Honestly, My Heart Wavered Quite A Bit

When Masachika came home, a beautiful, neat and dark-haired,

childhood friend greeted him with three fingers on the ground[1]. Or rather,

Masachika was greeted by a cute maid when he got home. Both of these

situations would be appealing to any healthy otaku male. Even Masachika

had no objection to that.

"Welcome back, Masachika-sama."

"Oh, oh......."

That's why this, too, would be a dream situation for otakus at first

glance. At the entrance, the beautiful young maid, a childhood friend of his,

bowed her head in a beautiful gesture. Her long, lustrous black hair flowed

over her maid's uniform and spread out like a veil, making her a true

Yamato Nadeshiko

. But... If that posture was not a bow, but a dogeza, it

would have been a different story.

"...What are you doing?"

Ayano pressed her entire palm, not just three fingers on each hand,

against the floor and rubbed her forehead between her hands. How long

had she been holding that position? Even Masachika was taken aback by

this.

"Even if it was a competition, I have to apologize to Masachika-sama

for a number of things──"

"Hey, don't explain it naturally while on the floor like that. First, raise

your head."

"No, first of all, I apologize──"

"If you keep your head down there, I won't be able to take off my

shoes, okay? Isn't it proper behavior for a maid to welcome her master

first?"

When Ayano stubbornly refused to raise her head, Masachika

lectured her on the courtesy of a maid. By doing so, he tried to force her off

her knees... This childhood friend's attitude was beyond Masachika's

imagination.

"Please go ahead and step over my body."

"Hey, don't mention your sexual kinks so casually. The only people

who can say, "step on me," are the protagonist's friend character who

makes a sacrifice."

"In other words, I should start by being a sacrifice...?"

"No."

After denying it with a straight face, Masachika squatted down with a

sigh. Then, after making a conscious effort to look cool-headed, he called

out in a serious voice.

"Ayano."

"!"

Perhaps sensing something from the sound of Masachika's voice,

Ayano looked up with some discretion. Looking directly into her face,

Masachika quietly asked, "Why should the master have to be told what to do

by the maid?"

"!"

"Stand up."

"Yes!"

At Masachika's instruction, Ayano stood up as if she were being

played with. After seeing this, Masachika finally took off his shoes and said

as he walked up the entranceway.

"If you're apologizing for what happened during the quiz show, you

don't have to. It was a contest, and we both played fair. If you had cut

corners because you thought I was being modest, I might have been

offended."

"Oh, no, it's nothing like that…..."

"Right? Then you don't need to apologize."

With that said, Ayano lightly tapped him on the shoulder, while

accepting Masachika's bag,

"Then, about that secret technique in the classroom──"

"Don't talk about that."

Masachika tried to gouge out the wound of a memory with a casual

smile as Ayano interrupted him with a straight face. Masachika then quickly

headed for the washroom to prevent her from saying anything more. After

washing his hands and gargling, he was about to return to his room when

Ayano handed him a washbowl containing a wet towel.

"Please, come in and wipe your sweat off."

"Oh, thanks."

Masachika thanked her for this honestly, and after taking off his

uniform in his room, he wiped himself with a wet towel. Then, just as

Masachika changed into his loungewear, there was a knock at the door.

"Excuse me."

Ayano, who came in with her head bowed, quickly collected the wet

towel and the uniform that Masachika had taken off.

"No, it's okay......"

"No, I was on my way to the washroom anyway."

"Well, thanks."

"You're too kind."

As she answered, Ayano casually explored the breast pocket of the

shirt she retrieved to make sure she didn't accidentally wash something

strange. Her movement stopped for a moment, and Ayano's right hand

pulled a piece of paper from the breast pocket. No, it was not a piece of

paper, but the picture Masachika took with Nonoa, taken at the maid

cafe... that Sayaka and Nonoa ran.

"Oh, that's──"

Masachika, realizing this fact, reflexively raised his voice. It was at

the same time that Ayano turned it over in her hand and saw the front of the

photograph.

Instantly, Ayano's pupils dilated.

"Scary!"

