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The Rearguard at Night and the Party’s Troubles

It was the night that Louisa stayed in Arihito’s suite with the party.

He had assumed the effects of his Recovery Support wouldn’t reach the other room, but he was wrong. Sleeping on the couch in their room put him in a rearguard position behind Kyouka and the others. That was the reason why he had been concerned about his friends sleeping in the bedroom.

The first to wake up was Theresia, who was sleeping on the other couch in the living room.

“……”

She watched him in the dimly lit living room after he’d fallen asleep. She pulled her hands to her chest, and the face of her lizard mask blushed a deep red. She curled herself up in frustration. She rolled over so her back was toward Arihito, so she wasn’t looking at him, and tried to get some rest, but the next moment, she couldn’t keep herself from staring and so rolled back to watch him.

She had no idea that when her back was to Arihito, Recovery Support was being activated even if her vitality was maxed out.

Theresia pressed her hands over her mouth to hold her breath, perhaps worried that Arihito would hear her. She became conscious of the strange beating of her heart. She was at a loss for what to do and coming close to fainting from lack of oxygen, then—

The door to the bedroom opened with a soft click and out came Kyouka, her face flushed as red or redder than Theresia’s, breathing heavily and seemingly concerned about her pajamas that were damp from sweat.

“…You, too, Kyouka?” came a quiet voice.

“Hmm… H-huh? You’re awake, too, Misaki?” whispered back Kyouka.

Theresia lay perfectly still on her couch, staring in their direction. It was partially because she was surprised by their sudden appearance but also because she instinctually decided this was one of those times when she shouldn’t move.

And it wasn’t just the two other girls; everyone who should have been asleep in the bedroom came out. Louisa, Elitia, Suzuna…all five of them, flushed and bleary-eyed, exchanged glances.

“…So it’s the same for everyone. I woke up, too…”

“What should we do…? We won’t get any sleep like this.”

Suzuna and Louisa were generally very modest girls, but they now looked at Arihito with their blushing faces and teary eyes.

“…Um, can’t we all just deal with it ourselves? Arihito’s fast asleep,” said Misaki.

“W-well… But still…,” stammered Kyouka, uncertain of what to do.

“… He’s sleeping like a baby… And he looks so cute asleep…,” Louisa said, taking a step forward.

“H-hey, don’t get so close! …Honestly, Louisa…,” sighed Kyouka.

Louisa herself was aware that she was being too brash, but seeing him sleeping and looking so unguarded really made her want to touch him.

“Mm…”

“…Mr. Atobe… M-my, how bold…”

Arihito rolled over in his sleep on the narrow couch. Now he lay on his back with his arm up on the arm of the couch, the front of the button-up shirt he was wearing as pajamas undone most of the way. The five girls’ eyes were glued to his chest. It was the first time any of them had seen a man’s bare chest so close up. The next person to step forward wasn’t Louisa but Misaki.

“So this is what men are like… All toned and firm. It’s kinda unfair…,” she said.

“S-stop it, Misaki… If you wake him up…,” rebuked Kyouka as she half-heartedly tugged at Misaki’s sleeve. There was no stopping her—Misaki’s Trust Level toward Arihito had gone up a lot while they slept, and so she was free to undo the buttons on his shirt.

Kyouka was frozen, her eyes opened wide when most of his top half was uncovered. She knew she should stop this, but she couldn’t get the words out of her throat. Elitia was the most collected of the five girls, but even she couldn’t tear her eyes from Arihito. She pressed her hand to her mouth as she tried to suppress the emotions she was feeling for the first time.

“…It’s not like it’s wrong. It’s just physical bonding, like when a mom cuddles her baby,” said Misaki.

Even Kyouka, who always had her guard up, was speechless. Misaki pulled Suzuna from where she was sitting on the floor, and the two of them sat next to Arihito. His hand was hanging listlessly to the side. Misaki gently took it (who knew what she was thinking) and squeezed it between hers.

“So big and strong… You guys might like his hands,” she said, enjoying herself yet passing Arihito’s hand to the next in line, Suzuna. Even her ears were bright red at seeing Arihito’s torso so close, but she did as Misaki suggested and took Arihito’s hand.

“…Mm…”

He let out a groan—it would be no surprise if he woke up at any time during this; they all knew that. Every time he moved the slightest amount, each of their hearts went off racing, but none of them tried to back out part way through.

None of them had ever spent the night in the same room as a man who wasn’t a family member, each one of them knowing the others were the same even without having to say a word.

“…Arihito’s sleeping so soundly. He’ll never know if we don’t tell him,” suggested Misaki.

“I—I…really don’t think that’s a good idea. It’s better to tell him in case he starts to catch on,” said Elitia.

