The Stars Burn

"Okay, sweetheart, ready? One… two…""YEAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWCH! Fuck fuckfuck owwww!" Ranko's scream fell into a quiet whimper as Akane peeled the black swimsuit off of lover's ankles, tossing it to the floor."You were supposed to wear the hat we bought you, silly girl." Akane shook her head, smiling into the bright-red face of her lover."They said I had to take it off," Ranko grumped, holding her arms out away from her sides as she stood nude in the girls' shared bedroom. "Stupid TV stuff. If they say it's for an hour-long live show, they shouldn't keep you there for four friggin' hours!"Akane laughed, looking her beet-red lover over skeptically, sitting on the bed and propping her chin on her fist. "Just four hours? You sure? I seem to recall you being gone a lot longer than that!""Well…" Ranko blushed, not that Akane could tell behind the girl's severe sunburn. "Those people came all the way out to the beach to see us perform, and I couldn't just let 'em get the one song, so me and the guys did a couple more for 'em after the TV crew left."Akane nodded, beaming with a wide grin. She just knew it had to be something like that. She adored Ranko for a million reasons, of which her devotion to her fans was but one. But she doubted that was all, and she tapped her foot, looking over the songstress disbelievingly.Ranko sighed, slumping her shoulders, yelping when her arms made contact with her torso and sticking them back out. "Okay, okay, and then I stayed and signed a bunch of autographs for people," she mumbled defeatedly. "Ya happy?"Akane laughed, her face flushing a bit herself as she shook her head. "And you couldn't put your hat back on for that, at least?""I was busy!" Ranko glared, more frustrated at herself than Akane."Wait a minute, didn't we buy you some sunscreen, too?" Akane popped a potato chip into her mouth, wishing it were popcorn. This show was hilarious, though she hated to laugh at Ranko's discomfort. She couldn't imagine a head-to-toe sunburn with the Full Body Cat's Tongue on top of it was an especially pleasant experience."It comes off when you sweat! It was freakin' hot out there, Akane!" The redhead mewled quietly, looking at herself in the mirror. It looked as if she was still wearing her swimsuit, save that the outline of it was now her normal skin tone and everything outside it was almost the color of her hair.Akane stood, swallowing another potato chip. "And you couldn't just put more on?"The red-haired, and currently red-skinned, girl stomped her foot. "I. Was. Busy!"Akane laughed, leaning over carefully and kissing the top of Ranko's hair, mindful not to touch her anywhere else. "Oh, baby, what are we gonna do with you?"Ranko shook both of her fists at waist height, stomping her foot again with a high-pitched whimper. "Look, Izumi says every girl gets ten days a year where she gets to be a pathetic, whiny little bitch with no questions asked. Well, I'm a girl now, and I've got nineteen years' worth of little bitch points saved up, so I'm cashin' one in! Fuck, this hurts!""Alright, alright. Let me help you. Just stay there a second." Still laughing under her breath, Akane slipped into the bathroom, returning a moment later carrying a tall bottle with a pump nozzle on its top. She set it, and her promise ring, on top of the dresser."First things first, let's make sure we don't get any of this gunk in your hair." Akane ever so gently scooped Ranko's hair into her hand, pulling it up into a loose, messy bun atop her head and securing it with a yellow elastic. Satisfied with her work, she curled her fingers around the pump and pushed down, and a blob of viscous, bright green slime plopped into her palm with a flatulent flrrp sound."Okay, love. Where does it hurt the worst?" Akane started rubbing her hands together, spreading the gel on both of her palms."Umm.. Yes?" Ranko looked up at her with plaintive doe eyes.Akane shook her head again. "Silly question. Alright. Here we go, then." She gently placed her hand on Ranko's right shoulder, smearing the aloe vera over her skin. Akane could feel the residual heat radiating from her lover's body even through the cooling gel."Yeeeeeoooooooooooooowww! Akane! You were s'posta warm it up first! That's cold!"Ranko's fiancee couldn't help but giggle. "I did warm it up, silly girl! C'mon, I thought you were a rough, tough martial artist. You can handle a little goop on your back, can't you?" Akane rubbed an itch on her nose with her forearm before filling her hands with another squirt of the aloe compound.Ranko grumbled, shivering through Akane slathering her neck and breasts with the green slime. "What if right now I just wanna be a really cute pop star instead, and cuddle until I feel better? Aw, crap! Cuddling will hurt, too!" She started to cross her arms over her chest in disgust before thinking better of it.Akane smiled, kissing her through her hair on the side of her head. "Then I'm gonna