Ayano stared at the photograph with expressionless, unfocused

eyes... At any rate, Ayano's stares could have burned a few holes into the

photograph. This bizarre sight sent a sense of danger up Masachika's

spine.

(Huh? Isn't this like a situation where a businessman is caught

having a hostess club's card by his wife?)

Reminiscent of a situation he may or may not have seen in a daytime

TV drama, Masachika remained calm and explained the situation.

"Oh~, that's from when I went to Class D and F's exhibition. We just

went out to eat, but I wasted no time in showing my good luck and won their

lottery to get that photograph."

Then Ayano, who may or may not have been listening to Masachika's

testimony, showed no particular reaction and muttered a few words with

her... pitch-black eyes.

"...I understand."

"No, I'm sorry, stop, okay? It's scary when someone says 'I

understand' with dilated pupils. The reality is that you don't understand at

all, right?"

Without even looking at Masachika, who said so in a detached

manner, Ayano replied in an emotionless tone of voice.

"No... It's just that you weren't satisfied with my service."

"No, listen to me. It's not like I wasn't satisfied with your work and

cheated on you with another maid or anything like that......"

As Masachika made his excuse, Ayano slowly turned her head to

look at him. Reassured that at least she seemed to be keeping her

composure enough to listen to what was being said as instructed,

Masachika explained to her that it was wrong to associate maids at maid

cafes with real, actual maids.

"...that's what I'm saying. Understand?"

"Yes, I understand."

"Well, that's good to hear."

Masachika was relieved when Ayano slowly nodded her head, but it

was still too early to... reassure her.

"I've failed as a maid by making my master feel so uncomfortable

after all....!"

"Did you not listen to me!?"

As Masachika screamed, Ayano, with her still pitch-black eyes,

proposed in a feigned voice out of courtesy.

"Tonight... I'll serve you with all my might, right? Master."

A declaration of service by a cute maid. This was another situation

that would be exciting for any otaku, but when Masachika heard it... he felt

a shiver run down his spine.

◇

"......"

"......"

"...Oh, there's a new movie that was released."

"......"

(I can't concentrate!)

While randomly surfing the Internet on his computer, Masachika

couldn't help but be curious about what was going on behind him. At first

Masachika was alarmed by the phrase "serve you with all my might," but

fortunately, Ayano had not acted particularly excessively so far. She was

just... there all the time, just in the corner of the room. Not a single noise,

just being there the whole time.

However, as if by surprise, Masachika sensed no sign of her or even

her gaze. Even though he didn't feel her presence, he still didn't feel

comfortable because he knew she was there. And when Masachika turned

around, he saw dark eyes staring back at him. Was this a horror story?

(Seriously, I can't relax...! Does Yuki always spend her time like

this? I'm surprised she's okay with it…...)

He feared his sister's brazenness, but quickly reconsidered, "No."

(Come to think of it, I used to be okay with it too. I guess I was used

to it because... we grew up together.)

Since leaving the Suou family, Masachika had taken for granted that

he was usually home alone. In addition, despite being childhood friends,

Masachika and Ayano were now at an age where they were conscious of

each other as a boy and a girl. Masachika was not usually aware of such

things, but it is still not the same as dealing with Yuki.

(If it was her, I wouldn't mind her being in the room... Or rather, I

don't feel like playing around Ayano when she's trying to work as hard as

she can......)

As a quirk, Masachika did not have the brazenness to leave his

childhood friend standing on a stick waiting for him while reading manga in

bed without a care in the world. Then Masachika thought, if he could give

Ayano a break.

"Ayano~?"

"Yes, Master."

"You're not going to have anything on your hands if you're sticking

around in a place like this, are you? I'm just a regular guy with a lot of free

time on my hands... Like I said, you can do whatever you want, okay?"

"You see, this is what I like to do."

"Ah, yes…..."

It had been like this for a while now, and there was nothing

Masachika could do about it.

"I mean, this "Master" thing is......"

"...anything I can help you with, Master?"

"No, it's simply that I don't feel at home......"

When he said this brusquely, Ayano opened her eyes and gazed at

Masachika.

"But... you had them call you that, didn't you? Women other than

myself. With Master."

