It’s some kind of (sleeping) prank?

"Kuze, psst. Come here."

After brushing his teeth before bed, Masachika started heading back to his room, when

Maria suddenly stopped him. Turning around, he saw that she was poking her head out from

her room, which she and Chisaki were sharing on the second floor, and waving him over.

"…? You need something?"

"Just come here."

"Huh? But…"

The door opened before he could even express his apprehension, revealing a room not

much different from the one he and Touya were staying in. There was a large bed on each

side with a window in the middle. Under the window stood a small table and two chairs.

"Come in. Hurry."

"Okay…"

Although he was curious why Chisaki wasn't there, he stepped foot into the room as

requested, where…

"…?!"

…he suddenly saw their bathing suits hanging up to dry, causing him to look away in a

panic…but when he saw Maria, he bent backward in surprise once more.

She's in her freakin' pajamas!

And they were summer pajamas, meaning the fabric was really thin. The light cherry

blossom–colored pajamas perfectly outlined her gorgeous body, and while her skin was

hardly exposed, there was something extremely sexy about her vulnerable, cozy attire in a

completely different way from when she was wearing a swimsuit.

I thought people only dressed like this in front of their family or their boyfriend…

At the same time, his eyes unconsciously lowered a little toward her seemingly too-tight

pajama top, when Maria suddenly placed both hands over her chest and twisted her body as

if she was uncomfortable.

"D-don't stare. ♪"

"S-sorry!"

Although he didn't consciously do it for the most part, his action was still ill-mannered

and disrespectful, so he frantically looked up at the ceiling in absolute embarrassment.

"I—I usually wear a sleep bra! But I forgot to pack one…"

"…"

I didn't ask. I didn't even care. And I wish she never came out and told me she wasn't

wearing a bra because I would have never noticed otherwise! How could she be this different

from her sister?! She's a little…off, isn't she?

He really thought she was, and his eyes shifted even farther up toward the ceiling, only

stopping when he could barely see the top of Maria's head.

"So? What did you need me for?"

"So…I was thinking I wanted to give Chisaki and Touya some time alone together,

and…"

"…? Ohhh."

That was when it hit him. Chisaki was currently…in the room he and Touya were

supposed to be staying in.

"So that's what this is about."

It wasn't often they could come to a beach cottage like this, so it was only natural that

two people going out would want some time alone. And if that was the case, then Masachika

wasn't going to bother them.

"All right, I think I'll just crash on the sofa downstairs, then…"

He didn't know whether Chisaki wasstaying in Touya'sroom or Touya in Chisaki's, and

he didn't plan on asking, either. That would be tactless, and that was why he was planning

on sleeping on the sofa in the living room. That way, he could be like, "I saw them talking

last night, but I have no idea what happened after that." That would be what a gentleman and

a sensible friend would do. At least, that was what Masachika was thinking, when…

"Why? What's wrong with sleeping here?"

"Everything," replied Masachika with a straight face, the complete opposite of her casual

suggestion. "Two teenagers of the opposite sex sleeping in the same room? When they aren't

even going out? It would hurt your reputation."

"I don't care. ♪"

"I do," he announced in complete seriousness. Maria blinked a few times in wonder, but

a warm smile soon curled her lips once more.

"Giggle. The fact that you care so much is proof enough that it'll be okay. Don't worry.

I wouldn't suggest doing this if I didn't trust you."

The innocent smile and genuine trust rendered Masachika speechless. Maria then raised

an index finger and continued:

"Besides, people are going to find out about Chisaki's secret meeting with her boyfriend

if they catch you sleeping on the couch in the living room. And I think that would be very

embarrassing for her, too. Things would be awkward between her and all the first-year

students for the rest of the trip."

"Mmm…"

"Even if nobody found you on the couch, you could catch a cold, or maybe you wouldn't

be able to sleep well. You wouldn't be able to enjoy yourself tomorrow if that happened,

and they would probably end up blaming themselves for that. So don't worry about me and

sleep here. ♪"

"…"

Masachika was having a hard time arguing, because she was being uncharacteristically

pushy and eloquent for someone who was usually more of a warm, comforting big-sister

type. But even then, his sense of morals was still making him hesitant, so Maria abruptly

leaned forward and looked up into his eyes.

