ODL – Chapter 62 – Rinjou Shizuka’s Maiden Heart

[Shizuka PoV]

I woke up smelling a faint scent of the sun, unlike any other day.

While still being half-asleep, I noticed that my forehead was pressed against something.

It wasn’t my usual pillow.

It was something warm, soft, but slightly firm.

I slowly opened my eyes.

The fibers of a T-shirt were visible before me, so I rubbed my eye to check if I was seeing things.

A faint light seeped in through the curtains, casting a faint glow in the room.

…Apparently, I was clinging onto Souma-kun for the entire night.

More specifically, I was pressing my face against his broad back. When I realized this, I struggled desperately not to scream.

……

…Once I get up, I can never experience this again. Let’s make full use of the situation!

“Mmm…” (Shizuka)

While giving off an intentionally drowsy voice, I continued to press my body against him.

My chest may be small, but thanks to that, I could snuggle against his body quite comfortably. It gave me the largest contact area with Souma-kun.

I buried my face into his back, filling my entire view with Souma-kun. When I breathed in, I could smell Souma-kun’s scent. Ahh, the scent of the person I love…

It was a sensation that warmed my heart from deep within. If I could, I wanted to stay like this forever.

When I pressed my body against him, Souma-kun trembled slightly. Did he wake up? Please, don’t wake up for just a little longer.

Looking back, ever since I started living alone, my mornings always felt a bit lonely. Even though I’m already 20 years old, I sometimes feel like I am still a child. But there was nothing I could do about it. I just couldn’t adapt to my new lifestyle. I wondered what would have happened to me if Souma-kun hadn’t been there.

Before I knew it, my hand had wrapped around Souma-kun’s stomach, basically hugging him. I squeezed Souma-kun tightly with that hand. The sense of security I felt now was incomparable to anything before. I had wanted this for so long. It was a shame it was from behind, but for now, it was more than enough.

In the end, I continued to pretend to be half-asleep until Souma-kun’s smartphone alarm went off.

◆

[Souma PoV]

In the end, I barely got any sleep and was quickly greeted by the sound of my smartphone alarm.

“…………So tired…” (Souma)

As I raised my upper body, Shizuka’s hand, which had been wrapped around me from behind, slipped and fell onto the blanket. She was the reason I couldn’t sleep. Seeing as her hand had slipped off easily, it seemed that Shizuka hadn’t woken up from the sound of the alarm just now.

Aren’t you sleeping quite soundly? Thanks to you, I couldn’t get a wink of sleep, you know?

I tried my best not to consciously acknowledge the sensation I felt and crawled out of bed, making my way to the bathroom. When I looked in the mirror, I had a terrible expression on my face. Staying up all night was one thing, but it was clear that my mental state was taking a toll on me.

…It’s all because Shizuka mistook me for a body pillow or something and started clinging to me. She was pressing her chest against me like crazy. Although I didn’t really feel much physically, there’s no doubt that there was something still there.

Well, I guess it doesn’t really matter if her chest is small or the fact that she is a real-life garbage dispenser.

As long as a girl is snuggled up to me, it’s only natural to get excited. I’m a 20-year-old guy, after all. Someone should award me the Nobel Prize for Patience. But seriously, I’m so sleepy. Can I skip university today? No, I already know that I can’t.

“Mmm I feel refreshed.” (Shizuka)

As I was drying my washed face with a towel, I heard a voice coming from the bedroom. It seemed like Shizuka had woken up. The timing was such that it sounded like something I would say right after washing my face, but in reality, it didn’t do much to help my exhaustion.

I remembered Shizuka from last night, looking so lonely. If she was able to sleep soundly, then maybe paying the price of staying up all night was worth it after all.

“Good morning, Shizuka.” (Souma)

When I returned to the living room, Shizuka was sitting at the table. She must have had a really good sleep because her face was radiant, even though she just woke up.

“Good morning, Souma-kun. Did you sleep well?” (Shizuka)

“I managed. It seems like you weren’t too lonely.” (Souma)

“Hehe, thanks to you♪” (Shizuka)

Saying that, Shizuka smiled.

…I couldn’t help but forgive the slight sleepiness after seeing her bright smile. This is so unfair.

TL Notes:

Thanks for reading!

Look, I know that I said I would upload the illustrations into the respective chapters by yesterday but you know… I didn’t have time. I’ll do it somewhere this week once I actually get enough of the adequate amount of sleep a human should get. I’m basically Souma right now lol.

Footnote:

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