These words from Matsushita Chiaki could be called quite direct.
Those blue eyes carried a hint of nervousness—after all, she had practically just blown her own cover, and had done so with virtually every circumstance still unknown to her.
After saying all this, a faint flush couldn't help but rise onto Matsushita Chiaki's face.
Those lovely eyes shifted their gaze aside for just a moment, and a faint pink spread across her fair cheeks, creeping from her cheeks all the way to the roots of her ears—she looked utterly adorable.
But soon, with her face still red, she brought her gaze back to rest on Shikime Natsu.
Because, after all, what she wanted was Shikime Natsu's answer.
When it came to asking about someone's feelings, one couldn't afford to be timid. If she flinched, then there would always be this sense of having lost—Matsushita Chiaki thought this to herself, doing her best to keep her composure.
Of course, deep down her heart was actually pounding like a drum.
Matsushita Chiaki thought that if Shikime Natsu were to say "I have no idea at all," then for her, it would be terribly awkward.
At that point, she really wouldn't have the face to see anyone again.
Perhaps then she could airily say to Shikime Natsu:
"I had a really strange dream, one very similar to what just happened"—using this rather clumsy excuse to fudge her way out of it.
Only, even if it was just fudging, this behavior of hers would still sound rather odd.
Who would ask someone out of nowhere, "Have you ever had a dream involving me"?
And she'd even said that in the dream the two of them had been lovers. If she hadn't spoken those words about being lovers, there might still have been a chance to salvage things—but... as things were now, she could only take it one step at a time.
Of course, rather than being tormented by that faint, uncertain feeling, it was better to just ask outright and get it clear.
Worst case, she'd just make herself scarce for a few days and then reappear—that should be fine, right?
Matsushita Chiaki thought this to herself and took a deep breath.
She was quite nervous at this moment. Within those lovely blue eyes, a thin veil of mist welled up again, making them look moist and glistening—her whole being appeared exceedingly alluring, exceedingly adorable.
Shikime Natsu looked at this expression of Matsushita Chiaki's and gave a soft laugh.
He blinked, those pale golden eyes carrying a hint of gentleness and teasing.
"If the dream Chiaki just described were real, then... the Chiaki in the dream wouldn't behave like this, you know."
Shikime Natsu smiled, the corners of his mouth curving up slightly.
Matsushita Chiaki watched as Shikime Natsu's expression quickly changed.
That face wore a teasing smile—this expression, this way of speaking—wasn't this exactly the same as the Shikime Natsu from her dreams?
The Shikime Natsu in the dream would often look at her with a smile just like this, would speak to her in that same faintly teasing tone, and would always say things that made her blush to the ears.
Matsushita Chiaki looked at the Shikime Natsu before her with a degree of disbelief, complex emotions flickering within those blue eyes—surprise, delight, and a touch of embarrassed vexation she couldn't quite put into words.
"Our dreams were really shared together?"
Matsushita Chiaki looked at Shikime Natsu with a hint of disbelief.
If that were truly the case, Matsushita Chiaki didn't even know what expression she should wear.
Should she feel happy? Or should she feel ashamed?
Happy, because the person she had fallen for was the very person she had come to know in her dreams.
In the dreams, the two of them had known each other for a very, very long time—one could say they were quite familiar with one another.
Of course, that was because of the nature of dreams; in reality, the two of them had only been dreaming for a few days.
Yet Matsushita Chiaki felt as though a long time had passed, as if she had gone through so, so many things together with him.
That sense of familiarity, that sense of intimacy—it was real.
As for the shame, it was because Shikime Natsu knew her so well—just how well? Well enough that every inch of her body was known to him.
Those scenes in the dream, those intimate moments, those contacts that made her flush crimson.
The moment she thought of this, Matsushita Chiaki's face reddened a few shades more, red enough that it seemed blood might drip from it.
She couldn't help puffing up her cheeks, those blue eyes looking at Shikime Natsu with a hint of reproach.
"Since... since you knew all along, then why didn't you tell me sooner?"
Matsushita Chiaki couldn't help puffing up her cheeks as she spoke to Shikime Natsu, her voice carrying a touch of coquettishness and some indescribable grievance.
Shikime Natsu looked at her like this and smiled, but didn't answer right away.
Matsushita Chiaki couldn't help recalling the time in the dream when she had confirmed her relationship with Shikime Natsu.
