My Stepsister is My Ex-Girlfriend - Volume 9 - Chapter 3

Chapter 3: War against Worldly Desires

I Made Up My Mind Long Ago

Aisa Aso

The plan was working. Every time I met up with Senpai, I gradually reduced the number of pads. Finally, I wasn’t wearing any at all...although I was using a bra designed to make my boobs look bigger. Either way, it didn’t seem like he had any idea that the size of my boobs had decreased. And now, at the end of today’s date...it was finally time for the fateful moment.

“You...wanna come over to my place?” he clumsily and bluntly asked. It was easy to tell what he was thinking.

I couldn’t really rag on him, because my head was filled with the same dirty thoughts. “Yeah...I’ll go.”

When I got to his room, I was surprised by how clean it was. I’d gotten a peek before we started dating, but I could’ve sworn that it had been a lot messier. Does that mean he purposely cleaned up for this?

“Y’know...it’s a lot cleaner in here than I thought it’d be. That’s surprising.”

“Shaddup.”

As usual, I teased him, he brushed me off, and I giggled. It would’ve been really embarrassing for either of us to jump right into setting the mood, so instead the both of us did our best to act like normal.

I looked at his bookcase, his desk, and all around his room. Then I casually sat on his bed, and we watched a video together on my phone. During that time, we slowly moved closer to one another, and eventually, he put his large hand over mine.

“Ah.” My heart beat loudly.

My heart was pounding in my ears, but I still squeezed out the courage to lightly lean my shoulder against his. He then proceeded to gently grab my shoulder. I raised my head to match him, and our eyes met. We looked at each other, reading each other’s intentions before our lips met.

“Mm...”

We’d already had our first kiss during our first date. This had been before Suzurin and the others had brought up the idea of reducing the number of pads I had. I’d been teasing him as usual and then he’d stolen my lips as if he’d been trying to seal off my mouth. When he’d let me go, I’d just spaced out.

“You really like this kinda thing, don’t you?” Senpai had said, shifting his eyes a little from embarrassment.

He knew me so well. I loved how after acting smug, I’d get embarrassed and innocent, so much that my head felt like it was going to explode. This kiss would lead to the next base, where we’d allow touching, acknowledging and accepting one another. After that long kiss, all that was left was to signal that we were mentally ready to proceed to what came next.

We both went silent. The only sound came from my heart beating out of my chest. My eyes darted from side to side, but I somehow managed to move my petrified hands to my blouse and undo the first button. I lowered my hand and left my body open to him. He picked up on my intentions and slowly began unbuttoning the rest with his rugged fingers.

Now, my blouse was open, and I could feel his eyes on my torso, covered by just my bra. It felt like my brain was about to overheat. Then, one by one, he began taking off each article of clothing that had been protecting my body. It almost felt like some kind of sacred ritual—one that linked our existences together.

When I heard the click of my bra’s hook coming undone, I knew we were reaching the climax. The straps became loose around my shoulders, falling past my elbows. I took a deep breath and shakily moved my hands down from where they’d been holding the bra in place.

The next moment, my bra hit the floor with a light thud. Senpai’s eyes slightly widened, and he gulped. Every last inch of my naked torso was entering his eyes. I wasn’t hiding anything from him anymore.

“U-Uh, Senpai...” Even at this point, I couldn’t help but make up a stupid excuse. “M-My boobs look smaller without my bra, so, um...”

“No,” he quickly shut me down, averting his gaze. “They’re beautiful, but it felt kinda creepy for me to say that, so...I’m sorry.”

Oh, jeez, this guy... His height might’ve led others to believe that he’d been popular enough to have been with a girl or two, but he was a total virgin. I can’t keep up with how in love with him I am.

“Senpai...?” Regaining some of my composure, I grinned teasingly. “It’s your turn now. Arms up. Come on. Reach for the sun.”

“What am I, a kid?”

I wasn’t sure if it was because he was nervous or something, but his quip didn’t have the usual force behind it. I took off his shirt, then his pants. I could almost feel myself drooling over his body, which had been toned when he played basketball. It was really magnificent. His body was hard, but it felt springy when I pushed against it. I got the sense that I could touch his body forever and never get tired of it.

Lastly, my eyes fell to the boxers he still had on. I still had my panties on too. I looked up at him and we exchanged glances. We’d made up our minds. We each took off our last piece of clothing and stared at each other’s bodies for who knows how long. This sight was something that we would only show to each other—because we were a couple.

Senpai was naked, and so was I. Heh heh...what is this situation? Though my mind was a storm of arousal, practically paralyzing me, as time passed, I began to slowly get used to it. When I did, I began to find this situation kinda amusing.

I nervously wrapped myself around him. In doing so, places that wouldn’t usually touch rubbed against each other. It felt ticklish but also warm. I was so happy that I found myself giggling and kissing Senpai.

He embraced me snugly in his arms. And then for a little bit, we tickled each other on top of the bed like kids. Before I knew it, I was on my back with Senpai on top of me. I could see myself in his eyes. He could probably see himself in mine as well.

“Um... Do you have one?” I nervously asked.

He silently nodded, reaching out to his nightstand before pulling something out of an open box. This tool would connect us even if we weren’t adults. But there was something that I was a little confused about.

I couldn’t help but ask as he rustled his hand in the box. “It’s...open?” Why’s the box open? This should be his first time.

“Oh, yeah... Well...” His expression filled with panic and he awkwardly looked down. “I...used one for practice.”

My lips curled into a smile. “You’re so cute, Senpai.”

“What else was I supposed to do?”

Thanks to his practice, the preparation went smoothly, and now we were all ready. The springs of his bed creaked. He put his hand next to my face and looked at me with a serious expression.

“You’re sure...right?”

Do you even need to ask? “Yeah...”

Senpai sat up. I relaxed my body. I’d made up my mind long ago.

“Aaaaaaaaaaaaagh!”

But just because I made up my mind didn’t change the fact that painful things are still painful.

Reports Are Mandatory

Yume Irido

After finals ended, our school entered its supplementary class period. For the majority of the students, it was effectively winter break already, but the student council still had some work to take care of before the year ended.

That’s why we had all gathered in the student council room, save for Aso-senpai, who came in a little late.

“Morning, everyone.”

At first, she just seemed a little quieter than usual. Gradually, we figured out what had happened just by observing her expression, her mannerisms, and the alluring aura around her.

Asuhain-san and I looked at each other while President Kurenai narrowed her eyes and glared at Aso-senpai. Haba-senpai acted indifferent and continued to work without stopping. Meanwhile, Aso-senpai remained silent, keeping an air of mystery about her.

We worked diligently for an hour.

“Let’s take a break,” President Kurenai proposed. She and I both stood up and grabbed Aso-senpai by the arms. “Huh? What?”

“Let’s,” President Kurenai started.

“Chat,” I finished.

We dragged her off away from the student council room, with Asuhain-san nervously following behind. Now in the girl’s bathroom, the three of us cornered Aso-senpai by the sinks.

“Spit it out. It’s obvious you’re dying to tell us what happened with you and Hoshibe-senpai,” President Kurenai said directly.

“Huh? Well...” Aso-senpai said, fidgeting with her hair as if she was conflicted about what to do. “Nothing really happened... There’s nothing really that needs to be reported. After all, we only did things that are normal to do when you’re in a relationship.”

“Wha—”

“No way...”

Judging by the way she was acting, both President Kurenai and I could guess what Aso-senpai was hinting at. Asuhain-san, apparently starting to catch on, silently turned red.

A leisurely smile appeared on Aso-senpai’s face. “It’s really no big deal! Buuut thanks! It’s all thanks to the advice you guys gave me! From now on, I’m gonna be cheering you guys on!”

“And now you’re pitying us?!” I exclaimed.

“You’re a genius at getting other girls to hate you, you know that?!” President Kurenai scolded her.

Aso-senpai grinned, proudly displaying her sense of superiority.

“Uh, um, ah,” Asuhain-san stammered, her face flushing deep red.

I mean, seriously, already? They haven’t even been dating for a month! It seemed that President Kurenai’s read on their relationship progressing faster than a normal one because of how long they had had feelings for each other was right on the money.

“Hmm, well...” Aso-senpai tilted her head as if she was trying to suggest something. “Aren’t you curious about...how it feels?”

President Kurenai and I gulped at the same time. Of course we’re curious. Why wouldn’t we be? Never in a million years did I think that Aso-senpai would be the one telling me about how it feels. She’d been naive and innocent not too long ago.

“Maybe if you say, ‘Pretty please with a cherry on top,’ I’ll tell you. It’s super embarrassing, but if you beg me, I guess I’ll have to tell you. After all, you’d be begging.”

I can’t believe she’s going to be the one to...

President Kurenai and I swallowed our pride and lowered our heads. “Pretty please...with a cherry on top.”

“Okay, twist my arm, why don’t you?” Aso-senpai said happily. “Well, how do I put it? Hm, I guess in one word...it’s warm?”

“Warm?”

“Like, I guess it’s the warmth from the body? But you can feel it all across your body... Parts of your body that don’t usually touch, touch—and then you’re like, ‘Holy crap, that’s allowed?!’ You really feel so special. You’re, like, aroused, but at the same time you feel safe... It’s a strange sensation. Heh heh, sorry. My cheeks are burning up.” Aso-senpai was practically beaming.

When she had first brought it up, I had been pretty irritated, but seeing her like this genuinely made me happy for her.

“And?” President Kurenai quickly pressed on. “People say it hurts at first, but how was it? Were you okay?”

“Well... Uh, well...” Aso-senpai’s eyes darted back and forth.

President Kurenai’s eyes narrowed as her lips curled into a smile. “Hey, Aisa, we’re friends, aren’t we? Remember all that advice we gave you? Remind me again, who’s it thanks to that Hoshibe-senpai said yes to you in Kobe?”

