"Sorry!!"
March 7th, still in her pajamas, knelt on the bed, her little face bright red.
Hands clasped together, she apologized loudly to Sylvia!
Sylvia, sitting on the edge of the bed in front of her, was also slightly flushed.
One by one, she was re-buttoning the pajama buttons that had been undone.
Underneath pajamas like that, you obviously don't wear anything else.
Waking up early in the morning to find her buttons somehow undone, and March 7th with her face buried in her chest, fast asleep...
Even for Sylvia, it was a bit of a shock.
After all, this was something she'd only ever done to Mei.
No one had ever done this to her before...
Today was a first.
"...It's fine. We're both girls, anyway."
"Mm..."
Hearing this, March 7th behind her became even more embarrassed.
It might be okay to say that to Himeko, but this was Sylvia.
Sylvia already seemed kind of close with that older lady, Acheron—it didn't look like just a normal friendship.
And that girl, Stelle, was always yelling nonsense about marrying Sylvia, calling her 'wifey' and stuff.
It was pretty obvious Sylvia was likely into girls!
Saying 'we're both girls'—was it really the same thing?!
And this time, she was the one who had practically undressed her.
More importantly!!
Just yesterday, March 7th had been thinking about how to help Stelle score some points with Sylvia.
Was this how she helped a friend?
By getting the girl Stelle liked into her own bed, and then undressing her while she slept, and waking up to a faceful of...
Just thinking about it made March 7th so embarrassed she felt like her brain might short-circuit.
"...No way, Stelle absolutely cannot find out about this! Good thing she's not on the express today."
March 7th mumbled quietly behind her.
"And good thing Sylvia didn't actually get on the express... otherwise I'd be so dead—"
Sylvia's hearing wasn't bad. Even though March 7th was quiet, with no background noise, she caught every word perfectly.
She kind of wished she hadn't heard it, though.
What kind of talk was that?
It made it sound like something was going on between her, March 7th, and Stelle...and besides, she and Stelle weren't a couple!
Stelle just thought it was fun to mess around; why did March 7th have to join in the teasing?
Sylvia really wanted to turn around and say something, but she was too embarrassed to admit she'd heard March 7th's muttering.
And, sorry to break it to her, but she had technically already joined the express as of last night, and was just waiting for Himeko to find a good time to announce it.
Even though March 7th was usually pretty laid-back, now probably wasn't the best time to make things even more awkward for her.
Sylvia finished buttoning up, turned her head, and saw March 7th still with her face all red. She didn't look like she was calming down at all.
Better to let Himeko tell her about her joining the train later, when she'd calmed down a bit.
That would probably be easier.
Thinking this, Sylvia stood up and walked into the bathroom right in front of March 7th.
When she came out, she had changed into her own clothes, freshened up, and tidied herself.
March 7th had also changed into her usual outfit by then.
Her expression seemed less red than before.
"Ready to go?"
There was still a little blush on her face, but at least she seemed to have recovered.
Well...
That is, if March 7th's gaze didn't keep drifting towards Sylvia's chest.
"It doesn't even look that big, so why is it so..."
March 7th turned her back, raising a hand to gesture vaguely at her own chest.
A wave of defeat washed over her.
Sylvia usually looked so average, but after this morning's... hands-on experience...it was surprisingly impressive.
This was insane, right?
Who hides that kind of stuff so well?
"..."
Ignoring the crushed March 7th, Sylvia left the room first.
She happened to run into Pom-Pom passing by.
"Good morning, Conductor."
"Oh—Passenger Sylvia, good morning! I've heard the news, you'll be boarding the Astral Express too."
"Miss Himeko already told you, Conductor?"
"Yes, perfect timing, I was just about to prepare breakfast. Passenger Sylvia, please head to the Parlor Car to rest!"
Pom-Pom nodded, looking completely unsurprised.
Seeing this, Sylvia perked up and offered proactively: "How about I help out? Consider it a way to say hi to everyone."
"Passenger Sylvia can cook too? Then I'll trouble you!"
Pom-Pom wasn't one to refuse offers of help and agreed immediately when Sylvia volunteered.
Eagerly, Pom-Pom led the way to the kitchen.
--+--
Meanwhile—
In the Astral Express's Parlor Car.
When March 7th arrived, she was surprised to find not only Dan Heng there, but Stelle had also returned to the train.
It gave March 7th quite a start.
She had just been thinking how lucky it was that Stelle wasn't on the train and wouldn't find out about what happened, and now, out of nowhere, here Stelle was.
March 7th clutched her racing heart and exclaimed loudly:
"Huh?! Dan Heng's here, fine, but why are you back so suddenly, Stelle?!"
"..."
Dan Heng shot March 7th an exasperated look.
Stelle, however, puffed out her chest proudly and said:
"Himeko left me a message last night saying there was something important to announce this morning and asked if I could come back. I saw it as soon as I woke up and came straight back."
Dan Heng nodded beside her. "Himeko messaged me too, so I came as well."
"Important thing? Uncle Yang, do you know what it is?"
March 7th tilted her head. She'd just checked her phone and didn't see any message from Himeko...
Welt, who was browsing some interstellar news nearby, shook his head at March 7th's question. "Himeko hasn't told me yet."
"Oh..."
March 7th sat down in her usual spot, then suddenly asked:
"Hey Stelle, have you seen Sylvia? You don't think she got lost looking for the Parlor Car, do you?"
"Sylvia? She's on the train?"
Stelle looked up, blinking at March 7th. March 7th just sighed.
"You haven't seen her? She didn't get lost, did she? I'll send a message and ask."
Just then, Himeko walked in carrying a cup of coffee, followed by Pom-Pom pushing a cart, and Sylvia.
"Good morning, passengers! Breakfast is served!"
"Whoo~ Ah! Sylvia, I thought you were lost! You just went to find Pom-Pom, huh."
Seeing Sylvia, March 7th waved happily and motioned for her to sit between herself and Stelle.
Himeko casually placed a cup of coffee in front of Sylvia.
"Thanks, Miss Himeko."
"No need for honorifics now, right? From today on, we're all companions."
Himeko pointed out Sylvia's phrasing with a chuckle.
March 7th and Stelle beside her froze for a second.
"What?!"
March 7th shot up from her chair like a rocket, eyes wide, looking back and forth between Himeko and Sylvia.
Pom-Pom delivered the final blow:
"Please remain calm, Passenger March. From today onward, Passenger Sylvia will also be joining the Express, becoming one of us."
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.