Back then, the Shikime Natsu of that time had seemed to still be single.
Which was to say, she was actually supposed to be Shikime Natsu's very first girlfriend?
The moment she thought of this, Matsushita Chiaki's heart couldn't help feeling somewhat complicated.
If she hadn't hesitated, if she had confirmed it a little sooner, if she had taken the initiative a little earlier, then perhaps the position of number-one girlfriend at Shikime Natsu's side would have been hers.
Still, Matsushita Chiaki gave a soft sigh.
After all, the fact had already come to pass—so from here on, if she could also confirm her relationship with Shikime Natsu, then she could set her heart at ease.
Matsushita Chiaki thought this to herself, her gaze once again falling upon Shikime Natsu.
Shikime Natsu looked at her, those pale golden eyes carrying a hint of tenderness.
"Didn't I already bring it up with you earlier?"
Shikime Natsu said with a smile, that earlier on, he had already mentioned it to Matsushita Chiaki.
He paused, then continued.
"It's just that at the time, Chiaki didn't seem to recognize it."
After hearing these words from Shikime Natsu, Matsushita Chiaki quickly recalled what Shikime Natsu had said before. It was precisely because of those words of his that Matsushita Chiaki had felt Shikime Natsu to be so familiar.
But... even so, Matsushita Chiaki still couldn't quite believe it.
After all, who could have imagined that two people would truly have the same dream?
Matsushita Chiaki shot Shikime Natsu a bashful, reproachful glance, those blue eyes carrying a hint of dissatisfaction.
"Something like this... how could I possibly have recognized it myself?"
Matsushita Chiaki shot Shikime Natsu a bashful, reproachful glance as she spoke to him, her voice carrying a touch of grievance.
"And what if I'd recognized the wrong person? Wouldn't that have been far too embarrassing?"
She paused, then asked again.
"Besides, it was clearly just a dream—so why would two people's dreams be linked together? Something like this... it's just too incredible..."
Shikime Natsu smiled, those pale golden eyes carrying a hint of softness.
Perhaps this was simply fate.
In saying this, Shikime Natsu wasn't lying, either. After all, the Dream Entry skill he had obtained didn't allow him to specify a target. Being able to enter Matsushita Chiaki's dreams several times, and each time so smoothly—this really could be counted as fate.
Shikime Natsu looked at Matsushita Chiaki, then spoke again.
"Earlier on, wasn't it that Chiaki didn't dare to confirm it?"
His tone carried a hint of teasing.
"So how is it that now, all of a sudden, you're daring?"
Hearing these words, Matsushita Chiaki looked toward Shikime Natsu again.
"Because those dreams left me so preoccupied. Every time I woke up, I would think about whether the dream was real or not."
"If it was real, then why hadn't Natsu acknowledged me? But... if it was fake, then why were those dreams so vivid?"
"I don't want to be tormented anymore by that faint, uncertain feeling."
"So... I wanted to ask and get it clear."
After saying all this, Matsushita Chiaki lifted her eyes slightly to look at Shikime Natsu.
"Natsu has the memories from the dreams too, right? In the dreams... we were already that kind of relationship, so... in reality, can we pick that relationship back up?"
These words from Matsushita Chiaki could be called a confession outright. The rosy flush on that adorable little face still refused to fade, and especially after Matsushita Chiaki spoke of "that kind of relationship," those quite intimate scenes once again unnaturally surfaced in her mind.
Ugh... if those were real, then she had long since been thoroughly devoured, eaten clean by this bad fellow before her eyes.
Shikime Natsu looked at her like this and gave a soft laugh.
He reached out his hand, his slender fingers lightly brushing against Matsushita Chiaki's cheek.
The warmth of his fingertips passed through her skin and into Matsushita Chiaki's heart, making her heartbeat quicken in an instant.
His fingertips stroked lightly against her cheek, the motion tender.
"Of course."
"Become my girlfriend, Chiaki."
Upon receiving these words from Shikime Natsu, something within Matsushita Chiaki's heart seemed to settle down, as if she could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
"Mm... I want to be with you, Natsu—always, always together."
But after feeling the warmth of Shikime Natsu's hand resting on her cheek, Matsushita Chiaki tilted her face up slightly, as if wanting to nuzzle against Shikime Natsu's palm.
Of course, after nuzzling, Matsushita Chiaki said with bashful reproach:
"D-don't touch my face in a place like this..."
