An Introvert's Hookup Hiccups: This Gyaru Is Head Over Heels for Me! Volume 5 E-Book

Yuishi

• Herausgeber: J-Novel Club
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2024

Beschreibung

Yoshin and Nanami have finally left behind the relationship that started with a dare. With the realization that they’re both head over heels for each other, they promise to rebuild their bond for real and reveal the truth to their families and friends. When all is finally out in the open, they embark on their fresh new start. So what comes next? From watching Shibetsu’s basketball game to getting flirty at the pool, there are heaps of new memories to make and many more dates ahead of them. Will this infatuated introvert and his guy-shy girlfriend be able to handle a relationship that’s even sweeter and truer than ever before?

Leseprobe

Table of Contents

Cover

Prologue: Changes Noticed, Changes Unnoticed

Chapter 1: Apology and Forgiveness

Interlude: What Were We Arguing About?

Chapter 2: Shaky Adolescence

Interlude: An Exchange between Two Sisters

Chapter 3: My First Proper Night Out

Interlude: Relaxing on the Water

Chapter 4: Love from Me to You

Epilogue: The Message

Afterword

Color Illustrations

About J-Novel Club

Copyright

Landmarks

Table of Contents

Color Images

Prologue: Changes Noticed, Changes Unnoticed

It started with an offhand remark.

“Is it just me, or do those two seem closer somehow?”

I didn’t know who’d said it, but the words definitely reached our ears. Nanami and I looked around, wondering which “two” the comment referred to. We immediately heard someone laugh and say, “You two, you morons.”

Are we closer? I wondered. Nanami and I looked at each other and tilted our heads in puzzlement. After all, we were behaving the same as usual. Seeing our reactions, though, the people around us continued murmuring that we had indeed stepped it up a notch, but it’s not like we meant to come off that way.

“Well, that’s to be expected, isn’t it?” Otofuke-san mumbled.

“I mean, of course you’d be closer than before,” Kamoenai-san said.

Seeing our clueless expressions, the two friends smiled in exasperation. Their voices were so soft that only Nanami and I could hear them, but it seemed that even they agreed.

After that, we ended up getting told the exact same thing at lunchtime and after school, by our classmates and even by our teachers. As we continued to wonder whether something had actually changed, Otofuke-san and Kamoenai-san tried to explain how they saw it.

“Seriously, you guys seem way closer than you used to,” Otofuke-san remarked.

“Yeah. I mean, it’d be crazy to claim that you weren’t,” Kamoenai-san said, giggling.

I still didn’t quite understand what they were talking about. I mean, sure, Nanami and I were holding hands as we spoke, but that was the same as always. That said, it had taken a while for us to get to that point too.

“Really? Aren’t we the same as always though?” Nanami asked, placing her index finger on her cheek. Her friends both scratched their cheeks, their faces twitching.

“Uh, it’s not about physical distance or anything,” Otofuke-san explained. “It’s more like your emotional distance. Thinking about it, I guess you two were always physically close.”

“Yeah! It’s your whole atmosphere, though of course you’re literally close too.”

Were we really, though? In any case, they’d given us something else to think about. Atmosphere, huh? What an abstract explanation. Maybe that was why our classmates had been so vague.

“Are we really that different?” Nanami and I both asked simultaneously, making Otofuke-san and Kamoenai-san burst into laughter. Even though it was just an accident, Nanami and I found ourselves blushing.

Once they’d finished laughing, Otofuke-san and Kamoenai-san grinned and took their leave, telling us they shouldn’t get in the way of the young, happy couple. Oh, come on—we’re all the same age here, I thought.

Still, as I watched the two walk away, I felt secretly relieved that things hadn’t gotten awkward between me and Nanami’s friends. They were both so important to Nanami, and I didn’t want to make her sad or anything.

When I glanced at Nanami, our eyes met. She’d been looking at me too. She smiled at me awkwardly, making me laugh.

“Do you think we’ve changed that much?” she finally asked, tilting her head again.

“Hmm. I feel like we’re the same as always,” I replied, still unconvinced.

Even so, I knew from reading manga that people rarely recognized these kinds of changes in themselves. I wasn’t sure if the same were true in real life, but maybe that was what was happening to us now. Maybe everyone else could see the change more clearly than we could.