"Oh, that's where you get all butthurt?"

Masachika asked back with a straight face, but Ayano gave no

answer. No, if you listened carefully, she mumbled something in her mouth.

He could not hear it because of the distance, but... The sight of a beautiful

girl with a doll-like expressionless face and dilated pupils muttering

something in her mouth was terrifying. No matter how you look at it, it

looked like she was chanting a curse, and Masachika turned silently to face

forward.

(Hah~, I can't relax.)

Musing internally, Masachika nonchalantly turned his shoulder.

Immediately, a presence shook behind him, sending a shiver of danger

down Masachika's spine. Immediately after,

"Master."

"O─Oh."

A voice came from right behind him, causing Masachika to

awkwardly flinch and look up in that direction. Then, Ayano, with her still

pitch-black eyes, spoke quietly with a mysterious force.

"I can give you a massage if you like."

"...A massage?"

"Yes, master seems to have stiff shoulders. I know you've been busy

lately, and if you don't mind."

"A─Ah~... I see."

She wanted to do a shoulder massage for her master, who was

exhausted. This was simply gratifying and seemed like a good thing to

accept. But…...

(Yeah, I've got a bad feeling about this.)

Considering the earlier declaration of "I'll serve you with all my

might," Masachika couldn't help but feel wary as an otaku. He didn't feel like

it was going to be just a massage.

"Yeah, I guess so…... Hmmm~"

"I have been doing this for Yuki on a regular basis and it has been

very well received!"

"Even for Yuki? Oh, if that's what you mean... it should be fine?"

Masachika reconsidered taking the option to relieve Ayano's desire

for service. But if it was a massage she usually did with Yuki, it shouldn't be

something crazy...

"Now, please lie down on the bed."

(I still have a bad feeling about this.)

Masachika almost unintentionally blurted out a retort.

"No, we can just use a chair if you just want to massage my

shoulders…..."

"Since we are here, let's relieve the stiffness all over your body!"

"Whoa, all over, huh?"

"Yes, it'll make you feel refreshed, won't it?"

"Are you saying that on purpose?"

"? What do you mean?"

Masachika stared at Ayano with a doubtful look on his face.

However, Masachika couldn't read her inner feelings through her blank

expression, and her eyes, which were the only things that were supposed to

show emotion, were now so black that he couldn't decipher anything.

(I mean, I'm still scared. Hey, why are they pitch black? What kind of

emotion is that?)

Somehow, Masachika felt that if he refused, it would be even worse,

so he slumped onto the bed cautiously. Then Ayano said, "Excuse me," and

straddled on his back, causing Masachika to tense up.

(No, I'm fine. Even if someone else pressed their body against me in

some strange way, or touched me in some inappropriate way, I don't care! I

don't care!)

Masachika was prepared to take on the challenge of being massaged

by Ayano, but... as it turned out, it was a very wholesome massage. In

particular, no excessive physical contact took place.

"Oh... That felt good."

"That's good to know."

"Oh, thank you. And sorry, for being a rotten otaku."

"?"

Masachika sensed that Ayano had a doubtful look on her face, but

since he felt nothing but guilt, he didn't continue further. There was no way

he could say that he was expecting to have his lower body relieved as well

after receiving a massage.

"Then I'll prepare dinner, shall I?"

"Oh, thanks…..."

"No problem. Well then..."

Masachika leaned back on the bed, watching from the corner of his

vision as Ayano left without a sound.

His shoulders and hips, which had been wrung out by Ayano, had a

pleasant warmth, and Masachika somehow couldn't bring himself to move

them. When Masachika wanted to be immersed in that pleasant feeling, he

relaxed, and the pleasant heat spread throughout his body, making his

eyelids heavy…...

"──Dear Master."

"Hmm?"

A light shake on his shoulder made him open his eyes, and

Masachika felt a little freaked out to see Ayano peering at him with her pitch

black eyes.

"...Ayano?"

"Yes, it's me, Ayano, Master."

"...sorry, I must have fallen asleep."

"You must have been tired. Dinner is ready, would you like to eat

now? Or would you like to take a bath first?"

