I took off my blouse and put it into my clothes basket. “I have to tie up my hair, so you can go ahead if you want,” I said.
“Oh...” She didn’t move from my side.
It reminded me of how I used to be, which warmed my heart. I used to always stay with the one person I could actually talk to in middle school. That being said, it must’ve been awkward standing naked in the changing room. After stripping down to just my underwear, I turned my back to Asuhain-san.
“Want to help me tie it up?” I asked.
“Sure,” Asuhain-san, who looked like she had nowhere to go, said, looking up before beginning to cautiously touch my hair.
First, she helped straighten out my hair, and then she held most of it in place while I took the rest of it and wrapped it into a bun before fixing it in place with a hair accessory.
“Thanks!” I said, turning to her.
“Sure...” she said, a little sheepishly.
Afterwards, I took off my bra and panties, put them in the basket, and picked up my towel. Right around then, Akatsuki-san, who’d been boldly walking around without hiding anything with her towel, came by with Higashira-san.
“Let’s go, Yume-chan!”
“Yeah.” I nodded, turning around.
Asuhain-san stood next to me, and Higashira-san stood on the other side of me, shrinking her shoulders with embarrassment. Akatsuki-san suddenly clammed up and looked at us one by one.
“Wh-What?” I asked.
Akatsuki-san surveyed our breasts, waists, and butts emotionlessly.
“Beep, beep, beep—boom!” She mimicked the sound of an explosion and suddenly pointed towards Asuhain-san. “Eighty-six, fifty-three, seventy-four!” Then she pointed at Higashira-san. “Error, sixty-three, ninety-four.” Lastly, she pointed at me. “Eighty-five, fifty-six, seventy-nine.” After mouthing off all these mysterious values, she staggered back from us. “Sorry, I really can’t stand next to you three.”
“Huh?”
“Your boob levels are over nine thousand!” she yelled before fleeing into the bath.
Y-You’re overreacting... Akatsuki-san might’ve been on the shorter side, but she still had a good body. I really don’t think she has anything to worry about. It seemed that Akatsuki-san wasn’t the only one bothered. Higashira-san’s eyes flung open and glued themselves to my own boobs.
“E-Eighty-five...”
“What are you so freaked out about, Ms. ‘Error’?”
We entered the bath some time later, coming upon murky water flowing into gray stone. We saw some familiar faces excitedly making a ruckus, mysteriously going from one end and then running back out. I called out to Nasuka-san, who was leaning against the edge as she soaked.
“What are they doing?” I asked.
Nasuka-san’s short bob cut shook as she pointed at the ceiling. “Look up there.”
In the middle was a square hole through which you could see the night sky. The starlight that filtered in through it dimly lit the bath, and the wind coolly blew against our naked bodies.
“It’s an outdoor bath...” Asuhain-san murmured.
The girls who were acting up were going into the spot where they could see the sky, getting embarrassed, and then splashing away. It was like playing a game of chicken. Unless someone magically came crashing down, there wasn’t any way that someone could’ve seen them. That being said, it did take some amount of courage to be naked outside, even if there wasn’t anyone around. It seemed that there were two kings of the chicken game, and they were two people I knew. They were boldly resting their shoulders against the stone border while soaking up the starlight.
“Oh, there you three are!” Akatsuki-san said.
“Over here, Irido-san!” Maki-san followed up.
There was a significant difference in their heights, but both girls had slender, sporty bodies and were stretching their legs in the water. Will these two be okay without me? I glanced at Asuhain-san and Higashira-san.
After a few seconds of feeling out our intentions, Higashira-san took a step back.
“Go ahead,” she said.
“Don’t act like I’m raring to be over there,” I said.
I guess I don’t have a choice... Higashira-san and Asuhain-san already stand out enough without any help. I can’t have them get caught up in a game of chicken. I stepped into the bath and nervously stepped towards the part with the open ceiling. The cool night air caressed my skin.
Looking up, I saw a square cutout of the starry sky. The gentle light filtering in reminded me of opening a treasure chest in a video game, but what weighed on my mind more was the fact that I didn’t have any clothes on. I’m naked...outside... It was a weird sense of freedom from normal day activities, but also...
“Feels kinda naughty, doesn’t it?” Akatsuki-san smirked when I looked back down.
She and Maki-san had their limbs stretched out, embraced by the night sky.
“The feel of the wind on every crevice of your body...”
“This is how our ancestors lived! I might get hooked...”
I’m sure this isn’t the wrong way to enjoy outdoor baths, but I’m not sure why, but I don’t want people to think I’m the same as these two. Right then, I heard water splashing as someone approached. I turned around, and I saw a pair of boobs just barely being covered by a towel. Asuhain-san was wading through the water over to us.
“Asuhain-san? Are you sure?” I thought this would be too embarrassing for you.
Then she looked up at the night sky. “This doesn’t happen every day. When in Rome...”
Wow, I never thought I’d live to see the day that she’d say that. She wasn’t the type to do anything unnecessary that didn’t have to do with studying...the exception being if President Kurenai asked her for help. Well...I guess she’s right. When in Rome, do as the Romans do! Plus, with Asuhain-san here, people won’t lump me together with Akatsuki-san and Maki-san.
Asuhain-san and I sat next to Akatsuki-san and Maki-san. We placed our towels on the edge of the bath and then slowly dipped ourselves into the water. As we did, I noticed that Maki-san’s eyes locked onto a certain part of our bodies.
“Look at them jiggle. Let me feel ’em.”
“No.” These are for Mizuto’s hands only.
“Damn you, you lewd woman! You sayin’ your boobs are only for your boyfriend?!”
I fell silent, surprised by how Maki-san had jokingly expressed exactly what had been on my mind. I-I’m not lewd! This is normal... Asuhain-san’s flushed face rose to look at the starry sky above.
“What do you think?” I asked.
After a few seconds, Asuhain-san answered. “I feel like I’ve had a lot of firsts after meeting you...”