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The Udagawa family minivan isn't much to look at, but according to what Tomoe told her while lightheartedly bumping it with an elbow it hasn't so much as gotten a flat in all its years of use. After a lifetime of driving them around from playgrounds as children, then to taiko practice, internet cafes, and whatever else they wanted to do it's still as reliable as she is. And she seems quite proud of the fact that she's allowed to drive it these days.
Given that fact, you'd think she would be a more cautious driver. "Tomoe-san, that's a yellow! Please give yourself proper time to slow down!" Sayo cries out from her seat alongside their reckless driver.
"We're all good, it's not even red yet! Don't worry about it, Sayo-san." Tomoe gives her a toothy, carefree grin, and then slams her foot down onto the brake so hard Sayo has to grab onto the armrests of her seat in order to not get launched forward.
The girl sitting directly behind her isn't so lucky. "Gawhoof!" Himari cries out as she slams against the back of Sayo's seat and sends a jolt up her spine with the impact. "Toooo-mooooo-eeeeeeeee, you've gotta be more careful!! What if Tsugu got whipslash?"
"Whiplash, Himari-chan..." Tsugumi, sweet lovely Tsugumi, says from her seat in the back squished between Himari and Ran, with Moca beside her. Of course she took one of the middle seats before anyone else could. Sayo loves her so much.
"That! She could sue you, you know, and I'd back her up." Himari crosses her arms and pouts. "You'd be fucked big time, Tomoe!"
"Language!" Ran yells, and then the light turns green and Tomoe's other foot slams down onto the floor. A screeching sound comes from underneath them as the 20-year-old Toyota minivan launches forward and Sayo can do nothing but lean back into her seat and pray to whatever god will listen.
A small hand reaches out searchingly and wraps around her own. Sayo turns back to see Tsugumi smiling comfortingly. She nods, and Sayo gets the message without needing a word--sorry, Sayo-san, it's kind of always like this.
But Sayo knows that, and at this point she's accepted it.
Dating Tsugumi came with many benefits. Hugs were one, those were a revelation. Free coffee at the cafe even though Sayo always tries to pay for it. Sweet, thoughtful gifts on their anniversaries and on her birthday. The comfort of a hand on hers at the exact moment she needs one. Tsugumi is without a doubt one of the best things to ever happen to her, up there with meeting Yukina and joining what would become Roselia.
But that wasn't all it came with. You didn't date a member of Afterglow without the rest of them worming their way into your life sooner or later. And if you told Sayo a year ago that she'd be close personal friends with every one of them, she would have said that was absurd. But here she is in a packed car with the whole crew, and it feels... so natural.
Despite the chaos, Sayo feels welcomed, even loved by her new circle of friends. They're always pushing her just outside of her comfort zone. It's something she greatly appreciates.
Tsugumi's fingers are soft as they entwine with hers. Moca giggles as she watches from her own place, sharing a seatbuckle with Ran. Absolutely unsafe, certainly illegal, but she knows by now that she holds no sway over Moca's actions. Including her amusement. "Love is a beautiful thing, isn't it, Hii-chan?" she says teasingly.
Tsugumi reddens at her words but doesn't let go of Sayo's hand. It's incredibly sweet.
Himari nods furiously. "They're so cute I can hardly stand it! Aww..."
"I'm right here!?" Tsugumi cries as she grows even more visibly embarrassed. She leans down to hide her face in her free arm. It's the cutest thing Sayo's ever seen in her entire life and she'd say so if she could do it without adding to Tsugumi's plight.
"All the better to see you, Tsugu." Moca reaches out herself to pet Tsugumi on the head. "There, there~."
Tsugumi makes a surprised noise almost like a cat, and her hand flexes to squeeze Sayo's. "Moca-chan, that's..." But she doesn't make any further motion to stop her friend's ministrations. Far, far back in her mind, Sayo thinks for a second that she should be jealous or upset with Moca for being so affectionate with her girlfriend--but that's ridiculous, this isn't some teen drama film. She knows a lot about those now. Himari makes her watch them sometimes.
"Tomoe, you should have taken that left," Ran says from the backseat. Tomoe scoffs.
"Takin' a shortcut."
"This isn't a shortcut, you just missed the normal route."
"It's gonna be a new shortcut."
"How can it be a shortcut if it takes longer to get there?"
"Shut up."
Ran kicks the back of Tomoe's seat. "You shut up."
"You sh--"
"Both of you, please stop it!" Sayo cries out desperately. "Just--Tomoe-san, take the next right and we'll get to CiRCLE faster than if you go straight from here."
