It's not always a sunny day during the summer season and things might not end up to your liking, but remember! Finding ways to get through it will surely brighten your day!
—
You vacantly kept your eyes open at the empty stall standing in front of you.
The time was set in the middle of the day when children would be outside to play, and grown-ups were energized after a hearty lunch to attain their goals, but you were still somewhat stuck in an unsuspecting daze.
"Child, this is the fifth time you've spaced out," The chief editor calls out with both her hands on her hips. "I won't complain much though since it seems that you're quite in a mental predicament."
It took her three more tries before you finally snapped back to reality, but unfortunately for her, you were unable to hear any of what she said earlier.
Today... what was today's agenda again? You nearly smacked yourself on the head once the realization came to you.
Your editor, better known as the editor-in-chief or Lady Guuji, was taking you out for a stroll in Ritou to have you take a look at the possible stalls that you would be assigned to during the book signing event on the Irodori festival.
She sighs at the apologies you muttered, "I think it's time for you to tell me all about your troubles, little one."
"Again, I'm very sorry for spacing out—but the booth venue looks really good," You feign a smile. "I can't wait to sign my novels at the festival."
Apart from being your assigned editor and the Yae Publishing Bookhouse's editor-in-chief, she was also Lady Guuji of the Grand Narukami Shrine—a big deal, people would come to say.
But since you have only met her a few times and only discussed matters about the upcoming Irodri Festival and your novel, you felt like you weren't inclined to tell her your worries.
Yae Miko hums in suspicion, knowing full well that you were far from being excited about what you were on board with, but decides to play along in the end. "Let's wrap it up for today. You're clearly still tired from your trip to Watatsumi Island."
"What? But I've been back for almost a week now!"
"Hush. Now go back, take a nice rest, and try to solve your underlying feelings that you can't seem to figure out up until now."
You blink, making sure that you heard her correctly. "I—um, thank you?"
"Hurry along now. I wish you nothing but the best in your blooming romance."
"I'm sorry?!" You stopped yourself from turning around to leave when she continued.
"Child, I've walked along the earth for goodness how long already. I know romance when I see one." She winks, "Now, go. Take the time off this week. We still have plenty of time until the festival. And if you want your daily fortune, be sure to visit me at the shrine, hm?"
"Okay," You weakly reply, focusing on your body temperature more instead of your own voice. "I'll see you around, Lady Yae."
She hums in satisfaction before sending you off with a small wave of goodbye.
"Was I that easy to read?" You grumble to yourself as you held your burning cheeks together and try to avoid locking your eyes with the people on the side of the road.
Ever since you pieced the puzzle together—of the reason why you liked hearing about her fireworks despite getting scared on the first night you saw one, why you felt so blithe whenever you hung out with her, why you started looking for her face in every crowd, or why you wanted to be with her all the time—
"Ow," You hit your head at the entrance door on purpose to stop yourself from thinking such nonsense.
This was all bemusing, and you didn't want to let anybody know just yet because maybe—maybe you were confusing your feelings with platonic love.
Maybe you just really liked her as a friend because you never really saw yourself being attracted to girls that way—of course not until you met— "No, I refuse to think about something as embarrassing as this." Again, you put yourself to a halt and entered the house.
It's been a few days since the firework show she put on for you, but after that whole incident with all your silent eureka and whatnot, she miraculously wasn't as busy as before anymore.
But that would also mean you'd spend more time with her and when you spend more time with her, your dubious feelings are going to continuously pile up until—
"This is too confusing!" You cry out, ducking in frustration with little awareness that you aren't alone in the room.
The traveler, sitting on the sofa with her tiny companion, removes the last piece of dango from her mouth to lure your attention. "[Name]? What's the matter?"
The two of them coming in and out at your place as they please every once in a while completely slipped away from your mind.
"Oh, hi, I didn't see you there," You chuckle as you stand up, all of your movements down to the tone of your voice were awkward. "Don't mind me, it's just been a weary afternoon."
