A Sweet Secret
"Rain, Rain, Rain."
"Mmm-hmm~" I hummed, lying face down on the bed. The worries that had filled my head were long gone. Shine had said it: You shouldn't overthink things that give you a headache. Following her advice, I pushed all my complicated worries deep into the recesses of my mind.
"Rain. When are you going to wake up?" I muttered, poking Rain's cheek. She needed to take the medicine Rabin gave her, so I wished she would wake up soon.
But Rain showed no signs of waking.
I examined her here and there. The fever on her forehead had long since broken. Her neck and hands were also returning to a normal temperature.
"Rain~" I clung to her arm and gently shook her body. Perhaps my wishes reached her, because Rain's eyes slowly began to flutter. Between her blinking eyelids, her blue eyes revealed themselves.
Her gaze drifted through the empty air. I leaned in close to her face, looking down at her.
Blink, blink. Rain blinked up at me. I smiled at her. The girl reflected in Rain's pupils wore a bright, innocent grin.
"Jeff?"
"Yeah. It's Jeff."
Rain didn't seem fully awake yet. Her small hand gently reached up and caressed my cheek. As I closed my eyes slightly at her soft touch, Rain let out a tiny chuckle.
"Wake up. You have to take your medicine." I caught her hand as it caressed my cheek and helped her sit up.
Rain stumbled upright, rubbing her eyes. She let out a long yawn and sat up on the bed. I tidied her hair and handed her the medicine sitting on the table.
"Medicine?"
"Yeah. Rabin told me to give it to you."
Rain nodded at my explanation and readily swallowed the small pill.
"You don't hurt anymore, right?"
"Yeah..." Rain replied to my question.
Her gaze swept across the empty infirmary. Seeing this, I answered.
"Amy went to see Shine, and Rabin looked like he had to rush to the bathroom."
Rain's sluggishly moving eyes began to focus faster. It seemed her mind was fully awake now. Confirming that Rain was back to normal, I hopped down from the bed.
"Shall we head back now?" I asked, reaching out my hand to her.
Sitting there blankly, she stared down at my outstretched hand before suddenly flinching and reaching out her own. Her hand was trembling slightly.
"Um..."
"Yeah?"
"Are you... going to keep holding my hand?"
At Rain's words, I looked down at our hands. My hand was tightly clasping hers. The hand that had supported her as she got off the bed still hadn't let go. So? I tilted my head and asked her.
"Why?"
"No, it's just..."
"Do you hate holding hands with me, Rain?"
"No! No, that's not it!"
For some reason, Rain's reaction was amusing, and a giggle escaped me. Letting out a soft laugh, I gripped her hand even tighter.
"We hold hands all the time anyway."
"Well, that's true, but..." Rain mumbled, hanging her head low.
Looking at her, I wondered. Does she still have a fever? Her uncharacteristic behavior worried me.
"Rain, are you still sick?" As I stepped closer to ask, Rain startled and began to pull back. Her hand started to slip out of my grasp.
Feeling the warmth leave my palm, I instinctively reached forward, weaving my fingers through hers. Our fingers intertwined, locking our hands together. Now held so firmly that she couldn't escape, Rain stared at our laced fingers with her mouth slightly agape.
"Why are you so surprised?"
This wasn't like the usual Rain. I pulled her arm, drawing her closer to me. Her small body was trembling subtly. I raised my other hand and brushed her bangs aside, revealing her face. A faint heat hovered over her features, her cheeks tinged with a soft pink. Seeing this, I slowly lowered my hand from her hair and cupped her cheek.
As I thought, her fever hadn't completely gone down yet. Beneath the soft texture of her cheek, I could feel a lingering warmth.
"See, you still have a fever."
"No, I don't! I took the medicine, so I'll be fine!" Rain replied, shaking her head.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes!"
"Then we can go back to our room like this, right?"
"Yes!"
Rain nodded vigorously at my question. Still, my worries didn't fade.
"No, this won't do. Rain, you're sleeping with us tonight."
"S-sleeping together?"
"Yeah. It's so sad when you're sick and there's no one by your side."
Rain mumbled something, her face growing even warmer. I led the dazed Rain by the arm and walked out of the infirmary.
"We're all sleeping together tonight."
Rain followed me without a word. I walked down the long, empty corridor, holding her hand tightly. The empty hallway felt strangely eerie. Rain remained silent until we reached the room shared by Amy, Shine, and me.
"We're here!"
Opening the firmly shut door and stepping inside, Shine came into view. She was sitting right in the middle of the room, her cheeks puffed out. She looked incredibly grumpy—a very un-Shine-like expression.
"Jeff!" The moment she saw me, she sprang up. I waved at her.
"Shine, I'm back."