Besides, we already had an idea of what had caused the change. In fact, we had too many ideas, and all of them had something to do with my relief that things hadn’t become weird between me and Nanami’s friends.

I took a moment to think back on what had happened. This might sound kind of cliché, but where there’s a beginning, there’s always an end. That’s just a fact. The end would always come, whether you wanted it to or not, and that was neither good nor bad. I should know, considering I’d just experienced one of those ends.

Perhaps others might feel that that hadn’t been an end but rather a transition. For me, though, it had most definitely been an end. If anything, I felt like our weekly dates were the transitions. That, too, was kind of cliché, but there were always stops and starts to everything.

Four transitions and one end, all in this past month. I’m talking about all this as though it happened some weeks ago, but actually it had only been a few days. And every single one of those things had been an extremely precious, irreplaceable experience.

There might be people out there who’ve experienced similar things to what I had, but nonetheless, I would say with certainty that my experiences were unique. Thinking about it, though, I should probably describe them as being “our” experiences rather than just mine, and the more I thought about it, the more strongly I felt that this was a story that both Nanami—my girlfriend—and I shared. Yup, girlfriend. Nanami was my girlfriend.

I was once again overcome by the sense of security that came with being able to call her that. Not so long ago, there’d been a chance that I would lose the privilege to do so. Although I don’t know for sure just how likely that might have been, I was glad things had turned out the way they had.

Yeah, I know, I know. There’s no point in beating around the bush. Still, I can’t help dragging my feet like this. One thought always leads to another whenever I recall what had happened on that fateful day, but even so, I should make myself clear: the end I’d experienced had been that of my relationship with Nanami.

Actually, that’s not entirely correct, but it wouldn’t be incorrect either. Saying that makes it sound like she and I actually broke up, but it wasn’t like that. What I meant to say was that the relationship that had ended wasn’t our relationship in general but the false one based on a dare.

Ugh, saying it like that makes it sound terrible. But it’s true—until just a little while ago, Nanami and I had been going out because of a dare. At least, for Nanami, it had been because of a dare; for me, her confession had been like a bolt from the blue (though I might be using that expression incorrectly). And, just the other day, that dare had ended.

The dare had ended, but our relationship hadn’t. Honestly, that was all there was to it; but even so, I couldn’t help but feel like a long and winding road had finally gotten us to this point. One month felt like a whole year, and yet it also felt like the blink of an eye.

When Nanami had admitted she’d confessed to me on a dare, I’d been so overcome with surprise that I’d felt my blood run cold. I mean, I’d never expected her to come clean. But after that, we’d both talked things over and decided to continue our relationship with each other. I know that sounds a bit stiff, but that’s the only way to describe it.

All’s well that ends well. When one thing ends, another begins. Thus the somewhat twisted relationship between Nanami and me had received a fresh start. But then...

“I wonder what’s different though,” I muttered.

I mean, when I stopped to think calmly about what had changed, I couldn’t help thinking nothing had. Sure, I understood that people around us thought differently, but my feelings and my attitude hadn’t changed one bit. I had thought that maybe time would pass and something would change, but that hadn’t been the case at all. Clearly, change wasn’t always the right thing to pursue, but I still couldn’t help wondering if that was okay.

After all the mental gymnastics, I finally came upon one thing that was sure to change, though it sure had taken me a while to realize it. It was the fact that I was now one-hundred-percent confident that Nanami liked me. Those sound like the words of someone who’s way too full of himself. Still, for a guy in his teens, knowing that the girl I liked liked me back was a huge confidence booster.

Although until now I hadn’t been sure how she felt, now I could act with confidence. Act...as in, do what? Hmm... Okay, so now I have more confidence, but what am I supposed to do next?

My train of thought suddenly stopped there. I felt like my mind was going in circles.

“What are you groaning about?”

At that moment, I felt Nanami poke my cheek. It would have been easy for me to claim that nothing was wrong, but I wondered if perhaps it would be better to share what was on my mind.

Yeah. Nothing good would come even if I tried to hide it. I should just tell her, I thought.

“I was just wondering how we were going to change moving forward,” I confessed.

“Change? Is there something you want to change, Yoshin?”

Seeing Nanami tilt her head in a puzzled fashion, I wondered if I’d put it too simply. I suppose it was just a bit difficult for me to put my thoughts into words. I mean, how was I supposed to phrase it? Still unsure, I attempted a second explanation.