“All of you...”

“Then I think you do have an obligation to tell us what happened. You have to give us the play-by-play—and you can’t skip on even the tiniest detail.”

Aso-senpai groaned, tears welling up in her eyes. Then in a voice so soft that it sounded like a mosquito buzzing, she said, “It hurt so much that I let out a crazy gross scream.”

“Ah...” The three of us, including Asuhain-san, reacted at once. Now, we all knew that Aso-senpai had screwed up. Aso-senpai looked up, tears in her eyes. “It’s impossible not to! Not just for me, but for everyone! I guarantee that you’ll all do the same!”

“Even if you try to drag us down with you, it doesn’t matter. The memory of your first time has been set in stone. There’s no changing it, so you should just accept it.”

“Stooooop! I can hear my dreams crashing down!”

Apparently, reality wasn’t a carbon copy of the romance seen in manga. Not that I had any plans to do that anytime soon, but I was starting to get a little bit scared too.

“Good grief. I’m a little relieved to know that you choked, just as I thought you would.”

“I don’t wanna hear that from a virgin like you!”

President Kurenai’s face froze, and she fell silent. Aso-senpai had obtained the ultimate word to shut her up. Aso-senpai wailed while clinging to Asuhain-san.

“It’s not like I wanted things to end that way! I wanted to valiantly grin and bear the pain, but it really hurt!”

“I don’t know how much it hurt, but I think giving birth is even worse, Senpai,” Asuhain-san said, not relenting on the facts.

Aso-senpai’s wails turned into pitiful moans. Possibly actually feeling bad for her, President Kurenai warmly patted Aso-senpai on the shoulder.

“But aren’t you happy that Hoshibe-senpai’s enough of a gentleman to stop when you said it hurt?”

“Yeah...”

“That’s right,” I chimed in. “Hoshibe-senpai’s feelings about you won’t change, no matter how much you screamed.”

“Yeah...”

Aso-senpai squeezed Asuhain-san’s small body and caressed her head. “After that, he held me and patted my head for about an hour, so...”

We all went silent. And just like that we were no longer in a consoling mood.

“Okay, we’re done here,” said President Kurenai, standing up.

“Let’s get back to work, President Kurenai,” I agreed.

“You should hurry up too, Senpai.” Asuhain-san nodded.

“Huh?! Why are you all acting so cold all of a sudden?! Why?!”

Even after all that, it still ends with you gloating about your love life.

A Sign

When all was said and done, though, I still had something else to ask Aso-senpai.

“Um...Senpai?”

“Hm? What’s up, Yumechi?”

Aso-senpai had stopped acting all high-and-mighty as we walked back, so I quietly approached her after confirming that we were alone.

“There’s something I want to ask you,” I whispered.

“Oh?” Aso-senpai’s eyes twinkled and she began whispering too. “Something about doing the deed?”

“Yeah...”

“Lay it on me!”

I panicked and put my finger to my mouth. “Shhh!”

This topic wasn’t exactly appropriate to talk about in the middle of a hallway, so we moved to a corner.

“So, Senpai...” I started, fidgeting.

“Yeah? What is it?” she asked in a gentle tone. She’d switched from being an arrogant upperclassman to one that was good at taking care of her underclassmen, as though she was giving me a push.

I mustered the courage to squeeze out what I wanted to ask. “How did you...seduce him?”

“Huh?”

“I mean, how did you get Hoshibe-senpai on the same page as you to...you know? How did you bring it up?”

“Oh?” She faintly smiled, as if she’d guessed everything on my mind. “So, let me guess. You have plans?”

“W-Well, not ‘plans,’ per se, but I’m just kinda curious how you get the other person interested into doing...that.”

“Mm-hmm. Very interesting. Okay, I one hundred percent get it. My feelings on this are as complicated as a unicorn, but I can’t refuse a request from my cute underclassman!” Aso-senpai puffed her chest out in a way that made me feel like I could rely on her for an answer. “Well, actually, Senpai was the one who seduced me, so...yeah!”

“Oh...”

“Hey! Don’t act so disappointed! For the record, I let him seduce me, okay?! I let him!” Aso-senpai frowned, dissatisfied. “Ever since we started dating, Senpai’s gotten more insatiable, but if I hadn’t given him a sign that it was okay, it would’ve taken a lot more time for us to get there!”

“A...sign?”

“Well, it depends on the situation, but...what I did was guide him into inviting me with my words and actions. Kinda like baiting him.”

“Baiting?”

I tilted my head at the unfamiliar use of the word.

“Hm...how do I explain...” Aso-senpai pondered. “Okay, take this for example: the two of you are walking side by side.”

“Uh-huh.”

Aso-senpai lined up next to me. “And then you casually bump the back of your hand against theirs.” Aso-senpai’s hand lightly touched the back of mine. “What would you think if I kept doing that over and over again?”

“That you want me to hold your hand?”

“Exactly! That’s one type of sign. It’s different than just asking to hold hands, y’know?”

She has a point... It would feel like I’m being baited, in a sense, because she’s giving me a sign of her intentions. Didn’t I do something similar when I was dating Mizuto?

“In other words, you can pretty much convey that it’s okay to touch you without using any words. I demonstrated with my hand right now, so it was pretty PG, but imagine the nape of your neck, thighs, or breasts...”

“Such a turn-on!”

“Exactly!” Aso-senpai proudly snorted. “Aside from giving signs that it’s okay to touch, you can also give signs that it’s okay to look. This is a pretty obvious one, but you could be like, ‘Phew, it’s hot,’ and tug on the collar of your shirt, exposing your cleavage.”

“I think I get it! You’re lowering your usual feminine defenses on purpose!”

“Yep! It’s best if you don’t do it all the time though, otherwise you’ll just be seen as a dirty girl.”

I suddenly remembered when Mizuto and I had just started living together. I’d teased Mizuto while wearing nothing but a bath towel. Thinking back, that had been the most dangerous encounter we’d had—the closest we’d gotten to crossing a line. On the other hand, when I barged in on him taking a bath, he became extremely guarded. I had probably overdone it. What I needed to do was be casual, but also give a clear sign. If I could do that...

“Essentially, it’s the same as those femme fatale moves I taught you before! You should do things that you can only do in front of the person you like! But this time you shouldn’t try to hide how you’re feeling. Make it painfully obvious how into them you are! Got it?!”

“Yeah! But Senpai, can I ask one more thing?”

“Hm?”

“What should I do if the person I’m pursuing is extremely dense and doesn’t catch on to what I’m doing at all?”

“Well...” Aso-senpai shrugged, throwing her hands in the air. “At that point, your only option is to take off your clothes and get on top of them.”

Suppression Is a Cradle of Progress

Mizuto Irido

“I...definitely won’t let you run away.”

A day had passed since Yume had made that declaration.

The amount of determination I’d seen in her eyes, the resolute tone of her voice—it was all so vivid. I couldn’t get it out of my head. Even so, after getting home that day, she hadn’t tried to take any kind of action. This morning, too, she’d left to go to the student council without doing anything else. I felt like I was in limbo.

It was in this state that I found myself in Isana’s room once again.

“I’ve completed another illustration. Please take a look!”

This was the reason she’d invited me over. It wasn’t like I had to go all the way to her place just to look at her art, but she apparently enjoyed seeing my reactions in person.

“That was quick. It’s only been like two days since your last one.”

“Heh heh. Thanks to the freedom I experienced at the conclusion of finals, I actually ended up spontaneously drawing...three pictures.”

“Three?!”

Doesn’t that mean she essentially drew a picture and a half each day? There’s a limit to how much of a second wind you get from a sense of freedom. The crazier thing was that each of them was fully colored. Is this actually physically possible, even?

At any rate, I sat cross-legged on her messy floor and looked at her tablet. The first picture was of a girl getting ready in the morning, tying her hair up as she turned towards the viewer. Isana typically used pictures she took of herself in various poses as reference material, so more often than not, the characters she drew had large breasts, but this one’s were much more modest. I was curious about whose perspective the viewer was supposed to be seeing. Judging from the low angle, I thought it might be a cat’s point of view or something. You could get a glimpse of her panties under the legs of the shorts she was wearing.

The second picture was of a girl in the middle of changing out of her sailor uniform. She’d already put on her gym shorts, but she was in the middle of taking her shirt off. The shirt was just about at her neck, revealing a finely detailed white bra underneath.

The third picture was a girl in nothing but her underwear lying face down on the bed while playing around on her phone. The school uniform that she’d just changed out of was on the floor, making me think that she was too lazy to finish changing.

My suspicions were confirmed—Isana was extremely talented at drawing bras and panties. Honestly, she was practically as good as a professional artist.

“Impressions? They’re all very adorable, right?” Isana asked, grinning.

I nodded. “Yeah. I can tell how absurdly horny you were during finals.”

“Urk!” Her face went red, and she gave me a look that said she couldn’t believe that I’d seen right through her.

I narrowed my eyes and looked at her. “You were able to restrain yourself from drawing a panty shot at the start, but with the second and third picture, you gradually began to lose restraint.”

“I-It’s not my fault! Isn’t it such a waste for me to hide their bodies with clothes after drawing them?!”

Isana’s process for drawing was to start by drawing the character’s body, add on underwear, and then clothes. The process itself was fairly normal. One could say that it’s the basic way to draw a person, but in Isana’s case, she’d occasionally draw nudes of characters that couldn’t be posted. It was hard to deal with the realism that came from her being a girl, drawing these naked bodies and then happily smiling while showing them to me.

This time, at the very least, it looked like she’d been able to hold herself back from drawing the girls naked, instead leaving them in their underwear. I bet that if we went into the drawing program and deleted the “Underwear Layer,” there’d be something very detailed drawn there, not covered by a mosaic or a black bar. The picture would’ve triggered an NSFW warning real fast.

