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After a week of living together with Ibuki, I thought there wouldn’t be any major issues. After all, we had practically been living together half the time already.

“Hey, Ibuki, move away! I keep telling you it’s dangerous to get close when I’m holding a knife!”
“Come on, just a little bit?”
“No means no!”

But once we actually started living together, I realized—there were problems everywhere.

“Just a little bit! C’mon, it’s fine, right?”
“Ugh… just stay still. It’s really dangerous to move.”
“Okayyy.”

Ibuki’s attitude was different from when I used to just stay over. For some reason, ever since we started living together, she had become like a clingy cat, constantly sticking to me.

Even now, while I was cooking, she was hugging me from behind, whining and refusing to let go. It was like I had suddenly acquired a daughter without realizing it.

“What’s for dinner?”
“Stew and sandwiches. You like cream stew, don’t you?”
“I love it!”
“…!”

Since she was back-hugging me, she ended up speaking right near my ear. So when she said “I love” from that close, my hopelessly romantic brain couldn’t help but misinterpret it as some kind of love confession.

“Whoa, why’d you just drop down like that?”
“Ugh… My knees gave out! I can’t stand, so carry me to the couch.”

Ibuki needed to realize that her voice wasn’t just nice—it was my favorite person’s voice. And since she had a voice that was basically a direct attack on me, I really wished she’d tone it down a little.

“Guess I have no choice. Here you go, princess.”
“Wait, hold on! Just lending me a shoulder would’ve been enough!”

Despite her slender frame, she was surprisingly strong. Slipping an arm under my knees and back, she lifted me up effortlessly—the classic princess carry.

“Did you get lighter, Yukino? Are you eating enough?”
“That’s not true! I think my arms have gotten thicker, actually.”

Ibuki carried me with ease all the way to the living room, then sat down on the sofa with me still in her arms.

“Um… I’d really appreciate it if you let me go now.”
“Hmm… no can do.”

She let my feet rest on the couch, but my upper body remained tightly locked in her grip as I sat on her lap. At this point, I was basically a stuffed toy in her arms.

“Hey, aren’t you being extra clingy lately? What’s up with that?”
“Huh? I don’t think I am.”
“No, no, you’re definitely acting different from before.”

Lately, Ibuki had been glued to me all the time. But before this, we had almost never hugged—at least not like this. As someone who had a crush on her, I had always secretly longed for it, but I’d given up on the idea since Ibuki never seemed to like excessive physical contact.

“I dunno… but when I’m touching you, I just feel safe.”
“Honestly, you’re such a big baby.”
“I am not a baby!”

She nuzzled her face against my chest, her eyes narrowing in contentment. If she wasn’t a baby, then she looked like either a little sister with a big age gap or a new lover who hadn’t quite settled into the relationship yet. The reality, though, was that we had been childhood friends since birth.

“Hey, Yukino.”
“Hmm?”

She spoke without pulling away from me, making her voice slightly muffled, and the warmth of her breath tickled my skin. But I knew she wouldn’t move no matter what I said, so I endured the sensation and let her be.

“Are you still looking for a husband?”
“I haven’t been lately. Why?”
“Well… I just… I wouldn’t like it if you were.”

Ibuki never really explained why, but every time I talked about dating or making an effort to find someone, she’d get in a bad mood. I was pretty sure it was jealousy. If the roles were reversed, I’d feel the same way. I’d spent years worrying about the possibility of her finding someone else—much longer than she probably realized.

But our feelings were different. Unlike me, who had romantic feelings for her, Ibuki just wanted to keep our childhood bond intact. She had always had a much smaller social circle than I did, so it made sense that her attachment to me, her closest friend, was unusually strong.

“I’m not looking anymore. So don’t worry, okay?”

I gently patted her head as I reassured her, as if soothing a small child.

“Why?”
“Hmm?”
“You always said you wanted a boyfriend. So why’d you stop looking?”

Apparently, my possessive childhood friend needed a proper reason. Just saying I had quit wasn’t enough—she was scared I might start up again someday.

“Isn’t it obvious? Wait, Ibuki, you seriously didn’t realize?”
“Of course not! You never told me!”

She seemed to have no clue. When she pouted and puffed out her cheeks in frustration, I pressed them together to squeeze the air out, leaving me with the perfect sulking beauty—lips pursed and all.

“Ibuki, you’re the one who’s supposed to make me fall for you, right?”
“Huh?”
“You’re gonna make me fall for you, and then in the end, we’ll get married. So there’s no point in me looking for someone else, is there?”

At first, I had no intention of taking her “marry me” comments seriously. But over time, I found myself thinking, well, maybe that wouldn’t be so bad. Even if she didn’t mean it romantically, hearing a marriage proposal from someone I had loved for so many years was hard to resist. After being hit with it so many times, it was only natural to give in.

“Yeah. I’ll definitely make you fall for me.”
“Go ahead and try. I’m not backing down either.”

I couldn’t afford to lose. I was already head over heels for her, but my battle was on a different front. It wasn’t about me falling for Ibuki—it was about making Ibuki fall for me.

If we were going to get married anyway, I wanted our feelings to be mutual. That’s why I was going to teach this ridiculously dense protagonist of a childhood friend exactly what it meant to be in love. And when that feeling finally bloomed within her, I would confess.

I had loved her for as long as I could remember.

“I’m totally gonna win.”
“Yeah, yeah. But for now, can you let go of me?”
“Nope.”
“I’d like to finish making dinner.”
“…Letting go!”

It seemed that even a potentially romantic atmosphere was no match for her hunger.

For someone who had stubbornly refused to let go, she sure released me quickly the moment food was mentioned. I had to remember this trick for the future.

And from that day on, I would make great use of it whenever Ibuki’s clinginess got out of hand.

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