A New Morning, One Step Forward
Waking up, I was startled to find a face filling my entire field of vision, but I managed to swallow the scream that had risen to my throat. Lilith's sleeping face, breathing softly with her eyes closed. The Lilith who always looked so mature now seemed... adorable.
Staring blankly at her, last night's "meal" with Lilith came to mind. 'Right. That was just a meal. Not a ki...ss. A meal.' I tried to hypnotize myself, rationalizing it away. Naturally, my gaze drifted to her glossy lips. Morning sunlight, slipping past the magic curtain that had opened on its own, made her lips gleam like fresh blood. Looking at those tempting lips, a strange impulse took hold of me. Carefully, so as not to wake her, I raised my hand and brought it to her lips. Her warm breath passed between my fingers, and finally they touched those red curves. 'Whoa...' Her lips felt astonishingly soft and warm, as if all the morning dew had gathered there. Even the way they shifted and reflected light under my touch was beautiful, and I found myself staring, entranced.
...Which is why I didn't notice.
"Nom~" Her lips, which had been quietly accepting my touch, suddenly parted and bit down on my index finger.
"Wah!!" I flinched in surprise, and my eyes met Lilith's. She winked playfully.
"D-did you wake up?"
"Mm-hm."
"Since when..."
Instead of answering, Lilith sucked on my finger. "Ugh, sorry for teasing you." Still holding my finger between her teeth, Lilith tilted her head, as if she didn't understand what I was apologizing for. Her eyes sparkled with mischief.
"I, um... I'm sorry for playing with your lips while you were asleep..."
At that, Lilith smiled and gently patted my head. Then...
"Ugh! Lilith?! Why the tongue all of a sudden!?" A ticklish sensation ran along my finger, sending shivers down my spine. After licking a few more times, she sucked hard like it was candy and released it with a pop.
"Naughty finger~"
"...I'm sorry."
"If you're going to do it..." Lilith suddenly closed the distance and whispered right by my lips. "Do it with these lips. Then I'll let it slide."
Her sweet, hot breath washed over me, making the top of my head feel warm. I quickly pulled back. "D-did you sleep well, Lilith?"
My reaction earned me a mischievous, smiling gaze. "Thanks to you."
"Ugh..." She was clearly in the mood to keep teasing me. I needed to change the subject somehow—
*Gurgle*
"......"
"......"
God, how embarrassing.
"Hehe, hungry? Want the same thing as yesterday?"
Yesterday... that Old One Roast? "Uh... it seems like it would be hard for you to hunt, so maybe we could just eat whatever's here?"
"It's not really hard. They're just a little annoying because they don't die easily."
"Then—"
"It was delicious, right?"
My words caught in my throat. There was only one answer to that question. "...Yes."
"I'll go catch another one."
Lilith really didn't seem to like the idea of me doing anything myself. She sprang up, spun once in place, and her wrinkled dress from sleeping instantly straightened out. "I'll be right back. It won't take long this time..." Lilith snapped her fingers. "Don't cry, hehe." With those words, she vanished in an instant, just like yesterday.
'...She's going to tease me about this until I die.' I couldn't believe I'd done that. I was starting to resent yesterday's version of myself.
----
The fresh(?) Old One Roast Lilith brought back was delicious today as well. Though I did break into a sweat trying to stop her from feeding me by hand.
"Then, shall I have my meal too?"
Lilith's hair wriggled toward me. Remembering yesterday, I quickly waved my hands. "You don't have to tie me up!"
"Hmm, not into that kind of thing, I see."
"...I have no idea what you're talking about."
"You don't need to know. *Slurp*..." Lilith's red, snake-like tongue flicked out and licked her lips. I glanced over and saw saliva glistening at the corner of her mouth.
...She must be really hungry.
"Well then..." I reached out and cupped Lilith's cheek. Her eyes widened, as if she hadn't expected me to approach first. Soon her eyes softened into a captivating smile. Lilith closed her eyes and waited without moving, clearly hoping I would kiss her myself.
'This... doing it myself is making me really nervous.' My heart pounded shamelessly as I looked at the lips waiting for me. Because of our slight height difference, I rose onto my tiptoes and slowly brought my lips to hers. Lilith's breath tickled my skin. Finally, our lips met, and a wave of heat passed over to me.
