The Daffodil of Sharon (6)
"Strange. I was so careful not to get any oil on this underwear. How did a stain like this happen?"
"Hngh?! Ah, nnh, aahn… Hitomiii……"
"Mm. I love you too, Shion."
"No, that's not what I— kuuuh……"
"Shall I kiss you? No. I will. Open your mouth."
"Hii… hnnngh……"
"Ah♥ So Shion could make a voice like that… haah……"
"Nnh, wait… stop pressing on my stomach… stop iiit……"
"Poke, poke…♥"
"Hold on. Seriously, this feels really strange…… My head, my head's going all floaty…"
"Hiyah?! Ah, what is that… nnh, a feather…? Haaahn…"
"Correct. Blindfolded, and still my Shion. I looked around and the room had these too, so I thought we ought to try them."
"Ah, wait, please don't— hiiik?!"
"Mmm. I want to attack so many places at once, though, and it's a shame I have nothing to put in the familiars' hands. ……Oh. There was that way."
"Contractor? Why are you summoning me all of a sudden… Ah. This couldn't be— Um, Contractor. Even so, suggesting a threesome right from the start is awfully bol— …What? Borrow? Borrow what? My wings…? What on earth does that even mea— hgyaaaaah?!"
"Hak, hnnk…♥ Stop♥ Stop it……"
"Shion, did you know?"
"Nnh… kn-know what…?"
"It isn't even two in the morning yet."
"……! Liar… nngh……♥"
"Have you ever once seen me lie to you, Shion?"
"Huh? Aaah……?"
"Ah… I'm sorry. I teased you too much, didn't I. You're just so lovely when you show me a side I never get to see that I couldn't help myself…… Here. Let me wipe your tears."
"Nnnnh……"
"I'll let you go soon. Mm. Even so, if we kept this up right until checkout, you'd have to leave without a moment's rest……"
"……!"
"Heehee, you're nodding so hard. Are you that happy? Honestly…… mwah♥"
"Hi-Hitomi… wait, that… is that, nnh, an electric massager…"
"……Ehehe♥"
"You're not, right? Hitomi? W-wait, it's vibrating so much harder than I imagined, you wouldn't actually— no, you're joking…?"
"———♥♥♥♥♥"
Consciousness was drawn slowly up out of a hazy sea of oblivion. Still half in dream, she pushed herself upright—and for a moment her mind went blank before the crimson filling her vision. Only then did she remember that the place she had fallen asleep was not the bedroom at home. She remembered yesterday, too.
Hitomi turned her head toward the space beside her, where she could feel not only warmth, but damp.
Han Seoyeon lay naked beneath the covers, fast asleep, breathing soft and even. Her whole body was tacky and filthy with fluids it was no longer possible to tell apart. Look any closer and reddish bruises showed all over her—no need to dress it up; they were simply kiss marks—and there were a great many of them.
The culprit behind every bit of that state gazed at her and smiled, a soft little huhut. Then she carefully reached out and gently stroked the hair of the wife sleeping so soundly beside her. Even this was enough to leave her feeling something close to pride.
By enlisting even tools she had never once used before, Ninomae Hitomi had finally managed it. In the battle of the night, she had been the one to knock Han Seoyeon Margarita—Apostle Bartholomew—unconscious first.
The whole time she had been tormenting her, Hitomi's own body had gone past itching into a full ache, but enduring it for the sake of teasing Seoyeon one-sidedly had been worth it. Being able to see that tearful face—one she would never, ever have seen under ordinary circumstances—was especially satisfying.
Hitomi's sadistic urges were not particularly strong. She did not lean hard either way, and if pressed she would have said she was closer to a masochist than a sadist. Whenever Seoyeon was her partner, though, petty tendencies like that ceased to matter. Last night had been no exception.
It had been more than enough to set fire to a sadistic streak that, for all practical purposes, had barely existed in her. She thought she might finally understand, just a little, the old line that your favorite is prettiest when they cry.
Not that she wanted to force her into anything she hated, or put her through anything sad… but seeing her, just once in a very great while, reduced to a helpless child by pleasure too intense to bear—that wouldn't be so bad. And perhaps, going forward, she ought to consider making regular use of toys. The thought came to Hitomi out of nowhere.
Until now she had been a little reluctant. They felt somewhat inorganic, and they were not part of the body. Having tried them once, though, far from that, they seemed as though they might lend the two of them a fine pair of wings.
