The Sweet Taste of Force
"A kiss?" Frey blinked, letting out a dumbfounded squeak. Perhaps the suggestion was too far out of left field. She tilted her head, her face utterly blank.
A kiss? A ki-iss? She mumbled, her lips twitching as she chewed on the word. When the meaning finally clicked, her face flushed a violent crimson.
"W-what the hell are you talking about?! Are you crazy? Have you lost your mind?!"
Exactly the reaction I expected. Honestly, I'd react the same way. If someone suddenly asked to kiss me, of course I'd freak out. Flustered, Frey tried to pull her interlaced fingers away from mine, but I gently curled my fingers tighter. You won't get away that easily. After securing her so she couldn't escape, I spoke with utmost sincerity.
"I'm not joking."
"Y-you... are you... that way? Look, I'm not judging your sexual preferences, but don't drag me into this!"
Well, to be perfectly honest, I am that way. I'm a guy, after all. My body might be Lucia's, but my soul is 100% male. Just because I've been living as a girl for a month doesn't mean the gender identity I built over a lifetime is going to change. But obviously, I couldn't just lay out the truth in this situation. I chose my words carefully.
"I've been thinking about how we can wake Aris from her deep slumber."
Aris had sunk into an abyss so deep that even Frey, her alternate personality, couldn't reach her. How could we draw out a girl who was hiding so thoroughly that it felt as if her very soul had vanished?
"We need a stimulus. A powerful one. A shock so intense that she has no choice but to wake up."
"...And that's why you want to kiss? Isn't that a bit too extreme?"
Hey, I didn't come up with it. This was Yujin's idea. In the original novel, when faced with a similar crisis, Yujin tried to wake Aris by delivering a powerful shock to her system. Half-hearted attempts didn't work. Hugging her or kissing her on the cheek or forehead wasn't enough to rouse her. That was why he resorted to an extreme measure: kissing Frey.
"I get what you're trying to do, but... a k-k-kiss is way too much..."
"That's exactly why we have to do it. A simple stimulus won't cut it. We need to deliver a definitive shock."
"M-maybe a hug, or a light peck..."
"A peck might be one thing, but we've already hugged."
"..."
When she fell asleep, I had held her tight, using her like a body pillow. She was so warm and soft; it felt amazing. Frey must have been starved for human warmth too, because she had clung to me tightly. Whenever I tried to get up, she would mumble in her sleep as if having a nightmare, only calming down when I pulled her back into my arms. He-he, I'm the one hugging her now, but I hope Frey hugs me next time. I'll chop off my limbs so I'm easier to hold. If I slice them off cleanly and cauterize the stumps with a heat ray, I'll make a perfect dakimakura.
...Eu-hehe. Just thinking about it made my mouth water. No, no. Now is not the time for degenerate delusions.
"You can say no. We can find another way. If you don't want to, Frey, I won't force you."
"..."
The situation was similar to the novel, but there was one fatal difference between Yujin and me. Yujin was a guy. I was a girl. Even if my mind was male, my body was female. And Frey was straight. As expected of Aris's alternate personality, she was undeniably the main heroine of Dawn Swordsman. At first, she had hated Yujin. She had been highly guarded and disgusted, viewing him as some punk trying to steal Aris away. But as she observed Yujin through Aris's eyes and spent more time around him, she slowly began to see his other sides. Bit by bit. Slowly. Like clothes getting soaked in a gentle drizzle. Frey had developed feelings for Yujin. Her hostility faded, replaced by a growing affection... until she eventually realized the target of her jealousy had shifted. She wasn't jealous of Yujin; she was jealous of Aris. Just like Aris, Frey had fallen for Yujin. Since they were originally one soul, I suppose their tastes were bound to be similar. Frey was a girl with zero interest in the same sex. She was just an ordinary girl who fell in love with boys, the kind you could find anywhere. But to suddenly be asked to kiss another girl... she might feel utterly humiliated. I would too. If I had to kiss a guy, I'd bite my tongue out of sheer sexual shame and disgrace. (Though as Lucia, my reasons for biting my tongue might be slightly different, but still.) The hurdle was much higher than it was for Yujin in the novel. It was completely understandable if Frey felt repulsed. If she refused, I had no intention of forcing her. I wanted to help Aris and Frey, not torment them.
