Petals, Shirokuma Literature Club, 762 characters

Saori was tearing off petals one by one.

"Love, hate, love..."

A bus stop in the early spring evening.
Sitting on an old bench, Saori looked down slightly, moving only her fingertips. Her profile was completely serious, and she didn't notice me approaching.

What she held in her hand was a violet. A violet has five petals. Therefore, since she started the first one with "love," the conclusion was already decided.

"What are you doing?"
Saori's shoulders jerked. The face she turned toward me turned red in an instant.

"How long have you been watching?"

"Since you tore off the first one."

"The worst."

"No, the worst part is the flower fortune-telling itself. A violet has five petals, so if you start with 'love,' the result will always be 'love.'"

Saori looked at me with teary eyes.
"I hate that about you."
Even as she said it, her voice sounded more exasperated than angry.

"But who were you fortune-telling for?"
When I asked that, Saori looked away obviously and said,

"You know without me saying it, right?"

After that, Saori said nothing more. She just turned red to the tips of her ears. It was then that I finally realized I had been quite tactless.

"Can I have one of those?"

When I said that, Saori looked at me, thought for a moment, and handed me the flower.

"Let's tell fortunes on whether the bus will come soon. It comes, it doesn't, it comes, it doesn't... It comes!"

Saori burst out laughing.
I laughed along with her.

Just then, the sound of a bus engine could be heard in the distance. I tilted my head to block Saori's view of the bus.

"That's a very accurate fortune. The person you were fortune-telling for must surely love you too, Saori."

"That's suddenly unfair."
Saying that, Saori smiled.

Then, with a satisfied look on her face, Saori stood up, slid her hand into mine, and held it.

We boarded the bus side by side.
Spring was still early. That was why the warmth of our joined hands felt so very warm.