章 88: A Stay-at-Home Date with the Angel
The worries they'd had while shopping had proved warranted. It wasn't just
drizzling, it was pouring. Sheets of water noisily pelted the ground. Amane
and Mahiru looked at each other and nodded seriously.
"Rain, huh?"
"Yes, rain."
They had expected as much when they'd heard the weather forecast, but
a long spell of rain had started the very day they'd planned to go out and
still hadn't let up, and now they weren't sure what to do.
Thankfully, the wind wasn't that strong, and it wasn't going to rain hard
enough for a state of emergency to be declared, so Amane's parents had
already left for work.
His parents couldn't stay home from work, but Amane and Mahiru's
outing wasn't essential.
There wasn't anything truly stopping them from going out, but in
weather like this, their clothes would likely get ruined, and if they got
drenched and caught colds, it would be no laughing matter.
"I don't think we should," Amane said. "I'm not ready to get soaked to
the bone."
"We could both end up catching colds, so let's scrap the idea," Mahiru
agreed.
"Okay. Well, I guess we can just relax at home."
Both of them preferred the indoors anyway, so it was no problem staying
at home. It was unfortunate that they'd lost the chance to go out on their
date, but the alternative wasn't so terrible, either.
Amane quickly abandoned their plans, chalking it up to bad timing. But
Mahiru's shoulders were drooping in disappointment.
Amane ruffled her hair. "Don't look so bummed. We can go out again
another time, right?"
"I know. It's just too bad that this had to happen when we went to all the
trouble of making plans."
"You wanted to go on a date that badly?"
"Of course I did."
"R-right, I see… I'm sorry to cancel when you were looking forward to
it so much."
In the face of her frank admission, Amane felt awkward, and his cheeks
tightened up strangely. Thankfully, Mahiru was looking out the window, so
she didn't seem to notice the change that came over him.
"Putting that aside, I'm happy to spend some time relaxing with you,
Amane… Though I could do without you constantly touching my ears like
you did the other day."
"What, are you trying to remind me so I'll touch them again?"
"Not a chance! If you keep touching and whispering in my ears, you'll
drive me to an early grave!"
"An early grave, huh? I think the real problem is how sensitive you are
to me."
"You're exactly the same, though."
He couldn't argue with that. However, Amane was sure he would never
react to anything with as much sensitivity as Mahiru.
If he touched one of her sensitive spots, that alone was enough to make
her tremble and curl up in a ball, so it was hard to know how aggressive he
could be. She was the type of girl who might run away or go pout if he
overdid it and overwhelmed her, so it was difficult to judge the right degree
of contact.
"I don't have as many weak spots as you do, Mahiru, so I'm not going to
bend that easily."
"I—I told you, didn't I? I'm going to make you cave."
"…You're already caving, and we haven't even done anything."
He smiled at how carelessly Mahiru had revealed the sensitivity of her
ears. Her red face made it clear she regretted the admission.
From the way she behaved, it had long been obvious that every time he
touched her ears or whispered into one of them, her knees gave out
dramatically, so it was a little late to be pointing it out now. But it seemed
Mahiru hadn't wanted him to find out.
"…Now that it's come to this, I'll have to use every possible means to
get you to fall madly in love with me, Amane."
"What could you possibly do, when I'm already crazy about you…?"
Leaving aside the question of caving, Amane was already captivated by
Mahiru. He only had eyes for her. It would be difficult to make him fall any
harder.
If he loved Mahiru any more ardently than he already did, he would lose
all self-control and would have to shut himself away.
"…You say things like that so smoothly, Amane."
"Well, it does embarrass me. But I've often heard that things turn sour if
you can't communicate with words. We're dating, so there shouldn't be a
problem with me telling you how I feel. And we're human, so we ought to
be able to find some mutual understanding by talking things over."
Amane had the feeling that he had said something similar once before.
Even if they were both in love with one another, sometimes it wasn't
enough just to show it with their behavior. By communicating openly
before things turned sour, they could both avoid extra dissatisfaction and
stress.
If a word could erase even the smallest seed of discontent, then it was
worth the effort. In fact, Amane didn't even think of it as effort.
He used his words so they wouldn't talk past one another, yes. But the
number one reason why he spoke so frankly was that Mahiru's reactions
were always extremely adorable, and he enjoyed watching her—though, he
couldn't tell her that.
"…I love how logical you are, too."
"Mm, thanks… I've noticed that since we started dating, you've been
saying you love me a lot."
"Th-that's, um, well the word just comes gushing out, and I can't help
saying it."
"…Oh."
From the way Mahiru was mumbling with embarrassment, it was plain
to see that her comment was not meant as shallow flattery.
From the beginning, Mahiru had never been anything less than genuine
with Amane. Even before they were dating, whenever she criticized him
harshly, she was speaking her true opinion. These days, she was probably
biased by her affection, but she never said anything she didn't truly believe,
so her words just now must also have been from the heart.
It was extremely embarrassing to be caught off guard like this, with her
saying such things straight to his face. Without meaning to, he let his eyes
wander around the room. Mahiru seemed to take notice.
"I embarrassed you just now, didn't I?"
"Is that so bad?"
"No. I just feel like I finally scored a point today."
"…Finally? But the day's just started."
"In that case, I might get quite a lead on you, Amane."
"I don't think there's any chance of that."
"What do you mean?"
"Just making a prediction based on what usually happens."
"…It sounds like you want me to blow your mind."
"Do your worst."
To tell the truth, he wanted her to keep things at a moderate level, but it
was clear that this was an expression of Mahiru's love for him, and so he
didn't want to dismiss it.
When he looked at her as if to say Give it your best shot, for some
reason a confident smile spread across her face, and she pulled a plastic
case out of a cardboard box sitting on the table.
"Then allow me to start with this," she said.
"Wait a sec; where did you get that?"
Amane immediately recognized the thing Mahiru had pulled out. Inside
the plastic case was a disc labeled in bold permanent marker: GROWING UP—
ONE YEAR OLD.
