A taste of summer / Uiui takes Sumomone to her new favourite shop, regardless of the freezing weather.

It was freezing.

 

Sumomone pushed her hands deeper into the pockets of her jacket. She had promised to meet Uiui after lunch, but she had to admit she wasn’t that keen on spending her day off from school out in the unusually cold UNZ winter. It had been colder than normal all week, and she didn’t enjoy it at all.

She stomped her feet, the kitten heels on her boots clicking against the frost-covered sidewalk.

Finally, she heard someone call her name.

 

Looking up, she saw Uiui, dressed in a cute white coat. How she was able to wear such thin tights, Sumomone wasn’t sure.

“Finally! I’m freezing my tail off!” She pouted down at Uiui. She’d grown a bit taller this year, and had gained two whole centimeters on her. She hoped she’d grow even taller.

Uiui smiled. “That’s why your nose looks like a clown’s,” she teased. She hooked her arms with Sumomone’s, ignoring the gasp her words had prompted. “Come on, it’s right around the corner.”

Sumomone let her lead the way. “You sure find your way around fast, I don’t think I know this part of town that well at all.”

“If it’s for the right thing, I’ll always remember where it is.”

Well that made sense, she supposed. A particularly good music shop then, maybe? Myumon thrived on music after all.

 

“We’re here.”

Uiui stopped in front of a glass door with a pink sign lined with brown lace and text, the sign drawn so it looked like the top lace was dripping down on the rest of it.

Sumomone squinted at the door. “Ice cream?”

“And gelato and frozen yoghurt,” Uiui clarified, pushing the door open. A soft melody played above their heads. “Come on.”

“Eeeh?” Sumomone let herself be pulled into the store, though hesitant. At least she would be away from the cold. “Ice cream in winter?”

“Ice cream is always in season,” Uiui said as she let go of Sumomone’s arm, scouring the long row of tubs at the front of the shop. Sumomone slowly followed.

“Not really,” Sumomone said. She looked at the sparkle in Uiui’s eye as she looked down at the ice cream. “But if it’ll keep us indoors for a while, I guess I’ll be fine.”

Uiui looked happy at that, taking her by the hand to pull her forward so she could properly see the flavours. She felt her heart skip a beat.

“What flavours do you want? I’ll pay.”

Sumomone’s eyes scanned the notes in front of each tub. “Mm, chocolate ice cream?”

“How many scoops?”

“Just one’s fine. I’ll get too cold to leave with more than that.”

Uiui shrugged, before speaking to the cashier to place her order. Sumomone had to make a conscious effort not to let her jaw drop at how many scoops she ordered for herself.

“Won’t you turn into an ice cube from all that?”

Uiui snorted, a small smile on her lips. “Not at all.”

Her resilience against anything cold was astounding.

 

They sat down at one of the small, round tables, pulling off their winter clothes. Sumomone picked up a spoonful of ice cream, the rich flavour of the ice cream filling her mouth. Maybe ice cream hadn’t been such a bad idea, after all. She still had a feeling she’d be a bit cold afterwards, though.

As they ate, they chatted about school. They were in different classes, but that only meant they had twice the amount of gossip they could talk about. Though Sumomone did most of the talking, leaving her only just finished with her sole scoop of ice cream by the time Uiui only had a couple left.

“You were right, by the way,” Sumomone said. “This was really good. I feel like I’m gonna have the taste of chocolate in my mouth forever though.”

Uiui picked up a spoonful of one of her remaining flavours. “Want some of mine? It’s lemon gelato.” As Sumomone stared at her in silence, she continued. “It’s refreshing.”

Sumomone leaned her chin on the back of her hand. “I know that.” She looked down for a moment, cheeks flushing. “It’s not that.”

Uiui glanced between Sumomone and the offered spoon. As the silence stretched, she finally put two and two together. “Are you worried about an indirect kiss?”

Sumomone hid the lower half of her face behind her hands, trying to cover her red cheeks. “That’s… I wouldn’t use the word ‘worried’.”

“Oh.” A small smirk made its way onto Uiui’s lips. She moved the spoon closer to Sumomone. “Take it then.”

Sumomone sent her a weak glare, but Uiui only managed to look more smug in return. “Don’t think I won’t.”

Uiui hummed a quiet ‘mmhm’, looking her right in the eye.

Sumomone lowered her hands, pout on her lips. She leaned forward, opening her mouth to take the spoonful of gelato in her mouth. When she pulled back, the spoon was clean.

She felt the silky texture of the ice cream, the tangy flavour of the lemon melting on her tongue. It tasted like summer. Like the beach and the sun on her skin.

She looked at Uiui, eyes shining. “This is amazing!”

The smile on Uiui’s face was wide, her cheeks coloured in a happy blush. She tapped her spoon against her lips. “I told you, it’s always in season.”

The look on her face was so cute, Sumomone couldn’t help but forgive her for making her wait out in the cold just to go and get ice cream.

 

Maybe she’d even let her drag her here again.

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