Editing City Series:Volume3b Chapter 7 (section)

===Part 2===

With a bath towel over his shoulder, he spotted Akira.

“Hey, welcome back. The bath’s ready.”

She slowly looked up at him.

“…?”

She asked “why?” with only the look in her eyes, so Gunmal answered while sticking his hands in the sink.

“You didn’t have a fridge and you’d left the water on for a while, so I figured you wouldn’t mind.”

With a splash, he pulled out two cans of beer.

He placed on in front of Akira and kept the other one for himself. He opened the pull tab and the carbonation audibly escaped.

All he had to do was drink it.

After two gulps, he took a breath and looked to Akira.

“…What’s the matter? What’s that look for?”

She opened her mouth and tried to say something, but only a sob escaped.

“…!”

She silently released a few things she wanted to say and they were all summed up what spilled from her eyes: tears.

Gunmal seemed to panic.

“W-wait, wait. What’s this about all of a sudden?”

She did not respond, so he brushed a hand through his damp hair and tilted his head.

“C’mon, cheer up. Look, I’ll bet you’ll like this.”

He moved to the back room for a few seconds and returned with a Yard cap in his hand.

He placed it on Akira’s head so it hid her tearful face.

“I got a little carried away and blew up the workshop, so I carried my stuff back to the Yard. But the place was deserted, so I had no choice but to come here about two hours ago.”

“…”

“And y’know what? Those kids you were teaching Tuning to? A bunch of them showed up and left some stuff here. Like a picture frame and a sanxian.”

“A picture frame…and a sanxian?”

She let out a shaky voice when she heard the names of the objects she had thought were lost.

Gunmal nodded.

“They said something about their dads and some other people trashing this room, but they were talking so fast I didn’t catch it all.” He sighed. “Well, one of them left that hat.”

Akira lowered her head at that.

Then she sobbed and let out a choking sigh.

After a beat, she started crying again.

“Damn, it had the opposite effect.”

Sounding troubled, Gunmal sat down.

“Really, what’s the matter?”

Akira called the name of the man who asked her that.

“…Gunmal.”

“Hm?”

“…Gunmall.”

“Yeah, what is it?”

“…Gunmalll!”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah?”

“Gunmal!”

“I get it, I get it. Hey, quit rubbing at your eyes.”

He grabbed the hand she was pressing to her face and that action gave her the opportunity she needed.

She moved up the arm grabbing her and collapsed into his chest.

“Hey, wait! And I only just got changed into dry clothes…”

She wrapped her arms around his back to cling to him and refused to let go.

And she spoke to no one in particular.

“You really do show up when I call for you…”

By the time she finished muttering those words, his arms had wrapped around her back as well.

Her tears began to dry up and he asked something.

“What’s the matter? What happened?”

“…You can’t see my Live, can you?”

“…”

He remained silent and that was enough to answer her question.

So she smiled bitterly.

“That’s what happened. …Yeah.”

“I don’t mind.”

He spoke quietly and moved a bit back from her.

Her teary eyes and his eyes met at the same level.

“I’ll be borrowing those lips.”

“You really are forceful.”

Akira smiled a little and closed her eyes.

Gunmal’s lips met with hers.

She could not sense Lives at the moment, so it was just the one sensation.

The action ended after a mere two seconds.

The removal of her vision let her sense the dampness of his lips all the more as they left hers.

She heard his voice from close enough that it drowned out all other sounds.

“I see.”

He let out a sigh and she asked him something.

“You understand?”

“I understand a lot now. …And I’ve learned my lesson too.”

“About what?”

“Well,” he hesitantly replied. “I can’t have the woman I kiss thinking my breath reeks of beer.”

“I-idiot, you don’t have to read that much!”

“Shut up. And don’t worry. Your Live isn’t dead yet.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“Really really?”

“Really really… You’re pretty argumentative today, you know that?”

“What’s wrong with that? I want to make sure of some things, okay?”

She sounded relieved and she rested her head on his shoulder.

He stroked her wet wings.

“You’re going to catch cold. Go take a bath.”

“Sure.”

“…”

“…”

“C’mon, get going.”

“Sure.”

She agreed again but did not move, so Gunmal tilted his head.

“Y’know, you do feel pretty cold right now. You need to get going before you really do catch cold.”

“I know that, but…”

“But?”

“Didn’t you read what I was thinking before?”

“What might that have been?”

“Well…um…”

“Out with it.”

“Ah. …Is that any way to speak to a woman?”

“Don’t get mad. So what is it you want to say, Akira?”

She frowned at that question.

“You mean you really didn’t read it earlier?”

“I mean I really want to know what you’ve been trying to say since earlier.”

“Well…”

Her cheeks flushed a little and she turned her head away from Gunmal.

“Um…”

“Yeah?”

“I’ve been thinking, and this is the best way of doing it. I don’t have any ulterior motive.”

“Best way of doing what?”

“…I want to learn a lot about you.”

“Ohhh. And what is this ‘best way’ you were talking about?”

She stopped moving when she heard his tone of voice.

“…You’ve caught on, haven’t you?”

“Oh, you noticed?”

He let out a bitter laugh and she dug her fingernails into his back while blushing.

“Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow! I’m still not fully healed, you know!?”

“I don’t care! You shouldn’t tease people!”

“Sorry, sorry. …You’re quit the romantic for a woman, Akira.”

“Don’t guys normally read too much into things instead of too little!?”

“Yeah, but I’m a realist.”

“You could have balanced this out if you were a feminist instead.”

“Anyway, enough with the jokes.” He nodded and his tone grew suddenly serious. “Why do you want to read my Live?”

“You didn’t see that when you kissed me?”

“…Are you serious? As you’ve realized, Tuning can easily become a dangerous weapon.”

“But I don’t think that’s all it can be.”

“…”

Gunmal fell silent, but she felt strength fill his arms on her back.

Then she heard his voice.

“You saved me.”

Akira’s eyes widened at that.

“Um, Gunmal, make no mistake here.”

“?”

“What I want…really isn’t just the practical side of things.”

“Yeah, I saw that too.”

“Like you said, I’m a romantic.”

“Then let me give you my opinion as a realist.”

“Hm?”

Gunmal quietly and heavily answered her questioning tone.

“Hurry up and take a bath.”

Akira jabbed her nails into his back.