Happenstance Yoruichi was somewhat grateful (and almost frustrated) that the music never dropped below a fever pitch for the rest of the night. Soi appeared to have forgotten the awkwardness however, or she was too busy having a good time to care. It was nearly 11:00 before they finally left, stumbling slightly from mirth and the rapidly fading high of dancing. "God-- You were right, Soi." "Huh?" the freshman muttered, distracted from moving to the tune running on loop in her head. "...What do you mean?" "...You CAN'T dance at all." She flashed a teasing grin at the smaller girl, surprised when Soi failed to blush in shame and instead fired back, deadpan expression making it clear that she wasn't offended. "Oh come on, Yoruichi-san-- I thought I did pretty well for my first time." "Yeah, I guess only YOU would think that this--" Yoruichi paused and began jerking erratically to an imaginary rhythm in a crude imitation of her friend, which nonetheless made Soi struggle to hold back her laughter, "...made for good moves." "O-okay, okay, give me a break..." Soi replied, wiping a tear away from her eyes as she finally broke into a fit of giggling. "See? Even YOU think you suck!" the senior teased as she automatically threw an arm around Soi's neck, pulling her into a friendly (if still painful) headlock. She didn't realize until a moment later just how close she was to the girl, but her first instinct to move was stifled when she realized it would look strange for her to recoil without warning. She let go soon enough, her friend still smiling happily from the afterglow of their outing, not a word spoken until they'd reached the car. It occured to Yoruichi as she watched Soi get inside the vehicle that SHE was still smiling too, that for all Soi's ineptitude at dancing it didn't seem like she'd ever been this happy in a social setting with another person before. But then, Soi wasn't like anyone else she'd met, and certainly not like anyone she'd dated in her life. Being with her felt like something different altogether. ---------- "...So... you're fifteen now, huh?" Soi turned from the window, aware of how much the ride back felt like the first as she did so. She could tell that Yoruichi was trying to start a conversation, anything at all to fill up the silence that consumed the small cabin of the sedan, but she responded nonetheless. "Yeah..." "...Feel any different?" "Not much," Soi answered even though she knew it was a lie. Everything felt strange, felt new, felt different now. She'd never had any real, lasting friends before last year, never had a real birthday party before last year. Had never been in love before last year. Had never been so close and so far from someone she cared for so deeply that she felt like her heart was constantly being squeezed to death. "Well, that's how it goes when you get older," Yoruichi replied wistfully. "You just kinda stop looking forward to adding another year to the total." The older girl let out a sigh as the yellow light she was trying to beat turned red, forcing her to bring the car to a halt. Minutes later she was ready to begin complaining about the unending string of traffic ahead of them when Soi spoke up. "...Thank you, Yoruichi-san." Yoruichi said nothing as she made eye contact with Soi, though in truth she didn't trust herself to speak. She cast a glance back at the light to make sure it was still red, but her eyes immediately wandered back to the girl beside her, refusing to move again. Suddenly she catches a hint of movement-- Soi begins to lean towards her, eyes barely discernable in the low light but bearing something familiar nontheless. Yoruichi opened her mouth in silent protest, felt her knuckles tense as she put the steering wheel in a death grip. Just do it, something in her implored, and as quick as it had come she shook it away. Stop it. You're stronger than this, she repeated to herself. But even so Yoruichi felt her body go numb just like last time, felt her eyes start to slide shut as the girl got closer, the screaming voice of protest in her head gradually being silenced by a gentle urging forward. In reality, Soi had only closed the distance slightly when the car behind them let out a string of loud honks, snapping both driver and passenger out of their daze. Yoruichi said nothing as she immediately put the car back in gear, and Soi continued her silent vigil of the passenger-seat window. "...Happy Birthday, Soi," Yoruichi said once the awkwardness had worn off a bit, and Soi gave a listless sort of affirmation. This was too hard for her, just being this close. She was a fool to have thought that she could keep this hidden forever. She had to get away from Yoruichi as soon as she could. ---------- "...What the..?" Yoruichi queried once the car turned onto Soi's street, met with the flashing of police lights on a solitary car waiting outside a darkened home. "Soi, is that YOUR house?" Yoruichi asked in disbelief. The freshman only stared, fear immediately taking root in the pit of her stomach; she began breathing slowly but quietly in the hopes that her paranoia was unfounded. When Yoruichi came to a stop behind the police car she knew that she wasn't just imagining things. "...Do you live here?" the crew-cut officer asked once Soi stepped out of the car, Yoruichi watching silently from the driver's seat. "If not, I'll have to ask you to leave." "Y-yes, I do! What's going on?" "Am I correct in assuming, then, that you're Zhou Fong's daughter?" Soi almost wanted to hit the uniformed man for asking such an obvious question, but she subdued the urge and nodded. "...In that case, I'll need you to follow me. We've been trying to contact next-of-kin for the last half-hour and no one's been answering at your hou--" "Will you PLEASE just tell me what's happening?!" The officer didn't show any sign of shock at the girl's sudden outburst; he simply waited for her to calm before he answered. "Miss Fong, your father was involved in a serious automobile accident a little over three hours ago. Now please, I'll need you to follow me to the hospital, ma'am." He got into his car without a word, not daring to look at the recipient of his ill news again. "...Soi!" Yoruichi called once she'd watched the policeman return to his vehicle, then back out of the driveway as if waiting for something. "What's going on?" The girl said nothing, but the ashen tone of her already pale skin when she turned around told the upperclassman all she needed to know.
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