The main dining room at night.
I had changed into a light blue pencil skirt. She had changed into a light pink pencil skirt.
She pulled the squirrel out of her light pink bag and set it on the table, facing the window. The squirrel's round body, hugging its acorn, its bean-black eyes reflecting the lamp light.
I aimed the camera out the window. The sea was very calm.
"This girl here says tonight's night is very quiet, darlings."
[chat] So beautiful 🌕
[chat] The moonlight on the sea is unreal 👏
[chat] Daughter is so gentle tonight ❤️
[chat] The vibe is perfect ✨
Tsukago cut her steak into small pieces, speared a piece, and popped it into her mouth. She tapped my glass lightly with her fork.
"Yesterday we gave that mom a way out. Today she was still by the pool. The steak is cooked just right. Her heat is almost there too."
I lifted my champagne flute. Amber bubbles rose in strings from the bottom, passing through the golden liquid, shattering into even smaller points of light on the crystal facets. The glass reflected the moonlit sea outside the porthole.
Outside the window, the moon hung just above the horizon, spreading a silver column of light across the waves.
Tsukago raised her glass too. The rims touched with a clear ring that echoed a long time. The rims parted.
I took a sip. The bubbles burst on my tongue, a tiny prickle spreading down my throat. She set down her glass.
The low murmurs from other tables floated in the distance.
"This girl here says cheers."
"Cheers."
[chat] Wifey, cheers
[chat] The atmosphere tonight is so good ✨
[chat] Cheers
Tsukago nudged the squirrel half an inch closer to herself, and then leaned over, pressing her face to my shoulder.
"Sister, when you were catching that squirrel today, your hands were so steady."
I tilted my head to look at her. She was looking at me. The warm restaurant light fell from behind her.
"Are you cold?" I pulled her hand over and cupped it in my palms.
"Not cold. Sister's hands are warm."
"Then let them stay warm a little longer."
She didn't say anything, just buried her face deeper into the hollow of my shoulder. A long while later, she raised her head.
"This girl is better now." She pulled away from my shoulder.
I looked at her, lifted my glass, and took another sip.
[chat] Daughter is so cute
[chat] Squirrel philosopher 😂
[chat] Sister's hands are warm 😭
[chat] These two are too sweet 💕
I lifted my phone from the tripod and held it up in front of us. The crystal chandelier above our table shattered into specks of light in the frame. Tsukago raised the squirrel plush to her face, its black eyes staring right into the lens. I pressed the shutter. Tsukago looked down at the screen.
💬 Light blue pencil skirt looks so intellectual
💬 Daughter's pink skirt today is so well-behaved
💬 The sisters are in the same frame
💬 Wifey eating dinner and still livestreaming, too dedicated
She pulled the squirrel out of her light pink bag and set it on the tabletop. The squirrel's round body, hugging its acorn, its bean-black eyes reflecting the lamplight.
She turned the squirrel face down. It struggled a little against the tablecloth. I reached over and flipped it back.
"If you leave it face down, it'll suffocate."
"It doesn't have a nose."
"Then it still won't suffocate?"
"It won't."
I watched her flip the squirrel over and over again.
——It has no nose, so it won't suffocate. But people do.
"Then this girl will just be a squirrel." She held the squirrel up before her eyes, black bean staring into black bean. "Lychee, take this girl as your apprentice."
The squirrel's bean-black eyes stared at her.
"It didn't say anything, so that means yes." Tsukago set the squirrel back on the table and nodded, satisfied.
[chat] I could watch Daughter talk to this squirrel a hundred times 😆
[chat] Lychee has an apprentice now 🐿️
[chat] This chapter is so healing 😭
[chat] I want to be a squirrel who doesn't have to send out resumes
"This girl here is calling it a night, darlings. Goodnight. See you tomorrow." I waved at the camera.
The chat was still scrolling.
Tsukago put the squirrel back into her light pink bag.
"Sister, that squirrel kept staring out the window tonight."
I followed her gaze. The squirrel's bean-black eyes reflected the moonlight outside the porthole. Its round body cast a small shadow on the tablecloth.
"It's watching the moon."
Tsukago pulled the squirrel out of her light pink bag and faced it toward the porthole. "Lychee, is the moon pretty." The squirrel didn't answer.
She stuffed it back into her bag.
She stood up. I followed her. The crystal chandeliers in the dining room had already gone out behind us. The waiters were snuffing out the candles one by one.
Their shadows stretched and overlapped between the empty chairs. Tsukago's silhouette cut through the half-lit corridor ahead. Only the sound of footsteps remained in the corridor.