“Well, I mean, until just recently, our relationship had been kind of fake, right?”

“Fake... Yeah, I guess you could say that. What about it though?” she asked.

“Then on our one-month anniversary the other day, it stopped being fake, so now we’re actually dating. As in, now we’re actually boyfriend and girlfriend.”

When I put it in words like that, I felt my cheeks grow hot. Jeez, I never used to be the type to say stuff like this. Oh well, I’ve already said it. I’d better just get on with it.

“So I was thinking, if we’re going out for real, maybe we should aim for some kind of change. Like, is it really okay to stay the same as we were before?”

Although the second half had come out in a rush, I’d managed to tell Nanami what I was thinking. I felt my face grow warmer and warmer until my entire face felt hot. I was probably completely red.

Nanami poked my cheek with her finger and smiled at me gently. I felt the tip of her slender finger on my cheek and followed its movement with my gaze. She brought it to her lips as though deep in thought.

Seeing her fall silent, I started getting nervous, like a child anticipating a scolding. I felt cold sweat run down my body and my heart begin to pound. As my palms became sweaty and the tips of my fingers cold, I worried that Nanami was going to be grossed out. Thinking that maybe I should let go of her hand, I looked down at my own. Then, as if she knew exactly when to speak, she asked, “In that case, why don’t we talk about what kind of changes we’d like to make?”

“Huh?”

That was all I managed to say. I’d thought she might reproach me for suggesting that we needed to change, but that hadn’t been the case at all.

Nanami giggled a bit at my loss for words, then winked as she poked my cheek again. I waited for her explanation as she continued playing with my face.

“Our relationship is strange, isn’t it?” she said. “At first, we had nothing to do with each other, and then there was the dare, and now we’ve started dating for real. Just in this month alone, our relationship has changed so much.”

“Now that you mention it, I guess you’re right.”

“That’s why I feel like things are just going to change naturally moving forward. If that’s the case, then we should accept that change will come and talk about what kinds of changes we want and don’t want. It’d be nice to assume that there will be changes and then take things step-by-step while we talk things through.”

“Assume that there will be changes?” I repeated.

“Yeah. Doesn’t that sound like more fun?”

Given that I hadn’t even thought of it that way, Nanami’s suggestion was a complete eye-opener. I’d been sitting there wondering what I should do, totally afraid of change, while Nanami had already accepted change as par for the course. I felt like I’d been released from a tangle of webs, like my endless loop of consternation had ended—as though something had finally fallen into place inside my chest.

“You’re right. That does sound like more fun,” I said, finally managing a laugh. Nanami flashed me a toothy grin. My cold sweat had subsided, and warmth had returned to my fingertips. I squeezed Nanami’s hand tightly again. She looked at me, her eyes wide in mild surprise, but she quickly squeezed my hand in return.

“Speaking of change, do you ever change up how you look?” Nanami asked. “Toru-san’s been asking me to bring you to the salon again.”

“What? But I just went a couple of weeks ago. I thought you’re just supposed to get your hair cut every six months or so.”

“Uh...is that really normal for guys?”

Nanami and I continued walking, going back and forth about random topics. However, my overall relief had made me forget about something important: the fact that Nanami frequently dug her own grave or self-destructed out of embarrassment. This time, too, Nanami seemed perfectly fine, so I didn’t notice anything. In fact, I wouldn’t realize until some time later.

As we set out to learn more about each other, the first days of our brand-new relationship together passed gently, just as they always had.

Chapter 1: Apology and Forgiveness

Although our actions and relationship had changed, many things didn’t change at all—or at least, they hadn’t changed yet. Visiting Nanami’s house today was one of those things.

My parents were already back from their business trip, so I actually didn’t have a reason to be going over there so frequently. However, when I’d mentioned that I wouldn’t be visiting so often in the future, Nanami’s entire family had risen up in opposition.

Nanami’s mom and dad, Tomoko-san and Genichiro-san, had been the ones most against the idea. Nanami had been against it too, but her parents had been even more vehement. Although I was grateful for their kindness, I also felt bad about being a bother. Nevertheless, I’d ended up taking them up on their invitation.

