Chapter 83: Yuuki Just Needs Me.

[Over the weekend, a nearby shrine is hosting a festival, and you, Chitose Kazumi, and Ibuki Yuko have plans to visit. The shrine has opened some areas for camping, so you can eat bento there and then visit the mall.]

[Chitose Kazumi's goal is Misaki University. Now in her third year, her schedule is becoming increasingly hectic, but she immediately agreed to your invitation.]

[You can't help but admire how reliable Kazumi always is.]

[However, the same can't be said about your girlfriend.]

[The night before your outing, Ibuki Yuko started acting up. She initiated a kiss, prepared snacks for you, and opened a game on your computer, trying to divert your attention towards her or the game, hoping you'd stay up late and affect your plans for the next day.]

[Her plan failed. Despite spending some time with her, you weren't further tempted and had a good night's sleep.]

[In the morning before departure, she prepared breakfast and bento, woke you up on time, and then tried to seduce you.]

[She wore a very demure black and white maid outfit but made very suggestive moves. She extended her small feet in white stockings from under her skirt, bent over to reveal the unfastened neckline of her top, sat down in a way that accentuated the curve of her buttocks under the skirt, and spoke to you with an innocent look, tilting her head, eyes sparkling, as if wanting to be teased.]

[This petite upperclassman knew exactly how to display her cuteness and had no qualms about using it to seduce you.]

[Her goal was to ruin your meeting with Chitose Kazumi.]

[You realized that your earlier neglect of Asano Nao and the growing distance with Chitose Kazumi were all part of the girl's scheme.]

[However, despite the covert nature of her plan, it also had a kind of blatant openness. The girl didn't disrupt or ruin anything; she simply took care of you so well that you couldn't think of any other woman.]

[Finding it amusing, you pulled the girl into your arms, pinched her cheeks, and let out a little bit of your mild anger.]

A brief memory scene appears.

Minami Yuuki sits on the sofa, pulling Ibuki Yuko, who was adjusting her white stockings, into his arms, pinching her cheeks, and lightly nibbling on her ear.

"In the future, don't deliberately seduce me and ruin my plans when I have something to do," he tells the girl.

"I didn't," Ibuki Yuko looks at Minami Yuuki.

Her face shows no expression, but her inherently sincere face had previously deceived Minami Yuuki.

"A good mom doesn't lie," he pokes her forehead.

"Then you can't go meet Chitose Kazumi."

"I'm not going to have an affair with her, am I not taking you along?"

"Meeting her is having an affair," the girl retorts.

"You're about to meet her too, so you're having an affair as well," Minami Yuuki counters.

"I can choose not to meet her."

"No, you must go!"

"Forcing an affair?"

"That's right, we must go have an affair with Chitose Kazumi today! Don't hold any illusions, give up your resistance!"

"...Do you want a massage?"

"A massage won't work!"

"Then a bath?"

"...We'll take one when we get back! Now hurry up and change, we're leaving!"

[You initially dismissed Ibuki Yuko's behavior as a small act of jealousy, but was it really just that?]

[The outing with the three of you didn't go smoothly. Ibuki Yuko seemed very down, barely speaking to Chitose Kazumi. You suspected your presence was the cause. So, you pretended to go to the restroom to give the two girls some space. Ibuki Yuko messaged you, but you replied saying you had a stomach ache and told them to continue exploring and buy some souvenirs for you.]

[Your lie didn't fool Ibuki Yuko. She knew your body and the food she made; there was no way you'd have a stomach ache now.]

[Not understanding the motive behind your lie, Ibuki Yuko's mind was soon overwhelmed by her deepest fears—she thought you were going to leave her.]

[Chitose Kazumi messaged you, saying Ibuki Yuko was heading in your direction, and she couldn't stop her.]

[You were sitting on a bench not far from the restroom when you received the message and immediately went inside.]

[You thought Ibuki Yuko was just coming to wait for you; you didn't expect her to burst in.]

[The area was deserted, and you were the only one in the restroom. Ibuki Yuko pushed open the door, grabbed your T-shirt, and rested her forehead against your chest.]

[You held her and walked outside. Her pale face had returned to calm, but you clearly remembered the panic in her eyes when she burst in, before she even saw you.]

[You realized things were out of your control.]

[Chitose Kazumi soon caught up with you. You continued shopping, with Ibuki Yuko clinging to your hand, never leaving your side.]

[You reflected on your previous conclusion: Ibuki Yuko's care for you was actually a form of dependency. Since Ibuki Honoka left, her care for you had gradually become excessive, indicating her increasing dependency on you.]

[After parting ways with Chitose Kazumi, Ibuki Yuko still stayed close, only leaving your side for the minimal time needed to cook dinner and prepare your bath, constantly glancing at you.]

[You regretted lying during the day. Before, Ibuki Yuko could disguise her dependency, but now, you had shattered that facade.]

[Late at night, rain pattered on the balcony. You lifted your blanket, pulling her in, apologizing for the day and assuring her you would always be with her, never suddenly leaving or disappearing.]

[Did your words dispel her inner anxiety? Probably not. She pressed tightly against your chest, her wet lips tracing your face along her tear-streaked gaze.]

[Words alone weren't enough. She confirmed your presence, your warmth, through kisses.]

[You let her take what she needed. She removed your light blue pajamas.]

[You had sex.]

[This act didn't stem from a desire for love or the progression of the moment but from a need to compensate for inner insecurity.]

["Don't leave me." This phrase, spoken a year ago on a similar night, came from the same lips.]

[You understood her heart—a yearning for love, a fear of losing it, and a touch of obsession.]

[You reduced contact with Chitose Kazumi and Asano Nao. You wanted to discuss it with Ichinose Shiori, but in this life, Shiori had not failed regarding Ibuki Yuko and hadn't opened up to you, so you weren't close friends.]

[After graduation, you entered Misaki University's Faculty of Science, studying physics with Ibuki Yuko.]

[Your presence didn't alleviate Ibuki Yuko's anxiety. She held your hand every day; even a moment of separation made her look like an abandoned stray cat.]

[If you showed any closeness to others, she'd gaze at you with unease and at them with hostility.]