Although when playing with Yukino, that exceptionally gifted snow woman, Hikari had experienced a similar feeling, different people, however, indeed bring different sensations.
Although it was also icy cold, at this moment, the sensation that Akane gave Hikari was quite comfortable.
Under Akane's earnest gratitude, Hikari also narrowed his eyes slightly and began to passively enjoy it.
Hikari felt very comfortable.
And Akane, who was the one giving thanks, was also enjoying it.
So the two were quite engrossed.
Actually, their posture at this moment was quite ambiguous.
Not only were they sitting on the bench hugging in an interlocking manner, but they were also closely pressed together.
Most of the high schoolers on campus, upon seeing this, would definitely not be able to help blushing.
However, this path was indeed quite secluded, and since school had ended for some time, there weren't many people left on campus, so no one had passed by.
But just then, a light sound of footsteps echoed.
Having just fallen out with Takanashi Kou, with tears still at the corners of her eyes, Tachibana Yui, who was trying to take a shortcut home, happened to see this scene.
Tachibana Yui, whose eyes were still slightly swollen, saw at this moment her close best friend and her boyfriend clinging intimately and passionately kissing on the bench, and couldn't help but freeze.
'It's Akane-chan? And Hikari-kun is also there?'
'In broad daylight, Akane-chan and Hikari-kun actually...'
'They actually...'
Out of shyness, Tachibana Yui covered her cheeks with both hands, but her eyes couldn't help but sneak peeks through the gaps between her fingers, secretly observing the "indecent" scene between her best friend and her boyfriend in broad daylight.
At this point, Tachibana Yui hadn't even held a boy's hand before.
So she couldn't understand how Akane and Hikari progressed so fast, how they could behave so affectionately outdoors.
Looking at Akane, who had her eyes closed and a blush of happiness all over her face.
Looking at her best friend and her boyfriend tightly pressed together, mouth-to-mouth feeding each other ice cream.
A faint sour and bitter feeling suddenly welled up in Tachibana Yui's heart.
She was actually a bit... envious, jealous, and resentful.
Originally, Tachibana Yui thought that in her entire life, she would never be like Akane, getting involved with a playboy like Hikari who had a foot in several boats.
But seeing them now being so intimate under broad daylight and then thinking of herself and her childhood friend Takanashi Kou, as well as everyone in the baseball club, being like cattle and horses, not daring to date no matter how strong the feelings were, and even if there was a partner, still having to hide and bury it completely even unto death...
In such a contrast, thoughts began to stir uncontrollably in Tachibana Yui's heart.
'Compared to my current situation, maybe dating a playboy and getting played a little isn't something totally unacceptable…'
Looking at her best friend Akane, who was tightly hugging Hikari, her cheeks red and her body twisting with full engagement, this thought suddenly popped up in Tachibana Yui's mind.
Of course, Tachibana Yui still didn't like playboys or frivolous men.
But after being threatened and almost assaulted by Kuwahara, and saved like a descending god by Hikari, Tachibana Yui's impression of him had clearly improved.
It could be said that even if Hikari was a playboy, he was a high-quality one, which naturally gave rise to such thoughts in Tachibana Yui.
Looking at Hikari's side profile as he pressed against Akane, Tachibana Yui suddenly felt a bit emotional.
'I previously... seem to have been prejudiced against Hikari-kun. He's really much better, more outstanding than I imagined, I misjudged him...'
Akane suddenly remembered how, not long ago, when Takanashi Kou was badmouthing Hikari in the baseball club, she had kept praising how excellent Hikari was.
At the time, let alone Takanashi Kou, even Tachibana Yui didn't believe it at all.
They just thought their best friend had been tricked by the playboy Hikari and had turned into a love-brained girl.
After all, a frivolous man with four or five girlfriends, how could such a man possibly be excellent?
But thinking back now, Tachibana Yui suddenly realized, maybe everything Akane said was true, without any exaggeration.
From what she had seen of Hikari's behavior, he really was surprisingly outstanding.
Not only could he easily beat Takanashi Kou, the ace of the baseball club, but he also easily handled the teacher Kuwahara who could easily control her.
These scenes surfacing in her mind made Tachibana Yui admit, perhaps her best friend didn't turn love-brained, but she herself had simply been too blind to see clearly…
On the contrary, her childhood friend Takanashi Kou, who she used to value so much, forget that his baseball skills weren't as good as Hikari's, he also couldn't handle losing, badmouthed Hikari behind his back, and belittled him in front of Akane.
Tachibana Yui carefully recalled and suddenly realized that Takanashi Kou had always had a strange hostility toward Hikari, seemingly full of jealousy.
Moreover, her childhood friend always acted overly enthusiastic toward Akane and liked to show off in front of her.
'Could it be... Takanashi Kou really has feelings for Akane-chan?'
This thought suddenly floated into Tachibana Yui's mind, and the more she thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.
Although she had said this before, it was just a joke, she had never really considered it.
But thinking carefully now, if Takanashi Kou really had feelings for her best friend Akane, then all those things about him that she couldn't understand now made sense.
Like targeting Hikari, Akane's boyfriend, for no reason; being overly enthusiastic toward Akane; even after she left the club, still probing for news about her daily, intentionally or not...
'Oh dear!'
'Turns out the one who has thoughts for his girlfriend's best friend isn't Hikari-kun, but this guy Takanashi Kou!'
After recalling everything carefully, and then thinking about the cold and harsh words Takanashi Kou had said to her earlier when he misunderstood her, Tachibana Yui couldn't help but bite her silver teeth and clench her pink fists.
———
Perhaps because the kissing had been passionate from the start, when Tachibana Yui first arrived, Akane hadn't noticed at all.