"Glad to see somebody's keeping track of the directions," Ran says before Tomoe can reply, and Sayo can feel her eyes roll back into her head. But thankfully Tomoe bites back whatever she wants to say in return and follows Sayo's instructions.
Before long they're finally pulling into the parking lot.
Tomoe yanks the key out and spins it on her finger by the metal ring attached to it, a small plastic bowl of ramen twirling on its chain. "Well, we're here, Sayo-san! And you've got..." She squints at the clock on the dashboard. "Ah, like twenty minutes until it's time. But you usually come early, right?"
"Indeed," Sayo replies, not adding that she usually likes to show up thirty minutes early. Yukina and Lisa are probably there by now--ah, yes, she can see them hanging out at the tables outside.
She nods to Tomoe, then to the others. "Thank you for taking me on such short notice. I know I should have woken up earlier to prepare..."
"Don't worry about it, Sayo-san!" Himari chirps back dismissively. "I mean, I'm the one who kept everybody up until 3am 'cause I didn't want to leave off the drama we were watching on a cliffhanger..." She stretches her arms up, eyes screwed shut as she tries to fight off her sleepiness. "How was I supposed to know every episode was a cliffhanger?"
"I hope you had a nice time at the sleepover though, Sayo-san!" Tsugumi says a bit nervously. Sayo doesn't hold back on her immediate instinct to reassure her, and she rubs her hand with her thumb and smiles back at her.
"I had a lovely time, Tsugumi-san. And thank you for having me over, Tomoe-san. All of you."
"Of course!" Tomoe replies with a grin. "You're one of us now, we're not gonna leave you out of anything! Ride or fucking die!"
"Language!" Ran says, kicking the back of her seat again. She looks to Sayo apologetically, but doesn't meet her gaze. "Uh... yeah, though. What she said."
"Ohoho, is our Ran being honest about her feelings?" Moca says with her hands clasped together in mock surprise. "Perhaps I should take a few pictures to commemorate the occasion, hmm? It's a historic event after all..."
"Stop it, Moca!"
Sayo gives all of them another smile, and gives Tsugumi's hand one last squeeze before letting go so she can pop the door open. She climbs out and heads to the trunk to collect her things. Guitar case, notebooks, her bag... once she's got everything she needs she heads back around, intending to give them a wave before she heads to CiRCLE.
But before she can, the other passenger door is flying open and out comes Himari. "Wait, wait, wait! Sayo-san! You're forgetting something important!"
Sayo blinks confusedly. "Am I?"
"You totally are!"
She searches Himari's face for clues as to what it could be. Something she left at the Udagawa house? Something she forgot to tell Tsugumi before leaving? But the answer becomes clear as soon as she notices the way Himari's gaze momentarily darts to her lips.
Sayo smiles. "Ah, so that's it. You're right." She moves forward.
Himari's lips are always so sweet when they kiss. She doesn't know what sort of lip gloss the other girl uses but it's different every single time--cherry, strawberry, orange, many flavors and all as bright as she is. Today it's something milder than usual. A light taste of vanilla. As Sayo leans back and the two separate, Himari's eyes slowly open, and then she giggles.
"All right," Himari asks as she bounces up and down excitedly, "who's next?"
"Moca's ready for a smoochin'!" Moca calls out from inside the car. She slips around Tsugumi to hop out and casually walk up to Sayo, putting a hand on her shoulder and fixing her with an overacted smirk. "Come here often, sweetums?"
"Aoba-san, please don't turn this into a roleplay. I've only got so much time before practice."
"Gotcha, gotcha." Moca's hand on her shoulder tightens a bit, and then she leans in. Her kisses are so light Sayo can barely feel them, like there's something holding her back from fully giving herself to the embrace. Sayo does her best to make up for it--but before she knows it the kiss is over and Moca is heading over to the car with a playful wave back.
Next is Tsugumi, and Sayo feels her heart melt in her chest as her girlfriend does her best to hide her excitement. She walks up to Sayo with a wavering smile, and as Sayo reaches out to cup her cheek she lets out a quiet gasp.
They lock eyes. Tsugumi's smile grows steadier as she moves closer.
When they kiss, it feels like the most natural thing in the world. Tsugumi belongs in her arms. Her lips belong on hers, letting out quiet noises as Sayo breaks away and moves back in again and again. Her hands belong where they are resting on Sayo's shoulders. When Tsugumi is here with her the world just feels right, even if only for a moment.
A jeering whistle from the car. "Whoohoo, get it, Tsugu!" Moca calls out.
