Chapter Text
Alright! Okay! Everything is finally, finally over! Living is so much fun! Hallelujah and praise the beings who have granted a wretched soul as I with the strength to fly free!
I’m Renako Amaori, and my high school life couldn’t be better! I’m finally a normal, mass-produced third-year at the top of the school’s social pyramid. No video game tournaments with my life on the line, no surprise runaway vacations, no more private investigations, or engagements, or any friends versus lovers competitions! Seriously, I think more stuff has happened to me in my first year than most people deal with in their lives!
But it’s all done and dusted! Now, I’m just your average high school girl: a five-star Renako Amaori with four out of four points in intelligence, courage, athleticism, and number of girlfriends!
Ah.
Um…
Yeah.
That… happened.
“Renako? Is everything alright?”
Mai, my lover, put her hand on my forehead—ohmygodshe’ssoclose—
“Nah, Rena-chin’s fine! She’s always spacing out like this, y’know? She’ll be back in a jiffy~”
My lover, Kaho, simply stood there with a smile, lightly shaking her head at the display.
“Are you sure? Her face is awfully red… Rena-chan, you wouldn’t happen to have a fever, would you?”
She whispers the last bit right into my ear, shattering whatever flimsy bit of confidence I’d managed to summon. It’s no use: I was always especially weak to attacks from my lover, Ajisai-san. I’m just feeling a little embarrassed and yet she’s worrying so much over me… She’s such an angel~ What did I ever do to deserve—
“OWWW! What was that for?!”
Even as her notebooks have been replaced in different colours through the years, their spines get twice as hard every time… Such is the cruel fate that has befallen this foolish woman who’s found herself as the lover of Satsuki Koto.
“You said you wouldn’t call Sena ‘angel’ anymore.”
“Ah, sorry about—wait, I didn’t even say that! How did you—OW!!”
What the hell, Satsuki-san?!
“And that was for questioning as to how you deserve us. You said that you wouldn’t mention that again.”
“Quit reading my mind already! Geez…”
“Amaori is simply too predictable—ow.”
Did… did Kaho just hit Satsuki-san? Does she have a death wish or something? Ack, she’s glaring at her…
“Kaho? Do you mind explaining—”
“You promised you’d start calling Rena-chin and Aa-chan by their first names, remember?”
Satsuki blinks.
It’s been a bit of a while since she's gotten like this, but she can really be scary when she wants to, huh? Well, it was nice knowing you, Kaho. I hope we’ll meet again in your next life.
She stops walking and blinks again, and—
“Ah. I suppose I did. My apologies.”
Oh. Oh! I’m still sort of getting used to this new and improved Satsuki 2.0 who can apparently respond to Kaho’s Kaho-ness without violence.
“Don’t apologize to me, Saa-chan! C’mon! Tell your girlfriends how sorry you are! If you remember their names, o’course!”
“Oh, what do we have here? Our test results. Come on, everyone.”
Don’t worry, Kaho, you’ll get her next time!
Anyways, Satsuki’s right. We’ve got test results to see! I never really used to check my rankings (why would I? I always knew I’d be somewhere around the middle) but, well, things have changed.
A lot has changed.
I’m Renako 2.0, after all! I still retreat to the safety of my games every now and then, but I’ve been pacing myself a lot better! Kaho and I joined the basketball team too, even if we’re just benchwarmers, eheheh… And I’ve been hitting the books like crazy! In the past few years, I’ve shot up from just above average, to the top fifty, and finally, after all this time, I can look to the board to find…!
“…Eleventh?!”
How?!!?!
I studied so hard this time! Two hours a day, every day without skipping a single time! I haven’t been with five-kun in over a week—a week! And it paid off! I shot up twenty-six places, but even after all that…!
“If you’re going out with me, you should at least place yourself in the top 10, or else it would be troubling for me.”
I can’t even say that it’s something only three people can do anymore—I’m dating four who can! Uuuu…
“I’m sorry, Satsuki-san… I’ve wasted the effort that you so graciously bestowed upon a sealouse—urk! T-the effort that you have so graciously bestowed upon me…”
DId you really have to hit me again…?!
“It’s fine, Ama—Renako.”
Ah, thank the heavens; my lady has bestowed her mercy upon one such as I…
“I already knew what I was getting into when I chose to become your lover. As I thought: it’s good that I’d already resigned myself to a life of caring for Bumaori.”
“Wha—Satsuki-chan, that’s not very nice!”