Because of that, I was visiting the Baratos again. At least I wasn’t doing it every day. What’s more, although I just said that my visits hadn’t changed, today was slightly different from usual. Usually when Nanami and I came home, I would go straight into learning to cook from Nanami or making dinner for the night with Nanami and Tomoko-san.

When I thought about it, making dinner with your girlfriend’s mother seemed pretty unusual. I wondered why it had taken me so long to realize that. In any case, instead of doing that, I now found myself in Nanami’s room, having been urged inside by Tomoko-san herself. Nanami’s mom had told us she wanted to prepare a feast by herself today. Nanami had offered to help, of course, but she was now in her room with me as well.

That was one thing that was different. It was a small difference, but this was probably our first time finding ourselves with nothing to do right after getting home. The other major difference was how Nanami was in her room right now. I mean, it was her room, so of course she’d be there, but for some reason, the distance between the two of us was more pronounced than usual.

The conversation we’d had earlier about us being closer seemed almost like a figment of my imagination. Nanami was putting so much distance between us that even I couldn’t help but notice.

Until now, she would have attached herself to me the minute we walked into her room, or asked if she could put her head in my lap, or tried to get me to put my head in hers. Yeah, she really was one to do all sorts of things. In other words, Nanami was always the type to want to do those sorts of things whenever we were alone in her room, yet today, for some reason, she was sitting with one whole cushion’s worth of space between us. She was even sitting with her legs bent, her arms wrapped around her knees.

I looked at her more closely and noticed that she was actually trying to avoid my gaze. Although she’d look at me with sidelong glances from time to time, she would quickly turn her face away. She’d been perfectly normal until a minute ago, but the moment we’d stepped into her room, she’d started behaving this way. What in the world was going on?

When I got up and took half a step toward her, she shivered a little and leaned her upper body away from me. Seeing her reaction, I sat back down in my original spot. I had to admit, that put me in a mild state of shock. Nanami seemed to realize she’d backed away from me, because she raised her hands in the air in panic. Although I felt rather panicked myself, I did my best to suppress my anxiety.

“What’s wrong, Nanami? Did I do something wrong?” I asked, to which Nanami simply shook her head slightly. So I hadn’t done anything. If that was the case, then I couldn’t think of any reason why this was happening.

Nanami raised her head and stole a glance at me. When our eyes met, I smiled at her, but Nanami turned and hid her face. Seriously? I thought. This was a bit of an emotional blow. No, it wasn’t a bit of a blow; it caused quite some damage.

Even in my state of shock, I tried to talk to Nanami only to finally realize her ears had turned red. No, it wasn’t just her ears. When I looked more closely from the side, I realized her cheeks and even her neck had turned scarlet. She was red all over. Seeing her like that, I couldn’t help but feel more confused.

“Um, Nanami? Why are you all red? I mean, did something happen?”

Even when I tried to think back, I couldn’t come up with anything. We’d left school together, talked about changes that might take place in our relationship, got back home, come up to her room...and that was it. At least she wasn’t angry with me. She seemed to be blushing out of embarrassment about something, but what could she possibly be embarrassed about?

For now, I decided it best not to press further and simply waited for her to calm down. The panic I’d felt a minute ago had vanished completely, perhaps because I knew she’d spit it out when she was ready. Moments later, I was proved right, because Nanami, glancing over at me, slowly began to speak.

“So you know how you and I were dating because I confessed to you on a dare?” she murmured.

“Yes, I know. It was like that until just the other day,” I said.

“And now we’re actually going out, right?”

“Uh, yes. We did talk about that earlier.”

I didn’t see how any of this could lead to her being so embarrassed or make her blush so much. It’s not like we’re gonna start making out all of a sudden... Wait, hold your horses, Yoshin. My thoughts scattered in the wind as Nanami continued talking.

“It’s just that I realized I was actually alone in my room with my boyfriend...with you. And when I thought about that, I got nervous all of a sudden,” she said.

“Huh?”

At that moment, my mind stopped functioning.

Until just the other day, Nanami and I had been in a relationship based on a dare. We’d even gone on a date since we’d started dating for real, and a few days had passed since then. What she was describing didn’t seem like the kind of thing that should take so long to realize. It was also true, though, that we hadn’t really stopped to confirm that we were in a real relationship now. I supposed we’d been kind of busy with updating Baron-san and stuff like that.

