Part-2 Ch-12 Ep-04

Maki’s POV

“Ichinose Maki-san, I liked you.”

On the night of the third day of the school trip, the confession I received from Godaiin-kun was far more matter-of-fact than I had expected.

Hearing those words delivered so calmly, I began to give the reply I had already prepared in advance, but then I hesitated for a moment.

Liked, as in the past tense? What? Huh, past tense?

“Uh, um…… thank you. But I’m sorry. I already have someone I’m dating, and I love that person very much,” I replied.

I found myself answering while wondering whether this response was truly the right one.

“Yeah, that’s fine. I’m glad I was able to tell you how I felt.”

He said it with a gentle smile, as though he were wishing me happiness.

I thanked him in return, and with that, our exchange came to an end. We turned our backs to one another and left the spot.

It was far more anticlimactic than I had imagined, leaving me oddly disappointed, and I did not even shed a tear.

Watching him like that, I thought that a refreshing, handsome guy really does look cool even as he walks away.

When I returned to the room right away, Mari asked me, “How did it go?”

When I looked over, I saw her lying on the bed I was using, not on her own. Perhaps she had done that because she was anxious while waiting for me.

At the sight of her in that position, a rush of affection surged through me, accompanied by an overwhelming urge to cling to her, and I desperately restrained myself.

But with her lying on the bed I use like this, isn’t this basically a message saying, “please come and pounce on me,” surely.

If that was the case, if I was being invited, then as her lover, I had an obligation to respond.

Thinking that, I quietly swallowed my saliva.

While watching Mari’s reaction, I approached the bed and explained what had just happened.

When I told her that the confession had been so incredibly straightforward that it left me feeling let down, Mari responded with a thoughtful “Hmm” and struck a pondering pose.

In the meantime, I climbed onto the bed.

I crawled toward Mari on all fours, then leaned over her, covering her body with mine. She calmly averted her gaze from me and briefly glanced at the object I was holding in my right hand.

“What’s that?”

“Oh, this? Godaiin-kun gave it to me when he confessed. It’s called hotaru glass. Isn’t it pretty?”

As I said that, I held up the keychain for her to see. Inside the deep indigo glass, vivid blue fragments were scattered like sparkling dots.

It was as though the nighttime sea, glowing beneath the moonlight, had been captured and sealed within the glass. I thought it was truly beautiful.

When I explained it that way, I noticed Mari’s brows furrow ever so slightly as she said, “……I see. Got it.”

Ah, I made Mari sad again.

The instant that thought crossed my mind, I raised the keychain toward the trash can without hesitation.

“Hah!? W-Wait, wait, wait, hold on! Maki, what were you about to do just now!?”

Mari immediately sat up, reached out, and grabbed my arm tightly. In my hand, the keychain I had failed to throw away swayed and made a small chari sound.

“Huh? What do you mean…… It was pretty, and since he gave it to me, I accepted it. But if it makes you sad, Mari, I thought I should just throw it away.”

“No, no, no, that’s not okay!? Don’t you have any feelings at all!? It contains Godaiin-kun’s feelings, and also the feelings of the person who made it, so you have to treasure it!”

Mari shouted in a panicked voice.

I wondered why she was getting so worked up, but then reconsidered and thought that she did have a point.

“Alright. Then I’ll take good care of it. I liked Godaiin-kun as a friend, after all.”

When I said that, Mari visibly relaxed and sank back onto the bed, saying, “Yeah, do that.”

Seeing her like that made my chest feel a little unsettled. This girl really is too kind.

Because I love Mari, because I want to treasure her more than anyone else, I could be cold to others for her sake, or act unreasonably if necessary.

With that thought, I gently placed the hotaru glass on top of the sideboard next to the bed.

“……Hey.”

“Hmm~?”

“……You’re heavy, you know.”

“Huh? I’m not heavy, am I?”

Lying face-down on top of Mari as she lay on her back, I answered with a smile while putting my full weight on her.

“No, seriously, you’re really heavy…… my lungs are struggling here……”

“……….”

“Huh? Can’t you hear me?”

Ignoring Mari as she called out, “Maki-chaaan,” I continued gazing at her face with a smile.

Feeling how fast her heart was beating as our bodies pressed closely together made me realize how aware she was of me, and it filled my chest with warmth.

Still, I supposed it was about time.

The teachers would be doing roll call soon, and I still had not taken a bath.

Just as that thought crossed my mind, there was a knock on the door, and I realized our homeroom teacher had come to check whether we were in the room.

“Yeees, coming now!”

I answered loudly as I got off Mari.

“Now then.”

“?”

After the sounds of roll call and the bustle from the hallway had quieted down, Mari suddenly stood up and said that.

She had been unusually slow about taking a bath today. Earlier, she had just been chatting or fiddling with her phone, looking far more relaxed than usual.

“Ah, should we take a bath soon?”

“Hm? Nah, I think I’ll hold off for now~”

“Eh, why……”

Before I could finish asking why, Mari cut me off with a grin and held her palm out right in front of my face.

“Maki, shall we go? Right now, to the nighttime sea.”

I opened my eyes wide.

I probably should have said things like, “We’ll get in trouble if the teachers catch us,” or, “It’s rare for you to suggest something like this, Mari,” but what escaped my mouth purely on reflex was,

“Eh, let’s go.”

An immediate, affirmative response.

“Then let’s have a little adventure, shall we?”

When I took Mari’s hand, she grinned mischievously, just like when we were kids.