Chapter 188: Christmas #2
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 188: Christmas #2
It was the day before Christmas Eve.
After dropping Miyuki off as usual, I headed to Chinami's apartment building.
I parked in a nearby public lot and looked up at the sky. It was already dark.
Even for winter, the sun seemed to have set especially fast today.
Pulling my coat tighter to shield my neck from the chilly wind, I walked along the sidewalk and sent Chinami a message.
[Master, are you free? I'm near your place right now.]
A reply came back a moment later.
[Oh! In that case, there's a small park across from the apartment building. Shall we meet there?]
[Okay. It's cold, so make sure you dress warmly before you come down.]
[I will. I'll be right there.]
Any conversation with Chinami, no matter the method, had a gentle feel to it.
Perhaps it was because of the way she spoke.
Letting out a small chuckle, I put my phone away and went to the park she mentioned.
The entrance was quite worn. Was this an old place?
It had a certain charm to it, which I liked.
Click.
As I was waiting for Chinami at the entrance, the streetlight directly above me turned on.
It flickered a few times before casting a steady white glow, enhancing the atmosphere.
I wonder if Chinami will like this when she sees me from a distance.
Thunk.
Just as I was thinking that, the streetlight went out again.
I let out a disbelieving laugh, shook off the thought, and waited quietly for Chinami.
How much time passed?
I was standing in the dim light, tapping my foot and waiting for Chinami to appear, when I glanced around.
“Yah!”
Chinami suddenly jumped under the streetlight where I was standing. I stared down at her, bewildered.
Why didn't I hear her footsteps? They must have been drowned out by the sound of passing cars.
Was my lukewarm reaction unexpected?
Chinami tilted her head and asked.
“Hmm? You weren't surprised?”
I may be a bit of a coward, but who would be surprised by that, from the line she used to her actions?
She was even wearing a pink hoodie.
She looked even weaker than some pathetic, comic-relief extra villain from a transforming hero show.
“Um... not really, no.”
“Hmph. I'll try harder next time.”
I doubt her efforts would make much of a difference, but well...
I decided not to crush her hopes with an unnecessary comment.
“I'll look forward to it. Shall we take a little walk?”
“Yes, I'd like that.”
We entered the park side by side.
There was almost no one inside.
It had a nice atmosphere, but I guess that's because there was nothing to see but trees and grass.
The weather was cold, too.
“Master.”
“Yes?”
Chinami, who had been walking ahead, turned her head at my call.
Her plump, firm butt, visible above her jeans, was alluring.
She was like a honeybee with its face buried in a flower, showing only its rear.
I beckoned for her to come over, and she approached with quick steps, stopping in front of me.
Sensing the sudden shift in the atmosphere, she fidgeted, tucking her hands into her hoodie sleeves.
I gave her a bright smile and asked.
“What's wrong?”
Chinami's body shivered.
It seemed she liked the sound of my low, deep voice.
Miyuki, Renka, Chinami—they all loved this low tone of mine. I wonder if I was blessed or something.
“Oh, it's nothing...”
Nothing, my ass.
You're having weird thoughts again, aren't you?
Seeing her bring the cuff of her sleeve to her mouth and nibble on it, I was certain she was having lewd fantasies.
“Could you come a little closer?”
At my words, Chinami took a step forward.
It was such a tiny step that it was barely noticeable.
With a faint smile, I closed the distance myself until I was right in front of her. I gently tapped the tip of her nose, which was red from the cold, with my finger.
Then, I carefully pulled her into a hug and said.
“I'm a very greedy man.”
“...Yes... I think you are...”
“Why do you think so?”
“Well... because you said so yourself, junior...?”
I pulled Chinami, who gave a quirky but very her-like answer, fully into my embrace and zipped up my coat around her.
“Mmph...”
She let out a strange sound and squirmed.
After trying and failing to break free, she resigned herself and buried her face in my chest.
I gently rested my chin on top of her head, which was peeking out from between the collars of my coat.
“Do you want to hang out with me and Miyuki on Christmas?”
“...On Christmas...?”
“Yes.”
“With Hanazawa-san...?”
“Yes.”
“Why...? Aren't you two going to hang out alone...?”
“As I said, I'm a greedy man. Don't make any plans for that day.”
“.....”
“Got it?”
“Ca-can I think about it and let you know...?”
They seemed to have gotten quite close since they started messaging each other privately...
Is she thinking of asking Miyuki first?
Whatever the case, it's a good thing for me if they get closer.
“You can do that.”
“Okay...”
With Miyuki, I'd broached the topic of her preferences through the absurd method of watching porn, and it somehow worked, but I couldn't do that with Chinami.
I decided to focus on naturally guiding the atmosphere in that direction.
