Chapter 11. What Kind of Boomerang
Understanding that, Xander felt a warm current flow through his heart.
What could be happier than discovering, after a hard day, that the one you love has been quietly waiting for you?
He found a thin blanket and gently draped it over Seele, who was only wearing loungewear.
Summer's approach was making the weather gradually warmer, but it was still better to mind the chill at night.
Up close, he saw Seele's sleeping face.
Her two little hands were crossed over her chest.
On her cute cheeks, her nose moved lightly with each breath.
Her faintly pink, moist lips parted and closed, and if you looked closely you could see two rows of white teeth and the quiet, pink tip of her tongue resting inside.
It must taste great.
Of course, Xander meant the dinner.
Suppressing that strong craving, he carefully stood up, went to reheat the dinner a bit, then simply ate it standing in the kitchen, and washed the dishes while he was at it.
Seele's cooking was quite good, and she even deliberately catered to his tastes when she cooked.
He felt like he was becoming more and more unable to live without Seele now.
Tidying up the kitchen, Xander dried his hands and walked out.
He had planned to give the sleeping Seele a princess carry upstairs, but the moment his hand touched her shoulder, he saw the corner of her eye twitch, and then those sky-blue eyes opened.
Fresh from sleep, there was still a faint haze about her, and a natural wisp of allure curled around her.
"Brother?"
Those beautiful gems always drew Xander in, and only Seele's soft murmur snapped him back to awareness.
"Sorry, I accidentally woke you."
"Mmm, it's okay… Ah, right, Brother, you haven't had dinner yet, have you?
Seele will go heat it up for you."
As if suddenly remembering, Seele opened her eyes wide.
She struggled to sit up, but Xander gently pressed her back down.
"Don't worry, I've already eaten."
At that, Seele noticed the dining table was already empty, and she let out a quiet breath of relief.
"Did Brother heat it up?
You mustn't eat it cold!"
"I did, I did.
Don't worry.
I always keep Seele's reminders in mind."
"That's good."
Seele smiled softly, radiating an indescribable tenderness.
Then, to the girl's little yelp, Xander slid an arm under her neck and one under her thigh and lifted her in a princess carry.
Seele quickly wrapped her arms around his neck, her eyes like a small animal's, carrying a bit of fluster, and a visible blush rose over her cheeks.
"Brother?"
"Come on, I'll take you upstairs."
He bounced the not-so-heavy Seele in his arms a little and smiled as he spoke.
"Did you bathe?"
"Y-yeah, I did."
"Mm, then I'll carry you back to your room."
With his hand supporting Seele's soft yet springy thigh, Xander had her twist her doorknob, then set her down on her bed.
"It's already very late.
Turn in early.
Good night."
"Mm, good night."
Sitting on the bed, realizing Brother had no intention of doing anything else, Seele felt a little pang of disappointment once the door closed.
She hadn't really talked to Brother much at all today…
…
He took a quick shower and blow-dried his hair, and the excitement of finishing the game finally calmed down.
After changing into pajamas, he stepped out of the bathroom.
When he passed by Seele's room, his steps paused.
He suddenly remembered he hadn't really kept her company today.
He thought for a moment, then pulled back the hand he had raised to knock.
Even though tomorrow was the weekend, it was too late now.
The game was finished, so he would get up early tomorrow and go have a crazy fun day with Seele.
He lifted his foot and walked back to his own room.
The moment he opened the door, the scene before his eyes made him freeze in place.
His bedroom's layout was simple—bed, wardrobe, desk, game console, PC tower, monitor, and a projector for convenient movie watching.
That was about it.
But now, there was an uninvited guest in the room.
A wild Seele appeared.
She was lying on his bed, hugging his pillow in messy pajamas, pressing her face into it hard.
She had curled herself into a little ball and was rolling back and forth across his bed at high speed.
"…"
Xander quietly closed the door, checked the sign by the door and Seele's room next to it.
No problem.
He hadn't gone into the wrong room.
He opened the door again, and the scene inside had changed.
The little ball on the bed had vanished.
The pillow lay quietly by the head of the bed.
Seele, clothes now neat, sat on the edge of the bed smiling at him, the picture of a lady.
Only the still-wrinkled sheets bore the traces of the ravaging just now.
"Brother, welcome back~"
Hey, hey, hey—he'd already seen that act just now.
What's the point of pretending now?
And "welcome back"?
They were at home—what did "welcome back" even mean?
Was she panicking and misspeaking?
A pile of snark welled up inside him, but in the end he held it in.
Xander walked into the room and, with a backward reach, left the door almost closed.
"It's so late.
Why did you come to my room?"
He sat on the bed as well, leaving a small distance between them.
Also, he sat on the inside, while Seele was on the outside.
He'd intended to give Seele a bit of a sense of security, but before he could do anything, Seele simply scooted over on her own initiative.
She wiggled her little butt and pressed right up against him, playing lightly with his hand, her voice tinged with a faint disappointment.
"Brother hasn't kept Seele company all day.
Seele can't fall asleep."
The soft body and the sweet scent unique to a young girl almost made Xander's head swim in an instant.
Feeling the softness pressed against his arm—so close that, with only her pajamas on, even the contours were clear—Xander wanted to ask if Seele really knew what she was doing.
Doing this so late at night—was she trusting his self-control too much?
"It feels just like before.
Bronya-sis was like this too, working late every day and never having time to keep Seele company.
Will Brother become like that too?"
The outstretched "devil's claw" quietly drew back, and a bucket of cold water doused the desire in his heart.
He really had been too busy these past few days, keeping Seele company far less.
He hadn't expected the mocking words he'd thrown at Bronya in the café back then to boomerang back and smack him in the face.
So this was a miHoYo-style boomerang.
Scared now.
"Brother, Seele actually—ya!"
After ten-odd seconds of silence, Seele thought Brother was angry.
Flustered, she tried to say something, but right then, she suddenly felt a force lift her into the air.
Just like that princess carry from earlier, she landed directly in Xander's arms, and the two of them lay down side by side on the bed.
"Brother?"
Without answering Seele's slightly puzzled voice, Xander spoke directly.
"Seele, it feels like it's been a long time since I told you a bedtime story.
Lately I came up with a pretty good one.
Want to hear it?"
A bedtime story?
In a flash, Seele pictured how, long ago, at bedtime, Brother would sit by her bed and, with a voice drowsy even to himself, read those fairy tales she had already read many times.
What the story was didn't matter.
What mattered was the person by her side telling it.
At once, Seele stopped worrying and being dejected.
Her eyes sparkled, and she nodded a little excitedly.
"Okay, okay!"
"Mm.
Then wait a bit.
I'll turn on the projector."
Saying that, Xander switched on the ceiling projector and called out to Hatsune, asking her to connect the projector to his work computer.
He tightened his hold around Seele, letting the girl rest against his chest, feeling their shared warmth.
"This story, Seele—you'll be the first in the world to see it besides me~"
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