As soon as he saw it, he wanted to quip that it was not the kind of mindblowing that he was expecting.
"From your mother's collection, of course."
"…Why did she give it to you?"
"She said that if it turned out we had to stay in, we could watch this
instead. She laid out all sorts of drama DVDs, too."
Amane's parents were the types to watch any genre of movie, Western
or Japanese, and they kept a fair collection of DVDs at home. While that
would certainly suffice for killing time, Amane couldn't believe that his
mother would slip in a home video when she handed them over to Mahiru.
Come to think of it, she showed Mahiru that photo album without my
permission, so maybe it's not that far-fetched.
In fact, whether he believed it or not, his mother had already handed
over the video, so all he could do now was curse his bad luck.
"…So am I right that you don't really like looking back on things like
this?"
"It's not that I hate it, but it's hard to sit down and enjoy a video full of
my own past embarrassments."
Mahiru had seen the photo album, so in a way it was already too late,
but there was a world of difference between photos and video.
Amane didn't think his parents had kept anything truly humiliating, but
this was his mother's doing, and he wasn't sure how far he could trust her.
Amane wasn't too thrilled about watching the DVD, but if Mahiru
wanted to, he would allow it, though he would have liked to inspect it first.
"Did you really do anything you'd need to be ashamed of?" she asked.
"I was a much naughtier kid than you think, Mahiru…"
"My indoors-y Amane?"
"I feel like you're implying something there… But anyway, I was just a
normal kid; that's all."
Although the photographs didn't really make it obvious, Amane had
been an extremely active boy when he was little. He had gone out exploring
with other children his age and played at the houses of kids of all ages.
He'd been bursting with a friendliness and energy hard to imagine now.
Looking back on it, Amane thought that he had probably grown up a
healthy little rascal precisely because the adults in the community had kept
a friendly eye out for all the children.
Though, now I've settled down to the point where it's hard to believe I
was ever a rascal.
"…Now I want to see it even more. I bet you used to go around greeting
everyone in your neighborhood with a big smile, didn't you?"
"…Well, I think I was pretty friendly."
He remembered having an extremely good reputation with people his
mother's age and older. Though he had probably gotten a boost from his
mother's own popularity.
"I bet you were super cute when you were little, Amane."
"…If you want to watch the video, you can, but I don't think it will be
that interesting."
"Don't say that! I'm excited to see a side of you that I don't know."
"…Do whatever you like."
He didn't feel like stopping her, since she was holding up the DVD case
in such high spirits. Though Amane was somewhat reluctant, he figured he
could probably stand a bit of embarrassment and decided to let Mahiru do
as she pleased.
"When I was growing up, no one really took photos or videos of me, so I
think it's kind of nice that you have things like this," Mahiru mumbled as
she carefully embraced the DVD case.
Amane watched her, pretending he hadn't heard a thing.
He didn't want to make too much of it, since she had said it in a
particularly dispirited tone of voice, but when he looked at her expression,
he saw that her smile was a little lonesome. It didn't linger, however, but
flitted past, like the twinge of an old scar.
Amane pursed his lips automatically when he thought about how
Mahiru's parents had neglected her. But he figured it would only make her
uncomfortable now to know how angry he was.
That was why he had sworn in his heart to never let her experience such
loneliness again.
"…Mahiru, does that mean you're the kind who likes to keep childhood
records?"
"It's lonely not to have anything, so I guess I do. I think both good
memories and bad can help you grow when you look back at them later
with a new perspective."
"Well, in that case, when it comes time for all that, we'll have to take
lots of pictures and videos like this—and leave plenty of records."
He swiftly took the DVD case from Mahiru's hands and put the disc into
the player.
Although he didn't mention what he'd meant by "all that," Amane had
already made up his mind, and his resolution and love were unwavering. He
had confidence in his instincts. He was going to give Mahiru the thing she
craved from the bottom of her heart—no, they were going to build it
together, he was sure of it.
He didn't know how she had taken his words, but when he finished
setting up the DVD and returned to Mahiru's side on the sofa, he could see
her infinitely genuine eyes were open wide and blinking quickly.
"Something the matter?" he asked.
"N-no, nothing at all…!"
It seemed like she was having difficulty settling on a reaction. Many
different emotions flashed in her eyes as Amane watched, smiling. His gaze
seemed to be embarrassing her.
After clearing her throat, Mahiru shifted her gaze to the DVD footage
that had begun to play back.
This is the kind of thing we'll just have to take slowly.
Amane was still a child, unable to take full responsibility.
Putting his ideals into words was easy, but he lacked just about
everything he needed to turn them into reality. Life was not so easy that
good intentions alone could ensure everything would turn out all right.
The first thing he had to do was gradually prove to her that the passion
behind his feelings was everlasting.
Feeling that warmth settle deep in his chest, he smiled at Mahiru, who
was fidgeting a little beside him.
"Well, here's the video of my childhood you were so eager to see. I think
anyone's cute when they're that age, though."
"…You were a cute kid," Mahiru mumbled while watching the footage.
"I can see traces of it when I look at you now, but as expected, the
expression in your eyes was softer back then, huh?" She seemed to have
pulled herself together.
With a wry smile, Amane responded, "I guess these days I do look a
little mean."
In the past, he'd had quite a childish and androgynous face, and even
Amane, who didn't have much self-confidence, thought he was a cute kid.
All sorts of scenes played before them. Some of them Amane didn't
really remember, and others he did. They saw Amane chatting and smiling
at the neighbors as they strolled by walking their dogs, Amane playing
innocently with other children in the park, and young Amane with his
delighted mother, riding a bicycle for the first time.
Mahiru was absorbed in the images, and it seemed like their earlier
conversation might have temporarily left her mind. As for Amane, he
couldn't help but wish that, if possible, she would forget this instead.
"Oh, that boy showed up before, too, right?"
They'd only been watching for about an hour, but several years had
passed by in the video.