"Woah, is booth picking really that intense?" Paimon floats up from her seat with a sudden interest in your reply.
"It's not about that," You sit across them on the floor, with a coffee table in front of the three of you. "It's about something else."
"Is it about your frustration over Yoimiya?" The traveler takes a guess, which made you instantly turn your head to face her.
"What? How did you—no, I mean, what frustration? I'm frustrated?"
"Not if anyone sees you angrily huffing and grumbling every time you finish catching up with Yoimiya."
"Do I do that often?"
"Too often," Lumine sighs. "Do you not like her?"
"Of course not! I like her a lot!" You blurt out, "But it's just... it's something embarrassing to talk about."
"Well, we won't pry unless you're ready to tell us—so, don't worry and take your time!" Paimon smiles and you hang your head low.
With a meek voice, you managed to mutter out a few words of confession, "How do you know if you're... in love?"
Lumine drops her half-eaten dango but Paimon was quick enough to catch and eat it for herself.
"You think you're in love with Yoimiya?" The traveler blinks as a result of being caught off-guard.
"I don't know!" Lumine's quick speculation caught you off-guard. "It's... it's too confusing. Do I just really like her as a friend or is it something else?"
"Well, Paimon thinks you're about to find out in a minute," Paimon munches, wondering whether or not she should give you a teasing smile or remain with a confused face.
"Why?"
"She'll be here to return the lyre she borrowed, remember?"
Your eyes widened in realization.
Paimon was right.
Two days ago, Yoimiya found a lyre that you stored in a small box, that you completely forgot about after bringing it along for the trip in case you got the chance to learn a few new songs during your time here.
Since you weren't in the mood to try and bring the musician in you again, you let her borrow it for a while to show some tunes for the kids after you taught her some chords.
You watched her play yesterday somewhere around the outskirts of town in the middle of the afternoon, with the kids happily chiming nursery rhymes around her.
Although she wasn't a pro, she was decent enough to strum a few patterns that still somehow sounded like the harps that the Gods in Celestia would play.
"I'm starting to lose it," You mumble to your friends who didn't have the time to react when a knock on the door startled the three of you. "Oh Gods, that must be her."
"Don't keep her waiting, now." Lumine gives you a small smile of encouragement—and that made you nervous.
Feeling like your feet were permanently glued to the floor, you struggle to walk up to the door and open it.
As soon as you opened the door, you felt like the rays of the sun had started stabbing you in every part of your body as the person who embodied it started chatting her heart out already.
"Heya, [Name]! The lyre was super cool to use! Thanks for letting me borrow it! Now that I got to play a song or two, I should consider buying one for myself. I didn't even know I could learn to play the lyre so fast!"
"Well, you're a quick learner." Was the only thing you managed to blurt out with an awkward expression on your face.
She continues to talk about the lyre but you were only left frozen, not knowing what to say next, afraid of suddenly slipping your tongue into saying something that shouldn't be said.
Her expression quickly changed as soon as she noticed your attention slowly drifting away from the conversation. "[Name]? Are you okay? Are you sick?" She places a hand over your forehead at the spur of the moment, leaving you rigid once more.
Her being this close was too much for you.
"I-I'm sorry, I don't think I'm feeling too well..." Once you got ahold of yourself, you quickly retracted away from her touch and started fanning yourself with your hand. "I think it's the summer heat getting to me."
Literally and figuratively.
Who could have known that you'd melt this quickly just by seeing her face?
"Ah! I get that! You know what, I'll bring you something that will make you feel better! Oh, and here," She mindlessly shoves the lyre to you out of excitement. "I'll be right back!"
Once she was out of earshot, you go back inside the house and practically collapse on the floor out of embarrassment.
"I still don't know, Paimon," You mutter to your company, replying to what your little friend told you a minute ago. "I can't figure it out."