“Well, Keikoin-san did say that one of your talents is that you’re able to pour your libido into your works. But, like, when did you get so good at drawing underwear?”

“I stared very closely at my own while drawing! I memorized the very minute details of the patterns by tracing them with my pen, so by the time I drew the third picture, it wasn’t difficult at all!”

Huh? Your own? I looked at the second picture with the dazzling, flower-patterned bra. You wear this kind of bra? I know it’s kinda late in the game, but don’t you have any shame?

“Personally, I’d like it if you paid close attention to the wrinkles in the panties! The butt in the third picture was something that I tried very hard to get right by posing and taking a picture—”

“Okay, okay. That’s enough! I get it. You’ve gotten really good at drawing underwear!”

Any sense of humiliation flew out the window when she got really excited about something. Now that I think about it, maybe she’s always had the makings of a creator. Excluding the fact that I kept imagining Isana wearing the exact same outfit, the third picture of the girl in her underwear had a sort of unique feel to it.

“Y’know, despite this girl being in nothing but her underwear, the picture doesn’t feel that dirty.”

“Huh? You think so?”

“More than anything, I feel a sort of realness from it. It’s like you drew a real girl and not just a beautiful character. There’s a rawness to it.”

“Well, of course you get that sense. She’s based on my exact nature, after all. As soon as I return from school, I remove my school uniform and laze around in naught but my underwear.”

“You modeled this off yourself?!”

“Typically, the color of my bra and panties don’t match; however, it’s more pleasing to me as a viewer when they are, so I made them the same color! But also, the mismatch is very good in its own right... Hm, decisions, decisions...”

The fact that they could use themselves as models was a great advantage to female artists. Thinking like that, Isana, who possessed the mentality of a male otaku, had the best model to work off when drawing beautiful girls.

“Actually, can you draw guys? I’ve only ever seen you draw girls so far.”

“Huh? Obviously, I don’t.”

What do you mean “don’t”? Shouldn’t it be “can’t”?!

“I’ve seldom found myself hooked by any series in which handsome guys make an appearance... If I were to attempt depicting a male, I would need a model...”

“A model?”

Isana grinned and pointed at me. “In order to understand human anatomy, a nude sketch is essential!”

“In your dreams, idiot! Also, what would you get out of using me as a model? It’s not like I have a good body.”

“That makes it better, actually. I can avoid depicting a high schooler who is strangely toned for their age despite supposedly being normal.”

“What’s wrong with that? If girls can be randomly slim, then guys can be randomly buff.”

“I’ve yet to receive my reward for timely completion of my picture! I deserve this!” Crap...that’s right. I forgot. “At any rate, I will need to receive permission from Yume-san, so thank you in advance for your modeling.”

“What makes you think she gets to decide what I can do with my body?”

“In that case, would you like to have Yume-san sit in? Wait, no, that might not be such a great idea. I’ve heard that you’re not supposed to provide stimulation to your nude models.”

“And what exactly do you think might be stimulated? Spit it out, you pervert!”

“Well, you know... Heh heh... If you want me to see it, then I’d be overjoyed...”

“Creep.”

If our genders were reversed, what she said would amount to a fireable offense in the workplace. Besides, I’d been living with my ex for over eight months now. There was no way that I’d slip up like that. Who do you take me for?

Alert

It was night by the time I got home. I walked into the living room and saw Yume, still in her school uniform, under the kotatsu.

“Welcome home.”

“Thanks...”

She greeted me normally, but I couldn’t stop thinking about what her words yesterday meant. Yume had said that she wouldn’t say “it.” Thinking back to that time during the fireworks at the deserted shrine, it became painfully obvious what she was getting at and how long she’d been feeling this way. But now, she was just nonchalantly loafing in the kotatsu. I had absolutely no idea what was going through her head.

“You haven’t changed out of your uniform yet?” I asked, trying to fish for information.

“My room’s too cold, so I thought I’d stay here while it warmed up, but...before I knew it, I couldn’t bring myself to leave,” Yume said as she grabbed a tangerine.

“Those aren’t the words of an honor student.”

“There are days when even I can’t be bothered to change, you know?” I couldn’t help but remember the picture Isana had shown me of the girl in her underwear. “Join me?” she asked, lifting up the blanket.

Yume wasn’t wearing tights or anything, so I caught a glimpse of her porcelain thighs. I looked around and saw that she’d messily thrown her tights behind her on the couch.

“I’ll pass...” Despite usually being so well put-together, she was eerily defenseless today. “I don’t need to wait for my room to get warm since I don’t need to change.”

“True. You don’t have any concept of outdoor versus indoor clothes.”

“Why should I take time to pick out an outfit just to go to Isana’s house? At her worst, she doesn’t wear anything but a shirt, you know?”

“I do that too sometimes when I’m in my room.”

No way... She dresses like Isana?

Yume giggled teasingly. “Wanna see sometime?”

“Yeah, and get you pissed at me? No thanks.”

I’d tried to make a comeback, but Yume continued to smile. “I wouldn’t. Not if it’s you.”

This is a trap. I don’t know how, but it has to be.

“Don’t fall asleep in there like last time,” I said before choosing to strategically retreat.

I left the living room, went up the stairs, and headed to my room. Seriously, what’s going on with her? Is she not scared? She hasn’t stepped on the brakes. Did she lose her self-awareness? Was this what she meant when she said, “I won’t do that for you”?

No, I need to calm down. This is no different from usual. This exact situation has played out so many times over the past eight months, and every time it just ends up being as simple as her toying with me. I know better than anyone how ill-equipped in both technique and courage she is to seduce me. But...why is my heart beating so hard?

Initiative

After dinner, I checked Isana’s Twitter account on my computer. Out of the three pictures that she’d drawn, I’d decided to upload the one of the girl getting ready in the morning today. It hadn’t been that long since it’d been posted, but it was getting more engagement than the others had, receiving over a hundred likes already. Her follower count was also going up right before my eyes.

Not that I didn’t already know, but...the power of eroticism is strong. It definitely played into Isana’s motivation, but she needed to wait two years before she could start drawing dirty things for real.

At this rate, she’d have a pretty good following by the time she posted all three pictures. But the question was how to cater to all those followers. Were they more interested in emotional drawings or horny ones? Going off of general demand, the correct answer would be horny art, but despite Isana’s personality, I felt that her instincts were better for emotional pictures. So what was it going to be? Following popular demand or her talent? It was a tricky question.

In the midst of my thoughts, my phone began to ring. Hm? Who’s this? Isana? But when I picked up my phone, I saw it was Yume. Huh? Isn’t she supposed to be taking a bath?

“Yeah?”

“What took you so long?” Her voice echoed.

Why are you calling me from the bath? “What is it?”

“I’m out of conditioner. Can you bring me a new bottle?”

“Why me? Can’t you ask Yuni-san—”

“Just do it!” she said before hanging up.

What in the... I briefly considered calling her back, but I could already see her refusing the call, and I didn’t want to deal with all that. I’ll just bring it to her. I walked down the stairs and grabbed the brand of conditioner Yume used on the shelf of the changing room. Washing her super long hair must require a lot of this... That also must’ve been why there were so many bottles of it and why I knew exactly where it was.

I walked in front of the frosted glass door. “I’ll leave it here.”

Just as I called out to her and was about to retreat, I heard the door open. It was just about ten centimeters, but from that little crack, I could see Yume peeking out at me. Her hair was wet, and sticking to her shoulders flecked with droplets of water. Everything below her shoulders was hidden by the door, but through the frosted glass, I could see the curves of her body.

Yume looked up at me as my jaw was practically on the ground.

“Thanks.”

She grabbed the bottle with her dripping hand and shut the door behind her. She walked away from the door, her silhouette becoming more defined, and I heard the water start running. My heart was beating out of my chest. I’d been caught so off guard that my heart might’ve been beating even harder than that time she’d barged in on me taking a shower.

Attack

“Watch out! The enemy’s Stand is attacking!” a guy yelled, a serious look on his face.

I was watching an anime that Isana had recommended to me, and it felt incredibly relatable. I, too, had just endured an attack, and it hadn’t been one that was visible and easy to confirm. Rather, it had been casual and undetectable. Seriously, how shrewd of her.

Did she really think I’d lose my self-control that easily? I’d been living in this abnormal environment sharing a roof with my ex for months now. I wasn’t gonna be broken by one or two of these attempts. Put simply, the reason I was watching an anime had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that I was so thrown for a loop that I couldn’t focus on the words I’d tried to read in my books.

I can’t make Yume happy. Not just Yume, but anyone I date. I’m just not suited for romance. It was fine back in middle school. I had been able to just throw myself into romance and not think about anything else due to my immaturity and rashness.

But now, I’d learned about something even more interesting than romance. I’d awakened to the fact that I could easily toss my emotions to the wayside. At the very least, if we hadn’t become stepsiblings, I wouldn’t have had to think so hard about things like the future. It was way too heavy a burden for a high schooler.

But we were family. I might have liked her, but I had no plans to stop being her family. Being in a relationship would’ve meant disclosing our relationship to our parents, and if we ever broke up, it would be needlessly difficult. We didn’t even have the option of being a divorced couple. We’d drag both Yuni-san and dad into our mess whether they wanted to be or not.

If things were going to end badly between us again, I needed to be prepared. I needed determination stronger than when one says their vows, or when one lays everything on the line and proposes. I needed the determination to share the rest of my life with her. Taking all that into account...I didn’t feel like I could trust myself. I couldn’t trust Mizuto Irido with Yume Irido.

“You awake?” I heard a knock at my door, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I hadn’t even realized that I was already in the middle of the next episode. I paused the anime and turned around.

“Yeah. Why?”

“Can I come in?”

