"Please come in!"
Kitagawa Marin opened the door to her room and led Saiki inside.
Saiki glanced around. The walls were covered with posters of anime girls and 2D characters. There were dakimakura pillows nearby, and the desk was packed with toy figures and scale models.
Oh, and there was a sewing machine off to the side.
Saiki sat down beside the desk and took in the room's decorations.
(This kind of setup and style is pretty typical for an otaku.)
"Thanks so much for coming today, Saiki-kun. Actually, even though I don't really know much about sewing or tailoring, I've already done my best and made about half of Shizuku's outfit!"
Kitagawa Marin poured Saiki some juice while talking.
Right now she was only wearing a long-sleeved jacket. It looked almost like she had nothing on underneath.
[Oh, that's good. If it's already half done, we should be able to finish it today pretty quickly.]
Saiki took a small sip of the juice, licked his lips, and said,
[So where's the outfit? Let me see it.]
"Okay!"
Kitagawa Marin gave a bright grin, then reached for the jacket covering her body.
"Ta-da!"
After taking off the jacket, there was no mosaic censorship or anything dramatic — just a black garment that looked exactly like the half-finished version from the original work, or rather, a half-finished version of a half-finished version.
(You call this half done? Just how tragic was Shizuku's original outfit?)
[What's the original reference look like for the outfit you're trying to make?]
"Like this."
Kitagawa Marin handed Saiki her phone.
Saiki took the phone and saw an absolutely stunning 2D character with an enormous bust partially exposed in a way that probably wouldn't pass censorship.
Saiki looked at the phone screen, then at Kitagawa Marin, compared them back and forth several times, and gave his honest opinion.
[Completely different.]
"That's why it's only half-finished!"
[Even half-finished shouldn't look this bad.]
"Then just how bad is it?"
[I don't even want to say it. Anyway, take it off. I'll help fix it up.]
"Oh."
Kitagawa Marin pouted slightly, took the garment, walked out of the room, and after a short while returned wearing something more presentable. She handed the black fabric over to Saiki.
Saiki picked up the outfit and sat down at the sewing machine.
[Alright, I'm going to start now. If you don't have anything to do, you can go out shopping or something. It might take a few hours.]
"No."
Kitagawa Marin shook her head. "I want to watch you!"
Saiki held up the black fabric and examined it.
(This is basically starting from scratch. If she watches me the whole time, it's going to take forever.)
Just as Saiki was about to begin after looking it over, Kitagawa Marin spoke up with a question.
"Saiki-kun, don't you need to take measurements? Like the three sizes and stuff."
Kitagawa Marin had done some research yesterday and learned that to make a proper outfit, you needed detailed measurements like that. Since she hadn't measured herself properly, she planned to have Saiki do it today — which is why she had changed into a swimsuit.
[I already know, but what are your three sizes? Just tell me.]
Saiki didn't actually need to ask. All he had to do was look at Kitagawa Marin and every detail — height, weight, bust, waist, hips, everything — appeared floating around her. But he couldn't just say that outright, so he asked casually.
"Oh, like that? I actually don't know myself, so could you please measure me, Saiki-kun?"
Kitagawa Marin nodded in satisfaction at his response. See? That's what a professional looks like.
[Can't you measure yourself, or get someone else to help? Doesn't this kind of thing usually involve taking clothes off?]
"Sorry, I can't do it by myself. Please, Saiki-kun."
With that, Kitagawa Marin started undressing right there on the spot, and didn't forget to brag about her brilliant idea.
"I knew this kind of situation might come up, and I was worried you'd feel awkward, so I changed into a swimsuit ahead of time. Thinking of this idea — I'm honestly too clever."
(You really are too clever. If you thought of this possibility ahead of time, why didn't you just get someone else to measure you earlier?)
After taking off the cover-up top and jeans, Kitagawa Marin revealed the swimsuit underneath and struck a pose.
"Ja~n! How is it? Looks good, right? Here, the measuring tape is for you."
Saiki took the tape measure. A trace of disdain flickered in his eyes.
Seeing that look, Kitagawa Marin felt a pang of unease. [What's that look? Did I imagine it? Do I really look that unappealing? I should be pretty cute, right? My figure's not bad either. Wait… could Saiki-kun actually hate big breasts? Does he prefer small ones…]
(What exactly is going through your head right now?)
[Alright, let's start. Stand still and don't move.]
Saiki cut off Kitagawa Marin's bizarre train of thought, warned her not to fidget, and began measuring. He knew that if he dragged this out, they'd waste even more time.
Saiki quickly used the tape measure on Kitagawa Marin — head circumference, waist, bust, hips, wrists, arms…
After finishing, he wrote everything down on paper.
[Finally done.]
Come on — a beautiful girl in a swimsuit standing right in front of you, completely unguarded.
Only someone with strong self-control, or someone like Saiki who has zero interest in the human body as anything more than an object, could stay calm. Anyone else would have already dropped their pants…
"Saiki-kun, sorry to trouble you again, but could you measure my feet too?"
[You don't need that, do you?]
"When I buy shoes, sometimes the size is technically correct but they still feel uncomfortable, so please?"
Saiki: ...
Kitagawa Marin sat down on her bed. The motion caused her impressive chest to bounce noticeably. She crossed her legs, extended one elegant foot toward Saiki, propped her cheek on one hand, and struck a cool, aloof pose. "Mm, go ahead!"
Saiki froze for a second, as if he hadn't processed what just happened. It almost felt like the person in front of him had suddenly changed personalities.
Seeing Saiki still standing there, Kitagawa Marin couldn't help using a slightly commanding tone. "What's wrong? Saiki, hurry—up."
Saiki raised an eyebrow, walked over to Kitagawa Marin, and looked down at her from above with an unreadable expression.
Kitagawa Marin watched Saiki approach. She unconsciously swallowed. She suddenly realized her attitude earlier might have been a bit off, and now that Saiki was looming over her like this, she immediately chickened out. "I…"
Saiki reached out and flicked her forehead.
[Drop that attitude right now.]
"Sorry!"
Kitagawa Marin clutched her now-red forehead and apologized. [Oww~ Saiki-kun, that was way too hard! It was just a joke…]
www
"…"
[Okay, good. Go put your clothes back on.]
Very quickly, Saiki set Kitagawa Marin's foot down, picked up the paper and pen, wrote a few more notes, walked over to the sewing machine, sat down, and prepared to start working.
Saiki looked at the data written on the paper.
(This doesn't look like the measurements of a typical high school girl.)
The paper clearly recorded Kitagawa Marin's stats:
Head circumference 57.75 cm, neck circumference 27.03 cm, sleeve length 52.1 cm, thigh circumference 43.8 cm, waist 58.7 cm, hips 84.8 cm, underbust 68.2 cm, foot circumference 19.2 cm, foot length 23.2 cm, foot girth 22.4 cm, foot width 9.5 cm.
…
Author: Would you guys like a girlfriend with measurements like this…?