Chapter 22 – Derailed

The moment those words left my mouth, Yuria started to struggle in my arms.

"N-No Takashi. W-We can't-"

"You need to rest"

She continued to resist me for a few seconds, but the moment she processed the last words I said she looked at me like I said something incomprehensible.

"...r-rest?"

"Yes, rest. You can barely stand up without my help, so don't discuss with me on this"

She stopped resisting and simply looked at me dumbfounded. She probably didn't expect me to say that considering what I was saying and doing before, and I couldn't really blame her.

But I wouldn't be so inconsiderate to her by continuing my original plan and neglecting to take care of her when needed.

I led her through the house to her bedroom. During the entire time, she stayed quiet, but the awkward air around us from before wasn't as strong as before. There still was tension present, but it was different now.

While I helped her to lie in the bed and right before I left the room Yuria looked at me with a bewildered look, like she couldn't truly process what was happening in front of her.

As I was about to leave the room...

"Wait!"

...she reached to my right forearm with one of her hands, grabbing it and preventing me from leaving.

"...what?" I asked with the most innocent expression I could show.

"H-huh... well... i-it's j-j-just... I thought t-that... t-there still things that I n-need to do i-in the house" she said while fumbling and stuttering trying to find the right words.

I decided to overlook the fact that she almost said out loud what she initially thought I was going to do with her for now.

"You already did most of the work. Relax, you need it. I'll take care of the rest" I said decisively.

"But.. I still have to prepare dinner..."

"We have a microwave and a lot of leftovers. Besides, those two might end up eating at Yurika's place, so you don't need to worry about anything"

After saying my piece I gave her a peck on the lips and, taking advantage of her momentarily surprise, left the room before she could stop me again.

I might not continue my initial plan for the moment but that doesn't mean that I couldn't take a little advantage of the moment as well.

After leaving her room I went back to the first floor and reached for the vacuum cleaner. Yurika had already cleaned most of the house, considering that she spend most of her days doing that, and only a few areas of the first floor would need my attention.

I thought that finishing the cleanup of the house would earn me a few more points with her.

While finishing what Yuria started I also spend my time thinking about how should I proceed in my plans to evolve my relationship with Yuria now that my original plan had derailed.

My initial plan was to take advantage of her slightly dazed state to say everything I wanted, my thoughts and desires towards her, and use the effects created by [Pheromone Aura(Passive)] to make her more willing to accept my advances.

When a person is sleep deprived, like Yuria looked to be, their mind and body wouldn't put much energy into sticking to their usual habits and beliefs, making them much more susceptible to new ideas and trains of thought. I imagined that if I took advantage of her current state since it was impossible that what happened last night hadn't affected her sleep, I might have a better chance of succeeding.

But I had underestimated how much last night's events had affected her.

There were times in the past when Yuria had slept for a shorter amount of time than her usual, but she always manage to keep herself together and continued to maintain the house. Even if she was affected by my skill, it would be close to impossible for her to give in to exhaustion if she just had trouble sleeping last night.

The only conclusion that came to mind was that she didn't sleep at all after leaving my room.

For as much as I wanted to advance my relationship with her, I also didn't want to do anything that might somehow put her health at risk.

Thus the only thing that I could do for the moment was to put her to sleep, even if it was a bit forcefully.

Not much after I finished cleaning the first floor Rina and Anna came back home. I warmed up a few leftovers and we ate our dinner. Our conversation obviously drifted towards two main topics: their time in Yurika's house and why Yuria wasn't at the table.

They looked worried when I said that Yuria was feeling a bit tired but I managed to convince them that there was no reason to worry. Despite their different personalities both of them cared deeply for their mother, something that not everyone at their age would be willing to show so easily.

Just when I thought that I couldn't like them even more.

After convincing them that there was nothing wrong with Yuria I asked the about their time in Yurika's house. They looked very lively talking about their new best friend, as they put it. Rina was someone that put a lot of attention to fashion and the entertainment industry, primarily manga and anime, while Anna was more interested in culture and study.

Yurika was like someone that stood between the two of them, sharing similar interests with them. Apparently, they spend most of the time trying to decide what to do, and by the time they decided it was only a little more than half an hour before they came back home.

Once dinner was over they helped me to wash and store the dishes. After finishing it we went to our own rooms.

*

11:30 p.m.

After a good amount of time waiting I finally left my room.

The first thing I did was make sure that both of my sisters were sleeping. I didn't want to be caught off guard and be accused of something due to a misunderstanding.

I checked both of their rooms and as expected they were sleeping.

That meant that I could check Yuria without worrying too much about being caught.

I wanted to make sure that she was okay. The fact that she was shaken enough to be unable to sleep still worried me, especially considering that it was mostly my fault, if not completely.

Once I arrived at her room I was relieved by what I saw. She was sleeping peacefully, without any sign on her face that she was troubled by anything. Despite being covered I caught glimpses of what looked like the clothes she was wearing when I brought her to the room.

Apparently, she fell asleep almost immediately after I left her bedroom.

I was relieved that she managed to sleep again, but after a second I was a little confused. What happened between us was enough to make her conflicted to the point of losing an entire night of sleep, and possibly even more if I hadn't intervened, but here she was sleeping like nothing at all ever happened.

...What happened after I left?

I remained there a few seconds, trying to come up with an answer to why she was tranquil right now. I obviously was happy with it, but it still bugged me the fact that I didn't know why.

Looking at her beautiful face, so serene and peaceful, I had this urge to move a strand of hair that was in front of her face to behind her ear.

"...hunm...urhnm..."

Yuria started to move, slowly getting out of the covers. Apparently, caressing her face, even if so slightly, was enough to wake her.

I was stunned by surprise for only a second, but it was enough for her to notice my presence.

Any sleepiness that she might have couldn't be found on her face anymore. She simply looked at me, completely quiet.

I didn't know what to do at this moment. I expected to face her only tomorrow, and even them not so directly as now.

Any words that I might have to say to her were lost at this moment. I couldn't decipher what she was feeling right now. There were absolutely no hints on her face about what she might be thinking.

Before I could think of anything to say, Yuria threw both of her arms around my head and pulled me...

...towards her lips, kissing me.

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