Chapter 438

"Hey, get up."

"No, I don't want to! I'm sleeping here too!"

I didn't know whether to call her immature or cute when she threw a tantrum like this.

It was honestly a bit of both.

Anyway, did Hiyori even remember what I told her a few days ago?

If she did, she wouldn't be throwing such a fit...

It seemed Miyuki driving the point home had really shocked her.

"Didn't I tell you to behave? Come out here for a second."

"Why...!"

"So we can talk outside. Hurry up and get up."

"You're just going to scold me...!"

If you knew that, you should've restrained yourself.

Come to think of it, Hiyori was always causing trouble without considering the consequences.

At this rate, all the affection level we built up during the school trip was going to go down the drain.

Just as I was thinking that, right as I went to shoot her a stern glare—

"No. It's fine."

Miyuki stopped me, her voice soft and calm.

I couldn't get used to this. Just moments ago, when Hiyori was charging in, she had looked completely annoyed.

I stood there dumbfounded by the sudden shift, but Miyuki just offered a warm smile and continued.

"I'll try talking to her, so could you step outside for a bit?"

"Step outside?"

"Yeah."

"Me? You want me to step out right now?"

"Yeah."

Miyuki's expression was completely serene as she declared her intent to speak with Hiyori alone.

Was she planning to soothe her? I couldn't help but feel anxious, worried that one of them might drop a bombshell.

What should I do? This felt like a double-edged sword...

This choice would either work out perfectly in the end, or fail miserably.

Normally, I would have called it ridiculous and dragged Hiyori outside, but Miyuki was thoughtful.

She knew exactly how Hiyori felt about me. She wouldn't say anything to hurt her.

I had never wanted to read Miyuki's mind as badly as I did right then.

After cycling through countless thoughts in a matter of seconds, I finally nodded.

"I'll come back in ten minutes then, all right?"

"That should be enough."

"All right."

Flick.

I gave a curt reply and reached out to flick Hiyori's ahoge, which was leaning heavily to one side.

"W-Where are you going...! Don't abandon me...!"

I flashed a grin at her desperate pleas and stepped out of the house.

Even though she constantly tried to climb all over me, it seemed Hiyori was genuinely terrified of Miyuki too.

Given she was saying things like that.

Stepping outside, I pulled the sliding door shut at Miyuki's request and took a seat on the engawa.

The only sound from inside the house was the occasional muffled shout of Hiyori throwing a fit; aside from that, I couldn't hear a single word of their conversation.

I really wanted to press my ear against the door and eavesdrop, but our sliding doors were translucent and there was nowhere to hide. I'd definitely get caught if I tried.

It didn't matter, though. I could always just ask Miyuki or Hiyori about it later.

Deciding not to stress over it, I headed back inside after receiving a text from Miyuki saying they were finished, about a minute or two shy of the ten-minute mark.

I found Miyuki and Hiyori sitting side-by-side on the mattress.

Hiyori was wearing a very, very sulky pout, while Miyuki looked just as relaxed as before.

It was obvious they had shared a heart-to-heart talk as women, but the atmosphere was too confusing for me to get a read on what they actually discussed.

Would I end up celebrating this choice in the future? Or would I regret it?

Right now, it looked like the former.

"If you two are done, let's go exercise."

I purposely held back from grilling them about their conversation and just brought up our workout. Miyuki smiled brightly and spoke.

"Do you two want to go exercise on your own today? I think I'll rest here."

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

"Why don't we just all go?"

"I'm exhausted."

"From what?"

"From yesterday..."

She was talking about how we had sex until late in the night.

She was biting her tongue out of consideration for Hiyori. It was obvious.

"All right then. Asahina, get out here. Time to stretch."

"....Okay."

Hiyori murmured her reply in a tiny voice and sluggishly got to her feet.

Just what did Miyuki say to make her this quiet?

It wasn't a complete 180, but it was still fascinating to see.

I stepped out into the yard with Hiyori, who still had a sullen pout on her face, and tapped my own shoulder.

It was a signal to place her hand there. Hiyori stuck her lips out as far as they would go.

"So annoying."

"What now? Are you mad because Miyuki gave you an earful?"

"I didn't mean Miyuki Hanazawa is annoying. I meant you're annoying, sunbae-nim."

"What did I do?"

"You always single me out to yell at..."

"You're the one causing trouble. And didn't I warn you last time?"

"That was a warning not to dress provocatively! So I dressed modestly today! Why are you forcing the issue? Why are you lying? Are you trying to scam me?"

