meal scattered before them, and the cleanness of their recent baths lingering in the air.

Since their little competition, the sun had set, and they'd decided to just enjoy the rest of the night. Currently, they were leaning against the wall, watching the evening news on Nitsuki's old phone.

Tachibana yawned as a reporter continued to talk on the screen. Nitsuki glanced over at him and noted how heavy his eyelids were. The poor guy was definitely tired.

"Do you want to call it an early night?" she asked. "You seem pretty out of it, and we can't exactly sleep on a hardwood floor. Erm, well we can, but I'd be using you for a cushion."

He sleepily chuckled. "Heh, probably…" Suddenly though, his eyes snapped open a little wider. "Ah, shoots. I wanted to do one thing first if you don't mind."

Nitsuki leaned her head on his shoulder and nuzzled against him. "If you're still upset about me winning, I'm afraid to say I'm not accepting rematches so soon. Don't be such a poor loser~"

"No, it's not that—I mean, maybe I'm still a tiny bit peeved. But uh… you know how Tanabata is coming up tomorrow, right?"

Her eyes flicked to the new cat-themed calendar Tachibana had bought for her today. "Oh, the Star Festival? Almost forgot July 7th is this Sunday."

Unlike Hoshimura's annual stargazing festival that was still over a month away, Tanabata was an event that was celebrated all over the country. The legend was about the tragic lovers Orihime and Hikoboshi who were banished and separated by a river in the heavens. They could only meet once a year on the seventh day of the seventh month, provided favorable weather.

"Want to write some wishes?" he asked, reaching for his nearby backpack and fumbling around. "I got some tanzaku earlier and have been meaning to ask you, but well, you know with how busy we've been recently…"

Nitsuki hummed as she eyed the colorful paper. "I mean, it'd be a nice idea. But the last time I wrote one was…"

Her gaze dropped to her hands.

It had been for Maya.

The memory of her writing her wish for her sister briefly replayed in her mind. The barely held tears, the struggle to finally place it in front of the town's shrine…

"…Sorry, Nia. I didn't mean to—"

"Relax. It's… been over a year already." Nitsuki sighed, closing her eyes. "My biggest concern is if mine might get taken down or 'blown away by the wind' again. Happened all the time when I was younger."

Tachibana flinched a little and looked to her. "Wait, what?! People tore them down?! W-why? And why didn't I know about this?"

"…" She didn't say anything, instead choosing to shake her head. "It's my fault for always putting them in easy to see places. Don't worry though, it's fine. There's no reason for you to get worked up about this—"

"But it's not!" Tachibana's brow furrowed. "Nia, that's horrible! I always thought the reason I never saw yours was because they were somewhere else in town, or that you just didn't write one that year."

Nitsuki laughed, a bitter, hollow sound. "Eh, I've dealt with worse. Besides, they at least left the Maya one alone, so last year was fine. No harm, no foul."

"Nia," Tachibana whispered softly. He looked like he was almost trembling. "No harm, no foul? Is that really how you see it?"

She gave him a half-hearted smile but said nothing, instead turning to look back at the phone screen.

"…" He abruptly tilted her head up with a semi-clenched hand and guided her gaze back to him. His face was stern, and he was frowning. "Nia. Please, you have to take your feelings more seriously."

"T-Tachibana?" She suddenly felt very conscious of his fingers under her chin. Butterflies giddily fluttered in her stomach as he leaned in closer.

"I want you to value yourself as much as I do, or at least as much as you value others." His other hand shifted upward to cup the side of her face. "If anyone ever does anything like that this year, tell me immediately. You're MY girlfriend, and I'm not going to let that sort of disrespect stand anymore. Got it?"

She blinked and then blinked again. What was this feeling in her chest? It was so unexpected—almost as if her entire soul had been set aflame.

Eh he, this is nice.

"…"

"Nia?"

Nitsuki awkwardly cleared her throat as her vacant brain finally restarted. "Y-yes. Got it."

Tachibana's eyes softened, and his cheeks lifted with a gentle smile. "Good." His thumb began stroking her cheek, causing some very intense feelings to surge through her body. "So… Do you still want to write one? We can just hang it in a tree outside the house or something instead of at the shrine."

Nitsuki exhaled. Her heart was pounding; she felt light-headed; and it was getting harder to keep her thoughts straight. "Uh, sure. However, while that would probably be safer…"

She trailed off, her gaze shifting downward to his lips.

"…"

Tachibana's eyes lit up as he realized what she was looking at, and his cheeks immediately began to turn scarlet. "Oh. O-oh, um, Nia—"

*smooch*

He froze in shock as she pecked him on the lips, but quickly recovered, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her closer.

"…I think that if we write one this year," she murmured, her face now flushed too. "I want to make it visible to the stars. Even if they're just a bunch of floating space fireballs, I'd like to think someone out there's listening."

Tachibana gently squeezed her hand before letting go and reaching for the tanzaku.

"Okay." He smiled and handed her a few slips of paper.

"Then let's get started."