Watching Matsushita Chiaki like this, Shikime Natsu smiled.
"All right."
After that, Matsushita Chiaki quickly took hold of Shikime Natsu's wrist. After all, she was already dating Shikime Natsu now, having confirmed their relationship anew—so... it should be fine for her to be a little bolder.
Mm... as for being seen by others or whatever, Matsushita Chiaki didn't really mind. After all, having become Shikime Natsu's girlfriend, how could she possibly remain obscure and unnoticed?
"Natsu, come with me."
She said softly, then pulled Shikime Natsu along, heading toward a corner.
Shikime Natsu didn't refuse, letting her pull him along.
In the end, Matsushita Chiaki stopped at a deserted corner.
It was very quiet here, far from the main thoroughfare of the shopping center, with no one passing by.
There were only a few decorative potted plants arranged in the corner, and a white wall.
Matsushita Chiaki released Shikime Natsu's wrist, turned around, and faced him.
Her face was still very red, as red as a fully ripened apple.
Her chest rose and fell slightly with her breathing, the curve of her bosom outlined against that pale blue dress.
Her hands hung at her sides, her fingers slightly curled, tightly clutching the fabric of her skirt.
"Right now... in this place, it's just the two of us..."
Matsushita Chiaki spoke slowly, lifting her head to look at Shikime Natsu. The girl's body trembled faintly, and she looked quite nervous.
And within those blue eyes gazing at Shikime Natsu, a thin veil of mist welled up as well, her eyelashes quivering slightly, the girl's gaze sparkling and utterly captivating.
"In the dreams, Natsu belonged to me alone..."
"But now this is reality, and Natsu will belong to many people."
"But... at least right now, Natsu belongs to me alone—to my own little sliver of time."
Matsushita Chiaki simply gazed at Shikime Natsu like this, her tone exceedingly gentle, as though these words were also being spoken to herself.
"So..."
"Let me possess this Natsu of the present, just a little."
Then Matsushita Chiaki rose onto the tips of her toes, her body leaning slightly forward, drawing near toward Shikime Natsu. The distance between them grew closer and closer—close enough to feel each other's breath, close enough to clearly see themselves reflected in each other's eyes, close enough to catch that faint, clean fragrance on Shikime Natsu—the scent that Matsushita Chiaki had smelled countless times in her dreams.
It was the scent that had lingered in her memory even after she woke from the dreams.
Then Matsushita Chiaki gently pressed a kiss upon Shikime Natsu's lips.
That kiss was very light, very soft.
This kiss was not brief; it seemed to pour out all of the girl's longing. After a long while, Matsushita Chiaki finally parted from him, then lowered her head, her face burning red, her heart pounding impossibly fast.
But soon, Matsushita Chiaki embraced Shikime Natsu again. They had kissed, but hadn't yet embraced—and at this moment, Matsushita Chiaki could feel Shikime Natsu's warmth even more, that reassuring feeling emanating from him.
As for rising to Class A, or graduating from Class A or whatever—Matsushita Chiaki had long since stopped caring. After all, the current Class D no longer had any future, and Shikime Natsu had said as much—that he would walk toward the future by relying on his own abilities.
So, Matsushita Chiaki intended to act according to what Shikime Natsu had said. As for Class D's standing or whatever, she no longer cared.
All that the present Matsushita Chiaki cared about was whether, in the current Shikime Natsu's heart, there was a place for her.
Although Shikime Natsu had already accepted her, but... merely that was still not enough. Matsushita Chiaki wanted to leave more and more of an impression in Shikime Natsu's heart.
When Matsushita Chiaki finally let go of Shikime Natsu, Shikime Natsu lowered his head again and kissed Matsushita Chiaki anew.
Feeling Shikime Natsu's kiss, Matsushita Chiaki responded—something like this was only the most natural thing in the world.
If there had been enough time, perhaps they could have kissed for an entire day.
Of course, right now, the time clearly wasn't enough. After all, today's date was for three people. As things stood now, she, Karuizawa Kei, and Shikime Natsu had come together, but Satou Maya hadn't yet.
"Natsu, let's head back."
Matsushita Chiaki's voice rang out, and at this moment, her voice carried a hint of joy.
"Mm."
Shikime Natsu answered with a sound, then clasped Matsushita Chiaki's hand, their ten fingers interlocking.
Feeling the warmth transmitted to her palm, Matsushita Chiaki revealed a reassured smile.
____
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