"Hahhhhhhhh…"
Olivia let out a long sigh as she sank back into the chair by the fitting rooms, her whole body seeming to soften at once now that she had been granted a brief, precious moment to sit still.
The clothing store around her was bright and warm, filled with neat racks of dresses, skirts, blouses, and light cardigans in gentle spring colours.
The soft chatter of the other customers drifted through the air, just loud enough to blur together with the sounds of hangers being moved and footsteps wandering back and forth.
It should have felt peaceful.
Instead, after the last few hours, it felt more like the eye of a storm.
She had known, of course, that telling them would lead to something.
The moment she had admitted, very carefully, that she and Alex were going out together tomorrow, not a date, just spending time together outside the academy, both Louise and Soren had reacted with terrifying speed.
What had begun as mild curiosity had turned into immediate action, and before Olivia had properly processed what was happening, she had been pulled into the shopping district and marched from store to store like a mission had just been declared.
Now she had tried on shoes, been made to hold different hats against her hair, endured intense debates over colours she had never once thought about for herself, and stood obediently while Louise and Soren inspected cardigans with the seriousness of military strategists planning a campaign.
It was a little exhausting.
It was also, if she was being honest, strangely fun.
Olivia rested her cheek against her hand and watched the two of them from across the shop.
'Miss Louise, I can understand… but what's going on with Soren?' she thought tiredly, though there was no real complaint in it.
That was the part she had not expected.
Louise being forceful felt natural.
Even though they had only met for the first time today, she could tell that Louise was the kind of person who threw herself into things without much thought.
Olivia could understand that much.
But Soren had caught her off guard.
When she had spoken about Alex before, Soren had listened in a gentle, steady way.
He asked questions, he paid attention, he encouraged her, but he had never pushed.
He had seemed happy for her, maybe a little amused, maybe a little protective, but still calm.
Today, though, he had become weirdly invested.
"No, that one's wrong."
Soren's voice cut cleanly across the aisle.
Olivia looked up just in time to see him staring at the outfit in Louise's hands with open disapproval, his arms folded as if the very sight of it offended him.
Louise lifted the clothes higher with a dramatic scoff.
"And why, exactly, is it wrong?"
"Because it is," Soren replied, as if that should have been self-evident. "The shape is fine, but the colour washes her out, the cut's too stiff, and that hoodie makes the whole thing look lazy."
Louise blinked.
"Look lazy?"
"Yes."
"It's a hoodie and jeans."
"It's a bad hoodie and jeans."
Olivia pressed a hand over her mouth, shoulders trembling with a quiet laugh.
Louise narrowed her eyes.
"Then what would you suggest, Little Brother, since you're suddenly the leading authority on women's fashion?"
Soren tilted his chin up in a way that was so smug it would have been unbearable on almost anyone else.
"Watch and learn."
Then he turned and disappeared deeper into the store with the brisk focus of someone who had just accepted a challenge.
Louise stared after him for a second, then let out an incredulous laugh of her own.
"Where has this attitude been hiding?"
Olivia could only shake her head, smiling despite herself.
They really did look like siblings.
Not just because Louise kept calling him her little brother, but because of how naturally they moved around each other now.
Their bickering had none of the strain of actual conflict.
Louise prodded, Soren pushed back, they interrupted each other constantly, and yet the rhythm never broke.
It felt easy, familiar, and warm.
Olivia's expression softened as she watched them.
Earlier, back at the café, she had noticed the awkwardness buried underneath Soren's expression whenever Louise was too kind, too close, too much like family.
It had not been obvious enough for someone careless to miss, but Olivia had always been good at noticing when people were trying not to show something.
Even then, though, Louise had kept treating him with the same bright warmth, and now, after drifting through the shopping district together for a while, some of that tightness seemed to have faded.
Soren looked lighter than he had before.
Still sarcastic, still a little sharp around the edges, but lighter.
He was arguing over skirts.
He was dragging Louise away from ugly blouses with offended disbelief.
He was making little dismissive noises at badly matched accessories.
And every now and then, when he forgot himself enough not to guard his face, he smiled, properly smiled, and it made him look younger somehow.
A few minutes later, Soren returned, and this time his arms were full.
"There," he said, laying several pieces down across the display table near Olivia with the kind of care people usually reserved for something far more important than clothes. "This is better."
Louise stepped closer, brows rising.
