After a day of hard work, we returned to the orphanage. On the way back, Mina's been looking at me quite a lot, though. I wonder why?
"Here's my herb bag, Maria."
"Thanks for your hard work, Luni!"
Phew... Finally, I can go upstairs to my room, lie down on my bed and relax. I was able to collect so many herbs... I'm exhausted. And very sweaty.
"Luni, you should go take a rest quickly! Because you were hurt-"
"-But I already said, I'm fine, Yuni... Ah, stop pulling my hand!"
Well, I guess I'm not going to complain too much, since I get to stay in bed anyway. But, trust me, Yuni! The healing potion works great, so I'm completely fine now!
We run up the stairs, got to our bedroom, and Yuni shuts the door behind us. I was fine, but with her pulling my hand so roughly, it hurts a little...
"Do you still feel any pain? Are you feeling any better?"
"You've asked that so many times now..."
I give up. Yuni just keeps asking me that, even if I say I'm fine. I should just lie down on the bed and take a short rest.
Ah~... It's so soft... I love my pillow and my bed. It feels so good, so soft and fluffy...
"Anyway, you stay here, Luni. I need to go look for my friends now. Have a good rest!"
"Yeah..."
Before I can say anything more, Yuni's already left, leaving me alone in the room. While she's gone, I guess I'll take a quick nap, since it's peaceful and quiet now.
Ah, I almost forgot! I should take a bath first, before I soak my pillow entirely in sweat. That would be really bad!
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"Ah~... This is the best..."
After washing my body in the shower, I got into the hot bath. With the warmth and comfort of the hot water soaking me, in gentle waves, I can feel my body relax almost instantly. I'm the only person using the hot bath now, so that also helps me to relax easily.
Ah~, it feels so good! My exhaustion, from earlier, fades away as if it never existed in the first place. But, even though I feel less tired now, it seems to be getting easier for me to fall asleep now... My eyelids are only getting heavier every passing second.
...
*swoosh* *thud*
...Eh? That's the sound of the sliding door, opening and closing. Is someone coming in?
"Oh, it's Mina! Hello!"
"Ah! I d-d-didn't mean to int-terrupt, I'm s-sorry! I'll come back l-later!"
"Wait!"
Thankfully, I stop Mina by calling out to her, before she runs away. This hot bath is meant to be shared, so it's not like I can tell her to leave me alone. Besides, I want her to join me anyway! So, I smile at her, trying to be friendly.
"Don't you want to use the hot bath?"
"...Can I?"
"Well, I don't mind. So come join me!"
"..."
This awkward silence... She doesn't even say anything while taking a quick shower, before sitting in the opposite side of the hot bath, facing me. I want to talk to her, somehow. Staring at each other like this, makes the mood feel really weird.
"Why don't you come and sit beside me? Do I smell weird or something?"
"N-No! It's not like that, I didn't mean to... I'm sorry!"
"..."
Did I say something that I shouldn't have? I was only joking, though. At least, she's slowly making her way towards me now.
When she finally settles down beside me, she starts looking around the room. And... she's not saying anything again. Why does she keep making this so awkward...
"This hot bath is huge, isn't it, Mina? There's so much space, everyone can use this bath at the same time, probably."
"Yeah... It is."
"Come to think of it, is this your first time using the bath?"
"Yes..."
To think that she's never used this hot bath before. She's been missing out.
"You've been living here for a month now, right? You never wanted to try out this hot bath?"
"I have! It's just... I can't... It's difficult to talk to people... So I don't come here..."
"Ah, I understand. It's tiring to talk to other people sometimes. I get it."
"...No, that's not exactly... what I mean."
"It's not?"
"It's like... I don't know what to talk about... When someone talks to me, I get... really scared... I mean, I get really nervous, for some reason..."
Eh? I don't really get it. So that's why she never tried out this hot bath before? Is she just really shy, or socially awkward? I don't know, but...
"But, aren't you talking to me just fine, right now?"
"That's... That's d-different! I mean..."
After some time, she starts fidgeting and goes quiet again. Maybe I shouldn't have talked so much. Is she that nervous, talking to me like this?
She doesn't have many friends, does she? So, she's just like me, then. Ah, but it's for a different reason, that I don't have many friends.
...Eh? Normally, I don't even talk to other people much. But, why do I feel so motivated to talk to Mina now? Is it because I want to help her? Is it because we both don't have many friends?
"Hey, Luni?"
"Ah?"
"Earlier, when you protected me from a Jelly attack... Are you okay?"
"You're still going on about that...? I'm fine now! It was my magic barrier that took the hit for you, so I'm completely fine!"
"But... you had to feel pain... instead of me..."
"Look, it's not a physical injury, you know? I didn't actually get hurt, so it's fine! Just forget about it!"
Besides, if I couldn't protect everyone, like Maria trusted me to... I wouldn't be able to forgive myself.
"I'm sorry, Luni..."
"Ah? For what?"
"Because you-"
"Like I said, just forget about it! I'm completely fine!"
Haah... This girl apologizes for every little thing, that she feels responsible for, doesn't she? Is she always like this?
"I'm sorry! I just wanted to say... Please forgive me!"
"Ah? I never blamed you to begin with! Ah, geez... Fine, I'll forgive you!"
"...You will? T-Thank you so much!"
Ah~, how did it turn out like this... I was just enjoying a nice, hot bath as well... Then, Mina comes along, and says such weird things.
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Getting out of the hot bath, I wiped myself dry with a towel, got dressed, and headed for the fridge in the kitchen. Mina, for some reason, is still following me now.
"Ah~! Cold milk after a hot bath... This is the best!"
"...Is it, really?"
"Well, Maria says that it is, and I believe it!"
After finishing my glass of cold milk in seconds, I urged for Mina to do the same thing as well. She seems to really enjoy it, too. That's great!
"Let's get along, Mina! Starting from today, we're friends now, right?"
"Ah! Yes! Let's get along, Luni!"