Chapter 32: Awareness of feelings
It took Kaede an hour to calm down. In the meantime, we were watching an anime that was being distributed online. It was a pretty crazy romantic comedy anime, and the high tension from start to finish made it pretty interesting. In the series, the characters skipped class on the rooftop, played games, and always acted unreasonably when they got embarrassed.
“It’s getting late. Shall we take a bath?”
“It’s almost 10 pm. That’s right. I’ll go heat the water, but Kaede should go first. Or do you want to come in with me?”
I smiled wickedly and suggested a mixed bath. It might make me go crazy again after all the effort I’ve made to calm myself down, but I think it’s okay to have a day like this once in a while. It’s a good day to get back at her for always making me feel nervous.
“Oh, dear. Please don’t make jokes like that. Well, I’ll take your word for it and take a bath first. In the meantime, Yuya-kun, please play a game and wait for me.”
Yes, yes. I understand. I’ll wait quietly. But wait, that Kaede didn’t come on board, even though she was a little embarrassed? What happened to you? Did you eat something strange?
“I don’t always have to be pushing all the time, you know? I’ve learned that sometimes it’s important to pull back too!”
Kaede clenched her fists and headed for the bathroom. I was left alone, and I didn’t understand what she meant by that, but I couldn’t bother thinking about it, so I decided to take her word for it and play my game. It was the first time I’ve turned it on since coming to this house.
The storyline of this game, which I’ve been too busy to play, was already in its midst. The game was a remake of The Seventh and Final Story, and it was garnering a lot of attention around the world. I had some thoughts about the fact that the story was split up into two parts, but I’ll take it as an interesting take. I won’t complain as long as they finish the story before I die.
How quiet.
Time flew by as I was mesmerized by the beautiful graphics. Kaede came back in her fuzzy pajamas, wiping her hair. The boss battle was about to begin, so I saved my game and got up from the couch.
“Oh, are you done? You can keep doing this for a while longer, okay?”
“As much as I’d like to continue, I need to take a bath. And I don’t know when to stop, so this is perfect. I’m going to take a bath. You can go to bed first, okay?”
“Huh. I’ll wait there. Please take your time.”
I wonder what’s going on. It felt quite strange. Normally, she would say something like, ‘I think I’ll take a dip in the bathtub again after all’, but now, she was so casual about it. It’s really strange.
Well, it’s no use thinking about it. If I can take a bath without having to pay attention to my guard, I’ll enjoy it. I’m physically exhausted from today’s club activities, and mentally exhausted from dinner and the Valentine’s Day party. Let’s take it easy and relax.
＊＊＊＊＊
I ended up sinking into the bathtub for almost an hour. By the time I finished brushing my teeth and preparing for bed, the date had changed.
“Kaede… You didn’t have to wait for me…”
“It’s okay. I just wanted to wait for Yuya-kun. Did you feel good in the bath?”
“I’m sure it did. Thanks to it, I’m tired and ready to work hard tomorrow.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Now, let’s go to bed.”
Kaede dimmed the lights with the remote control at hand. It wasn’t the best idea to get into a futon with a warm body, but it was definitely better than being unable to sleep due to your feet being cold.
A lot has happened today. The sukiyaki was delicious, and Kaede’s homemade cake for Valentine’s Day chocolate was superb. On top of that, we even feed each other and — kissed indirectly. No, don’t think about it. I won’t be able to sleep.
“Hey …… Yuya-kun. Are you awake?”
“Yeah. I’m awake. What’s wrong?”
I always slept with my back to Kaede because I didn’t want anything to accidentally happen to her and I would lose my sleep if I were to see her sleeping face. So instinctively, I answered her questions without looking back, but that was a mistake.
“Can I sleep a little… closer… to you, Yuya-kun?”
Kaede, who had already moved before I knew it, hugged me from behind. She asked me in a sweet voice that was more debauched than usual, and the soft scent of lemon made me feel at ease, but also confused my brain. The warmth of Kaede’s body against my back and the soft touch of hers would drive men crazy. I could feel her arms wrapped tightly around my waist, trembling slightly with tension. I could also feel my heart beating loudly as if it was about to break.
“Yeah, … you can.”
I couldn’t refuse Kaede’s request, which she had tried so hard to speak up with all the courage she could muster. No, I’d rather be the one to turn around and hug her like this. That was the kind of urge I currently had.
“I was very happy today. The person I love hugged me tightly, praised the sweets I worked so hard to make as delicious as possible, and let me eat them. He also gave me an indirect kiss. It was such a happy day that I could have died.”
Kaede’s confession made my heart start to throb. Please stop. I’m so happy, but please stop.
“But I want to experience even more… How happy I would be if I could sleep while being squeezed by the person I love. …”
That’s cheating. Kaede is really cheating. If I were to be pampered like that with a voice that sounds like she’s about to cry, I really would want to give in to her selfishness.
“… Thank you for today, Kaede.”
When I turned my body around to face her and gently hugged her, Kaede’s shoulders jumped. But soon after, she pulled her cheek to my chest and smiled coyly.
“Ehehe… Yuya-kun, you are so warm. And you smell so good. … I think I’m going to sleep more soundly than usual today.”
I see. And I probably won’t be able to sleep until morning.
But. If it makes you feel happy, that’s fine with me. Yes, if you’re happy, I’m fine with that. Because I’m happy to be with you.
“Good night, Yuya-kun. I love you.”
Truly. I can’t help it anymore. My heart is deeply drawn to Kaede.
It was on this February night when I became aware of this.
