Uhhh...

The warmth hit her back. Water sliding down, warm and slow.

Water drops buzzed in quiet patterns against the floor, a soft hush settling through the room.

Sanae ran her fingers through her hair. Lather, rinse, repeat—

she didn’t really think about it until her hand paused.

Her faint reflection peeked through the glass.

Her body leaned in, slowly.

...

A flicker of brightness.

Just a few centimeters right at her roots. Brighter than the rest. 

Her natural light peeking through the color she’d worn for months now.

Shy and persistent.

I look like her...

She sighed, wiping a few droplets from her lashes.

I’ll redo it this weekend..

Probably...

Her hand reached for the conditioner.

The water stopped with a soft squeak.

…

Sanae stepped out, towel wrapped around her loosely.

The mirror began to clear in patches just enough for her to look again.. 

The roots caught the light.

“...”

She stared.

“It’s not so bad I guess..”

She exhaled, her gaze drifting to the uniform folded over the chair.

She slipped into it easily enough, fingers moving on their own as she tied the bow.

Her gaze drifted mid-knot — catching on the earring on the counter.

It lingered there for a while, her hand stopping.

The plain ball caught the light. She picked it up, turned it between her fingers, indecisive.

...

Then, without overthinking, clipped it to her left ear.

The reflection tilted back at her.

Yeah.

Feels right.

Classroom.

Voices swirled together in a hum that didn’t need meaning—

constant, soft. 

Like mushroom stew, she thought. 

Rika rested her chin against her hand, trying to listen as her teacher explained something about fractions.

"you see here.."

Her focus kept slipping—

from the window—to the blackboard—and to the window again.

The sky outside was cloudless and pale, stretching way beyond the school.

Kinda like Ryu lately — Staying home all day.

Not the sick kind either, not coughing or blowing his nose, just sleeping...

...

A lot..

But there wasn’t anything she could do about that now.

Something nudged her elbow.

“Hey,” 

Saki whispered beside her. Rika turned her head.

“Gimme my eraser back.”

Rika looked down at her desk, staring at her own eraser.

Plain. Small. A little worn at the edges.

Saki’s was shaped like a tiny orange cat, the kind that smelled faintly like rubbery fruit, probably tasted like one too...

Rika's gaze lingered, a beat.

Then she passed it back. Saki took it just before their teacher turned toward them again.

Rika picked up her pencil, the teacher’s voice drifting back into focus.

Uhhh...

The warmth hit her back. Water sliding down, warm and slow.

Water drops buzzed in quiet patterns against the floor, a soft hush settling through the room.

Sanae ran her fingers through her hair. Lather, rinse, repeat—

she didn’t really think about it until her hand paused.

Her faint reflection peeked through the glass.

Her body leaned in, slowly.

...

A flicker of brightness.

Just a few centimeters right at her roots. Brighter than the rest. 

Her natural light peeking through the color she’d worn for months now.

Shy and persistent.

I look like her...

She sighed, wiping a few droplets from her lashes.

I’ll redo it this weekend..

Probably...

Her hand reached for the conditioner.

The water stopped with a soft squeak.

…

Sanae stepped out, towel wrapped around her loosely.

The mirror began to clear in patches just enough for her to look again.. 

The roots caught the light.

“...”

She stared.

“It’s not so bad I guess..”

She exhaled, her gaze drifting to the uniform folded over the chair.

She slipped into it easily enough, fingers moving on their own as she tied the bow.

Her gaze drifted mid-knot — catching on the earring on the counter.

It lingered there for a while, her hand stopping.

The plain ball caught the light. She picked it up, turned it between her fingers, indecisive.

...

Then, without overthinking, clipped it to her left ear.

The reflection tilted back at her.

Yeah.

Feels right.

Classroom.

Voices swirled together in a hum that didn’t need meaning—

constant, soft. 

Like mushroom stew, she thought. 

Rika rested her chin against her hand, trying to listen as her teacher explained something about fractions.

"you see here.."

Her focus kept slipping—

from the window—to the blackboard—and to the window again.

The sky outside was cloudless and pale, stretching way beyond the school.

Kinda like Ryu lately — Staying home all day.

Not the sick kind either, not coughing or blowing his nose, just sleeping...

...

A lot..

But there wasn’t anything she could do about that now.

Something nudged her elbow.

“Hey,” 

Saki whispered beside her. Rika turned her head.

“Gimme my eraser back.”

Rika looked down at her desk, staring at her own eraser.

Plain. Small. A little worn at the edges.

Saki’s was shaped like a tiny orange cat, the kind that smelled faintly like rubbery fruit, probably tasted like one too...

Rika's gaze lingered, a beat.

Then she passed it back. Saki took it just before their teacher turned toward them again.

Rika picked up her pencil, the teacher’s voice drifting back into focus.