Realization and a Night Out

Reading through 'that' book again for the umpteenth time, I sighed for the umpteenth time today.

"It...emotions make no fucking sense," I muttered, throwing the book onto my bed before rubbing my face in an impromptu massage. Falling back into the comfortable embrace of my bed, I removed my hands and just looked up at the white ceiling of my bedroom, "Do I...do I really have those types of feeling for Moka and Kurumu??" I said aloud, mainly for my own benefit, genuinely wondering about it.

I feel jealous when guys get close to them. I want to be next to them and speak to them. I like seeing their smiles. Especially when I'm the one who caused the smile. I don't like seeing them upset or mad. Does that class as romantic attraction or just extremely close friends?

...I really don't like thinking about this because there are no clear answers. It's all convoluted to hell and back.

But if I really have to ask myself, would I be okay with either of them getting a boyfriend and just staying friends with me? Would I be okay with seeing either of them get intimate with another guy?

"...No, I don't think I would" I whispered to myself before sighing, "Well done, 818*, you've really done it this time. You're romantically interested in two girls? Fan-fucking-tastic..." I said before sitting up and resting my elbows on my knees and resting my head on my hands while I began to think.

(*A/N - If you don't remember, 818 was what he was called in his previous life and why he accepted the name of Tsukune Aono so quickly - because he didn't have a name. Just a number designation.)

If I do romantically like the two of them, what am I gonna do about it? Pick one and drop the other? But from what I can see...both of them reciprocate my feelings. I don't know by how much but from their blushing, jealousy (mainly of each other) and their intimacy with me...it's obvious they feel something.

I'm inexperienced with emotions, not dense and oblivious to them, after all.

Pinching the bridge of my nose, I closed my eyes before coming to a conclusion - I need more time to think. With the limited time I've known these girls, it wouldn't be clever nor right to rush into anything.

Anyways, I have other things I need to think about. Like what? Like the weird energy that came from my center heart when I got enraged by what Gin tried to do to Moka.

That energy...was very similar to that comes from Monsters. No, actually. It WAS the energy that came from monsters. How...is that possible? I'm definitely human. I know that and there's no need to doubt it. But how do I have access to this mystical energy that I've only seen from Monsters before? Did coming to this world change more than just my physique or is the energy the origin of my physique upgrade in the first place?

It may seem like I lack answers but I have a way of discovering some answers, actually. What's that? Try and draw out some of the energy from my heart, of course.

Closing my eyes, I slipped into a sort of meditative position before I focused myself.

I'd meditated before, of course, but other than clearing my mind and allowing me to sort through my thoughts in a more efficient manner, it hadn't really done anything for me. But, right now, I was going out on a limb to test a theory.

What theory? Monsters seem to be able to control this energy. It's what activated their transformations into their true forms. So what's to say I can't control it?

I slipped further and further into my consciousness. Slowly focusing my senses not outwards but inwards. To my organs, to my blood vessels and nerves, and then finally, to my hearts.

I felt every pump - powerful and full of vigor. But then I found, or rather sensed something odd.

Every pump of my heart, specks of that energy were being dispersed into my blood and carried around my body. Putting aside my mental marveling at the fact I had some kind of internal vision for my body, I followed the blood and the energy inside it. It traveled through the intricate blood vessels before being sent through the muscles. At this point the blood fueled the muscles with oxygen but also gave each muscle strand a speck of that energy which seemed to strengthen it. Even if it were only minutely strengthened by it.

At that point I brought my focus back to my hearts. I checked the two I were most familiar with and despite having been obviously strengthened, there was nothing fundamentally different with them.

But the heart in the center...It was abnormal. It didn't seem to be made of flesh. Sure, it looked like my other secondary heart - like a smaller but normal-looking heart - but it didn't feel like a heart. More like a factory. A factory for that energy.

Right now it was only producing a very small amount but my senses had never failed me before...and right now I felt the utter potential for energy this 'factory' had. Like it wasn't even putting out 1% of it's maximum. But I wonder what was holding it back from working at 100%--

And then it hit me and I realized: It couldn't work at 100% because my body wasn't strong enough. Despite being hard enough to make concrete look soft, my body still wasn't strong enough to deal with the energy. Though I guess it would be better to say that my body still hadn't adapted to this energy just yet and was having problems with it.

Sighing, I opened my eyes and broke the sort of trance I'd just been in. I gave up trying to mess around with the energy because my instincts told me that if I messed around with it, I could die.

