>>6935721"I'm ready.." you hear a small voice say. About to head outside, you instead turn from your front doorway, looking into your home. Your eyes go wide and you smile, taking in an exceedingly rare sight. You don't know how you did it, but you did. Your badgering finally paid off. Before you stands a tiny, adorable girl, wearing a pale yellow sundress. You see large white fox ears sticking out of holes cut in a wide-brimmed straw summer hat and a fluffy white tail, spasming nervously behind a slender body. It's Kana. With a tilt of the brim of her hat, she peers up at you, unsure of herself. Her eyes betraying no confidence whatsoever.
You turn to her, smiling widely. "You look cute, I knew it would look good on you. You had nothing to worry about, stinky," you say soothingly, a little teasingly. You finish your turn to her properly. "You look lovely, Kana," you add honestly. She stares at you and scoffs lightly, but breaks eye contact with you quickly, looking at the floor as a soft pink blossoms on her cheeks. She is such a cute girl. You are nudged aside as she pushes past you, leaving, walking to your car in the driveway, her loose hair streaming behind her. Her large tail thumps you on the chest as she passes, playfully or poutfully, you're not entirely sure. From her small hands dangles a large basket along with a blanket tucked under the handles. That's right. You've finally talked her into going outside with you. A picnic date at the park with Kana.
Making a slight effort to get to your car ahead of her, you open the passenger side door for her, taking the basket from her as she settles in. Ensuring that her tail is safely pulled in, you shut the door and load the basket into the back seat, securing it with a seatbelt, along with a large thermos of tea you were carrying. You spend the drive to the park making small talk with her as she gazes out the window, trying to control her motion sickness. "You okay?" you ask her quietly. She responds with a small nod. Occasionally she emits a quiet HICC as you talk.
You finally arrive. Kana jumps out before you can help her and stretches, her wide-brimmed hat casting a large shadow underneath the bright sunlight. She collects the basket from the back seat and hands you the thermos. "PICNIC STREAM LET'S GOOOOOOOOOOOO!" she shouts energetically, attracting a few glances. You are so surprised at her outburst you laugh loudly. You nudge her from behind and together you walk into the park. There's plenty of people here today. People playing games, people walking their dogs, children laughing and running. It's a beautiful, clear summer day, so it doesn't surprise you in the least. Kana seems slightly uncomfortable but continues, following closely next to you.
You find a nice spot under a large tree, shaded from the worst of the sun's rays. You work together to spread the blanket on the soft grass, weighing the corners down with stones. Some white flowers sprout nearby. Kana removes her hat, letting her hair loose in a wave of white. There, sitting in the middle of that checkered blanket, enjoying the cool of the breeze, you share a lunch of sandwiches and tea. You talk. You talk about everything. From dumb cringe memes to your hopes, your dreams. To days long gone. Without reservation. You laugh together. You tease each other. You are comfortable. After a while, Kana pats her lap. You look at her questioningly. "Here, stinker," she says. She HICCs. She says your name, "come here," patting her lap again. Slightly surprised, you crawl up to her and lay your head on her lap, relaxing, watching the people come and go while lying in her care under that tree. She strokes your hair and sings quietly, just for you. No one else can hear. You feel so much love for her. There's no one else but the two of you, as all of the others around you seem to fade from existence. You can almost feel the hands of time slowing, stopping, as you enjoy each other's company. She continues for a long time, but you both ultimately fall asleep.