"Kuze."

"…? Yes?"

As he raised his eyebrows, she tapped a finger against his chest, lowered her tone as if

to say, "Do I have to spell it out for you?" and argued:

"Listen. You are already asleep in this room. Now Chisaki has an excuse to stay in

Touya's room. Got it?"

"…!"

His eyes opened wide in surprise. If he really wanted to help them, then he needed to cut

off their path of retreat as well. That was what Maria was saying, and it was something he

hadn't even considered. Masachika found himself on the verge of being convinced, when…

"…Wait. No, no, no, no."

…he suddenly remembered an extremely important detail and wildly shook his head,

which he'd been about to nod in agreement.

"I get what you're saying, but…! Masha, you have a boyfriend. I don't want anyone to

get the wrong idea and think you're cheating on him."

He promptly declined, using Maria's boyfriend as his reasoning.

"Give me a second," Maria said as she slowly stood up and approached the bed to the

right of the window. She picked up a smartphone off her pillow, typed and scrolled for a few

seconds, then turned it so the screen was facing Masachika.

"There you go."

"…?"

It was a picture of Maria tightly hugging a colossal teddy bear.

"…? That's one big teddy bear, huh?"

As he tilted his head curiously, Maria pointed at the stuffed animal and announced:

"Allow me to introduce you to my boyfriend, Samuel III!"

"...?"

Her totally unexpected confession rendered him speechless, and it took another few

seconds for him to finally comprehend what was said as he unconsciously placed a hand on

his forehead.

"Uh… Uhhh… Wait. So does that mean you were lying about having a boyfriend?"

"Hmm… I suppose you could say that? At any rate, you don't have to worry about a

thing, Kuze."

"…Uh-huh."

His brain couldn't keep up with all the sudden, shocking data, so he remained stock-still

in utter confusion. Amused, Maria took a seat by the window and waved him over.

"Uh… May I sit here?"

"Be my guest. ♪"

He sat, hoping to solve the countless mysteries overloading his mind. Then after taking

a few moments to sort out his thoughts, he asked frankly:

"So, uh… You have been pretending to have a boyfriend to stop guys from hitting on

you? Am I understanding this correctly?"

Maria shifted her gaze to the world outside the window without answering his question.

"The stars are so beautiful tonight."

"Huh? Oh, right. They are, aren't they?"

"Maybe it's because there's less light pollution out here? There are so many."

"Yeah, I guess…"

Masachika looked up at the night sky as well. A brief moment of silence followed until

Maria suddenly muttered:

"I believe in destiny and that I have a soulmate."

He turned in her direction, but she was still gazing at the stars, not even glancing at him.

"Someone who I love from the bottom of my heart… Someone I can give all of myself

to… Someone I want to spend the rest of my life with… I believe there is someone who can

love me just as much as I love them."

"…So you're saying that the guys who hit on you at school aren't that person?"

"Hmm… Yes, that is what I'm saying."

"And why is that?"

"Because you know your soulmate when you see them."

Whoa, she's talking about some pretty wild stuff, Masachika thought as Maria closed

her eyes and placed a hand on her chest.

"It's destiny…so I just know we will be brought together one day."

It was asifshe was praying. She's quite the optimist… Actually, itsounds more like she's

read way too many manga, Masachika thought with a smirk, but there was no way he would

ever make fun of her for it after seeing her pure, devout expression.

"Okay… Well, I really hope you find him."

Although he went with a safe response, he was met with a genuine, mature smile and

gentle gaze, and it took his breath away. Maria's smile faded into curiosity.

"What about you, Kuze?"

"Huh?"

"On the train, we talked about how there was a girl you liked in elementary school, but

you weren't interested in relationships anymore."

"Oh… Yeah, basically."

"And why is that?"

