Chapter 95: Time Together

I held Zuihou's hand as she laid on the infirmary bed. The other girls were awesome enough to rush her to the infirmary and call Akashi before I got here. Thankfully, aside from some minor scratches and bruises, she didn't suffer any major damages, be it external or internal. According to Akashi, it was fatigue that caused her sudden collapse. Makes sense, she has been going on every emergency sortie this past week. 

I screwed up... I failed to swap out my girls adequately enough and give them enough rest. This is my fault... 

"Mnh..." (Zuihou) 

Zuihou's eyes opened slowly. She is waking up! 

"Mmnn... Eh? Ad...miral...?" (Zuihou) 

"Zuihou, how are you feeling?" 

"A little tired... This is... the infirmary? Why am I here?" (Zuihou) 

"When you came back, you passed out. The other girls carried you here. Akashi says it was due to me overworking you." 

"Did Akashi really say that?" (Zuihou) 

"Well... She said it was fatigue, but that's the same as me overworking you. I'm sorry. I should have realized it." 

Eight years and I'm still making mistakes like this... 

Zuihou shook her head, 

"No. We were doing our jobs. I didn't notice it either. Eh? It's already this late." (Zuihou) 

She tilted her head backwards towards the window above her bed. It's already dark outside. 

"Ah." (Zuihou) 

Her eyes moved downwards. She is looking at something. Oh. I released my grip on her hand. 

"Sorry. Did it hurt?" 

"Admiral, your hand is really sweaty. Have you been here the entire time?" (Zuihou) 

"Ye-yeah. I mean, I get worried when something happens to you." 

"You worry too much." (Zuihou) 

"I can't help it." 

"I'm worried about you as well. You look tired." (Zuihou) 

Really? Did it show on my face? 

"Yes. It shows." (Zuihou) 

"Eh?" 

Did she read my mind?  

"Did I say that out loud?" 

"How long have we been together already? Even before... we become lovers..." (Zuihou) 

She is blushing while saying the word 'lovers'. She is so cute.  

"Want some water?" 

"Yes please." (Zuihou) 

"Warm or cold?" 

"Cold." (Zuihou) 

I got up from my chair and went to the pantry. The water in the jug is still cold, thankfully. I poured some into a mug and returned to Zuihou's bedside. 

When I turned around, Zuihou began to sit up. 

"Hold on. Let me help you." 

"Come on. I'm just a little tired, not weak. I can sit up myself." (Zuihou) 

Is she annoyed? 

"Right. My bad. Here." 

I handed the mug to her. Zuihou used her tiny hands to hold and drink from it. 

"Phew. Delicious~" (Zuihou) 

"Want some more?" 

"Nope. That's enough." (Zuihou) 

I took the mug from her and placed it on the nightstand. 

I should let her rest. 

"I will head back to my office. Get some rest." 

"Wait!" (Zuihou) 

Before I could turn around and leave, I felt her grab my hand, 

"Stay here with me. Please?" (Zuihou) 

"Zuihou..." 

"We haven't been able to spend much time together. That's why..." (Zuihou) 

She is right. We have been busy all this while. 

"Sure. Let's relax together." 

Her face brightened. 

 She is so cute when she smiles. 

"Yay! Sit here!" (Zuihou) 

She patted the side of the bed. As soon as I sat down, she turned my lap into her personal seat. 

I see. So that's what she wants. 

I wrapped an arm around her waist and pet her head with the other. 

"Are you comfortable?" 

"Yeah." (Zuihou) 

"That's good then." 

"I miss this..." (Zuihou) 

"Yeah. Me too. " 

"How are the trainees? Any potential among them?" (Zuihou) 

"Hmm... I can't tell yet. Aside from Takeshi-san, the other four understand basic naval theory and tactics pretty well. At this rate, Takeshi-san is more suited to be a PT instructor rather than taking charge of a unit. Nagamura-san is competitive. He is constantly trying to answer the most question during class. Hashimoto-san is extremely eager to learn. A little overeager, I would say. She begged me to let her watch today's sorties." 

"Won't today's sortie be too much for her? She is just a trainee and she hasn't even commanded her first battle." (Zuihou) 

"That's what I said. Since she's willing to learn, I shouldn't stop her. Unless, it puts her at risk." 

"What about Nekokami-san and Ogami-san?" (Zuihou) 

"Those two... They are smart and friendly. The girls love them." 

"Fufu~ Yeah. Ogami-san reminds me of Houshou. She is so motherly. Nekokami-san is like the friend everyone wants to hang out with." (Zuihou) 

"I have to train these five people for three months on top of my usual work... This is troublesome." 

