CH 23

“… Haah.”

Friday night, after school and before the holidays.

I was currently in the bath, washing up, I then let out a breath.

Being alone like this made me think back to that incident.

An intruder tried to harm the Shinjo’s family, and after the incident got settled, somehow it ended up changing my surroundings drastically.

Arisa, Aina, and Sakuna-san, every day I was showered with warmth and kindness by the three of them… At first I was bewildered, but now I am starting to be comfortable with this change.

Back then, I used to sleep in my house all by myself, all alone, but now I’m blessed to have someone by my side at dinner time.

With the warmth I get, I feel safe, and most importantly I no longer feel lonely… haha, while being in the second year of high school, it’s probably a little effeminate to think this way, even so, I would never want to let go of this warmth. It’s not like they’re replacing my father or mother by any means, it’s because I’m really comfortable with the warmth they give me.

“… I wonder what this feeling is?”

There’s a part of me saying I don’t need to think about it, and another pointing out that it’s all wrong. I don’t know what’s right or wrong anymore, I’m just accepting the changes brought into my life.

“… To be honest, I somehow know what this means.”

Earlier when I said the girls were dependent on me…

It’s hard not to notice the fondness after all the things they’ve done for me. But that fondness is a feeling that was instilled in these girls because of what had happened. It’s a feeling that they wouldn’t normally have, so maybe I shouldn’t take it seriously… As for Sakuna-san, I do think that she really wants to take care of me.

“……”

I know deep inside that this can’t go on forever. I’m angry at myself for doing nothing but accepting their favors. I might just be pretending that I don’t want to make them sad by denying their request, and that I’m forcing myself to be oblivious to the fact that I don’t want them to leave me…

While I was fretting helplessly like this — I then heard Aina’s voice.

“Hayato-kun? Are you already dipping in how water?”

“… Not yet, I’m still in the middle of washing up.”

Ah, this is not good.

I’ve been thinking too much about that, so much that I haven’t moved an inch for a while now. It’s almost winter, so if I continue like this, I’m sure to catch a cold.

Aina is going to take a bath after this, so I should hurry up and warm myself and leave right away.

“Allow me to join you then. It’ll be faster that way.”

“… Huh?”

Hmm, I think I just heard something I shouldn’t…

After those words, I heard the sound of clothes being taken off.

No way, why, what are you thinking, Aina-san?

As if to corner me, who was panicking, the door that separated me and Aina then opened.

“Sorry for disturbing you♪”

“Wai… Ehhhh?!”

There in front of me was a sight that blew away all the worries I had been having until this moment.

Aina, with just a bath towel wrapped around her body, came right beside me, closing the door and then saying, “It’s cold.”

“……”

Am I a pervert if I can’t take my eyes off of Aina while my mouth is left wide open?

Calm down, I shouldn’t lose my temper. I then came to my senses and quickly looked away from Aina, she giggled and turned around behind me.

“I don’t think there is any need to be so shy about it, Hayato-kun. We’ve already slept together in the same room, you know?”

“This and that are different thi–…”

“Come on, give up already~!”

With a loud voice, Aina clung to my back.

She hugged me with her arms around my stomach, I could feel the soft thing touch my back as much as it can, possible. I felt a strange tickling sensation as our skin touched each other.

“I’ll wash it for you. Give it to me.”

“Uh, yes.”

From what I’ve learned, if you let humans do whatever they want, they’ll eventually settle down.

I passed the foaming towel in my hand to Aina, and she started washing my back while humming a tune.

“Hmnhmm~n♪ hmnh~nhmhmn♪”

This sounds like a song I heard in some anime…

But there was no time to think about it in this situation. In contrast to Aina who seemed to be enjoying herself, I remained silent and waited for the time to pass without uttering a single word.

“I’ll water it now.”

“… Ou”

Hot water poured over my neck, and I felt the foam wash away nicely. Aina suddenly hugged me again.

“I’m sorry. Let me stay like this for a while.”

“… got it.”

My heart was racing. Then suddenly, my hand moved to her hand which was on my stomach.

After staying for a while, Aina whispered to me,

“Hayato-kun, your back is big, very big. Perhaps because it’s a boy’s back… it’s the big back that protected us at that time. I can’t help but fall in love with this back.”

“… Aina?”

Aina then gave a small murmur at the end, giggled, and switched places with me. I wanted to leave immediately, but she blocked my escape, telling me that I need to warm up properly.

