Ringo climbs up into the second story window, slumping over the ledge and dragging himself through the room he was all too willing to sneak into. His energy was fading fast, he would eventually pass out but seemed keen on returning where he woke up from. He finally got half of his body over the pink bed before a voice from behind called out. "Ringo? I thought you were leaving."
Yukue was surprised, but seemed more confused as to why Ringo was yet again so tired, and in her room. "You cant just sneak in here and sleep in my room. Again. You have your own home."
"...Sorry... I was just returning my host's body back where I woke up." Ringo didn't seem to talk like he was in his body. Was it even Ringo? he talked with more class and manors. Ringo was always... sarcastic, to say the least.
"Are you alright? You're talking weird." she walks up to the half asleep, gentlemanly Ringo to check for any symptoms of, anything really "You woke up just fine and left to work first thing. Which is weird, but not strange." In her opinion it was a good change of pace. As shop rivals, he was acting like a competitor. She lets go of his head when she was positive there were no bumps, or signs of brain damage.
She was about to ask more but Ringo shushed her with a finger "I don't understand why he doesn't remember you being kind. But -and no offence- I do see how you can be a bit bothersome." That was definitely Ringo behind that polite speech. Maybe that's why Yukue was so annoyed by the comment to the point she only responds with a grumble.
"What happened to you?" She knocked on his head for some kind of reaction, becoming a bit worried. Ringo gently catches her hand "If you may stop, I am quite fine." He hoisted himself into the bed and tucked himself under the pink sheet. "It isn't easy playing your role, Ringo..." He let a yawn escape him "Please... do not wake him, we need rest to regain control over-" He passed out.
"Him..? We?" Yukue Was now full of questions.
"Why are you talking like that?"
"You think I'm bothersome?"
"Why do you sleep so much?"
"How is your hair so soft?" Huh?
…
Yukue considered waking him up, or even just moving him to another room. But the thought of it made her forehead ache in the spot he flicked her in the first time they met... and The first time he crash landed in her room two chapters back.
It was the end of the day, deep orange glow of a spring evening painting the buildings in front of-*Crash*-Yukue's now broken window, the late breeze picking up the dust from the dent in her wall. The deep blue sky matched her widened eyes of pure shock. Ringo flew in out of nowhere and passed out on her bed.
She lowered her shielding arms and got up from her desk. "R-Ringo?" she slowly inched toward him, half expecting some stupid comment, or some weird attack. "Are you okay?" He didn't respond. It looked like he could sleep forever... never to wake up again. Once Yukue got close enough, she quickly checked his pulse, but couldn't get the right spot on the wrists, or the neck. So she just placed her hand on his chest.
*Bam* "Yukue! are you alright?" Omoide burst in with a barbed wire katana, not knocking the door down like his parents surprisingly.
Yukue jolted, she was startled with her palm still on Ringo's chest which was unfortunate since she doesn't flinch well. She pushed down on the still unconscious Ringo, almost crushing the bed along with him. Ringo visibly grimaced in his sleep. "Oh uh... sorry." now she was panicked, the boy they assume things about is in her bed, that's bad enough, without Omoide walking in She almost wouldn't've punched Ringo through the bed. Luckily he had smacked her fist to the side and flicked her unconscious for a moment by hitting the center of her forehead three times.
"Still burns..." She muttered, rubbing her forehead in reflection. "Leave him be then." She thought, now walking back to her desk to finish her homework. It would be a few more days before Ringo woke up.
On day one Yukue was drowsier than normal, waking up in a wooden chair wasn't exactly... comfy. she cracked her back uncomfortably even being stunned for a bit after. She looked at Ringo who progressively splayed even further across the bed. She wanted her soft, plush, and cozy bed back. She didn't have time to be bitter though she had school to get to.
She tossed her backpack on her shoulders, grabbed food from the family office, and jogged out after a few waves goodbye. She was keeping a decent pace all the way to school where the horde of boys waited for Akane to arrive. She could only think it was nothing short of stupid. But it wasn't her concern, getting out of this chaos and-... moving... on was her concern.
but other than that, "scuffle" the day was peaceful even outside of school. She was sorting out clothes, hanging up orders, and working on a dress of her own.
It was silver with a black feather pattern wrapping around the waist and a small gold spot in the center of the torso. She tried drawing more ideas for it, but they were either too complex, or simple.
She would normally stay up till closing hours trying to solve this issue. But for once, she had to close early due to taking naps during work, something Ringo would likely mock her for. She chuckled slightly as she closed the shop.
It was already late in the afternoon before she came home. She wanted to sleep now but still had to finish the rest of her schoolwork.
If she made it to her room.
Through the walls and floor everyone could hear- "WELCOME HOME!" -and know that Yukue had returned. She would retreat to her room to recover after one to two minutes of being crushed by her parents. And that was the time the nightshift workers could safely leave.