Not until an entire ice cream had been completely fed to Hikari, and their lips slightly separated, Akane's pink tongue gently licked away the remaining ice cream around their mouths, and after a bit more intimacy with Hikari, she finally noticed there was someone else nearby.
And the person standing there dumbfounded, watching her, was none other than her familiar best friend Tachibana Yui.
"Yui-chan?"
Seeing her best friend standing there dumbfounded, not knowing how long she had been watching, Akane's little face immediately flushed red, and she hurriedly scrambled out from Hikari's arms.
Originally, Tachibana Yui had intended to detour when she saw the scene of Akane and Hikari being affectionate. But watching and thinking too much had left her a bit dazed.
Now, hearing Akane's words, she snapped back to herself.
It was definitely inappropriate to walk away now.
Tachibana Yui, blushing slightly, walked toward the two on the bench.
"Akane-chan, Hikari-kun…", Tachibana Yui greeted the two.
Hikari and Akane both responded in turn.
"Yui-chan, why are you here? How lo… long have you been here?"
Akane, her face red with embarrassment, asked somewhat flustered.
Akane thought about those shameful poses and actions just now when she held the ice cream ball in her mouth like a little kitten, raising her head and feeding it to Hikari, perhaps all of it had been seen by her best friend, and her pretty face flushed even more.
Naturally, Tachibana Yui knew this would be embarrassing, and quickly waved her hands, "N–not long!"
"I just got here! I didn't see you two feeding each other ice cream balls or snuggling or anything!"
Hearing Tachibana Yui's blunt explanation, Hikari couldn't help but smile slightly.
Beside him, Akane's face turned even redder.
To ease the awkwardness, Akane shifted slightly away from Hikari, took the other popsicle she had intended to feed him, and handed it to Tachibana Yui.
"I happen to have another ice cream here. Yui-chan, you eat it."
"Ah… thank you, Akane-chan," Tachibana Yui reached out and accepted it.
Looking at Akane, whose cheeks were still a bit flushed, Tachibana Yui said awkwardly, "Did I… did I disturb you guys…"
She knew how awkward it could be when a familiar person showed up while a couple was being affectionate.
Although Akane's face was still a bit red, she waved her hand with a smile, "It's fine."
Hikari also nodded slightly at Tachibana Yui.
Only then did Tachibana Yui breathe a sigh of relief.
Then Akane suddenly remembered what Hikari had told her earlier and immediately pulled Tachibana Yui to sit on the bench together.
Akane looked serious and said to Tachibana Yui, "Yui-chan, Hikari-kun already told me about what just happened."
"That teacher named Kuwahara is truly a beast, he should be taught a hard lesson!"
"You have to be more careful in the future, and if that Kuwahara dares to harass you again, you must tell me and Hikari-kun. We'll definitely help you!"
Hearing her best friend gripping her hands tightly and saying these words, Tachibana Yui was so moved that her eyes welled up, "Mm! If anything happens, I'll definitely tell you. Thank you, Akane-chan, and thank you too, Hikari-kun! You're both so kind!"
Akane reached out and wiped away the tears at the corner of Tachibana Yui's eyes, then asked curiously, "Yui-chan, why are your eyes so swollen? Did you cry earlier? Is it related to that pervert Kuwahara? I'll go teach him a lesson now!"
Hearing Akane's words, Tachibana Yui quickly held her back, shaking her head and explaining, "No, no—it wasn't about Kuwahara. It was just… just some personal matter…"
Hearing this, Akane nodded, "Alright then. But if anything comes up, you have to tell me, we're best friends, after all."
Tachibana Yui nodded repeatedly.
Seeing Tachibana Yui's face, slightly flushed from emotion and looking even more lovely, Akane's eyes suddenly spun mischievously.
She turned around and hugged Hikari's arm, softly and coquettishly saying, "Hikari-kun, I have a small request."
"What is it?", Hearing Akane's cutesy voice, Hikari smiled and rubbed her head as he asked.
Seeing them being all lovey-dovey again, Tachibana Yui suddenly found her cold, sweet ice cream tasting a bit sour.
Akane rested her little head on Hikari's shoulder and said sweetly, "It's just… Hikari-kun, don't you have that good luck charm talisman? That charm, can you give one to Yui-chan too?"
"I… I'm a little worried she might run into something like today again…"
"Sure," It wasn't anything major. Seeing Akane being all affectionate, and considering she had just "served" him enthusiastically, Hikari naturally didn't refuse.
He smiled and pulled out a clear, jade-like talisman and handed it to Akane.
Getting Hikari's agreement, Akane was overjoyed.
Tachibana Yui, seeing her holding the sheep-fat-jade-like talisman, was a bit confused.
Akane smiled and explained, "This is a jade talisman Hikari-kun got from a temple, it wards off evil and brings good luck. Ever since I started wearing it, I haven't run into any annoying things anymore."
"So Yui-chan, you should wear one too."
Tachibana Yui nodded, "Okay. Thank you, Akane-chan. Thank you, Hikari-kun."
Actually, Tachibana Yui wasn't really superstitious, but since it was a gift from her best friend, given with good intentions, she naturally accepted it with a smile.
Akane said, "This talisman only works if you always carry it with you."
Tachibana Yui nodded, "Mm, I'll carry it with me all the time."
Akane smiled, "I believe you, Yui-chan, but I'm afraid you might forget, so you should wear it now. Come, I'll tie it around your neck for you."
"O–okay."
Although it felt a little sudden, a best friend would never hurt her, and it was full of goodwill. Tachibana Yui, though a bit bewildered, still agreed.
Sitting on the bench, Tachibana Yui slightly turned her body, back facing Akane, letting her help tie the red string of the talisman around her neck from behind.
Logically, tying a string should be done quickly.
But Akane fumbled for several minutes, until Tachibana Yui's neck started feeling a bit sore, and still hadn't finished.
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