The Start of Summer Vacation

"Hyah-ha! Our summer vacation is finally heeere!" "Why are you going wild?"

It was late July. With the closing ceremony finished and the end of homeroom, the students were finally free. They excitedly set about discussing their summer plans.

Itsuki had been wound up ever since the moment they were dismissed, while Amane looked on, sweltering in the heat.

"Why? Isn't it obvious? Today marks the end of those hellish classes. Heaven… Paradise has come at last…!"

"Just because you don't like studying doesn't mean that everybody else hates it."

"Zip it, brainiac. And anyway, you'll have more time to make out with Mahiru, you know?"

"Make out… Listen, man, it's not like we're on each other twenty- four seven."

Rather, they spent most of their time doing their own thing, not even talking to one another.

When they were spending time together in the same space, someone was either studying or doing their chores; they weren't just flirting.

Mahiru, of course, had her schoolwork, and in addition, she exercised for her health and beauty—and took care of her appearance. While she did that, Amane would go running or do his weight training, so the assumption that they were always joined at the hip was completely wrong.

"…If I'm being honest, it seems you've got a mental block against flirting, so you do it unconsciously," Itsuki said.

"How so?"

"I bet you make eye contact and smile from time to time, and lean against each other, and hold hands…"

Amane couldn't deny that.

He and Mahiru didn't embrace all that often, but smaller forms of physical affection were a part of their daily routine.

It was hard to know whether that was considered flirting, exactly, so Amane hadn't counted that, but apparently it did.

"Look here. You two are so flirtatious, I get hot just looking at you. Right, Yuuta?"

"Ah-ha-ha, that's right. How can I put it? I get embarrassed just watching you guys."

"You too, Kadowaki?"

"But you know, thanks to the PDA, very few people are going to try to bother you, so I wouldn't say it's all bad."

Sure enough, there had been less harassment and fewer complaints than Amane had assumed were in store for him, and at least in their grade, none of the other boys seemed like they were going to try to make a move to win over Mahiru.

A big part of that was probably due to the way she acted, how Mahiru didn't even try to hide the fact that she loved Amane. She didn't so much as look at any other boys, so they seemed to have mostly given up on her.

Even so, Amane had prepared himself for criticism and bullying, but instead, many of his classmates seemed almost protective. Frankly, Amane couldn't figure out why.

"You know, I bet the real reason that nobody's come after you is 'cause they're scared of Mahiru."

"Scared?"

"You bet; she's keeping them in check, you know? I mean, nobody's got the guts to try anything, after the way she acted on Sports Day. If anyone tried to come after you, Amane, she'd definitely flip out."

"Flip out… I can't even imagine it."

"Me either, but I bet she would be totally pissed. We all know that she does well in her studies and sports and that she's got a pretty face and a hot body. And on top of that, the teachers all think she's great, so she would be a scary person to make your enemy. Plus, you know it would be extra terrifying if a person who is usually so nice got mad at you."

Amane quietly agreed with his friend's assessment.

She is probably the type of person who you shouldn't anger.

He had already said so, but he could hardly even imagine Mahiru becoming furious.

But he did know that it would be a bad idea to tick her off.

Mahiru always wore a calm smile and wouldn't get angry at any little thing, but Amane had a feeling that when she crossed her boiling point, she was liable to knock her opponent out with a sound argument and a smile. Thinking back to what happened on Sports Day, it was a definite possibility.

Amane knew better than to infuriate Mahiru, and anyway he was pretty sure she would get sad before she got angry if he did something wrong. He resolved to do his best never to upset her.

"…Are you boys planning to make me mad?"

As Amane was making this vow to himself, Mahiru and Chitose approached the boys.

"Oh, Shiina! No, not me—we were talking about whether you would get mad if Amane did something."

"You should know the answer to that already… Of course I wouldn't lose my temper. We would talk it out calmly, face-to-face, until he understood my feelings."

Her broad smile sent Itsuki trembling terribly.

Mahiru was telling the truth. She was most likely to explain her feelings at length and get the other party to understand her. Using a smile and a sound argument as her weapons, she would corner the other person and compel them to agree with her. She was really someone you wouldn't want to make enemies with.

"Amane, don't you dare make Mahiru angry!" Chitose scolded.

"Hey now, I'm not even doing anything!" Amane replied. "…Actually, Mahiru, what would make you angry?"

"…An affair, maybe?" she answered. "Do you think I'd cheat?"

"I don't think that at all! It's a ridiculous notion, given your nature. You're the type of guy who is endlessly devoted to the people you cherish."

"…Thank you."

"Although, that kind of devotion can wear you out. I think you stopped at kissing my cheek because you ran out of steam."

"…Mahiru."

"N-no, wait. I didn't mean to complain…and I did get questions about that mark."

"Great, let's forget it."

If she was going to elaborate on how the mark came to be, Amane would rather just not bring up the subject.

"Ah, is that—?" "…Itsuki."

"Yeah, yeah, you two, my dear friends, are so painfully shy. We do that much on a regular basis, right, Chi?" Itsuki called out to Chitose. The two of them quickly started pawing at each other.

Amane grumbled internally, We're not up to that level like you two are!

Of course, the couple who had been dating for two years had reached certain milestones that Amane and Mahiru hadn't gotten to yet. He had heard about those kinds of things from Itsuki before, so he wasn't exactly surprised, but for some reason or other, he did feel somewhat embarrassed.

Mahiru must have heard some stuff from Chitose, too, because her face flushed red instantly, so he knew she was probably imagining the same things as him.

...All that is probably a ways off, though.

