Whispers in the Winter Wind

Jingliu swept Yasushi into the girl's changing rooms like a whirlwind, her determination palpable in every swift step. Yasushi, caught off guard, hesitated briefly before resigning himself to the situation. He unpacked his clothes methodically, placing them on top of his bag with a resigned sigh. Clutching a towel over his shoulder, he ventured into the expansive shower area.

The shower space was vast, akin to the boy's side, yet held an air of intimacy. Rows of fifteen showers lined the walls, much closer together than their counterparts in the boy's section. Yasushi scanned the area, taking in the proximity of the shower stalls, a stark contrast to what he was accustomed to.

"Yasushi, come here," Jingliu's voice cut through the sound of water, her hand waving him over.

Curiosity piqued, Yasushi approached, only to find himself pulled into an unexpected encounter. Jingliu ushered him inside a stall, leaving him momentarily bewildered.

"You're still in your swimsuit?" Yasushi's confusion was evident in his question.

Jingliu, clad in her swimsuit and wielding a sponge coated with suds, nodded. She extended the sponge towards his bare chest, offering him another with a sheepish smile. "It's quicker if we help each other, don't you think?" she suggested, a faint blush tinting her cheeks.

Yasushi's gaze lingered on Jingliu for a fleeting moment, a nod of agreement escaping his lips. "I suppose so," he conceded before playfully sliding the sponge across her face with a smirk.

"Hey!" Jingliu protested, retaliating in kind, their laughter intertwining in the steam-filled air.

Yet, their playful exchange gradually dissolved into a hush as they began to meticulously cleanse each other's skin. Yasushi held her gaze steadily, while Jingliu's eyes darted away, her cheeks flushing with bashfulness.

"...You have a few scars. Are they from your workouts or training?" Jingliu asked, her words breaking the quietude. "Your physique is... well-maintained."

"Just a few mishaps over the years, nothing major," Yasushi disclosed, trailing the sponge along her body. A gentle stroke grazed the underside of her ample chest, causing Jingliu's blush to deepen.

Jingliu's gaze fixated on Yasushi's chest, her finger delicately tracing the contours of a scar. "...When did this happen?" she inquired, her touch mingling with water and bubbles.

Yasushi glanced down, a chuckle escaping his lips. "Ah, that old thing. A stupid stunt from when I was younger — I expected too much from my body's resilience," he recounted, reminiscing with a hint of amusement. "It bled a lot at the time, but now it's just a scar, a memento I find rather cool."

Jingliu rolled her eyes, a hint of exasperation in her voice. "Such childish antics," she murmured, her finger following the path of the scar before trailing across his chest and abs.

"Having fun, are we?" Yasushi deadpanned, his gaze steady on her.

Jingliu's blush deepened, her admission tinged with bashfulness. "It's not every day I'm in such close proximity to the opposite sex, let alone allowed to touch them like this... And few among our peers possess a physique quite like yours..."

"The ones who engage in sports probably come close to it," he said, his movements deliberate as he continued to cleanse her skin with the sponge.

"No... I have a discerning eye. Yes, most of them are athletic or even lean, but not... like this. Your physique is almost extraordinary for our age. How long have you been exercising and training?" she inquired, her gaze lifting to meet his as her hand remained firmly on his chest, the sponge between them.

"I don't recall anymore, but it was certainly before the age of ten. I had to keep it a secret from my own parents as well, and when I was younger, it was much more challenging since they wanted me within their sight at all times," he recounted, a hint of nostalgia and secrecy tinting his words.

Jingliu emitted a soft "hmm" as she fixed her gaze on Yasushi, her hands methodically moving across his chest and body, attending to every curve and crevice. They shifted their attention to other areas, their arms and legs, diligently eradicating the grime and dirt.

His hand accidentally brushed against her chest once more. "Sorry," he murmured, swiftly redirecting his focus to another spot.

"Are you doing that intentionally?" she inquired, a slight furrow appearing between her brows, her lips curved in a mixture of amusement and curiosity.

"It's an accident," Yasushi murmured, trying to hurry the conversation along as if the words themselves were too heavy to bear.

Her response floated past his attempt at diversion, landing squarely in the space he had hoped to avoid. "I don't blame you," she continued, her voice a curious mix of understanding and reproach. "You're a teenager, after all. Hormones and all that. Interested in the opposite sex, I bet?"

Yasushi's sigh carried the weight of a thousand conversations he wished he could unhear. "No, it was genuinely an accident," he insisted, his words laced with a dismissive tone. "Let's wrap this up."

He was a paradox, Yasushi, both denying and confessing in the same breath. Memories of a past life hung around him like ghosts, the echoes of experiences that felt both too close and impossibly distant. He had walked those paths before, knew the temptations intimately. Yet here, in this life, he craved change like a thirst in a desert. Even if, in moments like these, change seemed like an elusive dream, slipping through his fingers as he grappled with old habits that died hard.

"Fine," Jingliu muttered, her sponge tapping against him lightly, a soft rebuke in the rhythm of her movements as she swiftly scrubbed herself and Yasushi.

