STARLIGHT | krmy ✓

09

CHAPTER NINE —
WARMTH.

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CAREFULLY, MAYA TILTS the kettle's spout into the mug she had laid on her dresser, watching the clear liquid pour out, filling the mug to the brim before lowering the kettle in satisfaction.

The aroma of chamomile tea relaxes her tense muscles almost immediately, and she hums contently. The night before, she had stayed up in Claudine's room, till a little past two in the morning, talking about their lives. She heard all about Claudine's stage plays and movies, all of which she had watched, like she did when she was young. The discs were still in a box under her bed back in Rinmeikan, probably collecting dust.

She hadn't been able to bring herself to touch them after her downfall, though she watched new productions that starred the successful actress almost religiously.

Maya smiles, taking a sip of her chamomile. She had been torturing herself for ages, and for the first time, she had put it into words and spewed out all her pent-up feelings. And she felt amazing, like she taken a breath of fresh air.

Perhaps, taking this job (she was forced to anyway), and meeting Claudine again was a good decision.

She had been willing to listen to her, never once breaking eye contact as Maya told her about her most dangerous cases, and even flinching in disgust and horror at some of the more gruesome cases.

"Her eyes were missing?!"

She chuckled to herself. It was fortunate that she had chosen to not tell Claudine about the beheaded body her team had found by the town's dumpsite. Maybe another time.

All she could remember was the eager sparkle in Claudine's eyes as she recounted her experiences, though she was trying her hardest to repress her excitement, and Maya knew she was merely doing it out of consideration.

It would take Maya some time to get over her trauma, but it was for the best, and if Claudine meant it, she'd have a certain someone to fall back on if she were to stumble along the way.

Maya's smile grows as she plays with the bow in her other hand. She had carried it around with her even though she was too ashamed to wear it — the blue bow was part of her radiance, after all. Anyone would know who it belonged to. Perhaps, one day, she'd be able to wear it again.

Or maybe, she wouldn't — she had closed a chapter on her life that had been left vulnerably open, and she was trying to move on. But whatever it was, Claudine would be there to brighten her day.

Maya wasn't perfect — it was still unnatural telling herself that when she had tried to be all her life — but it was okay. She might not be perfect, but Claudine definitely was, if the smile in her eyes was the most angelic thing to exist.

And there was certainly no doubt about it; Saijō Claudine would always be a star in Maya's heart.

A knock at the door drives Maya's thoughts out of her brain. Slightly perturbed, she shifts her mug to her left hand, heading to the door and using her right to turn the knob. When it creaks open, she certainly was not expecting Claudine to be spending in the doorway, dressed in beige sweatpants, her stunning red irises paired with a black sweater that complimented her pale skin alike. She had a small scowl on her face, her hands crossed over her chest, eyes still red from the night before.