"Maybe you'll find your answer later but for now, we have to go."
The two were starting to move around so you individually gave them a glance. "What? Why?"
Lumine gets up to place her used plate in the sink, "Yoimiya's obviously going to be staying here for a while and we don't want to bother you with that."
"Yeah, you already have your thoughts bothering you anyway," Paimon giggles, already finding her way beside the traveler. "See 'ya later, then!"
"Okay..." You trail off as they quickly leave the room with small waves from their hands, leaving you in an empty room.
With no one else around, you decided to clean up a bit with the hidden intention of trying to think this whole situation through.
You were starting to doubt that telling your friends about this was a good idea. I mean, that whole conversation was so... so awkward.
Maybe you were too quick in assuming your feelings. Despite spending a lot of time with her, you still just met the girl.
Maybe the loneliness was starting to catch up again, making the differences between platonic and romantic love foggy in your mind.
Or maybe you were just being in denial.
You scrunch your brows, frustrated with how your thoughts came out.
"I'm back!" Yoimiya chirps in a sing-song voice, peeping from outside the door. "Did I make you wait too long?"
You slowly shake your head with a small smile and urged her to sit on the sofa, "No, you're just in time, actually. I made some drinks."
"I saw the traveler and Paimon just now. They seemed to be in high spirits," She smiles back and hurriedly scooches closely beside you. "Anyway, I brought popsicles for us to enjoy! A perfect way to combat the heat!"
Yoimiya hands you the popsicle as you mumble a small "Thanks."
As the two of you enjoy the snack she brought and the drinks you prepared, you listen to Yoimiya's thoughts.
She was talking about the kids she played with and the silly competitions she's entered with a certain oni when you started disassociating from the conversation again.
You don't know how many minutes it has been but you were still stuck in your head until you hear something being placed on the table in front of you.
The room was still bright but the cups you used earlier had been replaced by plates of food, udon noodles, and onigiri. If you were to guess, it was already lunchtime.
"[Name]," Yoimiya calls out that almost sounded like a whisper. "I made us lunch, I hope you don't mind. Did you have a good nap? You were out for an hour."
"Oh, no, I'm sorry! I fell asleep," You frowned but secretly found it funny that the reason why you felt so sleepy the entire morning was that your thoughts about her kept you up at night and here she was, asking about how well you rested. "Thank you for preparing a meal though."
"It's fine! I enjoyed making them. Sleep is very important, you know, and I'm glad I got to cook you a meal because it's not every day for me to do something like this for my friends—usually, I just make snacks with them," She laughs to herself, but then widened her eyes in the realization that she was babbling again. "Sorry! I'm starting to talk too much again, the food's gonna get cold."
"It's fine. I like listening to you talk."
What did I just say.
She chuckles, "But what's important right now is what you think of the food," Yoimiya smiles and leans in to tuck a few strands of your hair behind your ear, before picking up an onigiri and carefully pushing it in your mouth—and you wanted to retract, you really did—
But why should you?
—♡—
Lumine opens the door to your place with no knowledge as to why you were sitting on the couch, looking like you just found out that someone died.
Your friends passed by Yoimiya a few seconds ago just when she left your company, and it seemed like your meeting with her went well.
Paimon glances at the traveler before approaching you to ask, "[Name]? What happened—"
"I like her," You stare from afar as if you were still in deep thought, but quickly stared at them for confirmation. "I really like Yoimiya."
The two exchanged looks for a few seconds before Lumine decided to say something.
"You sure you're not being too quick in deciding? You still have a lot of time to process."
"You don't understand—earlier, sh-she did this thing... and it made me feel like she taught me a secret language I can't speak with anyone else."
The two paused for a few seconds, not knowing what to say; it seemed like you weren't the only person surprised by what you were feeling.
"Oh, so that's what someone sounds like when they're in love," Paimon's eyes sparkled in amusement. "It sounds too tiring though..."