I don't know if this will be a total miss or a decent shot.
It's not like I can read women's minds, so I can't always make the best choice.
But I think it's better to push forward with my own will than to waste time hesitating over what to do.
My head hurts.
I just want to enjoy Christmas without a care in the world, but there's too much to think about.
I hate complicated things like this, but what can I do?
My goal is to build a harem somehow, without any of the 'distribution' or 'abandonment' endings common in rom-coms... To do that, I have to become more selfish, more daring.
* * *
The next day, during PE class.
I grumbled internally at the teacher who sent us out to the field to play ball on such a cold day. I went to the bleachers in the corner and flopped down.
Then I watched Miyuki and her friends play volleyball.
They say pretty girls only hang out with other pretty girls, and they're right.
Bread Girl is gloomy and a bit dazed, but she has the vibe of a frail, beautiful girl. The vice class president looks like she'd be quite refreshing if she just took off her glasses...
The rest of them were also above average in looks.
It's a shame their gym uniforms aren't bloomers, but making them wear those in winter could cause health problems, so I'll let it slide.
As I was comfortably watching the girls play volleyball,
Whoosh-!
A basketball flew toward me in a high arc. I smirked.
It would be a shame if DokiAka, which is packed with every old cliché, didn't have an event like this.
The problem was that it wasn't a ball accidentally hit by the girls, but one from the boys.
Thwack-!
I casually swatted the ball away with my arm, got up, and looked at the boys playing basketball near the hoop.
“What was that?”
The group exchanged glances, and then Tetsuya scratched the back of his head, walked up to the bleachers, and offered an apology.
“Sorry... I was passing and...”
How hard do you have to pass for the ball to fly all the way to the bleachers, which are a good meter higher than the hoop?
Don't tell me this bastard... threw it on purpose?
He's always doing weird shit, so that's the first suspicion that comes to mind.
If he really did do it on purpose, then Tetsuya is basically volunteering for the role of an extra.
Throwing a stray ball to mess with the protagonist, only for the protagonist to easily catch it or bat it away...
That's exactly the kind of thing an extra who's jealous of the perfect protagonist would do.
I picked up the ball that had bounced off the bleacher wall and rolled to a stop, then tossed it to Tetsuya.
“Be careful. What would you have done if I was sleeping?”
“Sorry, I'll be more careful next time.”
“Right.”
After my indifferent reply, I lay back down on the bleachers. Tetsuya bounced the ball between his hands like he was juggling before throwing it back to his classmates.
Then he tried to sit down next to my head.
“Move your ass. It stinks.”
At my blatant display of disgust, Tetsuya's expression soured.
He opened and closed his mouth as if he had something to say, but in the end, he just sighed and headed back to the basketball court.
He's not adding any of his usual irritating remarks today.
Did he have a change of heart after Miyuki told him she had Christmas plans with me?
No, I shouldn't expect that level of common sense from Tetsuya.
“Matsuda-kun, get up.”
Miyuki's voice reached my ears as I was lying with my eyes closed, passing the meaningless time.
I lazily stretched an arm up, and Miyuki let out a dry laugh before grunting as she pulled on my arm to help me up.
Afterward, she wiped the sweat from her forehead with a handkerchief and sat down next to me, her thighs pressed together.
“What were you talking about with Tetsuya-kun?”
“We weren't talking about anything.”
“But he was saying something to you.”
“Were you stalking me?”
“What do you mean, stalking...! My eyes just naturally went there...”
“Why did your eyes go there?”
“Because you were lying on the bleachers on a cold day.”
“What's wrong with that?”
“It's not exactly a normal thing to do, is it? The ground must be freezing...”
“That's true. Is volleyball over?”
“Yeah. We won.”
“Good job. You didn't make any bets or anything, did you?”
At that, Miyuki gave a weak laugh and shook her head.
“The others mentioned it, but I told them we shouldn't.”
“Why?”
“Of course, a bet would make it more fun and we'd play more passionately... but things could get heated. Christmas is the day after tomorrow. What if someone gets hurt?”
My Miyuki is always so thoughtful.
She's a person who knows how to give.
“But, Matsuda-kun.”
Miyuki's tone dropped slightly.
It seemed she wanted to talk about something serious. I should listen carefully.
“Yeah.”
“You remember the promise about 'just once,' right?”
The context was missing, but I knew instantly.
She was talking about the threesome.
I looked at her with a serious gaze and replied.
“I know.”
“Okay... then that's fine.”
Miyuki patted my thigh a couple of times, checked the time, and then started telling the other students to put the balls away.
The fact that Miyuki brought this up today... means she has also steeled her resolve.
I'll remind myself again: after the threesome is over, I'll have to be extra nice to her for a while.
Then again, have I ever not been nice to her?