Our whole relationship before now had depended on a dare. In other words, we’d had a kind of cushion between us that had allowed us to act in ways that would get the other person to like us. Even if we had acted somewhat boldly, we could have subconsciously justified our actions by writing them off as for the sake of the dare.

Acting in the name of the dare: that was what we had done until now. I finally understood that, albeit belatedly. Now, though, I became conscious of what I hadn’t realized before—that our cushion, our safety net, was gone.

“Uh, yeah, I... You’re right. We’re alone, aren’t we?” I said.

“Y-Yeah, we’re all alone,” she responded.

Now that I was fully aware of the situation, even I was at a loss for words.

Technically, Tomoko-san and Saya-chan were home too, so we weren’t alone alone. Still, we were alone in this room together. Well, we were usually alone when we were in Nanami’s room, but the point stands.

Between us was a space large enough to fit a single cushion, and that distance felt terribly large. It was a space that either of us could close in a moment, but it still felt far. I felt so nervous that I had to ask myself how I’d done all the things with her up till now.

Nanami must have felt just as nervous as I did. If anything, she was probably even more nervous. After all, she was normally uncomfortable around guys. I knew I was being kind of slow on the uptake, but when I thought about that, I couldn’t bring myself to make a move.

That, though, was exactly why I should be the one to do it. I didn’t mean to say that that was what guys should do. It was just a question of taking turns. Nanami had eased my anxiety earlier. Now it was my turn to do the same for her.

“Hey, Nanami, is it okay if I sit closer to you?” I asked. There was a danger of coming off as overly saccharine, but if I got close to Nanami now without getting permission first, I would only startle her. That’s why I’d had to suck it up and ask.

I felt like I was dealing with a timid cat, though given that I’d never owned a cat before, that was based completely on my imagination. I just wanted to get rid of this feeling that there was an invisible barrier between us.

When she heard me, Nanami opened her eyes wide for a moment, then nodded slightly. Relieved, I looked at her. It was as though she were shining brilliantly before my eyes. Amazed, I had to rub my eyes for a moment, but she was still shining upon my second look. She looked prettier than she ever had before.

“Okay, here I come,” I told her.

Nervously, slowly, I moved closer to Nanami, trying not to scare her. The approach reminded me of how I used to walk up to the rabbit living on the school grounds. I wondered if that rabbit was still there.

Even after I’d shuffled closer, I didn’t take any immediate action. I waited until Nanami regained her composure. Truth be told, I was nervous too and wanted a little time to calm myself down.

Silence settled in the room, but it wasn’t an unpleasant one. In fact, the more time that passed, the more comfortable it began to feel. Nanami seemed to be feeling similarly—the redness in her cheeks had faded, and her expression had softened a bit. She ended up being the first to break the silence.

“Hey, Yoshin, can you stroke my hair?” she asked. She slowly leaned toward me, letting her upper body touch mine. Before, she would have immediately put her head in my lap, but this time, Nanami had asked me first instead. I swallowed hard.

“You’re sure, right?” I managed to say.

“Yes, please.”

I slowly lifted my hand and reached for her hair but found I was way too nervous. Is my palm too sweaty right now? I wondered. Unable to shake off the worry, I wiped my hand with my handkerchief before attempting to touch Nanami’s hair.

I hadn’t touched her hair in a while, so I was taken by the soft and pleasant sensation I felt on the palm of my hand. It felt like I was petting a luxurious carpet, and I wanted to keep touching it forever.

From there, I slowly began to stroke her hair. Nanami half closed her eyes, looking as though she found comfort in my touch. Then, from out of nowhere...

“Hee hee hee...”

“Ha ha ha!”

We both burst into laughter. Nanami took my hand, then slowly, gently, brought it to her cheek. Her warm skin felt smooth against my palm.

“Thanks, Yoshin. I think I’m a little calmer now. I like your hand. It’s warm.”

“Good, I’m glad. I, um, got nervous after thinking about what you said, but I feel calmer now too.”

To be honest, my heart was still beating loudly from the warmth of her cheek. However, if Nanami said that she’d calmed down, then that was all that mattered. She brushed her lips against my hand, then giggled again. My heart skipped a beat.

