Adele's Taste
Tania, sitting beside me, looked over with worried eyes.
"Eli… are you okay?"
"I'm not okay…."
My entire body was aching from the workout I'd done with Cecilia the night before.
If you only heard that two beautiful women had spent the night sweating through a workout together… it might sound like some beautiful, happy situation. But the reality had been nothing but training so brutal I'd nearly thrown up midway through.
On top of the aftereffects of the exercise, my body was still carrying a heavy load of fatigue from clearing out one of Bind's branch offices alone just a few days ago.
"I feel like I'm dying…."
"Want me to grab you something to drink?"
Adele, who'd been quietly watching from the side, poked my cheek with her cool fingertip as I lay slumped over the desk.
"No… I'm fi—"
"I'll pick up some Koko-chi on the way, too."
"I'll come with—ack…."
At the mere mention of Koko-chi I shot upright—only for my lower back and thighs to scream in protest, sending me collapsing right back down.
Cecilia-sensei… last night's workout was way too intense…….
Watching me, Adele let out a soft laugh and stood.
"I'll just go buy them myself."
Then she strolled out of the classroom at a leisurely pace.
Koko-chi… how many would she get? Adele had good sense, so she'd bring at least two, right?
As I watched Adele's retreating figure, Tania—who'd been fidgeting beside me—spoke up.
"Eli, um… want me to work out some of those knots for you?"
"Huh? You don't have to…"
"No! I want to!"
"Well, if you insist……."
I gave a small nod, and Tania lit up with a bright smile, hopping up and moving behind me. Her slender fingers settled on my shoulders and began kneading with earnest care.
"Oh… ooooh…… that feels so good…."
It felt far better than I'd expected—cool and wonderful. The hands working my shoulders slowly traveled down to knead the tight muscles in my arms. Every touch carried a consideration and delicacy meant just for me.
The hands that had been caressing my arms rose again; with one, she gently lifted my hair and began working the back of my neck. Watching it all in the hand mirror on my desk made me feel a little bad, so I offered to hold my own hair and gathered it back with both hands as if tying it up. I didn't usually wear my hair tied, so without a hair tie I had no choice but to keep holding it.
With freer hands, she pressed firmly into the back of my neck, then slowly worked her way down toward the upper part of my chest. Those hands descended with a faint tremble, carefully pressing the area above my chest, then working the muscles around it. In the mirror I could see Tania's face—flushed red, fidgeting, wearing the cutest expression—and a smile rose to my lips unbidden.
Seeing that reaction made me want to tease her, so I deliberately let out a soft "Nnh." and gave a little shiver. Tania jumped and froze.
"What's wrong…? Keep going."
I turned my head slightly to look at her, and she nodded with a face even redder than before, resuming her hands. Then, watching my expression carefully, she asked in a careful voice:
"Eli… does it feel good……?"
"Yeah…. So will you keep going?"
"Y-yeah!"
Of course, part of saying that was wanting to tease Tania—but it was also because her massage really did feel incredible. Every time I let out a soft nasal sound and shivered, her startled little jumps were just too cute. Like a hamster that had been surprised? With reactions like that, how was I supposed to stop teasing her!
If only I could capture that startled expression in a photo…. The fact that both my hands were currently occupied holding my hair was a real tragedy. If only someone would take a picture for me….
Rattle!
Just as I was feeling that regret, Adele opened the door, returning with drinks and Koko-chi. Startled, Tania yanked her hands away and stepped back, and Adele tilted her head.
"Why so flustered? What were you doing?"
"Nothing much…."
Tania looked away and tried to play it off, so I answered for her.
"Tania was giving me a massage."
"Was she? Hmm…."
Setting the boxed Koko-chi and drinks on the desk, Adele shot Tania a sidelong glance and smirked.
"Must've felt good."
"Yeah."
Though my body had gotten a little warm for some reason.
Humming under my breath, I opened the lid of the Koko-chi box—and six skewers met my eyes. They looked like… chickens dancing at a ball in red fried-batter dresses.
