Ephemeral Ability Reflects the Heart

「I'm sorry, Suzu-san. Thank you for waiting」

Around the same time as yesterday, Chihiro returned to the apartment after taking care of all his business.

Before this, after leaving the principal's office, Chihiro told Suzu where the apartment was and gave her the key.

When he told Suzu to wait here quietly, Suzu smiled at him as if she had been given the key to her lover's room――which was actually Maria's room.

『Okay, I understand. I'll be waiting for you』

After parting, Chihiro immediately sent an email to Maria and the others.

He informed them, "Suzu would be staying at the apartment until he came back", and then he left for class in the afternoon.

Fortunately, there was no problem in the class, the committee meeting, or the student council meeting.

It seems that Principal Ootori does not intend to take strong measures immediately.

But he doesn't know what will happen from now on, so he can only hope that Suzu will function as a "hostage" for as long as possible.

And so, there he is, after he enter the apartment, he closes the front door and walks into the corridor. 

「Welcome home―, Chihiro-kun―!」

「Chihiro~. Do something about this person」

He hears Suzu's cheerful voice and Riko's screams from the living room.

Thinking something was wrong, he went to the living room to see Suzu, who was drunk with several empty beer cans lying around.

Judging from the fact that she is wearing a sweater and jeans, and there is an unfamiliar trunk in the corner, it seems that she has brought her personal belongings into the apartment... But did she bring the beer from the refrigerator in the log house, or did she buy it on purpose?

He walks up to her, whose face is bright red, feeling a little disheartened.

「Aren't you drinking too much?」

「It's okay, it's just a little bit. Or do you want a drink too, Chihiro-kun?」

「No, I'm underage」

「I see. Too bad」

No offense to Suzu, but he doesn't want to increase the risk of getting caught by the police here.

「...Umm, so, is Riko and the others okay?」

In addition to Riko, the other members of the group, Maria, Aika, and Hana, are all in the living room.

If Hana's face is disgruntled because she has been called to the apartment every day, then why does Riko look tired in her apron, and why do Maria and Aika look so disappointed?

「I'm a high school student, so I don't know how many kinds of snacks I can make!」

「Uh...」

As it turned out, there are several empty plates on the table.

Apparently, Riko was the first to return to the apartment, but Suzu was already drunk with squid and peanuts by the time she returned.

From there, Riko was busy making snacks while preparing for the meal.

「So, Chihiro-sama. What the hell is going on?」

「Okay, I'll explain it」

Anyway, they probably don't even know what's going on with Suzu now.

So, Chihiro quickly changed his clothes, but when Suzu saw him in his casual clothes, she muttered something about how "fresh" he looked, and he took a seat and told them what had happened.

After the explanation, everyone looked puzzled.

Hana asked on behalf of everyone.

「Eh? Is that all right?」

「It's okay, it's okay」

「Ah, I'm sorry. I didn't ask you, so please shut up」

「...you bully」

Suzu, who had been making fun of the situation, was silently cut off.

Apparently, Hana might not like drunken people, considering that she was the most involved party in the meeting.

So, Chihiro answered instead with a wry smile.

「Well, I guess you could say the original purpose has been achieved...」

Principal Ootori was questioned and information was obtained, and as a result, Suzu was quickly recruited to Chihiro's side. This alone is a great accomplishment.

However, he unexpectedly provoked Principal Ootori more than he had expected.

「What she nailed down should have a certain effect, shouldn't it?」

「Well, I guess we'll just have to hope for the best」

Besides, since Suzu is here, information can be extracted from her.

He looks back at Suzu who is lying on the desk.

「Suzu-san, are you in a condition to talk now?」

「I feel terrible...」

She's hopeless.

So, Riko gets up from her seat to get some water, and Aika tilts her head as if in trouble.

「My abilities are not strong enough to deal with poison or alcohol, so I don't think I can help you」

「...Don't worry, I'll just get some rest」

Suzu grunted.

And then she gulped down the water that Riko had poured into her glass and sat down, leaning back against the back of the chair.

「Well, let's finish our meal and bath first, shall we?」

As Suzu rests, they take turns taking a bath.

By the time they had finished changing into comfortable clothes and Riko's main dish was on the table, Suzu's color had improved somewhat.

Today's main dish was fried pork with cheese. It was thin pork wrapped in cheese and fried.

「Oh, it looks good with beer」

「Eh? Are you still drinking?」

Riko said in a rather stupid voice.

She called Suzu "you" (Anta) as if she couldn't recognize that Suzu was older than her because of the first impression.

But Suzu just narrowed her eyes at her and muttered something to her.

「If I don't drink, I can't do anything」

Everyone was silent, with subtle expressions on their faces.

Still, Suzu, who had brought out a new beer from the fridge, sipped lightly from the can and said slowly.

「Yuu-chan's Onii-san and I were engaged. From the time I was in high school」

☆　　　☆　　　☆

Apparently, they've known each other since they were kids.

Suzu was spoiled by "him" like she was spoiled by a close relative's brother. So when their relationship turned into a fiancée, she just thought, "Oh, okay" .

After all, she knew she was going to marry this man.

Although they were far apart in age, she didn't dislike it. In fact, it felt like it made sense to her.

She knew that she was going to be in his arms and get pregnant with his child, as she should have done.

「Ah.... I was serious then, unlike now. At that time, I was weak and a child who often visited the infirmary」

「You say that to yourself...」

At that time, Suzu, who was once pure and innocent, has reached the age of a high school girl.

She was interested in erotic thing as much as anyone else, and she often play with herself while thinking about him.

It was around that time that she realized that her sexual desire was stronger than others.

She wanted to be embraced by him. So she put on make-up and tried to approach him.

「But he didn't hold me, he just said...」

"Leave that kind of thing for when you grow up, Suzu".

He kept refusing Suzu's approach, saying things like that. Despite the fact that he called and texted her frequently, and always asked her out on dates when he was free.

Still, he never kissed her, let alone do "that".

「And on the day I graduated from high school, I asked him to hold me. I told him I wasn't a child anymore. But it didn't work out」

After that, this relationship continued after Suzu entered college.

At the time, she was spending her time playing with herself every day to release her love and frustration toward him. But then one day, he informed her that he was "very sick and had no more time left to live".

He also told her that he did not intend to marry her and that he hoped she would find someone else.

「He told me, "I wasn't good enough for you"」

And when she asked him to conceive her, he stubbornly refused.

In the end, he passed away without even kissing her, leaving Suzu with a clean body.