Chapter 298 - 298: Women, Always Want Men to Be...

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko picked up more of the finished pages, flipping through them one by one.

The harsh afternoon sun and the summer cicadas outside made the room feel drowsy, while the air conditioner's breeze occasionally lifted the corner of a page.

When the two of them reached the line — [What is happiness? My definition is... a life that makes others envious!] — they both froze at the same time.

"This..."

Kosaka Akane blinked and turned to look at Tsushima Kagami, who was bent over sharpening a pencil.

Machida Sonoko set down her page too, tapping the line with a fingertip, looking thoughtful.

"Kagami."

Kosaka Akane's tone carried a hint of probing.

"Do you think you're happy?"

Caught off guard by the sudden question, Tsushima Kagami looked up, his eyes flicking between the two of them.

He saw the corner of Machida Sonoko's mouth curl up slightly, wearing a knowing, "just as I thought" kind of smile.

Kosaka Akane tilted her head, waiting for his answer.

"Of course I'm happy."

Tsushima Kagami said it as though it were obvious, twirling the pencil in his hand.

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko exchanged a glance — a look that held some understanding only the two of them shared.

Then both of them turned back to Tsushima Kagami and said, in unison,

"What a selfish person you are."

Tsushima Kagami's brow furrowed slightly. The air itself seemed to pause.

He set down the pencil and opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

Selfish? Where was he being selfish?

He replayed his answer carefully in his mind.

"Of course I'm happy."

What was wrong with that?

Did it mean that only being unhappy could count as unselfish?

Or did they think his happiness was built on something he wasn't even aware of?

Just as he opened his mouth to press for an answer, Kosaka Akane had already picked her page back up, saying lightly,

"Okay, let's get back to drawing."

Machida Sonoko nodded and pulled over a fresh sheet of draft paper.

Tsushima Kagami swallowed the words that had been on the tip of his tongue and picked up his pencil again.

About half an hour passed.

The living room held only the scratch of pencils on paper, occasionally mixed with the hum of the air conditioner blowing out cold air.

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko stopped writing almost at the same moment, leaning close to murmur something to each other, fingers tapping back and forth over the draft.

Noticing the change, Tsushima Kagami set his pencil down too and turned to ask.

"Senpai, is there anything I can help with?"

The two of them glanced back at him. Kosaka Akane nodded briskly.

"Actually, yes — there are some scenes we need you to model for reference."

"No problem."

Tsushima Kagami stood, working out the stiffness in his wrist from sitting too long.

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko got up and walked toward the suitcase in the corner of the living room.

They unzipped it and each pulled out a neatly folded set of clothes.

Curious, Tsushima Kagami stepped closer, and his gaze landed on the clothes — he paused for a moment.

They were two shrine maiden outfits.

"You're drawing a shrine maiden theme?" Tsushima Kagami asked, a little surprised.

"Something like that."

Machida Sonoko smiled, a hint of mischief hidden in it.

"We're going to change into these, and then you'll help us check the poses."

Kosaka Akane said as she shook the outfit open.

Tsushima Kagami nodded.

"Sure."

The two of them carried the clothes into the bedroom they'd stayed in before.

After the door closed, Tsushima Kagami could faintly hear the rustle of fabric and quiet laughter from inside.

A few minutes later, the bedroom door opened.

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko stepped out, one after the other.

Tsushima Kagami looked up and froze.

He stood rooted to the spot, his gaze drawn involuntarily to the two shrine maiden outfits.

Something felt... off.

The white haori and red hakama were the classic shrine maiden getup, in theory.

But—

Tsushima Kagami opened his mouth to say something, then swallowed it back.

His eyes lingered on the two of them for a moment before he looked away — only to be drawn back again.

The neckline of the top was cut far too low, exposing collarbone and a wide stretch of pale skin at the shoulders.

The sash at the waist wasn't the traditional wide cotton band either — it was a thin red cord, tracing the curve of the hips.

And the skirt... the skirt was far too short, barely covering the tops of the thighs.