“Uh, it’s night. Didn’t we agree not to—”

“I’m coming in,” she said, opening the door.

At this point, I was used to seeing her in these pajamas. It went without saying that she wasn’t in the kind of nightwear that Isana would wear.

She walked in and shut the door behind her before sitting in my desk chair. The entire time, I cautiously followed her with my eyes.

“As I was saying, didn’t we agree not to go to each other’s room at night?”

“It’s okay. I told mom I was going to your room.” Then she showed me a few pieces of paper she was holding. “I told her that I’m gonna review the finals with you, and she was all like, ‘Wow, it’s so convenient to have a classmate as a sibling’!”

How carefree of Yuni-san... Maybe that just showed how much trust she had in me.

Yume flashed me her patented honor student smile. “Aren’t you lucky? You get to review with the number one student in our grade.”

“Yeah, yeah. So sorry that I’m only second in our grade.”

My placement was partially due to me helping Isana, but still, I thought I had studied a decent amount. Despite that, I ended up second again. I didn’t really have the same kind of fire to take the top spot as I had previously, but it did kinda annoy me when she acted superior to me like this.

“I got a question wrong in Modern Japanese,” she said. “You got a hundred, right? Can you tell me what I did wrong?”

“Aren’t you supposed to be teaching me, O holy top student?” I had a feeling she was plotting something, but I didn’t have any pretext to get her to leave my room without it becoming a whole thing. “Fine.”

“Yay,” she said softly before easily navigating past my towers of books to plop down on the bean bag chair that I’d gotten as a birthday present. Then, she moved to the edge of it and tapped the open space next to her. “Come on!”

“You...want me to sit there?”

“Well, unless you have your answer sheets handy, this’ll be faster.”

She has a point... I don’t even know where they are. “I can just stand behind you and look at your sheets.”

I still had no clue what her plan of attack here was, but I stood up and walked behind the huge bean bag chair that she was sitting in. But as I did...

“Hup!”

“Agh!”

As soon as I got close to her, she pulled me by the hand, forcing me onto the bean bag. I’d just barely been able to avoid crashing down onto her, but I was pretty much pressed right up next to her. She put her arm around my shoulder as if she’d caught me and flashed me a proud grin.

“Weakling.”

“Shut up...”

It doesn’t look like she has any intention of letting me get away. I gave up and straightened myself up. As I did, I unintentionally pressed against Yume’s boob with my elbow.

I froze as the sensation struck me. Sh-She’s not wearing a bra?! Is it because she’s in her pajamas? No, wait. Isana told me that there are bras for when you sleep. She’s not as lazy as Isana, so I don’t think she’d slack on doing that, but...

“So yeah, it’s this question...”

Yume didn’t seem startled or even cognizant of me grazing her boob. She kept her shoulder glued to mine and began showing me the test question. I used every ounce of my will to focus solely on the test.

“Where did I go wrong with the modern translation of this?”

“Classic Japanese? Oh, yeah. This is probably...”

I’m honestly impressed by how smoothly I’m talking despite my head being all messed up. Even now, my eyes kept curiously flitting towards the swellings on her chest. The collar of her pajamas was slightly looser than it usually was. Because of that, I could easily see her cleavage by looking down into her pajama top. Yume’s chest had kinda flown under the radar because of how ridiculously large Isana’s was, but Yume’s wasn’t exactly small. She was in a completely different league than when we dated. It’s the mystery of secondary sex characteristics.

According to the information I got when we went to buy swimsuits, she wore a C- or D-cup. No, wait. That might’ve been a little too small. In that case, she might’ve been...an E-cup?

When she leaned over, they moved slightly with her too. My eyes couldn’t help but be drawn to her distinct cleavage being made naturally, without the support of a bra.

Then I remembered what Isana said about me not being able to be a nude model if Yume was present because it’d be too much stimulation. No. I won’t react. I definitely won’t. Dammit... I hang out with someone who has even bigger boobs than this, so why am I bothered by Yume’s?!

“So that’s it... How did you get the answer so easily?” she asked.

“Classical Japanese is just old Japanese. Can’t you more or less just read it?”

“No. That’s why it’s on a test,” she said, looking at me through half-closed eyes. “Well, anyway, it’s your turn. Where’d you mess up? Math?”

“Yeah, actually... There was a question where I kept getting a weird number no matter how many times I redid my calculations.”

“Heh heh. That happens all the time with math tests. Sometimes you get crazy numbers for the denominator. Which question was it?” Yume asked, showing me her math problem sheet.

As she did, she leaned towards me, her boobs nearly pressing against my arm. Finding that unwise, I moved away a little while pointing to the question.

“Oh, this one?” she said, not sitting back up.

I didn’t move a muscle, staying in that position while listening to Yume’s explanation.

“And that’s that. Got it?”

Her breath tickled the nape of my neck. I persevered and was somehow able to regain my calmness.

“Yeah...”

“Mm. We got so few questions wrong that we can count them on our hands. This doesn’t make much of a review session does it?”

Yume finally sat back up and began flipping through her answer sheets. I heaved a sigh of relief, but it seemed that it was premature. Just as I did, Yume shot me a glance. Crap.

Though I’d somehow been able to keep my poker face this entire time, for just one instant, I’d let my guard down, and she’d seen everything.

The corners of Yume’s mouth curled. “Well then...” Out of nowhere, Yume positioned her lips right next to my ear. “I guess I’ll leave things at this for now,” she whispered, sending a sweet electricity across my brain.

Yume stood up with a grunt as if to leave those words with me as a parting gift. “Well,” she said, leaning over to meet my eyeline.

“Good night!” she said sweetly, posing in a way that was clearly meant to show off her cleavage.

Though her chest was unguarded, it was an incredibly sharp weapon. Yume lightly trotted out of my room, leaving behind both the warmth from where she’d been sitting and me, still unable to move. I’ve been attacked. There’s no doubt about it.

Monopoly of Worldly Desires

Yume Irido

I heaved a long sigh, put on my night bra, then crashed onto my bed and buried my face in my pillow. That was so embarrassing!!! Being in front of Mizuto braless and in my pajamas was already a lot, but being that close to him while in that state was in another league entirely! I’d felt as if fire was gonna burst out of my head every time my boobs touched him! I’m so glad I practiced getting the right angle so he couldn’t see everything!

More importantly, it was good that it was winter because my clothes were thicker. Thanks to that, even if I wasn’t wearing a bra, my...well, it was harder for certain things to poke out of my shirt. I wasn’t confident that I would’ve kept my calm if they had.

It was probably because I couldn’t clear my head of those kinds of thoughts that I got so flustered and panicky. Back when we were helping Higashira-san, I feel like I remember Akatsuki-san saying something about suppressing one’s embarrassment when trying to hit on a guy.

I was gradually raising my tolerance for this stuff. I needed to suppress my embarrassment. I was done acting like an honor student in front of Mizuto. I was going to be just a woman, trying to attract the man in front of her, and I wouldn’t stop until he pounced. It was working—it had to have been. If I kept it up, his calm face would be wrought with lust. Even right now, he must’ve been replaying images of my cleavage, the sensations from my boobs, or sound bites of what I’d said in his mind...

“Heh heh...”

I’m gonna make all your worldly desires about me before the New Year’s Eve Bell wipes them all away.

Sorry to Bother You Two

Mizuto Irido

I needed stronger mental fortitude than ever before. It was like Yume had become a different person entirely. She hadn’t slammed on the brakes like I’d expected her to, acting as if she’d simply been toying with me. No, she had simply pushed further and further. So, in order to withstand her relentless attacks, I needed to travel deep into the Amazon—aka Kawanami’s place.

For one, I needed to reduce the amount of time spent under the same roof as Yume, what with how she had been acting. I also wanted to get a hint on how to boost my mental fortitude. I mean, Kogure Kawanami’s situation wasn’t all that different from my own, right? In terms of living in close proximity to a girl, he was the veteran. Surely he could give me some sort of hint as to how he managed it.

“Hm? Oh, hey, ’Sup, Irido-kun?”

The person who greeted me at the front door to the Kawanami household was Akatsuki Minami, wearing shorts and a hoodie. I immediately checked to make sure I had the right apartment number.

“This is Kawanami’s place...right?”

“Yep,” she said, tilting her head.

Then from behind Minami-san, I saw a frantic Kawanami poke his head out. “Why are you answering the door?!”

“I always answer when you can’t. Or what, were you gonna answer the door from the bathroom?”

“I told you to go home since Irido was comin’ over, didn’t I?!”

“It’s my prerogative to chill wherever I feel like when we don’t have school.”

“It so isn’t when the place you’re chilling isn’t your house!”

They were bickering like an old married couple. They’re just like a couple that’s living together... No, that’s exactly what they are. I’d known that their relationship was on the mend, but they had apparently made a big jump when I wasn’t looking.

“Well anyway, come on in, Irido-kun. We just ran outta snacks, though, so we don’t have anything to put out for you.”

“You’re the one who scarfed ’em all down! Don’t blame me if you put on weight!”

“Oh, so sorry, but I’ve got a high base metabolism!”

“Well... Sorry to bother you two, I guess,” I said.

This was probably the first time in my life I’d said “Sorry to bother you” and meant it in a literal sense, not as a formality. As we walked to the living room, Minami-san grabbed a game console off of the table and lay down on the couch. She was totally acting like this was her own house. I’d never seen Yume relax like this, and she actually lived in our house.

“Is Minami-san...always here?” I asked Kawanami.

“Whenever she’s not out hanging with friends, she’s here. Making food’s a pain in the ass for her, so she comes over to mooch off me instead.”

“Hey, I make food for you too...every now and then, at least.”

“If I’m not careful, she’ll end up sleepin’ here because it’s too much trouble to go back home. Who the hell stays over at someone else’s place when they live right next door?!”