“I guess it’s weird for us to get nervous over this, since we’ve already kissed and stuff,” Nanami said, offering me a bashful smile. She pressed her lips to my hand once again.

Uh, just what I am supposed to do here? I thought. Am I supposed to kiss...or smooch her hand, as Tomoko-san would say? I wasn’t expecting this at all. Hey, wait a minute. Isn’t it usually the opposite, in terms of gender roles?

“I guess we have, but that was only once,” I said.

“Right, but why won’t you do it again?” Nanami asked indignantly.

“Well, I mean, you know...”

Nanami puffed out her cheeks and glared at me. My eyes met hers for a moment, but I turned away to avoid her gaze. However, at that moment, I made up my mind and gently tugged her hand so my lips met her palm.

I’d only done what Nanami had done to me, but my heart was thumping wildly. How was she able to do something like this?! It took everything I had.

Whether or not she knew what was going on in my head, Nanami was blinking, her eyes glimmering in delight. “Wow, Yoshin, you’re so forward! Isn’t that the sort of thing princes do?” she said. Now obviously very happy, she touched my hand in a soft and playful way. It didn’t hurt at all, but it did tickle and sent a strange tingle down my spine. Trying to withstand it, I looked her straight in the eye.

“You did it first. Besides, it’d be weird to get excited over this, given that we’ve kissed and all,” I said.

“Excuse me? But we’ve only kissed once!” she exclaimed.

“Isn’t that what I said a minute ago?”

“Yeah, well, you only said what I said earlier too!”

After that, it felt like the strange wall that had stood between us vanished, and we both began to laugh. We finally felt like we were back to normal. There was still a teensy, tiny bit of awkwardness, but I was sure that we’d get used to that too.

Although it might sound odd, everything suddenly felt new to us, like we’d been dating for no time at all. I mean, I knew a month wasn’t terribly long, but it was still a long time to me. Maybe this overwhelming sense of newness was because we’d realized the nature of our relationship had changed. That said, when we’d first started going out, I’d been so caught up in not screwing things up that I hadn’t really gotten the chance to think about anything. To be totally honest, I didn’t dislike the way I was feeling now.

“Please excuse me!”

While I was deep in my thoughts, Nanami suddenly plopped her head down in my lap. Apparently, her nervousness had dissipated, and she was now starting to feel like her usual self. I reached down and touched her hair again. She looked at me as though my touch tickled. She then placed her index finger on her lips and smiled seductively. My heart skipped another beat as I waited for her to speak.

“Then should we kiss again?” she asked, tracing her finger over her lips. I felt my cheeks growing warm again. Nanami, too, was blushing.

“I’m not sure how I feel about you giving your lips away so willingly like that,” I remarked.

“Oh, it’s a special bargain just for you, Yoshin. It’s a great deal. What do you think?”

Scratching my head, I closed my eyes and thought very hard...or at least, I pretended to. I mean, was there any guy in the world who could receive such an offer and refuse? No, I was pretty sure there wasn’t. The question might as well have been rhetorical.

I’ll approach this with a solemn attitude, I thought.

“In that case, I do believe I shall take you up on it,” I declared, opening my eyes and looking down at her. I heard her draw in a breath. Still, even as she seemed at a loss for words, she returned my gaze immediately. She then reached up and touched my cheek.

“There’s no refunds, sir. Are you sure about your decision?” she asked.

“I wouldn’t go back on it. Oh, but if I do change my mind, would I have to pay the penalty with my lips?”

“In that case, go ahead and change your mind.”

Then Nanami closed her eyes and waited.

I didn’t know what it was, but maybe I’d managed to kiss her so smoothly on our one-month anniversary because we’d both been feeling so excited. To try to kiss her when we were both calm like this felt, well, kind of embarrassing. Then again, I supposed I hadn’t actually kissed her all that smoothly on our anniversary either.

Recalling that moment, I suddenly realized an error in our conversation, but for now, I had to set that aside. My first order of business was to make sure I didn’t keep Nanami waiting. I brought my lips closer to hers as she lay with her head in my lap. And finally...

Our lips met.

My lips touched hers for a mere few seconds before I moved away. Nanami kept her eyes glued shut as her face turned completely red. My face was completely red too, of course.

“If you were gonna get so embarrassed, you shouldn’t have said anything to tempt me in the first place. Even your neck’s all red,” I told her, gently bringing my hand to the exposed part of her neck.

