Episode 26: Don’t Mind Me
“Hey, Yuto. It’s your turn.”
In Ichinose Ayano’s room, she and Kamijou Yuuto were in the middle of an intense Othello match.
It was already past 8 PM. Having finished their baths and dinner, and just recently completing their homework, the couple was savoring their private time, a closeness akin to family.
Until halfway through, they had been engaged in a quietly fierce battle, but towards the end, Yuto’s momentum waned, and finally, his hand froze.
“Yuto!”
At Ayano’s repeated calls, he finally snapped back to reality.
“Huh? What?”
“Not ‘what,’ it’s your turn.”
“Ah, sorry… Right—”
Yuto picked up a magnetic piece and searched for a place to play, but frowned at the overwhelming scarcity of his color.
“Is this… am I cornered?”
“Yeah, completely cornered. But hey, there are still places you can play, so just play them. And then despair.”
Ayano raised a hand to her mouth and laughed affectedly.
But she quickly gave a wry smile.
“…It doesn’t really feel like a ‘one more game’ situation, does it?”
“Sorry.”
“It’s fine, but—?”
Ayano rested her cheek on her hand on the table, sighing softly at her gloomy boyfriend.
“…Are you that worried about those rumors?”
“Well, yeah.”
The lines between Yuto’s eyebrows deepened.
The story he had heard from his friend Akimoto Fuyuki this morning was certainly unpleasant.
‘I saw Ichinose Ayano entering a hotel with a middle-aged man.’
‘She has connections with a delinquent group from another school.’
‘She’s dating multiple guys at the same time.’
‘She has piercings and tattoos.’
And so on.
It was completely different from her image at school and the real her.
Fuyuki, Kaori, and other students who knew about the rumors had apparently received messages from unknown addresses via email or calling app accounts around Sunday evening.
It was clear that someone was intentionally spreading them.
That’s why Yuto was irritated, but she herself looked like it was none of her business.
“…Doesn’t it bother you, Ayano? That strange rumors about you are spreading?”
When he asked about her composure, she shrugged slightly.
“Of course, it doesn’t feel good. But not everyone in the class is taking it seriously, and at least those two were genuinely worried about us. Just having people like that makes a big difference.”
More than anything, she added,
“Yuto, you believe in me, right?”
“Of course.”
Hearing that, Ayano smiled contentedly.
“Then it’s just unknown rumors spreading in places I don’t know about. Besides, it’s not like I can do anything about it on my own anymore, so there’s no point in getting worked up about it.”
Following her lead, Yuto started to clean up, peeling off the pieces from the board one by one.
“But I wonder who started it and why? I have no idea what they’re thinking.”
“Hmm, isn’t it just jealousy?”
Ayano shrugged exaggeratedly.
“You know, I’m a beautiful girl, as you can see? Some mob-character girl is probably jealous. It’s too hard being this beautiful.”
“…Yeah, that might be true.”
Ayano’s hand stopped abruptly at his reply.
“Hey… Wait a minute. Aren’t you supposed to say, ‘You’re saying that yourself!’ or something? Otherwise, I’ll just look like a conceited woman.”
“I know you’re waiting for me to retort. It’s just that, now that you mention it, it makes sense. Ayano really is beautiful.”
“Ah… Oh, really? I’m glad you have such a beautiful girlfriend, aren’t you?”
Yuto chuckled self-deprecatingly at Ayano, who suddenly felt hot and fanned herself with the hem of her shirt.
“Seriously, I know it’s late to say this, but I’m not good enough for you.”
It was a casual remark, but something about it bothered Ayano.
“Hmm?”
While giving a nonchalant reply, Ayano went behind Yuto, who was putting the pieces away in the folding board, and
“Orya.”
She hugged him.
“Whoa!? What!?”
His body stiffened as he felt her pressing tightly against his back, feeling the modest yet feminine softness and warmth.
“Sure, I want you to think I’m pretty and cute, so I work hard on my skin and hair, and I even learned how to do makeup, but I didn’t want to become an ‘out-of-reach beauty.’ I’m troubled when you say I’m ‘too good’ for you.”
Ignoring his fluster, she tightened her arms around him.
“Then what kind of woman would be good enough for you? Someone with rougher skin and hair? Is that what you prefer?”
Hearing that, he was taken aback.
“…Sorry. I’m just not confident in myself.”
Ayano rested her forehead against his back, which felt bigger than she remembered, and said,
“I’m your girl now. I like you so much that I can’t help but want to touch you, so don’t think like that.”
“Yeah… Thanks.”
“At least, I’m happy right now.”
“I’m happy too.”
They felt each other’s warmth.
“…Don’t you feel kind of hot?”
“That’s… You too, right?”
“Because I’m nervous.”
She said, sliding her hands across his chest.
“…Yuto, you’re amazing too.”
“Well, that’s because you’re…”
In the past, their skin would touch like puppies or kittens playing, but now, it made his heart race so much.
“Um… Should we, you know…”
He didn’t want to push her away, but if things continued like this, it would be unbearable for a teenage boy.
Kamijou Yuuto was usually patient, but there was a limit.
And then,
“Do you want to?”
He gasped at her short, breathy question.
“W-What…?”
“What Yuna-san said was still too early.”
Yuto could understand what she was talking about.
After all, he himself had wanted it to happen.
But now that it was actually happening, he hesitated.
