Sleeping in the same bed

Kasumi hearing Ayame wanting to try something, instantly got her thoughts going wild.

"W-what do you mean by that?" Kasumi's face was now red as she didn't expect Ayame to be the assertive one.

"Don't make me say it?! I just want to think about something other than people trying to hunt me down!" Ayame didn't realise it in the moment, but Kasumi completely misunderstood the situation.

"I mean I understand, but I don't know if friends with benefits are the way to go." Kasumi fidgeted as she was not mentally prepared at all.

"Wait noooo!! I just meant sleeping for the first time, nothing that far." Ayame finally realised why Kasumi seemed so embarrassed.

"O-ohhhh! S-sorry my bad." Kasumi now felt ashamed for thinking like that, but she couldn't help it, especially with how much she has been thinking about Ayame lately.

"Haha, d-don't worry, it's my fault for wording it like that." Ayame's mind was in the gutter, but she wasn't bothered by it as much as she thought.

"Anyway, I'll go clean up." Ayame figured she should do her part so doing the dishes was the least she could do.

"Alright." Kasumi wanted to stop her, but Ayame was already in the kitchen, so Kasumi decided to go brush her teeth. There was also a dishwasher, but Ayame didn't realise there was one, but she needed the distraction.

Ayame took her time cleaning the dishes making sure to focus on every minute detail so her mind didn't wander.

Kasumi finished up in the bathroom so she waited in their room for Ayame. Although it was rather early to go to bed, both of them were mentally exhausted.

However, as Kasumi walked over to the bed she noticed a manga that was upside down on Ayame's desk.

Letting curiosity get the better of her, she picked up the book and took a quick peek at what Ayame is reading.

["I'm sorry to have kept you waiting for so long, but I'm confident to say…. I love you Tasumi."]

["I've been waiting to hear this for so long Ayane... I love you too."] The 2 girls then shared a everlasting ki-

Slamming the book shut, Kasumi took a deep breath as the names were oddly similar and it was yuri.

'This girl, no wonder she might be confused.' Kasumi understood a little more as to why Ayame might be awkward since she is filling her head with fantasies.

*Sigh* 'At least she seems to be taking it seriously, I should play along though, the plot seemed rather interesting.' Peeking back into the book, she started reading from the beginning and even without the previous context from previous volumes, Kasumi really liked the story.

However, her reading session would be put to an end when she heard Ayame opening the door. Quickly placing the book down, Kasumi dived onto the bed hoping Ayame wouldn't notice.

"Feeling better?" Kasumi tried to act casual and she did this by striking a pose that was unintentionally sexy. She bent one leg and put a hand on her hip while she used the other to hold up her head.

Ayame blushed since the clothes didn't help and it felt like Kasumi was inviting her.

"Ahem, yeah." Ayame ignored whatever Kasumi was doing since it was clear she didn't mean to suggest anything.

"Great, well let's get some rest." Kasumi got under the covers and her mind started to spiral again. She thought it wouldn't be so bad, but after reading through a little bit of the yuri manga, her head was now filled with fantasies.

Ayame turned off the light and then got under the covers, laying right next to Kasumi. Surprisingly the bed was super comfortable and didn't expect it to be so nice.

'Shouldn't expect anything less from the rich daughter.' Ayame almost forgot that Kasumi literally had all the money in the world because of her father, but with how things are going she may not have any money for much longer.

"Is it alright?" Kasumi covered half of her face with the covers while asking as it was quite embarrassing. This was also her first-ever time sleeping with a friend, so actually being in this situation was a lot more intense than in her head.

"Yes, the bed is much better than mine." Ayame turned on her side facing Kasumi and although it was pitch black, thanks to them being kitsune, they could see much better in the dark. It did come as a curse sometimes since it was easy to lose track of time because it would appear earlier than it actually was.

"I see, well I'm glad you like it." Kasumi didn't want to feel like she was the one who was embarrassed since originally she was the assertive one. So she also turned to face Ayame with their hands' only millimetres away.

No matter how much mental prep Kasumi or Aayme did before jumping in bed together, now that they were actually together. It was quite clear that they were nowhere near ready, turning it into an awkward staring contest.

'Oh god what am I doing, I'm meant to be the confident one here, but now I'm crumbling.' Kasumi was having an internal battle trying to regain her confidence. The persona of a strong, cold, but charming woman was collapsing with every passing second.

'Glad I'm not the only one struggling, but I do want to try hugging or holding hands.' Ayame was also having an internal battle with herself trying to stay calm. Her mind kept reverting back to a scene in the manga where the 2 main characters were in bed which didn't help build her confidence. If anything it had the opposite effect and now Ayame was suffering the consequences of filling her head with ideas.

After a few minutes of silence, not sure what else to say to each other, Ayame decided to speak up.

"S-so, since we are already here… is there anything you had in mind." Ayame chickened out in saying she wanted to hug and opted to spin it on Kasumi.

"W-well, I don't know, my mind is sort of going blank." However, Kasumi was not in a better state and didn't know what kind of limits Ayame had in mind.

'Fuck it.' Ayame cut off any thoughts and just went for it. Ducking underneath the sheets, Ayame squeezed herself in between Kasumi's arms and snuggled into her chest.

Kasumi was taken by surprise and didn't know how to respond, but eventually, she went with the flow. Hugging Ayame back, Kasumi embraced the situation and suddenly the tense air became relaxed.

She felt her body finally wanting to sleep and the exhaustion catching up. Ayame also experienced the same effect and soon sleep came over them. It was a strange sensation, but hugging each other created a bubble making the stress they were going through go away.

'I can get used to this.' Ayame being the shorter one found her head perfectly positioned at Kasumi's chest which she took full advantage of. It was soft and was just like a pillow, but it also came with the side effect of lewd thoughts. Ayame tried her best to ignore it and thankfully she was able to fall asleep.

Kasumi instinctively patted Ayame's head very slowly enjoying the fluffiness of her ears. It was quite soothing and completely ignored the fact that Ayame was smothering herself.

The comfort put Kasumi to sleep and despite the awkward tension between the two, once they were actually in bed together, the walls seem to crumble. They may have only met about a month ago, but they became close rather quickly.

Any normal situation between friends would have taken months before they did things like sleeping together, but their current circumstances sped things up. The longing for comfort and friends in the kitsune world was rather hard. Most social groups are pre-determined and it is rare for other families to accept other kitsunes.

This was the case with Ayame and Tomoe since they were actually considered outcasts with only a few connections. One of those was Anna, but it was only recently that Tomoe was able to finally reach out.

Kasumi on the other hand had many connections, but her father refused to let her see anyone and forced her to be a shut-in. This caused many problems and was most likely the root cause of her rebellion.

Although Kasumi and Ayame were in different situations, they both ended up starved of any social interactions. There was also the option to mingle with regular people, but because they live longer and are unaware of their kitsune traits. Every friendship felt shallow and superficial since they had to hide who they are and it was only a matter of time until they had to cut off their friendship to hide the fact they age slower.

Many kitsunes don't have this problem, but due to Ayame and Kasumi being outcasts, it was an issue that they may not even realise. It also partially explains why they are so quick to be close since there is no one else to be close to.