Work Text:
Writer's block was something that Maki regularly struggled with, but this was the worst it had ever been. Even with all the motivation and encouragement and assistance from all the other members of µ's, she had nothing. She had to write the music for the song they were going to be singing in the upcoming preliminaries for Love Live, but she didn't know where to begin. She didn't know how long she had been staring at a blank sheet of paper at her piano, but she could tell that it was the middle of the night and that everyone else was probably fast asleep.
They had all done their tasks, meaning that she was the odd one out. The lyrics had been written, the outfits had been designed, so they were all waiting on her. The last thing she wanted to do was let them down, but the immense pressure she felt was not helping in the slightest. What was she supposed to do? Just keep sitting at this piano and desperately hope that she got a lightbulb moment before the sun came up? She wasn't an idiot, she knew that the chances of that happening were near zero. Fatigue was starting to kick in, she was running out of time.
Starting was always the hardest part, she knew that she'd be golden if she could do that. But she couldn't. Ugh, why did this have to happen at such an important time? This wasn't just a quick little song she was writing for fun, this was Love Live! Not only that, but this was their very last chance for the nine of them to perform in Love Live together! She was so stressed and anxious that she couldn't think straight, she needed to relax if she was going to get this done. But just as she was about to stand up and stretch her legs, she heard someone enter the house.
Why would somebody be coming inside in the middle of the night? Did they need to use the bathroom? That was the only possible reason Maki could think of, since everyone was sleeping outside in the tents they had put up. She stood up from the stool and turned to her right just in time to see none other than Honoka tiptoeing through the entrance hallway of the villa, trying her best to be sneaky. In hindsight that made perfect sense, of course it was Honoka. That girl always either slept like a rock or was the most restless person on the planet, there was no inbetween.
"And what do you think you're doing sneaking around my family's villa at this time of night?" Maki asked with one raised eyebrow as she crossed her arms, wondering why Honoka wasn't asleep like the others. Her voice nearly made Honoka jump out of her skin and caused her to stop dead in her tracks as she turned to face Maki with a guilty look on her face. She thought she had been doing a great job of keeping quiet but she had been caught red-handed and now had no choice but to explain herself. In her defence, she hadn't expected Maki to still be up.
"Maki-Chan! I, um... I was just heading to the kitchen to get a midnight snack. Although, technically it would be a 2am snack, not a midnight snack. Heh. A-anyway, shouldn't you be fast asleep by now?" Honoka asked with a frown after spending so much time stammering and chuckling with embarrassment. Maki was slightly taken aback by that statement, it was two in the morning? And she hadn't written anything yet? That was very bad. What should she say? If she told the truth Honoka might be disappointed in her. Not that she cared what Honoka thought of her!
"Writing this song has taken far longer than I originally anticipated, but I'm almost done. So, would you kindly like to leave so I can get back to it in peace?" Maki explained with a humph, deciding to lie in the hopes that Honoka would leave her be as she definitely didn't need another distraction. But she wasn't naive enough to believe it would actually work, as she knew that when Honoka had her eyes set on something there was just no stopping her. Still, surely she had earned this one act of good luck after being in a creative slump for hours on end?
The preliminaries were still a few weeks away, but they couldn't afford to waste any time when they were going up against competition like A-Rise and so many other incredible groups. If she didn't get this song written soon, they wouldn't stand a chance. And it would be all her fault and she'd spend the rest of her life never being able to forgive herself. She shuddered at the thought, that sounded like her worst nightmare. She needed to do this but if she forced herself to write then the end result would be terrible. It needed to come naturally, it needed to flow.
"Oooooh, can I see what you've written so far? Can I, can I? Please, please?" Honoka asked as she bounced up and down on the spot in excitement. Since she was the leader of μ's, she felt it was fair for her to get a sneak peek at the music of their next song. Maki's eyes went wide with fear as the nonchalant façade she'd put up began to fracture. There was nothing she could do, it was over. By the time she'd opened her mouth to refuse, Honoka's eagerness had already gotten the better of her and she was striding into the room right towards the piano.
"Wait! I never said you could-ugh!" Maki groaned in annoyance as Honoka was standing by her side before she could even begin to think about stopping her. Great! She didn't know how Honoka would react to the truth, but every muscle in her body was tense as she waited for the inevitable. Her last hope was that Honoka wouldn't tell the others about this and that it would just be their little secret. But if she knew Honoka, and she did, she would probably slip up in the middle of a random conversation and reveal that information without even realising it.
