I woke up to warm sunlight filtering in through the window. Once upon a time, when I’d still been a dedicated gamer, I couldn’t wake up on time without an alarm clock. Man, those memories from a year ago seemed so far away now. Still, today’s wake-up was unusual for several uncomfortable reasons. It was indeed light outside, but it was still earlier than my usual wake-up time. And while I was used to feeling the warmth of Ann glued to me when I woke up, I was not used to being sandwiched in like that. It was uncomfortably hot.
Something momentous had happened. I was sure of it.
I steeled myself and opened my eyes. Mary was lying beside me, still sound asleep, our noses nearly touching. Ah, then the warmth behind me must have been Ann. This was a bit troubling. Mary had her arms wrapped around me, pulling herself tight up against me. Meanwhile, Ann had both her legs wrapped around me from the other side, clamping her to my back.
What was I, her favorite plushie?
Okay, so what to do about this. There was no way I was escaping without them noticing. In game terms, we’d gone way past hard difficulty and right on to chaos mode. It was morning already, so if I moved even a little, they were sure to wake up. How had we ended up like this? Well, Ann was prone to tossing and turning in her sleep and had probably ended up behind me. Then Mary hugged me, thinking I was Ann. Incidentally, the only reason I was still hanging onto my sanity was the lingering effect of the samathi herb I’d popped into my mouth last night. I had to think of something, before it was too late. I had to get out of this alive! THINK! You must have learned something from all those games, right?! I had two beauties pinning me to the bed, one on either side of me, and... Yes! That’s it! The answer came to me the moment I turned the question upside down.
Why not just stay like this?
This was paradise. You couldn’t get something like this in my world unless you were ready to shell out some serious cash. This softness, this warmth, this sweet scent... These could only be my reward for a life well lived! As a gamer, I could hear the truth in my heart: this was the greatest event of my life thus far.
When I realized all this, the perfect solution came to me. If Mary woke up while I was awake, disaster would strike this cabin. But if the opposite happened, everything would be fine. The visual novel cliché was that the girl woke up right after you, and then she slapped you silly. Given Mary’s nature, she’d be horribly surprised and panic, whether I was awake or not, but if I was asleep, there was a chance she’d just gently let go of me and pretend it never happened. Granted, there was also a chance she’d just up and slap me anyway, but still, I liked my odds better like this. I was always sleeping together with Ann, so no need to worry about that side.
Now, the other concern was my sanity. However, my self-control had been tempered in the mighty crucible of Ann’s nightly attentions, and with the further aid of my trusty herbs, I could lie back and enjoy this ride for as long as it lasted!
So there you had it. I closed my eyes and tried to burn the sensation into my brain. It was totally cool if I hugged her a little tighter, right? Yeah. Mmm. Man, this softness was the best. I could feel Mary’s heartbeat gently thumping against my chest. Enveloped in happiness, I decided to fall asleep a second time. Good night, world.
I dozed off blissfully, and in my slumber, I thought I heard a cutesy shriek.
“Yo yo, good mornin’ to ya. I’ve gotta plan out my schedule today, so I was hoping you could tell me what you’re... Hey, Aoi, did you do something to Mary last night?”
A transmission opened up as we were all eating breakfast, and Suzu quickly became suspicious of me, for some reason. Mary looked composed, but she was acting rather distant now, and she was being careful to always position herself so that Ann was between the two of us. I didn’t know whether the memories from this morning were still fresh in her mind or if she was just shy, but her face was still a little flushed. Not that you’d catch me pointing that out; only an idiot would step on a mine like that.
“Of course not. Hell, Ann was there the whole time.”
And that was a hundred percent true. I hadn’t done anything, even if a happy accident did occur. Plus, I was pretending not to know anything about my good fortune overnight. You know, I could really tell my fortitude had grown. It hadn’t been all that long since I was freaking out over sleeping with Ann in her human form, and now, in spite of a moment of panicked hesitation, I was able to live in the moment and really enjoy it. No doubt I had Ann to thank for my newfound tolerance, with the way she pushed the boundaries of my self-control night after night.