"Mmph...!" As if she'd been waiting, Lilith leaned her weight toward me. For a brief moment I felt the heaviness, but her hair supported my waist, allowing me to focus entirely on her.
"Hnn..." Our lips rubbed together. Before long, Lilith's tongue tapped against my lips. The moment I understood and parted them, she pressed forward as if diving in. *Smooch!* That cool sensation from yesterday returned, and Lilith's eyes lost focus.
"Haa... *kiss*... *suck*..." Except for the brief moments she pulled away to breathe, she stayed glued to me. Just like yesterday, Lilith's personality seemed to completely change while she was "eating." She still felt mature, but that usual warm affection inside her maturity was replaced by a strange sensuality during meals.
"Tashy~"
...And every time she pulled away, her mumbled, lisping words carried an unbearable cuteness. As we kissed, our bodies gradually tilted backward until we were nearly lying down, but Lilith's hair held firm, maintaining the strange position. With a mix of gratitude and a bit of selfishness, I opened my mouth for her and found myself glancing past Lilith without thinking. The clock in view read 8:40.
Huh? Today was definitely...
"Mmph!!" I urgently patted Lilith's back, but—
"Mmm..." Instead of pulling away, Lilith only clung tighter.
"Lilith, wake— mmph!" Lilith sealed my mouth with her own to stop me from speaking. Left with no choice, I pushed her face away with my palms.
"Mmm, whyyy~"
At my intense resistance, Lilith's eyes regained some clarity, and she obediently let herself be pushed despite my relatively weak strength. Catching my breath after the intense meal, I spoke. "I-I have to go to school."
"...Huh?"
"School. I have to go."
Lilith stared at me blankly for a moment, then suddenly turned her head toward the clock I'd been looking at. "Ugh, the time..." When she looked back at me, her expression was full of regret. "Mmm, but I'm still hungry..."
...Even outside of meals, Lilith's aegyo was lethal. Still—
"I can't skip class."
"...If you ditch—"
"Absolutely not."
How did she even know the word "ditch"?
"Uuu..." Lilith kept staring at me—or rather, my lips—with a wistful expression. Unable to bear it, I reluctantly said, "...I'll come back at lunch."
"Really?" Lilith's eyes sparkled.
"You have to come."
"Yes. I'll definitely come."
Even after my firm answer, Lilith hesitated for a moment before finally releasing her hair. "But I'm going to eat a lot during lunch."
"Okay."
"I won't let you go for a whole hour."
"......"
Worried I might suffocate, yet at the same time... I found myself looking forward to lunch, just a tiny bit.
My clothes were the same ones I'd worn back to the dorm yesterday, so I just smoothed out the wrinkles. With no time to wash up, I roughly combed through my messy hair. Just as I was about to rush out of the room, something soft pressed against my back. Realizing what it was, my face grew hot.
"W-what are you—"
Lilith, hugging me from behind, gently stroked my head. "Have a good day." Her languid whisper sent shivers through my ears.
"...I'll be going, then."
I gave a greeting I hadn't used in who knows how long. Suddenly, Lilith spun me around and kissed me. It was a very brief kiss, probably considering the time, but unlike the intense meal earlier, it felt soft and warm, filled with gentle affection. As I stared blankly, Lilith gave me a soft smile.
"Hehe, it's to cheer you on for today."
"...Don't people usually kiss the forehead?"
"Oh my, isn't the lips obviously better?"
I didn't say I disliked it, though. "...I really have to go now."
"Have a good day~"
Stepping out of the dorm and closing the door behind me, leaving Lilith waving, I immediately felt a hollow space in my heart. Leaving my own sanctuary to face the reality of contemptuous and scornful gazes had always tormented me. But this time, it was different.
"...Shall I go?"
My steps as I turned around were filled with a strength I'd never felt before, and the hallway I faced didn't seem frightening like usual. Nothing about reality had actually changed. The disdainful looks from my classmates, the cold words from the teachers—they would all crash down on me just like yesterday. The towering cliff of expulsion still loomed ahead. And yet, something felt different.
'Lilith.' The fact that someone was waiting for me. The fact that no matter where I went or how far I fell, there was someone who would stay by my side. And the anticipation of the time I would spend with that someone. That alone seemed to have changed the way I looked at the world. For the first time in a long while, I was able to smile as I walked down the dorm hallway.