They had watched many scenes of Amane playing with other children,
and it must have caught her eye that, while the other faces changed, one
particular boy appeared time after time.
"Ah, that's someone my age who lived in the neighborhood. I guess you
could call us childhood friends. We had kind of a complicated relationship,
but I was fairly good friends with him."
At this point, it was nostalgic for Amane to look back at a time when
they had been close, but he didn't feel any lingering attachment or desire to
return to those days.
Amane couldn't say with any confidence that he liked how he was now,
but he was working toward becoming a version of himself that he could be
proud of without reservation, so he felt no pull to return to a time when he
was carefree and naive about the world.
Amane had smoothly deflected Mahiru's question, so without saying
anything else, she turned her gaze back to the television.
The youthful, somewhat shrill voice of the boy in the video told him that
his childhood self was in high spirits.
As he watched himself covered in dirt from frolicking too much in the
summertime, his mind flooded with memories of a different time.
"…Amane, you really were way more of a little rascal than I expected."
"I mean, I was a kid. I did all sorts of things, got scolded by my mother,
and learned better… Wait, Mahiru, we can't watch this next part."
When the video moved into the hallway of his house, Amane
remembered what had been filmed next. In a panic, he grabbed the remote
control and smashed the PAUSE button.
He'd moved so suddenly that Mahiru stiffened in her seat. But for the
sake of his dignity and the purity of Mahiru's eyes, he simply couldn't let
her see it.
"Huh, why did you pause?" she asked.
"Well, I have a feeling what comes next is kind of inappropriate. It's
shameful for me, but more importantly, it'll be embarrassing for you to
watch."
"…Are you being honest? Or do you just not want to show it to me?"
"Well, that's part of it, but not all. You won't be able to look me in the
eye afterward."
Amane didn't want her to see him in such a state, and he wasn't
interested in seeing it, either. And Mahiru being Mahiru, if she saw it, she
might be rendered temporarily speechless.
He wasn't sure how to explain the problem to her as she looked at him
with suspicion, but he figured she would understand best if he said it
directly. He took a deep breath and braced himself.
"…Well, um, I'm sure you know that at the end of this hallway is the
bathroom. It's a video of me getting a bath."
He looked at Mahiru as if to ask whether she wanted to see a naked boy,
even if he was a child under the age of five, and she stiffened. Apparently,
the truth had caught her by surprise.
Amane would have liked to complain to his mother about keeping such
unsavory mementos, but she wasn't there to criticize.
"…S-sorry for asking," Mahiru said at last.
"It's fine, so long as you understand. I wish my parents had been more
sensitive about what parts of my childhood they decided to film."
"N-no kidding."
Amane figured that they'd seen enough home movies and stopped the
tape, but Mahiru put on a slightly regretful expression and deliberately
shrugged.
"…Oh, were you interested, after all?" he said teasingly.
"D-don't make me out to be a pervert, please!"
"You just seemed a little curious is al— Ouch! Okay, okay. I know you
didn't want to see it, so please don't head-butt me."
He'd only been joking, but Mahiru seemed to take it seriously. She
smooshed her bright-red face into his shoulder and looked like she was
sulking, so he offered her an honest apology.
Mahiru spent a moment grinding her head into his arm. She was giving
off a lot of heat. Slowly, she rose to meet Amane's gaze and stuck out her
lip in a pout.
"…Amane, you're a bully."
"I said I was sorry. Come on, cheer up, okay?"
She seemed likely to pull away from him if he teased her too much, so
he clasped one of her tense hands and gave her the kindest smile he could
muster. Mahiru pressed her lips tightly together and looked at him with
dissatisfaction.
"…I'm sure you would be curious if you were in my position, Amane."
"I dunno; I don't really have any interest in children… And didn't you
basically just admit you were curious?"
"I did not! Stupid!"
By the time he realized he'd gone too far, it was too late. Mahiru slipped
out of Amane's gentle hold and slapped at his thighs.
He must have hit the nail on the head, he thought. As indescribably
embarrassed and self-conscious as it made him, he still felt happy that she
had shown an interest. Fearing that he might smile against his better
judgment, he decided to head to the kitchen to fix drinks, hoping that might
help Mahiru settle down.
Trying to give her some space to cool off, Amane took a little extra time
and prepared one of the sweet drinks Mahiru seemed to like. But when he
returned to the living room, she was glaring daggers at him.
"Come on, snap out of it. I brought you some homemade iced cocoa."
"…If you think you can bribe me into a good mood, you're sorely
mistaken."
"You don't want it?"
"N-no, I do, but… Good grief."
It seemed like Mahiru was going to accept the offering, after all. Smiling
inconspicuously, so that she wouldn't see, Amane politely handed it over.
This cocoa required a bit of effort to make. You had to dissolve a very
strong paste with milk in a pan and then chill the mixture with ice. It was
one of Mahiru's favorite drinks.
Because it had to be made in a pan, the cleanup took some effort, too, so
Amane rarely made the drink for himself. But when he made it for Mahiru
after thoughtlessly hurting her feelings, she would gracefully accept the
bribe and listen to what he had to say.
After confirming she had taken a sip, he asked, "Is the flavor all right?"
Her accusatory gaze softened somewhat. "…It's good."
"Glad to hear it."
"Are you sure you're not trying to weasel your way out of this with a
tasty treat?"
"…I would never."
Mahiru glanced at Amane, who was smiling wryly, and stood up with
the mug of cocoa still in her hand.
Amane broke into a cold sweat, worried that she had been so offended
that she was going to go back to the guest room. But Mahiru immediately
sat back down, and his worry subsided.
Now he had a different reason to sweat.
"…Mahiru?"
"…The air conditioner is on, so I'm feeling cold."
Mahiru had taken a seat in between Amane's legs. She looked up at him
with an impish smile.
Amane let out a very deep sigh that was part relief and part reluctance.
"How far do you want to go?"
"I don't mind letting you do as you please, but if you try to go too far, I
think you know what will happen to the cocoa, right?"
