When I woke up, the first thing I saw was Yarai-san’s face—so close that I could only make out her eyes.

As expected from her character, her sleeping posture was terrible. Even though there were two futons laid out properly, she had completely invaded mine.

On top of that, she was hugging me like a body pillow. It was such a cliche that I almost suspected her of doing it on purpose—but since she was sound asleep, this had to be genuine.

Well, I wasn’t much better, considering I’d slept through being held this tightly. Her grip was firm, but maybe it didn’t wake me because her body was soft and warm.

In the end, I couldn’t even tell when I’d fallen asleep last night. One moment I was lost in thought, and the next, it was morning. Listening to Yarai-san’s carefree breathing must’ve made me stop thinking altogether, and I’d drifted off.

“Yarai-san, wake up. It’s hot.”
“Just a bit more…”
“Could you be any more textbook about this?”

I squirmed, but she wouldn’t let go. I didn’t care if she wanted to go back to sleep, but I really wished she’d at least release me.

“Hot…”

She let out a heated sigh. *That’s my line.*

The pajamas I’d borrowed weren’t exactly summer wear, and now that we were pressed together, the heat was unbearable.

“Kaidou-san, can you unzip me…?”
“Then turn around.”

Finally, she unwrapped her arms from me and turned her back.

I did as told and slid the zipper down her back. Her white skin glistened faintly with sweat, clearly visible even in the morning light.

“Ahh, the breeze feels nice.”
“Don’t you feel sticky like that? If you’ve got a towel, I can wipe you off.”
“Mm, please do. The towel’s, um…”

Like a sluggish caterpillar, she crawled across the floor to rummage through a dresser. Was she really that determined not to stand up? Maybe she wasn’t a morning person—though she still managed to answer me clearly enough.

“Here, use this.”

I took the plain towel she handed me. She sat up properly this time and turned her back toward me again.

Since the goal was just to wipe away her sweat, I gently pressed the towel against her skin instead of rubbing.

When I reached the area just above her hips, patting softly—

“Can you do the front too?”

Yarai-san slipped her arms out of the onesie. It was a full-body suit, but now it hung around her waist, exposing everything above it. Since she wasn’t wearing anything underneath, her upper body was completely bare.

“…You can do the front yourself, can’t you?”
“Then I’m going back to sleep.”

Her unusually childish attitude made me a little irritated. True to her word, she started crawling back toward the futon half-naked, so I had no choice but to stop her.

“Okay, okay, fine. I’ll do it.”
“Hehe, I like you, Kaidou-san. You’re so nice.”
“…Yeah, sure.”

With half-lidded, sleepy eyes, Yarai-san said it without a trace of embarrassment. Whether she meant it as friendship or affection, I wasn’t sure—but the fact that she could say I like you so easily was impressive.

I liked Yui too, of course, but if someone asked me to say that straight to her face, I’d hesitate. I’d need a reason—like her birthday or some special occasion.

Yet Yarai-san could say it in a moment like this, with no hesitation at all.

“Okay then, raise your arms.”
“Banzai~”

She did as told, lifting her arms and exposing her underarms. I slid the towel underneath and began to wipe gently.

Two days in a row now, I’d ended up washing Yarai-san’s body. Life really was unpredictable.

Then again, I hadn’t expected to be confessed to by another girl, either.

Trying to shake that memory from last night’s bath, I reached toward her chest. I didn’t take a deep breath—it would only make it obvious that I was aware of what I was doing.

“I’m going to touch your chest now.”

After giving that brief warning, I slipped my left hand under her breast to lift it slightly. *Stay calm. Stay calm.*

When your chest is big, sweat tends to gather underneath. I knew that from experience, though I wasn’t quite on Yarai-san’s level.

Because my hand was under her breast, it felt like it was enveloped by it. The weight was firm, and even after wiping, the faint stickiness of sweat clung to my skin. …No, no, thinking about that is *exactly* what I shouldn’t be doing.

“All right, done!”

I raised my voice a little louder than necessary, partly to banish those stray thoughts.

“Thanks~ I’m going back to sleep.”

Saying that, Yarai-san leaned backward—straight onto me, of course.

Half out of her onesie, she rested her bare, white back directly against me.

“W–wait a second. You’re heavy.”
“Telling a girl she’s heavy is off-limits, you know? Well… I do weigh a fair bit, though.”
“You’re tall, after all.”
“And my boobs are big.”
“…I’ve been meaning to ask since yesterday—are you kind of proud of that?”
“I totally am. And also…”

Yarai-san turned her head just enough to glance back at me from the corner of her eye.

“Kaidou-san, you seemed to like my boobs. So of course I’d be proud of them.”
“…It’s not like I liked them.”
“Even though you were kneading them so much last night?”

…She noticed. I mean, of course she did. She had said, ‘It felt good, so it’s fine,’ after all. Which meant she’d been fully aware that I was touching her. I’d completely forgotten that part in my relief that she hadn’t gotten mad about it.

“By the way, I’m not mad, okay? Actually, if you ever want to, you can touch them anytime.”

With a smug little ehem, Yarai-san puffed out her chest. I couldn’t see it from behind her, but from the front, it must’ve been quite a sight.

“What is that supposed to be? Are you trying to provoke me?”
“Seems like you’re pretending not to be interested in my boobs, so I’m just calling that bluff.”
“I’m not pretending, and I’m not interested. Seriously, just cover yourself already…”
“This pajama’s too hot.”
“It’s your pajama!”

Could she please think about the suffering of the person who was enduring in full clothing here?

But of course, Yarai-san paid no attention to my protests, continuing to pose with her chest thrust out like she was in some kind of absurd standoff.

What even was the end goal here? If I touched her, I’d lose. But she was being unreasonably stubborn, so there was no winning either way.

No matter what I did, I was the one getting the short end of the stick. Completely unfair.

Still, eventually, she’d have to give up. All I could do was wait her out.

Ten minutes later—

“Seriously, just give it up already!”

Yarai-san was *still* sitting there with her chest fully exposed.