Chapter 38: Pickup Trouble (Part 1)
Akizuki Marina had long black-brown hair paired with striking purple eyes, while her little sister Akizuki Airi sported golden hair and vivid blue eyes. Neither of the beautiful sisters lost out to Nao in the slightest. Takumi couldn't help but marvel inwardly. 'The highest concentration of beauties in the world isn't Belarus—it's definitely the 2D realm. Even random background girls are ridiculously cute half the time.'
"Marina-chan, this is my boyfriend, Hoshino Kouichi—Kouichi-kun. And Kouichi-kun, this is Akizuki Marina, and this is Akizuki Airi. They're both my classmates and good friends."
"Nice to meet you. Please take care of me. I'm Hoshino."
Takumi greeted them first. Marina quickly responded:
"Hello, Kouichi-kun. It's nice to meet you."
Meanwhile, the blonde Airi gave him a once-over and bluntly remarked:
"Nao-senpai, your taste seems kinda questionable. A guy with hair this long? He looks like a delinquent."
Airi's words were as sharp as ever. Nao's expression shifted slightly, but Takumi just laughed it off.
"My hair is pretty long, yeah—almost girly. But at least I'm built solid, so nobody's gonna mistake me for a trap."
He struck a quick "I'm super macho" pose. All three girls instinctively looked his way. Nao let out a surprised sound, while the Akizuki sisters' eyes lit up. They hadn't really noticed before, but now that he mentioned it—his physique was seriously impressive. Not some over-the-top bodybuilder, but more like Bruce Lee: compact, steel-hard, springy, and full of explosive power.
"You're actually really ripped. Are you an athlete or something?"
Airi asked curiously, poking his arm. Her finger met something like high-tensile rubber and immediately regretted it.
"Airi, that's rude!"
Marina quickly scolded her sister, then turned to Takumi with an apologetic bow.
"I'm so sorry. My little sister can be way too forward."
"No worries. I like people who speak their mind."
The moment he said "like," a sharp pinch attacked the soft flesh at his waist. He glanced sideways—yep, the culprit was pretending nothing happened. 'Nao's getting jealous, huh? Didn't expect her to be such a little vinegar jar.'
Airi gave him another look, surprised by how mild-mannered he was taking it. Marina asked:
"So Nao-chan, where are you two headed?"
"Okamizu Water Park. It's the newly opened pool with waterslides, diving boards, the works. They're doing an opening promotion—I got two tickets, so I'm going swimming with Kouichi-kun."
"Huh, what a coincidence! We got two tickets too."
Marina's face brightened with pleasant surprise. Nao blinked.
"You too?"
"The bus is here—let's go!"
Airi pointed. Sure enough, a mid-sized bus pulled up. There weren't many passengers, so the group easily found seats. Nao naturally sat right next to Takumi, while the Akizuki sisters took the row across from them.
Marina and Nao were the closest, so they immediately fell into animated chatter. Takumi didn't really pay attention to the content—just enjoyed the pleasant sound of their voices. The warm sunlight pouring through the windows made him drowsy; he almost dozed off completely. He had no idea how much time passed before the bus reached their stop. Nao gently shook him awake.
They got off together, and right in front of them loomed a massive building—somewhat reminiscent of the Bird's Nest stadium, though obviously on a smaller scale. A big sign read: OKAMIZU WATER PARK. This was their destination.
'It's huge.'
Takumi was genuinely impressed. Nao tugged his hand.
"Kouichi-kun, it's super sunny out here. Let's hurry inside. Oh—and don't forget to buy a pair of disposable men's swim trunks first."
Naturally the facility had a shop selling swimsuits. Takumi didn't bother browsing and just grabbed a fitting pair. After splitting up with Nao in the hallway, he headed to the men's changing room, took a quick shower to wake himself up properly, then stepped back out.
The water park was spacious and, since it had only recently opened, still fairly empty. There were diving pools, regular swimming lanes, circulating water features with statues, and tunnel-style waterslides. After a quick scan, Takumi soon spotted Nao. She was wearing a pink swimsuit that perfectly highlighted her stunning figure, drawing plenty of male stares. A few bold guys were already starting to approach—until they saw her happily greeting a long-haired guy and snuggling up to him. Disappointed, they immediately looked for other targets.
Takumi wrapped an arm around Nao's waist.
"Let's go swim. My doggy paddle is embarrassing, so don't laugh, okay?"
"How could I? Kouichi-kun, your body is seriously amazing. I never really noticed before."
"Haha, can you really say 'amazing body' about a guy?"
"Why not? Women have alluring curves, men have masculine muscles—both count as great figures. It definitely attracts the opposite sex."
"Really? With so many cute girls around the pool, maybe I should try picking up a few."
The second the words left his mouth, Nao pinched his side again. He hissed in pain.
"Oww—let go, Nao! I was kidding!"
"I don't think Kouichi-kun was kidding. Because you're the kind of pervert who'd lock up any girl he likes, right?"
Nao smiled sweetly while her slender fingers traced over his body.
"So firm… Kouichi-kun, they say women have seventy-two transformations, but I think you're the one changing every day. You used to be such a hopeless otaku pervert—how did you suddenly turn into this mature, reliable man in just a few days? What happened in the world I don't know about?"
"Haha, you're imagining things. Come on, let's swim."
To stop her from digging deeper, Takumi suddenly scooped her up in his arms and carried her toward the pool. Nao squealed.
"Ha—how embarrassing! Put me down!"
"Nope."
Completely ignoring the stares of everyone around them, Takumi carried Nao straight to the water.
"How bold…"
Marina watched with flushed cheeks. She was wearing a grass-green bandeau-style swimsuit. Airi, on the other hand, had on a standard school one-piece.
"See? He's a real man. Way better than that jerk at home, at least."
"Airi, you can't talk about dad like that."
"Hmph. He's just Mom's second husband—he's not my father. Airi only has one father!"
"It's been over a year. You'll confuse Mom if you keep this up. You should tone it down a little."
"Absolutely not. Even if Mom gets sad or you get mad, I'm never calling that mutt 'Dad'!"
"You're going too far now… calling him a dog…"
"That's exactly what he is! He's always staring at us with those lewd eyes—that filthy mutt."
"How can you say things like that, Airi? This isn't just rudeness anymore."
"Because when I wore my new outfit earlier, he kept staring—especially at my waist."
"That's just your imagination. You're being too stubborn."
"Geez, seriously, Sis… You're on guard too, aren't you? Otherwise you wouldn't bury your used panties at the very bottom of the laundry pile."
"That's because it's embarrassing if someone sees dirty underwear, haa…"
"If it was Father, you wouldn't be embarrassed, right? So you feel the same way I do."
"That's twisted logic."
The two sisters were deep in conversation, completely unaware that they'd become prime targets for the water park's lone wolves. Finally, two of the bolder ones closed in.
"Hey there, beautiful ladies~ Need a swimming coach?"
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