And so, that’s how I, Renako Amaori, summoned the courage to evolve myself once more into Renako version 3.0: Smarter! Quicker! Capable of climbing to the top ten on the back of my own skill!
Just you wait, Satsuki-san! I’ll show you just how much of a bum I really am!
“So, that’s why you’ve made the decision to accost myself this time around, Renako?”
Well, in the end, it turned out that I’m actually kind of awful at studying on my own. I just can’t help it! All of my video games are right there, and then I can’t focus on studying, so I promise myself a break, and next thing I know, I’m five dungeons deep and the whole evening’s gone.
“In the end, I’ve still got a long way to go before I can stand on my own, huh, Mai…?”
“Maybe so, but finding the strength to request aid is an admirable trait. Besides, what with my schedule being far more open without my mother breathing down my neck, I can say with confidence that my devotion to aiding in your studies shall not cause my own to falter in any capacity.”
God, she’s so cool and reliable… I love her…
It, um, still feels kinda weird to think that aloud. But I suppose that seeing Mai putting in this much effort to reassure me is kinda nice as long as she isn’t overdoing it.
“And please, feel free to come over whenever you feel so inclined. THere’s alway room for one more on my bed~♡.”
“H-hey, we’re studying right now, aren’t we?”
Ah, I take it back, I take it back! You’re getting way too close to me—eep!
Her lips, and, well, the rest of her feel really freaking soft as she presses against me, her arms squeezing me into her as her tongue starts to move around in my mouth, and I feel like I’m gonna die all over again.
Geez… I’m not sure if I can hold onto my sanity for long like this—Mai just keeps pushing, and pushing, and then my back is against her bed, a-and she’s biting at my lips, and there isn’t really much I can do but squirm a little under her as she pins me to the bed.
I mean, we do have a signal. If I tap her twice on her back, she’ll stop, but, um…
A-anyways! She took her lips off mine after a little bit and started to shift her weight—
—only to move over to my ear.
“W-wait, Mai, we can talk—mmm!”
This… i-isn’t good… I don’t—I’m not some deviant, okay?! It’s just—something about the way the sound of her l-licking me getting beamed right into my skull, or the feeling of pressure whenever her tongue plugs it that does something to me is completely unreasonable!
She… she nibbles at my ear and then—hnn, she moves to my jaw, teeth biting into it before her tongue moves in to lick the mark, and…!
“You’re so adorable, Renako.”
I-if things continue like this, then she might even end up having her way with me and we won’t get any studying done!
“The o-one time I try to be r-r-responsible about my gr-ades wwwithout Satsuki n-n-nagging—hey, what gives?!”
She stopped! And I almost…! Well, th-that’s not important, but why…?
“You’re right, Renako. We should save treats for after we’ve worked.”
“Treating me like a dog…?”
“Who said the treats are yours?”
“…After we finish, okay?”
“Of course, Renako~”
And with that way-too-long detour, Mai and I FINALLY open our notebooks.
Honestly, once that whole thing is over and done with, studying actually goes pretty well! It takes a decent while until I stumble into a question that I just can’t seem to crack open on my own.
“Hey, Mai?”
“Hm? Do you require assistance?”
“Yep. I’m trying to do this optimization problem, but I keep on getting to the wrong answer. Could you help me out?”
“Let me take a look, then.”
She sidles up next to me on the bed and her body’s awfully warm as—no, no! I am Renako Amaori, a pure-hearted, studious girl! And I. Am. Studying right now!
“Ah, yes. Here, you need to use chain rule.”
“Eh? How come?”
“Because using first principles on their own is insufficient here.”
“…Okay?”
Don’t stare at me like that! It’s like you're saying it’s only natural that I don’t get it!
“…Hah. Just as I’d feared, I’m still lacking in my explanatory skills. I apologize, Renako.”
“Well, hang on, I’m sure you can explain it if you try again! Like, why’d you use chain rule?”
“Because that is the necessary rule to use for this sort of function setup.”
…Is she seriously saying ‘You have to do it because you have to do it’? Wait, is that actually how she sees test questions? She really is something else, huh…
“Okay, then… Well, why wouldn’t I use, I dunno, product rule?”
“There are no functions being multiplied by one another. Hence, no product rule.”
“But there is a compound function? Which one’s inside the other?”
“If we look here, the inside function is 3x+1 and the outside is ln(x) + 5, so—”
“Oh, yeah, I see it now!”
See, Mai? I knew you could explain it with a bit of effort! Nothing’s impossible for you, after all.