“Eek!” Nanami exclaimed, practically jumping out of her skin. It was her own fault really. I guess that was one of those things that would never change.

Her face still red, Nanami smiled at me shyly and mumbled, “But I want us to kiss each other more, so I wanted to try to get as used to it as possible.”

As she looked away from me slightly with her hands hiding her mouth, I had to resist the urge to jump up and shout about how adorable she was. Seriously, how does she manage to be this cute?!

I took a deep breath in order to calm myself. “You don’t have to get used to it,” I told her. “If you did, I wouldn’t be able to see all your adorable reactions.”

I know, I know. I was going to make people nauseous speaking like that. Still, I felt like I was going to lose my mind if I didn’t tell her how cute she was.

As I sat there embracing my happiness, Nanami slapped me lightly on the chest. There was no force behind her smacks; they just made little pat, pat sounds.

“Jeez, how can you be so calm about this? Don’t tell me you’re used to it already. That’s so not fair!”

“Oh, no. I’m not calm at all, and I’m not used to it either,” I said, coming back to my senses as I saw Nanami puff out her cheeks. I laughed awkwardly and scratched my cheek. Apparently my efforts to maintain my composure had made me seem like I was actually calm.

“By the way, you said that this was our second kiss, but isn’t it really our third?” I asked. That’s right: we’d kissed twice on our anniversary—she’d kissed me, then I’d kissed her. That was why our kiss just now should be our third.

However, Nanami had implied this was our second kiss. I know it was a minor detail, but I couldn’t help thinking about it. Nanami seemed slightly surprised by my question. She opened her eyes wide, then hid her face again. As I sat there, not understanding her reaction, she began to speak to me again, this time in a barely audible voice. However, sitting so close, I didn’t miss a word she said.

“Well, um, I meant that it was the second time you’d kissed me. I’m still too embarrassed to kiss you myself,” she mumbled.

“What? But weren’t you the one who kissed me first? Isn’t it a bit late to say that?” I asked.

“I was all worked up then, but once I calmed down, I was worried that my kissing you maybe seemed a bit forward. You weren’t weirded out by it, right?”

Hearing her question, I couldn’t help but laugh. It tickled me that we were similar in so many ways and that she’d worry about something like that now.

Nanami turned bright red and puffed out her cheeks again as she watched me continue to laugh. Then, with fists that had very little force behind them, she began hitting me on the chest again.

I went on laughing, and although Nanami looked like she was upset at first, she eventually started laughing as well. I felt so incredibly happy. Once we’d calmed down a little, we both fell silent, and stillness filled the room. Nanami lay down with her head on my lap again while I stroked her hair slowly.

“You know, it’s really relieving having your head in my lap like this. Like, it really feels like everything’s finally over,” I said.

“I’m really happy too. I guess I feel that all the more, given all the stuff that’s happened. But maybe it’s not that everything is over. I mean, things are just getting started,” she said.

“You’re right. In that case, it’s a pleasure.”

“Yes, it’s a pleasure.”

As both Nanami and I gazed at each other, there was a sudden knock on her door.

“Come in!” Nanami called. At her invitation, the door opened, and Tomoko-san walked in with a tray in her hands.

“I’ve brought tea for the two of you— Oh, what’s this, now?” she asked.

“Oh, th-thank you,” I stammered.

“Thanks, mom. Hm? What’s wrong?” Nanami asked.

While Nanami and I both thanked her in our own ways, Tomoko-san stood there with her mouth agape, still holding the tray. She looked from me to Nanami and blinked several times.

“Um, what are you two doing?” she finally asked.

“What do you mean? I’m lying with my head in his lap,” Nanami explained.

“No, I mean, why are you lying in his lap?” Tomoko-san said.

“Oh...”

Then Nanami and I finally looked at each other. Come to think of it, this might have been the first time that we’d been in this position in front of her. With her nervousness finally gone, though, Nanami didn’t seem to mind the situation at all. “Can you leave the tea over there, please?” was all she asked. I, on the other hand, was starting to sweat in a mild panic.

Tomoko-san seemed just as perplexed by Nanami’s reaction. In fact, as she left, I heard Tomoko-san mumble, “Maybe I should ask my husband to let me do the same...”