But worse than that—

Kosaka Akane's white under-robe had been replaced with something like a short cropped vest.

And it clearly didn't fit right, stretched taut by the full curves pushing against it.

Which meant a very visible southern hemisphere was on display.

As for Machida Sonoko, her under-robe had been narrowed at both sides in the same way.

Two round, soft hemispheres were left plainly visible.

Kosaka Akane stood in front of the full-length mirror, turning a little, tilting her face to look at her own reflection.

Machida Sonoko reached up to smooth a stray lock of hair by her ear, then folded her hands in front of her, performing a shrine maiden's bow.

But with the outfit she was wearing, the gesture looked anything but dignified.

"So, how does it look?"

Kosaka Akane caught sight of Tsushima Kagami's conflicted expression in the mirror and couldn't help laughing.

"If you've got something to say, just say it."

Tsushima Kagami hesitated for a while before finally choosing his words carefully.

"Senpai... aren't these shrine maiden outfits a little... not quite proper?"

He pointed at the clothes they were wearing.

"This doesn't look like what a shrine maiden would actually wear for a formal occasion at a shrine. It looks more like..."

Fetish wear.

He couldn't quite get the words out, but his expression said it all.

Far from being embarrassed, Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko only laughed harder.

Kosaka Akane put her hands on her hips and puffed out her chest.

Which only made the southern hemisphere spill out even more.

It felt like it was about to—

Tsushima Kagami pretended he was thirsty and turned to grab a glass of water from the table.

Watching him, Kosaka Akane narrowed her eyes and smiled.

"We're drawing doujin material — the outfits have to be lewd, obviously, or it wouldn't make sense."

"Being improper is the whole point."

Machida Sonoko agreed with a laugh, tugging at the red cord around her waist — a gesture that only made it look more provocative.

Before Tsushima Kagami could react, the two of them had already closed in on him, one on each side.

Machida Sonoko's shoulder brushed lightly against his arm, while Kosaka Akane rose on her toes and leaned in close to his ear.

"Besides, Kagami's been looking pretty closely, hasn't he?"

"Have I?"

"I honestly hadn't noticed..." Tsushima Kagami said, feigning ignorance.

Kosaka Akane pulled back with a laugh, turned, grabbed a DSLR camera off the table, and shoved it into his hands.

"Help us take some photos — we'll need them for reference poses later."

Tsushima Kagami looked down at the camera's weight in his hands, then back up at the two of them, and sighed.

"Fine."

For the next ten-odd minutes, Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko stood in front of the full-length mirror, striking pose after pose.

Kneeling, reclining, pressing their palms together in prayer, ducking their heads to look shy.

With every new pose, Machida Sonoko would wave him over.

"Over here, get this one."

Camera raised, Tsushima Kagami aimed the lens at them and clicked the shutter, again and again.

His expression stayed serious, as if he were completing a mission.

But every so often the shutter would pause for a beat — and in that beat,

his gaze would drift, unbidden, from behind the viewfinder to linger on the two of them.

They really don't care that I'm right here, do they.

He took a deep breath and pulled his focus back to the framing.

"Good, next pose."

He said it, his voice steadier than he'd expected.

Nearly half an hour later, the photo session finally wound down.

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko didn't bother changing back.

They simply sat back down at the table in the shrine maiden outfits and kept drawing.

Tsushima Kagami returned to his seat as well, letting out a breath.

The air conditioner hummed on, blowing cool air, and the living room settled back into its earlier quiet.

But the quiet didn't last long.

A short beep sounded.

Then the air conditioner's fan slowly wound down and stopped.

A moment later, the overhead fluorescent light flickered — and then went out completely.

"A power outage?"

Kosaka Akane looked up at the ceiling.

Tsushima Kagami stood and walked to the wall, flipping a few other switches.

None of the lights in the house responded.

"Must be a blackout."

"No idea if it's the whole neighborhood or just us."

Tsushima Kagami said, climbing the stairs up to the balcony.

The blazing sun nearly blinded him the moment he stepped outside.

