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"Ahhh, it's so hot today!" Minori yelled as she collapsed onto the ground.
Even if it was a nostalgic place, the school rooftop was the first place to get hot during summer. The shade only partially saved Minori from melting on top of the pavement below. Layers of sweat could only do so much to keep her cool as she closed her eyes and tried to focus on her breathing.
"This heat really is a bit much, huh?" Haruka said. Minori couldn't see, but it sounded as though she sat down against the wall next to her. "Maybe we should have found somewhere else to practice today."
The door to the roof opened. "Minori! Haruka!" Airi yelled. "We're going to go now! Don't stay too long! It's hot!"
"Okay. Good luck!" Haruka called out to the departing Airi and Shizuku as the door closed behind them.
"Where are they going?" Minori mumbled tiredly as her eyes cracked open. Her vision, however, was not filled by the blue sky above as she had expected. Instead, they were filled by large, close, blue eyes.
Haruka's eyes.
"H-Haruka-chan?!"
Minori scrambled to get up from the ground with her hands without accidentally bumping into the Haruka that'd gotten way too close. Her face. Why was it so close?! She quickly crawled backwards on her hands, but her head bumped into the solid wall behind her, signaling the end to her escape.
A smug grin covered Haruka's face as she moved closer to Minori once again. Her back went flat against the same wall Minori had rammed into, her shoulders close. She stared at Minori as though she was expecting something, though Minori couldn't tell what it was. Her face moved closer. Dangerously close.
"H-H-H-Haruka-chan?! What are you doing?!" Minori backed away again, her face hotter than the hot air of summer around her.
"Practicing," Haruka said, the sly grin still plastered across her face. She scooted forward until she was once again close enough for Minori to feel the warmth of her body.
Minori's head spun to the beat of her racing heart. Once again, she tried to scoot further away from Haruka and whatever game she was playing right now. She wasn't sure her fragile heart could handle being that close to Haruka again.
"U-Uhhh, practicing? Practicing for what? What do you mean? Practice is over…" Minori stammered between tired breaths, her back now against the rooftop fence.
On her hands and knees, Haruka crawled right behind Minori's scoot. "We're practicing being close."
"C-Close?" The fence behind Minori bent inward as Minori leaned hard into it. Her hands gripped tightly into the holes between chain links.
The definition of Haruka's lips was the one thing Minori's darting eyes locked onto in their search for an escape, her dazed confusion dulling her conscious decision making. Every little detail of Haruka's close up face was vividly etched into Minori's mind as she saw all the small imperfections of her idol, up close and personal.
A cooling wind blew gently against the sweat that'd formed over Minori's brow. She wasn't sure if all of the sweat on her face was from the sun beating down on her body or from the heat her body was producing right now.
"See?" Haruka pulled away with a laugh. "You still need practice being close to me."
A sigh of relief escaped Minori as Haruka pulled away. "I still don't get it…"
Suddenly, Haruka pulled in close to Minori's face again. Minori basically dived away in response. "Remember while we were practicing our dance today? The whole run-through got thrown into disarray today because one of the moves had our faces get close together."
"Nooo, I thought no one noticed!" Minori hands went to her head. "I'm sorry…"
"So, I thought we'd practice for a little bit," Haruka said. She inched her body closer. Their noses were almost touching.
Though her body screamed at her to make a run for it, Minori held close, exerting all of her might to not explode on the spot. Her eyes slammed shut before they could add more to the weight her fragile heart was carrying. Haruka was so close!
Even with her eyes seal shut, Minori could still feel Haruka's closeness. Soft air tickled against her skin, the gentle cadence threatening to pull her into a trance. The sweet aroma of perfume danced against her own nose, inviting her to move even closer forward, but she could not. Willpower held on to impulse as tightly as Minori's hands on the fence.
"Hmm," Haruka's voice broke through the shell Minori had created around herself. "I think that's enough for today."
The air around Minori's nose cleared of perfume, signaling to the caged creature that her captor had left. The cell door to the rest of the world opened up as Minori opened her eyes to the glorious sight of Haruka's caring smile.
"You did good, Minori. Though, I think you still need more practice. How about we try some more after school tomorrow?"
Even though her heart still beat heavy, Minori did not hesitate to enthusiastically agree.