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“Are you sure you don't wanna pack this in?” Ayabe asked, as she watched Curren take a swig of her sports drink, unphased by the September rain. “I checked the forecast while you were on the back stretch, it's only gonna get worse.”
“Hmmm, I guess I’ll just do one more.” Curren replied. “But if the weather is like this on race day, which it probably is given the state of the recent forecast, this is the best time to train!”
“I suppose, but you gotta make sure you’re safe about it.” Ayabe replied. “You don't wanna fall and injure yourself. This close to the race, you’ll ruin your chances more than if you'd stopped practicing here.”
“I’ll be fine!” Curren said with a smile. “Just one more, I promise.”
“Alright. On three…”
Ayabe watched as Curren tore through the muddy turf. Despite the awful condition of the ground, she seemingly sprinted across it with ease, as if gliding. She wondered to herself if she should ask Curren for tips on how she could perfect her final sprint. As Curren rounded the corner, Ayabe watched as she impacted the turf with immense force in an attempt to take off with a sprint down the straightaway. But two strides in, her acceleration was too much for the muddy ground, and she fell onto it.
“CURREN!” Ayabe exclaimed, immediately dropping her umbrella and dashing over to help her. “Please be okay, please be okay…”
As she made her way closer to Curren, she could hear her sobbing into the ground.
“Curren, are you okay?!” Ayabe asked.
“No, I fell weirdly on my leg. It hurts real bad!” She cried, looking up at Ayabe with tears in her eyes and mud on her face.
Ayabe crouched to her eye level. “Let me help you up, okay? We’ll go straight to the infirmary.”
“Okay.” Curren sniffled, taking Ayabe’s hand, who slowly lifted her to her feet,
“Can you walk?”
“Barely…” Curren replied. “It really hurts to put weight on it.”
Without hesitation, Ayabe reached behind Curren’s leg and lifted her, placing her other arm behind her back in a make-shift princess carry. Curren blushed furiously as she was lifted, her mind temporarily taken off the pain in her leg and just how beautiful Ayabe’s hair looked in the rain.
“I’m sorry about this…” Curren whispered.
“You can apologise once we’re sorted. Right now I just wanna make sure you’re okay.” Ayabe said firmly, quickening her pace as they headed to the infirmary.
*
Thankfully, the infirmary was mostly empty when they arrived, so they were immediately seen by a member of Tracen’s medical team. Ayabe helped wipe some of the mud off Curren’s leg and ankle and watched with immense worry as the doctor examined her leg.
“The good news is, it's nothing major.” She began, bringing immediate relief to them both. “A minor ligament tear. But- and I can’t stress this enough- if you want to race in the upcoming Sprinter’s Stakes, you must not do any full weight training. Otherwise you will make it significantly worse. Additionally, you’ll need to use crutches for the time being, to make sure you don't put stress on the leg while on your day to day activities.”
“Full weight training?” Curren asked. “Isn’t that just normal training?”
“Basically anything that isn't water-based training.” Ayabe explained. “Because the water can support a lot of your weight, it won't make the injury worse.”
“Exactly.” The doctor continued. “I will notify your trainer of what’s happened.”
“Thank you.” Curren said with a relieved smile. “And I’m sorry for the trouble.”
“It’s no trouble at all.” The doctor replied. “It’s my job to make sure your injuries don't get worse, so if anything I’m glad you came here so quickly.”
*
“I’m really sorry, Ayabe.” Curren said again, as the two of them made their way back to the dorm. The rain had mercifully eased off slightly, meaning they weren't completely soaked when they entered their dorm building.
“It’s okay. We’ll get through this.”
“No, I meant that I didn't listen to you.”
Ayabe chuckled. “Well, I don't think I’m in any position to complain about that. Besides, that doesn't matter. What matters is helping you.”
“You don't mind helping me?”
“Not one bit. I’m not sure why you think I would.” Ayabe said. “Let’s get you into the dorm and we can see about getting you cleaned up. There’s a lot of mud in your hair from the fall.”
Curren slowly undressed herself as best she could in preparation for a long, hot shower, while Ayabe prepared her different kinds of shampoo, conditioners, tail oil, and the laundry list of other toiletries she would need, before helping Curren back to her feet and towards the shared bathroom.
“I don’t think a shower’s gonna work if it hurts to stand.” Curren pointed out.
“That’s a good point…” Ayabe contemplated. “We could run the bath instead, though.”