“Fufufu…”
“Hm? What’s up?”
“Even though I was supposed to be the one teaching you, I ended up learning a thing or two myself.”
Mai…
It really isn’t fair when she gets all dejected like that. Is it reciprocity for all the times she’s patiently waited for my mind to mature before taking me by the hand? Or am I just upset at seeing my lover upset? Maybe it just feels wrong to see someone as dazzling as Mai in such a state?
Anyways! Less spacing out, more reassuring Mai! I put on my best easygoing Rena-grin as I place what I hope is a steady hand on her shoulder.
“Yeah, but I got my answer in the end, didn’t I? And who says the tutor can’t learn a bit herself? Sounds like a win-win to me.”
“Hm. You may be right about that.”
Mai doesn’t exactly brighten all the way, but there’s this… odd kind of half smile as she looks down at me.
“You always seem to end up comforting me in the end, hm?”
“Yeah, I guess so! It can’t be helped, after all! Mai deserves someone to comfort her—ah, um, as long as I’m doing a good job…?”
“Fishing for reassurance? My, my, Renako, you could have just asked.”
“I-I literally just did!”
“And so, you shall receive.”
She rests her head against my chest without waiting another moment. Seriously, what kind of spoiled creature have I brought into this world…? And to think she used to be so shy about this sort of thing… I guess our Touchy-Time ended up getting her used to this sort of thing.
Ah, whatever. I let her nudge me into the bed. Sinking into the sheets as I run my fingers through her hair, gently working out knots in her hair with my hands.
Hm. Knots. I remember when it was impossible to find any of those on Mai’s head. I’ve got no idea what stuff they were shoving into her shower, but it worked. Still, I’m glad that she doesn’t have to push herself as much. She nuzzles deeper into me, purring into my chest as I scritch at her head, and—wait, she’s purring?
Ohmygodshe’ssocutehowintheworlddidweevenenduptogetherIcan’tevenbegintothinkofwhatI’ddoifIcouldn’tseethis—
“I love you, Renako.”
“…I love you too.”
Even now, hearing those words from her is enough to make my face go all red. Seriously, spoiled Mai is too powerful! That loose smile, the content look in her eyes as she nuzzles into my cheek—god, her skin is so smooth…
“I’ve decided, Renako.”
Hey, why’d you stop, Mai?
Wait, did I actually think that aloud?
Mai’s sat off the side of the bed now and it looks like our Touchy-Time’s done for now. Which I’m not disappointed about! Or rather, I’m a completely normal amount of disappointed at being done touching my lover as opposed to studying—no, that also sounds wrong! Argh! Curse you, Mai!
“Seeing as you have made the decision to improve yourself, I will ensure that the path before you has as little resistance as possible.”
“Hm? Whaddya mean?”
Mai hands me her phone and I hesitate for a moment before taking it.
“Kaho appears to be available tomorrow and Ajisai the day after. Oh, and Satsuki does have time in her usual slots on Thursday and Saturday evenings, if you, by chance, wish to study with her..”
…She went and confirmed everyone’s availability for me?
Honestly, I could have done it myself. It would have taken some energy, but I’d manage! It would just be a couple of text messages, y’know? But still…
What did I ever do to deserve—
Nope! No thinking that! I can practically feel Satsuki cracking the whip behind me…
“…Thanks, Mai.”
“I simply know you well, Renako.”
She’s so warm.
My arms are around her back before I know it and then, I can’t smell anything but Mai. There’s something about her that just keeps me from forming any straight thoughts when I’m with her, and I keep wanting to hug her, kiss her, and touch her, and I can never stand against her for very long. I pull back for just a moment, and I see her face; there’s a soft smile and it gets closer, and closer, and—
I’m not sure which one of us closed the gap. Was it her? Yeah, definitely. Of course it was Mai. I can… I can hold m-myself back when we’re c-close, or when her tongue’s p-pressing against my lips, and—
“We’ve been studying for quite a bit, no? I’m sure that a break is in order…?”
“…Fifteen minutes.”
“A challenge; one that I’ll gladly take.”
“H-hey, where’s your hand go—eep!”
It’s no good. She, uh, puts her hands up my shirt, and—hnn, squeezes a little, and her mouth starts nibbling on my—!
“W-why do you a-always go for the ears?!”
“Do you not enjoy it?”
…If you looked up the word ‘unfair’ in the dictionary, Mai’s face would be right there with it.
God, I’m so glad that she fell in love with me.