When Honoka sat down on the stool in front of the piano, she had to do a double take. The sheet music was... blank? Maki hadn't written anything at all? She tilted her head to the right slightly in confusion, this had never happened before. Maki was always on top of things, one could even make the argument that she was the most organised member of the group. But then her face turned to one of understanding. She wasn't mad, she wasn't disappointed, she just wanted to support her friend... even though she wished that they could be more than that.
And unbeknownst to her, Maki felt the same way. Not that she'd ever tell anyone, she was so stubborn that it had taken her months to admit it to herself. That was a secret she was more than willing to take to the grave, especially because of how obvious it was to her that Honoka didn't like her back. Was Honoka even into girls? She hadn't shown any signs that she did, so Maki doubted it. But that was fine! Just because Honoka was the first person she'd ever developed feelings for didn't mean they were meant to be together, there were plenty of fish in the sea.
"You know, I'm not really tired or hungry anymore. I think I'd like to stay here with you and give you some company. Would that be alright, Maki-Chan?" Honoka spoke gently as she looked over her shoulder and up at Maki before giving her a comforting smile. Maki was surprised by the offer and she was also conflicted about it. If Honoka was with her then she wouldn't stand a chance of making any progress, but the chance to hang out with her crush was frustratingly difficult to pass up. Besides, it wasn't like she was getting any writing done anyway.
"Fine. But only since you insisted and because it would be impossible to convince you not to stay," Maki responded with a sigh as she rolled her eyes, once again lying to hide how she truly felt. She didn't want anyone to know how much of a mushy person she was deep down inside, so she put up this front and pretended to not particularly care about anyone or anything. But she loved μ's more than she could put into words and she genuinely didn't know what she'd do without these girls. Truthfully, she was probably the sappiest person in the entire group.
If they ever discovered the truth about her... she'd never hear the end of it. They'd never let it go, they'd tease her for it for the rest of their lives. Especially Nico, she'd be even more annoying than she already was! She'd put up this tough exterior for too long to drop it now, though it was admittedly challenging to keep it up when she was with someone as beautiful as Honoka. If there was anyone that could break through her defences and see her for who she really was, it was Honoka. That was a scary thought, so she quickly shook it out of her head.
After sitting down, Maki quickly came to the horrifying realisation that there was barely enough room on the stool for the both of them. Their hips were barely touching and she could feel the warmth radiating off Honoka, which caused her heartbeat to begin to rapidly accelerate. Her cheeks flushed a light shade of pink as she interlocked her fingers and placed her hands on her lap, shifting uncomfortably. There was no way she could keep this up. But if she stood up again then Honoka would be able to tell that there was something wrong, and she didn't want that.
"You don't have to stay up all night, you know. You're much more likely to get it done if you get a nice long sleep," Honoka suggested with a shrug, breaking the awkward silence that had begun to form. She felt bad for Maki, she was essentially torturing herself in a desperate attempt to write this song that night and it simply wasn't working. It didn't seem healthy. But if she couldn't convince Maki to get some rest, the least she could do was be there for her. That's what friends were for, right? Because that's what they were... friends. Just friends. Nothing more.
"I will stay up as long as it takes to do this. Nothing matters more than finishing the music for this song, we don't stand a chance in the preliminaries if I don't get this done as soon as possible," Maki replied with a determined look on her face, causing Honoka to shake her head as she was reminded of how stubborn Maki was. It was one of the many things she loved about her, but there were also times when she wished it wasn't quite as prevalent. How was she ever going to get through to Maki? It seemed like an impossible task, but she had to try.
Leaning forward, Maki seemed to be under the impression that if she stared at the blank sheet of paper for long enough then inspiration would suddenly strike and she would finally succeed. She had been writing long enough to know that wasn't how it worked, but it wasn't like she had any other choice. She couldn't sleep until the music was finalised! Umi had already written the lyrics and Kotori had already designed the outfits, and she didn't want to be perceived as lazy or that she was dragging the rest of the group down due to her incompetence.
"Honestly, I think you're putting too much pressure on yourself. You act like getting this song done is the most important thing in the world but that isn't true. It's okay to take a step back and realise that you need to focus on yourself, Maki-Chan. Just taking a short break can do wonders for your mental health and your motivation. Take it from me! I collapsed on stage that one time and nearly destroyed μ's because I wasn't prioritising myself. I just don't want you to make the same mistake," Honoka explained in a soft tone as she placed one hand on Maki's shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze to reassure her.
