Beat the Heat

Cool Down

Hyoon walks into your shared apartment after Anime Expo, looking for you, and is surprised when you aren't in the living room next to the fan.

Hyoon, with a bit of anxiety: "Hiro? Hiro, where are you?"

She takes out her phone and checks your location. She's surprised to see it's a... cryogenics lab. She stares at the screen for a few seconds, trying to figure out why you'd go to one.

Hyoon, surprised: "A cryogenics lab? Honestly, I don't blame him — it's been hotter than hell lately. Maybe I'll join him."

She smiles at her own logic, grabs her keys, and heads your way — still in full Mina Ha cosplay.

25 minutes later.

Milkshake in hand, you step into the cryogenics lab, and the cool air hits your heat-exhausted body like an oasis. You walk to the counter, where a smaller woman is working at a computer before she looks up and smiles at you.

Maria: "Oh, a newcomer. My name is Maria. How may I help you?"

You smile back, trying not to be too awkward.

You: "Uh, one walk-in for cryotherapy, please?"

The heat has left you so wiped — mentally and physically — that you don't hear the door open again. Hyoon steps in, scans the room, and lights up when she spots you at the front desk just as you finish saying "one walk-in, please?" to Maria.

Hyoon: "Better make it a couples session, if you can."

You turn around and find your girlfriend standing behind you in full Mina regalia. You smile, happy to see her — but also confused. She's dressed in black and red, two of the hottest colors imaginable, and it's about 104°F (40°C) outside. You blink at her, repeatedly.

You: "Hey, darling. You look great, but why are you still in cosplay? It's super hot, and you're fully glammed out."

Hyoon spots your milkshake and takes it from your hand, helping herself to a long sip.

Hyoon: "I know, right? But I got home and you weren't there, so I checked your location, saw you were here, and just drove over straight from the con."

You: "Oh. Okay, well — you're welcome to join me, then."

Hyoon: "Damn right I am."

Maria laughs, clearly charmed by the two of you bickering like an old married couple, and sets you up in the couples room a few minutes later — once you've finished most of your milkshake. (Well, it was mostly Hyoon, but you get the point.)

When she leads you both to the cryotherapy chamber, Hyoon leans in close.

You, teasingly: "You know, I came here to beat the heat."

Hyoon: "I know. I just kind of don't want you to cool off too much."

You: "Hyoon."

She smiles and gives you a little space, settling in beside you.

You smile back and cup her face in your hand.

You: "You look gorgeous, by the way. But you always do."

Hyoon, smirking: "Oh, really? Even though I'm not silver, your buff werewolf wife?"

You: "Yes. The Mina cosplay came out really good."

Hyoon smiles and kisses your cheek right as the room's temperature drops to single digits. The cold is soothing, lulling you into something like a comforting sleep.

As you drift off, Hyoon leans in close to your ear.

Hyoon: "Sleep well, darling."

You wake up 45 minutes later, refreshed and much cooler, your head resting on Hyoon's ample thighs. The comfort of it nearly puts you right back to sleep.

Hyoon: "Welcome back to the land of the living, darling. Did you have pleasant dreams?"

You, smiling: "Of course."

Hyoon smiles and glances at the clock.

Hyoon: "Our time's almost up."

You: "Definitely closing in on that."

Hyoon: "You know, we should go on vacation to the southern hemisphere. It's winter there right now."

You: "Sure. Any place but Paraguay."

Hyoon: "Why not there?"

You: "Just trust me on that one. How about New Zealand?"

Hyoon: "Ooh, that sounds like fun. Let's do it."

Over the next few days, Hyoon and you plan an impromptu trip to Auckland to beat the heat some more. You've just been paid for your most recent voice acting gig — a side character in a JRPG from a newer studio — so you offer to pick up the tickets. Hyoon, for her part, tells her chat she won't be streaming for the week and is heading to New Zealand to escape the unrelenting heat. She promises to take plenty of pictures and post them, all while finishing up her latest illustrations.

During one of her streams, you walk in, and she lights up.

Hyoon, elated: "Hey chat, as you can see, my lovely boyfriend is packing for me."

You wave and smile.

Hyoon: "He's so good to me, guys."

As you walk out, you find yourself reminiscing about how you met Hyoon. You'd just started voice acting, and you'd befriended Reina — stage name Nyxara, a VTuber who was also in the game, cast as the main villainess.

She'd invited you to a party — her, a handful of her VTuber friends, some fellow voice actors, and a few influencers. While there, you spotted Hyoon in this insane black outfit that hugged her curves in an almost sinful way, but you didn't dwell on it too much — you were mostly riding a Fate kick at the time, hunting for someone to draw fanart of one of the new FGO characters, Omi (or "Snake Mommy," as the fandom called her). The two of you fell into a bizarre rhythm, driven by a mutual love of voluptuous women, that made talking effortless.