Question

"Are you sure all you needed to buy was a necklace and a yukata?"

It was still early in the evening and that was all they had bought since they left home in the mid afternoon. However, she said she had nothing more to buy and they were on their way home.

She said there were only two things she wanted, and to be honest, he was grateful because it was hard for him to keep receiving the stares of others.

As if his fatigue was showing on his face, Airi looked at him with concern.

"Yes, I don't want to window shop, and even though I'm used to other people's gazes, I'm still tired. I'm sure you're tired too, Minato-san."

"…Sorry about that."

"No, because like I said, I'm tired too. …It's really hard to get stares wherever you go."

"The last time we came here with Kazuma and Momose, they didn't look at me much, and today I realized that."

They both smiled wryly at each other and were fed up.

He could confidently say that Airi's appearance was unquestionably well-groomed. However, he could see once again that it was not all good.

It's unsettling to be watched no matter what you do because it feels as if you're being watched, and others will have their own desires for you.

In this case, Airi was a beautiful girl, and people wanted to see her, and Minato was forced to live up to his ideal of being a man worthy of being alongside Airi.

It was understandable that she would not want to leave the house if she was subjected to this every time.

As he recalled the stares of the people around him and was disgusted, she spoke up as if she had come up with a good idea.

"What if I just cut off my hair? Wouldn't that reduce the stares a bit?"

On the day of the fireworks display, he heard Airi say that growing her hair out was both an obligation and a hobby.

As for the obligation, it disappeared when she left her parents, but she continued to do it until today because it became a habit and because it really was a hobby.

Minato had no right to interfere with other people's hobbies, and he thought they should be allowed to do as they pleased, but it might be a good idea to ask her for confirmation.

"I don't really like to give you my opinion on your hair, but is it okay?"

"Yes, go ahead."

Although he was given permission, he spoke his words carefully since it was a sensitive topic.

"If you don't like it, you don't have to answer. …Does it still hurt to take care of your hair?"

"I wonder… It's not that I hate it, but I'm beginning to think that it's not necessary to stick to this length. I guess people stare at me because I have long straight silver hair."

"Well, I can't deny that."

Even with black or brown hair, which was the color of most Japanese people's hair, it was almost impossible to see waist-length long straight hair. This was especially true when it came to her fantastic silver hair.

Of course, this was not the only reason, but also because of Airi's overly-toned face and ideal body, so it was unlikely that the stares would disappear, but they would certainly decrease.

When he thought about it, cutting off her hair would definitely be a solution. He knew that clearly, but he couldn't get the words out.

"What's the matter? You look like you have something more to say than that."

Airi noticed that Minato's demeanor had changed, and she tilted her head to look into Minato's frowning face.

She was worried about Minato, not herself, even though she was about to cut off her well-groomed hair.

He was afraid that he would say something that would put such a kind Airi through a lot of trouble in the future.

But she smiled and urged Minato to "go on," so he couldn't say he didn't have anything to say now, and he said his words slowly.

"…Your hair, I think it's better the way it is, no?"

"Keeping it this long? I thought Minato-san wouldn't be particular about the length, but why?"

"It's really beautiful. I think long silver hair looks best on Airi."

"..."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to embarrass you. Airi can do whatever she wants."

Airi was probably troubled because she was no longer responding. Or maybe, she didn't like it.

He knew she should cut it off because her long, silver straight hair would attract attention, but he rejected it out of selfish emotion.

As he turned his face away from her, afraid to look next to him, Minato felt something soft touch his hand.

"Minato-san, please look over here."

Airi grabbed Minato's hand and pulled him towards her. He was afraid to look at her, but she had a big smile on her face.

"Don't you hate that? You know you're going to have a hard time, don't you?"

"How could I hate it? So please answer honestly and properly, okay? I won't tolerate any lies or deceit."

"Alright."

There was nothing he could do to make up for it now.

He turned his apology into sincerity in answering honestly and replied.

"Do you like my hair?"

"Yeah. It's so beautiful, I love it."

"Do you like it long and straight?"

"It's so much better than short or semi-long. It's the most attractive."

There was no lie in those words.

Despite having spent so much time with her, he still hadn't gotten used to her shining, beautiful silver hair, which was very beautiful and to Minato's liking. And her current length only made it look better.

It was completely his personal taste, but when Airi heard that, she smiled debaucherously.

"Then I'll leave it as it is."

"…Is that okay?"

He told her that she could do whatever she wanted, but he didn't expect her to say that she would keep it at the current length.

When he looked into her face to see if it was really okay for her to say the opposite of what she just said, Airi smiled seductively.

"It's okay. If you say you love it, then that's the best. I just want to be the person you want me to be."

A soft voice with a hint of sweetness reached his ears.

The words made his heart ache and he didn't know what to say or how to react.

" Fufu , Minato-san complimented me on my hair. It's been a while since the last fireworks display."

Airi smiled cheerfully and lightly swayed their linked hands back and forth.

She was frolicking like a child, and he loved her so much that he didn't want to let go of the hand he was holding.

"Minato-san, will you please put this necklace on me?"

That was the first thing she said when they got home.

Indeed, the promise had been to not wear it outside, but he didn't think she would want to wear it now.

Nevertheless, he wanted to fulfill Airi's wishes, so he accepted the gold pink necklace, and she spun around and brushed her hair back.

Her skin was as white as snow to begin with, but the nape of her neck, hidden by her hair and completely untanned, was extremely sexy.

When Minato was frozen in admiration, a confused voice called out to him.

"U-Um, if you could put it on…"

"…Sorry."

