When she was younger, Sumomone was gifted a hairbrush that used to belong to her great grandmother. It was large and heavy to a six year old, the bristles rough against her scalp, and with how thick her curly hair was, she’d hated using it. Every time her grandmother tried using it to brush her hair she’d started crying, so eventually it was put away, hidden and forgotten about.

Then came the day that she moved out of her parents’ home and into her shared apartment with Uiui and Rararin.

As she was unpacking her boxes in her room, her fingers brushed cool metal, and she pulled out the item. It was her hairbrush, still as beautiful as it had been the day she inherited it. It was made of brass with handpainted flowers and on the back, detailed filigree along the handle and edges. Even though she could remember how much she hated it as a child, she had to admit that she had always found it pretty.

She put it on the corner of her vanity, forgetting about it soon after as she continued to unpack.

It was early one morning when she was reminded of its existence again.

She was sitting by her vanity, one eye closed as she applied her eyeshadow. Uiui laid in her bed just a few meters away, eyes cracked open to follow the movement of her hand.

Finally dragging herself out of bed she moved over to wrap her arms around Sumomone from behind, burying her face in her hair. She could tell by the wobbling that Uiui was close to falling asleep again.

She nudged Uiui on the cheek with the rounded end of her makeup brush.

“Hey, no falling asleep again, sleepyhead. We’ve got a recording in two hours.”

“Mmm… You smell so good though,” Uiui mumbled, arms squeezing a little tighter around Sumomone’s neck. Her words made Sumomone laugh, and she nudged her with the brush again. “You gonna wake up if I do your makeup for you so you don’t have to?”

Uiui nodded into her hair, even as she yawned. “Okay.”

“Hop in the shower and come back here after, I should be done by then.” She shooed Uiui away with a hand as she lingered, but she could see the smile on Uiui’s face even as she grumbled quietly.

 

Soon enough she found herself sitting by her vanity, Uiui kneeling on a pillow in front of her, right between her thighs. She leaned forward, quietly singing the tune of an upbeat pop song she’d heard a couple of days ago. It had been stuck in her head since then.

Uiui looked into her eyes as she applied the mascara, unblinking. It made her face grow hot, and she had to look away once she capped the mascara. “You’re all done.”

“Thank you,” Uiui said, hand resting on her thigh as support wen she stood up. “Can I borrow your hairbrush?”

“Sure,” Sumomone chirped as she put away the makeup. She heard Uiui pick something up, and her eyes turned to her as she spoke.

“It’s pretty. I’ve never seen you use it before.”

She found the old brush in Uiui’s hand.

“Oh, I haven’t used it since I was a kid.”

“Do you want me to use a different one?”

“Oh no, it’s fine, it’s a pity if no one ever uses it again.”

She watched as Uiui ran the brush through her hair through one of the reflections in the vanity’s mirrors. For a moment the only sound was the sound the brush made as it undid the stubborn remains of Uiui’s bedhead.

With how short her hair was, Uiui was quick to finish, and she turned to look at where Sumomone was sitting. “Want me to brush your hair for you?”

Sumomone blinked. She hadn’t even considered it, and while she was a bit sceptical to have that brush in her hair again, she did trust Uiui to be gentle. She made an affirmative noise and turned in her seat. “Sure.”

Uiui moved behind her, fingers gently carding through her hair for a moment before she let the brush start at the bottom of her hair, down to the tips. She slowly worked through the thick pink curls, and Sumomone couldn’t help but close her eyes at the feeling. It was so different from how she remembered. But then, her grandmother had always been more heavy-handed than she intended.

 

Fingers buried in her scalp, and she couldn’t help the happy little trills that escaped her throat at the touch. Uiui’s hands were nice, just as caring against her body as they were against her bass. She tipped her head backwards as fingers gently pushed underneath her chin.

“I’m almost done,” Uiui said. “There’s only one thing left to do now.”

Sumomone smiled. “And what’s that?”

“This.”

Uiui leaned down, pressing her lips to Sumomone’s. Sumomone could feel her heart flutter in her chest, and her eyes slipped shut. She broke the kiss just long enough to get Uiui in front of her, pulling her into her lap. Soon their lips met again, and she couldn’t help but let her hands wander. Uiui was in her bathrobe still, and it was oh-so-tempting to let her hands move in underneath it, but they didn’t have the time. Later, she promised. As soon as they got back home, Uiui agreed.

For a while they just sat there, exchanging kisses, until their lips tingled.

When they finally stopped Sumomone couldn’t help but laugh. Uiui’s mouth was smeared with Sumomone’s light pink lipstick, and she knew she didn’t fare much better. She pulled out a makeup wipe from its box, carefully wiping Uiui’s face clean. When she was done she pressed a final kiss to her lips, nudging her to get her to stand.

“You better go before I have to apply my lipstick a third time this morning,” she said between giggles, picking up another makeup wipe to clean her own lips so she could reapply her lipstick.

“I don’t mind it,” Uiui said, a smile on her face. She still moved toward the door, pausing right before the doorstep. “I love you. See you in a moment.”

“I love you too. See you later.”

 

Sumomone focused as she reapplied her lipstick, smacking her lips and pouting into the mirror for a moment before her eyes found the hairbrush lying on her vanity, right next to the makeup brushes that needed cleaning.

She’d been avoiding using it for so many years, but all it took for her to finally like it was the right person to use it.

As she stood up to finish getting dressed, she couldn’t stop thinking about Uiui in the next room over.

 

The rouge wasn’t the only thing dusting Sumomone’s cheeks pink when she left the apartment that morning.

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