"Do you have any idea how long I've been waiting?" Shine stomped toward me, making her anger perfectly clear. The dinosaur tail attached to her backside swayed wildly with every step. Dinosaur Shine was very angry.
"Sorry. I heard Rain was sick."
"Rain?" At my words, Shine's gaze shifted behind me. Feeling Shine's eyes on her, Rain offered an awkward smile and waved.
"Rain, are you sick?" Shine's expression changed in an instant. Approaching Rain with a face full of worry, Shine grabbed both of Rain's hands and pulled her closer.
"I think she caught a cold."
At my words, Shine began inspecting Rain's body. As Shine's small hands patted her down, Rain flinched and shrank back.
"She really does have a fever," Shine said, nodding.
"Yeah. That's why I brought her here so we can all sleep together."
"Together...?" Shine asked back, her expression turning lukewarm. I looked at her face and nodded.
"Yep."
A brief silence fell over the room. Shine's eyes darted quickly between Rain and me.
"Um... maybe I should just go back to my room..." Perhaps finding the silence uncomfortable, Rain mumbled as she took a step back. At that, I hastily reached out and grabbed her hand.
"No way!" I signaled Shine with my eyes, telling her to help me out. Catching my drift, Shine hesitated for a moment before reaching out and grabbing Rain's other hand.
Now, Rain couldn't escape. Held by both arms, her eyes shook anxiously. Shine and I began dragging Rain deeper into the room. Sliiiide, sliiiide. Rain's body was dragged along, sliding across the floor.
"Where did Amy go?" I asked Shine, looking around the room. Amy, who had said she was heading to Shine first, was nowhere to be seen.
"She went out, saying she had some quick business to take care of. She told us to go to sleep first."
"Really?" I sat Rain down on the bed and headed toward the dresser. "Rain, you're a patient, so don't move."
"That's right. Don't move."
"Okay..." Rain replied, nodding at our commands. Just as we said, she sat quietly on the bed.
Arriving in front of the dresser, I began rummaging through the drawer containing my clothes.
"What are you looking for?"
"Pajamas." Shine approached, looking curious at my actions. I answered her question as I pulled out my pajamas.
"Ta-da!" They weren't as special as the dinosaur onesie, but they were still a pair I cherished. But if it was for Rain, I was more than willing to lend them. The clothes I pulled out were white pajamas with pink polka dots.
"Why those?"
"Rain isn't wearing pajamas. So I'm going to lend her mine," I replied to Shine, cradling the pajamas in my arms. Just as I turned around to head toward Rain, Shine's hand caught my shoulder.
"Shine?"
"I... I'll lend her mine."
"Yours?"
"Yeah."
"Why bother? Mine are fine."
"Because I want to lend her mine." Shine's gaze wavered slightly as she looked at me. I stared blankly into her eyes before nodding.
"Okay... I mean, we have the exact same clothes anyway," I mumbled, putting my pajamas back into the drawer. Shine must like Rain just as much as I do.
Shine let out a small sigh and pulled out her own pajamas. They were identical to the ones I had just taken out. Cradling the pajamas, Shine walked over to Rain. I smiled softly, watching the two of them.
By the way, Amy is going to be late, huh? I licked my lips and looked around. Whenever I hid snacks, Amy would find them like some kind of bloodhound. The number of chocolates she had confiscated was beyond count. But it was fine. I had a secret hiding spot that even Amy didn't know about.
I headed toward the playhouse and began climbing onto its roof.
"Jeff?" Shine's voice called out from behind me. This was a place even Shine didn't know about. Memories of waking up early in the morning to secretly stash chocolates here, bit by bit, flashed through my mind.
On the roof of the playhouse, right where the flag was planted, there was a tiny hollow space. It was a secret spot I had accidentally discovered while throwing dolls around in the past. I gently twisted the flag on the roof and slid it aside.
"Hehehe..." The space revealed itself as the flag slid away. Inside, the chocolates and candies I had hidden remained untouched. I smiled, scooping up a handful of chocolates.
"Is that..."
Hanging from the roof, I waved at Shine. See the chocolate in my hand? The snacks Amy had confiscated were nothing but a decoy. I had gathered only the most delicious treats here just for a moment like this.
I pulled out all the chocolates from inside the roof, piling them high in my arms. It was a bit too little for the three of us to feast on, but it was just enough to sweeten this boring night. Clutching the chocolates and candies to my chest, I leaped down from the roof.
But the long dinosaur tail was the problem. Jumping down with such gusto was fine, but the long, trailing tail caught on the edge of the roof, throwing off my balance.
"Ah!" My body began to tilt.
Having trained with Rain and Victor until I was sick of it, my body instinctively attempted a breakfall. That was the mistake. Though I landed safely on the floor, my arms holding the candies flew open.
Splat! The moment I hit the ground, the candies and chocolates in my hands burst outward, scattering in every direction.