In the bathroom, seemingly too shy to say it normally, Yanami turned off the shower and slipped into the bathtub, burying the lower half of her face in the water. She blew bubbles to hide her expression.
"Sorry, I forgot to bring a hair tie in. Could you check where I dropped it?"
She was only able to gather her hair up with her hands.
Outside the door, Kiyono paused.
A hair tie?
His gaze swept around and finally found a hair tie with slightly frayed edges on the sink.
Kiyono picked up the faintly fragrant hair tie, walked to the door, and lightly cleared his throat as he prepared to place it on the floor.
"Found it. I'll leave it here for you—"
He suddenly felt a soft, warm breath draw close, carrying a unique fragrance.
The bathroom door quietly opened a crack, and an arm as white as moonlight reached out. Water droplets still clung to the skin, making it appear even more enchanting and alluring in the light.
She—this pose… Can't you just wait until I leave and then come out to get it yourself!?
Kiyono's heart wavered for a moment.
Yanami took the hair tie from his hand, and their fingers brushed against each other. The smooth texture and burning warmth seemed to cloud his mind.
The blue-haired girl didn't say anything, only silently took the hair tie.
Huff—it was unclear whether it was the girl's alluring warm breath or his own sigh of relief.
Drip. A drop of water gently fell to the floor.
Kiyono hurriedly left the vicinity of the bathroom and sat back on the sofa. His expression was serious, but Yanami's offensive clearly hadn't ended yet.
"Kiyono, this bath salt smells so good!"
"That was bought by Yukinoshita Haruno. She said she's used to this brand."
"Oh…"
"Kiyono, this body wash feels so nice on the skin too!"
"That was newly bought by Yukinoshita Yukino. She said it's all-natural."
"Hmmm…"
The sounds from the bathroom disappeared.
Kiyono didn't think too much of it and picked up a book.
About ten minutes later, light footsteps sounded behind him. He casually put the book down and turned around.
The "boyfriend shirt" CG had been triggered.
A loose white shirt, skin steamed rosy and tender by the hot water, long slender legs, and bare feet on the floor.
His gaze moved upward, taking in her damp hair and slightly flushed cheeks.
"Can I sit next to you?" The blue-haired girl's smile carried a different kind of atmosphere than usual.
"This is a wholesome story. Please put on a jacket before you come over."
"This is something even children can watch!"
Yanami huffed, casually threw on a layer, then sat down beside him and looked up at the floor-to-ceiling window in front of them.
The sky outside was already steeped in deep twilight. Today's sunset was peony-colored, painting the city in beautiful hues.
The soft afterglow streamed through the window, and the living room floor was covered in a faint red sheen.
The sound of their breathing brought a sense of reassurance to the air.
"Will we live like this in the future too?" Yanami's voice was like a semi-transparent gauze curtain.
"What kind of life?" Kiyono gradually realized something. Yanami had clearly entered stage two!
"Hm… Like this, sitting under the sunset, or excitedly discussing novels, or quietly watching the twilight fall. It would be even better if we had a puppy."
The girl smiled as she spoke. It was just an ordinary, everyday family scene, but if she were with this person, her mood would change, becoming beautiful and unforgettable.
The atmosphere…
Kiyono slowly put down his book, and at the same time, Yanami turned her head. Their eyes met softly.
The sun sank little by little.
The boy holding the book sat straight beside her. As the light disappeared, his silhouette gradually blurred, unreal, as if he were about to disappear right in front of her.
Ah.
How was she supposed to express her feelings properly?
It was like reciting a poem whose ink hadn't yet dried—
Use too much force, and she feared she would distort the original meaning; be too light, and she worried she wouldn't fully express what lay in her heart.
What she had to say had to be just right, every syllable hitting its mark—like spring and cherry blossoms, like summer and fireworks.
She steeled herself.
"Kiyono!"
Yanami took a deep breath, calling out as if confirming something.
"Yeah?"
Kiyono looked up.
In that instant, Yanami stood up from the sofa. Now she was the one towering over him; offense and defense had reversed. She placed both hands on his shoulders and stared straight into his eyes. In each other's gaze, they saw fragrant grass, flowers, sunlight, and a bright moon.
The sun happened to pull back its final ray of light. Darkness fell like a curtain.
That made Yanami even braver. She lowered her head, her posture less like kissing a lover and more like delivering a fatal strike.