He forced his eyes open as wide as he could and saw a few neighbors emerging from their houses too, peering around to check on each other.

"Looks like the whole area's out."

Tsushima Kagami said, walking back into the living room to report to Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko.

"Want to go find a café with air conditioning?"

he suggested.

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko exchanged a glance, then looked down hesitantly at the pages in their hands.

"Let's just finish first — we're almost done."

Kosaka Akane decided, in the end.

Machida Sonoko nodded in agreement.

"All right then. I'll go find something to cool us down."

Tsushima Kagami said, heading off to rummage through the kitchen.

The first ten minutes or so were fine — there was still some lingering coolness in the room from the air conditioner.

No one really noticed the heat yet.

But as time passed, that coolness was slowly swallowed up by the outside heat.

The air turned humid and stifling, like a damp towel pressed against your face.

"So hot..."

Kosaka Akane fanned herself with a page, beads of sweat already forming on her forehead.

Machida Sonoko wasn't faring any better, her bangs sticking to her forehead and temples.

Sitting beside them fanning the two of them, Tsushima Kagami suddenly thought of something.

He strode to the kitchen and pulled open the fridge.

Luckily, the popsicles in the freezer hadn't melted.

He pulled out three, tore off the wrappers, and handed them over.

"Have some ice first — or should we really just head out to somewhere with AC?"

"Don't want either of you getting heatstroke."

Kosaka Akane took her popsicle and mumbled around a bite.

"No... we're almost done."

She glanced down at the nearly finished page, reluctance plain in her eyes.

Machida Sonoko nodded too, popsicle between her teeth.

"We've come this far — leaving now would waste all of it, wouldn't it?"

Tsushima Kagami shook his head helplessly and gave up trying to convince them, sitting back down behind the two of them.

By the time the popsicles were finished, the room had grown almost unbearably hot.

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko finally gave in, changing out of the shrine maiden outfits into tank tops and a pair of casual shorts Tsushima Kagami had found for them.

Kosaka Akane sat cross-legged, irritably sketching out the next lines on her page.

Machida Sonoko was applying screentone, but her hands kept turning slick with sweat, and she fumbled peeling the tone paper apart more than once.

Tsushima Kagami sat behind them with a paper fan, waving it steadily to cool them both.

The breeze wasn't much, but it was better than nothing.

The two of them gritted their teeth and kept drawing.

Tsushima Kagami's arm gradually grew sore, but he didn't dare slow the fanning down.

In that sweltering heat, no one was sure how much time had passed.

Finally—

"Done!"

Kosaka Akane set down her pen and flopped straight backward onto the floor.

Machida Sonoko followed right after, sprawled out in a starfish shape.

Both their chests, tightly wrapped in their tank tops, rose and fell heavily.

"I can't move anymore..."

Kosaka Akane murmured, eyes closed, her voice drained of energy.

"So tired, so hot..."

Machida Sonoko raised a hand to cover her eyes.

"If only we were at the beach right now — I'd just dive straight into the sea."

"I just want to soak in a tub of ice. I can't even swim anymore, honestly."

Kosaka Akane opened her eyes, staring up at the ceiling.

"Actually, we were originally supposed to go to Izu."

"But then the volcano erupted, and the locals had to evacuate."

Machida Sonoko sighed.

"So that fell through."

"I really want to swim."

"I really want to soak in ice..."

The two of them lay there without moving, muttering the same things over and over.

Tsushima Kagami could almost see their souls trying to leak out through their mouths.

He got up, laughing, and walked over to them.

"Stop complaining."

"Let's clean up and go find somewhere with AC to rest."

"I'm too tired and hot to move," Kosaka Akane said weakly.

"And I'm all sticky right now — there's no way I can go outside like this."

Machida Sonoko added, complaining as well.

"If only Kagami's place had a big pool."

"We could just jump straight in right now."

Kosaka Akane drifted off into fantasy again.

"No pool, a bathtub would do too."

Machida Sonoko rolled over, pressing her face against the floor, which still held a bit of coolness.

"I'm covered in sweat, there's no way I can put clothes on and go outside... let's at least take a cold shower first."