Once her mother was gone, Nanami slid away from me, took a sip of her tea, and said...

“Wh-What do we do, Yoshin?! Mom saw us! She’s gonna tell everybody!”

“Wow, it’s a little too late for that now, don’t you think?” I said.

Nanami, who had been as cool as a cucumber until just a moment ago, had gone into a total meltdown. She remained in that state for some time, talking excitedly. As I watched her, I came to the realization that, all in all, we hadn’t really changed that much after all.

That’s right—people didn’t change so easily. That was what I was thinking as I sat there recalling an incident from several days prior.

♢♢♢

First, to go back in time for a bit...

It was several days after we had given our update to Baron-san and company—after Nanami and I had made a fresh start as a true, official couple.

Obviously we hadn’t told people around us that we’d restarted our relationship. If we did say something, it was only to mention that we’d had our one-month anniversary. Because of that, to most people, our relationship must have seemed like it always had. But there were some who knew different. To those people, the fact that we were continuing our relationship had an entirely different meaning. That outcome also brought about change for those people too.

This was probably just one of many such examples.

Soon after Nanami and I had told each other our secrets and restarted our relationship, the two of us were summoned to an empty classroom. To say that we were summoned might sound kind of ominous, but this wasn’t that kind of story.

The ones who had summoned us were Otofuke-san and Kamoenai-san. That was why I already had an idea of what they wanted to talk to us about. Nanami probably felt the same way. She and I quietly entered the classroom.

Of course, Otofuke-san and Kamoenai-san were inside waiting for us without even sitting down. I can’t say I was terribly surprised that they were there. However, I did find myself surprised when I actually saw the two of them.

The two girls waiting to speak to us weren’t wearing their uniforms in their usual casual manner. Instead, it was as though they were dressed in some kind of formal wear. They’d removed all of their accessories, and Kamoenai-san wasn’t even wearing the locket she always had around her neck.

Seeing them like that for the first time, I felt my eyes widen in surprise. When I glanced at Nanami standing beside me, though, I noticed she didn’t seem surprised at all. She must have known this was coming. I suppose that was to be expected—the two had summoned us through Nanami after all.

What awaited me was an apology from the two of them.

“I’m truly sorry, Misumai,” Otofuke-san said.

“I’m sorry too,” said Kamoenai-san.

They both then bowed deeply to me. Nanami was looking at the two of them with a pained expression, but she didn’t say anything in response. It must have been because their apology was directed at me.

The two girls must have chosen an empty classroom out of consideration for me as well. If anyone just happened to see all this, who knew what kinds of rumors people would start about us?

As for me, I had no idea what to say to the two of them. I really had no clue, but I did my best to tell them how I honestly felt.

“I already heard everything from Nanami,” I said. “She told me she was dared to confess to me after losing a card game to the two of you.”

Both their bodies twitched at my remark. I immediately regretted making it, realizing I’d done so in a mean-spirited way. Still, I continued by telling them how it had all turned out.

“Don’t worry. Everything’s fine. Nanami and I have decided to stay together for the long haul. We’re not breaking up.”

I gently pulled Nanami into an embrace. Their heads were bowed, so they probably couldn’t see. Finding herself suddenly drawn toward me, Nanami grinned shyly, making me feel all warm inside. Otofuke-san and Kamoenai-san looked up for a moment, and seeing Nanami in my arms, they looked sincerely relieved. But even that was for only a moment, as they immediately bowed their heads again.

“Thank you. I know I don’t have the right to say this, but thank you, honestly,” Otofuke-san said.

“Thank you for choosing Nanami and for forgiving all of us,” Kamoenai-san said.

Although they seemed to be trying to hide it, their voices made it sound as though the girls were tearing up.

All this wasn’t about me forgiving them or not; forgiveness clearly went both ways. Just as I had forgiven Nanami, Nanami had forgiven me too. That was all there was to it. But maybe since I hadn’t shared that fact with the two of them, it seemed as though I was the one forgiving Nanami.

The two girls didn’t seem to be raising their heads anytime soon. It was my first time seeing them like this. I supposed that was just how much they cared for Nanami. I thought for a moment and came to a decision. If they cared about Nanami this much, I had to tell them the truth.

When I glanced at Nanami, she gave me a slight nod. I nodded to her in return, then turned back to her two friends.