The Trials of a College Student Sharing a Place with Two Creatives

“Hey, I’m back— Oh, not again…”

One night in mid-March, Miyako returned to her apartment from her part-time job in the editorial department at GF Bunko, only to sigh once she saw the state of the apartment from the front door. Clothing and underwear were strewn around the hallway, and there were visible puddles on the floor.

Calmly picking up the garments and tossing them into the washer by the bathroom, Miyako took a bath towel and wiped up the corridor.

In the living room, she found Nayuta sprawled out on the floor, entirely naked. She was facedown and soaked from head to toe, water creating a puddle around her.

“Ahhh, Myaaaa, welcome baaack,” she called languidly when she realized Miyako was there.

“Don’t give me that,” retorted Miyako sharply as she turned to her. “How many times do I have to tell you? You have to dry yourself off after you’re done with your bath.”

Nayuta looked up, bleary-eyed and not at all apologetic. “Nyahhh, I’m sorry… I got too hot, and you know…”

“Just dry yourself off. You’re going to catch a cold.” With a sigh, Miyako took a new towel from the bathroom, lifted Nayuta from the floor, and dried off her wet hair and body.

“Nya-ha-ha! You’re tickling me, Myaa.”

“Just hold still a moment, please.”

As Nayuta wriggled around like a cat, and Miyako violently rubbed her body, the older girl had to ask herself, What am I even doing…?

Just then…

“I was waiting for you, Myaa!”

The door flew open as Kaiko entered the living room from beyond. She must have been hard at work, because she was wearing a pair of panties as a mask, and deep bags were visible under her eyes through the leg holes.

“Uh… Did you need something else?” a suspicious Miyako asked.

Kaiko nodded intensely. “Yes! I need you to model again.”

“Awww…”

Miyako winced. Kaiko was drawing the manga version of Itsuki Hashima’s All About My Little Sister, but since Miyako had a similar body type to All About heroine Ichika Akatsuki, she was frequently enlisted as a model for tricky poses.

“…So what is it this time? Panties? Nude?” Miyako’s voice was flat, but she showed no interest in turning down her request.

“Nothing but a bra,” Kaiko explained. “Uhmm, your hands are against the wall, and you’re pushing your breasts against it while you stick your butt way out.”

“…Like this?” Nimbly slipping off her clothes and panties, Miyako kept on her bra as she followed Kaiko’s instructions.

“Right. Now, please lift up your right leg and hold it straight out.”

“Mm, okay.”

“Aw, thanks, Myaa! Your body’s so limber!”

“Nngh… This—this is kind of tough…” Miyako flashed a strained smile. Since entering college, she hadn’t spent nearly as much time exercising. Gym class had become a thing of the past when she started her third year of high school. It was clear to Miyako that she had lost a lot of the flexibility she’d had a few short years ago.

“Just hold it like that, please!” Kaiko hurriedly returned to her room to fetch a marker and some paper. The next moment, she began to sketch.

“Whoa, Myaa, that’s pretty gutsy!”

Nayuta walked up to Miyako, eyeing her up and down in an openly lurid fashion. It made Miyako’s cheeks burn in shame.

“Hey. Stop staring at me, Nayu!”

“Hyahh, this angle is so incredible. Can I get a photo?”

“Absolutely not!”

“Please don’t move, Myaa!”

“Ugh…”

The veins were visible in Kaiko’s eyes as she admonished Miyako, who was now starting to tear up. She kept that pose for another five or so minutes, her right leg growing more and more pained.

“Hey, how much longer do you need? This pose is really tiring me out…not to mention embarrassing me…”

“Almost there! Oh, but I want to try a couple different compositions, so give me about fifteen more minutes, please!”

“Huhhh?!” Miyako shouted at Kaiko’s merciless instructions, beginning to quiver.

“Whew…”

The manga modeling session complete, Miyako decided to head straight for the bath. She sighed deeply as she sank into the tub.

It had been about a month since she began sharing this apartment with Kaiko and Nayuta. They had exercised more restraint around one another at first, sharing a home and everything, and so the living room, kitchen, toilet, and bath were all kept in good condition. Once the furniture was all in place and it began feeling more like a home, however, things loosened up.

Nayuta was the chief culprit, of course. She didn’t know how to do any chores, her work/sleep cycle fluctuated wildly, and she’d often drop in early in the morning, fresh from spending the night at Itsuki’s place. She was generally naked inside the place, throwing off her clothes by the front door and leaving them there, and she’d walk around after a bath without toweling off. And she didn’t close the bathroom door behind her. In short, a worse roommate might have existed but would be difficult to find.

Kaiko, meanwhile, had prepared for life away from her parents with a little cooking and cleaning practice. She had decent enough skills, but her magazine work often made her too busy to contribute to chores. Her schedule was even less stable than Nayuta’s; at one point, she pulled three all-nighters in a row, then slept twenty-four hours straight after making her deadline. She could frequently be heard screaming in her room as she drew manga late at night.

As a result of this, over time, Miyako had become responsible for the laundry, cleaning, cooking, taking out the trash, and pretty much everything else. These weren’t skills she was particularly gifted at, but over the past month, she had leveled up quite a bit. It was clear this wasn’t the greatest roommate setup, but Miyako was still happy with it. Unlike her roommates, who were paying rent with the money they earned, Miyako’s parents were covering her costs—and there was no way she’d ever afford such a nice place by herself. Thinking about it that way, household chores were no sweat.

Besides…

If I wasn’t here, Nayu and Kaiko would be in big trouble.

There was no doubting the fact that the other two needed her. These were two geniuses with exceptional talents, but without the average college student they lived with, there was no way they could have kept themselves fed and sheltered. Miyako took a dark sort of satisfaction in that, as much as it filled her with self-loathing.

…I’m such a bad person. I’m so lame. I’m awful.

Banishing the negative emotions, Miyako cupped some water in her hands and splashed it on her face.