Why was it so cute when she got worked up?

I guess it was because she wasn't genuinely angry—she was just throwing another tantrum.

"No... That's not what I'm talking about."

"Really? Then was it before vacation? I've been warned by sunbae-nim so many times that I can't even remember."

"That sounds a lot like you don't give a damn about my warnings. Am I right?"

"Doesn't that depend entirely on how sunbae-nim interprets it?"

"Never mind that. What did you and Miyuki talk about?"

"You don't need to know."

"It'd be nice if you told me, though."

"You're just going to ask Miyuki Hanazawa after I leave anyway. I'm not going to waste my breath."

"You haven't had your ass smacked enough lately."

"No violence allowed."

"Then quit messing around. Hand on my shoulder. Let's finish stretching and head right out."

"....Okay."

Rattle.

Miyuki stared as Hiyori threw the door open, her face completely flushed.

Her eyes went wide.

"Whoa... Did you two go that hard out there?"

The question was justified. Hiyori's face was so red it looked ready to burst.

She looked like someone who had just experienced an earth-shattering orgasm during their first time, leaving her unable to even move properly afterward.

"Not at all. Her stamina is just absolutely pitiful."

"Her stamina? I don't remember it being that bad when we exercised together before..."

"It's also boiling hot outside."

"I did hear it was supposed to be way hotter today than yesterday... Good thing I skipped the workout."

Paying zero attention to our chatter, Hiyori stumbled toward the fridge like a zombie, pulled out a water bottle, and twisted the cap off.

She shoved the opening against her lips and immediately tilted her head back.

"Hey... hey...! Slow down."

She blatantly ignored me, continuing to gulp down the water.

Demolishing half the bottle in an instant, she let out a breath and spoke with an expression that said she was finally back among the living.

"I'm taking a shower...!"

"Go ahead."

"Can I get in the tub?"

Since when did she ever ask for permission?

It was absurd watching her actually try to show some manners just because Miyuki was right there.

That was never her style to begin with.

"Knock yourself out."

Lighting up at the response, Hiyori marched straight into the spacious bathroom.

The sound of the shower head turning on drifted out through the outer door Hiyori had left cracked open.

I went over and slid the door shut completely, then took a seat right next to Miyuki.

"What were you up to? Did you just watch TV?"

"I watched some TV... talked on the phone with a friend..."

"Must've been pretty boring."

"Not really. It's not like you guys were out exercising for very long anyway."

"True. Anyway, what did you and Asahina talk about earlier?"

"Ah... That? Just... this and that."

"Which was what?"

"It's a bit awkward to bring it up right now. I'll tell you later."

Awkward to bring up right now? That didn't just mean it was a long story; it was solid proof they had shared a sensitive conversation about me.

"Is that right?"

"Yeah."

"Got it."

"Matsuda-kun, you should go wash up quickly too. We can head out right after."

"Where to?"

"Let's drop Asahina off at her place and grab something to eat before coming back."

She was even planning on dropping Hiyori off at her house?

Miyuki was being incredibly accommodating today.

Now I absolutely had to know what they talked about.

The curiosity was driving me crazy.

"Guess I'll go wash up then?"

"Yeah. Oh, wait a second..."

Miyuki stopped me right as I stood up. She pulled tightly at my sweat-drenched T-shirt and buried her nose in the fabric.

She had been sniffing my sweat a lot lately. There must have been something about it that hit right at her particular tastes.

"All done. You can go."

Seeing Miyuki's satisfied expression, I let out a dry chuckle and opened the door to the smaller bathroom.

Once inside, I let the slightly cold water wash over me and fell deep into thought.

The atmosphere had been perfectly fine ever since Hiyori and Miyuki finished their conversation.

But hidden right beneath that cool, breezy current was a lingering chill.

It felt calm on the surface, but it carried the distinct feeling that a typhoon was about to roll in.

I guess this was what they called the calm before the storm.

Regardless, agonizing over it wasn't going to give me any answers.

I would drop Hiyori off and have a proper talk with Miyuki somewhere quiet.

Right now, the attitude I needed to take was complete honesty with a spoonful of unwavering confidence.

That feeling hit me hard. Just like I thought yesterday, my instincts were never wrong.

I was right in the middle of formulating various theories in the shower when I heard voices murmuring outside.

Had Hiyori already finished her shower? She had asked to use the tub, so I figured she would be in there for a while. She must have changed her mind.

No matter how heart-to-heart their conversation was, there was bound to be some awkwardness between them, right?

I needed to hurry up and get out there.