Masachika's lips twisted bitterly as if she were peering into the secrets of his heart, so

he decided to avoid the question like he usually did…but there was something about Maria's

eyes—eyes that forgave all and accepted anyone—that naturally softened his expression.

"…My parents got divorced."

And before he even realized it, he was telling her the truth. He was opening up about his

trauma—which he had never told anyone else about.

"They were in love. They shared that love and had children because of it. But it all ended

in resentment and disgust… They were truly in love at one point, though."

He recalled his mother blaming his father. He frowned reflexively as the repulsive

screaming played back in his mind.

"What was it that bothered my mother so much? I get that my father wasn't home a lot

because he was working, but he was always so kind. He gave up his dreams and devoted

himself to her. And yet…all she ever did was yell at him."

Perhaps they'd tried their best so that their children wouldn't have to see them act that

way, but it was painfully obvious for a smart kid like Masachika that their relationship was

crumbling. Why was his mother so harsh toward his father? What did he do? Masachika's

mind was plagued with these thoughts, but there was no way he could ever ask his mother,

who'd always been so gentle and kind around him. But one day—the day his mother shouted

at him as if she was disgusted by him—that day changed everything. He realized that his

mother was someone who could be showered with love but give back only hate, no matter

how unfair or illogical it may be. He realized she was hopeless, selfish, and cruel.

"It's a waste of time…"

Once he came back to his senses, he realized he was resentfully muttering to himself and

hurriedly shut his mouth. Maria, however, showed neither surprise nor concern but instead

looked at him with her usual all-encompassing gaze.

"What is?" she curiously asked.

"…Love."

Was he encouraged by those eyes or annoyed? Regardless, he sneered cynically as he

spit out the words he had been trying to suppress as if a dam had been broken.

"Continuing to love the same person is impossible. It doesn't matter how hard you try or

how much you devote yourself to them. Once the spark is gone, it's over. When you fall out

of love with someone, there's no way to make things the way they were before. And taking

something like that seriously is a complete waste of time."

Only after the words came out of his mouth did he realize that what he said went so

completely against Maria's beliefs on love, it was asif he wasinsulting her. His gaze dropped

to the floor after he realized how careless he was. Maria then stood from her chair, walked

over to his side…and gently wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Her soft hair brushed

against his cheek, and she lovingly and tenderly rubbed his head, making Masachika's eyes

widen.

"It's okay… It's okay…"

"…"

He froze within her sudden embrace as she softly continued:

"You must have really loved your mother."

"…!"

"And you really love your father, even now."

"…"

Her extremely sweet voice rendered him powerless, leaving him unable to impulsively

argue back. All he could do was surrender himself to her hug.

"It's okay… You feel such deep hatred because of the deep love you have, and that's

why it's going to be okay."

"…"

"You can love again."

Her boundless loving words surprisingly found their way into Masachika's heart. It felt

as if her caring touch were patting the head of a young Masachika Suou whom he had sealed

away years ago.

"How…?"

How did she know exactly what to say? How could her touch penetrate the walls around

his heart so easily?

Come to think of it, it'd been the same that day as well. As the sun set in the hallway,

she'd rubbed his head and praised him, acknowledging the hard work he had been doing.

It was all he ever wanted to hear from his mother when he was a child. It was all he ever

wanted. He never told anyone that as far as he could remember. In fact, it was something he

never even realized himself until now. And yet this woman heard the cries of his heart and

consoled him as if it was only natural.

"How…? Why do you understand me so well?"

"Hmm? Giggle. I wonder why."

She evaded his straightforward question, then while still holding him in her arms, she

began to pat him on the back like she was comforting a small child.

"H-hey, uh…"

"You can rely on others more, Kuze. You can show weakness."

"…"

"You told me before that you do everything you do for yourself because you're selfish."

"Huh? Oh… Yeah."

"Then be selfish. Be kind to yourself. Spoil yourself. You have my permission."

Tears suddenly began to well in his eyes before he could even emotionally process what

was going on.

Wh-what the…?! No! What's going on?!