The two of them exchanged a look, just about to ask Tsushima Kagami if they could borrow the bathroom, when they heard him say—

"If it's swimming you want... maybe there's a way."

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko both froze and turned to look at him.

"What do you mean?"

Tsushima Kagami smiled but didn't answer.

Instead, he walked straight toward the storage room on the first floor.

The two of them heard the sound of rummaging inside, and then he came dragging out a large vacuum-sealed plastic bag.

Inside was something flattened down, like a deflated balloon.

"What's that?"

Kosaka Akane leaned in curiously.

Still smiling, Tsushima Kagami dragged the big plastic bag to the bathroom door.

"Come see for yourselves if you want to know."

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko exchanged a glance, scrambled up off the floor, and followed him.

The bathroom in the Tsushima family's new house was large. Tsushima Kagami set the compressed bag right in the middle of the wash area, then dug a foot pump out of a corner.

"Don't tell me you're going to—" Machida Sonoko blinked.

Without answering, Tsushima Kagami stepped down on the pump.

With a series of soft huff-huff sounds,

the flattened plastic bag slowly began to swell, gradually taking shape.

Kosaka Akane's eyes went wider and wider.

"Is that... an inflatable pool?!"

"Genius!"

Machida Sonoko couldn't help clapping her hands.

Still pumping, Tsushima Kagami said with a laugh,

"Shizu insisted on buying it when we were shopping for new house supplies."

"She said if you don't want to go to the pool or get sunburned at the beach, soaking in one of these at home isn't bad either."

"Shizu really does think ahead, doesn't she!"

Kosaka Akane crouched down, watching excitedly as the pool slowly puffed up.

The three of them took turns pumping, and after nearly ten minutes,

an inflatable pool about two and a half meters across and deep enough to reach an adult's knees stood fully set up and steady in the bathroom.

Next came filling it with water.

They turned the faucet on full, and cool tap water gushed into the pool.

As the water was almost full, Tsushima Kagami suddenly remembered something and turned to dash toward the kitchen.

"What's wrong?"

Kosaka Akane followed after him.

Tsushima Kagami opened the freezer, where several neatly stacked bags of ice sat inside.

He'd prepared them earlier, originally just meant for chilling drinks — he hadn't expected them to come in this handy.

Looking at the ice that hadn't melted yet, Tsushima Kagami called out to the other two.

"Come help!"

The three of them hauled out the ice, then together chipped out every bit of frost still clinging to the freezer's inner walls, dumping it all into the pool with a clatter.

The ice floated on the surface, clinking together with a bright clear sound, and a cool white mist rose off the water.

By the time everything was ready, all three of them were sweating again.

Too hot to care about appearances, Tsushima Kagami pulled off his T-shirt, standing bare-chested by the pool in just his shorts.

He turned to Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko with a grin.

"You two can go ahead and swim now."

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko's eyes lit up, and they were about to cheer and jump in when Kosaka Akane suddenly reached out to stop Machida Sonoko.

"Wait a second."

"What is it?"

"We're both covered in sweat — jumping in like this will make the pool water dirty."

Kosaka Akane said, pulling Machida Sonoko back toward the living room, and dug something out of the suitcase.

"We're going to shower off first!"

Machida Sonoko called back over her shoulder to Tsushima Kagami, and then the two of them disappeared into the shower room next to the bathroom.

Tsushima Kagami waited outside the bathroom, listening to the sound of running water and faint laughter from inside the shower room.

A few minutes later, the shower room door opened.

"Kagami... you can come in now."

Kosaka Akane's voice carried a playful note.

Tsushima Kagami pushed the door open and froze mid-step.

Kosaka Akane had changed into a white one-piece bikini with a cutout at the navel, the fabric cut just enough to reveal a thin line of skin along her waist and stomach.

Machida Sonoko was even bolder.

Hers was a strappy two-piece bikini, thin straps crossing at her waist and back, tracing out the sharpest possible curves.

Tsushima Kagami looked away, doing his best to keep his voice steady.