They hadn't even kissed on the lips yet, so joining their bodies together was a dream beyond a dream. He didn't want to rush to it, either. It was better for them to approach each other slowly, at their own pace.

When Amane made eye contact with Mahiru, her face got even redder, and she looked down, so he averted his eyes from his intensely embarrassed girlfriend.

"Mahiru, when is a good time for us to go visit my parents?" Amane asked. After the closing ceremony at school, Mahiru had gone home before coming over.

He knew that he really should have already decided on the dates, but he had been in a happy daze since they started dating. They had also been busy with all sorts of things, so he hadn't found the chance to talk to her about it, either. His mother had said that any time was all right, so if Mahiru's schedule was open, he figured he would go home in August like he did every year during the Obon holidays.

In response to Amane's question, Mahiru blinked sharply several times.

"…Ah, or maybe you don't like the idea of coming home with me?" Amane stammered.

"N-no, I just remembered that we had talked about me visiting… Um, any time is good for me." Mahiru anxiously waved her hand in front of her face and insisted she wasn't opposed to the idea.

Amane smiled meekly and moved on to his next question. "Gotcha. I wonder how long we should stay? Last year I went back for about two weeks, the week before and after Obon."

At the moment, he didn't have any standing invitations from Itsuki or Yuuta and his friends around the time of Obon, and most people generally spent that time with their families anyway, so that was probably the best time to go. They wouldn't have school, either, so that also made it a good time to travel.

Last year, Amane had stayed a little over two weeks because he enjoyed not having to do any housework while he was there, but this year, Mahiru would be with him, so he needed to take her plans into account. He figured one to two weeks would be enough time to relax.

"I don't really have any plans, so… Chitose and I haven't decided when we're going to hang out yet, so you can choose when you want to take me along with you."

"Okay then, about two weeks should be good. That's a pretty long time; are you sure it's all right?"

"Yes."

Mahiru said she didn't have any particular plans, so they settled on the number of days that Amane had proposed.

As a girl, Mahiru apparently needed to bring lots of clothes, so she suggested sending their luggage ahead of time, and Amane messaged his mother to let her know to expect it.

He didn't anticipate an immediate reply, since his mother was probably at work, but he was sure she would happily agree and try to get them to extend their stay. Amane's mother loved anything cute, and she was extremely smitten with Mahiru.

"I tell you, I bet my mom's going to be thrilled." "Heh-heh, I bet you're right."

"…You'd better prepare yourself, though." "Huh?"

"My mother is gonna want to spend time with you."

Amane was certain his mother was going to make a pest of herself. She had always wanted a daughter, and she was liable to conduct herself as if fortune had granted her one at last—and dote on Mahiru the whole time they were there.

"I appreciate her company, though…"

"Well, that's good, but…the thing is…" "What?"

"…I wonder whether we should tell my parents that we've started dating?"

When Amane hesitantly mumbled this question, Mahiru stiffened. Amane hadn't told his parents yet, and apparently neither had

Mahiru. If they went to his house together, his mother would be able to tell from the way they acted, and she would probably tease them. He was conflicted over whether it would be better to try to mitigate the damage by saying something in advance.

But the scary thing about his mother was that Amane had no idea whether telling her beforehand would make it any easier—or if it would conversely make it worse.

"…Wh-what should we do? It would be embarrassing to make a formal announcement."

"I know. But she's definitely going to pry."

"Well, since I'm making their precious son a part my life, I think I should address them personally."

"I'm the one who's going to make you a part of my family, though…"

Amane said it almost as if he considered it a settled matter, but the moment Mahiru heard it, her face turned bright red, and she hugged a cushion tight.

"…You know I appreciate that you can say stuff like that without hesitation, but saying it too easily is a bad thing."

"Which is it?"

"Well, as long as you only say it to me, it's a good thing."

"Do you think I would say that about anyone other than you…?"

Amane wondered what Mahiru was worried about. She must have known full well that he didn't even look at other girls.

"…That, too, is another good quality of yours. And I think it must be the result of your father's upbringing."

"Why my father?"

Amane was confused by Mahiru's sudden mention of him. She leaned against Amane, still holding the cushion, so for the moment, he just stroked her hair.

He did it lovingly, not to try to appease her, but out of pure affection, and Mahiru let him do it, casting her eyes down bashfully. She looked like she was enjoying it, so Amane figured she didn't mind.

"…I bet you're going to be a lot like your father in the future, Amane."

"Really? I don't have as much of a baby face as he does, though." "Not in the looks department, but on the inside."

"I'm not confident that I'll turn out as calm and composed, either." "…That's not what I meant…dummy."

Mahiru whispered that last word so quietly it just barely reached Amane's ears, and she leaned against his arm, so when he deliberately shifted his body back, she fell and plunked down into his lap.

He watched the caramel color disappear and reappear several times behind her blinking eyes, then he smiled and cupped his hand around her cheeks.

"I can't be as gentlemanly as him, but I'd like to spoil you in my own way."

"…See, this is what I was talking about."

"My dad indulges my mom way more than I indulge you." "…He does. I think I would drown in it."

Still resting her head in his lap, Mahiru placed her own hand on top of Amane's, as if to cover it, and closed her eyes with a peaceful expression.

A smile appeared on Mahiru's lips as she leaned up and pressed her cheek against him.

"…Maybe you could drown me a little more?"

"As much as you like… Although, we'd be in trouble if you did at the pool next week."

"…Dummy."

This time, she delivered the adorable insult in a peevish voice, loud enough for him to hear clearly, and Amane laughed out loud and stroked Mahiru's cheek again.