After thoroughly enjoying the fresh look of Satou in an off-shoulder outfit.
「Tada~! Next up is the mini skirt Onii-chan requested~!」
「……」
After seeing her beautiful figure so much, I should have been fully satisfied and aware of how cute Satou is…
「Ah… u-umm… h-how is it?」
「……Super cute.」
「…T-Thank goodness…」
The shock of seeing Satou as the curtain opened was no less than before.
So the same words escape me in the same way.
「Geez, Onii-chan, you’ve only been saying cute since earlier, you know?」
「No, I mean…」
No other words come to mind.
If there’s a superior term, please tell me so I can use it right away.
「Well, I understand how you feel! Ayane-chan really looks super cute in anything!」
「Really.」
「T-Thank you very much…」
Satou was wearing a simple black mini skirt. It fluttered, swayed, the fabric was soft, and it was short.
It barely reached above her knees, mercilessly exposing the bare legs Satou had hidden under ankle-length slacks today.
Conversely, there was a drastic reduction in skin exposure above.
A white T-shirt and a pale cherry-colored parka. The double layers protect Satou’s skin from view, but the meaningful creases in the T-shirt and parka irresistibly draw my gaze.
「Umm… d-don’t hold back, it’s okay to look as much as you want…」
「Then, I’ll take you up on that.」
「Y-Yes… please do.」
……Even so.
It feels like a lack of courtesy or delicacy, those important things, for a guy to easily convey more than “cute” to a girl.
I’m serious, but it’s not my true intention.
Maybe if we were close enough for that to be understood, but we’ve known each other for less than a week, so we’re probably not there yet.
That’s why it’s important to take our time to understand Satou and for her to understand me, through moments like today.
In other words, being too aggressive… no, trying to advance the relationship too quickly would be a bad move.
So…
「……Waa……」
The best I can do for now.
The limit of intimacy that hasn’t been rejected after trying it once.
I pat her head.
Satou’s body stiffened at the action.
「You’re cute, really cute.」
「Uu… guh… a two-hit combo… is unfair…」
「It’s the second outfit, so let’s call it even.」
「…T-That’s why… geez…」
She smiles as if giving up, closes her eyes, and puts her aimless hands behind her. Then she tightly presses her lips together as if to prevent something from escaping.
「……(purupuru)」
「Are you nervous?」
「B-Because, I’m… not used to this… ahh, ah… when I talk, my voice… can’t be controlled…」
「It’s fine. They say it’s better not to hold back nervousness anyway.」
Putting my own issues aside, I gently stroke her well-maintained hair.
「…Nn… ah…」
「…Miu, what’s the key point of this coordination?」
「Heh!? Ahh, umm, umm…」
Miu’s unusually flustered voice.
She fans her face with her hands.
「Umm, umm… ah, right! A-Ayane-chan, if you feel embarrassed, you can always hide your head with the parka’s hood!」
「Miu?」
「……!」
As I was distracted by Miu, Satou suddenly pulled the hood over her head like a startled rabbit.
「Ah… why this…」
…Along with my hand that was stroking her head.
「Satou…?」
「N-No, it’s not like that… I didn’t mean to catch Hinata-kun’s hand too…!」
「If you’re embarrassed, it’s totally fine. I can still move my hand… though it’s a bit cramped.」
「…! Nn… ahh…」
「I’m not pulling your hair, am I?」
「…I-It’s… okay… but, t-this closeness is really… uhh…」
「Onii-chan, stop, stop, stop! Stop it, stop it, stop it~!」
As I was trying to ease Satou’s tension and express my gratitude for showing me her cute mini skirt and parka look, Miu, with a bright red face, rushed between me and Satou. In a panic, my hand is pulled out from the hood.
「O-Onii-chan, what have you learned about a woman’s heart from Miu until now~!」
「A woman’s heart? …I don’t know about that, but let’s see… for example, that it’s nice for both parties when you honestly compliment a woman’s good points… or something.」
「C-Could it be that Miu herself was the root of all evil!? A-Ayane-chan, it looks like we have to retreat for now!」
「Uhh, Hinata-kun’s hand… his gentle stroking…」
「Is it too late already!?」
Miu seems to be getting excited all by herself.