I soaked myself in the bathtub and warmed myself up, averting my eyes as much as possible from Aina as she washed her body.

“Alright, well, I’m coming in then♪”

The bathtub was more than enough for two people.

Although I had a towel around my waist, Aina was not wearing a towel. So if I looked at her a little, I would be able to see all of her.

Although a lot of things already happened until now, this was the first time for us to be naked together like this.

“… Um.”

“Fufu, does it bother you?”

When I peaked at Aina, I found her staring right in my eyes.

Those red eyes stared into mine, and I couldn’t look away. Her beautiful brown hair is wet and sticking to her skin, and her voluptuous figure is clearly visible through the water. Her white skin is so healthy that it makes me wonder if such a beautiful girl is actually with me…

“I’m embarrassed too, you know…? But if you’re asking, why did I join the bath with you? There’s only one reason, because I wanted to take a bath together with Hayato-kun!”

“You’re coming pretty straight at me…”

“But still, this is not enough. You see Hayato-kun, I might actually get pregnant with this.”

“What did you say?”

When I threw that Tsukkomi at her, Aina’s face turned red before I knew it.

But still, the word “pregnancy” is not good for my heart, especially in this situation. And she is squirming her body, it was just too much for my eyes to take in…

Somehow I found Aina holding my hand with her right hand without me noticing. Which cut my escape from this situation.

I mobilized my thoughts rationally to the fullest and used all my nerves to avoid being overwhelmed.

She mentioned me? She called my name, right? To be honest, looking at her holding my hand with that smile, makes me think that this must be an illusion.

“… Hey, Hayato-kun. I would like to know more about your mother and father.”

“What?”

“You don’t want to?”

“No… it’s totally fine.”

At a time like this, I honestly appreciate the offer to talk about anything other than earlier.

It helped distract me, and more importantly, made me glad to hear that she wanted to know about my parents.

I don’t know what this feeling is, but let’s not worry about it for now, shall we?

“Let me think…”

What should I talk about though?

With Aina staring at me waiting for me to say something, I told her something I hadn’t even told Sakuna-san.

“Usually they’re just your run-of-the-mill dad and mom. And not only my father and mother, but my father’s family also hates me for one reason or another.”

“What? Really?”

She rolled her eyes and I nodded.

Why do they hate me you ask? Because my father didn’t obey his family’s wishes, that’s all.

“My dad met my mom in college and they just hooked up and got married. I’m surprised that they went through all of that, but… it’s kind of pretty normal.”

“Yeah.”

“I don’t know much of the details, but it looks like my dad’s family is well off and has a good business, so they were looking for someone to marry my dad without telling him about it. I heard that she was a nice young lady and that they were expecting a big connection after the marriage.”

“… Oh, so that’s how it is.”

Yes, my father chose to marry my mother instead of following the wishes of his family.

That’s why his parents disowned him, they don’t even want to see my mom or me.

“I had a chance to see them once, and they insulted me and my mom. Mom acted as if nothing had happened, but I saw her crying that night.”

“… Hayato-kun.”

I was in elementary school at the time, but I stood in front of them to protect my mom who had lost my dad. I never saw them again, but I remember that night when my mom hugged me she said,

“Hayato, your back is very big. Just like him, your mother is so happy to have you.”

I saw my mom shedding tears, and for some reason I cried a lot too… It took me quite a while to get over it at that time. But that incident made me realize that I had to protect my mom by myself.

“Mom used to tell me to let her spoil me. She said children are supposed to be protected by their parents. But after I saw my mom crying, this came to my mind a lot. I decided that I won’t ever let her cry, I’ll protect her even by myself.”

… A bit gloomy, isn’t it?(E/N:Nah, ur doing great,)

While I was thinking about this, Aina was reaching out and wiping the tears off my eyes…

Apparently tears were flowing while I was remembering that time.

“… I see. I guess you were right. I think I finally understand why your back looks so big, Hayato-kun. Yeah, no wonder I like you… How can I not like such a cool guy?”

Aina closed her eyes once, then made up her mind to do something and then she hugged my head gently.

“You see Hayato-kun, you’re a very strong and kind person. But I think you’re also… lonely.”

“…”

“That loneliness, let me… let us fill it for you. We’ll never make you feel lonely, we’ll accept you anytime, anywhere. So… drown yourself in us.”

Drown… the words entered my brain like a sweet drug.

I looked up and there she was, Aina, staring at me with eyes filled with compassion. I looked into those eyes, helplessly seeking her like a lost child…