in which minami kotori, a fashion student at otonokizaka university, develops a strange fondness for sonoda umi, the girl who sits in the row in front of hers.
[this book is based on a comic strip of kotoumi that inspired me to transform it into an...
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peony. "happy life"
— in which they get their happy ending.
~
a yawn pushes itself out of umi's mouth, and she squints as the morning light hits her bed and angles up to her face, before sitting up abruptly, the comforter falling away from her bare body, the winter air hitting her skin viciously, sending a shiver up her spine.
"what..." she hears the bed creak slightly, and the voice she loved so much thick with slumber as she groans. "come back to bed, umi-chan."
a hand gently pulls down on umi's arm, sending the girl falling back down into the sinfully soft bed, and into the warm embrace of her girlfriend.
"kotori..." umi sighs, knowing full well how clingy she could be in the morning as the smaller girl buries her head into the crook of umi's neck and flops an arm over her chest, tugging her even closer. "eli invited us to the reunion party, remember?"
kotori mumbles grumpily into her skin, evidently still drowsy from sleeping late into the night. "but that's in the evening."
"and," umi tries to reason, running her fingers through kotori's long, silky, grey hair. "we still have errands to run. the fridge's empty again."
she pauses, before adding, "and i want to go for a jog."
"ugh," came kotori's reluctant reply.
"i told you to finish those designs another time. they aren't even in a rush." umi scolds softly, now massaging circles into kotori's tense shoulder. the fashion designer was working on a wedding set for an engaged couple, and had been working tirelessly ever since. she had managed to finish the last of her drafts late last night, so she was planning to show them to the couple the next day.
"sorry, you know how i feel about leaving things undone," kotori mutters, breathing out heavily into her neck.
"besides," she continues, lifting her head slightly, her bleary eyes meeting umi's, pink lips tilting into a drowsy smile. "i wanted to spend the day with you today without worrying about work."
umi blushes, turning away. though they had been dating for six years, she was never quite able to get used to the sweet things kotori would tell her every day. she was thankful, though she'd not admit it; her days were well-spent in her company.
"don't even try," umi mumbles, trying to suppress the urge to stay in bed, now slowly moving her arm away from her. "i want to maintain a healthy exercise routine."