The other day, she had said she liked being touched, but it was clear that
this was payback.
"It will probably spill on you."
"Yes, it sure will."
"In that case, I won't do anything."
"Fine by me."
It was a bold strategy, using herself as a hostage, but it was very
effective against Amane.
He hadn't been planning to do anything either way, but since Mahiru
was directly and deliberately driving her point home, he smiled as well and
spread both arms to emphasize his innocence, striking a pose that made it
clear he wasn't doing a thing.
"The draft between us is cold," she said.
"You've gotten a little demanding, haven't you, Mahiru?"
"You don't like me making demands?"
"I never said that. Actually, I wish you would do it more."
Mahiru was usually very self-disciplined, and he hoped she would at
least allow her boyfriend to spoil her silly. If she had any wish that Amane
could grant, he intended to do it. He was ready to deny himself anything, if
it would only make Mahiru smile.
However, Mahiru seemed to feel the same way, and she was always
spoiling him, so often a quiet struggle would break out between them over
who would take the initiative… But that day, it seemed Mahiru was going
to be agreeable and let him spoil her.
Mahiru looked relaxed as she sipped her iced cocoa. She was leaning her
whole weight against Amane as he held her.
"…Oh, I just noticed you didn't make yourself any, Amane."
"I'm not that fond of sweets. And besides, I feel fulfilled just watching
you drink yours."
Simply gazing at Mahiru as she relished the cocoa with a smile was
gratifying enough for Amane. He didn't need his own cup.
"We haven't even had lunch yet," she said, "and you're already full."
"I meant spiritually fulfilled."
"So you don't want lunch?"
"I do, I do."
Those are two completely different issues, Amane thought. With his
arms wrapped around Mahiru's body, he gently squeezed to emphasize his
point. When he did, she chuckled in his arms.
"You're quick to change your mind," she said. "Amane, you're perfectly
capable of cooking something by now."
"…I want to eat what you make, Mahiru, and I won't be satisfied by
anything else. Though, I feel bad making you do all the work."
Even as he spoke, he was aware that he sounded kind of pathetic. But he
had gotten so used to eating Mahiru's cooking that any other food now
seemed flavorless.
Of course, that didn't mean he couldn't eat it. He just found it lacking.
"Oh, you're hopeless."
"I know full well that you captured my heart through my stomach,
Mahiru."
"Feel free to keep going until you can't live without me."
"I'm already there."
In the time he had spent with Mahiru, Amane had learned to take decent
care of himself. But being with her was what made life worth living.
After all, this was the first time he had ever cared so much about and
wanted to treasure someone else, so he couldn't help but feel like the world
would lose its color if he was torn away from her.
If he had to live on his own again, trudging through those uneventful,
colorless days would be akin to a living death.
It wasn't just her cooking. Mahiru's very presence was part of what
made Amane who he was now, and so he couldn't live without her. That
was the meaning behind his response. But Mahiru's body noticeably
stiffened.
"Y-you really have a way of putting things, Amane."
"What way would that be?"
"Never mind. Okay, all right, I'll make lunch."
Mahiru drained the remaining half of her cocoa and stood up. Amane
looked at her, a little regretful that her warmth and softness had disappeared
from his grasp.
"You don't want to take your time drinking the cocoa?"
"And whose fault do you think it is that I can't…? I—I finished my
drink, so I'm going to go cook. It's lunchtime already anyway!"
When Amane followed Mahiru's finger and looked at the clock, he saw
that it was indeed past noon.
"Oh, you're right, it is lunchtime. Um, I can help, or—"
"Not today!"
It seemed like she was just making up an excuse to escape. But before
he was able to point that out, she'd already fled to the kitchen. So Amane
pretended like he hadn't heard anything and silently thanked Mahiru for
cooking his meal.
After they had eaten lunch, while Amane was washing the dishes, he
suddenly realized Mahiru had disappeared.
It wasn't like they always had to be together, but since she had slipped
away unnoticed, he couldn't help wondering what had happened. Did she
have something to take care of? Or had she suddenly felt unwell?
Thinking back to their earlier exchange, she had seemed completely
normal after their meal, so he didn't think she'd disappeared to sulk, but he
couldn't completely write off the possibility, either.
He decided to go check on her and turned off the water. But with truly
perfect timing, he immediately heard someone coming down the stairs.
The footsteps were lighter than his own, and when he turned around to
look in their direction, he froze.
He was glad he hadn't been holding any plates. If he had, they probably
would have splashed back into the sink.
"So since we're having our long-awaited stay-at-home date, I thought I
would wear the outfit I had prepared for it."
Mahiru had on the off-the-shoulder dress she had mentioned the other
day, looking as if she was trying to hide her embarrassment.
She normally didn't wear very revealing outfits—at most, she might put
something over a sleeveless top. But now she was showing everything from
her neck down to her shoulders, even her collarbone.
All that skin, normally never exposed, was right out in the open, and
though the sky outdoors was covered by thick dark-gray clouds, the space
around Mahiru seemed bright and dazzling.
The sleeves of the dress were three-quarter length, so they didn't show
as much as a sleeveless top would have. But the places it did expose were
normally covered up, which made a greater impression.
"What do you think, does it suit me?" she asked.
"It does. It looks amazing on you."
In fact, the sight had been so striking that Amane had accidentally
forgotten to compliment her. Under Mahiru's pointed gaze, he hurried to
react.
Sure, Amane had said he thought the dress would suit her when she
bought it, but he had never expected it to be such a knockout.
It didn't show a lot of skin, really, but it had a subtle sensuality that
nevertheless meshed with Mahiru's clean image—probably aided by her
poise and features.
"…Thank you," she replied.
"Maybe it would be better if I gave you more specific compliments?
You've got beautiful skin, so when you show it off like this, you're
positively radiant. Plus, outfits that emphasize your slim figure are perfect.