「A-Anyway! We need to move on to the next outfit quickly, so goodbye for now, Onii-chan!」
「O-Okay.」
She quickly closes the curtain with Satou inside.
But, Miu’s face popped out again immediately.
「…Before that, Onii-chan, can I borrow your jacket?」
「My jacket? Sure, but what for?」
「Fuhihi, obviously to create a beautiful girl so stunning that even Onii-chan can’t touch her!」
「Then Ayane-chan, put your arms through here, okay?」
「O-Okay.」
「How is it? Big, right?」
「Yeah… it easily reaches my legs… a-and this scent…」
「It’s the one Onii-chan was wearing just now. The first time smelling it… no way that’s true, right? You okay?」
「I-I’m okay. …It smells really nice.」
「Hear that, Onii-chan~!」
「…I don’t know how to react to that. But well, I’ve been enjoying a nice scent on the train and stuff all this time too, so if Satou felt the same, that’s good.」
「Uhh…」
「Geez, Onii-chan again… Ah, Ayane-chan, don’t move too much! Miu isn’t that used to men’s buttons either.」
「T-That’s… u-unavoidable…」
「…Right. Sorry, sorry.」
Hearing this kind of exchange only through sound, I’ve gotten used to it by now.
A little time passed since the curtain closed.
The information I heard from the two finally started to take shape.
First, it seemed my jacket was going to be used for Satou’s next outfit. Apparently, all the oversized items in the store were sold out, so they decided to use my clothes instead.
According to Miu, it’s fairly common in stores with many couples for “clothes boys might like” to sell out quickly. And surprisingly, it was Satou, not Miu, who suggested using my jacket.
Well, given how crowded it is, moving to another store isn’t easy, so if mine works, that’s fine.
I’m not confident I can put on the returned jacket right away.
「Okay, all done! It’s absolutely… no, staying in the fitting room too long isn’t good, so I’ll open it right away!」
With that, the curtain was opened with a sound.
First, as expected, Satou was wearing the checkered jacket I lent her.
Although it’s called a jacket, it’s actually something that can be worn as a shirt, so it works as a top on its own… but the garment is so large that her neckline is exposed, the sleeves cover up to her knuckles, and it reaches halfway down her thighs, making it undeniably oversized…
It gives off a lazy vibe, or rather, a much fluffier feeling than usual.
「Uhh…」
As I looked at Satou from top to bottom, when my gaze reached her thighs, she let out an embarrassed sound.
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She rubs her white thighs together shyly and holds the bottom edge of the shirt tightly.
「…Satou, under that…」
「U-Umm, it’s not what you think… I’m wearing pants.」
「I-I see. That’s good then.」
「Ah, umm… d-do you want to see?」
「…No, it’s okay.」
I stop Satou’s hand as she is about to lift the shirt and take a deep breath.
Oversized top with short pants.
I can’t really say much since I suggested the mini skirt, but for a shy girl like Satou, this combination is… I wonder how she convinced her.
「Just so you know, Miu isn’t the culprit here!」
「…You’re not?」
「Not at all! For this coordination, Miu just made some adjustments to what Ayane-chan said she wanted to wear.」
Looking at Miu who declared so, I turned my face to Satou.
「I-I don’t usually show this much skin, you know…? But, umm… since Hinata-kun is looking today… I-I wanted to make you happy…」
Satou bit her lower lip as she finished speaking.
It doesn’t seem to be just because she’s embarrassed… her eyes drift a little self-deprecatingly.
「Satou…」
As if desperately holding back from continuing, “But with legs like mine…”, Satou’s thighs are desperately pressing together.
Though there’s absolutely no need for such worries.
「Thank you.」
「…Eh.」
I’ll do something about that extreme worrywart nature right here and now.