Those words hit Maki like taking a brick to the face, it was as if all the wind had been kicked out of her. She blinked a few times as Honoka's advice repeated in her head over and over again, was that... true? It was hard to argue with it since she clearly remembered what happened to Honoka when she trained too much and pushed her body beyond its limits. She wanted to say that this wasn't the same situation at all and that Honoka was being ridiculous, but she couldn't. She didn't make a sound or move a muscle, she just sat there in contemplative silence.
Calling it quits for the night and going to sleep wasn't something she had considered even once, this was far too important to do something like that. What if she went to sleep and woke up tomorrow and the block was still there? Then she would've just wasted a lot of precious time! No, it wasn't worth the risk. What Honoka said didn't matter, she had to stay up and she had to get this song done. But she was getting more and more tired by the second and it was harder than ever to concentrate on anything. It wasn't over yet though, she had to keep trying!
Despite the fact that she was sitting right next to her, Honoka was blissfully unaware of how red Maki's cheeks were or how her heart was pounding so fast that it might explode out of her chest at any moment. She had hoped that she'd been able to get through to Maki and make her see that choosing to stay at this piano was only making the situation worse, but it looked like she had failed. She couldn't give up though, Maki needed her even if she refused to accept it. That had been her only plan though which meant that it was time to improvise.
She racked her brain to try and think of another idea that might work, and that was when a very dangerous thought wormed its way into her brain. No, she couldn't... could she? There had to be another way, doing that would be a disaster. It would completely destroy their friendship! Maki would never talk to her again and μ's would fall apart and they'd lose their last opportunity to perform in Love Live together! But the clock was ticking, there was no time to think of anything else. After taking a deep breath, she got ready to confess the truth regarding how she felt about Maki.
"I... I like you, Maki-Chan," Honoka whispered just loud enough for Maki to hear, her voice wavering despite her best attempts to stay as calm and collected as possible. Confidence was key here and so far she wasn't doing a great job in that regard. Maki's brain shortcircuited and she had to do a double take to make sure she had heard that correctly. Honoka liked her? As in... as in...? Oh, wait. Honoka just meant that she liked her as a friend. She had gotten her hopes up for nothing. That was on her, she had assumed the best without thinking logically.
"I like you too, Honoka-Chan," Maki said back with a nod of her head though she didn't look away from the sheet of paper that was still blank. She was expertly keeping her true feelings hidden as there wasn't a hint of disappointment on her face even though she was dying on the inside. Honoka's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, why was Maki's response so... tame? It didn't make sense, it had taken all of her willpower to say those words but they hadn't even fazed Maki. She hadn't even looked at her! Something was definitely wrong here.
Her eyes then went wide as she realised what might have happened, did Maki assume that she merely meant it in a friendly way? Because that was precisely the opposite of her intention! How was she supposed to make it clearer than that? Was she expected to pour her heart out? There was no way she was doing that! It would be the most embarrassing thing in the world! But she had come too far to turn back now. Using all the courage she had gained from performing in so many concerts, she moved her hand and placed it on top of Maki's which was on her lap.
"E-eh? W-what are you doing, H-Honoka-Chan?" Maki stammered nervously as Honoka's gentle touch made her heart skip a beat. For the first time since sitting down, she turned her head to the right so she was facing Honoka, swallowing hard as she did so. What was this? Had she been wrong all along? Did Honoka actually like her in that way? The nine of them held hands all the time, but this felt... different. Upon seeing Maki's cherry pink cheeks, Honoka felt a little more at ease. There was a chance that Maki felt the same way! A very small chance but a chance nonetheless.
"I like you, like you, Maki-Chan."
There was no misinterpreting that. All the blood rushed to Maki's ears as time seemed to freeze around her. The girl she had a crush on liked her back. The girl she had a crush on liked her back! She had to pinch herself to make sure she wasn't dreaming as a great big smile appeared on her face for the first time in... well, she couldn't even remember how long! This was the happiest day of her life! Maki hadn't said anything back but things hadn't gone disastrously wrong yet so Honoka decided to push her luck and continue. There was a lot she wanted to say.
"When I first heard you singing all that time ago, I immediately fell in love with your beautiful voice. Then I got to know you and I realised how pretty, kind, and funny you are. After a few months, it was clear that I was starting to fall for y-mmm!" Honoka was cut off as Maki suddenly leaned in and kissed her out of nowhere. Her mind exploded and she went into a full-on gay panic as it took her a few seconds to process what was happening. Maki was... kissing her? It was the last thing she ever expected to happen and she was woefully unprepared for it.