This way, the clothes complement your natural beauty, rather than steal
away the attention. Also, you look taller than usual in a dress with this sort
of design. I think it looks refined and makes you seem more mature."
His vocabulary on the topic was lacking, so he wasn't sure if he was
doing a good job complimenting her. But since she had gotten all dressed
up for him, he used every word he knew trying to praise her.
Mahiru got flustered and shook her head.
"I—I get it, okay, that's enough! What are you trying to do, make me
blush?"
"I'm just saying what I want to say. Watching you blush from the
compliments is a bonus."
He wasn't flattering Mahiru; he was truly complimenting her, and doing
so satisfied him, so it wasn't like he was trying to get her to do anything in
particular.
He felt like his heart would overflow if he didn't put his feelings into
words and expel them.
"Thank you very much. But n-no more, I'm quite full."
"Is that because we just ate lunch?"
"I—I feel like you're just getting revenge for earlier…"
"Whatever could you be talking about?"
He was being deliberately cheeky, but the praise he had heaped on her
was genuine and true.
However, he was worried that if he overdid it, Mahiru might become too
flustered to speak. So he left things there and dried his hands with the towel
he had laid out.
"Well then, I'm finished with washing the dishes, and I took care of the
housework I was asked to do earlier, so what should we do now?"
Mahiru had gone to the trouble of changing clothes, but the weather had
remained the same—it was still raining.
The news had said the typhoon wouldn't move away before late that
night, and it seemed that the forecast was right on the money.
There were limits to the things the two of them could do in his parents'
house.
They had already looked at home videos earlier. They could watch a
film, or read some of the books in the study, or else dutifully get started on
their schoolwork.
Those were the things Amane usually did when he was at home, but
they seemed too ordinary for a date.
"…I just want to relax and spend time with you, Amane; would that be
okay?"
"It's totally fine with me, but won't you get bored?"
"Of course not, I'm the one who suggested it. I'm plenty satisfied just
being by your side."
Mahiru was as adorable as ever. Amane felt himself smile as he softly
patted her head.
"Okay. Then I guess we can just kick back. Though, since this is my
parents' house, there aren't a ton of things we can do to amuse ourselves."
All the games and movies that Amane would usually enjoy with Mahiru
were back in his own apartment. He'd left them behind in order to save
luggage space, but now he was thinking that he should have brought at least
one game.
However, he also knew from experience that the two of them could be
perfectly happy even without such things, and that was certainly more
economical, he thought wryly.
"Feeling satisfied just by being together saves a lot of energy, doesn't
it?" he said.
"Heh-heh, so it does. I bet that's the trick to staying together long-term,
you know?"
"I don't think that really counts as a trick. More a matter of
compatibility and character, but…there's no question that the two of us
mesh well."
With friends and lovers, Amane felt that the key to longevity wasn't
whether two people had fun together, but whether they could endure the
silent times. For that reason, he figured he and Mahiru, who both felt
completely satisfied even when they weren't talking, must be extremely
compatible.
Though that day they were on a date, so of course they were talking and
paying attention to each other.
"Want to go to my room? …Not for anything inappropriate, just in case
you were wondering."
"Of course! I never suspected you meant anything else."
"I kind of wish you would, actually…"
Mahiru seemed prepared to allow him to do just about anything, but he
had mixed feelings about not being the subject of even a little suspicion.
Smiling wryly at Mahiru's exceptional degree of confidence in him,
Amane led her by the hand to his room.
The majority of the furniture had been taken out, so the space was rather
empty. But that only made Mahiru's splendid presence all the more
conspicuous.
Amane briefly worried about where they would sit, before climbing onto
the bed and taking a seat where the soft surface wouldn't hurt Mahiru's
backside. She cast her eyes downward, looking a little embarrassed, but
then sat down naturally between Amane's legs and leaned back against him.
He felt joy and hesitation as he noted that her attitude of complete trust
really got him going. Despite his feelings, however, Amane kept a firm lid
on his urges as he embraced her.
This time, he held her even tighter.
Careful not to hurt her, he pulled Mahiru's body close so he could
experience her softness and warmth. When he put his chin on one of her
smooth shoulders and leaned against her, Mahiru shuddered slightly.
"…Ah, um, Amane?"
"Surely this is fine, right? I'm not touching anything I shouldn't."
The parts he was touching were her stomach and back, as well as her
shoulders.
Since Mahiru had changed clothes, the skin beneath his chin was
uncovered, and he could feel its silky texture directly.
When he stealthily glanced down, he saw that her décolletage was
exposed by her off-the-shoulder dress, so the luxurious swells and valley of
cleavage were peeking out of her clothing.
It was a superb view, but if he looked too long, wicked thoughts would
rise to his mind, so Amane pulled away his gaze and planted a kiss on one
of her ears, which had turned bright red.
"Hya! …I—I thought I told you this morning to stop playing with my
ears."
"Or you'll go weak in the knees?"
"I-it's not that bad, but…it makes me restless, so you shouldn't do it."
"All right, I'll stop. But only so that I have a trump card later."
Rather than teasing her all the time, it would probably be more effective
to touch her ears only on special occasions. If she got used to it, the thrill
she felt would grow dull, so it was best not to overdo it. For the time being,
he set aside the question of what was best from Mahiru's perspective.
"That sounds just as bad."
"Or I could get you used to it now?"
"I don't like either option!"
Mahiru looked back forcefully, and this time she was glaring intensely at
him with a bright-red face.
He could tell that she would start sulking again if he overdid it, so
Amane tenderly whispered he was sorry and wrapped his arms around her
body again.
"…You tease too much, Amane."
"Sorry, sorry, I won't do it again… At any rate, that dress looks amazing
on you. It looks so good it would be a waste to show it to anyone else, so
I'm glad we're relaxing at home."
Frankly, most of Mahiru's clothes were very stylish, and this outfit was
no exception. The off-the-shoulder dress suited her perfectly. She made it
her own, more than any model could have.
