Megumi Kato, who had barely eaten anything all day, caught the fragrance of the wontons. Her stomach, which had gone numb from extreme hunger and could no longer even feel hungry, suddenly remembered what hunger was. It let out an adorable gurgle in protest.
"Ah... my stomach growling in front of you, Kotomi—how embarrassing," Megumi said, her pretty face flushing red, unable to hide her shyness.
"Ehehehe. My stomach has growled in front of you so many times already. Even though I never said it out loud, I always felt embarrassed inside. Now that your stomach has growled once in front of me, I finally feel a little more balanced."
Kotomi Izumi chuckled mischievously, then urged her,
"Alright, hurry and eat. I honestly admire how you managed to survive almost a whole day without food. If I skip even one meal, I feel half-dead. Ah, chew slowly—don't eat so fast. I was full before I came. I'm not going to fight you for your wontons."
Hearing Kotomi's words, Megumi couldn't help but smile knowingly.
"This feels so strange."
"What feels strange?"
"You reminding me to chew slowly. Honestly, I never imagined there would come a day when you'd be the one reminding me to eat more slowly. Before, it was always me telling you to slow down while eating. Today it's completely reversed~"
Megumi laughed happily, looking nothing like the girl who had almost slipped into darkness just moments ago.
It was as if the Creator loved playing jokes. If Kotomi Izumi's scummy personality was perfectly concealed and never allowed Megumi to notice or grow suspicious, everything would be fine. But the moment Megumi began to doubt her, it would inevitably push Megumi toward darkness. And yet, paradoxically, Kotomi was also Megumi's salvation—always able to pull her back from the edge of corruption, or even from within it.
Love is something no one truly understands. Love is an eternal melody. Love is the process of laughter and tears falling together. Love was once me, and it was you...
Love is the highest form of redemption!
"It proves I'm no longer that silly girl who needs you to remind her even to chew slowly..." Kotomi said softly, smiling as she looked at Megumi.
Megumi, who had been eating contentedly, suddenly set down her wontons after hearing that. In a low voice, she said,
"Don't..."
"Hm?"
Kotomi looked up at her in confusion.
"I still like you better when you're a little silly... I'm not against you changing. It's just that when I think about your personality becoming unfamiliar, I feel uneasy."
Megumi lowered her head as she spoke quietly. Compared to her usual tone, there was now an indescribable trace of humility in her voice.
Kotomi froze for a moment, then smiled silently. She leaned closer and whispered gently into Megumi's ear,
"Don't worry, silly Megumi. I absolutely won't change at all!"
As if to reassure her further, Kotomi pressed her cherry lips lightly against Megumi's cheek, leaving behind a soft kiss.
"Mm!"
That kiss seemed to carry some kind of magic. It dispelled the unease in Megumi's heart, swept away her doubts.
That's right. I should trust Kotomi more. She has never once lied to me before. What she said at noon was only because she wanted to surprise me. Her love for me is so sincere, so devoted. I need to trust her more too. I can't keep being this suspicious all the time.
Come to think of it, the other girls who like Kotomi seem to be Aimi, Mashiro, and Arisu Sakayanagi. Yukino's personality is too cold. At a glance, she doesn't seem to have any interest in Kotomi.
Yui... there's always been something strange between Yui and Kotomi. Especially when I called her yesterday—the way Yui addressed Kotomi... tch. It looks like I'll need to have a private talk with Yui sometime.
Aimi is too weak to even worry about. No need to take her seriously at all. When I have time, I'll buy some fluorescent green yarn and knit her a green sweater and a green knitted hat.
As for Mashiro, it's strange. She secretly saw Kotomi kissing me in the art classroom last time. I thought she'd react somehow, but up until now she's been completely quiet, as if nothing ever happened. With how absentminded she is... could it be she actually forgot?
As for Arisu Sakayanagi... tch. She's a troublesome opponent. There were several times when I could clearly feel killing intent from her toward me. But I haven't seen her at school recently. Could it be that she realized she couldn't beat me, felt inferior, admitted defeat, and transferred to another school?