It left my slightly uncomfortable - the feeling of having what felt like a nuclear reactor for that weird energy in my chest - but what could I do about it? All I could do was wait and see what happens. If something truly bad occurs I might have to get help from someone knowledgeable about that energy.

...That'll either be easy or hard. Depends on their views about humans, honestly.

Picking up another book about business and, apparently, all you'd need to know, I began reading it.

I needed to distract myself from two things now: Both my feelings for those two girls and the knowledge that I have a possibly ticking time-bomb in my chest.

. . .

"A-are you sure this is a good idea, Tsukune?" Kurumu asked me as she fidgeted next to me on the bus, "What if something b-bad happens?" she worriedly asked me, to which I laughed before looking at her with a raised eyebrow.

"What? You gonna go and seduce a bunch of guys just because we're going to the human world?" I teased, making Kurumu go beet red but she still tried to keep up appearances as she scowled before gnashing her teeth at me, trying to be threatening but failing in the cutest way.

"N-no! I said I'm going to pursue you, so I-I'm sticking to it!" she said before snapping her head away from looking at me, the 'Oh really?' look on my face probably embarrassing her further.

A pink menace wrapped her arms around the two of us and brought us together, planting the two of us against her soft cheeks as she began to speak, "This is gonna be so much fun! I can't wait to look at everything in the human world again but this time--WITH FRIENDS!" Moka, the pink menace if you hadn't already guessed, said with an excited shout, her cheeks blushed up with excitement and obvious happiness.

Smiling at her antics, I looked back at the week I'd had.

After reading that book, the first few days I was around Moka and Kurumu were a tad awkward but after I finally came to terms with it, everything went back to how they had been - having fun with each other and living a carefree life. Also teasing the two of them for their damn cute reactions.

I'd also taken to working out a lot more...extremely, is how I'd put it. Working myself to the bone with whatever I could. Mainly cardio and bodyweight exercises, so my stamina was increasing ever-so slightly every day. Working on strength was a bit harder but it rose anyway. The specks of energy had increased ever since I entered that meditative state. Meaning my cells were being tempered every second, or rather, with every beat of my heart I was getting stronger.

Only by a small - very small - amounts though.

Lifting an arm, I pat Moka's head, "Yeah, me too, Moka," I said with a gentle smile.

Kurumu looked back at me with a pout, "What's with this difference in treatment? You're always so gentle with Moka-san!"

Looking surprised at the outburst, I simply moved my hand from Moka's head to Kurumu's head, "You're just too fun to tease, is all, Kurumu," I smiled and within a second, Kurumu's practically fried itself as she just stuttered some mumblings while I pat her head.

...For a Succubus, Kurumu's remarkably innocent, huh?

Feeling the bus coming to a stop, I got up, removing Moka's arm from around my neck before I turned to the two of them, "Come on then, let's get going. You guys did remember to bring some casual clothes, right?" to which the two of them nodded in reply. Seeing their nods, I turned around and they followed me off the bus.

Though taking a look back at the bus driver, I saw he wanted to say something, so I stepped back onto the bus as he spoke, "Make sure to keep that Moka girl safe. You really don't want her father coming after you. Same goes for the Succubus - her mother is surprisingly protective over her," he said before shooing me away, "Get going then. Enjoy your teen romance or whatever," he said and I just shook my head.

"Yeah, yeah, enjoy driving your bus or whatever," I turned around and gave him a wave before stepping off the bus which soon sped off.

"What was that about, Tsukune?" Kurumu asked with a tilted head, her purple eyes alight with curiosity.

Shrugging, I gave a curt reply, "He just want to tell me to be careful and look after you two."

And that I would do. No one needed to tell me or warn me to protect these two girls.

Just as I thought this, I heard someone shout my name and I turned to see Ichinose-senpai and some of the other mermaids from the Swimming Club. Turning and seeing the same person as me, Kurumu just clicked her tongue with an annoyed look, "Tch, how'd she know we were meeting up here?" before she looked to me, who was waving and smiling at the new arrivals, "You invited her?! Why?!" she asked and I just shrugged.

"She overheard the plans and asked if she could tag along. Who am I to say no to our senpai? Plus, I've given her the same chance I gave you, Kurumu. I'd have thought you'd be sympathetic of her," I questioned with a slight smirk, to which Kurumu just pouted for the umpteenth time today before looking away and mumbling about how I'm a dummy.

That I am, I guess.