The tears streamed down his cheeks one after another despite his confusion.

Why…?! This is so pathetic. I can't believe this is happening.

But ridiculing himself for crying in Maria's arms couldn't stop the tears from

overflowing.

The hell…? I'm such a loser… I feel sick…!

While he clenched his teeth to hold back the tears, Maria continued to rub his head as

she tightly held him in her arms. She gently pressed his face into her shoulder without saying

a word and waited for him to calm. The thought of her pajamas getting dirty didn't even

cross her mind.

Ah… What is this feeling…?

In a slight daze from crying, he found that he was genuinely at ease for the first time in

forever. The warmth from her body touched his heart before slowly spreading throughout his

entire body, bringing him unbelievable comfort. He closed his eyes and prepared to surrender

himself to her…when he suddenly realized that he had already stopped crying, which

simultaneously brought him back to his senses, and he leaned away from Maria in a panic.

"Hey, uh… Like… I'm sorry?" he stammered while rubbing his eyes, but Maria warmly

smiled back at him as she stood from her chair.

"Don't worry about it. ♪ …I am sure you were just due for a little physical contact. ♪"

"Heh… Physical contact, huh?"

As he awkwardly glanced up, she proudly puffed out her chest and added:

"Physical contact is important. Even if you connect with someone emotionally, you're

still going to feel lonely eventually without the touch of another."

"Uh-huh…"

"Of course, it's important to show love through your words and behavior, but that's not

everything. Physical contact is just as important. It's a reminder that someone is there for

you and you for them," she argued with a hand on her chest, naturally causing Masachika

to reflect.

Now that she mentions it, when was the last time I had physical contact with anyone

like this?

The first person to come to mind was his sister, Yuki. Even now, she would constantly

hug him and jump on top of him, but he would usually push her away out of embarrassment,

and never had he eversurrendered himself to her embrace like he just had with Maria. Besides

Yuki…he couldn't think of a single other person he'd had physical contact with.

Wait… Hold on…

There was that girl from his childhood. Perhaps it was because of the culture she was

born into, but he remembered her loving physical contact as well. Even as a child, he could

remember her unashamedly hugging him with the purest smile, and he'd let her, although

he'd been flustered.

It's been that long, huh?

But he was overcome with absolute embarrassment the moment he realized that he

probably was starved for affection, and he began to lower his gaze…when Maria suddenly

drew her face close to his.

"That's why, Kuze…!"

"Huh?! Yes?"

"That's why I think Alya should let me hug her more!"

"…Uh-huh."

He smiled and tilted his head. She placed her hands on her hips, huffing with rage,

making him wonder if he had dreamed up her boundless compassion from only a few

moments ago.

"She doesn't really like it when I kiss her on the cheek, and she won't even let me hug

her. I have so much love that I need to give her!"

"Yeah… Good luck with that."

"Hmph! I'll just have you console me if she's going to be like that!"

"Why me?!"

His eyes were wide with shock as her arms tightened around him before almost

immediately letting him go. She gleefully smiled at him. Although he didn't know why she

was grinning, he stopped caring after gazing at her pure smile until he naturally burst into

laughter.

"Ha-ha-ha! Masha, I honestly don't get you at all."

"Hmm? What do you mean by that?"

"Sometimes, it's like you can read my mind, but other times, I have no idea what you're

even saying."

"Ruuude! You make it sound like I'm an idiot. ♪"

"I didn't mean it like that, but— Ha-ha…!"

As if the pent-up energy had been sapped out of his body, Masachika laughed at his

schoolmate, who would occasionally get upset like a child, and Maria broke into a smile as

well.

"Are you about ready to go to sleep?"

"Yeah… Thanks, Masha."

"No need to thank me. ♪"

Maria waved her hand as if it was nothing while he bowed, then she pointed slowly

toward the bed where her belongings were.

"You can sleep here, Kuze."

"Huh? But I thought that was your bed…?"

"Which is exactly why I want you to use it. Chisaki would probably be uncomfortable

if another guy was sleeping in her bed, right?"