"I'm glad you figured it out, [Name]." Lumine gives you a smile, "Do you have any plans to tell her?"
"Of course. I really don't care what the outcome is," You stare at your fingers and started fiddling with them. "I just want her to know that I like her because it would kill me to keep it all to myself."
—♡—
Everything looked like it was starting to fall into place the next day.
You were going to tell her what you felt.
Of course, it wasn't going to be an easy task but things would be a lot harder if you choose to ignore it, no?
You take a deep breath and you walk through the door. It's the morning of your very first day in attempting to tell her—and hopefully the last. Yoimiya was right outside your temporary place, waiting for you to come out.
"Are you feeling any better to go outside now?" She asks with a smile as the two of you started walking away out of the city and you nod in response.
"I was only feeling a little under the weather for a short while. I can go anywhere I want now!" You assure her as you try to hide how frantic you were, looking for a nice spot to confess.
As much as you wanted the timing to be perfect, you were starting to lose your patience—who wouldn't really, after the times she's gotten into your head just when you're about to do something important like when you're about to eat, or sleep, or pull a fortune slip from the shrine—
"Would you look at that, what a pretty bridge!" Beside Netsuke No Gen Crafts, you walk over the greenery and stopped at the designated place. "Yoimiya, come here for a bit, I want to tell you something."
The happy-go-lucky firework maker skips towards you with a curious glimmer in both of her eyes. "Sure, what is it?"
"I... I li—" You stop yourself, already forgetting that this wasn't the time to have cold feet.
Were you really going to tell her?
"Hm?" She tilts her head, waiting for you to continue.
"I like—"
"Well, well, well, if it isn't my compadre and rival—alone in one place," A boisterous voice suddenly interrupts your almost-failing confession, his hands both on his hips as if he had caught a criminal red-handed. "I hope you're not thinking about joining her side." The oni's eyes land on you.
Yoimiya laughs and imitates his gesture. "Itto, are you out of candies to give out to the kids again?"
Arataki freaking Itto!
"If you hand me some right now, I'll forget I saw you scheming with [Name] here to take me down." He lets out a hearty chuckle and you start to imagine Shinobu hitting him on the head with a hilichurl's club.
You weren't usually troubled with this guy but right now was not a good time to spark up a conversation.
Yoimiya shrugs, "I was gonna buy snacks anyway. You should come with us! The more the merrier! Oh, but before that—" She looks back at you to whisper, "Is it fine if he tags along? And what was that you wanted to say again?"
"I'll tell you later," You smile at her and cling to her arm to pull her towards Itto. "Come on, let's buy some candy!"
And so the three of you bought some snacks from a nearby store as you stumble over the words that you wanted to say in your head.
The big oni didn't stay long—thankfully. He only wanted some candy and a few snacks for himself that, of course, you and the firework maker would pay for.
You didn't mind though, since he stopped bugging around after eating five entire dangos at the same time.
After the encounter with Itto, you and Yoimiya continue your trip somewhere else—this time, far away from people you might know.
Konda Village was a nice place, so you tried your luck there.
In the middle of walking around the pathways of the village, Yoimiya shows you some sparklers she carries around and lights them up whenever she has nothing to do. She likes to call them mini-fireworks.
It wasn't loud nor hard to handle, and she thought it was perfect for you to hold on to without getting scared of the noise; your heart shattering into a million pieces at the thought of not being able to tell her how you felt yet.
"Yoimiya, you know, I actually kind of li—"
"Is that Yoimiya I see?" A kid yells as she started to run at full speed once she confirms to herself that the person she saw was indeed the greatest storyteller she knew.
"Oh, it's Futaba!" Yoimiya lightly chuckles and glances at you. "I'm guessing that she's gonna start asking me for stories. You should come to say hi too!"
And so it began.
A series of unfortunate events in an attempt to confess.
At Chinju Forest, after the storytelling spree back at the village, you thought the atmosphere in the forest was nice for a change.