Chapter 32: Awareness of feelings
It took Kaede an hour to calm down. In the meantime, we were watching an anime that was being distributed online. It was a pretty crazy romantic comedy anime, and the high tension from start to finish made it pretty interesting. In the series, the characters skipped class on the rooftop, played games, and always acted unreasonably when they got embarrassed.
“It’s getting late. Shall we take a bath?”
“It’s almost 10 pm. That’s right. I’ll go heat the water, but Kaede should go first. Or do you want to come in with me?”
I smiled wickedly and suggested a mixed bath. It might make me go crazy again after all the effort I’ve made to calm myself down, but I think it’s okay to have a day like this once in a while. It’s a good day to get back at her for always making me feel nervous.
“Oh, dear. Please don’t make jokes like that. Well, I’ll take your word for it and take a bath first. In the meantime, Yuya-kun, please play a game and wait for me.”
Yes, yes. I understand. I’ll wait quietly. But wait, that Kaede didn’t come on board, even though she was a little embarrassed? What happened to you? Did you eat something strange?
“I don’t always have to be pushing all the time, you know? I’ve learned that sometimes it’s important to pull back too!”
Kaede clenched her fists and headed for the bathroom. I was left alone, and I didn’t understand what she meant by that, but I couldn’t bother thinking about it, so I decided to take her word for it and play my game. It was the first time I’ve turned it on since coming to this house.
The storyline of this game, which I’ve been too busy to play, was already in its midst. The game was a remake of The Seventh and Final Story, and it was garnering a lot of attention around the world. I had some thoughts about the fact that the story was split up into two parts, but I’ll take it as an interesting take. I won’t complain as long as they finish the story before I die.
How quiet.
Time flew by as I was mesmerized by the beautiful graphics. Kaede came back in her fuzzy pajamas, wiping her hair. The boss battle was about to begin, so I saved my game and got up from the couch.
“Oh, are you done? You can keep doing this for a while longer, okay?”
“As much as I’d like to continue, I need to take a bath. And I don’t know when to stop, so this is perfect. I’m going to take a bath. You can go to bed first, okay?”
“Huh. I’ll wait there. Please take your time.”
I wonder what’s going on. It felt quite strange. Normally, she would say something like, ‘I think I’ll take a dip in the bathtub again after all’, but now, she was so casual about it. It’s really strange.
Well, it’s no use thinking about it. If I can take a bath without having to pay attention to my guard, I’ll enjoy it. I’m physically exhausted from today’s club activities, and mentally exhausted from dinner and the Valentine’s Day party. Let’s take it easy and relax.
＊＊＊＊＊
I ended up sinking into the bathtub for almost an hour. By the time I finished brushing my teeth and preparing for bed, the date had changed.
“Kaede… You didn’t have to wait for me…”
“It’s okay. I just wanted to wait for Yuya-kun. Did you feel good in the bath?”
“I’m sure it did. Thanks to it, I’m tired and ready to work hard tomorrow.”
“I’m glad to hear that. Now, let’s go to bed.”
Kaede dimmed the lights with the remote control at hand. It wasn’t the best idea to get into a futon with a warm body, but it was definitely better than being unable to sleep due to your feet being cold.
A lot has happened today. The sukiyaki was delicious, and Kaede’s homemade cake for Valentine’s Day chocolate was superb. On top of that, we even feed each other and — kissed indirectly. No, don’t think about it. I won’t be able to sleep.
“Hey …… Yuya-kun. Are you awake?”
“Yeah. I’m awake. What’s wrong?”
I always slept with my back to Kaede because I didn’t want anything to accidentally happen to her and I would lose my sleep if I were to see her sleeping face. So instinctively, I answered her questions without looking back, but that was a mistake.
“Can I sleep a little… closer… to you, Yuya-kun?”
Kaede, who had already moved before I knew it, hugged me from behind. She asked me in a sweet voice that was more debauched than usual, and the soft scent of lemon made me feel at ease, but also confused my brain. The warmth of Kaede’s body against my back and the soft touch of hers would drive men crazy. I could feel her arms wrapped tightly around my waist, trembling slightly with tension. I could also feel my heart beating loudly as if it was about to break.
“Yeah, … you can.”
I couldn’t refuse Kaede’s request, which she had tried so hard to speak up with all the courage she could muster. No, I’d rather be the one to turn around and hug her like this. That was the kind of urge I currently had.
“I was very happy today. The person I love hugged me tightly, praised the sweets I worked so hard to make as delicious as possible, and let me eat them. He also gave me an indirect kiss. It was such a happy day that I could have died.”
Kaede’s confession made my heart start to throb. Please stop. I’m so happy, but please stop.
“But I want to experience even more… How happy I would be if I could sleep while being squeezed by the person I love. …”
That’s cheating. Kaede is really cheating. If I were to be pampered like that with a voice that sounds like she’s about to cry, I really would want to give in to her selfishness.
“… Thank you for today, Kaede.”
When I turned my body around to face her and gently hugged her, Kaede’s shoulders jumped. But soon after, she pulled her cheek to my chest and smiled coyly.
“Ehehe… Yuya-kun, you are so warm. And you smell so good. … I think I’m going to sleep more soundly than usual today.”
I see. And I probably won’t be able to sleep until morning.
But. If it makes you feel happy, that’s fine with me. Yes, if you’re happy, I’m fine with that. Because I’m happy to be with you.
“Good night, Yuya-kun. I love you.”
Truly. I can’t help it anymore. My heart is deeply drawn to Kaede.
It was on this February night when I became aware of this.
