“You gettin’ breakfast too?”
“Hmm? O-Oh. Yeah.”
“I recommend this one, then. It’s good and healthy.”
As she spoke, I noticed that she had her hand on her back as if she were supporting herself. I was freaking out, but I knew I had to ask her.
“Is there...somethin’ wrong with your back?”
“Oh, well...y’know. Don’t worry, though.”
I felt a cold sweat on my back. The way she was calling me by my old nickname, her pained back, the weird way she was acting...it was all nothing I needed to worry about, right? There was no way that we’d crossed that line, right? I could feel my body temperature drop. I was getting so frightened of that blank in my memories. What did I do last night?
I grabbed a random sweet bread and left the convenience store. There was only one person I could think of who knew about the weird circumstances between me and Minami and could have a calm, levelheaded conversation with me. At this point, I couldn’t handle this on my own. Just when I felt as if I were being crushed by the overwhelming sense of isolation, I pressed the call button.
“Hello?”
“Irido! Help me!”
Mizuto Irido: Armchair Detective Part 1
“You need my help? With what?”
“I’m freaking out about what I did last night! I can’t remember at all! What did I do?! You’re smart, right?! I bet you know, don’t you?!”
This was a more serious conversation than I’d expected, so just in case, I went outside to sit on the veranda. Ugh, it’s hot. Also, I wasn’t sure if it was out of concern or if she was just curious, but Yume had followed me too.
“Listen, how am I supposed to know something that you don’t even know yourself? I’m not a mind reader.”
“But I heard all about how you saw through the fight the girls were having on the school trip.” Oh, the thing about the guidebooks being stolen? I might’ve stood out more than I should have let myself when I worked through that. “There’s no way I did anything! I just need a clue, even a scrap will do! Please!”
“It sounds like you already have your answer, though. Honestly, I thought it was just a matter of time. Congrats. Now take responsibility like a man.”
“No... There’s no way that actually happened... No way...”
It sounded like Kawanami was muttering this like some kind of self-hypnosis. His condition’s more serious than I thought. Why is he so adamant to not accept this as a possibility? But as I heard him out, I also thought that there were some strange things—his memory in particular. It didn’t seem like anyone, not even his former classmates, drank any alcohol, so why was there an empty can in his recycling? The first thought that came to mind was that he did actually drink, but I didn’t take Kawanami for the type to have an interest in drinking as a minor. In that case, why was there a blank in Kawanami’s memories of yesterday and who drank the beer?
“Fine. I’ll try to figure out what I can about what you did last night.”
“I owe you...”
There was one part of his story that was bugging me, though. “So, remind me. When you woke up, you were in just your boxers?”
“Yeah.”
“Where’d your clothes from yesterday go? You at least remember what clothes you were wearing yesterday, right?”
“Oh, yeah... Where are they? Wait a sec, I’m gonna go look for them.”
He hung up, so I removed the phone from my ear. Wow, what a case for an armchair detective to take. I don’t even want to think about whether or not someone I know did or didn’t go all the way. But judging by the way Minami-san reacted, there probably isn’t really any other explanation, though.
“Hey...” Yume said with a somewhat displeased look.
“Yeah?”
“I heard a little bit of what you were saying and...I think I may have a clue about what happened.”
“You do?”
Yume looked away, a wry smile filling her face. “Well, I actually kinda got one too...about an hour ago.”
“You got a what? From who?”
“A phone call from Akatsuki-san.” She forced a laugh to try and downplay this before explaining. “So, according to her...”
Akatsuki Minami: A Girl’s Memories
It felt kinda good. It was warm, smooth, and a little squishy... I felt more at ease than when I fell asleep inside a kotatsu and maybe even happier. Why was I so happy? I slowly opened my eyes trying to find out why, and as I did, I finally noticed someone’s soft breathing as they slept. Am I sleeping with someone?
When my eyes opened, there was Ko-kun’s face as he slept. But that wasn’t where the surprises ended. I could see his clavicle and his chest. This entire time, the thing I’d been clutching like a body pillow was actually Ko-kun’s bare upper body. Well, of course it felt good. I was just in a sports bra and panties, so there were hardly any barriers between my skin and his. Everywhere felt good. Oh, I get it. This is a dirty dream.
Am I really that sexually frustrated? But as I thought of this in my stupor, my body began moving by instinct. Well, if this is a dream, then there’s no problem with me enjoying it, right? I took my finger and poked his nipple, which had been in my field of view.
“Mm...”
Ko-kun groaned, still asleep. His body twisted as if he were being tickled. Oh, he’s not waking up? It’s not my fault if he’s this defenseless right? He’s practically begging to be messed with. I moved my lethargic body underneath the blanket, covering his body with mine to look closely at his sleeping face. Hmm...isn’t this a little too high resolution for a dream?
Now that I think about it, between me feeling his chest, his toned muscles, his slightly pained face while he sleeps, his groans, his hair, and my excitement...there’s a few too many real things in here to be a dream. Uh...is this actually real?
I slowly, very slowly, left the bed and looked at myself. I was wearing my usual sports bra and panties. Then, I looked down at Ko-kun and saw that he was in nothing but a pair of light-blue boxers. We were just two people in nothing but their underwear in bed. Suddenly, I felt blood rushing to my head. Did we do it?! Up until now I’d kept tight control on myself to prevent things from ever getting this far, but had I finally snapped? Did I go into berserk mode all without even having any conscious memory of doing it?
But more importantly, how did this happen? I felt myself panicking, so I quickly put on my clothes and flew out of his house. And into mine, diving into my bed and hiding there. How did this happen?! I clutched my head. I couldn’t remember at all. It was like my memories of yesterday had been removed from my brain. I could at least remember eating dinner, but anything after that was as empty as a blank page. What happened?! Oh my god, this is freaky!
“Wh-Wh-What do I do? What do I do?!”
After a while of pointlessly repeating this, I found my phone on my desk. I felt relieved that it was here because I was worried that I might’ve left it at Kawanami’s. I stood up and started my new routine, this time with phone in hand. What do I do? What do I do?! My mind had entered a loop. What do I do? What do I do?! If it happened, I at least wish I remembered! What a waste! Wait, no that’s not what the takeaway here is! What do I do? What do I do?! Maybe I am sexually frustrated... What do I do? What do I—
“What do I do, Yume-chan?!”
“This is how we’re starting the morning?!”