"No, I'll eat."

"...At your service, Master."

It looked like she was going to make some more disturbing remarks,

so Masachika got up quickly. Moving directly into the living room, the food

was already laid out on the table.

"You looked tired, so I decided to make cold shabu-shabu."

"Oh, nice. It was pretty hot today, even for October, and it was

hot... having to cosplay too."

However, there was one point of concern.

"...why just for me?"

When Masachika asked Ayano this, looking at the table with only one

meal prepared, she answered as if the answer was second nature.

"The maid cannot eat at the same table as the master."

"No, please do. You do it all the time."

"Tonight I am different."

"It's kind of cool when you put it that way."

"...please don't mind if it takes me a while to boil the meat again."

Saying this, she pulled out a chair, and Masachika had no choice but

to sit down. Ayano then went to the rice cooker in the kitchen.

"How much rice would you like?"

"Yeah, well, the usual."

Then, she quickly brought in the rice, fluffing it up nicely. After

pouring more water into the glass, she naturally stood at an angle behind

Masachika.

"...Itadakimasu."

"Then, please go ahead."

The pork shabu and raw vegetables were mixed with ponzu as

Masachika brought them to his mouth. When combined with hot white rice,

the result was a perfect collaboration in the mouth.

"...Delicious."

"Thank you."

Yes, it was definitely delicious. However, Masachika was still

concerned about her pitch-black eyes. The napkin and condiments were

placed at his fingertips with exquisite timing, water and rice were refilled,

and the dishes were smartly put away after he had finished eating. It would

have been the most perfect serving, but... Masachika was not able to

concentrate on the food.

(Hmmm~, this should have been the norm from when I was in the

Suou household... I knew my senses were becoming more

commonplace.)

While he was thinking about this, a voice called out to him from an

angle behind him.

"Master, if you don't mind, I'd like to give you an ear cleaning."

"My ears?"

"Yes."

As she asked, "How would you like it?", Ayano sat down in the chair

next to Masachika and patted her own thighs, saying, "Go ahead."

(Let's see... I have no choice, right?)

With her pitch-black eyes staring at him intently as ever, Masachika

had no choice but to not refuse.

"Then... I'll take you up on that offer."

As he said this, Masachika placed his head on Ayano's thighs, and

immediately the soft texture of her thighs and the soft smell of her body

stimulated his nostrils.

(Ugh... Rather, the combination of someone in a maid's uniform

giving you an ear cleaning gives off a suspicious atmosphere......)

As Masachika hardened his body with this thought, a voice said,

"Excuse me," followed by the start of ear cleaning.

(Oh... but, this feels kind of nice too......)

He didn't know how many years it had been since he had someone

cleaned his ears, but it was better than Masachika expected. Ayano's

slender fingers lightly stroked his head and cheeks, and the exquisite

stimulation of his ears, which were slightly ticklish with a tingling sensation,

striked. At first Masachika almost felt an involuntary shiver down his back,

but the stimulation became more and more pleasant, and he felt like he

wanted it to continue all the way through.

(Ohhhhh~ so good... How relieving......)

The warmth of Ayano's body against his cheeks and the comfort of

his ear being cleaned made Masachika more and more entranced... And

just then Ayano's hand pulled away.

"Yes, then would you please turn the other way?"

"Yeah? Ahh......"

Feeling more than a little disappointed, Masachika nonchalantly

turned his body around. Then, after his vision was filled with Ayano's maid

uniform, that's when he finally said, "Hmm?" Masachika thought.

(Huh? Isn't this... not so bad from a physical standpoint?)

Although it was hard to tell with the maid's uniform, if one thought

about it calmly, the tip of his nose was about to be buried in Ayano's lower

abdomen. Isn't this... a bit of a bad idea, no matter how you looked at it?

Just as he thought this, the ear cleaning began again, and the exquisitely

tantalizing sensation caused Masachika to relax once again.

(Huh... Ah, well enough of that......)

With a loose head, Masachika decided, "If it's bothering, I'll just close

my eyes and let Ayano do her thing". The heat and feeling of her uniform's

texture rubbing against his cheeks and the tip of his nose made Masachika

feel like he was being gently hugged on his head... He was in a state of

bliss.

