Amane woke up the next day to find Mahiru in his clutches, and froze.
He quickly recalled that they slept together the previous day, and did not make any sounds, but despite that, the fact remained that his heart was burdened once he woke up. The thumpings in his heart had him feeling stifled, but he managed to calm down once he saw Mahiru's peaceful sleeping face.
He took a deep breath to calm himself, and once again, looked at her sleeping face.
She was nestled on Amane's elbow, sleeping soundly, adorable, innocent, mesmerizing.
And it was probably because she was sleeping peacefully that her face was relaxed, giving a gentle impression.
...She's so cute and defenseless.
The sleeping face was truly angelic, her beauty and innocence befitting her appearance.
Mahiru might feel awkward and pout if he mentioned this to her, but he could keep his thoughts to himself. Even if he did utter this, she might not realize it.
Thinking how adorable she was, Amane kept staring at her as he used the free hand to pat her head.
Her hair was glossy and smooth, with an angelic halo. Amane gently caressed her hair, and slightly nudged his somewhat numb elbow while ensuring that this arm pillow did not wake her up, adjusting his posture.
His numb arm was a trivial problem as long as he could marvel at this sleeping face.
Once he saw that she was still sleeping, he gently brought his lips to her eyelids.
And as he continued to look at Mahiru's smiling sleeping face, there was a knock on the door.
"Amane, you awake?"
Calling out from the door was his father.
What do I do?
He probably was here to wake Amane, but if Amane answered, Mahiru might wake up.
She was sleeping so soundly, and it would be a pity to wake her up. Amane too wanted to see more of her sleeping face.
On the other hand, if he did not answer, Shuuto would enter and wake him up. Amane wondered how he should answer...but before he could decide, the door opened.
Beyond the door, Amane saw the familiar face of his father, and his face cringed.
In contrast, Shuuto widened his eyes once he saw Amane on the bed, "Oh my." and he chuckled.
It was that moment when Amane realized that Shuuto was going to inform Shihoko, and they would tease him. He gave up, and put his index finger before his cringing face. Even without hushing Shuuto, the latter probably understood what Amane wanted.
Shuuto was one who understood matters well, and once he saw that gesture, he nodded, smiled, waved back, and stealthily left the room.
The door was shut, and the footsteps faded away. Once Amane was certain of that, he sighed silently.
Will be great if there's no misunderstanding.
A pair of lovebirds on the bed might cause unwarranted misunderstandings. Amane did nothing but to touch and kiss Mahiru, completely moral gestures. His parents however did not know how far they went.
No, Shuuto might be able to notice that they did not go overboard, and probably did not assume so. Embarrassing matters were still embarrassing after all.
Amane steeled himself for questioning later, patted Mahiru's hair, and then, the slender body in his clutches moved.
Speaking of which, it would be rare to see the habitual-inclined Mahiru not wake up at this time.
"...Nn."
She made a soft voice in her throat, and buried her face into Amane's chest once again, seemingly seeking warmth. Amane was increasingly overwhelmed by cuteness, but if he went with his impulse to embrace her, she would wake up completely. All he did was to stop at headpats.
The air-conditioning had stopped, but Mahiru did not leave Amane as she rubbed her face onto him. He wondered if she was scared of the cold, and tapped his feet onto hers. A cold sensation was felt, and it seemed Mahiru really was scared of the cold.
Amane realized that the air conditioning was set too coldly, so he wrapped his legs around hers to warm her up, his arms around her back to pass on warmth towards her directly.
"...On-once in, a while, is, fine."
Amane's mind immediately went blank once he heard this shrill yet soft voice.
Once in awhile.
In other words, Mahiru did not dislike the idea of living together, and also the idea of sleeping next to Amane.
"Are you serious?"
"S-since we, are lovers...we may, live together, no?"
"...Th-that's true, but."
Amane was speechless to hear her words.
It was common for high school couples to live together. Amane and Mahiru were rather slow about this.
The bakauple often stayed at Chitose's place, and did things Amane and Mahiru had yet to do.
The problem was that Amane was a little hopeful of things to come when she suggested they live together. It was a boy's nature, to hope for some things as a boyfriend.
It seemed Mahiru noticed what Amane was thinking, and her face turned completely beetroot, her eyes teary as she stared at it.
"Erm, I am not thinking of doing those...but I am glad since I will be able to spend more time with you, Amane-kun..."
"...Oh."
"...Can we?'
"Of course. I'm really happy."
Amane stated his opinion once he saw Mahiru look up at him, only to let slip some of his inner desire.
As she was shivering in embarrassment, he reflected on his actions while swallowing the rising desires within him, and patted her head.
"...An-anyway, until next time."
"Y-yes."
"Yep, get ready then. You probably need to get changed, right?"
"O-of course."
Amane ended the topic for the time being. They might be affected greatly by their thoughts otherwise.
He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down, and let go of her. She hurriedly got off the bed, probably out of embarrassment, and turned her head back.
What?The moment he wondered, she quickly closed in on him.
There was a whiff of sweet fragrance, and a soft sensation on the lips.
Both left quickly, replaced by the smooth flax-colored hair fluttering away, caressing his cheeks.
"You teased me lots just now, Amane-kun. This is payback."
She blushed, seemingly enduring her shame. Her hair then fluttered as she quickly left the room.
Once he saw her leave, Amane fell onto the bed again.
I probably can't leave until I cool down.
He fully realized Mahiru's unexpected boldness as he kept looking up at the ceiling, until his body stopped being hot.
---