Olivia stood as well, leaning in to look.
Three outfits had been put together, not just random clothes pulled from nearby racks, but full looks, balanced and thought through all the way to the little details.
The first was soft and bright without being overdone, a cream blouse tucked into a warm brown skirt that fell just below the knee, paired with a light cardigan in a muted olive shade.
It looked gentle and neat, the kind of outfit that felt feminine without trying too hard.
The second was more relaxed, a pale sage top with a fitted beige skirt and a cropped knit layer that would sit comfortably over her figure without clinging too tightly.
It felt easy, fresh, and quietly cute.
The third was the most delicate of the three, a simple white sundress with a light brown belt to bring in a little shape, matched with sandals and a small shoulder bag in soft tan leather.
It was pretty in an effortless sort of way, like something meant for sunlight.
Olivia blinked.
He had not just picked pretty clothes; he had picked clothes that made sense.
Nothing was too expensive.
Nothing looked stiff or costume-like.
Nothing felt like it was trying to turn her into someone else.
The colours suited her hair and eyes, the cuts would flatter her without making her uncomfortable, and even just looking at them, Olivia could tell he had paid attention to things she herself barely knew how to say aloud.
Louise let out a low whistle, then raised both hands in surrender.
"Fine," she said. "I admit defeat."
Soren gave her a pleased little look that was almost unbearably smug.
"As you should."
"Oh, don't get used to it."
"I'm absolutely getting used to it."
Olivia laughed again, a little more openly this time.
"Why are you so good at this anyway, Soren?" she asked.
It slipped out before she thought too hard about it, but she did want to know.
This was not luck.
Every time Louise brought something over with full confidence, Soren took one glance at it and immediately found the problem, then returned with something that fit Olivia far better than whatever she might have chosen on her own.
Soren's expression shifted.
Only slightly, but enough.
The smugness loosened first, then the brightness behind it quieted.
For a brief second his gaze went somewhere else, not into the shop, not to Louise, not to Olivia, but inward, as if the question had brushed against something old.
"Well…" he said at last, and his voice came out softer than before. "You pick things up."
Olivia waited, but he didn't continue.
There was a faint wistfulness in his face, something difficult to name and even harder to touch without being rude.
It didn't feel like the kind of sadness that wanted comfort.
It felt more like a memory that had simply passed close for a moment.
So Olivia just nodded.
"Ah… okay," she said gently.
That seemed to be the right answer.
Soren blinked once, like he had noticed himself drifting, then exhaled and gave the clothes a small tap with the back of his fingers.
"Anyway, which one do you like best?" he asked, deliberately lighter now.
Olivia looked down at them again and found herself in immediate trouble.
Because the answer was all of them.
"I… don't know," she admitted after a moment, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "They're all really nice."
Louise crossed her arms and gave her an unimpressed look that did not hide the amusement in her eyes.
"That's not helpful."
"I know, sorry…"
"Then there's an easy solution," Louise said. "Try them on."
Olivia hesitated.
"All of them?"
"Yes, all of them."
"Is that okay…?"
Soren looked at her as if the question itself was strange.
"Why wouldn't it be?"
"Well, because…" Olivia glanced at the clothes, then at the fitting rooms, then back again. "I don't want to make trouble."
Soren snorted.
"Olivia, we dragged you through half the shopping district. You trying on the clothes is the least troublesome part of this."
"That's true," Louise said.
Olivia's cheeks warmed a little.
"When you say it like that…"
"Good," Louise said, already scooping the outfits together and placing them carefully into Olivia's arms. "Go on. We'll wait here."
Olivia accepted the clothes with both hands, clutching them to her chest.
They felt softer than she had expected.
More importantly, they felt chosen.
That made something small and fluttery move in her chest.
Not because of the clothes themselves, but because being looked after like this, pushed and fussed over and treated as though tomorrow mattered, made it difficult not to feel a little happy.
Even if she kept insisting it was not a date.
"Okay," she murmured. "I'll be back in a minute."
"Take your time," Soren said.
"And if you need help, call me," Louise added at once.
Olivia nodded, then turned and slipped behind the fitting room curtain, heart beating just a little faster than it should have.
Behind her, she could still hear Louise and Soren bickering faintly.
Something about shoes this time.
Olivia smiled to herself as she set the clothes down.
For the first time since this had all started, the nerves in her stomach felt a little less frightening.
————「❤︎」————