And that's their cue to split apart, blushes spreading on both their faces. Tsugumi leans back in to give her one last warm peck on the cheek, right where she's flushed the most. She doesn't show it often, but Tsugumi does relish the chance to tease her.
Tomoe's already waiting next to Himari, and Sayo doesn't miss the way Himari and Tsugumi stare at the two of them as Tomoe walks closer, hands in her pockets and a grin on her face.
Tomoe doesn't waste time. She leans in to capture Sayo's lips, and despite herself, Sayo lets out a quiet gasp at the unexpectedness of it. She's forceful and unhesitant as always, but not in a way that would ever make Sayo uncomfortable, it's just the opposite. A strong arm wraps around Sayo's back and she melts into the kiss willingly.
When their lips separate and Sayo's eyes flutter back open, she can see Himari and Tsugumi holding each other off to the side, both of them practically salivating at the sight of the pair's embrace.
Tomoe pats her on the back. "Heh, sorry if that was a bit much, Sayo-san..."
"No, not at all," she replies as she catches her breath. And then she sees the only member left un-kissed slinking around the back of the car.
Moca's arm darts out from inside the car to grab hold of the hood of Ran's jacket. "Ohoho, no you don't. You've gotta be more honest with your feelings, Ran, I know you want a goodbye kiss from our sweet darling Hikawa too~."
Ran doesn't reply, just looks away and yanks free from Moca's grip. Sayo isn't sure whether she should walk over to her or not, but the choice is taken away when Himari gives her a hearty shove forward from behind. She stumbles, regains her footing, then takes the last few steps over to Ran.
"If you'd, er, prefer we didn't, I have no intention of forcing you into anything, Mitake-san..."
"It's not--" Ran starts, and she cuts herself off by biting her lip. "It's not that, it's just..." She reaches out to grab Sayo's arm, and pulls her around to the back of the car. "It's embarrassing," Ran mutters as she looks Sayo in the eyes, and then--
Ran's kisses are light and delicate, the same as Moca's, but there's a passion behind them. Sayo can feel it in the way her hands grip Sayo's shirt, in the hot breath that hits her cheek as Ran momentarily pulls away before moving back in, so softly. And then, as soon as it began, the kiss is over.
Sayo takes in a deep breath as Ran moves away and wipes her mouth with the sleeve of her hoodie. "There, uh... was that good?"
"Yes, thank you," Sayo mumbles. Ran nods.
"Good."
Sayo rechecks her things, makes sure the guitar case hasn't fallen from her back in her daze. She takes a look at her watch--oh, she's really got to get going now. She looks up to her gathered friends. "Thank you all again as always for your hospitality..."
"Of course!" Himari says cheerfully, and Tsugumi smiles sweetly beside her. Sayo gives them a nod, and another smile just for Tsugumi. Then with a final wave she's off.
As she approaches CiRCLE, Sayo looks out for her bandmates again and spots Lisa and Yukina quickly. The two of them seem to be staring her way with wide eyes--is there something surprising about her? Perhaps it's just that she's late. Comparatively, at least. She'll need to apologize to Yukina.
"Minato-san, Imai-san, I apolo..." Sayo begins, but she trails off as she notices Yukina isn't focusing on her words. "Minato-san? Is there something amiss?"
"I... wasn't aware of your situation, Sayo." Yukina's eyes clear and she gives her a curt nod. "Congratulations are in order, I suppose." Behind her, Lisa chokes and flops her arms like a dying fish.
"What for?" Sayo says, only growing more confused by the moment.
"You romantic situation." Yukina's eyes narrow. "Really, I'm surprised at you, Sayo. You've done quite well for yourself. Hazawa-san has been good for you, but I'm sure they all will be as well. Again... congratulations. I'm happy for you."
"What are you talking about?" Sayo replies flatly, and Lisa howls like a banshee.
"I've just observed you sharing... intimate moments with the rest of Afterglow, have I not?" Yukina says back, as confused as Sayo is. "Are you not romantically involved with them all?"
"Of course not, Minato-san," Sayo says confidently, "those were simply 'homie kisses.' It's an Afterglow custom to kiss the homies on occasion."
"Jesus fucking Christ!" Lisa lets out, and both Sayo and Yukina turn to her scoldingly.
"Language, Lisa."
"Language, Imai-san."
Yukina's gaze turns back to her. She still looks somewhat confused, but there's a resolve behind her eyes now. "If you're certain about that. Still, I'm happy for you, Sayo. It's good to see you opening up to more people. It'll have an effect on your sound, I'm sure of it."
"Of course," Sayo responds proudly. "Anything for the good of Roselia, after all."