With her smooth shoulders and defenseless décolletage so exposed,
Amane honestly didn't want anyone else to see her.
He hated the idea of other men looking at her kissable, porcelain skin, in
perfect health thanks to her untiring efforts. As he gazed at it, he even found
himself a little grateful for the bad weather.
"…I can easily tell that this sort of dress is to your liking, Amane."
"T-to my liking? I just think it looks good on you. Simple clothes with
some accents suit you. More than flashy outfits, at least."
"That's good to hear. I bought this because I wanted you to see it."
"In that case, I want to get a better look."
At the moment, he was embracing her tightly from behind, so it was
hard to see the front of the dress. He had caught a glimpse of it earlier, but
he wanted to take a closer look.
At a word from Amane, Mahiru timidly turned her whole body around
to face him and looked up at him with upturned eyes. She seemed a little
uneasy.
He couldn't say whether she was nervous about being observed so
closely or embarrassed to face him directly while sitting on the bed. But
either way, he could tell she was feeling shy.
"…It looks great. Very cute."
"I—I know that. I know that you think I'm cute, Amane."
"Mm… This is going to sound embarrassing, but I think you're cuter
than anyone else in the world."
Amane only had feelings for Mahiru, so for the time being, he had no
intention of using the word cute to express his affection to anyone else. In
the future, he might end up saying it to someone, but he wouldn't use it
lightly.
Amane was being thoroughly genuine as he stroked Mahiru's cheek.
Meanwhile, her eyes were darting all around the room.
"…Amane, you're being much more honest and bolder today."
"Because we're on a date. Even if it's a stay-at-home date."
The day before, Amane's father had really driven home that the boy
ought to take the lead when he was on a date. Ultimately, they hadn't ended
up going out, but the fact that they were having their date at home didn't
change anything, so Amane figured he ought to seize the initiative.
When he tickled Mahiru's bright-red cheeks with his fingers, her face
relaxed into a smile, and she cast a bashful gaze downward.
"…If you always came on this strongly, I don't think I could handle it,"
she said.
"Then should I make a habit of it to help you acclimate…?"
"Y-you can't… My heart won't be able to take it."
"Is it pounding that hard?"
"…It is."
Mahiru grabbed Amane's hand and pressed it right to the center of her
chest.
Though it was only the back of his hand, her softness and warmth came
through perfectly well. As did her strong heartbeat, no doubt quite a bit
faster than usual.
He could feel its throbbing clearly through the thin fabric.
He held his breath and looked at Mahiru, and their eyes met.
In that moment, though her caramel-colored eyes were tearing up with
embarrassment, she fixed her gaze on him as if she was about to make some
sort of appeal.
"…It's unfair that your heart isn't pounding, too, Amane."
"…But it is. Very hard, in case you were wondering."
"Really?"
Mahiru buried her face in Amane's chest.
She probably did it partially to hide her shyness. But once she made out
the rhythm of Amane's heart, throbbing loudly enough that even Amane
could hear it, Mahiru murmured, looking pleased, "It really is."
"…Of course it's pounding. Look what my girlfriend's doing to me."
"But recently you've had this sort of…composure… It's not fair."
"But if I wasn't composed, I wouldn't seem very cool, would I?"
"That's not true. You're always cool, Amane."
"…Thanks very much."
He wanted to ask Mahiru whether she was saying that precisely because
she knew it would make him lose his cool, but she probably really meant it,
so he swallowed his words.
Instead, he squeezed her as she pressed against his chest and stroked her
head.
"Damn, you're cute," he muttered quietly.
Mahiru lifted just the upper half of her face from Amane's chest and
gave him a sheepish look. That glance alone brought intense feelings of
affection surging out. It was obvious even to him that she really had him
under her spell.
In a bid to regain some semblance of calm, Amane innocently patted and
caressed Mahiru's head, and perhaps because her shyness had abated, she
let him do it, seeming to enjoy herself.
Mahiru always appeared to like having her head patted, so maybe it
helped her calm down.
"…Hey, Mahiru?"
"Yes?"
"I was thinking, if this is a date, that must mean that we're, like, always
on a date, right? Since you're usually over at my place."
The reason Amane didn't feel like a stay-at-home date was an especially
significant event was probably because he was used to having Mahiru
around.
She was almost always there when he was spending time at home.
But they rarely ever flirted like they were doing now. Instead, they
usually relaxed and chatted as they watched television, ate together, or
studied—activities that didn't seem very date-like.
Perhaps that was why he hardly ever felt particularly nervous or excited.
"Heh-heh, good point. If this is all it is, I guess we're having stay-athome dates every day, aren't we?"
"Maybe so. Though, I'd like to try going to your place instead of mine
from time to time."
"To my apartment…?"
"Oh, I mean, I don't have any secret intentions. I guess I'm just
curious."
Mahiru was usually, or rather always the one going to Amane's
apartment, so he had a desire to reverse things and try visiting her place
instead.
Though he had been inside it once before, on that occasion, he certainly
hadn't been looking around. He was simply curious to see the place that
Mahiru lived in, but when guys say they want to go into a girl's apartment,
they tend to be suspected of ulterior motives.
That's why he'd never been able to voice the sentiment.
"I don't really mind," she said, "but…it's nothing special, you know?"
"I'm just curious… Also, there's something I wanted to check."
"What's that?"
"I just wanted to see what kind of picture of me you put in that frame on
top of your desk."
Mahiru had mentioned the picture frame before.
He truly hadn't noticed it the one time he was in her apartment, so he'd
been confused when she brought it up. But now that they were dating, he
had figured it out.
She must have gone out of her way to confirm that he hadn't seen it
because it was a picture of him.
From time to time, Mahiru, Itsuki, or Chitose would take his picture, so
he had several candidates in mind, but he was curious which one it was.
"Wh-wha…?! Y-you knew about that?!"
"No, I just kind of figured it out after we started dating."
If he had known about the photo back then, he might have found his
resolve a little sooner. A girl didn't normally keep a boy's photo displayed
unless she really liked him, after all.
