Nino returned to the doorway, yawning. "If I don't say it clearly, I probably won't be able to sleep."
Makoto chuckled and nodded. "So now you can rest properly?"
"Yeah. I can finally relax."
Nino rubbed her sleepy eyes, then suddenly remembered something and warned, "You can't tell Miku about this."
"I understand. Besides, she's already asleep. She won't know anything about what happened tonight," Makoto promised.
Nino felt relieved.
Makoto assumed she would now head off to bed, but she didn't move.
Instead, her beautiful eyes stared straight at him.
"Do I have something on my face? Don't tell me my hair's a mess and you're planning to take a photo to blackmail me?" Makoto joked.
Nino clasped her hands behind her back and smiled sweetly. "I think I probably like you, Makoto."
A direct confession—so sudden!
Makoto froze for a moment.
But he quickly realized… maybe it wasn't that surprising?
She already had vague feelings for him, and she'd already died of embarrassment in front of him once before. Tonight made it twice.
And both times, he had helped her resolve things without hurting her pride.
She'd been thinking about that the whole time she was showering.
After going over it again and again, she finally confirmed her feelings.
It's love.
And if she loved him, then she had to say it.
"I've said what I needed to say. Don't you have a response?"
Nino tilted her head confidently, looking adorably bold.
Makoto was amused by her and spread his hands with a helpless smile.
"As happy as I am to be confessed to by a beautiful girl like you… don't you think your timing and the setting are a little off?"
Nino's cheeks flushed instantly.
She realized it too—this situation was too weird.
Right there on the chair were the bed sheets and blanket…
Still bearing her mark…
It was a little awkward, but it didn't dampen the fire in her heart.
She glared at him playfully. "Didn't you say you'd forget it all?"
Makoto replied, "Memory deletion in progress."
Suddenly, Nino said, "Don't move."
As Makoto looked at her in confusion, she quickly walked over.
And then, she hugged him again.
"That one earlier was to thank you. This one is to make up for the hug you missed."
As she spoke, her flushed face tilted up, drawing closer. Her passionate gaze grew more focused.
"And… whatever Ichika could offer you as a reward, I can give too."
She kissed his left cheek—then his right.
After doing that, she stepped back slowly and, as if trying to hide her embarrassment, tapped her chin and said playfully, "I'm not any worse than Ichika."
Makoto couldn't hold back a laugh. So after everything that happened tonight, she's still competing with Ichika?
He remembered Ichika had done the exact same thing in front of Nino once.
He didn't think Nino would not only remember it but come back later for payback.
"Too bad Ichika's asleep and not here to see it."
Nino thought to herself, a bit regretfully. Without Ichika as the audience, she couldn't brag about it even if she wanted to.
She was truly exhausted at this point. After boldly kissing Makoto on the cheek, she felt satisfied.
As she returned to her spot, she asked with concern, "Oh right, I just remembered—how are you going to sleep?"
Makoto glanced at the large bed behind him. "I can just lie across it, it's no problem."
"That'll be uncomfortable."
"Honestly, I've already slept enough. You might not believe it, but I really don't need that much sleep."
"Really?" Nino was doubtful.
Makoto met her sleepy eyes. "If you don't believe me, I could go rest in your room instead. Would that work?"
Nino's face flushed red. No matter how direct she was, this pace was way too fast.
How could they sleep together the moment they confirmed their feelings?
She definitely wasn't ready to give her body away just yet.
Though embarrassed, she still fetched a new set of supplies for Makoto.
Before she left, she gave him a brilliant smile and said, "Good night."
Makoto replied, "Good night."
This time, she didn't linger.
Because she really was at her limit.
It was already very late, and the coffee's effect was fading. After her emotional rollercoaster, exhaustion hit her like a wave.
Makoto, on the other hand, wasn't sleepy at all.
He tossed the bed sheets and covers into the washing machine, opened the window for ventilation, then sat down alone in the dark living room.
Twenty minutes later, while he was fully awake, gaming with headphones on, he caught a glimpse of a door opening from the corner of his eye.
Another guest?
Makoto was startled.
Then, Ichika tiptoed out of her room.
She noticed Makoto and, surprised but delighted, lowered her voice and asked, "Were you waiting for me? You even came to the living room?"
Makoto glanced at his phone, which read 3:40 a.m., and leaned back dramatically. "You really caught me off guard with that question."
"Eh? So I was being self-indulgent?"
Ichika strolled over with a grin.
At this hour, Nino's room—where she had been repeatedly intercepted—was finally quiet.
Relieved, Ichika's steps became lighter.
But just as she reached Makoto's side and was about to sit down, her nose caught a familiar scent.
Wait, this scent...
It was the body wash that Nino liked!
Ichika's gaze sharpened.
Makoto had been prepared for this. Sensing her mood shift, he casually said, "Nino came to see me earlier."
Ichika blinked, surprised he admitted it so directly.
Makoto remained calm. "By the way, you only just came out. Did you fall asleep by accident?"
"I did sleep, but not by accident," Ichika said, turning to look at the guest room, growing more suspicious.
Makoto chuckled. "You don't think Nino's in my room, do you?"
"You never know~"
Ichika replied teasingly, but couldn't help walking over to check.
When she saw no one inside the room, she secretly sighed in relief.
Honestly, she had been afraid Nino might be lying in Makoto's bed. That would've meant being completely outmaneuvered.
Huh?
Why are there no sheets or covers in his room?
And why does the mattress look wet?
Ichika quickly spotted something odd.
Returning to Makoto's side, her teasing smile returned full force. "So you're sitting out here in the living room… don't tell me you wet the bed… pfft!"
She couldn't hold back and burst out laughing.
Makoto calmly replied, "Seems like you didn't observe carefully enough."
"Oh? What do you mean?"
"You missed the teacup on the table."
"Oh, you accidentally knocked over the tea? I thought you wet the bed! I got excited for nothing~"
Ichika covered her mouth, laughing gleefully.
If it weren't so late, her laughter would've woken the others.
Makoto smoothly apologized. "Sorry about that. I got too into my phone, didn't hold the cup steady. Once the sun comes up, I'll dry the mattress."
"No worries, I often eat on the bed too. I've even dropped crumbs on it before."
Ichika didn't mind at all.
What she did mind was why Nino had come to see Makoto in the middle of the night.
Could it be... Nino had the same goal as her? A midnight visit?
If so, wasn't she one step too late?
Her emotions shifted rapidly. Finally, she walked around to the back of the couch, bent down, and wrapped her arms around Makoto's neck.
"Since your room's unusable, are you planning to sit out here until sunrise?"
"I was thinking about it, yeah," Makoto admitted.
"I'm already rested. Might as well wait till you all wake up and cook you breakfast as an apology."
"Breakfast isn't important~"
Ichika chuckled softly and said, as if offhandedly, "Since neither of us can sleep, how about you give me a little private tutoring again, to help me improve?"
Interesting.
The "improve" part was fake—the real goal was hands-on experience.
In other words, she was aiming for another nightly maintenance session.
Makoto understood instantly.
Ichika's face moved closer, brushing against his cheek, creating a flirtatious pose.
Then came the expected line: "Come on, let's go back to my room."
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