Melonbook SS: Wanting to Get Even

"Good morning."

Mahiru, who had been dozing off on Amane's shoulder, slowly raised her head. Seeing this, Amane adjusted his face to align with her sleepy gaze and smiled.

Mahiru, with her soft, dazed expression, seemed to take a considerable amount of time to process Amane's words.

After her moment of disorientation passed, Mahiru's expression sharpened as she grasped the situation. "…W-Was I sleeping?"

"Yep, soundly."

"You should have woken me up."

"Hm? I don't see any reason to wake you when you're sleeping so peacefully."

Given the perfect, sleep-inducing weather, Amane understood why she'd felt drowsy. Moreover, after seeing Mahiru sleep with such a content expression, he couldn't bring himself to wake her.

Part of it was that he enjoyed watching her adorable sleeping face, though. "Geez. I shouldn't sleep when I'm the one who came over to your place." "Hmm, I don't mean this in a bad way, but…it doesn't feel that special anymore when you come over to my place, right? Like, it's part of our routine now…" Amane expressed. "Oh, but don't take it negatively like it doesn't matter anymore, alright? What I mean is, spending every day in the same space is normal for us now, and I think that's really nice."

Mahiru practically spent most of her time at Amane's house. Except for bath time and bedtime, it would be no exaggeration to say that she was always there.

The fact that this had become the norm for Amane and Mahiru was a pleasing reality.

"…And I get the added bonus of watching your sleeping face," Amane added.

"D-Don't say that—it's embarrassing. I don't want to show myself wearing such a defenseless expression."

"Well, it just means you feel relaxed and safe by my side. To me, it's adorable, and I can't help feeling happy about it."

"Th–There you go again saying things like that…" Mahiru gazed at him with a mix of mild embarrassment, reproach, and frustration. Amane responded with a light laugh, letting it slide.

Needless to say, Amane enjoyed watching the peaceful scene that was Mahiru soundly sleeping, but he was also happy knowing she could sleep so serenely. Despite Mahiru claiming that her experiences were a thing of the past, it seemed that her past memories occasionally disturbed her sleep, often leading to insomnia or nightmares. Therefore, seeing her able to sleep peacefully was undoubtedly a good thing.

While Amane kept those thoughts to himself and smiled, Mahiru still wore a somewhat annoyed expression. "…But you sleep next to me like that from time to time, don't you, Amane-kun?"

"Well that goes without saying, Mahiru," Amane quickly affirmed. "Lying beside you makes me feel comfortable and secure."

"H-Hngng…"

"What's with that look?"

"I'm a little frustrated that you can say that so casually… Are you really okay with me seeing your sleeping face?"

"Well, it's not like I lose anything from it."

"…In that case, going forward, I'll make sure to stare at your face when you're asleep. I shall observe it very closely."

It appeared Mahiru really wanted to get back at him, but to Amane, it neither bothered nor hurt him.

"Would that be fun?"

"Of course it would. I'll take my time admiring the sight of your adorable sleeping face. I can't wait for the next opportunity to do so."

"Well, do as you please."

"I must create the perfect sleeping environment for you, Amane-kun…some soothing background music, proper air conditioning, the right temperature, and…"

Seeing Mahiru so unexpectedly enthusiastic, Amane muttered, "All you have to do is lay beside me, Mahiru. I'll sleep like a baby." Overloaded by his comment, Mahiru headbutted him with a bright red face, leaving Amane no choice but to turn away, trying to hold back his laughter.