Megumi thought to herself while eating her wontons.
Soon, she finished the bowl. She set it down comfortably and let out a long breath.
"Ah... I feel energized all of a sudden. I guess three meals a day really should be eaten on time."
"You should learn from me. I eat five meals a day—breakfast, lunch, dinner, plus afternoon tea and a midnight snack."
As she said that, Kotomi let out a proud little hmph, looking unbearably smug.
"My appetite isn't big. But after we get married, if you like eating like that, then I'll improve my cooking skills. I can already do a bit of frying, stir-frying, boiling, and deep-frying. But for afternoon tea, desserts are the best match. Hmm... I guess I'll need to learn baking. I remember downloading some baking tutorials onto my tablet before."
Megumi spoke slowly. She had lost count of how many times she had imagined their married life together in her heart.
"I have a feeling that after we get married, you'll raise me into a useless little idiot," Kotomi said awkwardly, tugging at the corner of her mouth.
"Wouldn't that be nice?" Megumi asked in return, as if that had been her plan all along.
"Silly Megumi..."
Kotomi shyly averted her gaze, unwilling to continue the topic. The little scum—no, the broad-hearted young lady Kotomi—wasn't quite ready to dive too deeply into discussions about marriage.
To change the subject naturally, Kotomi stood up and gathered the plastic bowl, plastic bag, disposable chopsticks, and everything left from Megumi's meal.
"When I leave in a bit, I'll throw this away for you on my way out."
"Eh? You're leaving, Kotomi?" Megumi instinctively grabbed the hem of Kotomi's skirt, reluctant to let go.
Having just experienced Kotomi's tenderness, Megumi only wanted to sink deeper into it. She wanted Kotomi to stay longer. She didn't want her to leave.
"Yeah. I'm planning to head back to Kyoto before dawn. Yukino and Yui are still in Kyoto, after all."
Kotomi Izumi shrugged and reached out to stroke Megumi Kato's hair, comforting her as she said,
"I used the excuse of visiting my third uncle and aunt to fool Yui and Yukino at noon. If I don't go back tonight, I can still explain it away by saying something like, 'It was too late last night, and my third uncle and aunt didn't feel safe letting me return to the hotel alone, so they asked me to stay over.' But if I don't go back tomorrow morning, Yukino and Yui will definitely worry. Be good, Megumi~"
Let them worry if they want. What does that have to do with us? You're my girlfriend! Megumi shouted inwardly. But her rationality stopped the words that were about to spill out. She knew that if she said something like that, it would only make Kotomi troubled.
"Alright... when you get back to Kyoto, remember to call me..." Megumi muttered softly, her hand gradually loosening its grip on Kotomi's skirt.
"Mm. I promise you. Let's make it 10 a.m. I'll definitely call you on time this time."
Kotomi nodded in agreement. To keep Megumi from overthinking, she deliberately added,
"I chose 10 a.m. because I want you to sleep in properly. It's already past midnight. If you don't sleep in a little, will you really be okay?"
"Okay... then you have to call me at 10 a.m. And make it a video call!"
Megumi nodded. Even though Kotomi had rushed back to Chiba overnight and pulled her back from the edge of darkness, the possessiveness growing in Megumi's heart toward Kotomi had not faded.
If anything, it had grown heavier.
Kotomi reached out again to stroke Megumi's hair. Perhaps it was because she was still dating Yui Yuigahama. Ever since she started going out with Yui, Kotomi had developed a habit of patting people's heads when comforting or encouraging them. It almost felt like she was praising a puppy.
She couldn't even remember when she had picked up this habit. She definitely hadn't done it before.
But no matter when it started, it was clearly after she began dating Yui Yuigahama.
Megumi closed her eyes. She didn't know when Kotomi had started liking head pats so much, but she still enjoyed the feeling.
Of course, that was under the assumption that she didn't know Kotomi was secretly in a relationship with Yui.
"It's late. You should get some rest," Kotomi said.