Yukue popped her shoulder, back, hips, and elbows before sighing. "They could go easy on me! I'm not some invincible martial artist" She pouted, remembering her time as an active martial artist.
Winning tournaments, knocking teeth out, dislocating shoulders... She was close to being considered invincible. But her fighting journey ended after one last tournament in Tokyo, and her first defeat.
A ponytailed prodigy, gone quicker than he won. But it was the outfit that frustrated her most, so poorly patched together. That was the day she decided to become a tailor.
But the past was, and now, she had other things to worry about.
Like her worst subject, science.
"What is convection?" She pressed her finger to her forehead to try and fish out some knowledge but only got tired from it thanks to Ringo's flicks messing with that spot. She just didn't have the energy to solve anything, especially science.
So, she just decided to doodle outfit ideas till she fell asleep.
For the next two days she would wake up tired, got to school, work, come home, and make sure Ringo wasn't dead.
If it wasn't by whatever made him so tired, it would be her parents who killed him.
But the third day drained her. She had a science test that day. Alot of Ringo's customers came by to ask where he was, and most of them left piles of tattered clothes for her to fix.
So, she was tired.
Thankfully, Omoide didn't alert the parents when she came home, since he knew they would crush her with or without the energy to fight back.
She walked into her room noting how Ringo rolled to the far side of the bed, toward the wall.
"My soft bed... that would be nice to sleep in..." She wished she could move Ringo without getting knocked out but she would just have to settle for her, not as soft, back hurting, and broken chair...
With a sigh she patted the patted floor "Too hard..." She would've gone downstairs to ask about borrowing an empty room but that would involve her parents. And no bed in this hotel was like hers...
She looked back at Ringo, still on the far side of her special bed.
"That's enough space..." She looked at her bed and back at Ringo deep in thought. "But he rolls around in his sleep... but...No- but....What ever!"
She stood before the bed, she would've measured the space, she really would have, but she just dropped in her bed. Far too tired for any thinking that wasn't a dream.
And after a short moment of readjusting to fit in the bed without touching Ringo, she fell asleep instantly.
On the fourth day, Ringo finally woke up. He felt comfortable and well rested, so he took his time to get up and just laid there. Eventually, he scanned his surroundings. The sun shined through the window behind him and lit the wall he was facing, and the arm resting in his hair that was probably his.
He couldn't feel his body at the moment. Rolling over, the arm adjusting itself to stay in his hair, Ringo could see a window he swore he flew through, and brown hair.
"Wait..." He looked further down, past the bangs to see a face in front of him. Maybe it was a mirror, and someone put a wig on him.
But the arm on his head was attached to the shoulder in the mirror, and his arms were in front of him. Plus, their face was familiar. And as those closed eyes opened blearily, he knew that shade blue from somewhere.
"Oh..." Ringo and Yukue said simultaneously as their eyes widened as far as they could.
The two couldn't do more than gulp down the words stuck in their throats.
"Uh...."
Yukue's fingers finally slid out of his hair as she snapped her arm up and they continued staring at each other.
Ringo noticed Yukue's blinks slow down, his body inched closer... The he sat up promptly and sat at the foot of the bed with Yukue silently sitting up on the other edge of the bed.
There was more silence between the two, only broken by the outdoor ambiance and birdsongs that only meant two things in spring.
Sitting up only made swallowing down words easier. "Y-..."
*pak*
Yukue punched his shoulder before standing up. "D-don't take my bed for five day...s..." her reflexes were so overwhelmed she couldn't punch her way out of this.
Ringo coughed. "Five... days?"
"Yea..." she pointed at the chair she slept on. As if understanding what Ringo would ask.
"Sorry. I was just too tired to find out where I ended up."
"Oh yea! do you have some super sleep walk?"
Ringo's face scrunched to that of confusion. "Super... sleep walk?"
"You got up one day and left to go to work, then you came back and fell asleep in my bed again."
"Huh? i couldn't've woken up one day and decide to go to work."
"Well you were talking about 'host's body' when you came back." They were both clueless now, better than what they were feeling before.
"Are you sure you don't know anything?"
"None other than the fact that you have a weird name for things." Ringo joked. to his amusement, and surprise when a chuckle escaped him unwillingly. Strangely he felt as if he were missing his flame. "Did my hair-"
"No!" She was flush red now and back to being unable to look at him.
Ringo finally remembered why she was so embarrassed, but he couldn't feel his face turning red. "I guess I will ask Cologne then." he got out of the bed and headed toward the window to leave.
"Wait." Yukue called out, holding her face to her hand. "D-Do you think I'm bothersome?"
He looked back, hardly hiding his own blush. He paused a moment to think and looked forward "Can't say..."
Maybe she was bothersome, or the opposite... The answer just jumped out the window. She slumped in her bed, still blushing, but with a slight smile. Yukue had an idea...
She places her hand on her chest.
She hoped.