"Oh, good point. Well, then…don't mind if I do…"

Convinced by her argument, he slowly crawled into her bed as Maria closed the curtains

and climbed into the other bed.

"Good night. ♪"

"Good night, Masha."

The feminine voice in the darkness once again reminded him that he was about to sleep

in the same room as a woman, and he started to get restless.

Am I really going to be able to sleep like this…?

He worried, pulling the thin blanket over his body. But perhaps due to the long trip here,

the swimming in the ocean, or from crying so much, he fell into a deep sleep within minutes

of closing his eyes.

…Meanwhile, in the girls' room next door, three first-year students were

having a pajama party at Yuki's request.

"So, Alya, why didn't you want to sleep in the same room as Masha anyway?" Yuki

asked suddenly in the middle of their conversation.

"…Because she'd try to use me as a body pillow." Alisa frowned.

"Huh?"

Both Yuki and Ayano blinked in wonder at the unexpected response.

"…Masha always uses a really big body pillow—well, I guess it's more like a giant

stuffed animal—but anyway, she always hugs it until she falls asleep. But whenever we're

on vacation and she leaves it at home, she sometimes grabs whatever's nearby when she's

half asleep… Even now, whenever we go on family vacations at a traditional inn, she'll

sometimes slide into my futon and…"

"Oh, wow. She might be using Chisaki as a body pillow as we speak, then."

Alisa faintly smirked at Yuki's speculation.

"Most likely. But Chisaki is strong enough to escape if she needs to."

"Giggle. She might even kick her out of the bed."

"I hope so. Then maybe she'll finally learn her lesson and stop using people as body

pillows."

The soft laughter of three high school girls filled the room that night. Another hour

passed before the pajama party came to an end at last, each one of them sound asleep. Little

did they know…that what they were joking about was actually about to happen in the room

next door.

Hmm…?

Masachika woke up to a strange sensation, as if something was crawling up his body.

The hell…?

Keeping his eyes closed, he slowly became conscious of the sensation, much to his

frustration. Something long and slender (arms?) slowly wriggled over his chest and around

his neck as something (legs?) tangled around his legs. That was when Masachika realized

that there was someone to his right who was messing with him, but his half-awake nerd-brain

immediately assumed what was going on.

Oh… It's Yuki.

It was a common trope in anime for a girl to sneak into the protagonist's bed while they

were on a trip somewhere. If it was a training camp for some kind of school club, then a halfasleep girl would wander into the wrong room. If it was a school trip, then everyone would

be gathered in the girls' room, and when a teacher, who was on patrol, came by to check on

them, they would panic and hide in the same bed. These were the most common patterns. At

any rate, a cultured individual such as his sister would be the only one who would ever try

to make something as nerdy as this a reality. If he opened his eyes, she would probably be

smiling and be like, "Good evening. ♡"

"Mmm…mn…"

Masachika moved around in an aggravated manner, still keeping his eyes closed.

Usually, he wouldn't mind entertaining his adorable sister and playing along with her little

games, but he was exhausted due to swimming and the long trip there. He neither had the

energy to do this nor was he in the mood to.

"Mmm… Enough…already…," he mumbled, shuffling his right arm, but when he tried

to use his elbow to push her away, it was suddenly absorbed into something extremely soft.

He tried to push harder, but he couldn't reach his sister's body. It wasn't long before even

moving his arm grew tiresome, and he simply gave up. He then went back to sleep, figuring

she'd eventually get bored and leave…

Early the next morning, Masachika woke to an unfamiliar heat and weight

pressing down on his right side.

"Mmm…"

When he opened his eyes, he saw a ceiling he didn't recognize. However, after a few

moments went by, he remembered he was at the beach cottage and started to roll over…but

something on top of him was preventing him from doing so, and he started to sweat. The

gradually rising temperature in the morning wasn't helping, either.

"Hmm?"

He slowly lifted his head…and froze the moment he saw what was on top of him. Soft

brown hair lay before his eyes like waves over the cherubic face of a young woman, even

cuter than she was beautiful. It was hard to believe that she was older than him. But contrary

to her angelic expression were those two sinister mounds.