She picked up the plastic bag beside her, preparing to leave. Earlier, successfully jumping from the ground up to the windowsill had given Kotomi a great sense of accomplishment. Now that she was leaving, she planned to jump down from the windowsill again.
In short—she was addicted to jumping.
Don't be fooled by how airheaded Kotomi Izumi could seem. There had once been a time when she was obsessed with watching parkour videos and fantasized about being a parkour master herself.
"Kotomi..."
Megumi suddenly grabbed Kotomi's wrist, her cheeks flushed red.
"I still want to kiss a little longer... i-is that okay?"
Kotomi froze for a moment. Then, after realizing what she meant, a gentle smile curved across her lips. She set the plastic bag aside and stepped into Megumi's arms of her own accord, wrapping her arms around Megumi's neck. On her lovely face—equal parts cute and alluring—appeared a bewitching smile.
"Of course, my wife~"
Before she could finish speaking, Megumi sealed her lips.
This kiss—who knew how long it would last?
And who knew whether this kiss might naturally lead them beyond something as simple as just kissing?
After a long while, Kotomi gently stroked Megumi's short hair, her gaze tender as she looked at Megumi, who had fallen asleep in her arms.
Megumi had indeed intended to start with a kiss and let things escalate naturally...
But unexpectedly, once she was full, drowsiness followed. Before she could wrap her arms around Kotomi's slender waist and lift her up, the overwhelming wave of sleep swept over her. In the blink of an eye, she had drifted into peaceful slumber.
There was a trace of affection in Kotomi's eyes, along with a hint of grievance. She had already prepared herself...
And yet Megumi had fallen asleep.
Kotomi's "appetite" was far from small. Even though just a few hours ago she had enjoyed a sumptuous "meal" from Ayani Kika—who was roughly the size of a small watermelon—after passionately kissing Megumi, she found herself a little hungry again.
"Sigh... let's just rest properly tonight."
Kotomi gently lifted Megumi and carefully placed her on the bed, adjusting her head on the pillow. She took a cotton quilt from the cabinet and covered Megumi, tucking in the corners with meticulous care. Every movement was light, afraid of waking her by accident.
After finishing, Kotomi nodded in satisfaction and pressed a fleeting, dragonfly-light kiss to Megumi's cherry lips.
"Good night, Megumi. I love you."
After thinking for a moment, Kotomi picked up a ballpoint pen and a pink heart-shaped sticky note from the desk. She wrote a sentence on it:
[Eat three meals a day on time! —Your future little wife, Kotomi Izumi]
After writing, she paused, then drew a small penguin at the end, tossing tiny hearts into the air.
[Picture: A little penguin blowing hearts]
Once finished, Kotomi stuck the heart-shaped note to Megumi's bedside table. Only then did she feel at ease enough to leave.
She first drew the curtains for Megumi. Then, standing behind them, she opened the window and climbed onto the windowsill. After closing the window securely, Kotomi leapt down.
However, perhaps because she was feeling a little smug—and because her legs were still slightly weak after all that kissing—she made a small miscalculation. After landing, she stumbled forward several steps.
Fortunately, she managed to steady herself in time. One more step and she would have stepped right onto a little black cat sleeping by the roadside.
Kotomi patted her skirt, glanced toward her own home not far away, and smiled.
"Flying back from Kyoto to Chiba overnight, and now I have to rush back to Kyoto again. Looking toward home before leaving... it feels kind of... I don't know how to describe it. I just want to go home sooner, I guess."
Stretching lazily, she tossed the plastic bag into a street-side trash can and walked back the way she had come.
"So sleepy. I'll sleep as soon as I get on the plane, and once I land, I'll head straight back to Harugamo Inn. But it's so late... maybe after getting back to Kyoto, I'll crash at Kika's place for a bit. No, she's probably already asleep..."
Before she could finish muttering to herself, her phone chimed with a message notification.
Kotomi took it out and saw that it was a text from Ayani Kika.
Ayani Kika: [I'm not asleep yet.]
"Eh?"
Kotomi stared at the message, feeling as if a ring of little question marks was circling above her head.
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