"…And y-you didn't find that creepy?"
"Why would it?"
"Depending on the circumstances, printing your photo and putting it up
in my room kind of makes me sound like a stalker…"
"Hmm, that really does depend on the circumstances, though, doesn't it?
If some stranger took a secret photo of me, I wouldn't really like that. But
you're different. And anyway, you're probably the one who took it, either
directly or by asking Itsuki or Chitose. That means I must have known it
was being taken, and even if we weren't dating, I doubt I would be upset at
you for displaying it… So seriously, which picture is it?"
"…One of you smiling. Mr. Akazawa took it for me, so it's a smile that I
don't get to see…"
"So he's been slipping you stuff behind my back, huh?"
Amane was already aware that Itsuki and his girlfriend had been
conspiring to support Mahiru, so he had no intention of reproaching his
friend. But he was a little concerned that Itsuki might be sending her weird
photos of him.
Convincing himself that Itsuki had at least enough good sense not to do
that, Amane shrugged and said, "Well, that's fine then."
Mahiru let out an obvious sigh of relief.
"Thank goodness," she said. "I was wondering what I would do if you
ended up hating me…"
"Think of it the other way around. How would you feel if I said I had a
photo of you?"
"That would make me happy, but I would wonder about the composition
and the picture quality… Oh, I see. So that's what this is about?"
"Exactly. But it doesn't sound like it's a weird photo, and you'll go
bright red again if I keep harping on it, so I'll drop it for now."
If he teased her too much, Mahiru was likely to hug her knees and stop
listening to him for a while. So he backed off meekly, though she seemed to
guess why, glaring up at him with almost teary eyes.
But there was no blame in her gaze, probably because she was the one
who had displayed his photo without permission.
Mahiru couldn't say anything more. Amane smiled slightly and patted
her back to comfort her.
"But forgetting about all that, aren't you curious about your boyfriend's
room?"
"I see your room quite often."
"It's true you come in to wake me up, and you've taken naps in my
room, too."
Like he said, Mahiru entered Amane's bedroom on a fairly frequent
basis.
Once he had come back home from a shopping trip and gone to his room
to change clothes, only to see Mahiru sleeping there peacefully, causing him
extreme consternation.
He had given her permission to go in, and there wasn't anything inside
that he didn't want her to see. But he wished she would spare a thought
about how her boyfriend would feel when he saw his girlfriend sleeping
defenselessly in his own bed.
"I—I mean…your scent…is calming, and…"
"Well, it's not very calming for me. Normally, if a girl was sleeping in
her boyfriend's bed, he would make a move on her."
"…What a gentleman you are."
"I'm happy that you trust me enough to let down your guard, but it's
really testing my self-control, so please use some restraint."
"I'm sorry."
"…Next time, I'm holding a photo shoot of your sleeping face."
"D-don't do that."
"Then don't tempt me."
Mahiru didn't seem to especially object to the idea of him seeing her
sleeping face, but she apparently hated the idea of him photographing it, a
feeling he didn't really understand.
"To the best of my ability, I will limit my sleeping to times when I'm
staying over," she said.
"…Okay."
When Mahiru shyly but happily mumbled those words, it reminded
Amane that, although they hadn't decided what day yet, she had promised
to stay over. Heat suddenly rose to his face.
He thought his reason might fail him if Mahiru was to lie down beside
him dressed the way she was now. If she pressed against him and looked all
bashful, he wasn't confident he could keep his hands off her.
"…I'd like to request that you wear extra-thick pajamas," he said.
"But it's so hot this time of year…"
"I won't know what to do."
"…You don't like frilly things?"
"If you don't care what happens to you, you can come over wearing
whatever you like," he answered, implying that something might indeed
happen if she did.
After staring intently up at him for a moment, Mahiru slowly smiled.
"If it's what you want, Amane, I'm all right with anything."
"…I know that, but—"
"Will you do something, then?"
"…Dammit! Now that you've made such a trusting statement, I can't."
Once she tilted her head and looked at him with that sweet, innocent
expression, there was nothing he could do.
Of course, he hadn't been planning to do anything from the beginning,
but he felt strangely frustrated, like he had been outmaneuvered.
"…I knew from the moment you gave me a warning that you had no
intention to."
"Oh hush."
"Heh-heh. I think, overall, I've come out on top today. You're always
pulling one over on me, but I won for once." Mahiru smiled impishly.
"Damn, you're cute," Amane answered, his words more praise than
complaint, and lightly kissed the victor.
This alone was enough to turn Mahiru's face bright red, leaving her
speechless and throwing her victory into question. She looked adorable.
"…That's no fair."
"What?"
"In the end, I always lose, don't I…?"
"That's not true. Let me have this one, since I lost to your charms long
ago."
It simply wasn't true that Mahiru was always on the losing end of things.
Amane was constantly done in by Mahiru's cuteness, and he wished she
would occasionally yield him a victory.
"I guess there's no helping it, then…," she replied as she blushed and
cast her eyes downward. Amane smiled slightly, happy that she'd given in
to his argument.
Before Mahiru began to suspect that his smile came from a place of
amusement, he hugged her closely, pressing her face into his chest.
Maybe that made her happy because she changed position slightly to
snuggle against Amane, leaning into him.
He knew she was letting him pamper her like this precisely because she
trusted him, and a heartwarming smile, different from the one a moment
earlier, curled his lips.
"…You're quite clingy," he observed.
"You told me I could be."
"That's right. You can cling to me as much as you like."
"If I do that, I'll end up getting spoiled rotten, though…"
"You've already spoiled me rotten, so this is payback."
"I don't expect anything in return."
Mahiru raised her head and gave him a slightly dissatisfied look. In
response, he planted a kiss on her lips, tenderly and gently this time. Her
face lit up red with such energy that he could almost hear the sound of a gas
stove lighting.
"…I get the feeling you think you can smooth over anything with a
kiss," she said.
"You don't like it?"