"Do your best, Admiral ~♪ You can do it ~♪" (Zuihou) 

There it is. That little chime in her sweet voice is music to my ears. 

 Zuihou snuggled against my chest. 

"Eh? My hachimaki..." (Zuihou) 

Zuihou looked at the familiar headband sitting at the nightstand while touching her hair. 

"Hiryuu took it off earlier. It would be uncomfortable sleeping with a ponytail on." 

"I see... Ah. I just got a good idea!" (Zuihou) 

Zuihou hopped off my lap and immediately stumbled on her own feet. 

"Careful!" 

I quickly reached out to grab her before she fell. 

"Nm...!" (Zuihou) 

Something small and soft hit my palm. I'm all too familiar with this sensation. I wanted to grab her waist but how did I end up grabbing her breast? 

Wait. That's not important right now! 

I pulled Zuihou back and sat her down beside me. 

"You alright?" 

"Unn... Thank you." (Zuihou) 

Her face is a little flushed and she is covering her chest with her hands. Even though I had seen and groped them a number of times, she is still shy about her petite breasts. How adorable. On a more serious note, 

"I'm calling Akashi. Maybe you got damaged after all." 

"Ah. No no no! I'm fine. Really. I just lost strength in my legs. That's all." (Zuihou) 

Hmm... Well, Akashi did say she is mostly all right, just exhausted. 

"Fine. I believe you. What were you trying to do anyway?" 

She pointed at her headband 

"I just wanted to get my Hachimaki. I've got a fun idea." (Zuihou) 

I got up and grabbed her headband, 

"Here." 

Zuihou turned to the side, 

"Do my hair for me~" (Zuihou) 

"Huh? Why?" 

"Come on, just do it." (Zuihou) 

Looks like she wants me to spoil her. 

"Whatever you say, princess." 

I sat back on the bed, with Zuihou's back facing me. 

"What kind of style would you like?" 

"However you like it. I leave it to you, Admiral ♪" (Zuihou) 

That's her plan?  

"You sure? I'm not good at this." 

I have never tied someone's hair before. I did brush the shipgirl's hair from time to time, but never tried messing with their hair. This would be my first time... 

"Yep. I want Admiral to tie my hair." (Zuihou) 

If that's what she wants... 

"Okay. I will do my best." 

Since I do not have a comb or brush on me, I will just have to use my hands to comb her hair. 

"Tell me if it hurts or itches." 

"Okay~" (Zuihou) 

Let's go with something simple. I only have one headband, so twintails are out. Hmm... Maybe this will work. 

Bring it up like this. Bundle the rest together. Tie the up like this... 

This is worse than I thought... 

Zuihou looked at the new messy hairdo I gave her using the front-facing camera on her phone. 

"Pfft! Ahahaha! Admiral, you suck at this." (Zuihou) 

"Shut up. I told you I wasn't good at this." 

I wanted to go for a high side ponytail, but ended up creating a messy abomination. Zuihou's hair is all over the place and the bunch of hair I tried tying together is all fuzzed up. 

"I will have to practice this." 

"We got time. I can let you practice on me." (Zuihou) 

"I will take you up on that offer then. Hold still. Let me untie it for you." 

"Ow ow ow! I think some got stuck in the knot. Ow ow ow!" (Zuihou) 

After carefully removing the headband, I brushed Zuihou's hair down to bring it back to normal. 

I sat by the bed side next to Zuihou and tucked her in. 

I held Zuihou's hand as she laid down and let out a small yawn. Her eyes look as though they are going to close at any moment. 

"Head to the docks first thing tomorrow, all right? You still have some minor injuries." 

"Unn... Got it..." (Zuihou) 

"Good girl." 

"Admiral, a goodnight kiss..." (Zuihou) 

Zuihou puckered her lips, awaiting and ready for a kiss. I leaned over and pressed my lips against her own. 

"Mnnnh..." (Zuihou) 

I can feel her arms going around my shoulder as she tries to reel me in closer. I tasted her tongue and a warm fuzzy sensation fills up chest. I hugged her as we breathed each other in. 

"Puuaa~ Hah~" (Zuihou) 

I looked at her cute, sleepy face and gave one last peck on the cheek. 

"Good night, Zuihou." 

"Good night, Admiral... See you... tomorrow..." (Zuihou) 

Zuihou closed her eyes. 

Has she fallen asleep? Maybe I will just wait a little while. 

Look at that. She is smiling. She must be dreaming of something happy. 

Okay. It's time for me to head to bed as well. I left the infirmary and switched off the lights on my way out. 

Today was exhausting. Moreso for the girls. It was fortunate that Zuihou wasn't severely injured despite her exhaustion. That was a screw up on my part. I have to be more careful next time. Next time... I might not be so lucky...