"Hff…"

And once he saw those, he lay back down on his pillow and exhaled deeply. He had

finally processed what was going on. He had no idea how it had come to this, but he

completely understood the kind of situation he was in. On his right shoulder was Maria's

head, and on his chest was her right hand. Around hisright elbow, her plump chest rested, and

her legs were intertwined with his. The legs were speculation, however, due to everything

below the chest being hidden under the covers. And while this was also nothing but

speculation, judging by the position of Maria's legs, it seemed his right hand was being held

down by an extremely risqué part of her body around the groin… Was this really what he

thought it was? It was difficult to tell, since he hardly had any feeling in his numb right hand;

she had been lying on it for a long time already.

"So this is what it feels like to be a winner."

That was the conclusion he came to after calmly analyzing the situation: He'd woken

up with an incredibly beautiful woman by his side. He imagined himself as a sexy, muscular

man with chest hair popping out and a cigar in his mouth, a nude, beautiful blond woman

sleeping by his side. In actuality, however, he had a brunette in pajamas by his side, and they

weren't even boyfriend and girlfriend…

Wait! Then what are we doing sleeping together in the same bed?!

The delayed reaction dragged him back to reality, but thatstill didn't help him understand

any better how he got into this mess.

Uh… Maybe it's because I slept in Masha's bed? And she woke up and went to the

bathroom in the middle of the night and accidentally got back in her own bed afterward?

He could speculate all he wanted, but that wasn't going to change anything. Besides, he

could just wake Maria if he wanted to know the reason…

"…"

He bent his head to look up out the window and saw faint light peeking from behind the

closed curtains, letting him know that the sun had just started to rise. It was early enough that

he was hesitant to disturb his comfortably sleeping bedmate, and he worried that it could be

embarrassing for her as well.

Looks like I've got no other choice. Time to do a jailbreak.

Around ten seconds went by before he came to the conclusion that he needed to sneak out

of bed without waking Maria, and he began considering the order. First, he should probably

do something about her head on his shoulder. No matter his method, moving the head would

be the most dangerous, so he had to be extremely careful when sliding his shoulder out.

"Sorry," he apologized softly, then raised his left hand and gently slid it under Maria's

head. Feeling somewhat guilty as he touched her soft, smooth brown hair with the palm of

his hand, he slowly lifted her head, when…

"Mmm…"

"…!!"

…Maria uncomfortably shook her head and escaped his hand. Although it was merely

a two-centimeter drop, her body twitched the moment she hit his shoulder. She slowly lifted

up her head and stared at Masachika with heavy-lidded eyes.

"G-good morning," he greeted her with a tense smile.

"Ku…e…," Maria mumbled in a daze, slurring her speech in an attempt to say his name.

Then she goofily smiled, mouth wide open, for who knows why before dropping her head

straight back down onto his shoulder.

"Mmm… What…are…you…doing here…?"

"That's what I want to ask you."

She cheerfully smiled, rubbing her head against him as if she didn't even hear his calm

response.

"Giggle. Why? ♪ Whyyy? ♪ Why? ♪"

She mumbled it like a song until she slowly ceased moving as if she had found just the

right spot…and promptly fell back asleep.

"You're going back to sleep?!" He frantically whispered, but Maria was already

dreaming. "…Seriously?"

Masachika's body went limp as he slowly realized his efforts had all been for nothing,

because her head was now even more tightly pressed against his body. Maria gracefully went

back to sleep two more times after that until she eventually opened her eyes, which finally

began to focus.

"…Huh?"

"Good morning."

"…! Wh-what?!"

Her eyes frantically wandered as her bed head bounced up and down. She then sat up,

having realized what was going on, and scooted toward the footboard of the bed while pulling

the covers back with her.

"…Stop hiding yourself with the covers. You make it look like you're a boss who got

drunk and accidentally slept with their employee."

It was a situation he could easily imagine with his 2D-obsessed brain, but she didn't

seem to even be able to hear him as her face burned bright red and her eyes widened.

