While I felt grateful, I also felt slightly apologetic about the whole affair. Nanami, on the other hand, was looking at the snacks on the table with eyes all aglow, which made me feel slightly less guilty. And honestly, I also felt kind of excited about all the treats before us. It was a new feeling.
This didn’t happen last year, so I was still kind of surprised by this turn of events. Okay, I can admit it: I was super happy.
“You got these, though, right? Is it okay for me to have some too?” Nanami asked.
“Oh, definitely. Everyone who gave it to me told me to share it with you,” I replied.
Quite literally, every single person who gifted me a snack today did so while telling me to share it with Nanami. I almost thought that they had planned it all in advance.
The only ones who didn’t say that were Hitoshi, Shoichi-senpai, and Teshikaga-kun.
Neither Hitoshi nor Shoichi-senpai could say such a thing, obviously, and Teshikaga-kun...had given me a protein bar. It was a brand I’d never seen before.
Apparently Teshikaga-kun had also started working out in order to be able to protect Shirishizu-san. It’d be cool if we could go work out together some day.
“Then, before I partake,” Nanami said, then got in a good stretch before reaching for the snacks that lay on the table. She quivered as she stretched, and as they always did, her breasts announced themselves, undeniable in their presence even underneath her plush loungewear.
I knew this sounded crass, but I had to wonder: Has Nanami developed even more than before? Her breasts were honestly kind of awe-inspiring. But it was best not to stare. I tried my hardest to avert my gaze and focus anywhere but there.
Nanami then straightened her back and sat on the floor on her heels. Embarrassment over my dirty thoughts had me sit up straight as well.
In the next moment, Nanami inhaled, steadied her breathing, and smiled. The clear tenderness on her face captured me, and my breath stuck in my throat.
“Happy birthday, Yoshin.”
She placed her hand upon her chest, as if to steady her heartbeat. Nanami then closed her eyes and continued, her next words spoken carefully and slowly.
“Thank you for meeting me. Thank you for being with me. Being able to spend this time with you is my greatest happiness.”
Each word touched my heart, sinking right into my core. I didn’t know how to describe it, but they made me realize one thing: Today was the day I was born.
“Next year, and the year after that,” she said, “I hope that you’ll let me celebrate your birthday with you. I love you.”
Her last words almost made me cry.
And it was then that this nebulous thing called “birthday” suddenly became real for me.
“Wait, Yoshin, don’t cry,” Nanami said, flustered.
“Huh?”
It seemed that her words didn’t almost make me cry; they did make me cry.
I had no intention of crying, obviously, but when I realized it, more and more tears welled up in my eyes. Nanami drew me in for a gentle embrace at once.
“Thank you,” I managed to say. “I’ve never had someone celebrate my birthday for me like this, so I’m feeling a little emotional right now. Wow, this is super embarrassing.”
“Jeez, you don’t need to cry! Here, get some of my boob sandwich and stop crying!” she joked.
There she goes again, saying stuff like that. Though I guess it kind of worked, since I’m so shocked I can’t even cry anymore. But boy, her boobs feel so soft today. It’s kind of amazing.
Having been reduced to tears, I remained in Nanami’s arms, enjoying the feel of her breasts. Meanwhile, Nanami continued whispering birthday wishes in my ear.
Is she trying to make me cry even more?
In Nanami’s arms, it finally sank in that I had grown one year older. I was seventeen now. Next year, I would be eighteen, and a full-fledged adult at that. I would be old enough to decide so many things for myself.
The fact I would be a legal adult next year didn’t really hit me, though. It just seemed weird to think that I would be an adult when people always said that all high schoolers were still kids.
Up until today, that ambivalence seemed okay. Going forward, though, it probably wasn’t going to cut it—especially when I thought about wanting to be with Nanami forever.
When I glanced at Nanami, she happened to be looking at me as well, asking without words for what was on my mind.
So I told her, honestly, what I was thinking. I had said it casually before, but this time, I said it with conviction.
“Maybe, when I’m eighteen, I’ll try living by myself.”
Nanami, cradling me in her arms, became still, saying not a word. I kept going.
“I know it’ll cost money, and it’ll probably be hard to convince my parents to let me do it. They’ll probably set a lot of conditions for me. It might not even be hard, but straight up impossible,” I said.
I didn’t have a clue how to live on my own, and I wasn’t even sure if I would be able to do all the different things that until now my parents had always done for me.
What was more, it wasn’t just my parents I had to convince; this also involved Nanami. There would be so many problems and challenges to have to overcome in order to make this work.
Even then, I couldn’t keep myself from asking Nanami one more time.
“If you’re not averse to the idea...do you want to try living together for real?” I asked.
Immediately, Nanami lit up. Overcome by emotion, she let out an enthusiastic “Yes!” and kissed me—as if that was the signal that she had been waiting for this whole time.