The night air was crisp and clear in Hakodate. Ruby exhaled and watched the condensation of her breath curl and vanish. Looking to her sides she saw her dear members of Aqours and Saint Snow, chatting and joking like always. Yoshiko was surely teasing Riko about something again with Hanamaru following close behind, Chika and You were laughing at Mari's jokes while Kanan shook her head. Sarah and Dia were walking silently next to each other. Even though Ruby still felt the ecstatic buzz of their live show, she slowed her pace from the group and reflected on the whirlwind that was the past few days.
That first day had felt like another miracle. It certainly wasn't a coincidence that Aqours unknowingly arrived at the restaurant that the Kazuno sisters resided in. She always had thought of the pair as some huge threat, a looming roadblock in the path of the nine girls' success. But all those feelings were gone. Up on stage, when everything had fallen apart, Ruby noticed their vulnerability, how they were just normal high school girls like herself. And Leah, how Ruby had never expected to have so much in common with this girl. Ruby would be too shy to admit it but she felt some kind of link between them, like fate. Their shyness, their undying love for their older sisters was something that bonded them together. She was so sure Leah felt it too...
"Ruby?" A squeal escaped her as Leah's hand tapped her shoulder.
"Ah, sorry to scare you!"
"N-no, it's fine! That's my fault." stuttered Ruby. Leah smiled gently at the taller girl.
The two conversed about the live show and Hokkaido until everyone reached the Kazuno's house. The rest of Aqours - aside from the first years - split away to their hotel. The warmth inside was unsurprisingly pleasant to Ruby and evidently everyone else, as they sighed deeply and threw off their scarves and gloves.
"Hey, is anyone hungry? I'll make you all something quick to eat." Sarah questioned as she made her way to the kitchen.
"Ah, if its not too much trouble!" Hanamaru said bashfully. Ruby could almost see her drooling.
The first-years and Leah entered the bedroom to change into their pyjamas. After dinner they were sure to instantly fall asleep, as tuckered out as they were. Soon enough Sarah called that dinner was ready, and everyone rushed to the table for a nice dinner.
-
That night, Ruby woke up from a strange dream. She wondered why her hand was shaking as it reached for her phone. Usually she would talk to Dia when she got scared, but it was just too late and she didn't want to wake her up or potentially any other girls in the hotel room. Ruby glanced to Leah resting soundly beside her, made to her feet and manoeuvred around the sleeping Yoshiko and Hanamaru on the ground. In the kitchen she poured herself a nice cold cup of water. She sat down at the table and decided to scroll through the pictures on her phone to lighten her mood. Her camera roll was mostly compiled of selfies of herself and Maru with silly filters and slightly blurry photos of her friends making funny faces, as well as a few short videos here and there. Ruby giggled a bit to herself. She then stopped on a photo of Leah. Ruby knew it wasn't good to take pictures of people without their explicit permission, but she had looked so good, her twintails falling over her shoulders, face turned to the shining city below, hand reached out to a rather large snowflake. Ruby's heart quickened its pace and she clamped a hand over her mouth. Once again Ruby was questioning her feelings.
Was it...
Could it be...
...Love?