But—
A cold, hard sensation met her lips.
W-what's going on?
Yanami screamed in her heart. Didn't everyone say a kiss felt soft? Why was this guy hard? Could he be a robot from another planet!?
The girl opened her eyes in confusion and, in the darkness, saw a thick book.
A book! At the instant she kissed him, Kiyono had suddenly used the book as a shield between them, completely covering his face!
Her battle plan had failed!
"Kiyono?"
Having finally summoned her courage, the girl's heart swelled with shyness and humiliation. Her pretty face was red enough to be seen even in the dark. She took a shallow breath and, gritting her teeth, said:
"Is this how you toy with a young girl's pure feelings?"
This idiot… Who suddenly counters with a surprise defense like that?
Kiyono's lips curved into a complicated smile. His gaze met hers directly, a soft emotion sinking into those clear pupils. His voice was calm and gentle.
"Wait. Calm down first. Is this really what you want? Uneasy, sad, helpless, irritable…"
Yanami froze. Hearing Kiyono's words, she slowly became aware of the feelings surging in her heart.
Was she uneasy?
She was. Anxious and impatient. She didn't care about anything else anymore, because she was afraid he'd disappear from her side.
Was this how she wanted her first kiss to be?
Her ideal was something more romantic, more beautiful, a time when their hearts were incredibly close before doing something so sacred.
So why did she want to act now?
Because she wanted to leave an indelible mark in his heart, so he wouldn't forget her, so that she could finally feel at ease.
The one who falls in love first loses the initiative.
Her heartbeat sounded clearly in the darkness. Yanami, still blushing, hugged her knees and turned away, huffing.
"I'm just going to spoil him a little before some young lady marries him off."
"Are you a bully!?"
You've completely ruined the mood!
After venting his complaint, Kiyono finally spoke.
"Sorry. Right now… I can't reciprocate anyone's feelings."
Yanami unconsciously clenched her hands. For a moment, all the days they'd spent together, the words they'd shared, the nights they'd kept each other company flashed before her eyes, turning into a tangled knot of feelings… But wait.
"What do you mean by anyone?"
The girl grasped the key word.
"Just what it sounds like."
Kiyono's tone was helpless. He could clearly see the complicated situation he was in—the girls with different personalities yet closely connected, their different circumstances and equally passionate feelings, the various paths intertwining around him as the center.
"But I've been adopted by the Yukinoshita family for ten years. The kindness of having been raised is greater than anything. My life here will naturally move in the direction they expect."
No matter how he acted tsundere on the surface, he knew very well in his heart that the girl had already walked deep into it. That was the most genuine feeling.
But before that, there was something more important.
The weight of human kindness and righteousness is never the same on both ends of a scale. The ungrateful only know how to devour kindness. The mediocre are used to measuring everything with reins and trying to repay in equivalent terms. But he wanted to respond to every kindness with burning sincerity.
"So you're not going to marry into the family, then?" Yanami's wavering eyes steadied, her tone relaxing.
What had she been worried about? Wasn't it just Kiyono being bound as a husband? If he was only repaying kindness, there was no problem at all! They were still standing on the same starting line! The future would be the real battlefield to decide victory!
If it was a fair duel, she had no reason to back down!
"I owe a lot of things—money, time, things, even emotions—but that's not between a man and a woman. That's the one thing that can't be mixed with gains and losses."
Kiyono said softly.
To be honest, whether it was this story he'd experienced or Yanami catching up to him, it had all been unexpected to him. He had worried, thought it over, and unconsciously grown used to this girl's presence, entrusting himself to her tenderness. But some things had to change.
He gazed at Yanami's back, his voice honest.
"So when I've settled my debt of gratitude, in another world where winter snow flies… Let's decide a brand new future together."
It was a choice he had to make, a direction in life that had to be decided.
He gently placed his hand on her shoulder.
A long silence.
In the stillness, their heartbeats slowly overlapped.
Yanami turned around, and together, they looked at the bright moon gradually rising into the night sky.
So that's how it is.
It was just as she had thought.
The girl's eyes curved into a bright smile.
"Yeah. I'll do it again then—"
They returned to their familiar selves.
Their voices lingered softly in the dark.
"Isn't that too stiff?"
"It's fine."
"It might make you wait for a while."