Our dinner went a little on the livelier side. Not because of what I did before sitting them down but because they kept on praising my cooking as if it was something they could only get at a gourmet restaurant.
However, even if it was a little exaggerated, the three girls genuinely enjoyed it just for the simple fact that I prepared it for them.
They even didn't spare a leftover for Hana to eat later. That's how much they enjoyed it.
When we were done eating, one of the three pushed me out to the living room while the other two went to do the dishes.
And that's our current situation.
Perhaps factoring that this was her house, Chii and Hifumi let me be alone with Hana. Or maybe, they just thought that with them around, there was no way Hana could get my undivided attention.
With my plan in place to make this all worthwhile for the three, I naturally didn't object.
"Are you going to continue being stubborn? I'm here. We're here. We can argue that it's just your second day reconnecting with me but Hana, if something's going to change, it's definitely not me leaving them for you."
Sitting down next to each other, I decided to open up the conversation right away, rather than wait until the two finished with what they were doing.
Hana turned to me, a complicated look on her face. But then again, that didn't diminish her natural beauty. Even now, I could feel the urge to just forget everything and let her feel my love for her. However, there's no point doing that if… nothing would change. That would only be me satisfying myself.
I still even have no idea if she loves me or if it's the same thing as what I realized earlier. She couldn't recognize it. All she had in mind was the comfort and freedom she felt around me. And that she's going to do her all to accomplish that.
"They said it. I'm an obstinate girl. Maybe I can tolerate Chizuru and Hifumi around but not the others. How should I explain it? Overwhelming, maybe?"
Now that's clear progress, hmm? It's truly a great decision to leave her to Chii. This situation was achieved.
And when she said it was overwhelming… I guess I could understand her with that.
I may be insane with this but I'm not blind. With my girls still growing in numbers, it would be hard to familiarize oneself with this complex relationship. It's even becoming harder to explain it to the new ones like Ayu and Auntie Yayoi.
"I see. That's fair." Upon saying this, I involuntarily sighed which Hana caught right away. The girl's complicated expression immediately disappeared as she inched closer to me in slight worry.
"Don't look at me like that. It's not like you to worry about me." I reflexively said after finding that expression of hers a little unfamiliar. I couldn't remember a moment where she worried about something. This could be the first or I was too blinded by my desire to see it before. Either way, I stretched my arm and placed it on the side of her leg, making use of this situation to close our distance completely.
Hana didn't resist it, allowing herself to be carried to my lap. Her only reaction to what I did was to curl up her lips.
Or maybe that's her response to my words.
In any case, she went silent and copied me in making use of this situation. She placed my head in between her palms and heatedly stared at me.
I thought she was going in for the kiss but seconds passed and didn't make any other movements. She just locked our gazes, admiring each other's facial features.
I tried reading what's on her mind through this but as always, she's kind of unpredictable. And likewise, my poker face was holding on. But deep inside, I am rejoicing to get another chance like this.
A minute later, Hana looked like she had come to a decision. She let go of my face and turned her body forward before resting her back on my chest. She then grabbed my arms and wrapped them around her.
She didn't stop at that. She also opened up my closed hands, locking our fingers together.
Once that's done, she hummed in satisfaction.
"I've thought about it. What I want you to do for me… Let's forget for a moment that I'm trying to steal you. Treat me like one of them."
Is that all? I couldn't help but blurt that out in my mind. I mean, the way I treated her was already causing jealousy in my girls… Which means it's already too close to how I treated them.
Well, I guess this saves me the hassle of fulfilling her request.
"Alright… But before that, you remembered what happened yesterday, right? My relationship with them had already gone past the stage we reached before."
Yeah. She knew what had happened between Hina and me inside the bathroom stall. Even if she didn't see it, she's not as innocent as Misaki.
Nonetheless, even with that warning, Hana remained composed. She glanced back at me and without being flustered like yesterday, she said, "Un. I factored that in when I decided to ask you this. But Ruki, won't that cross the line for you?"
Will it? Obviously, yes if I push her down and make love with her here… We don't have the time though. And with Chii and Hifumi also in this house… I'd be nothing but a perverted fool to do that.
"Girl, that's not something you should factor… Besides, even if I want to do it with you, I won't treat your first time lightly."
"Heh. Is that so? Does that mean, after the first time, anywhere will be okay? Like the girl's bathroom." As though she caught me on my tail, Hana leered at me while smirking.
There's no counter to that…
"That's situational."
"Situational, huh? Okay, I believe you." Her smirk turned into a triumphant smile followed by her giggles.
Dropping the topic right there was the correct decision. But then, the following minutes passed by in silence.
After asking me to treat her like she's one of my girls, I naturally slipped into that role. I started by doting on her like I always did with Aya. However, Hana was unresponsive. Aside from being too comfortable sitting on my lap and resting comfortably on my chest, she didn't do anything else.
And due to that, I gradually escalated it. From nibbling her exposed ear to kissing her flawless neck, I entered a state of aiming to get a reaction from her.
I failed at that.
Realizing that it was not working, I dropped any notion to do more than what I already did.
In the end, I resorted to just hugging her, feeling her warmth, and inhaling her addicting fragrance. Hana did the same. Furthermore, she would sometimes reach for my head and pull it down. In which case, our lips would naturally overlap.
Those kisses only lasted for a few seconds but Hana would always smile contentedly as if she was winning a game with me. And provoked by that, I also started initiating it. But instead of kissing her from above, I would do it from the side. Hana liked that as well. So, in essence, I was still the one losing our little game.
By the time Hifumi and Chii returned from the kitchen, Hana hopped off of my lap without even waiting for my prompt. Moreover, still joyous from the mood we created, she left a message that Chii and Hifumi failed to hear.
"Ruki, my request is not only valid tonight. I expect more from you in the following days. You'll be cheating on them with me."