"...Ugh." Frey buried her face in her hands. As expected, she hated the idea. Oh well, it couldn't be helped. I hadn't held out much hope anyway. Time to look for another method.
"Lucia." Frey took a moment to catch her breath, then called my name.
"Are you okay with this?"
"Huh? With what?"
"With k-kissing me. Are you really okay with it? You don't find it gross?"
...Her reaction was surprisingly mild. And here I was, fully prepared to get slapped. What a shame...
"Of course I'm okay with it. It's to help you and Aris. Honestly, I'm more than happy to. I'd welcome a kiss from a cute girl like you anytime."
"...You're not just trying to satisfy some weird fantasy, are you? Are you a lesbian?"
"If I had to label it, I'd say I'm pansexual."
Frey let out a deep sigh and shook her head. Then, she looked me straight in the eye.
"...Do it." Her voice was barely a whisper. Even straining my ears, I couldn't make it out.
"I couldn't hear you. What did you say?"
"...I said, do it."
"Huh? What?"
"Oh, for crying out loud!" Frey yelled, her face turning as red as a ripe tomato. "I said kiss me! You're the one who brought it up, so do it!"
She was so embarrassed that tears actually welled up in the corners of her eyes. All the blood in her body seemed to have rushed to her face; she looked so flushed she might burn me if I touched her. Frey relaxed her tense posture and looked up at me. The tears trembling in her eyes made her look incredibly pitiful yet adorable. I gently wiped her eyes with my sleeve. Every time my fingers brushed against her, her shoulders flinched. Gulping, I took a step forward. Our breaths mingled against our skin. A sweet scent drifted past the tip of my nose. Thump, thump. My heart beat furiously. My breathing grew ragged under the weight of this unprecedented emotion.
...Is this really okay? It was a bit rich coming from the person who had proposed it in the first place, and it was far too late to back out now, but... was this really alright? I had been so confident just a moment ago. But seeing Frey's tense, trembling gaze made me hesitate. Aris was the main heroine. Frey was another side of Aris. She was a girl bound by destiny to the protagonist, Yujin. Was it really okay for me to steal her first kiss? Come to think of it, this was my first kiss too. Lucia was a heroine as well, right? Is it really okay for two heroines to kiss...?
"...What are you waiting for? Don't drag it out. It's embarrassing." Frey muttered, her bandage-wrapped fingers twitching nervously. For some reason, a wave of guilt washed over me. A dizzying sense of depravity crept in, as if I were coaxing an innocent child into doing something forbidden. No, this is strictly medical treatment. It's for therapy. Like administering CPR to an unconscious person... Yes, this isn't a kiss, it's artificial respiration. There's absolutely nothing to be embarrassed or ashamed of.
"...I'm going in." I laced my fingers back through hers. Our hands met awkwardly, but we held on with firm resolve.
"...Do whatever you want." Being shorter than me, Frey had no choice but to tilt her head up. Her flushed face looked far more fragile than the usual Aris. Her fresh, adorable reaction almost made me break into a silly grin. I slowly leaned forward. Frey's face drew closer and closer. Her tightly shut eyelids trembled. Her moist, pink lips seemed to fill my entire field of vision. Our exhales mingled. Our scents fused, and a dizzying rush of excitement paralyzed my reason.
"If Aris d-doesn't come back... I'll... I'll kill you..." Her sweet breath brushed against me, making my mind go hazy. I could no longer tell which breath was mine and which was hers. I answered Frey's utterly unthreatening warning with action. Something soft and pillowy pressed against my lips. The wet, soft sound of our lips meeting felt strangely foreign. Her hot body shuddered. Her flushed cheeks twitched and trembled.