They were more or less living together. That became even more true if I factored in the fact that both of their parents were barely ever home. It was essentially just the two of them living together.

“Can you even relax like this?” I asked Kawanami in a whisper.

“Hell no.”

The two of us were whispering back and forth when Minami-san, who was still playing her game, called out to Kawanami. “Hey, why don’t you at least give him some tea? There should be some in the refrigerator.”

“Thanks for reminding me about something I was already gonna do. Irido...mind goin’ over to my room?” he asked as he disappeared into the kitchen.

“Sure,” I said before heading to his room for what felt like the millionth time.

As soon as I shut the door behind me, I heard voices from the living room.

“Oh, so you can’t relax?”

“Huh? You could hear us?!”

“How exactly can’t you relax? Like this?”

“Stop! The tea’s gonna—”

Curious about the commotion outside, I cracked the door open, and saw Minami-san with her arms wrapped around Kawanami’s neck. Sorry to bother you two... Once again, I meant this in a literal sense and from the bottom of my heart.

A Guy’s Way to Hold Back

“Recently, it’s been a lot more comfortable to hang out with guys,” Kawanami said, gulping down his tea. “I just know if I share my problems with other people, they’re gonna tell me how lucky I am, but it’s seriously draining to be around a girl all the time. You know what I mean, right?”

“But you prefer it when I’m with Yume, don’t you?”

“Not her. I’m talkin’ about Higashira.”

“Oh, gotcha. Yeah, at first, it was kinda draining, but I’ve gotten used to her, so I’m pretty okay now.”

“That’s amazing... Did you train at a temple or something?”

If I had, I wouldn’t exactly be coming to you for help, now would I? “You have a more unique set of circumstances than I do. For Yume and me, our parents come home, so we have a certain set of rules we follow, and for Isana, we only ever hang out at school or walk home together.” I’ll keep the fact that I’ve been going to her house frequently to myself. “But the two of you are actually in the same house without your parents around. Living like that as if it’s normal is weird to me.”

If they were together, it might have been a healthy dynamic, but from what I could glean from their words, they weren’t. In that case, he had to have been holding his instincts back from being unwittingly stimulated.

“The trick is to keep your hands to yourself,” Kawanami said in a meek tone. “If I let my guard down just even a little, the dam will burst, which is exactly what she wants.”

“Personal experience?” I asked in a low voice.

Kawanami scratched his nose as if to not commit to an answer. Looks like a yes. So there was a time where you were completely unrestrained? I glanced at the door.

“In your case, at least, it shouldn’t be a huge deal if you get back together,” I said. “Minami-san’s sorry for what she did back then, right?”

“Yeah, but it’s not that simple.” He made a frustrated face and looked at me, a serious air surrounding him. “Do you know there are guys in this world who, out of the blue, call the girl they broke up with just a few months ago? Why do you think they’re calling them?”

“Because they broke up with their new girlfriend?”

“Exactly. It is one hundred percent about lust. I’ll do whatever it takes not to become that kinda guy.”

“I’m right there with you.”

It’s simple when you’re dating for the first time because your motivation for being with the other person is because you like them. But it’s more complicated if you’re getting back together. How are you supposed to act when the two of you already broke up once? You don’t want to go back for familiarity or comfort; that would make you no different from any old animal.

“But I guess it’s best to disperse that lust in a healthy way, right?” Kawanami said.

“Don’t look at me.”

“You struggle with this topic, eh?”

“It’s weird to talk about it outright,” I countered.

Kawanami rested his head in his hand. “Isn’t it hard to live with a girl you’re not even dating—y’know, in a lot of different ways?”

“Yume doesn’t really pry into my business. But I can only imagine how bad Minami-san is.”

“Yeah... I can’t even count how many times she’s dug through my computer, even though I change the password on it.”

What is she, a hacker? Who are you, Minami-san? “Why do you even have those kinds of pictures when you’re not eighteen?”

“I don’t lie about my age or anything. There’s just a nice person who’s really passionate about distributing this stuff on LINE and Discord.” He looked triumphant as he said this.

I guess it’s normal for high school guys to be like this. I should’ve been the same, but for some reason, I couldn’t get into it. After all, the really passionate person on my end distributing that stuff was a girl.

“Now that I think about it, we’ve never talked about this kinda stuff,” Kawanami said. “Okay.” He grinned. “This is a great opportunity, so how about I share some stuff with you?”

I didn’t even have an opportunity to stop him before he stood and went to his desk. He pulled out a dictionary from the shelf and retrieved several folded pieces of papers that’d been sandwiched in between the pages.

“What are these?”

“Cutouts from magazines...well, copies of them.” He spread them out across the table, revealing pictures of pin-up girls in skimpy swimsuits. “This is my strategy—catch her attention with the computer and phone, but keep the real stuff in paper form. People tell me that physical porn is outdated, but just like with games and everything else, the meta’s always changing.”

“This is an incredibly stupid battle you’re fighting.”

“This one here’s a clipping from a manga magazine, so it’s on the more PG side. I have the real good stuff in a much more difficult-to-find place. Oh, but I’m obviously not gonna go that far.” An eerie smile crept across Kawanami’s face. “So, which one do you like? This girl, right?” He picked out a pin-up girl with long black hair wearing a white bathing suit, posing in a way that emphasized her boobs. “She’s the same kinda pure type as Irido-san.”

Kawanami smiled at me expectantly, but I really couldn’t care less. Yume was cuter. They weren’t even in the same league.

“Aw come on man, give me something. Well I guess Higashira has a crazier body than most pin-up girls, so maybe this isn’t enough stimulation for you.”

“I don’t really look at Isana like that.”

“You might wanna be a gentleman, but lust is something you gotta tame. It’s not something you shove into a corner. If you keep forcing yourself to look away from the truth, it’ll really come back and bite you on the ass.” I’m not trying to forcefully suppress it or anything. “Hm...then what about some 2D girls? Maybe a dirty isekai manga?”

Probably happy to be able to have this kinda dirty talk with me, Kawanami began opening up his collection for me to see. He began showing me picture after picture, recommending all kinds of definitely age-restricted dirty pictures. But no matter what he showed me, I had no reaction. Maybe it was because of that, but Kawanami began to gradually increase the intensity, going from barely SFW things to straight-up porn.

“Look! Check out this girl; she’s totally got an alt account! She has the biggest tits out of any girl in my collection!”

“Whoa, her boobs are huge!”

You did, in fact, go that far. But also, I guess I’d pushed him this far because I was too stubborn to react to anything he showed me. Either way, as a result of both of us being so immersed in our own goals, we hadn’t realized a certain presence behind us. Minami-san hadn’t made a single sound when she entered.

Kawanami went pale as he saw her. “M-Mina...”

“Oh, so you’re in a big boob mood today?” she said, smiling while quickly nuzzling against Kawanami. “That’s okay, but where’s that picture I gave you?”

I blinked. “The what?” Not of her body, right?

“It’s not what you’re thinking!” Kawanami blurted out. “Yeah, it’s a dirty pic, but she’s not in it! I swear! Don’t say things that can be misinterpreted!” he snapped at Minami-san.

I’m relieved to hear that. Minami-san giggled, bemused. “But y’know, Irido-kun, you’re wastin’ your time if you’re lookin’ for a replacement for Yume-chan.” She wrapped her arms around Kawanami, as if to catch him, and looked at me. “After all, Yume-chan in the flesh is a lot cuter and sexier than any picture you could get from a pin-up girl.” I know that all too well. “It’s like he’s purposely refusing the meal the girl’s setting before him, right, Kawanami?”

“No, this is more like if there’s a banquet in hell, you should be careful.”

“Hell? Don’t you mean heaven?” Then she nibbled on his ear.

“Aghhh!” Kawanami screamed and fell to the floor.

Minami-san then proceeded to straddle him. “But judging from how you look, Yume-chan’s probably doin’ somethin’ to you, so maybe you stop being so stubborn and just go with it? You know she’s not the type of girl who’s able to fool around, right?” I do. That’s why it’s such a problem. Minami-san turned around to look at me, a very frightening grin on her face. “If you do anything to hurt Yume-chan, I won’t forgive you, ’kay? Don’t forget it.”

“I’ll...make sure I don’t.”

Hearing my answer, Minami-san gathered up all the pictures Kawanami had laid out on the table. “You should make a ranking of the hottest pictures!” She couldn’t have said anything more frightening.

Should I leave? I really feel like I’m bothering them now. I got up and went towards the door, but just as I went to reach for the knob, I turned around.

“I’ll say this as a thanks for the warning, Minami-san.”

“Hm?”

“You’re interpreting what he’s saying wrong. He’s not comparing you to hell. He’s saying that you’re the feast.”

As soon as I said that, Kawanami’s face turned red.

“Oh?” The corner of Minami-san’s mouth curled as she looked down at Kawanami. “So you see me as a feast, huh?”

“No! No, that was just a slip of the tongue—”

“Later, Kawanami!”

“Irido! Don’t go!!!”

I prayed for them to live happily ever after as I left the Kawanami household.

Beasts Are Just Biding Their Time

There was still time before sunset, so I decided to stop by Isana’s house. She was the type to get so engrossed in her work that she’d forget to sleep or eat. Since she’d avoided failing finals, there was nothing left holding her back, meaning she was most likely throwing herself into her art.

If her parents weren’t around, she might have forgotten to eat lunch. If that happened, it fell on me to get food in her stomach.

I sent her a message and got back a response saying that she’d leave the door unlocked so I could come inside. I felt like she shouldn’t have been so trusting like that, but I wasn’t too far away, so it would probably be okay.

After arriving at the familiar entrance to her home, I walked down the hallway to her room and knocked.

“Isana, I’m comin’ in.”

