Angels and Christmas

　Mahiru came to the house the next day and seemed a little nervous.

　The nerves you feel when you come to the opposite sex's house on a typical day off...for no reason, you decided to play a game in the middle of the day, so the excitement was leaking out.

　It seems like this is the first time I've ever played a video game. In that respect, you could call her a naive young lady.

"I'll make lunch first."

"Nn. I'll order it hard baked."

"I understand."

　Mahiru didn't seem to be in a bad mood due to the large number of orders from the customers, and was probably in a good mood as she quickly threw on her apron and headed to the kitchen to prepare lunch.

　When I think about how much I was looking forward to it, I feel oddly embarrassed, or rather tickled.

(Well, I'm just looking forward to the game.)

　By no means did I enjoy playing alone like this.

　Zhou let out a wry smile as he watched his tied hair sway.

"... how do you operate it?"

　After lunch, the two of us sat on the couch in front of the TV, staring at the screen.

　When I asked him what kind of game he wanted to play, he didn't even know what type it was, so I started up a famous national 2D game and handed him the controller... but he was still confused and didn't know what to do. .

"Well, I use this stick to move, and this button to jump..."

　Mahiru, who is generally calm and collected, was extremely confused as he operated the controller and the TV, alternately looking at it, and it made me feel very warm.

　Even though I'm not used to it, this is my first time playing in such a leisurely manner.

　As I repeatedly charged at enemies without dodging and turned into a Buddha, I realized that there are things that even angels are not good at.

"...I can't win."

"I haven't even been able to defeat the first enemy, let alone clear the stage."

"It's noisy"

"Well, you're used to it, you're used to it. You have to learn this with your own body."

　When I tell her that everything is a challenge, Mahiru obediently returns to the game.

　When I saw Midday challenging the entertainment game with a serious expression, I even remembered the smile, and I couldn't help but smile.

　However, since I kept losing on my first hand, my anxiety overwhelmed my laughter at the screen where I couldn't make any progress.

　she looks at me.

　Is it just my imagination that the sound effect seems to be attached to the expression?

"Oh, look, this is how it is here."

　As expected, this will affect her motivation, so Zhou puts her hand on the controller she is holding and temporarily plays with Zhou as a role model.

　Shuu has also cleared this game many times, so I can easily get through the places where she gets stuck.

　Or rather, Mahiru is just too clumsy, and a normal person wouldn't get caught up here... but I kept it quiet.

"You see, this enemy moves irregularly at a constant speed, but when it sees you, it increases its speed and approaches the character. It jumps when the timing is right..."

　I hold the controller in small hands and operate it, explaining it in an easy-to-understand manner and showing examples.

　On the screen, the character moves as Zhou explained, avoiding enemies.

　It was such an unusual move, but it seemed like a novelty for Mahiru, who kept failing, and let out a voice of admiration.

　Her eyes, framed by long eyelashes, opened wide and her expression brightened.

　I made a new discovery that even my lower eyelashes were long because the distance was so close.

　As I was looking at her handsome profile, Mahiru turned towards me, perhaps noticing my gaze.

　The distance was closer than I thought because I was approaching to touch the controller in her hand.

　Or rather, her upper arm and hand were touching, and she was close enough that I could feel her breath lightly caressing my skin. Thanks to this, the warmth and sweet scent of midday can be felt directly.

"sorry"

　Noticing that Mahiru's hand was almost wrapped around her, she hurriedly let go of her body, and Mahiru blinked widely, then seemed to realize that she was so close, and her gaze began to wander.

"No... not at all. Excuse me."

　Looking at my cheeks, which started to turn slightly colored, I felt regret attacking me.

　Mahiru doesn't really like contact. No matter how much you've gotten used to it, having your hand held may still be unpleasant.

　Although he looks a little embarrassed, it's not necessarily the case that he doesn't have a sense of disgust.

"I'm really sorry"

"Um, you don't really care that much, do you?"

"Don't you hate it?"

"... I was surprised, but I don't like it. I'm not a stranger."

　The generous angel seemed to forgive my rudeness.

　I resumed the game while being relieved at midday when it was easily washed away.

　This time, when Mahiru looked at the screen to let Mahiru advance in the game... Seeing Mahiru still defeated, Shu seriously wondered how she could become better at the game.

　As a result, I was forced to stop playing this game once I managed to clear one side of it.

　Continuing to kill a newbie has a lot to do with motivation. It's a motive to get people to pay attention to other games and take the stress out of it.

"Midday, leaning."

　So, next time I played a racing game that seemed familiar in the real world... but Mahiru's body was tilted.

　This game does not require gyro operation, and the controller does not have a gyro sensor.

　There was no need to tilt his body at all...Maybe he was unconscious, but he was swaying from side to side while holding the controller.

　He didn't reply, probably because he was concentrating on the game.

　Unlike the previous game, it is a game where you control a car, so it seems to be easy for modern people who have the opportunity to drive a car to be familiar with it. Perhaps it was worth the learning, but even though I was not good at driving, I was still able to play the game.

　He was trying his best to move the car while rocking back and forth with a very serious expression on his face.

(what is this cute)

　Mahiru, swinging like a pendulum, is strangely cute. I guess she looks even cuter because she's so serious and works so hard.

　When turning a big curve, Mahiru's body naturally leans a lot.

　When my body collapsed onto Zhou's thighs, Zhou was already desperate to hold back his laughter.

"... Besides, you don't have to tilt your body, you know?"

"I-I didn't do it on purpose."

"Yeah, I know. But it was tilted."

　I managed to keep my lips from trembling as I woke Mahiru up.

　After all, it's soft and light. Of course it's small, but it's so thin that I'm afraid it might break, and I hesitate to touch it.

　Midday, who was woken up by Zhou, was blushing and trembling from shame.

　It was like a small animal and cute, and finally I couldn't stand it anymore and laughed.

"B-don't you make a fool of me?"

"No, no. I think it's funny."

"That's what makes me stupid."

"Are you saying I'm making fun of someone I'm serious about?"

"I don't think so..."

"Right? I just thought it was cute."

"...That cute definitely means childish and heartwarming."

　The words sound somewhat sullen, and if I tease them too much, I'm afraid I'll end up in a bad mood, so I'll refrain from expressing my thoughts here.

　No matter how much you think about it in your heart, it doesn't matter if it doesn't show on your face, so try to keep it quiet in your heart.

　Mahiru had a slightly displeased look on his face, but when I gave him a small smile, he turned away.