"G-good morning," she stammered in utter shock.

"Yes, good morning."

He returned her delayed greeting. An uncomfortable smile crossed his lips as his eyes

drifted.

"I guess it's my fault for sleeping in your bed, huh? Looks like you accidentally got into

the wrong bed sometime last night."

"Oh, y-yes…"

"It's your first time sleeping here, too, so it's no surprise something like this happened."

"Really…?"

She glanced in his direction…and noticed his pajama top was wet around the chest area

—she froze.

"O-oh… This is…"

Noticing her gaze, he tried to say something, but after a few seconds of remaining

absolutely still, Maria suddenly placed a hand over her mouth. Yes, the wet stain on

Masachika was Maria's drool, which had escaped her mouth the third time she fell back

asleep. She apparently discovered some on the corner of her mouth as well, making her

already red face even redder. She immediately scooted right over to him and covered the

stain with both hands, tears in her eyes.

"No! This isn't what you think! This is not something I usually do!"

"Okay."

"I'm serious! I never drool when I sleep! I need you to believe me! Please!"

"I believe you. I believe you, okay? So please keep your voice down…"

It was like she was clinging to him for help as she looked up into his eyes with a pleading

gaze. Masachika nodded multiple times, telling her that he believed her so she would lower

her voice. After all, it was only the previous day that he learned even the smallest sounds

could be heard from the neighboring room, and he did not want anyone finding out he was

here. Although they would most likely still be asleep this early in the morning, Maria's voice

could wake the first-year students up, and he didn't want to imagine what would happen if

one of them came to check on Maria.

"Mmm… Really?"

"Really. If anything, I consider it a reward, so don't worry about it."

The panic caused the nerd to justslip out of him. After blinking at him for a few moments,

she suddenly frowned and briskly scooted away from him.

"…You're such a pervert."

"Oh, uh… Yep. I'm fine with that."

Although he had no idea how she'd reached this conclusion, he was relieved that she had

calmed down, and his tense muscles instantly relaxed…just as his greatest fear came to life.

"Masha? Good morning. Is everything okay in there?"

Yuki's voice could be heard coming from the other side of the door, following a knock.

Their eyes immediately shot in the direction of the door, and they promptly began to panic.

I have to hide… The closet!

After surveying the room, his eyes locked on the closet at the foot of the bed. He swiftly

bent his legs to stand, when…

"Hide!" Maria simultaneously whispered,standing up to throw the blanket over his head.

Their eyes met on top of the bed as they both leaned forward…and were completely caught

off guard by the other's actions. Masachika, being stopped right as he was about to run, lost

his balance and fell while Maria tried to lean far back to evade him crashing into her, but…

"Ah?!"

"Eek!"

…his head slammed right into her shoulder as he flew forward. And though he managed

to reflexively grab on to the bed and catch himself, he was face-to-face with Maria's shocked

and astonished expression…for he was lying right on top of her while she still tightly gripped

the blanket.

"Ah! I can feel the rom-com waves!"

Yuki immediately sensed something and threw the door open, where she found the two

of them on top of the bed and froze. Her excitement faded. After slowly letting go of the

doorknob, she placed a foot by the door to keep it open as she took out her phone and held

it in front of her face. Click. Once she checked to make sure she'd gotten a good shot, she

gave them the thumbs-up with a firm nod…and then left the room.

""…""

It seemed so natural that they couldn't move for a few seconds after that. Masachika

stared in mute amazement at the door for another few seconds but eventually got off Maria.

"I'm sorry, Masha. Are you okay?"

"Oh, it's fine. And I'm okay, too."

"Thank goodness. Anyway, I think I'll head downstairs first."

"R-right."

After making sure she was all right, he quietly got off the bed, checked that nobody was

in the hallway, and left the room. Once downstairs, he saw his sister cheerfully shaking her

phone with the biggest grin as she escaped to the living room as if to taunt him.

"Hey, wait!"

And he dashed after her like a wild boar.