The Story of Waking up With My Beautiful Childhood Friend and Realizing We Had Spent the Night Together - Chapter 4

Chapter 4: When I Woke up in the Morning, There Was Goddess Was in Front of Me

“…Mm…”

I slowly woke up to the morning sunlight leaking through the curtains.

My body felt sluggish. My eyelids were heavy.

I opened my eyes as if shaking off the remnants of last night.

Then…

“Good morning.”

There, in front of me, was a goddess.

Her beauty, even without makeup, was unbelievable.

She softly smiled, and Yukimura Mizuki was sitting on top of me, peering down at my sleeping face.

“Your sleeping face. It was cute.”

“Don’t look at it… like that.”

“No way. Being able to see my boyfriend’s sleeping face is a privilege for his girlfriend.”

She smiled mischievously.

Since we started dating, I feel like she’s become more expressive.

…No, I should say, she’s gone back to how she was before.

When we were younger, she was a girl who would smile often, but only in front of me.

…I just remembered that now.

“…Iori.”

As I was absentmindedly lost in her beauty, she gently caressed my cheek.

Her soft touch made me instinctively lean into it.

Then her eyes softened and melted.

“…Iori, you’re cute.”

She planted a soft kiss on me.

I didn’t resist. I just let it happen.

She kissed my cheek and my nose, one after another.

And of course, if a beauty like her were doing that…

“…”

“…Ah.”

—My body, naturally, couldn’t help but respond.

“…Heh. You can’t do that. We have school today, you know.”

“I know…”

I said that with a slightly sulking tone, and she smiled even more happily.

…Wow, I feel incredibly happy this morning.

Is this it? Am I about to die soon?

“…Hey, Iori.”

“Yeah?”

As I got out of bed and put on my underwear and pants, she spoke to me, still naked.

“Since we started dating, I should let you know… I can be pretty clingy.”

“…?”

What does she mean by that? I tilted my head.

If it’s about her weight, I actually think she’s too light for her height.

But her answer was…

“I’ve got ten years’ worth… of things built up, you know.”

“…Same here.”

I sighed and responded.

She didn’t know what kind of feelings I had for the past ten years.

I wanted to say that to her, but she said it so nonchalantly.

“Yeah. I’ll take care of yours too. You take care of mine.”

“…Understood.”

And so, our morning passed.

It was a completely different everyday life from before. I wonder if I’ll get used to this happiness eventually.

…I hope it never comes to that, I thought.

“—Hey, Iori. I’ve been thinking.”

“What’s up all of a sudden?”

During P.E. class at school.

Two guys were sitting at the corner of the gym.

The flashy guy next to me—Miyama Renji, squinted his eyes as if staring at something dazzling.

“Why do people fight? I think it’s because they don’t know what true beauty is.”

“…I see. I don’t get it.”

“If everyone could see this beautiful scene in front of us, there wouldn’t be any more fighting in the world, right?”

…Bang…Bang…

The sound of the ball bouncing echoed energetically.

Every time the ball hit the ground, a whistle blew.

“Yukimura-san! Nice spike!”

“Yeah. You set it perfectly.”

“Ah, you get it!? You’re amazing! Hey, why don’t you join the volleyball club for real?!”

“Sorry, I’m not interested in clubs.”

“Don’t say that!”

A group of beautiful girls exchanged high fives, smiling.

It was so beautiful. Wonderful. This must be Eden.

But more than that…

“…Heh!”

Bang.

Bouncing. Hitting. Shaking.

…Shaking. Though I won’t say what’s shaking.

“…Hmm.”

“…It’s beautiful. It’s like my heart is being cleansed.”

We, the boys, all put our hands together in prayer at the overwhelming beauty.

Thank you, thank you.

This is a blessing from the gods. Let’s stop by the shrine after school.

While we were praying, I could hear the voices of other boys.

“Yukimura-san… she really is beautiful.”

“Yeah. She’s crazy. The first time I saw her, I thought she was a celebrity.”

“Her figure’s amazing too… Ah, I’d date her if it was just for one day…”

“Impossible, impossible.”

“…”

…Hmm. What’s this feeling?

A sense of superiority? Anxiety? Or maybe jealousy?

It’s such a complicated feeling.

I know that Mizuki’s popular. That’s nothing new.

But just a while ago, I also saw her as an unattainable beauty, just like the other guys.

She was my childhood friend, but someone I could never have.

Yet now…

‘—I like you.’

A miracle had happened.

She confessed to me. It was a shocking turn of events.

(Wait, though… I didn’t realize she liked me at all…)

Am I just that dense? Did she secretly show me affection all this time?

But, no, she never changed her attitude in everyday life. How could I have known?

“…Huh? What’s wrong, Iori?”

“I’m just going to get some water.”

I left the gym and headed to the water fountain.

Everyone was too focused on volleyball, so no one was around.

Splash, splash…

“…Ahh.”

I drank water and, just for the sake of it, washed my sweaty face.

It was July now. Washing my face with water during the summer felt so refreshing.

(…Oh, I forgot my towel.)

Well, it’s fine. It’s summer, so it’ll dry quickly.

As I was thinking that…

“—Here.”

A towel was placed on my head.

I turned around to find Yukimura Mizuki, the school’s Madonna, the one who had been the center of attention just a moment ago.

“…What are you doing?”

“I saw you leaving the gym, so I followed you.”

“I told you not to talk to me at school. What if people find out?”

“…Like last night?”

“Stop it.”

I felt like my life was shortening.

She grinned mischievously, and I quickly checked to see if anyone was around.

Thankfully, no one was… for now.

“I’ll borrow your towel, but hurry up and go back.”

I patted my face with the towel. It smelled nice.

“Yeah… by the way, that’s the one I used to wipe myself off with earlier.”

“…Bwah!!”

I burst out laughing.

Huh? What? Wiped yourself off? Whose body!?

N-No way…!

I quickly pulled it away from my face.

It wasn’t like I thought it was gross, but… depending on how you look at it, it could be quite the treasure!

At least tell me before!

“Did you not like it?”

“…No comment.”

“You pervert. I was joking. It’s a brand new one.”

I felt a wave of relief when I heard that, but at the same time, I was disappointed.

…And then, I was even more disappointed in myself for being disappointed.

“…”

“Eh, why do you look so complicated?”

“Just go back already. Please.”

“Alright, alright.”

She left, grinning the whole time.

“...Sigh.”

As long as I’m dating her, I’ll probably keep getting teased like this.

…And strangely enough, I didn’t mind that thought.

I had to do something about it, though.

With the towel hanging over my shoulder, I headed back to the gym.

“—Amano-kun.”

I turned around at the sound of a bell-like voice.