He tried to put it on with his frozen thoughts and hands, but he couldn't do it properly because his hands were shaking with nervousness.

The necklace randomly grazed the nape of her neck, which tickled her, and she made a strange, lulling noise.

"Minato, san, don't be, mean. It, tickles."

"So-Sorry! …Thank God, I was able to put it on."

The sound of Airi's tingling voice made his heart beat faster, and his hands trembled even more. When Minato managed to put it on, he shouted in relief.

She turned to Minato and stared at him with tears in her eyes.

"…Do you enjoy humiliating me?" (T/N: S Minato.)

"No! I just couldn't get it right!"

Minato shouted that he had not intended to embarrass Airi.

She seemed to believe him at least, but she still stared at Minato with an unconvinced look on her face.

"But it tickled."

"…Sorry."

"Therefore, I'm going to do the same thing to Minato-san. Now, turn around and sit down. With our height, it's hard to put it on while standing."

Apparently it wasn't a problem that could be solved with an apology. Smiling mischievously, Airi instructed Minato to sit down.

She could reach Minato's neck without any problem while standing, but hearing her say she was going to get back at him, it would be useless to make an excuse.

He sat down quietly and turned his back to her, and she began to touch his neck.

"How's that? Doesn't it tickle?"

"No, not at all."

Unfortunately, Minato was the type of person who didn't mind being touched on the neck to some extent. He was probably influenced by the time he played with Momose and Kazuma when he was little.

Minato's words made Airi even more pissed off and she touched him, but there was nothing ticklish about it. After a while, he heard a sultry voice.

"…I think it's just not fair. Why is it that I can't do it and that Minato-san can?"

"That's too bad."

"Muu~ Ah, that's right! How about this?"

"Well, I just turned around for you to put the necklace–on!?"

Just as he was about to call out to her to restore the situation, a thin, soft object touched his neck.

He couldn't help but let out a strange sound at the mysterious object, which seemed to be an unknown sensation, but also a sensation he already knew.

"Airi, what is that?"

"Eh, it's my hair, you know?"

"Hair?"

"Yes, I'm tickling Minato-san's neck with the end of my hair in a bunch. I didn't think the length of my hair would come in handy here."

Airi tickled him, seeming to really enjoy it. It was true that hair was a sensation that he was familiar with since his own hair touched his neck, but someone else's hair was a different story.

More importantly, she had so much of it that it was probably closer to a brush than hair in terms of sensation.

Minato was probably being subjected to something that almost no one had ever experienced before. It was a good thing he was unaware of it, but wasn't it too perverse an act?

Rather than tickling him, it sent shivers down his spine and made him feel like he was opening a door to the unknown.

There was no way he could go back any further, so he turned to Airi and forced her to stop. She huffed, perhaps unhappy that she was forced to stop.

"That's not right, I haven't finished your punishment just yet."

"Did you just say punishment!? I'm really sorry, so please stop."

"I understand. Then Minato-san, please stop too, okay?"

"I didn't do it on purpose, though…"

"Something wrong?"

"No, it's nothing."

He was about to complain about how unreasonable it sounded, but was too scared of the smirking Airi to argue.

Next time, he would put it on seriously, so now, he let out a breath of relief that he was really saved and faced her.

The cheap and simple silver and gold pink ring looked like a mirror, and it felt so precious.

"It looks good on you."

"Thank you very much. It looks good on you too, Minato-san."

"Thanks."

The air was itchy as they complimented each other, and they smiled at each other.

They wouldn't be able to use this necklace so easily, after all, they couldn't wear it outside.

He used to think that accessories were meaningless, but now he was really glad that they had bought them.

"Minato-san, have you gotten over your concerns about the gift?"

"Yeah, I'm fine now. Thanks."

"Then, I wonder what kind of gift you'll give me next?"

"…Don't raise the hurdle."

" Fufu , I'm sorry."

Airi didn't usually want things, even for free. The current Minato couldn't think of anything better than this.

When he glared at her a little bit, thinking that he didn't want her to get her hopes up, she seemed to know exactly how difficult it would be to give her the next gift, so she apologized with a wry smile and shifted her gaze to the necklace.

As he looked at her, staring at it happily, with a soft smile, a question occurred to him.

Is Airi's attitude towards me only trust?

When he was at the pool, he had a great reason to stay to ward off men. Still, there were times when he thought it was too much.

The day of the grave visit had the purpose of comforting Minato. But he wondered if she would let him use her lap as a pillow, no matter how much she trusted him.

And today, she touched Minato at home to comfort him, and outside, she behaved in a way that made the shopkeeper think they were a couple. And they had even bought a pair of accessories.

He knew she would have a hard time with her hair, but she said she would keep it at the length Minato wanted.

In addition to her actions, her words like "important," and "only you," as well as many other words made him nervous. It was true that he was proud of the fact that Airi trusted him the most. However, he wondered if that was the reason why she said what she did.

Although he had no complaints about it at all, there was something strange about it.

If that was the case, the question grew, what did Airi think of Minato other than trusting him?

Should I make sure of it? But what if I'm not careful and we lose the distance between us? …I can't do that.

Minato loved his life with Airi. He loved his life with Airi, so much so that he wanted to continue it forever.

And he didn't want to ruin his current comfortable life by confirming the truth of her attitude, even if he should. If so, he should not ask anything to maintain the status quo.

Let's forget it.

He shook his head and tried to get rid of the question, but it kept lingering in the corner of his mind, and he couldn't get rid of it.

Happy Lunar New Year, everyone!!! May this year bring you happiness~~