"You two brought swimsuits too?"

Kosaka Akane put her hands on her hips, as if it were obvious.

"We figured they might come in handy for reference while drawing, so we packed them just in case."

"Didn't think we'd actually get to use them."

She exchanged a smile with Machida Sonoko — a smile full of shared understanding.

And a little something else besides.

Then both of them reached out toward Tsushima Kagami at once.

"Kagami, come join us."

Tsushima Kagami shook his head, smiling.

"I'll pass — you two go ahead and have fun."

"I should go check when the power's coming back on, anyway."

He turned, and had barely taken a step when—

both his hands were seized from behind at the same time.

"Hey—"

Before he could react, a strong pull yanked him backward.

His foot slipped, and he tipped over backward, toppling toward the pool.

And the two who'd grabbed his hands, unable to check their own momentum, tumbled in right along with him.

In midair, Tsushima Kagami instinctively adjusted his position, catching Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko as they fell toward him just as he hit the water.

With a splash—

a huge wave of water erupted, cold water and floating ice striking all three of them.

Tsushima Kagami lay flat on his back in the water, spine pressed against the bottom of the inflatable pool, both arms wrapped tightly around the two of them at his sides.

Water sloshed and echoed in his ears, the chill of the ice seeping into his skin.

But the warmth of their bodies came through clearly even through the thin fabric of their swimsuits.

"That was dangerous, Akane-senpai, Sonoko-senpai."

Tsushima Kagami said, frowning.

He tried to let go and push himself up off the pool floor.

But Kosaka Akane, lying against his chest, lifted her head — her wet hair clinging to her cheeks, droplets running down her chin.

Machida Sonoko pressed down on his other side too, and together they pushed him back down into the water.

"Kagami."

Kosaka Akane's voice was soft, the end of it lifting in a way that made his heart race.

Machida Sonoko said nothing, only trailed her fingers lightly across the water's surface, the ice clinking with a faint sound.

The water still rippled, sunlight slanting through the louvered vent above the bathroom, casting golden stripes across the surface.

Tsushima Kagami's back pressed against the pool floor, cold water lapping at his shoulders, while his chest was pinned beneath two warm bodies.

He could hear his own heartbeat, one beat after another, growing faster.

He wasn't sure if it was from the fall into the water, or something else entirely.

His fingers curled slightly, but in the end, he didn't push them away.

For a moment, the bathroom held only the soft slap of water against the pool's walls, and the three of them's slightly quickened breathing, tangled together.

"You're really sly, you know."

"You've already let Nayotake and Hiratsuka Shizuka move into your house."

"But you keep acting like you don't see us."

Kosaka Akane said slowly.

"So is it because you've already gotten used to other pretty girls' bodies?"

"That you've already lost interest in us?"

Machida Sonoko added, her tone unusually slow and deliberate.

Tsushima Kagami looked at the two of them, their eyes fixed on him intently.

As if searching his expression for some answer they wanted.

Tsushima Kagami sighed, helpless.

"You two know full well that's not it."

"Then what is it?"

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko said at the same time.

Because they'd spoken so urgently, the soft bodies pressed against Tsushima Kagami kept rubbing against him unconsciously.

"Is it that Kagami feels three is already enough? Or that you feel guilty about going any further?"

Kosaka Akane pressed on, refusing to let it go.

"That's really unfair, you know — you got yourself a life that makes everyone else envious, a life everyone envies."

"So you just leave everyone else hanging, letting the rest of us watch and envy your life?"

"You know exactly what's going on, but you stop yourself because you don't want the responsibility, the burden of more?"

Machida Sonoko leaned in close to Tsushima Kagami too, her look somewhere between accusing and teasing.

Tsushima Kagami didn't answer their questions.

Instead, he asked one of his own.

"If I were the type who couldn't help himself the moment he saw you two like this—"

"—would you two still think anything of me?"

"Of course not!"

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko answered in unison, unexpectedly.

"A guy who thinks with what's below the belt is trash, plain and simple."

Kosaka Akane said.