"…Mm."
The problem was this: if tonight had unlocked the use of toys for the nights to come, there was no guarantee those same toys would not end up in Seoyeon's hands instead. Hitomi had already, once before, died in the act under nothing but Seoyeon's bare hands. If that same woman came at her with tools as well, could she endure it with her mind intact? Only after the realization landed did she, belatedly, begin to dread the reckoning.
"Well, I mean, if I just ask Shion to go a little easy on me, it'll probably be fi—"
"Do you think I would grant that?"
And just like that, her eyes met Han Seoyeon's, now open.
She had knocked her out, yes—but it had been a limit of the mind, not the body. Rest a reasonable while, and she could come back to herself quickly enough.
"Next time, you had best be truly prepared."
"Hehe……"
Meeting that faintly chilly gaze, Hitomi laughed awkwardly. A cold sweat traced the nape of her neck.
"Um… ehehe, please forgive me."
"I will spare your life."
"Aww, what's with you, honeyyy~"
Hitomi lay back down on the bed and pulled Seoyeon into a tight embrace.
It was coquetry of a plainly exaggerated, nasal sort, nothing like her usual voice—flirtation born of the survival instinct, offered up to a predator. Of course, if it actually came to that and Seoyeon pushed her by force, that in itself would probably make her so happy her head would break. Even the first time, when she had quite literally stopped breathing, Seoyeon's love had been nothing but happiness.
"Do you imagine such blatant coquetry will work?"
"Shion, don't you think you ought to compose your expression before you say that?"
Or at least stop the hand that was so diligently petting her hair. At those words, Seoyeon cleared her throat, looking sheepish.
"I consider this not my failing, but the fault of my wife for being too cute."
"That person really has committed a grave wrong. …Heh."
Hitomi smiled a moment later, and seeing it, Seoyeon drew her in even tighter. Hitomi offered no real resistance, pressing herself flush against her.
"We've still got time to spare, so shall we hold each other and sleep a little longer?"
"Yes. Let us."
Seoyeon let out a soft puff of laughter herself, then stared fixedly at Hitomi's face.
"…You said we were sleeping. Why are your eyes still open?"
"I intend to keep watching until Hitomi is asleep. For that matter, Hitomi has not closed her eyes either."
"It's just, how do I put it… I want to look at your face a little longer."
"……You have no intention of letting me sleep, do you."
How was anyone meant to sleep while being told a thing like that? Han Seoyeon stared at Hitomi as if she could not believe her.
"Then… let's just keep looking at each other like this. So long as Shion isn't bored."
"Uh… pardon?"
"No—what kind of idiotic reaction is that?"
What came back was pure incomprehension, an attitude that seemed to ask how on earth such a thing could ever be boring. Faced with it, Hitomi couldn't help a hollow little laugh of her own. Well, fair enough. She could stare at Seoyeon's face for hours and never grow tired of it.
"……"
"……"
And so the two of them fell silent and simply gazed at each other. That alone was enough for a happiness, as if they had been joined into one. Not only that—merely staying like this was enough to stir a strange elation, even pleasure—
"……Um, Shion."
"What is it, Hitomi?"
Hitomi's eyes had gone half-lidded, her brows drawn together, as she called to her.
"Something's touching me between my legs."
"Ah. That is my leg."
"Yes. I know that much. But it's slowly rubbing back and forth."
"Yes. That is also my leg."
Do you think I'm asking because I don't know that? Hitomi looked at Seoyeon with exactly that in her eyes, but Seoyeon only smiled, eyes curving sweetly.
"…Fine. That's how you want to play it? Then don't think I'm just going to sit here and take it."
"Oh my. Are you certain you can afford to sound so confident? I am not restrained at the moment, you know."
"Hmph. The only reason I always lose is the gap in stamina, you know? If it's a short match on a time limit because of checkout, I won't go down without a fight."
Set alight at last, Hitomi slid her own leg in between Seoyeon's, until the two of them were tangled every which way. Their waists and stomachs had not met yet only because Hitomi's chest kept even a hug at a slight distance. One thing, though, was certain: it would not be long before their lower bodies locked together without a gap.
For all that they had already spent so violent a night, heat was rising once more in both their eyes.
…To speak only of the result: Hitomi, who in the middle of their tumbling across the bed had split off a clone to fetch the massager, scraped out a narrow decision in the second round as well—one that lasted right up until checkout.