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“Yukinooo, I’m hungryyy!”
“Yes, yes. I’m making dinner now, so just wait a little longer, okay?”

It was 5 p.m.—evening. Just as I’d stepped into the kitchen to start preparing dinner, Ibuki, who had apparently been lying on the sofa reading manga, called out, asking for food. Lunch had been a bit early today, so I figured she’d be getting hungry around now, but the timing was so spot-on it almost made me laugh.

“What are we having today?”
“I thought I’d keep it simple and make a hot pot. It’s cold today, and you like hot pot, don’t you?”
“Yeah! I love it!”

The moment food came up, my dear girlfriend’s energy shot through the roof. Curious about what was going in the pot, she hopped up from the sofa and toddled over to the kitchen.

“Whoa! There’s so much fish!”
“Hehe. You love seafood, right? The yellowtail and cod were on sale, so I bought extra.”
“You’re the best, Yukino!”

Ibuki was the kind of person who made anything I cooked look delicious when she ate it, but she especially loved seafood. Whenever I made something centered around ocean flavors like this, she’d light up with joy.

“What’s this one?”

Ibuki had been watching the pot intently, clearly eager for it to start simmering, but now her gaze locked onto a particular ingredient. We’d made hot pot together plenty of times in past winters, but this time I’d added one thing we’d never used before—and she’d already spotted it.

“That’s anglerfish. I happened to find it at the store and bought it on a whim, just out of curiosity.”
“Wow, I’ve never had anglerfish before.”

I hadn’t either, so I figured it was safe to assume she hadn’t and decided to give it a try—and that turned out to be the right call. Ibuki wasn’t picky at all and never rejected unfamiliar foods, which made it so easy and enjoyable to cook for her. No fussiness, no dietary imbalances—really, she was the perfect person to cook for.

“Let’s finish it up at the table, yeah?”
“Yes, let’s do that!”

Maybe it wasn’t the most proper thing to do, but ever since long ago, we’d always eaten winter meals at the kotatsu. Ibuki didn’t really like using the heater, so we didn’t run the AC during the cold months. That’s why, instead of the living room table, we ate our meals snuggled at the kotatsu.

“I already cooked the cod through, but you can shabu-shabu the yellowtail yourself, okay? It’s sashimi-grade, so you don’t need to cook it all the way.”
“Okay! Let’s eat!”

I handed her a small dish with a selection of the vegetables and other ingredients, and the way her face lit up, it almost felt like there were actual sparkles floating around her. She really did look like she was enjoying it so much.

Most of the time she looked sleepy and laid-back, but when it came to food, she got so giddy—like a little kid. And that just made me want to spoil her even more.

“This one’s the anglerfish. Want to try it?”
“I do!”

I’d already deboned it before simmering, so I could feed it to her without worry. She opened her mouth like a little baby bird, and I gently blew on a piece of the anglerfish to cool it down before placing it inside.

“Aaahn. So? Is it good?”
“Mmm! It’s super jiggly!”

Since it was my first time using this ingredient, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect, and I’d been a little worried—but clearly, that concern had been unnecessary.

“I’ll feed you too, Yukino! Aaahn!”
“A-Aaahn… Mmm, yeah, it is pretty good.”

I didn’t mind feeding her, but when it was the other way around—when she fed me—I still got a little embarrassed. It had only been a few days since we started dating, but little moments like this really made it sink in that we were together now. Back when we were just friends, I had fed her from time to time, but she’d never done the same for me.

Apparently, she used to hold back because she thought I’d get embarrassed. But now that we were dating, she seemed to have no intention of holding back anymore—in fact, she even seemed to enjoy seeing me flustered when she pulled stunts like this. That was very much the kind of person Ibuki was now.

“It’s really tasty.”
“Y-Yeah, it is…”

I still wasn’t used to the sweet, romantic atmosphere between us, and it made me so nervous that sometimes I couldn’t even taste what I was eating. But since Ibuki and I had almost identical tastes, I figured if she said it was delicious, then it probably was.