"...That felt great."

After returning to his room, Masachika muttered to himself. Taking

advantage of the fact that Ayano was eating and not in the room, he soaked

up the pleasant sensation in his ears. Then, after a while of lounging

around... it suddenly occurred to him.

(Oh yeah, better take a bath while I can.)

At the time, Ayano was probably washing the dishes. The most

alarming part of Ayano's Super Service Time (named by Masachika) was

the bath. Masachika could foresee that. He predicted that if he were to take

a bath when Ayano's hands were free, she would propose and say "I will

wash your back".

(The bath water should be heated up soon, so while Ayano is doing

the housework I should get in quickly.)

Having decided to do so, Masachika left his room with a change of

clothes. While hiding the change of clothes behind his back, he

pretended like he just needed to use the toilet and headed for it. Then he

put the change of clothes in the changing basket and turned around to close

the door just in case Ayano was there as usual.

"Woah!"

"Let me wash your back."

"I knew it!"

Masachika retorted and clicked his tongue at the all-too-predictable

turn of events.

"No, you can't! That's a bad idea!"

"No problem. I'm ready for anything."

Without moving an eyebrow at Masachika's adamant refusal, Ayano

began to remove her maid's uniform on the spot.

"No, no, what are you──"

While he was saying this, her maid's uniform fell to the floor, and

what appeared was the swimsuit that Masachika had seen at the beach.

Oh, and knee-high stockings with weapons on them.

(Ummm~, maniac.)

While Masachika was having these stupid thoughts, Ayano removed

her "weapons" and stockings as well, and went into the bathroom first.

"Oh, wait──"

Before he could stop himself, the bathroom door closed and

Masachika froze.

"...What, can I just go in without worrying?"

Based on the previous situation, it seemed that Ayano wouldn't

budge no matter what. If Masachika doesn't enter, she would likely end up

waiting endlessly in the bathroom.

(Uh, ugh... I mean if she's wearing a swimsuit it should be okay?

Wait, why did she even have that in the first place? Was it kept in Yuki's

room this whole time?)

While it was a mystery how the swimsuit ended up there, the fact that

Ayano was wearing it showed that she had some common sense. In fact, so

far, it seemed that Ayano hadn't done anything indecent, and it had only

been Masachika's unfounded suspicions. There was an incident during

summer vacation where Masachika ended up exposing Ayano once, but it

seemed like she had learned from that experience. So perhaps... it should

be okay to trust Ayano and go along with her until she was satisfied...

(Well, yeah. To be honest, the massage and the ear-cleaning were

too good, so now I'm even interested in the idea of getting my back

washed.)

Masachika had never had someone wash his back for as long as he

could remember. But he couldn't help but be curious about what would

happen if Ayano, who had demonstrated such skill in massaging and ear

cleaning, were to wash his back. As a result, Masachika undressed after

some hesitation and wrapped a towel tightly around his waist before

stepping into the bathroom.

Then, he calmly told Ayano, who was crouched behind the bath chair

waiting for him.

"You can just wash my back, but after that can you please get out

right away?"

"Yes... If you'd like, would you like me to shampoo your hair as

well?"

"Hmm? Oh... then, please do."

Masachika sat down on the bath chair, trying not to look at Ayano as

much as possible. Ayano then quickly started the shower and began

washing Masachika's head after the water temperature had risen. And so

the shampooing began first...

(Woah, seriously? This feels so good too......)

Masachika thought the shampoo service you'd get after getting a

haircut at the barber shop was pleasant, but this was way better. Ayano's

slender fingers stirred his hair with exquisite force, stimulating his scalp,

making him feel very comfortable.

"Are you okay with the intensity?"

"Yeah, it's perfect."

Closing his eyes, Masachika concentrated on the sensation on his

head.

(Could it be that Yuki gets this done to her every day...? If so, I

honestly envy you, little sister. No, but with that amount of hair, Ayano would

have a hard time......)

While thinking about such things, the blissful time passed in a blink of

an eye. And as expected, once again, nothing indecent happened this time

either.

