When I brought my childhood friend back home after a long time, she suddenly started undressing and said, "I want you to hold me..."

“… What is it?”

However, sometimes things don’t go as planned as we desire it to be.

For example, a company may have made a proper plan and proceeded with it in accordance with their policy, and yet they were unable to generate any sales at all.

Another example, a company might open a tapioca store that is no longer even known, just because it was popular in the past, will suffer a loss.

Or, a piece of software that was just randomly added to the market is praised several years later for its high performance.

Things don’t always go the way people want them to go, good or bad. And we have known that for a long time. That’s why it is human nature to research and plan carefully, and to show one’s strength when the time is right.

But, this was not the case this time.

Because Aoi’s sudden confession to me made my mind go in a daze.

She proposed to me and said, “I love you” while blushing up to her ears.

The woman with whom I had crossed the line told me that she liked me.

And she said again, “I love you.”

“… Umm, I know what you mean by it.”

“Well… that’s how it is.”

I couldn’t quite grasp the situation. When I was in high school and oftenly went to fireworks festivals, I encountered many confessions taking place in front of me, and I thought it was just too busy, but how naive I was.

‘Wait, what is really happening?… could it be that I am seriously getting confessed?’

I was not delusioned and it was a fact that I was getting confessed.

There is no reason to reject her, and I feel a little responsible for all the things I’ve done. But it was so sudden that I didn’t know how to answer.

“But… why?”

“What do you mean by why?”

“Doesn’t that mean I am just cleaning up my mess?”

“No, it’s not like that.”

“So you are indeed serious about it.”

Sho was confused.

The reason why he was so surprised was because of why she was saying it now? When did she start liking him? Is it since the time we were kids or was there any reason? His mind was in a complete mess right now.

That was the reason why he was asking about her confession again and again.

But the answer from the other side was the same which she kept repeating repeatedly.

Aoi’s face was getting redder as time passed and it was like she would soon faint because of the embarrassment.

“… I really like you.”

“Yeah…”

However, the more he listened to those sweet words, the more he lost the comprehension of the situation. His mind was thinking about a proper reply that he should give in this scenario.

‘Damn it, just what should I do? I’m seriously being confessed here. Calm down, think straight… take deep breaths.’

“Suu… haa…”

“Are you alright? Did something happen to you?”

“No, it’s nothing… just give me a moment to collect my thoughts.”

“Okay.”

Sho tried to unify his mind for a few seconds but no matter how hard he tried, there were no results. The silence made his heartbeat grow even louder.

The nervousness was evident on his face as he has never dated anyone in his entire life. He felt like he suddenly jumped to the world of light novels, manga and anime.

It has already transcended dimensions.

“… So, uh–you like me, right? Seriously?”

“Yes I do…”

“I like you as well… Is it okay?”

“Yes, it’s okay.”

Aoi replied somewhat strongly. Her cheeks were getting more and more redder and her eyes seems to be dizzy. The shock of the confession had made her embarrassment and nervousness blow away, and she was gradually getting better every passing second.

Her heartbeat was still fast and the influence of alcohol was still evident.

“… That’s right.”

“Yeah.”

And the silence once again continued between them, only the raging sound of heartbeats was reverberating in the room.

‘Ugh, it’s getting hotter, should I take off my upper. Wait now is not the time for it… What should I do after it? I didn’t think it would be this difficult.’

On the other side, Aoi…

‘I told him.’

My mind was in a complete turmoil after that.

And more than anything, the feeling of finally having done it filled my head, and all of the questions Sho was asking were appropriate, but they were somewhat similar so it was easy for me to answer them.

‘What should I do, and I am blushing too hard I wonder how I look like right now. And the atmosphere of the room is getting more hotter… should I take off some of my clother.’

On the other side, as if feeling the same thing, Sho removed his jacket.

Seeing it, I clenched my sleeves tightly.

‘… As expected it’s dangerous. I mean, Sho has accepted my confession so we can finally start going out with each other, right?’

When I was thinking all that.

“Get yourself together…”

Sho slapped his cheeks twice, and was telling himself something. I was also surprised by the way he said it.

‘… Wait, why does it look so familiar. Come to think of it I have seen something like this in a manga I read few days ago. He is going to reject my confession after all…’

At that moment, Aoi stood up on the spot and interrupted him.

“Eh? What’s wrong?”

“… I just remembered there is a new episode of my favorite anime airing right now, I can’t miss it.”

“… Is that so?”

The atmosphere between them froze because of the awkwardness.

The words that came out of Aoi, who stood up as quickly as she could, sounded like a nerd.

And seeing such an enthusiastic Aoi, Sho couldn’t say something in return so he decided to follow her.

“Let’s go and catch up with the latest episode.”

“Alright, as you wish.”

In other words, what she did right was — deceive him.

‘It’s not that big of a lie okay.’

And so the rest of the night continues.