Ever since I confessed, she has been acting strange. - CHAPTER 3: THE LADY WHO COMMUNICATES AND THE SONG ARC

Episode 16: A Reward②

“Nn…?”

My blurred consciousness slowly drifts back to reality.

It’s dark. Warm. Comfortable… That feeling… I’m lying on my bed.

“Mmm…”

At some point I must have fallen asleep.

Judging by the darkness outside, it’s still night.

If it were morning, the maids would have come to wake me up by now.

Should I get up? Probably. But if I do, I have a feeling that my eyes will be fully awake and I won’t be able to sleep again.

And more than anything, right now I don’t want to wake up.

It’s strange. I’ve never felt so strongly about not wanting to get out of bed.

I’ve always struggled with waking up, but this warmth – this feeling of security – I don’t want to let it go.

Yes. I don’t want to… let go? Let go of what?

My pillow? No, it’s not that. A pillow isn’t this warm, and the size is completely different.

A body pillow? No, that’s not right either. I don’t have one.

A stuffed animal? No, not even that. This is way too big to be a stuffed animal, and… is that the sound of breathing?

Cautiously, I open my eyes.

“……Eito?”

Before I even realized it, the person I was holding was none other than Yagiri Eito himself.

(Wait… what? What? Why? How?)

I don’t understand. I don’t understand at all and my head is spinning.

No, calm down. Calm down, Tendou Hoshine.

When something like this happens, the first step is to stay calm.

Analyze the situation logically.

Step ①: At some point I fell asleep.

Step ②: When I woke up, I hugged Eito in my sleep.

But the conclusion I should come to is… nothing! I have no idea…!

(Ugh, come on! How am I supposed to stay calm in a situation like that?!)

If it were about suggesting improvements to a theme park attraction or a new menu item at a national coffee chain, I could come up with plenty of ideas.

If it were about getting a high score on a national exam or achieving great results in sports, I could handle that, too.

Understanding the current situation is more difficult than anything else. No, it is impossible.

But why does Eito let me hold him like that without resisting?

Does he not mind? What if he does mind? That would be terrible.

I’m scared, but… I have to look at his face.

If he looks uncomfortable, I have to apologize.

“Suu… suu…”

…Huh?

What is this adorable creature?

Now that I think about it, I’ve hardly ever seen Eito’s sleeping face.

After all, he never sleeps before I do.

“So this is what he looks like…”

He’s so cute.

Eito has a naturally handsome face, but when he’s sleeping, he looks a little more childlike.

“Fufu…”

On a whim, I reach out and gently stroke his hair.

It’s soft and silky and feels so good to touch.

Maybe I should start doing this more often.

“………………I see.”

Wait. Stroking his head – something so small – should I really be satisfied with just that?

Am I getting too caught up in the little things (okay, maybe not that little, but let’s just call them small for now) and missing out on something much bigger?

I need to calm down.

Yes, in moments like this, the most important thing is to stay calm, 天堂星音 (Tendou Hoshine).

Calmly, rationally, let’s evaluate the situation.

1. It’s night.
2. 影人 (Eito) is here.
3. We are lying on a bed.

“…………………………..I see.”

(We did a lot of exercise today because of the sports tournament…)

-Wait.

I’m not going to say what exactly, but…

Should I consider the possibility that something might happen just by chance, completely by chance, due to unavoidable circumstances, or some kind of mistake (not a mistake for me, though)?

“………..っ……”

My heart is pounding.

The sound of my heartbeat fills the silence.

I slowly lean in closer –

-And then I realize something.

I had taken a shower at the academy, but still… it bothered me. Just in case. Yes, just in case.

Not because I’ve got cold feet or anything. Absolutely not.

“All right.”

I shook off the irresistible comfort in one swift movement and got out of bed.

The sluggishness from earlier felt like a lie – my mind was fully awake now.

I had to take a bath.

There was no time to waste, so I’d have a light meal prepared in the meantime.

If my stomach growled at a crucial moment, it could ruin the atmosphere.

Time is of the essence. (And no matter what anyone says, this is absolutely the right thing to do.)

Before Eito wakes up…!

I washed myself as thoroughly and as quickly as I could, more carefully than I ever had in my life.

Had a light meal.

Brushed my teeth.

Then I slipped into my special nightgown (a delicate negligee) that I had secretly prepared just in case.

Now I returned to the battlefield.

All that remained was to slip back under the covers as if nothing had happened.

I had even prepared my lines.

Wow, what a surprise! I had absolutely no idea that Eito was here – it took me completely by surprise!

What a flawless performance.

Maybe I did have a hidden talent for acting after all…

“……Alright. It’s okay. I’m fine.”

At this point, embarrassment was definitely creeping in, but my determination overcame it.

I already loved him so much.

All I had to do was open that door and slide into bed.

And that’s it. Nothing more.

Just get into my own bed.

“Okay, I’m going in… Okay. I’m going in now! I’m going in on the count of three…! Three, two, one.”

“Ojou, are you going to bed?”

“That’s right. Well, more like I’m going back to bed. It’s a fight.”

“…? I see. You must be tired today, so please rest well.”

“Yes. Good night, Eito.”

Alright, time to reset.

On the count of three, two, one… this time for sure…!

Three… two…

One… ze… ro…

…………………………………………………。

“…………Eito?”

“Is something wrong, Ojou?”

“…………Are you awake?”

“Yes. Or rather, at some point I also fell asleep… my apologies.”

“I see… well, I don’t mind you sleeping, but…”

Looking closely, Eito had already changed out of his uniform into a shirt, and his hair seemed slightly damp.

“…………Eito, are you going to bed as well?”

“Ah, yes. I’ve already taken a bath and finished getting ready for bed.”

In other words, while I was awake, Eito had done the same things in parallel.

What a disaster! Just because I hesitated then…! Ah, no. That was a lie. I didn’t hesitate at all! It just happened that way!

“Well then, good night, Ojou.”

Eito bowed his head politely.

It seemed that my plan had failed. Ah… in the end, once again…

“Ah, yes… good night…”

As always, I was about to return to my own room when…

“…Wait.”

I had grabbed the hem of Eito’s shirt.

“Ojou?”

“I worked really hard today.”

“Yes, you did. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to see it first hand, but I really think you did an excellent job.”

“So give me a reward.”

I was fully aware that what I was saying was strange. But I felt that if I backed down as usual, I would never be able to move forward.

“You’re tired and I’m tired, so yes. Sleep with me. I feel like that would help me recover from the tiredness… Just stay by my side while I sleep, and that’ll be enough… Isn’t that okay?”

Such a request… It felt childish and embarrassing, but I couldn’t afford to worry about appearances.

“…Fufu.”

“Eito?”

For some reason, Eito smiled.

“Ah, my apologies. Ojou, you said the same thing in your sleep.”

“W-What?”

Unconsciously asking for a reward… What is that? It’s kind of embarrassing.

“If you don’t mind, I’ll be your body pillow to help you sleep peacefully.”

“I see… Yes. Then do that.”

Gathering my courage, I held out both hands – like a child asking to be carried.

“Hold me. Carry me to the bed.”

“As you wish, Ojou.”

Without hesitation, Eito quickly lifted me into his arms.

“This is your reward.”