"A man who lets himself get controlled that easily has no future."

Machida Sonoko agreed.

Tsushima Kagami raised an eyebrow, wearing an expression that said, just as I thought.

You two are the ones who provoked me, and now that I've acted on it the way you wanted, you're saying you misjudged me?

Talk about inconsistent.

"That's so hurtful."

"It doesn't sound like you're talking about yourself — you're doing something even worse than what you're accusing us of, senpai."

Tsushima Kagami said, looking at them helplessly, but smiling.

"Women always want a man to be both a father and a brother, both a lover and a scoundrel — pure and innocent, yet seductive at the same time."

Tsushima Kagami held both Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko close.

He'd remembered a joke that had been popular online in his previous life, and muttered it out without quite meaning to.

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko both froze for a second at his words, then burst out laughing.

The two of them wrapped their arms tightly around him, one on each side.

Looking up at him — looking like he'd entered some sort of sage mode — they poked at his chest, laughing.

"So what you're saying is even Kagami can't manage that either?"

"No."

Tsushima Kagami came back to himself, looking at the two senpai whose minds were the most mature, the most complicated, and the most exasperating of all.

He couldn't help laughing.

"If it's me, I can do all of it."

"Then why have you made us wait so long?"

"We've already made it obvious enough, haven't we?"

"Shizu and Nayotake have already openly moved into your house, haven't they?"

"And Yukinoshita Shizuku has already accepted she's not going to interfere with you, hasn't she?"

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko fired the most soul-piercing questions at him, one after another.

Tsushima Kagami looked at the two of them.

"And if I'd taken action the moment you two made it obvious, what would you have thought of me then?"

He turned it back into the same question as before.

"You'd have been useless, after all."

"Can't control what's below the belt, a bug!"

"We'd have thought we misjudged you!"

"Nausea!"

Half-amused, half-exasperated, Tsushima Kagami instinctively tried to pull a hand free to rub his temple.

But the two of them clamped down on him again, tight.

"You two really are impossible to figure out."

"A woman's heart really is unfathomable, isn't it."

"The answer that looks most correct is often the most wrong one."

"That's genuinely dangerous."

"So does that mean you're giving up, and just going to ignore us?"

"Not at all."

"I'm just waiting for the right moment."

"One that answers your expectations, without making you think I'm just some guy thinking with what's below the belt."

At Tsushima Kagami's answer, Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko both laughed.

They no longer looked as serious or resentful as before, their expressions turning from cloudy to clear as they looked at him.

"So what are you waiting for, exactly?"

"Ah, who knows."

"Maybe your coming-of-age ceremony at twenty. Or maybe thirty — a mature woman's not bad either, right?"

"Or maybe I'll wait until I'm past forty? They do say a man at forty is in full bloom."

"Or, well, maybe seventy or eighty's fine too — nothing more beautiful than a sunset, after all!"

"After all, you two are so hard to figure out."

Tsushima Kagami looked as if he were genuinely picturing what kind of story might unfold at each of those ages.

The longer they listened, the deeper Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko's frowns grew.

Until finally, both of them became certain — Tsushima Kagami was definitely teasing them!

No — he was definitely getting them back for something!

"Snap out of it!"

"Come back to your senses!"

Tsushima Kagami was jolted back to reality as they splashed water at his face.

"By then we'll both be old women!"

"So what timing do you two think would actually be appropriate?"

Tsushima Kagami asked, looking at them with a look of earnest curiosity.

Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko exchanged a glance, and for once the composure and poise they usually carried as senpai slipped, replaced with something shy and soft.

"We don't want to wait anymore."

Machida Sonoko said.

"Just respond to us right now."

Kosaka Akane said.

Both of them leaned in together and kissed Tsushima Kagami at the same time.

Floating on his back at the edge of the inflatable pool, Tsushima Kagami drifted in water shimmering gold under the sunlight, gazing up through the half-open vent at the sky beyond.

It felt as though he were wrapped in clouds, carried along on some warm current.

Here, now, was the color of the sky, and the color of water...

____

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