Volume 4 - CH 30

The morning of the fourth day of the holidays.

It was Yuzuru who woke up first.

After stretching widely, he looked next to him.

There was his fiancée, looking as lovely as ever in her sleep.

Her eyelashes were very long, which could be clearly seen when she kept her eyes closed.

Yuzuru poked her on the cheek.

“Mm…”

She let out a small whimper.

She began to squirm and move her body.

Then, slowly, she opened her eyes.

The jade green eyes caught Yuzuru.

“Mu~… good morning.”

Rubbing her eyes, Arisa got up.

It seemed that she was still delirious from sleep.

“Ah… good morning.”

Yuzuru said and kissed her cheek.

Her face instantly turned bright red.

She seemed to have woken up properly.

“… Um, about what I said and did last night.”

At the breakfast table.

Arisa began to squirm and writhe as she said this.

Her cheeks were tinged with a hint of red.

“Please pretend you didn’t hear that.”

“All right.”

When Yuzuru said that, Arisa had a relieved expression on her face.

But it soon turned into an anxious one.

“Um… It’s not that I don’t like it or anything…”

She fumbled with her words as if to make an excuse.

“I know.”

Yuzuru said this in as calm a voice as possible.

Then he spoke slowly so as to calm and reassure Arisa.

“Let’s continue having a platonic relationship like high school students.”

“…Yes.”

Arisa gave a small nod to Yuzuru’s words.

That day, they had another swimming practice for Arisa.

The rest of the challenge was butterfly swimming, breath-holding, and wading in the water.

“…How was it?”

“Yes, you swam well.”

After getting out of the water, Yuzuru replied to Arisa’s question.

And Arisa’s face broke out in happiness.

It’s no wonder since she had good motor skills. Once she got the hang of it, Arisa improved as quickly as she could.

Now she could swim about half of the twenty-five meters…

“If you go through this one more time, you will be able to swim properly, right?”

“Yes… now, I’m relieved that my classes are going to be okay.”

At Yuzuru’s high school, students are required to take swimming at least once out of every three years.

Arisa seems to be planning to finish it in her second year.

“I’m sure you’re tired today. Let’s take a bath.. and then go home.”

“That’s right. Let’s do that.”

The two of them took a bath to warm up their cold bodies (although they were not completely cold since it was a heated pool) and then got out.

“…I feel a little peckish after that.”

Arisa casually remarked.

It was true that Yuzuru was also a little hungry.

It was almost dusk, so it would be time for dinner soon… But it wouldn’t be a bad idea to grab a bite to eat before that…

“Do you want to get an ice cream or something?”

“Are we going to stop at a convenience store?”

“No, I was thinking of getting some there.”

Yuzuru pointed at the vending machine.

They sell ice cream that costs about 200 yen or less.

“Ah …I see. That’s good.”

Arisa said in a slightly excited voice.

“What’s the difference between this, this, and this?”

Arisa asked, looking at the picture on the vending machine.

As expected, it was the first time she had ever bought one.

“This one is on a stick, and this one has a cone. This one looks like a tube. Is this your first time…?”

“Yes, it is. I haven’t had a chance. Do you eat a lot, Yuzuru-san?”

“Nah… it’s been about a year since I’ve had one.”

He doesn’t go out of his way to find a vending machine to buy it…

But when he sees one, he buys it.　

Especially after a workout.

It’s a very good business idea, Yuzuru thought as he watched Arisa push the button.

After they finished buying the ice cream, they decided to eat it side by side on a bench.

Yuzuru chose grape flavor.

It tasted… like a normal grape sherbet ice cream. There was nothing special about it.

“Yuzuru-san, Yuzuru-san.”

Arisa tugged on Yuzuru’s clothes.

“Do you want to try?”

“Yes.”

When Yuzuru offered her his ice cream, Arisa opened her mouth a little.

She bit into the ice cream with a crunch.

“Would you like to try too, Yuzuru-san?”

“Then, I guess I’ll try.”

Since there was an opportunity, he decided to get some of Arisa’s ice cream.

He took a small bite of the ice cream.

It tasted …like regular chocolate.

The two of them finished the ice cream while feeding each other.

“It tasted even better than I thought it would.”

It seemed that Arisa liked her first vending machine ice cream.

She looked satisfied.

“I’d like to try a different flavor next time.”

“That’s right. I think they sell it at the general entertainment center we visited before …Let’s try it when I get a chance.”

They are also sold at train stations.

Surprisingly, they can be found if you look for them.

“Shall we go home then?”

“Yeah.”

In the setting sun, the two of them began to walk hand in hand.

And suddenly… Arisa raised her voice.

“Today is the anniversary of our engagement, right?”

“Eh?　…Ah, that’s right.”

As Arisa mentioned this, Yuzuru remembered.

This was the day that Arisa and Yuzuru had gotten engaged.

Technically, it was a “temporary” engagement, though.

“…You forgot, didn’t you?”

When Arisa complained, Yuzuru scratched his head.

“Well… yes.”

Will she be mad at me for this?

When Yuzuru was a little worried, Arisa giggled.

“Well, it’s okay… It’s not nearly as important as Christmas or birthdays.”

As for Arisa, she didn’t seem particularly interested in celebrating the anniversary of their engagement.

“A sleepover is enough to celebrate… I’m just happy that we can be together like this.”

Then Arisa squeezed Yuzuru’s hand.

It seemed to be an indication that she didn’t want to return yet.

“I have a place I want to stop by, is that okay?”

Arisa asked Yuzuru, giving him an upward glance.

“Of course.”

Yuzuru squeezed her hand back tightly.