They strolled leisurely across the fine, velvet-soft sand, sampling an assortment of miscellaneous snacks as they went. The beach was lined with vibrant stalls, their shelves bursting with a dizzying array of delicacies that had everyone eating with gusto.
"Shuichi, try this takoyaki!" Yukiko chirped, holding up a steaming skewer of octopus balls to Hayashi Shuichi's lips.
He reached out to take the bamboo skewer, but Yukiko playfully jerked her hand back. With a mischievous glint in her eyes, she hovered the snack back in front of his mouth.
Shuichi stole a quick glance at Eri Kisaki. Seeing her fully absorbed in a nearby goldfish-scooping stall, he quickly leaned in and took a bite.
"Well? Is it delicious?" Yukiko asked, pulling the skewer back to enjoy the rest herself.
"Onii-chan..." Reiko, having witnessed the exchange, wasn't about to be outdone. She thrust her candied apple toward her brother's face. "Try some of mine too!"
"It's too sweet, I—"
Shuichi started to refuse, but then he saw the look on the young girl's face. It practically screamed: 'You'll eat Yukiko-san's food, but not mine?' Left with no choice, he sighed and took a small nibble.
"Hee-hee!" Reiko beamed, satisfied, and went back to happily munching on her treat.
"...Senpai, please try this as well." Gathering her courage, Midori Orikasa handed Shuichi a skewer of grilled squid.
Given the precedents set by Yukiko and Reiko, Shuichi found it impossible to say no. He reached out to take it, but just as he was about to take a bite, a head suddenly popped up beside him and tore off a large chunk of the squid meat.
It was Chikage Tomizawa. She chewed the squid thoughtfully, nodding in evaluation. "Hmm, not bad. It's a bit bland, though. It would be better with more sauce."
So that's an option too, huh...
Yukiko, Reiko, and Midori stared at her, momentarily stunned by the bold move.
"Tastes good, doesn't it?" Eri Kisaki turned around, giving Shuichi a pointed, slightly annoyed glare.
She wasn't deaf. Even though she had been watching the little girl scoop goldfish, she had heard every bit of the girls' competitive feeding session.
"It's... it's alright," Shuichi replied with an awkward smile, reflexively looking around for a way to change the subject.
His eyes fell on Akane Koizumi. Seeing his gaze, the apprentice witch immediately scrambled to hide the dango in her hand behind her back. "What are you looking at? I'm not giving you mine!"
Shuichi gave her a speechless look. "Who said I wanted your dango? I was going to ask where the others went."
"Kogoro and Ruri went off to enjoy some 'private time,'" Eri said tonelessly. "Narumi and Rei went to play as well. Don't tell me you didn't notice?"
Shuichi let out a dry laugh. Noticing that the night was deepening and the beachgoers were beginning to thin out, he quickly finished the last of the squid. "Alright, it's getting late. Let's go find Kogoro and the others. It's time to head back to the hotel."
Upon returning to the hotel, the room assignments were announced. The girls didn't have many objections, even if things were a bit cramped for Reiko, Chikage, and Yukiko.
However, the mood shifted the moment they learned Shuichi would be sharing a room with Narumi. The girls' expressions became... complicated.
Reiko bit her lower lip, nervously fidgeting with her fingers. Yukiko's eyes widened in surprise, while even the usually composed Eri Kisaki knit her brows slightly.
"Onii-chan..." Reiko tugged at Shuichi's sleeve, casting a hesitant glance at Narumi, who stood nearby. "Is this... really okay?"
Shuichi tilted his head. "What's the problem?"
"Well... Narumi-kun is..." Reiko stammered, unable to find the right words.
Seeing her struggle, Yukiko jumped in. "How about letting Rei and Narumi share a room? They're about the same age, after all..."
Shuichi frowned, his gaze sweeping over the group. "Rei and Narumi are still just kids. Besides, you all know Narumi's physical condition."
He slowed his speech, making sure every word carried weight. "If there's an emergency in the middle of the night, who's going to take care of him?"
His logic was sound, and the girls found themselves unable to argue further.
Eri, the only one among them who had shared a truly intimate bond with Shuichi, reminded him with a flat expression: "Just... don't do anything inappropriate to Narumi."
"I'm not a predator, what could I possibly do to him?" Shuichi threw up his hands in exasperation before turning to Narumi.
He found the boy's face flushed a deep crimson. Narumi was staring intensely at the tips of his own toes, his slender fingers tightly gripping the hem of his shirt. Under the hallway lights, his delicate features looked even more feminine than most girls'. It was no wonder Eri and the others were worried.
"Alright, enough worrying," Shuichi said, rubbing his temples tiredly. "It's been a long day. Everyone should get some rest."
As they split off into their respective rooms, Reiko pulled on Chikage's arm, still uneasy. "Chikage-san, Narumi-kun is definitely a boy, right?"
"Why are you asking that?" Chikage laughed.
"Well, you're the one who usually looks after him. Haven't you ever... seen anything?" Yukiko whispered.
"You guys are unbelievable..." Chikage shook her head, half-amused and half-exasperated. "I'm not a pervert. Why would I be looking at things like that?"
"So, you're saying you're not 100% sure?" Ruri chimed in.
"The hospital gives him physical exams every single day," Chikage replied, her voice full of helpless logic. "It's impossible for them to get something as simple as gender wrong, isn't it?"
That answer seemed to satisfy them, and the girls finally let their suspicions rest.
"Even though he's a boy, he's actually cuter than most girls," Midori sighed. "Narumi-kun really was born in the wrong body."
"It might be because of the environment he grew up in," Chikage said, her tone softening with sympathy. "Ever since he was born, he's spent most of his life in the hospital without his parents around. That's likely why he's developed such a shy and timid personality."
Meanwhile, inside their room, Shuichi efficiently pulled off his T-shirt, revealing a lean, well-built torso.
As he sat on the edge of the bed to remove his trousers, he noticed Narumi frozen like a statue by the door. The boy's pale face was bright red, his eyes were glued to the floor, and even the tips of his ears were stained a deep pink.
"Hey," Shuichi couldn't help but chuckle. "You haven't actually started thinking you're a girl, have you?"
"...I—I'm a boy!" Narumi mumbled in response.
"Then what's there to be shy about?"
Shuichi walked over to him and crouched down to meet his eyes. "When Kogoro and I were your age, we used to run around the bathhouse together all the time. Between men, there's nothing wrong with being a little open with one another, right?"
The tips of Narumi's ears looked ready to bleed. "But... the nurses at the hospital..."
"They tease you a lot, don't they?" Shuichi asked knowingly.
The boy gave a small, hesitant nod, his soft hair swaying with the movement. "They... they always say I'm cuter than a girl..."
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