Vol 3 Chapter 42 – I Hate Doing It Alone…♡【Vol 3: Torte the Dog-Eared Girl Ar】

“So… did you two, um… go all the way?”

Eclair asked the question hesitantly, and I answered with an exhausted groan.

“No… I just completely ran out of steam…”

After everything, the two of us had worn each other out thoroughly—and then Torte had gone limp all at once, like her strings had been cut, and dropped straight into sleep.

For her, everything today had been a first. All that tension and excitement crashing down at once must have pushed her past her limit.

As for me—I’d wiped her down with a damp cloth, changed the sheets, and tucked her in, and apparently passed out cold immediately after. By the time Eclair shook me awake, it was already dark outside.

Beside me, Torte was still breathing softly in her sleep.

Her peaceful, contented little face looked nothing like the one she’d worn during all those heated moments earlier—innocent again, as none of it had ever happened.

“Oh… I see…”

Eclair murmured it with an oddly complicated expression.

Hm. Was that a problem after all…?

“Sorry. I couldn’t finish the treatment…”

“Huh? No, that’s not what I—! You were both exhausted, it couldn’t be helped.”

Eclair shook her head quickly.

Then what was that pause just now…?

Well. I’d let it go for now.

“Should I wake Torte up soon? She hasn’t eaten since this morning, she’ll be hungry.”

“No, leave her. She wore herself out today—let her sleep till morning. I left food in the kitchen.”

“Got it… Alright, then let’s head to the next room.”

“Hm? Why?”

“Why? …For your treatment, obviously.”

Daytime for Torte, nighttime for Eclair—that had been the arrangement.

But Eclair shook her head.

“Not tonight. You’re exhausted—rest here.”

“But if I don’t, your curse will—”

“Oh, honestly. I’m not going to push you until you collapse just to break my own curse. Come on, enough!”

She cut me off bluntly, placed her hands on my shoulders, and shoved me firmly down onto the bed.

“It’s not like I’m in heat twenty-four hours a day. I can keep a lid on it for one night, no problem. Who do you think you’re talking to?”

“I… guess so…”

“That’s right! So stop fussing and go to sleep!”

No room for argument.

I knew this was her own clumsy, roundabout way of being kind. Pushing back any further would just be rude.

“Alright. Thank you, Eclair.”

“Hmph. Don’t thank me. …I’m sleeping in the next room! Good night!”

She tossed the words over her shoulder and fled from the room.

The moment I settled in beside the sleeping Torte, exhaustion crashed over me like a wave.

Even the brief nap earlier hadn’t made a dent in how worn-out I was.

Eclair’s consideration felt genuinely deeply appreciated right now. I’d take her up on the offer and let myself sleep without holding back.

(It feels like it’s been ages since I’ve had a proper night’s sleep…)

Every night lately had been spent working on Eclair’s treatment.

Not that I was complaining—but the body needs rest too.

And besides, for her to call it off herself, when she’d been asking for this every single night…

Maybe the heat curse was finally starting to thin out.

If so, she deserved a real rest too.

The faint sound of insects drifting in through the window wrapped around me like a gentle lullaby, coaxing me toward sleep.

My consciousness began to dissolve into the dark—

“…Mmh… ah…♡”

…Hm?

A sound from the next room.

Eclair’s voice.

“…Ahh…♡ Haah…♡ Mmn…♡”

(Wh—!)

I snapped awake as a live wire had touched me.

“Ah, ah…♡ I knew I couldn’t hold it…♡ My body’s burning up…♡ I can’t stop feeling this way…♡”

Right through the thin wall separating us, every breathy word from the cat-eared girl came through crystal clear.

And faintly—unmistakably—a soft, wet sound followed.

squelch… squelch…

“Haah, haah…♡ My fingers… my fingers just keep moving on their own…♡ Noo…♡”

She’d acted so composed when she kicked me out—and here she was, unable to hold back, taking care of it herself.

And also—

(Eclair, your voice—it’s so loud—!)

I’d noticed it when we were together, too, but she could not really keep quiet. If anything, it seemed like she was working herself up with her own sounds.

I glanced over at Torte. Still breathing softly, thankfully.

But if this kept up, that wouldn’t last.

“I can’t—my voice—I’m letting it out—♡ Theo and the others are sleeping—♡ They’ll hear me—I’ll wake them up—♡ I have to hold back, I have to—♡”

She was saying all the right things to herself. And honestly, fine—if she needed to do this, there wasn’t much anyone could do. It was practically a bodily function at this point.

But could she please just turn the volume down a little—!

“…Ngh…♡ Mmn…♡”

You can do it, Eclair—!

“…I-It’s no good…♡ When I try to hold back my voice, it just gets me even more worked up…♡”

That doesn’t even make sense—!

“Uuugh…♡ I hate doing it alone…♡ Fingers aren’t enough…♡ I want Theo…♡ Deep inside, so much…♡ Mmn, nhuu…♡”

Her voice, aching and plaintive, calling out for me.

For a moment, I actually thought about going to the next room.

But my body, once horizontal, felt like it had been filled with lead and flatly refused to cooperate.

And even if I dragged myself over there, I was in no state to satisfy her in the explosive condition she was clearly in right now.

“Theo—♡ Theo—♡ Theoooo—♡ Haah—♡ Mmn—♡ Kyuuuun—♡”

(There’s no way I can sleep—!)