Since I’d walked in on an awkward situation before, I decided that this time, it’d be better to alert her to the fact that I was here.

As expected, she was hunched over her desk, peering down at her tablet. It almost felt like a spiritual experience as I watched her move her pen with such fervor across the screen.

Realizing that the day would be over by the time she looked up at me, I decided to call out to her again. “You eat lunch?”

“Mm... Not yet.”

Thought as much. It’s already nighttime, though. I didn’t hear anyone in the living room, meaning that Natora-san was most likely not around. I’d gotten permission to use their kitchen before, so I decided to whip up something simple for her. But just as I began to leave, I realized something. Isana’s hair was greasy.

I moved closer to her and pinched her hair. “When was the last time you took a bath?”

“Huh?” Isana’s head flew up, and she began scratching her head as if she’d remembered something. “Now that I think about it, I didn’t take one yesterday.”

“Take a shower. I’ll make you something in the meantime.”

“I don’t wanna—” She began to protest, but was promptly cut off by the rumbling of her stomach. She looked down at it. “I suppose I’ve no choice. I’ll take a slight break.” She stretched and then finally stood up.

The two of us left her room, with her going to the bath and me going to the dining room. I opened the fridge and found enough rice for one person, plus a few ingredients. Guess fried rice’ll do. I poured oil into a pan and fried some egg and scallions, and then stir-fried them with the rice. Finally, I added soy sauce, salt, and pepper for flavor.

“Mizuto-kun...” Just as I plated the simple fried rice, I heard a pitiful moan from the bath. “Mizuto-kun! Please come over here...”

What does she need? I walked over to the bath and saw Isana poking her head out of the changing room.

“What’s up?” I asked.

“I forgot to bring a change of clothes...” Oh, yeah. She went in there empty-handed. “I typically change in my room, so it completely slipped my mind.”

Wait, so does that mean she’s completely naked right now? I can’t tell because I can only really see her head and shoulders. I suddenly remembered Yume from the other day, and immediately cut off that line of thinking.

“Okay, fine. So you want me to bring you clothes, right?”

“Yes, please...” she said.

For an instant, I took my eyes off of Isana, who seemed very apologetic, and froze as my gaze met a certain object. Inside the changing room, there was a sink, and of course, right above it, there was a mirror. Right now that mirror was reflecting the backside of a butt-naked girl. Her skin was slightly flushed from just getting out of the shower. Her sensual back, her butt, her thighs...

“Mizuto-kun?”

“R-Right. I’ll get them right now.”

I looked away in a panic and headed for Isana’s room. Dammit. She really does not have her guard up at all. Maybe I should give her a stern talking-to sometime. I went into Isana’s drawers and pulled out random clothes that looked like they could be worn around the house.

Usually, I might’ve helped get her underwear too, but in my current emotional state, that felt kind of dangerous. After handing her the clothes through the crack in the door, I went back to the living room. By the time I put the plate of fried rice on the table, she’d come in wearing a winter shirt and shorts, her hair damp.

“Oh! What a tantalizing fragrance!” Isana plopped herself down in front of the fried rice. “Down the hatch!” she said, taking a spoonful.

She must’ve been pretty hungry, because she wolfed it down at a surprising pace. Seeing her eat so quickly, I brought over a pitcher of filtered water from the fridge and poured her a glass of water. She promptly gulped it down.

“How’s drawing going?” I asked, sitting in front of her and resting my head in my hand.

“I’ve begun to desire a computer,” she said as she poured herself more water.

“Why?”

“Though I’ve been able to draw with my tablet, if I’m to utilize 3D technology, then it would behoove me to have a computer with high specifications. I would also have a larger screen to work with.”

“True...monitors are pretty big.”

I had my dad’s hand-me-down laptop, but it probably really wasn’t too different specs-wise from a tablet. Honestly, a high-spec desktop wasn’t something that a high schooler could afford.

“Getting a part-time job’s...probably out as an option,” I said. “It’d take away from your drawing time and would be like putting the cart before the horse. Maybe one day we can have you earn money on art sites that offer subscriptions to artists.”

“A subscription service! I enjoy the sound of that!”

“I’m surprised. I didn’t think you were that interested in money.”

“Premium plans are modern day fukuro-toji! By overcoming the hurdle known as payment, you are allowed a peek at paradise! It’s so wonderful...”

She definitely doesn’t know what fukuro-tojis were back then. She’s definitely been affected by internet veterans.

“Let’s do that, Mizuto-kun! We can post nude versions of my images that way too!”

“Not when you’re still underage, idiot.”

“Rrrgh!” she pouted.

Her NSFW works would eventually see the light of day, but right now, she needed to focus on growing her following and improving her art. We could think of how to monetize her works when we got there.

“What is 3D usually used for?” I asked.

“Primarily backgrounds. You can add all kinds of 3D materials onto the canvas to help you think of a composition, or you can trace the materials. Depending on the person, you might even use it to create a 3D doll to block in poses.”

“I see... So if you use 3D, you won’t mess up the rough sketch no matter what.”

“At first, I may develop some strange habits when using it, but I believe it’d be nice if I got somewhat good at using it. It’d also negate the need to take pictures of myself for reference!”

“True, you do use your own body in the place of an art mannequin.”

“I take pictures of myself and trace them when I’m unable to think of characters to draw.”

“This is pretty interesting. It really feels like a modern way of doing art.”

“Heh heh. I’ve almost always been a digital art person.”

“So what do these tracings look like?”

“Huh?” Isana looked surprised for some reason.

“What’s wrong?”

“U-Uh... Do I need to show you them?”

“Huh? I mean, yeah, if that’s okay.” I’m just personally curious.

“Oh... Well, I suppose if it’s you, then...”

Is she embarrassed about showing something that she didn’t draw as a picture? She took out her phone, seemingly embarrassed. I guess the files are shared between her phone and tablet. She flicked through her phone and then stared at the screen for a bit, her face turning red.

“I-I will wash the dishes!”

In the next minute, she disappeared into the kitchen with her empty plate. What’s gotten into her? I was a little confused, but I decided to look at the phone she’d left behind. The screen dimmed, though, so I couldn’t tell what it was displaying.

Then, suddenly, the phone reacted to something. I wasn’t sure if it reacted to being moved or if it was bugging out. The only thing I was sure about was that the screen of her phone had brightened and was displaying an image.

Right before my very eyes was a picture of a familiar girl with a good body who was mostly naked. The face wasn’t drawn in, but as Kawanami had said, even pin-up girls didn’t have the kind of body that Isana did. Her bountiful but beautiful spheres on her chest, her tight waist, and her alluring butt were all things that I, the person who was closer to her than anyone, knew she possessed.

That’s why I immediately extended my hand and turned off the screen. Then I finally remembered something. Back when Isana began showing me her pictures for the first time, she’d told me not to look at anything weird on her tablet.

“How could I have guessed that she’d been drawing herself naked...”

I knew that nude sketches were effective tools. I really did. But she didn’t have to save them. The illustration of her naked body was burned into my head and now threatened to fill in the blanks from when I’d seen her in the sink mirror. A 3D model was being drawn in my head—complete with both her front and backside.

I didn’t see Isana in a dirty way, but it was hard not to think about the things I’d seen after laying eyes on them. What if this phone didn’t have just sketches of her naked body but actual...

“Thank you very much! It was delicious!” Isana said.

“Yeah. No problem.”

I’ll try not to think about this anymore.

Lust

I knew immediately that this was a dream.

Mizuto-kun...

Lying on the bed was a naked Isana. She was shaking her body suggestively, and her expression made it seem like she was begging for something. The blood in my body felt like it was pumping abnormally quickly. I couldn’t think clearly.

I stepped forward, like a moth to flame. I knew I’d get burned if I touched it, but I couldn’t help myself. I slowly touched the swellings on her chest that pointed at the ceiling.

Mm. Mizuto...

Immediately, the image changed to Yume. My fingers dug deeper into her body. The dam holding back my lust broke from that sensation. I drowned myself in the softness that accepted me—embraced them, felt them, rubbed against them, and melted into them.

But right before I was consumed by my lust, I woke up. I felt like there was fog as I looked up at the ceiling of my room. As I vacantly stared at it, I felt an extreme unpleasantness in my chest, overcome by the worst possible feeling. I almost resented the fact that I was born male.

“Oh, you’re awake?”

Horrible timing on her part, really. Nonetheless, she called out to me, right when I wanted to curse aloud.

“Mom’s making lunch, so she told me to wake you up.”

Yume’s face popped up between me and the ceiling. She was so beautiful, I wanted to stare at her forever. There was nothing in the world I was so fond of as that gorgeous face...yet my eyes went lower, down to the swellings on her chest.

“Okay...” I finally responded in a hoarse voice, covering my eyes with my arm.

“Can you eat after just waking up?” Yume asked, not knowing the violent thoughts going through my head.

“Whatever. Just leave, okay?” I said coldly.

I seriously hated this. I curled up in my bed as if to shut her out. As long as I was like this, nobody had to know about my dirty desires. Suddenly, Kawanami’s words played in my head. Lust is meant to be tamed. Not suppressed.

That was probably the requirement for someone to act like a human.

Defense

Yume Irido

With the closing ceremony not too far off, today was the last day for student council activities. It’d been two and a half months since I’d worked up my courage and dived headfirst into the student council. Every day had been a fresh, new experience, but those days were coming to an end. It was rather moving. I really did my job on the student council.

Just a year ago, I couldn’t have imagined myself in this situation, but now I felt like I was in a dream. Everything would be perfect if I could just get Mizuto to fall for me.

“We’re going to have a party with the girls on Christmas,” President Kurenai declared at the conclusion of the student council meeting. “It’ll be at my house. All of you are to finish your boy-related activities by Christmas Eve.”