Otherwise, it would be hard for me to keep calling Satou “cute” in the future.
「Thank you for showing me so many cute looks today.」
「……!!」
The first step in doing so is, of course, to compliment Satou.
But if I stop here, nothing changes from the usual.
From here, I’ll take one more step forward.
「Satou, can you give me your hand?」
「…My hand?」
「Yeah.」
「O-Okay… here.」
I gently grasp Satou’s right hand, which she offers me timidly, so she doesn’t get nervous.
I’m not exactly someone with a lot of friends.
Let alone someone well-versed in psychology or anything.
So all the methods I use to ease Satou’s tension or to help her gain confidence are self-taught, with little experience, and I have no idea if they’ll work.
But Satou…
This incredibly cute girl chose me as her “conversation practice partner”. She chose someone like me as her first friend in high school.
She relies on me because she feels safe with me, and to make me happy, she even wore clothes she’s not used to, with more exposure.
「Wa… ah… ah…」
To respond to those feelings, what I can do is…
What I probably should have done first was this.
Thinking so, I slowly brought Satou’s right hand to touch my left chest.
「Ha… uh… ah…」
「Can you feel it? My heartbeat…」
「…Ah… uh… ahh…」
「Normally, it’s much slower, you know?」
「…Ha, ahh… ha… ahh…」
「Why do you think it’s beating so fast?」
「…Ahh… I… I don’t…」
「You don’t know?」
「…Nn…」
Satou looks up at me with teary eyes as if surrendering, but I won’t allow a white flag just this once.
「It’s okay. What you’re thinking is correct.」
「……」
「Trust me. Say it.」
「……」
With flushed cheeks and trembling lips… she looked really nervous…
But maybe for the first time, Satou looked straight into my eyes from below.
「…….I-Is it, because of me?」
And she definitely said those words.
「Correct.」
「…Uah.」
Embarrassed that Miu might hear from the back, I brought my mouth close to Satou’s ear and whispered softly.
「…Ahh, nn…」
Satou’s cute reaction makes my heart beat strongly once more.
「Ah… now…」
「You noticed?」
「…Yes. U-Um, this too… because of me…?」
「Correct.」
「…Wa… ua…」
Until now, I’ve only tried to ease Satou’s tension. I’ve told her many times to feel at ease, to get used to me.
But that ends up making it “only me who’s nervous”.
At a fundamental level, it leaves Satou alone.
A high school girl’s healthy legs aren’t made to bear the weight of “only me”. Even if they’re as fine and beautiful as Satou’s, it doesn’t matter.
That’s why I tried to remove that weight by giving her the assurance that she’s not alone (the heartbeat).
And it worked.
「…Now, maybe my words can reach deeper into Satou than before.」
「…Eh?」
My heartbeat proves that 100% of my feelings are genuine.
「…Everything was super cute.」
「Ah…」
「Of course, even now, it suits you perfectly. You’re super cute. So, thank you so much for showing me. I’m really happy.」
「Wa… wa… ah…」
Ping.
As if the string of tension snapped, Satou falls against my chest.
「……」
「Satou?」
「…F-From now on, Hinata-kun will always be… my number one friend… okay?」
「With pleasure. Then, shall we do lots of things that “friends” do from now on?」
「…Yes.」
Like hanging out on days off like today, watching movies on other days, eating together, visiting each other’s homes. I want to do more of these things with Satou.
「…I-I’m a bit cold in this outfit with so much exposure…」
Satou suddenly mutters.
「…So, Hinata-kun… c-could you… warm me up…?」
「……」
The warmth I felt from Satou was clearly higher than normal. But…
「…Got it.」
「……」
Satou’s weight leaning on me felt so comfortable that it made everything else irrelevant.
……I wonder if this falls within the scope of being a number one friend.
I don’t embrace her.
But instead, I gently wrap only my right arm around Satou’s back, and she lets out a sigh, then as she’s happy from the bottom of her heart, “…Thank you very much” she whispered very, very softly.