Ayabe helped Curren back to her bed, where she sat once more, before going back into the bathroom and running her a bath. Pacing back and forth between the bathroom and the main bedroom, Ayabe let the hot water run and filled the bathtub- which was rarely used as a bathtub, rather simply stood in to shower- returning briefly to add soaps and bath salts. As Curren watched her do this, a frown started to form on her face, and the soft joy in her heart began to fade, being replaced by a feeling of helplessness.
“Alright, it’s ready to go. You want a hand getting in?”
“If it’s okay…” Curren sighed. The two of them slowly made their way into the bathroom, where Curren dropped her towel and did her best to climb into the bath- with Ayabe’s help. She let herself sink into the warm water, the soothing smell of her bath salts and the feeling of the steam around were doing their best to soothe her despair, but the feeling was too great.
“I- I’m really sorry…”
“It’s okay.” Ayabe replied. “I promise, it really is fine.”
“I just feel bad making you help me like this. Like- I can't do anything without you right now. And I'm in a lot of pain and- it just sucks.”
“It really does, believe me I know. But I remember that you were there for me when I was at my very lowest. And this might not be as bad, but I wanna be there for you.”
Curren let her head fall back as Ayabe gently poured some of the hot water through it. Her touch was so gentle, and despite Curren being nude right in front of her, she wasn’t making any inappropriate comments or actions. She was just caring for her in her most vulnerable state, and it meant the world to her.
“I love you, Ayabe…” Curren whispered, gentle tears in her eyes.
“I love you too, Curren.” Ayabe replied, before noticing Curren was crying. “Are you crying because of your leg pain or is it something else?”
“I’m crying because you love me so much…” Curren sobbed. “You’re everything to me, and you care about me so much, and-” She paused, as she felt Ayabe’s hand go through her soft hair.
“You’re the kindest, sweetest, and cutest person I’ve ever met.” Ayabe began, as her hands moved to gently massage the remnants of mud from Curren’s hair. “You’re a blessing in my life, and loving you doesn't even scratch the surface of the happiness you deserve.”
“Ayabe…” Curren’s tears fell into the bathwater- lost to the joy of the moment.
“Plus, I like helping you. Your smile warms my heart, and it means I get to indulge myself on the softest parts of you.” Ayabe continued, wetting her hands in the bathwater and giving Curren’s uncovered ears a delicate touch. “You make me so happy, so it’s only fair I do my best to make you happy too.”
Ayabe continued to wash Curren’s hair while she massaged her injured leg with the soapy water- the two of them just enjoying the silence of each other’s company. After a few more minutes, Curren took Ayabe’s hand and slowly climbed out of the bath, onto the towel Ayabe had placed on the floor in front of it. She then grabbed another towel- this one significantly softer- and gently dried Curren’s body, taking care around her injured calf muscles, before handing her a clean pair of pyjamas.
“You really did sort everything for me…” Curren said, as she held Ayabe’s shoulder tightly as she climbed into the shorts she was holding out for her, before pulling the top over her head.
“These aren't mine…” Curren noticed.
“Theyre mine. Ayabe replied. “Mine are softer than yours, and them being baggier might make them even more comfortable.”
Curren swore she swooned, as if falling in love with Ayabe all over again. She wrapped her arm around Ayabe’s shoulder, who helped her over to her bed and sat down once more.
“Dont get too comfy there, cus that's now where you’re gonna be staying.” Ayabe replied, as she straightened the mountain of fluffy pillows and blankets on her bed. “Come on, get over here.”
Curren slowly stood, using the bedside table to aid her movement, before climbing into Ayabe’s bed. As she settled, Ayabe joined her, and pulled her laptop in front of them.
"Let's just relax under here for the rest of today.” Ayabe began. “It’s not like we can do anything else while the rain is still this heavy.”
“Okay!” Curren said with a smile. The feeling of the soft, heavy blankets, combined with Ayabe’s warmth let a sense of peace run through her, and the pain in her leg began to settle.
“Oh, that reminds me, there was this documentary I wanted to show you.” Ayabe continued, leaning forward and typing something in the Umatube search bar. “It’s about stars and constellations. I was hoping to show it to you before we next went stargazing, and I guess now would be the best time.”
Ayabe hit play on the video and settled down under her blankets once more. Immediately, she felt Curren placed her head on her shoulder. Ayabe looked down at Curren and pressed a warm, soft kiss into her cheek, which Curren swiftly reciprocated. Despite the shortcomings of the day, moments like this were always worth it, and nestled in each other’s warmth was the only place they wanted to be.