"I don't dislike it, but… Hmm."
He heard her grumble quietly about how it wasn't fair, before grinding
her forehead into his chest. Amane smiled and carefully tidied up her
slightly disheveled hair with his fingers.
He combed through it with his hand, and it was soon back in order. Her
smooth, glossy, straight hair was extremely pleasant to touch, and once he'd
fixed it, he couldn't help touching it some more. Mahiru didn't seem to
dislike it—in fact, it was putting her in a good mood, so he had no reason to
stop.
As he stroked her head, he imagined he was petting a cat in his lap.
Mahiru must have been totally relaxed, and she nuzzled her face up against
Amane's body.
"…I'm so happy," she said. "It's wonderful to spend a leisurely, relaxing
time at your house like this."
"I'm glad to hear it. I was worried about whether you would enjoy
yourself, coming here."
"Heh-heh, I'm enjoying myself so much that I'm reluctant to go back."
Before the trip, Amane had puzzled over what he would do if Mahiru
didn't settle in at his home, or if she felt uncomfortable, but apparently
there had been no need to worry.
"Seems like you've really settled in."
"It's all thanks to your parents being so hospitable."
"They've been treating you with more affection than they give me."
"Are you pouting?"
"I'm not pouting."
He had known perfectly well that his parents were going to pay more
attention to Mahiru, even before they arrived, and Mahiru had been making
an effort not to leave Amane's side, so he wasn't feeling peevish about it
anymore.
He did think that his parents were coming on a little too strong, clearly
expecting her to eventually become their daughter-in-law. But they had
been waiting a long time for a girl like her to enter his life, so he understood
how they felt.
"Heh-heh, are you sure, Amane? If you started pouting, I'd have to
squeeze you tight."
"Are you saying you won't if I'm not pouting?"
"No. For you, Amane, I'll do it anytime."
"All right then, can I take you up on that?"
"Go ahead."
Mahiru stopped leaning against Amane for a moment and spread her
arms out toward him. He clamped his lips shut, unsure of what to do. She
was probably telling him to leap right in.
Even under normal circumstances, Mahiru had a well-balanced figure
that stuck out where it was supposed to stick out and curved in where it was
supposed to curve in. But now she was wearing an off-the-shoulder dress.
He knew he would likely find heaven if he buried his face against her, but
he was worried about any possible jiggling.
But you're her boyfriend, so that ought to be fine…, whispered a little
devil inside him. It'll be okay as long as you don't do anything; she'll
forgive you for enjoying yourself.
Amane groaned quietly at the desires that threatened to unsettle him.
He couldn't resist the bewitching temptation.
He put his arms around Mahiru's back and buried his face in her
exposed cleavage.
If he shifted his face down slightly, he would end up plunging straight
into those soft swells. Naturally, at his current level of endurance, he could
never go that far. But he brought his lips to her beautiful collarbone and
smooth, flawless pale skin and got his fill of her faintly sweet scent.
Mahiru seemed a little ticklish but showed no signs of discomfort.
Rather, she happily wrapped her arms around Amane and embraced him in
return. She patted his back like someone doting on a child.
"Heh-heh, you're clingy, too, Amane."
"Hush, you."
"It's fine, go ahead and touch all you want. I'll spoil you silly."
"You already have."
He felt like she was causing him to melt into goo—and that he was
melting her in return. It seemed they had reached the stage where they were
spoiling each other so much they were fusing together until neither of them
could survive alone.
He looked up at Mahiru while lightly kissing the fresh expanse of her
décolletage, and she giggled and continued embracing him. She seemed to
be enjoying herself.
"When we sit like this, you seem smaller, Amane. Usually you feel big
and sturdy."
"Do I…? You're so small and thin, Mahiru. I can easily wrap you up in
my arms."
"But right now you're the one being wrapped up… You know, maybe
I'm so small specifically so you can fit me in your arms."
"Are you saying you were made for me, Mahiru?"
"Yes… And you, me."
"Mm."
"Heh-heh."
She smiled and caressed him comfortingly. Amane was nearly at his
limit. He shifted and moved up slightly to kiss her neck.
She reacted quickly with a little jolt—her neck must be sensitive. He
already knew her ears were a weak spot, and now he realized her neck was,
too.
"Nn… Be sure not to leave any marks, please."
"I won't, but I will kiss you."
"Th-that tickles; I can't take it…"
"If you don't like it, you can always push me away."
"…Don't be mean."
He could hear a sulking tone in her voice, as if to say, You know I
wouldn't do that. But he was confident that if she truly disliked it, she
would stop him, so there was no problem.
After Amane had lightly kissed her skin for a little while, Mahiru started
slapping at his back like she wanted him to stop, so he left it there.
Mahiru's cheeks were flushed red, as if she was roasting from the inside.
She glared at him, so he embraced her and stroked her head to calm her
down.
"…We got a little sidetracked, but you were saying you didn't want to
go back?"
If he kept up at the current pace, she would definitely get peevish with
him, so Amane tried to return to their earlier conversation.
After staring blankly for a moment, Mahiru flashed him an easygoing
smile.
"No, that's not it… I'll just be a little lonely, I guess."
"That's good to hear."
"Huh?"
"Well, it means you've been very comfortable here, right?"
"Th-that's true, but—"
"You could come with me again next time. At the end of the year, or
next summer, maybe."
After this trip, Amane was sure to visit his parents again. He had
originally been told to show his face twice a year, during the long breaks in
summer and winter. So if it was all right with Mahiru, they could make the
trip together.
His parents would both be delighted, and Amane wouldn't have to be
away from Mahiru for a long stretch of time.
"…Again…"
"You don't want to?"
"Th-that's not what I said."
"…You know you can think of this place as your own home, right?"
"…Okay."
He had whispered the invitation, hoping to give Mahiru somewhere she
could call home. In return, she didn't even try to hide the joy welling up
inside her. Putting on a sweet smile, she buried her face in Amane's
shoulder.
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