"They're beautiful…!"
Fighting back tears of emotion, I carefully asked Adele:
"So… two each, then?"
"No."
"Huh…?"
At that voice cold enough to freeze, I looked at her in confusion. Adele gazed back with a sly face and said something I could barely believe.
"These are all yours, Elysia."
"Adele……!"
I called her name in a voice thick with emotion, and she smiled softly. It was the smile of an angel who'd descended from heaven just to bring me Koko-chi. Beautiful…!
"I love you!"
"Huh?"
I heard Adele make a startled sound beside me, but right then I didn't have the bandwidth to care about her reaction. After all—there were six Koko-chi right in front of me!
I carefully picked up one skewer and put it in my mouth.
And in that moment, heaven opened.
Even after being carried all the way from the shop, they were still crispy and warm. I could almost see Adele running all the way here with Koko-chi just for me.
Therefore, this was the taste of Adele.
Adele tasted delicious!
The taste of Adele was so beautiful that I ate in a rush, and before I knew it three of them had vanished into my stomach. But there was no need to feel sad. I still had three Koko-chi left.
But first—a drink…! I'd eaten so many skewers that my throat felt stuck….
How did she know I was looking for a drink? Before I knew it, Adele had already opened the bottle and was holding it out to me. I accepted it gratefully and downed it in one go!
Fwoooosh!
The refreshing drink surged in like a tidal wave. Gulp. Gulp. The sharp carbonation swept through my mouth and throat, leaving a pleasant tingle, and that ice-cold sensation felt like it blasted my insides wide open.
"Haaaaah……."
The world was this beautiful. There was Koko-chi to make my tongue happy, and carbonated drinks to clear my clogged throat and stomach. Wasn't that alone enough reason to keep living in this world?
This was life. This was youth.
As I nodded, savoring that moving flavor, Tania smiled softly beside me and asked:
"Eli. Is it that good?"
"Yeah! Want one?"
"Huh? Really?"
Of course. It wasn't just anyone—it was Tania! I could share as much as she wanted! Besides… I had so many Koko-chi right now! I was rich!
Huh? Why was there only one left?
As I stared blankly at the Koko-chi box, Adele smirked beside me.
"You ate them all, you idiot."
"Ah."
I'd been eating in such a trance I hadn't even kept track of how many I'd had. I stared at Tania, and she laughed "Ahaha…" and waved her hands to indicate she wouldn't take any.
Why wouldn't she eat it? I couldn't understand….
When I picked up the last remaining skewer, sadness suddenly washed over me. This was the last one… how could it be so bittersweet. It still felt like nowhere near enough. Of course six wasn't a small amount. It was actually a lot. But the regret was unavoidable.
"Haa……."
Why was life so empty?
As I let out a sigh full of lament, Tania—watching from the side—carefully spoke up.
"Um… if you're still hungry, couldn't we just go buy more later?"
"Huh?"
Was Tania a genius by any chance?
Besides, a few days ago when I'd cleared one of Bind's branch offices, the Association had paid me a hefty commission, so I wasn't short on money. With this much, I could buy a thousand Koko-chi and still have some left.
I was rich!
As I beamed a happy smile and started on the last skewer, laughter rose from both sides. Why were they laughing? Puzzled, I kept eating, and Adele and Tania both started ruffling my hair.
They say you don't mess with a dog while it's eating!
But I wasn't a dog, so I didn't get mad. If anything, I should be grateful that beautiful girls of Tania and Adele's caliber were petting my head…!
And so I was able to enjoy an utterly blissful Koko-chi time.
"Alright, let's go buy more Koko-chi now!"
The instant I finished the last skewer I shot to my feet and shouted—and Tania and Adele both looked up at me with expressions of pure disbelief.
"No, you just ate… going to buy more right away is a bit…"
"She's right, Eli. How about we go after Academy ends?"
"Hiiing…."