Christmas Eve was a day in Japan that was mostly celebrated by couples. My most recent memory of a couple’s Christmas was two years ago when Mizuto had secretly come over to my house. That was the happiest Christmas of my life. Or at least, it would’ve been, if we’d just been able to get past that big fight we had.

But I was going to exceed that Christmas this year. I even had a present planned for him, one that had my feelings crammed into it. If that wasn’t enough to tell him how I felt, then there was nothing left for me to do.

I’d made a promise to myself that I’d make Mizuto fall for me by the end of the year. If he didn’t ask me out, then I’d ask him. But I felt like the situation had changed. If I couldn’t get this done by the end of the year, there might not be a chance for me to do it ever. By next year, he might have changed paths and wouldn’t look at me anymore. That’s why I had to catch him now, no matter what. I was definitely not going to let him get away.

So I’m going to continue my attacks on him today! There were disadvantages to living together, but it was nice not having to use school as an excuse to see him. As long as I got the timing right, I could even use techniques to hit on him without anyone noticing. I’m gonna make sure he notices how much I’m into him tonight too!

“I’m home!” I said, standing in our house’s entrance.

Of course, there was no response. The lights weren’t even on in the living room. Mom and dad were still at work, but Mizuto seemed to have been out too. Ever since the start of the month, it’d felt like he wasn’t home as much.

As I went up the stairs, I called out that I was home once more again towards Mizuto’s door. To my surprise, I heard him welcome me home. He’s home? I opened the door a little and saw that he was doing some kind of work on his computer. Does it have to do with Higashira-san?

I temporarily returned to my room and changed out of my uniform. I’d decided to act defenseless today. I put on a loose shirt and culottes before leaving my room. Then, I went down to the first floor, boiled some water, and made black tea. I placed the pot on a tray and brought it up to Mizuto’s room.

I knocked on the door. “I made some tea. Want some?”

Of course, this was just a pretense to get into his room, which was my primary objective.

“Mm-hmm...”

It sounded like he’d given me the green light, meaning I’d succeeded in my infiltration. As I entered, he didn’t turn around. He stayed focused on his laptop as he thought about something. I didn’t want to bother him and make him think I was annoying. That’d screw everything up.

I put the tray next to his computer and poured each of us a cup. I brought my cup up to my mouth and blew on it before sitting on his bed. I stared at the back of his head as I sipped on the tea. I didn’t try talking to him or touching him. Just being here had been my objective for today.

In other words, my strategy was to act like I was already his girlfriend. If I sat here as if it were perfectly natural, Mizuto was bound to get more curious about what I was doing. We’d been able to live together without crossing boundaries up until now, so this would be effective. If I tried to interact with him at the same personal distance that Higashira-san had, something like this wouldn’t have affected him at all.

After I finished my cup of tea, I stood up and put it back on the tray. Then I casually looked through his shelves and naturally pulled a book out. With the book in hand, I lay down on his bed.

I’d chosen this specific outfit on purpose. The hem of the skirt made it seem like you could almost see underneath. Thus, it would be irresistible, since it would make me look defenseless. Or at least, that’s what I’d read online. So with that, I lazed around on his bed while reading.

Neither of us said a word. Thinking back, I’d always fantasized about this kind of situation in middle school. Cuddling and flirting with each other twenty-four seven wasn’t bad either, but I really liked this kind of happy silence, devoid of any kind of bitterness. The reason I was always so nervous about Mizuto and Higashira-san’s relationship was because of the time that they spent like this, which was quite a bit.

The period of time when couples were head over heels for each other wouldn’t last forever. I knew from experience that humans adapted. With time, one could get used to even unexpected happiness, and its novelty would wear off.

But even then, I sorta wanted things to continue in spite of that. Even if it didn’t make my heart beat faster or make it stop altogether, I really wanted the kind of relationship in which I still felt happy. I wanted what hadn’t been possible for us back then. For that to happen, I needed to make his heart beat, even just a little bit faster.

Before I realized it, I had raised my knees. Mizuto was near my butt. If I made him turn around right now, he might’ve gotten a tiny glance of my butt under the hem of my skirt that’d been raised to my thighs.

Usually, I’d correct my posture in the interest of modesty as a girl, but today...I was going to purposely pretend like I didn’t notice. It’s okay for him to look. If I could capture his heart that way, then he could look as much as he wanted. Sheesh...I’ve become so dirty. It’s your fault, you know that? I’m going to need you to take responsi—

“Hey,” he called out to me.

I looked up, over my shoulder, to turn and look at Mizuto.

“I’m gonna put the pot and cups away. You’re good on tea, right?”

“Oh. Yeah. I’m good...”

Mizuto picked up the tray and left the room. The door clicked shut behind him.

I tilted my head. Huh? Did he even look at me? His expression had been completely normal. It was completely different from when he’d given me the conditioner or when I’d worn clothes that showed off my cleavage. Was this not enough stimulation? Maybe just being a girl wasn’t enough anymore since he hung out with Higashira-san so often.

If that’s how it is, then what if I do this?! The door opened and Mizuto came back. By the time he did, I’d curled up into a ball and was feigning sleep. I opened my eyes just a little to check how he was reacting.

“Sleep in your own room,” he muttered, glancing at me.

Good. Just as planned. Now, before he goes back to his desk, I have to... “Mm...” I turned over and simultaneously put my hand under my shirt. Then, I pulled it up a little, as if I was too hot. How’s this for stimulation?! Had enough?! There’s no way you can ignore me now!

If I overdid it, it’d be too dirty. So I pulled my shirt up past my stomach and ribs to a spot where he could just barely not see my bra. How’s this?! Do you see how defenseless the girl you think doesn’t like you is?!

I once again slightly opened the eyes that I’d closed out of nervousness. What kind of expression is my body making him wear?

But all my eyes saw were his back. He wasn’t even looking at me. His attention was fully on his computer.

I had no words. Why? Things were going so well not too long ago. Suddenly I remembered while looking at him what’d happened when we were trying to get him and Higashira-san together. I remembered just how coolheaded he’d been when he pointed out that he could see Higashira-san’s panties.

It was the same kind of feeling—as if he’d turned off the switch that made him see me as a girl. Suddenly, Aso-senpai’s words played in my head. At that point, your only option is to take off their clothes and get on top of them.

Ace in the Hole

Mizuto Irido

I’d succeeded at taming my lust. More precisely, I had learned to adapt. I’d practiced not letting my emotions show, even if I was turned on. My main method had been to search for images on the internet—just any pictures of women—and accustom my eyes to them. Of course, it’s not like I stopped feeling excited. My aim was to get used to feeling excited, and become able to control myself.

I’d become desensitized to the stimulation, so much so that no matter how Yume tried to seduce me, I wouldn’t fall prey to it. In fact, my training had been so successful that I hated myself for lusting over her despite knowing I would never act on it. Well, at least it had the side effect of making me really good at analyzing erotic art.

“Don’t you think this scenario should have a little more humidity?” I suggested. “For example, you could maybe make it obvious by having steam rising from her sweat.”

“Intriguing... You’re asserting that her clothes being transparent from sweat is insufficient to convey that? I see you’ve been training.”

Thanks to my hard work, even hanging around Isana didn’t get my mind wandering.

Natora-san, meanwhile, was peeking in Isana’s trash can without any reserve. “Can you two just screw already? Seriously, y’all are the worst.”

She could say that all she wanted, but romantically involving yourself with the person you’re managing is generally frowned upon. It’s not exactly a good idea.

I finally learned to endure Yume’s attacks, and now, the 24th of December was quickly approaching.

“Whoa, mom...what’s this?” Yume curiously stared at the cake that Yuni-san had bought and unveiled at the table.

A devilish smile crept across Yuni-san’s face. “It’s a bit of a grown-up cake.”

“What does that mean?”

“There’s alcohol in it.”

“Huh?” Yume took a step back from the yellow sponge cake out of surprise. “Is it okay for us to have it?”

“Yeah, of course! It’s completely legal! There’s not much alcohol in it anyway.”

Doubtful, Yume searched on her phone and found that according to law, “alcohol” only counts as that which can be imbibed. Basically, alcohol in edible forms such as cakes and chocolates are exempt from that law. Kinda feels like a loophole.

“It’s good to have new experiences. Just make sure you don’t eat too much of it. We have a regular cake too,” dad said.

“I guess a little won’t hurt...” Yume said, now convinced.

Well, in general, isn’t it better to have your first experience with alcohol in the safety of your own home than at a college outing? No, it definitely is.

“Okay, then, Merry Christmas!”

And just like that, Christmas Eve at the Irido household passed by without any problems.

“Is it okay for you to neglect Higashira-san?” Yuni-san asked partway through our celebration, still believing that Isana and I were dating.

But I was already used to this, so I just tried to play it off. “Yeah. She doesn’t have any concept of seasons or holidays.”

After dinner and cake, I moved from the dining table to the kotatsu, using the sound from the TV Christmas specials as background noise as I read my book. I wasn’t sure if it was because I’d eaten cake with alcohol in it, but my body felt warm and light—and I felt like I had loosened up a bit too, somehow. It was a good feeling, so I figured I’d soak it up while it lasted.

Yume seemed to be talking to dad and Yuni-san about something at the table. How nice of the honor student to be a good girl, chatting with her family so often. But after a little bit, dad went to clean the bath, and Yuni-san began washing dishes in the kitchen, leaving just me and Yume in the living room.

“How do you feel?” Yume asked, coming over and seating herself in the kotatsu.

I kept my guard up, but at least with Yuni-san right there in the kitchen, Yume couldn’t do anything too crazy. “What do you mean?”

“How do you feel after eating the cake? You ate a lot of it, didn’t you?”

“I don’t feel too different. Just a little warm.”

“Oh...”