As promised, Ayano washed Masachika's hair and rinsed his back,

then quickly left the bathroom. There was never a case of, "Okay, now let's

move on to the front..."

(...yeah, I guess I was thinking too much.)

After taking a bath, Masachika felt awkward and embarrassed in his

room. He was too involved in his own offensive fantasies, driven by Ayano's

words "serve you with all my might," and his own otaku mindset. Masachika

was still a little concerned about her dark eyes and the fact that she called

him "master," but Ayano probably just did what she usually did to Yuki,

regardless of their gender difference.

Besides, she had prepared a swimsuit... properly taking into account

that they were of the opposite sex. Ayano was just taking care of him as

much as she could with her pride as a maid, but this rotten otaku brain was

all wary and had dubious fantasies about him...

"Yeah, I'm starting to feel a little like dying☆"

In his mind, the devil Yuki teased him, "You were really expecting

something more, weren't you? Huh? You dirty pervert!" and kicked him,

while the angel Maria argued "He's just a boy! It can't be helped!" as

Masachika reflected on his actions. Then,

"Master, may I?"

"Uh, yeah."

There was a knock at the door, and Masachika straightened his

sagging posture.

"Excuse me, Master. I brought you some hot milk."

"Oh, thank you... for being so hospitable."

When Masachika put the cup he received to his lips, the sweetness

of honey and milk spread slightly throughout mouth, and Masachika couldn't

help but smile. Somehow it warmed his heart, and Masachika naturally

thanked her.

"Thanks, Ayano."

"No, it's no big deal."

"No, not only that... but also about how you always take care of

Yuki."

"?"

As he felt Ayano's questioning gaze on him, Masachika continued to

stare at the surface of the milk.

"Today, you took care of me to the best of your ability and... I feel

like I now know how much you think about Yuki on a regular basis. When I

thought about how hard you always try to take care of Yuki... I couldn't

help but want to thank you."

Masachika's smile turned a little bitter.

"In truth, it actually should be my role to care for Yuki and support

her... I really feel like I'm not a good enough big brother."

"Such──"

"It's true. Whatever the reason, it doesn't change the fact that I

pushed Yuki too hard by leaving the Suou family for all the wrong reasons.

And even now, I'm trying to make Alya the student body president, not her,

because I'm impelled by feelings I don't understand... So I guess I'm not

even qualified to thank you in the first place."

Saying this, Masachika looked up at Ayano with a gentle smile that

harbored a bit of bitterness. Looking straight into her eyes, Masachika told

her sincerely.

"Nevertheless, thank you. You stand by her and think about her more

than anyone else. I'm really happy about that. I hope you continue to be...

that girl's best friend."

At Masachika's words, Ayano's eyes widened. The light returned to

her eyes and... Ayano smiled slightly.

"Don't say something so bad. Masachika-sama."

Masachika also smiled in response to the all-encompassing

response. An air of calm passed between them, and Masachika took

another sip of milk into his mouth.

"This is delicious. Does Yuki like this too?"

"Yes. I am very pleased with the recipe."

"Well... Come to think of it, I haven't heard much about Yuki from

you."

"I will tell you as much as you want."

"Yeah, sure. Might be nice."

They smiled at each other as they talked about Yuki for a while.

Then, when Masachika's hot milk ran out, Ayano checked her watch and sat

up from the bed.

"I think it's time to go to bed."

"Ah, yes... I have a busy day tomorrow. The hot milk warmed me

up just right, so I think I'll go to bed early today."

"...At your service. So, would you like a refill?"

"I'm fine. Thank you."

Receiving an empty cup from Masachika, Ayano blinked her eyes as

if something suddenly occurred to her.

"Oh, Masachika-sama."

"Hmmm?"

"Would you like a titty pillow?"

"You're ruining it, you idiot!"

"Yuki is very pleased with it."

"That stupid sister of mine!!"

Masachika's roar cut through the calm air. Then Masachika's phone

buzzed, and a message from Yuki saying "I'm sorry" appeared on the

screen.

...By the way, Masachika refused the titty pillow. He was very

tempted, but he refused with a steel will.