“Hee-hee… You say that, but I can tell that even you want to touch Mr. Atobe. I feel the same way,” Louisa confessed.

“…Misaki and Suzuna seem so happy…b-but I feel so embarrassed. I can’t calm down,” said Elitia. She thought what they were doing was strange, but she was so incredibly jealous of Suzuna as she sat there holding Arihito’s hand.

She suddenly sat down and took her turn after Suzuna, taking his hand in hers. It was big and warm, the hand of a grown man. She desperately tried to rein herself in from the rapturous sensation it brought her.

“Ms. Kyouka, what should we do? What can we do that won’t wake Mr. Atobe…?” wondered Louisa.

It went against her conscience to approach him while he was sleeping. On top of that, she owed him so much, but she couldn’t help herself. She just really wanted to touch him.

“Th-that…doesn’t seem like my place…,” she murmured.

“…It’s fine as long as we keep it our little secret. I think everyone here can do that… I will, of course…,” said Louisa.

…Ah! N-no, Louisa! You can’t—!

Kyouka was alarmed when Louisa went around to the back of the couch, climbed on top of it and stared down at Arihito. She brushed the hair from her cheek, putting it behind her ear, and she gazed at Arihito’s face. Kyouka watched, thinking that she might kiss him, and almost couldn’t stop herself from saying something.

“…Mm…”

“Ooh… He might wake up if I do that… This is tough,” said Louisa.

“…Were you just trying to kiss Arihito’s cheek? You can’t do something like that when he’s sleeping…,” objected Elitia.

“I think it’s fine as long as it’s just on the cheek or forehead. Obviously, kissing his chest would be wrong,” said Misaki, and everyone exchanged glances. Suzuna and Elitia were adamant they’d never go that far, but Louisa was a different story.

“I am the oldest here…and Mr. Atobe has done a lot for me. So I—” Her voice tapered off.

“W-well that applies to me, too, even more so…,” said Kyouka.

“Well then, I defer to you, Ms. Kyouka. I’m fine with this anyway,” replied Louisa.

“Huh…?” She had been so desperately trying to stop Louisa. It came as a surprise that she wouldn’t back down so easily. Instead, she just stroked his arm while being very careful not to wake him.

How did things get to this point? Kyouka wondered if kissing Arihito on the cheek would calm the burning she felt inside her, but really, she just thought it’d make it worse. She was also starting to feel annoyed by Arihito, who looked like he was just sleeping more and more pleasantly. She had decided she needed to stop everyone, but he was the reason she had been woken up yesterday as well. She couldn’t really say she was sleep deprived, though—she still felt energetic enough that there wasn’t much she really could complain about.

And when it came to this warmth she felt—now that she’d joined Arihito’s party, she’d just have to figure out a way to deal with it on her own. They all would.

But if Atobe knew about our problem…what would happen to us if he tried to help get rid of this…frustration…?

“Ms. Kyouka, you don’t have to push yourself…”

“…I’m j-just gonna do what everyone else did… Hopefully that’ll calm me down a bit.”

“Next, if we could get him to sleep in a different position, we could try ooother things,” suggested Misaki.

“D-don’t be ridiculous… What if it made him not want to stay with us anymore…?” Elitia objected.

“When that happens, he could come stay at my place like I originally suggested to him…,” said Louisa.

Kyouka couldn’t stand Louisa’s competitiveness or the warmth in her body pushing her to the breaking point and finally took Arihito’s hand like the others.

…Wh-what…is this…? I’m only touching his hand, and yet…

She had just meant to touch his hand, but she shocked even herself when she took it and hugged it to herself, pressing it between her breasts.

“Whoaaa… Th-that was gutsy…”

“…Gosh, I’m not nearly bold enough to try that… Oh, but—,” said Suzuna.

“…I—I just wanted to show him I appreciate him… See, Suzuna?”

“…Arihito looks so happy… I just know I’m not…,” said Suzuna a little sadly, but Kyouka was focused entirely on hugging Arihito’s hand. Suzuna could see how much it calmed Kyouka, how much she’d needed it.

These past few days of being in Arihito’s party made it impossible for Kyouka to imagine a life without him. She started thinking things that surprised even her. She wanted to show him sometime when he was awake, not asleep like this, how much it meant to her that he was here with her.

After the five girls took turns touching Arihito’s hand, they rebuttoned his shirt and reluctantly returned to the bedroom.

“……”

Theresia had been watching them the entire time but now stood up quietly. She walked silently over to where Arihito slept and stared at his face, a tiny smile on her lips. She didn’t say anything to her sleeping owner. She simply watched over him quietly until the sky faded into dawn.