For some reason, her words sounded kinda sluggish. As soon as I thought that, Yume fell to the side and cozied her head onto my lap like a cat.

“H-Hey!”

“Mm... Yeah, you really are warm.”

The kotatsu acted as a kind of wall, stopping Yuni-san from being able to see Yume on my lap. But Yume was acting too bold just because she was out of Yuni-san’s line of sight. The usual her wouldn’t take a risk like this. What’s gotten into...

“Heh heh heh...”

I realized that Yume’s face was red. Is she...drunk from the cake? Hadn’t she just been talking her head off with Yuni-san and dad? Yet when she’d sat down next to me, she’d seemed off, as though she’d let her guard down.

“Hey, don’t sleep here. Go to your room.”

“Mm... Don’t wanna. I’m gonna take a bath.”

“Okay, then take a bath. That’ll wake you up.”

“Hey, Mizuto...?”

“Hm?”

“Can we go to your room?” she asked in a tender, pleading tone. I froze at her words. “I...have something I wanna give you. A Christmas present... I can’t give it to you in front of our parents...”

A Christmas present? I couldn’t help but remember the feather necklace that she’d given me two years ago. “I didn’t get you anything.”

“It’s okay. I just want to give you one.” She gripped my pants as if she was trying to hold on to them. “That much is okay, right?”

I can’t even say no. Flat out rejecting her isn’t something I can bring myself to do. That’s how much I like her.

“Fine. But you have to take a bath and sober up first, okay?”

“Yeah... That would be better...”

At that exact moment, dad came back and announced that he’d finished cleaning the bath.

“I’m going to take a bath,” Yume announced, slowly getting up before quickly leaving the living room and heading up the stairs to get ready.

“Phew...”

I didn’t think she’d get drunk off of that amount of alcohol. Is she genetically a lightweight? But I don’t think I’ve ever seen Yuni-san get wasted. Wait... I paused my thoughts. Is that what she’s doing?

I Like You Too Much to Confess

In the end, Yume waited until everyone took a bath and Yuni-san and dad had gone to bed before coming to my room.

“Thanks...” she said as she entered my room in her pajamas.

I didn’t see a trace of the tipsiness she’d displayed earlier. “Sobered up?”

“Yeah, thanks to you.”

“You were just acting, weren’t you?” Yume froze up at my sudden accusation. “It’s said that your tolerance for alcohol is determined by your genes. Based on how much Yuni-san was able to drink at my grandma’s and how Keikoin-san didn’t turn red even a little when he drank wine, there’s no way you’re a lightweight.”

Of course, I wasn’t a hundred percent certain, but her reaction made me confident I was right. Yume had been pretending to be tipsy. Most likely, she’d done that so she could bring up the topic of the present.

“You really don’t have a tactful bone in your body, do you?” she scoffed. “You’re supposed to pretend like you didn’t notice.”

“Sorry. I’m trying to make sure I don’t get scammed in the future.” I sat on my bed and looked at Yume, who was sulking. “So? What’s the present that you had to go through all that trouble to give me?” I asked, trying to be as curt as possible. I’m not going to let you create a mood.

“Right...” Yume nodded, trotting over before plopping herself down next to me.

“Hey...”

I tried moving away, but Yume grabbed my arm. “No. Don’t...run away.” She looked up at me with her doe-like eyes, pleading with me. “It’s taking a lot of courage to even do this.”

She’d already won the battle, managing to create a mood despite my efforts. As frustrating as it was, I wasn’t equipped with the same frivolousness that would enable me to make light of someone being serious.

Yume rummaged in her pocket and brought out a small gift box. “Open this...”

Taking it into my hands, I noticed that while initially it appeared to be wrapped in a ribbon it was actually just drawn to look that way. All I had to do was take the lid off to open it. No unwrapping necessary. I gulped, trying to wet my dry throat.

I could instinctively feel deep down inside that as soon as I opened this, something would change. I couldn’t help but be a little freaked out. I squeezed my hand to stop myself from shaking. I didn’t have a choice, so I slowly opened the box.

“Ah...”

My gut had been right. Inside the box was a silver object with a wing design on it. It was a ring.

“Do you remember how I gave you a feather necklace two years ago?” Yume asked as I froze up. “I was thinking of one-upping that, so I got a wing. And—” The springs in my bed softly creaked. “It’s actually a pair set.” There was a determination in her voice. “If you put the two wings together, it becomes one. That’s...how it is.”

I suddenly remembered the Hiyoku no Tori—a pair of birds that both only had one wing, so when they were together, they could fly through the sky. It was supposed to represent a deep bond between a man and a woman.

“I didn’t buy the other one. I...want you to get it...as a present for me.”

This... This is so unfair. You really won’t say it, will you? You’re really going to make me do it. You want me to make the decision. She had been practically screaming her feelings in every way except using her words. Don’t... Don’t you see how in pain I am? You can’t be this direct. It’s not fair. I want to live like you and be true to my feelings, but I can’t.

“I...” My throat was so dry, I started and stopped so many times before I could get the words out. It was almost like my mouth was acting as a dam, keeping my words inside me. “I can’t take this...” I quietly shut the box. “I... I can’t be your wings.”

I felt so, so heartbroken. But it was the truth. Both of us knew better than anyone else. One of us asking the other out was just signaling the beginning of the end. No matter how much I liked her, these feelings would someday fade, become an annoyance to me, and then in the end, I’d only think of myself. If we broke up again, this time, we’d be involving our parents. I know how much that would hurt you. You changed your last name for your mom’s sake. You moved into a house with your ex for her. You wanted to protect her idea of a family so badly. I absolutely do not want to see you break because of that.

It would’ve been better if I’d never cared about her. Without that chance meeting at the middle school library, we wouldn’t have needed to talk to each other like we were friends after becoming stepsiblings, and I would’ve been ignorant of who she was and how I would feel about her. I probably wouldn’t have overthought things and would have been true to my desires.

I like you too much to throw all these feelings I have for you at you. I like you too much to confess. So that’s why—

“No.” Her voice rang in my ears, cutting off my thoughts.

In the next moment, I felt my body being pushed down with great force, and I found myself pinned down on my bed. Yume was straddling me like she was a chain or a weight.

“I told you...I definitely won’t let you run away.”

Yume used both of her legs to hold my arms in place, immobilizing my upper body. Then she put her hand at the hem of her nightshirt.

“Wh-What are you do—”

“Shh! Be quiet. Our parents will hear.”

Guys tend to be stronger than girls, but leg strength generally wins out over arm strength. All I could do was watch as Yume pulled up her shirt all at once. Her chest supported by a light pink bra entered my eyes as if it’d been thrust into them. The bra had a complex lace design and decorated her white peach-color skin.

All I could do was gulp and wholeheartedly stare at her boobs that threatened to spill out, which rose and fell with each breath she took. Yume didn’t stop there. She took her other hand and put it on the elastic band around her pants and pulled it down. She was wearing a pair of ribbon-adorned panties the same color as her bra. They were unreliably covering an area obviously differently shaped than a guy’s.

I felt like my head was spinning. I’d seen her in a bath towel, and I’d seen her bra before, but this was my first time seeing her up close in her underwear. I hadn’t stumbled into this situation. She’d done this on purpose with a clear intent. Nothing I’d seen in all the pictures I’d searched online even came close to this.

“Look at me...”

Yume was red all the way to her ears. But even so, she didn’t take her eyes off of me. “I’ve gotten a lot bigger than I was in middle school, right? Doesn’t it...turn you on?” She gripped my shoulders as if to trap me. “No, I know... You’re turned on by me. I already saw...in the bath.” She leaned over me, her long hair flowing around my face, trapping it. “That’s why...you can’t run away. You can’t fool me. No matter how cool you play it...you can’t fool me.” She began gently caressing my face. “Or...should I take off my bra too?”

She didn’t wait for me to answer. She immediately wrapped one of her arms behind her back. Right then, I was finally able to free my right hand and grabbed the hand at the hook of her bra.

“Please...stop,” I said, squeezing out these words.

“Why?”

“I...I hate this! I don’t want to see you as just a target for my lust!” Yume’s eyes slightly widened and she softly gasped. “Why can’t you get it through your head?! I’ve thought about this so much all this time, so why haven’t you?!” I wanted to embrace her. I wanted to wrap my arms tightly around her porcelain shoulders and her tight waist. But lust didn’t lead to any kind of future. “Can you just think a little?! How long are you gonna keep dreaming?! Do you remember how badly things ended in middle school?! How can you stay so ignorant?!” It’s not fair. It’s so unfair! Why are you the only one who can think about nothing but the romance right in front of you? “My head’s been a complete mess this entire time! I want to know what the right thing to do is, but I haven’t found even a hint of the answer! If I knew things were gonna be like this, then—” If I did, then... “I wish we’d never become family!”

That’s right. It’s all because of that. If that hadn’t happened, I’m sure I would’ve said yes to Isana and would’ve been thinking of nothing but ways to make her an even bigger artist. I wouldn’t have been so pent-up—I would’ve had an appropriate outlet for my lust while being able to single-mindedly chase after what I wanted to do like a high schooler should be.

I didn’t want this burden of a family or life. I was just a high schooler. I was only sixteen years old. I just happened to live in a unique environment. This was all too heavy for me.

“Sorry...” Yume said softly. It was only then that I realized that I’d said what I shouldn’t have. “I’m sorry... I’m sorry I wasn’t thinking enough... I-It’s just that, I... I didn’t want you to leave me.” No. No, no, no. I didn’t want to make you cry! “Sorry...” She got off of me and fixed her clothes. “I’m... I’m so sorry,” she muttered, quietly running out of my room.

I couldn’t even take a single step. All I could do was stare blankly at the ceiling light. Ah... Ah... Rrrrgh! I grunted as I hit the bed with all the strength I could muster. There was nothing I could do.