love the hell out of that girl, too." She ever so gently dabbed Ranko's cheeks, nose and forehead with the cooling gel, spreading a thin layer over most of her face."Almost done, sweetheart." Pulling the bottle of gel down from the dresser, Akane sat on the floor, beginning to coat Ranko's left leg in the sickly green sludge.Ranko crinkled her nose, bleating woefully at her emerald-glazed nude reflection in the mirror. "I look like the Grinch fell in the Spring of Drowned Girl!""Well," Akane said as she rose to her feet, wiping her hands off on a tee shirt she'd taken from the top of the dirty clothes hamper. "I still say you're beautiful. Without a doubt, the sexiest ninja turtle ever.""Turtle, huh?" Ranko cracked a weak smile even through her discomfort. "I'm gonna get you for that!" She reached toward Akane with her left arm, squeaking piteously before her elbow could be fully extended. "I'm gonna get you for that… later!"As Akane laughed at her lover's plight, Ranko looked around the room quizzically. "Now what do I do? I can't sit on anything, or I'll get it all slimy!""Hold that thought." Akane bounded to the bathroom, pulling open the linen closet. She returned a few moments later with a white cotton sheet, draping it over the yellow duvet cover of their bed. "Here. This has a stain on it and I was gonna get rid of it anyway, but it'll do the job for now."Ranko took a stiff step toward the bed, not bending at the knees or the elbows. "I gotta walk like a zombie. Braaaains!" She giggled, but her laughter cut off when she felt herself unexpectedly leave her feet. Akane carried the nude smaller girl to the bed, laying her atop the stained white sheet ever so gently.As she was laid on her back, Ranko looked up at Akane with bright, bashful eyes. She said nothing, but the expression on her face spoke volumes even through the glistening green veneer that covered most of her skin. You're so good to me, Akane. You literally sweep me off my feet. I love you so much.Beaming, Akane took off her tee shirt, which had become fairly besmirched with aloe as she carried Ranko to the bed. She wiped the residual goop from her hands with it, tossing it in the hamper. "I'll be right back."Akane disappeared into the living room in just her bra and shorts, returning a moment later carrying their small television. "Here, let's set this up for you in here." She shoved the bottle of aloe aside, setting the TV set on the dresser and running the cord to the wall socket. She also reached over the bed, pulling the chain dangling from the ceiling fan to activate it, pulling the television remote out of her pocket and setting it on the bed in front of Ranko."Anything else I can get you, baby? Drink, anything?" Akane sat on the edge of the bed, ever so gently stroking her partner's hair. She had every expectation that her scalp might be sunburned as well.Ranko reached out with both hands, opening and closing them imploringly with a pleading mien. "Cuddle?""I wish I could, princess," Akane said softly. "But the last thing you need right now is my body heat touching you. I'm sorry."She whined pathetically, looking over at the chair in front of the couple's shared desk. "This friggin' sucks. I can't even cuddle Starlight! I'll get her all gross! At least this junk would have washed off of you."Akane stood, walking to the desk and scooping the stuffed unicorn up in her arms. "Hang on. I've got an idea."Ranko tried to crane her neck to see where Akane was taking her plush friend as she exited the bedroom door, but it required entirely too much movement, and she consigned herself to waiting impatiently for her fiancee to return, focusing instead on trying in vain to find a comfortable position to lie in.A moment later, Akane returned from the kitchen, handing Ranko's stuffed unicorn down to her. It had been completely mummified in plastic cling wrap, protecting its white mane from the green goo spackled over every millimeter of Ranko's skin.Ranko flushed under the coating of aloe gel, and she was far more acutely aware of the temperature change in her cheeks than usual. She took the cocooned unicorn in her arms, squeezing it gently to herself. "Thanks, Akane. But, won't she stuffocate?"Giggling, Akane shook her head with a wide grin. It's not fair. How is somebody who wasn't even a girl until last year this fucking adorable?"No, silly girl. Stuffies can go up to a week without breathing in extreme circumstances, like when their favorite girls don't feel good and need to be snuggled. Didn't Izumi teach you anything?"Ranko smiled weakly, curling up around her plasticized plush. "I guess we must've missed that chapter in girl school."Akane laughed, sitting back on the edge of the bed and smiling down at her fiancee. "Well, then I guess you're lucky you've got me to help, huh?"The verdant redhead smiled sincerely, reaching out weakly for Akane's hand. "Oh, Akane, believe me, I know how lucky I am to have you. I think about it every day."