Her eyes went so wide she thought they might burst out of their sockets and she frantically flailed her arms in the air as she had no idea where to put her hands. She also didn't know how to kiss! For just one moment, Maki was terrified that she'd misread the situation. What if Honoka meant that she had platonically fallen for her and that all those compliments were nothing more than her being friendly? But then Honoka started kissing back and all her fears and doubts were washed away. Somehow, she was kissing her crush. She couldn't quite believe it.
Melting into the kiss and closing her eyes, Honoka eventually decided to wrap her arms around Maki and place her palms flat against her back. Maki's lips were soft and sweet, Honoka couldn't get enough of them. The way their lips perfectly locked made it seem like they were made for each other, even though neither of them had ever really believed in destiny. Raising one hand to cup Honoka's cheek to deepen the kiss slightly, Maki felt her confidence growing. Fireworks and supernovas were going off in her head and her heart was soaring, this felt amazing.
The kiss was so gentle and magical and they both got lost in it, not knowing how much time had passed. One minute? Five? Ten? They didn't know and they didn't care. Alas, there was only so much kissing that could be done until the need to breathe reared its ugly head. Honoka breathed in through her nostrils and pulled Maki closer to her as she never wanted this to end, even though she knew it had to. When she couldn't take it anymore, she pulled away but kept their faces close. She couldn't have stopped herself from smiling if she tried.
"I like you, like you too, Honoka-Chan," Maki whispered with a giggle, not that it needed saying at that point. She wasn't afraid to show that side of herself to Honoka, not anymore. That being said, there was still no way she was going to let the others find out about it. Honoka was filled with shock at first but then quickly started laughing too, she could easily get used to this cutesy side of Maki! Her whole body was warm and she was tingling all over. It was cheesy but she wouldn't have had it any other way, her very first relationship being so romantic was perfect.
Maki's insecurities and worries that she wouldn't get the music written in time had been eased, and it was all thanks to Honoka. It wasn't the first time she had done that and it certainly wouldn't be the last. What had she been thinking? Planning to stay up all night? What would that have accomplished? She knew that it was a terrible idea but she was too stubborn to believe that there were any alternatives. She was immensely grateful to Honoka for helping her see sense, and she showed that by closing the gap between them and giving her a quick peck on her lips.
"You were right, Honoka-Chan. Forcing myself to write wasn't the answer, it would've caused anything I did write to be terrible. I'm going to get some rest and give it another try tomorrow," Maki explained with a nod of her head as she stood up from the stool and stepped away from the piano. It wasn't the best option for μ's but it was the healthiest option for her, and that was more important. Besides, they still had plenty of time before the preliminaries. There was no need to rush just yet. And she knew the others would be understanding of her situation.
"I'm so proud of you, Maki-Chan!" Honoka beamed and grinned from ear to ear, her cheeks still a tomato red from the second kiss Maki had given her. She stood up and pulled Maki into a tight hug, squeezing her. Honoka's infectious energy caused Maki to smile and hug her back, even if she did secretly roll her eyes first. Her excitement from kissing Honoka was pumping adrenaline through her veins but she knew that she needed to sleep. Both of them did, it was super late and there was no doubt that tomorrow would be another exhausting training day.
But that was what it took to participate in Love Live, and they were more than willing to do that. After pulling away from the hug, Honoka yawned sleepily and she rubbed her eyes as her fatigue started to catch up with her. She was no longer interested in grabbing a snack from the kitchen, she wanted to go back to sleep. However, if given the opportunity to stay up and kiss and cuddle with Maki some more, she would take it in a heartbeat. She knew where her priorities were! Before they went their separate ways to their tents, they waved to each other.
"Goodnight, Maki-Chan," Honoka smiled warmly, still giddy from the events that had just transpired. Where had that huge boost of confidence come from for her to confess her feelings to Maki? She may never know, but everything had gone so tremendously well and she was the happiest she had ever been. Maki was her girlfriend! The most amazing girl she had ever met was her girlfriend!
"Goodnight, Honoka-Chan," Maki replied, blowing a kiss before turning around and leaving the house to head towards her tent. She prayed that Nico and Eli were asleep because she was still so flustered and they would instantly notice that. Being Honoka's girlfriend had her on cloud nine and she doubted that she would be able to get any sleep at all as a result. But it was worth it to be with the girl of her dreams.