“By the way, Yukino-san.”
“What is it?”

As I watched the mountain of hot pot ingredients rapidly disappear into Ibuki’s mouth, she suddenly set her chopsticks down and turned toward me with a more serious expression.

“I have a suggestion.”
“…What is it?”

She raised a single finger, eyes deadly serious—and that just made me even more anxious. Because whenever Ibuki got serious, it usually meant she was about to propose something totally off-the-wall. And nine times out of ten, it ended up being either a pain in the neck or something emotionally overwhelming for me.

“About when we go to bed. We’ve been sleeping separately until now, but… would it be okay if we just always slept together from now on?”
“…Why?”
“What do you mean why? We’re dating, so wouldn’t that feel more natural? I mean, we’re a couple, but we sleep in different beds—that’s kinda lonely, don’t you think? Don’t you want to?”
“It’s not that I don’t want to… You won’t try anything weird, right?”

Up until now, we’d basically been sleeping in separate beds, but apparently, that didn’t sit well with Ibuki.

“If you promise not to do anything weird, then… I guess we can.”

For me, the idea of sleeping in the same bed as Ibuki felt like a pretty high hurdle. After all, I’d been hopelessly in love with her for years, and that love had only just recently been returned. If I were to lie down next to her now, I was afraid all the countless daydreams I’d had over the years would just explode all at once. Not to mention, if I shared a bed with her, I had a strong feeling her mischievous side would come out and she’d end up teasing me until I passed out again.

“Eh? Of course I’m gonna do weird things.”
“Knew it. Then nooo way.”
“Come on, just a little?”
“Nope. I actually want to sleep, you know. If you fry my brain again, I’m not gonna get any rest.”
“You’ll be fine once you get used to it.”
“If I could get used to it that fast, I wouldn’t be having this problem…”

I knew it all too well by now, but it still surprised me just how ridiculously weak I was to Ibuki’s advances. Just the other day, one slightly deep kiss had been enough to completely fry my brain. And to top it off, though it had been a while ago, I’d once straight-up passed out just from being hugged tightly by her.

“Well then, guess I’ll just have to force you to get used to it.”
“What are you—wait, hold on—!”

Ibuki suddenly got up from the kotatsu and walked over to me. Then, without warning, she leaned in and wrapped her arms around my head, pulling me into her embrace.

“There, there~. I know you’re not good with lovey-dovey stuff, but I want more, so hurry up and get used to it, okay?”

Pressed right up against her chest, her voice resonated even more clearly than usual in my ears. I felt like I was seconds away from going into sleep mode from sheer sensory overload—but I managed to hold on. Just barely. I wasn’t so weak anymore that a simple hug would make me pass out. If I fainted every time something like this happened, it’d be a complete waste.

This was precious time with my girlfriend—if anything, I ought to be enjoying it more.

“…It’s not a big deal. I can handle this much.”
“Oh? Look at you! Tougher than I thought. Okay, I’m gonna do more, then~”
“Do wha—mnh…!”

I was already used to being her hugging pillow at this point, but Ibuki, ever one to push her luck, didn’t stop at just holding me. She went and started playing with my ears—completely unguarded as I was.

“Your ears are so small and cute~”
“Hey—! You know my ears are sensitive…!”

She gently traced the edge of my earlobe with her fingers, and while I instinctively wanted to escape, her arms held me firmly in place.

“You’re turning bright red~ So cute. Just hang in there a little longer, okay?”
“Stop it… I can’t… take it anymore…”

In all my years of delusional daydreams, I’d always imagined myself being the one to fluster Ibuki—but in reality, I was the one getting completely overwhelmed by her. It was nothing like I’d imagined. And yet… being toyed with like this didn’t feel bad at all.

Maybe this was what people meant when they talked about the weakness of being the one who fell in love first.

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