Soft, pink, and adorable overall—and unbelievably satisfying to squeeze and knead.
Just like right now.
Tatsuki was seriously massaging Chika, not neglecting a single detail. With a bust like hers, she must get exhausted all the time.
Tatsuki actually did feel a bit sorry for his girlfriend. Helping her relax and lighten the load was only natural. After a good while—
"Still tired?" Tatsuki raised his hand in front of Chika's dazed, misty eyes.
"Tatsuki-kun, your massage feels so good. My whole body feels refreshed." Chika stretched with a huge, lazy yawn; her shoulders weren't sore anymore, her neck didn't hurt, and even her joints felt loose and easy.
She glanced at Tatsuki's fingers, cheeks flushing, and gently took his hand. "Tatsuki-kun, your hand got all dirty… I'll clean it for you, okay?"
Tatsuki chuckled and smeared the clear, glistening stuff across her cheek. "No need. There's somewhere else that needs cleaning way more."
Then he lightly pressed her head down.
…
After school.
Tatsuki, Chika, Yukino, and Eriri followed Chika's lead to a ramen shop.
She'd insisted on treating Tatsuki to ramen, and since Yukino and Eriri were around, they all came together.
"Boss, four large tonkotsu ramen!" Chika cheerfully raised her hand.
"Got it, please wait a moment."
Chika proudly announced to the three of them, "The tonkotsu ramen here is super tasty!"
Tatsuki looked at her with deep skepticism. "Chika, are you sure you can still eat? Did you forget how much milk you drank back in the student council room?"
"Eek!" She would've been fine if he hadn't said it—but the moment he did, Chika's face went scarlet as her gaze flitted nervously between Yukino and Eriri.
She had drunk a lot of milk… and strictly speaking, she still hadn't quite had her fill.
"I-I'm not that full! I can still eat!" Chika shook her head in a flustered panic.
Tatsuki raised a brow.
"Oh? So I didn't manage to satisfy Chika-chan? That won't do at all. Next time, I'll make sure you're stuffed."
"Mmph!"
Just remembering that thick, intense taste made Chika's mouth feel puffed full again, and she shrank her neck down in embarrassment.
"…"
Yukino eyed the two of them suspiciously.
She was sure they were talking about something indecent.
"Tch." Eriri rolled her eyes in pure irritation.
Kashiwagi Eri-sensei had already seen straight through everything. She narrowed her eyes and snuck a glance at Chika's chest.
Internally grumbling: Of course it had to be this walking dairy cow…
That vulgar size made Eriri burn with envy and resentment. She snuck a look at Yukino's chest.
"…Haa." Instantly, her heart felt more balanced.
"???"
For some reason… Yukino distinctly felt like someone was slandering her behind her back.
"Here are your tonkotsu ramen, customers!" A soft, delicate voice rang out.
It belonged to a blue-haired girl with braids. The sound instantly revived Chika's energy.
"Hey! Megumi, over here, over here!"
"Chika-chan… um, who should get this bowl first?"
The girl called Megumi looked at Yukino and the others with timid eyes but when her gaze met Tatsuki's, her body froze for a moment.
Because Tatsuki was staring straight at her face, seriously, intently.
D-Do I have something on my face? The girl's heart was in full-on panic mode.
"Uh… give it to Tatsu-kun first!" Chika hesitated just a second, then chose Tatsuki. In her heart, Tatsuki now definitely came first.
"T-Tatsu-kun is…?"
Megumi's thoughts were a mess—she had no idea who "Tatsuki-kun" was supposed to be.
"Idiot Chika, who's gonna know who 'Tatsu-kun' is? Sorry she caused you trouble. I'm Tatsuki—just hand it to me."
Tatsuki reached out to take the bowl. His fingers lightly pressed against hers as he did, and she didn't let go until she was sure he had a firm hold—so the bowl wouldn't fall.
That tiny detail didn't escape Tatsuki's notice. Careful and kind, huh.
After Megumi turned and walked away, Tatsuki was still watching her back.
"Tatsuki-kun, I know Megumi's really cute, but staring like that is rude, you know?" Chika folded her arms like some dignified senior and started lecturing him seriously.
Tatsuki pulled his gaze back, a vein popping on his forehead. "What are you talking about? I just thought she looked familiar."
"Familiar? You've met Megumi before?" Chika blinked, wide-eyed with curiosity.
"Nope." Tatsuki shook his head. He truly hadn't met her in this world—she just looked very familiar. So he asked, "What's her name?"
Chika's eyes were locked hungrily onto the tonkotsu ramen in front of Tatsuki, and she answered absentmindedly,
"Megumi's name is Tadokoro Megumi. She's a student at Totsuki Academy."
"Totsuki Academy?" Eriri and Yukino blurted it out at the same time.
Leaving Tatsuki awkwardly sandwiched between them. "You both know it?"
Eriri puffed out her chest and raised her chin. "Of course. Totsuki Culinary Academy is a prestigious cooking school. 'Totsuki Academy' for short."
"It's insanely famous among culinary circles. At parties and banquets my family hosts, the hired chefs are either Totsuki graduates, or members of Totsuki's Elite Ten."
Yukino nodded as well. "It's true. The Yukinoshita family has hired Totsuki chefs too."
"…"
In reality, Tatsuki obviously knew about Totsuki Academy. He just knew it in a different way than they did.
For them, it existed as a real elite culinary school. For him, it existed as Food Wars!' Totsuki from an anime. Two completely different concepts. And Tadokoro Megumi, of course he knew her. One of the heroines from Food Wars! Or rather… One of the heroines of "Ecchi Wars."
…But now wasn't the time to think about that.
Because right in front of him, Chika was staring at the tonkotsu ramen, and her stomach was already growling.
Tatsuki twitched the corner of his mouth. "How about I give you this bowl?"
He hadn't expected that Chika, already drooling, would wipe at the corner of her mouth and shake her head decisively.
"Nope! That one's for Tatsuki-kun. I'm not taking it."
Tatsuki could only sigh, pick up his chopsticks, grab some noodles, and gesture toward her. "Want to take a few bites from mine first? I'll feed you."
"!!!" Chika's eyes lit up, and she cheered. "'Kay!"
She stood up, and under Tatsuki's airplane feeding, slurped down the ramen. Then she wore the same blissful, satisfied expression as before.
Tatsuki felt weird about it. Because that expression… was almost identical to the face she'd made when drinking his milk.
Is milk really that good? Tatsuki had no idea. And honestly, he didn't really want to know.
He just knew that love juice was pretty great.
Staaare.
Eriri was staring at him with big, expectant eyes.
Tatsuki got it instantly. "Eriri, want a taste too?"
"Yes!" Eriri nodded at once.
She didn't care about the ramen—she cared about being fed by Tatsuki's own hand.
Naturally, Tatsuki was happy to oblige, and fed Eriri in the same way. After swallowing the noodles, Eriri's eyes went wide.
"This is really good!" She glanced toward the shop entrance. "How did I never notice this place before?"
Chika said smugly, "Hehe, I'll let you in on a secret—it only got this good after Megumi started working here."
Eriri understood immediately.
"So a Totsuki student improved the recipe? That's amazing. I have to bring my mom here to try it next time."
....
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