"Yoimiya, I'm gonna keep this short; I li—"
"There you are, eavesdropper."
"What the—there wasn't a Cicin Mage the last time I went here!"
You go to the shores of Ritou with her next, knowing that anything rarely happens to the place—you didn't want to go here but you needed this peaceful environment with no hindrances.
"Okay, I'm gonna say it again, I like—" But you were once again cut off—this time, by a loud thunder from nearby.
"Are you kidding me?" You scrunch your brows. "Nevermind with what I was about to say—I don't like the sound of thunder. We should head back for now and hang out tomorrow."
"Hm? Okay! If that's what you want. I'll take you back home."
The Shogun must have been displeased with your low effort in trying to confess to her.
—♡—
The next day, you tried again.
From yelling your feelings on top of a roof in the morning and halting after slipping and falling from a tree; to surprising her with a cake you baked that ended up splattering on the ground, to trying to casually mention it during lunch with her but ended up choking on your food—none of them were effective.
There was no more choice but to execute the final backup.
"Hey, Lumine? You've worked with those before, right?" You point at the curious box of materials that you and the traveler happened to pass by.
"Sure, I think I know how to handle some of those. Want me to help you set up one?"
It wasn't until later at sunset that you called Yoimiya for some "sightseeing".
It wasn't a secret. You were going to surprise her with what you feared most—contrary to what she felt.
The two of you hike up on one of the small areas beside the glorious Mt. Yogou and looked for a nice place to have a little picnic when a familiar face was spotted frantically running towards you and your company.
"Move!" The traveler finally yells, hectically waving an arm to gesture you to move aside.
"[Name]!"
You turn around once you hear Yoimiya calls you from behind, revealing a hilichurl that's already down on its knees in defeat and showing an arrow sticking on its back.
"Stay back for the meantime! I'll handle this." Lumine instructs.
"What's going on?" You pull Yoimiya away from danger as Lumine quickly pulls out her sword to dodge and counter the enemies' attacks.
Unknown to you, the abyss order was at it again, attacking out of nowhere, but for some reason, the traveler was able to track them down—and this was going to be a total disaster again.
This was starting to make you upset—a feeling you know all too well.
"I don't have time for this!" You check the sky, trying to calm yourself down.
Yoimiya moves in front of you to check the expression on your face. "Why? What's wrong? Are you okay?"
At this point, you could hardly hear her in the middle of the clashing.
You look at the commotion that seemed like it's been going on forever, so you look back at Yoimiya with your whole existence and placed both of your hands on her shoulders.
This was taking too long and time was being unfair to you.
"I like you, Yoimiya!"
"Sorry, what was that?" She steps a little closer to you.
"I said I like you! I like you a lot that my heart feels so full every time I see you!"
"Oh, I like you too! You're a good f—"
"More than a friend, Yoi! I like you more than a friend! I want to hug you, hold your hand, and place cherry blossoms on your hair during the spring!"
The noise subsided from the background but the pitter-patter from your heart had made you forget about the clamor's existence.
Lumine stands a few feet away as black particles from the defeated enemies hover around her— slowly turning her head to glance at you with a concerned look on her face, worried that she had just messed up your confession.
The sun had already set and the stars were now visible to the naked eye but Yoimiya was still seen frozen in her stance.
Tears wanted to form in your eyes, afraid that you might have just scared off the person you like the most.
Finally, her face softens, and she speaks, "Whew, that was some unexpected ruckus. What was that you wanted to say again?"
You give her a chagrined look, "Are you kidding me?"
Even Lumine dropped her sword in surprise.
There was a moment of silence but thankfully, Yoimiya decided to talk again.
"I'm kidding. Of course, I like you too. I think you're pretty cool," She lightly chuckles, "And I also want to do something with you."
Yoimiya holds your hand and leans in to kiss you, as the fireworks that were a few minutes late you had planned to show her went off in the distance.