Yasushi, always attuned to the nuances of others but often oblivious to their deeper meanings, registered her slight irritation without dwelling on it. He arched an eyebrow, let out a resigned sigh, and stepped out of the showers, feeling surprisingly clean despite the awkwardness of their mutual scrubbing.

As he dried himself off and combed through his hair, Jingliu, already dressed and poised for departure, announced her intent. "I'll wait at the entrance," she declared, departing before he could formulate a response.

Yasushi stood there, momentarily lost in thought as he watched the empty space where Jingliu had stood just moments before. "Even after being reincarnated here," he murmured to himself, "I still struggle to comprehend the mystery that is womankind. Why is she upset?"

His question lingered in the air, unanswered, a testament to the perpetual mystery of human emotions and interactions that even the passage of time and experience couldn't fully unravel.

+-+

Yasushi strolled toward the school gate, where Jingliu stood, a scarf wrapped snugly around her neck like a shield against the biting chill.

Approaching her, he couldn't help but voice his concern. "Is just a scarf enough? Shouldn't you wear a winter coat?" he inquired, his words carrying a hint of worry.

Jingliu's response was calm, almost indifferent. "I'm accustomed to the cold," she explained, her gaze drifting down the hill. "A coat would be excessive for me. But I've heard it gets colder as the months go by, so perhaps I'll reconsider later in the season."

Nodding in understanding, Yasushi joined her in watching the descent down the hill, the landscape hushed beneath a blanket of snow. "I've already messaged Yinhaie," she mentioned, breaking the silence. "She's on her way here."

Their conversation lapsed into quietude, the air thick with unspoken thoughts and the promise of impending change. Yasushi, seizing a playful moment, crouched down and fashioned a snowball in his hands, then glanced up at Jingliu. "Hey," he called out, a mischievous glint in his eyes, drawing her attention back to him once more.

Yasushi's snowball sailed through the air, finding its mark on Jingliu's face with a satisfying thud. He couldn't suppress a chuckle at his playful mischief, reveling in the fleeting victory. Yet, in that same moment of amusement, a retaliatory snowball found its way back to him, catching him off guard.

Laughter bubbling up, Yasushi dashed away, crafting more snowballs on the fly as Jingliu unleashed her own flurry of icy missiles. What had begun as a mundane wait at the school gate morphed into an impromptu snowball fight, illuminated by the soft glow of nearby lights.

Their exchange escalated, snowballs hurtling back and forth with increasing speed and accuracy, each hit met with equal parts laughter and determination. The boundaries of their playful contest blurred, lost in the thrill of the moment.

Just as their duel reached a crescendo, a sharp honk pierced the air, drawing their attention to a waiting car. Yinhaie, wearing a bemused expression, watched the spectacle unfold before gesturing for them to join her.

Yasushi relented first, dropping his ammunition and heading towards the car. But just as he reached for the door, a sudden impact against the back of his head startled him. Jingliu's smirk was undeniable as she sprinted to join Yinhaie in the car, leaving Yasushi momentarily dazed before he chuckled and followed suit, the remnants of their playful battle lingering in the winter air.

"That was quite underhanded," Yasushi remarked, his tone carrying a mixture of amusement and mild reproach, earning a laugh from Jingliu in response.

Yinhaie, always one to interject with a touch of humor, chimed in, "Seems like you both enjoyed your punishment."

Jingliu, with a mischievous glint in her eyes, decided to add a twist to the banter. "Yasushi accidentally touched my chest a few times while we were showering together," she disclosed, her smirk widening as Yinhaie's eyes widened in surprise.

"Did you use protection!?" Yinhaie blurted out, her words stumbling over each other in a flurry of confusion that left both Jingliu and Yasushi momentarily perplexed.

"Huh?" they both exclaimed simultaneously, their confusion mirroring each other's.

"Why would you ask about protection?" Jingliu questioned, her brow furrowing in bewilderment. Yasushi, opting for silence, let Jingliu take the lead, not eager to exacerbate the situation further.

"Never mind," Yinhaie muttered, her voice slightly strained as she started the car's engine. Glancing back at Yasushi in the rear seat, she announced, "We'll drop you off first, Yasushi."

"Sure thing, and thank you," Yasushi responded, his voice calm amidst the quiet hum of the car. The journey home passed in relative silence, interrupted only by Yinhaie's occasional inquiries about Jingliu's day, with Yasushi chiming in with small details now and then.

As they pulled up outside his house, Yasushi expressed his gratitude. "Thank you for the ride. See you tomorrow, hopefully with a lighter punishment."

"Yeah, have a good night, Yasushi," Jingliu replied, her touch gentle as she poked his cheek before he stepped out of the car. With a final wave, Yasushi watched them drive off into the night.

Examining his hand absentmindedly, Yasushi muttered to himself, "Soft and squishy..." before heading inside his home, the lingering warmth of their company and the day's events settling around him like a familiar embrace.