"Mmph..." It felt as if fireworks were exploding in my head. A ticklish sensation bloomed in my chest. My very first kiss. Even though it was nothing more than a light press of our lips... T-this should do it, right? Did Aris come back? Since the situation was different from Yujin's in the original novel, I couldn't be sure. I slowly pulled my lips away. Frey's eyes were still closed. Eager to find out if we had succeeded or failed, I opened my mouth to speak.
"Hwah?!" But before a sound could escape my throat, a rough hand clamped down on me. Releasing her grip on my fingers, Frey grabbed the back of my head. A fierce strength yanked me forward. Once again, my lips crashed into hers. Because I had opened my mouth to speak, I accidentally bit her lip slightly. Frey, completely unfazed, parted her own pink lips.
"Eu-he? Mgh? Mphhh...!" Our lips sealed together. Something foreign invaded my mouth—something small, soft, and warm. I pushed against Frey's shoulders. Wait, don't put your tongue in...! This is a d-deep kiss! This is the kind of stuff couples do... I-I didn't sign up for this...!
"Hee-eup..." No matter how hard I pushed, Frey wouldn't budge. If anything, she pulled the back of my head even tighter. She clung to me tenaciously, exploring every corner of my mouth. Our tongues tangled, unleashing a wave of intense heat. It was too rough to be called a mere kiss. It was a collision of lips. She devoured my mouth, greedily claiming my lips and tongue. My brain felt like it was melting into mush. My senses were completely paralyzed by her ragged breathing and her scent. T-to be forced like this... He-hehet... The strength in my hands slowly faded. My arms dropped limply to my sides. Satisfied that I was no longer resisting, Frey let go of the back of my head and wrapped her arms around my waist instead.
"Mgh... nnh..." As if she had been holding back until now, a searing heat ravaged my mouth. She swept over my teeth and wrapped around my tongue. Saliva escaped the corners of our lips. A tingling sensation shot through me, completely draining the strength from my legs.
"Puhah..." When the seemingly endless kiss finally broke, I collapsed to the floor. A thin, silvery thread of saliva stretched between us before snapping. I panted heavily, gasping for air.
"It's working." Tears blurred my vision. Panting, I looked up. Through the watery haze, I saw Frey's flushed face.
"I can feel Aris's heartbeat. It's working. Aris reacted. I found it. Finally, I finally found a way..."
"F-Frey...?"
"But we're not there yet. Not even close." Grabbing my chin with her thumb and forefinger, she forced my head up. Frey wiped her saliva-glistening lips, a smile of pure ecstasy spreading across her face. A burning passion flared in her eyes. She spoke.
"Until Aris is completely awake, we're going to keep kissing."
Just moments ago, Frey had been looking up at me, but now I was the one looking up at her. My lips were a messy, wet ruin of our combined saliva. My legs refused to move. I struggled to steady my ragged breathing.
"Since you're the one who suggested it... you don't have any complaints, right?" Her tone brooked no argument. After days of searching, she had finally found a way to bring Aris back. A mixture of joy and madness gleamed in Frey's eyes.
"W-wait... Frey... L-let's calm down first..." Squeeze. Frey's bandage-wrapped hand dug into my shoulder. A sharp, delicious pain shot through my collarbone. A crimson heat shimmered in her eyes. Under the heavy pressure, a soft groan escaped my lips. Frey leaned in close, locking her eyes with mine as she repeated herself.
"No complaints, right?"
No matter what I said, she was going to force herself onto my lips. To Frey, it didn't even seem to matter who I was anymore. She was fully prepared to pin me down and take what she wanted by force. I blinked my tear-filled eyes. The room was thick with Frey's scent. Every breath I took was filled with her. I let out a silly, helpless laugh.
"Yeees... ♡" My tongue was so loose my pronunciation slurred. Shivers ran down my entire body. Her eyes. Frey's eyes. They were so overbearing. So coercive. So forceful. So domineering. She didn't care about my consent at all. She looked at me as if I were nothing but a tool to achieve her goal.
"He, hehet..." An strange, unhinged giggle slipped from my lips. This was a completely new sensation.