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Rin thinks if she could compare Hiyori to anything, she could only describe Hiyori as a sunflower.
Not in one of those sappy ways where she’s the light of Rin’s life, or she’s lovely and bright, not even in the sense of being cheerful and uplifting, or even a warm character. Hiyori was… simply someone who silently faced wherever the sun was, the object of her desires, what brought her out of the thoughts which ran through her head at every moment of the day.
Rin wonders how someone so gentle and kind could look like they’d had every petal plucked off of them whenever they came to practice, she wondered why Hiyori looked indifferent to playing soccer, why Hiyori always looked so eager whenever Rin took the off chance to invite her to her home to play videogames, and how she could feel the dread radiate from Hiyori’s body whenever it came time for her to leave.
Rin doesn’t have time to worry about Hiyori though, the two were simply nothing but friends who happened to play soccer on the same team, who happened to share the same interest in video games.
Though, Rin would be a liar if she said it didn’t make her heart pick up just a hitch of pace when Hiyori faced her like she was the sun, she’d be holding the truth deep in her gut if she were to keep quiet about how the way Hiyori’s eyes zeroed down on her and her alone made her feel.
Sunflowers simply face the sun, the one which gives them what they desire most, and Rin isn’t the type of girl to drown herself in sentimental meanings and fluttering words. She knows Hiroi’s eyes are on her to bring them to victory, nothing more than that.
But she can’t help but feel that there's something unspoken, maybe even something more between them as she leans against the chain link fences, Hiori quietly at her side as they watch the other players on their team walk off happily, glad practice is over. Rin glances at Hiyori for a moment, and Hiyori is as dull as ever, her bright eyes dark as she waits, waits for what?
“Do you want to come over?” Rin throws out without a thought, and the way Hiyori’s eyes brighten just a little makes Rin’s heart squeeze. Hiyori’s answer is obvious as she takes Rin’s hands, the route to her house memorized in Hiyori’s mind.
Rin isn’t sure what she and Hiyori really are. Friends? Teammates? There’s an unspoken barrier, a layer of emotion which stops them from being something so simple, something so easy to describe and uphold. Rin knows teammates don’t go to each other's houses hand in hand, she knows friends don’t admire one another this closely, and friends definitely don’t feel as though the one next to them is comparable to a flower of all things.
But she also knows friends don’t look at the other like they’re the sun, chasing something indescribable on the field. She knows friends don’t brighten at the thought of being able to be with the other just a few moments longer.
It’s too complicated, too tiring to think about, and Rin would rather stay as they are then delve into the emotions which the two of them share. Rin’s home is empty as always, and she wonders if that makes Hiyori more comfortable or the opposite. They’ve barely taken off their cleats when Hiyori is practically tugging Rin up the stairs to her room, so desperate to be alone in the comfort of each other.
They don’t even take off their clothes to change into something more comfortable when Hiyori happily flops onto Rin’s bed, a warm smile on her face as she finally seems to relax for the first time forever. Rin feels a tug of hesitation in her heart as she lays down beside her, mere inches between them. They’re quiet, a comfortable silence between them.
“Rin” Hiyori’s voice is quiet, almost breathless as she turns to look at her. The layer between the two of them, the barrier which stops them from being something so simple and pure seems thicker than ever. Rin doesn’t know what she’s doing when she turns to fully face her, Hiyori doing the same.
They’re so close, Rin can practically feel Hiyori’s breath against her own, their knees touching as Hiyori looks nothing less than dreamlike. Rin wonders when exactly she had pushed the borders of acquaintanceship with Hiyori, when her passes weren’t a tool but a gift, her eyes weren’t just bright but alluring. She wonders when Hiyori’s hand began to feel so right in her own, when Hiyori’s smile made her heart warm.
“What are you thinking about?” Hiyori asks and Rin knows that Hiyori knows even better than she does. Rin stills when Hiyori pulls her closer, resting her head against her chest, and Rin hopes Hiyori can’t hear her racing heart.
Hiyori’s arms snake around her waist, pulling their bodies together as Rin’s voice is caught in her throat. “Let’s stay like this” Hiyori whispers, voice strained, and Rin realizes that in that moment, the layer between friendship and whatever more they could be, whatever more they would be, didn’t matter.
She holds Hiyori close, her face buried in her hair, and she can faintly smell the sweet scent of her shampoo. She doesn’t hesitate to press a kiss to her hair, and she can feel Hiyori’s grip tighten around her for a moment, burying herself deeper into Rin’s embrace. Rin wonders if she listens hard enough, is quiet and attentive enough, if she can hear Hiyori’s heartbeat. Her own heart fills at the thought, does she make Hiyori’s heart race too?
She doesn’t bother to try, she doesn’t bother to ask, she doesn’t bother to listen.
She lets her mind run dry, and she wonders if she’s ever felt so comfortable in someone else's embrace before. Weirdly, she thinks it’s nice to be the sun for once.
It’s strange, she had always thought she was the moon.