For him, it might just be about satisfaction, but for her, there were things to lose and risks to take.
“But isn’t it still too early…? I heard it’s pretty painful.”
“Is it really painful? I don’t like pain…”
Ayano frowned, burying her face in Yuto’s back,
“…But either way, the first time is going to come, right?”
Yuto’s heart leaped.
“Don’t say things like that so casually… It makes me…”
They separated and faced each other nervously.
“It’s not casual… That’s why.”
She muttered, taking off her oversized shirt.
“…”
Her white upper body with just the right amount of flesh. A plain gray sports bra.
Her true figure was revealed, and Yuto gasped.
When they were kids, they used to swim together and change clothes together, and even take baths together.
It wasn’t the first time he had seen her skin.
But the grown-up her was too beautiful and captivating.
“Being stared at in silence… is kind of embarrassing.”
She tried to hide her body with her arms as if hugging herself, but there was no way to hide it.
She had initiated it herself, but embarrassment washed over her,
“Sorry, but… you’re really beautiful.”
At those words, the blush on her cheeks deepened.
“…Is it okay just to look?”
“Is it okay?”
“Yeah, it’s okay.”
Ayano accepted Yuto’s hand, which was tentatively reaching for her cheek.
“Your hand is hot, like you have a fever.”
“Well… of course it’s going to get hot if we’re doing something like this.”
He slid his hand from her flushed cheeks to her neck, shoulders, and arms.
“Your touch is… lewd.”
“Well, we’re doing something lewd…”
A moment of silence and hesitation.
And then,
“…Are you okay with this?”
“If I wasn’t, I wouldn’t be doing this.”
One question and answer.
Ayano took Yuto’s hand, which was cautiously touching her waist, and slid it up from her abdomen.
“…!—, —”
Yuto’s heart leaped again.
And then, his fingertips lightly touched the firm and soft, small yet distinctly present bulge through the stretchy fabric.
“Your breathing is getting rough.”
“Well, that’s because…”
His throat bobbed.
“Ayano—”
And then, he hugged her. She wrapped her arms around Yuto’s body.
They hugged each other tightly, as if becoming one.
His heart was beating painfully fast.
He felt like he was floating.
In the midst of it, his older sister’s and mother’s words flashed through his mind. Her father’s trust flickered.
In this situation, he didn’t have the recommended items on hand.
Even so, his beloved was entrusting herself to him.
Just that made everything seem trivial.
Even the fact that she was stiffening and trembling slightly in his arms—.
“…Yuto—”
Just before their lips touched—
“Ayano, I’m home. …Is Yuuto-kun here?”
Someone knocked on the door.
“Ah, yeah!? We were studying because exams are coming up! It’s curry for dinner, so heat it up and eat it!”
Ayano pushed him away and quickly put on her shirt as she answered.
“…I see. But it’s late. Don’t overdo it…?”
Even though he was puzzled by his daughter’s loud noises and raised voice, her father placed his bag in his own room across the hall and went downstairs.
Ayano, hearing the sounds and sensing his departure through the door, felt relieved.
She turned to Yuto with a start, only to find him hunched over.
“Ah, sorry…! Are you okay? Did you hit yourself somewhere!?”
“I-I’m fine, no problem,” Yuto replied, but he remained crouched down, avoiding eye contact.
“I’m sorry. Next time—well, you know… And I guess, that thing, it’s better to have it too… right?”
“Yeah. I’m sorry too… I wasn’t thinking ahead or anything… well—”
His reply was awkward, followed by a deep sigh.
His shoulders slumped, looking dejected.
“—Are you angry?”
“N-No, not at all. I’m really happy about your feelings, Ayano, I feel the same way. —It’s just, well, my leg’s asleep, so don’t worry about me.”
But even as he said that, he started to tremble.
“…?”
It seemed he was protecting his lower abdomen more than his leg.
More precisely, the area just a bit below that. The part where the difference between men and women is clearly evident.
“Yuto?”
“Sorry… seriously, just leave me alone for now.”
“Eh…? Ah! —Aah… ugh…”
Seeing Yuto’s embarrassed profile as he fidgeted, Ayano understood his situation and blushed as well. He seemed to have lost his energy, except for one particular part.
“W-What should I do? What should I do…?”
“No, really. It’s okay if you don’t mind me. I’ll calm down if I cool down.”
“…Boys have it tough, don’t they?”
“—We really do.”
Yuto couldn’t bear Ayano’s worried gaze, even though she seemed bewildered, so he turned away.
“Just go to your Uncle’s. I’ll be back soon… Also, your shirt is on backwards.”
“Okay. I understand…”
Ayano stood up, corrected her shirt, and opened the door.
Glancing back, she saw Yuto taking deep breaths as if he had just run a race.
“…………”
Ayano had very little knowledge about the opposite sex. She only knew what she had heard from friends, his older sister, or snippets from the internet.
But she thought of it like stress.
It’s something you have to endure to some extent, but it’s not good for your mental health to suppress it too much.
It’s better to release it in moderation… Especially since I’m responsible for it.
So, she made up her mind for the sake of the man she loved.
“There’s tissue and a trash can in the dressing table…!”
Leaving those words behind, Ayano rushed down the stairs.
“…………Huh?”
Hearing the hurried footsteps, Yuto frowned in the now-empty room, pondering her words.
Then, he understood her intention.
“—No, really, don’t worry about it.”
He felt something receding within him.