Soft rays of sunlight filtered through the sheer curtains of the room's window, casting golden streaks across the wooden floor and warm sheets.
The futon lay at the center of it all—crumpled, still slightly damp with sweat and love from the night before.
On it, Aisha stirred first.
Her eyes fluttered open slowly, adjusting to the morning light. For a long moment, she just stared.
At Ito.
His face was so calm in sleep. Soft breaths escaped his slightly parted lips, and his arm was loosely wrapped around her waist, as if holding her even in dreams.
She smiled.
Gently.
Lovingly.
The kind of smile only she ever wore for him.
Aisha raised a hand and ran her fingers through his hair, brushing back the black strands sticking to his forehead. Her touch lingered.
"You're still asleep after all that?" she whispered, leaning in, voice full of affection and playful exasperation.
She pressed a kiss to his cheek.
He didn't stir.
She kissed his nose.
Still no reaction.
Then his lips—soft and warm.
Still nothing.
So she kissed him again.
And again.
And again.
Until finally…
"Mmm…" he stirred, blinking slowly as her face came into view—bare inches from his, eyes filled with mischief and love.
"Aisha…?" His voice was hoarse from sleep. "That's… one hell of an alarm clock."
"Morning," she giggled, leaning in to kiss him once more, slower this time.
He cupped her cheek, deepening the kiss.
When they finally pulled away, she grinned. "Feeling awake now?"
Ito stretched beneath the sheets, letting out a yawn, then blinked toward the ceiling. "I'd feel more awake if we hadn't broken the laws of physics last night."
Aisha laughed, the sound like chimes. "You're the one who kept going. I should be the one knocked out."
He leaned in again, brushing his lips against her collarbone. "I couldn't help it. You kept asking for more."
"And you kept giving it," she teased, pressing a finger to his chest. "So it's your fault."
They both chuckled softly, completely content.
Until a soft groan came from the bed above.
"...Ugh… I can't feel my legs," Mei's voice mumbled sleepily.
A pause.
Then a louder groan. "What… happened to my back…?"
A beat.
Then a high-pitched gasp.
"EH?!"
Ito and Aisha looked up just as Aoi sat bolt upright, clutching the sheets to her chest, her face glowing crimson.
"S-S-Senpai…?!"
Beside her, Hana yawned and stretched lazily, completely unbothered and absolutely naked. "Mmm~ morning~"
She turned, saw Ito and Aisha on the futon—and winked.
"Looks like you two didn't stop after all."
"It's your fault there was no space left on the bed," Aisha teased, sticking her tongue out.
"Wait, wait, WAIT!" Mei shouted, bolting upright and immediately hissing in pain as she pulled a thigh muscle. She wrapped the blanket around her chest with an embarrassed scowl. "T-That wasn't a dream!?"
"It really wasn't…" Aoi muttered, still bright red. She glanced shyly at Ito, then immediately buried her face in his shirt again. "Oh no oh no oh no… I can't believe I… I made that noise…"
"You made many noises," Hana giggled from beside her.
"Sh-Shut up!" Aoi whined, covering her ears.
Mei crossed her arms, face bright red. "Baka Ito! You could've gone a little easier on me! Do you know how hard it is to even sit up right now!?"
"Do you want me to carry you to the bath?" Ito offered, grinning.
Mei picked up a pillow and flung it at him. "BAKA!"
The pillow bounced off his chest.
Aisha laughed. "That's what happens when you're so cute while being tsundere."
"You're not helping!" Mei pouted.
They all laughed—except for Aoi, who was still shaking in embarrassment, her head firmly tucked away.
And then—a soft giggle, faint, almost breezy.
The room's temperature dropped slightly.
Everyone turned.
Floating just beside the bed, half-phased through the wall, was Akemi.
She looked… oddly content. One of her translucent legs dangled in the air, and she clutched a pillow to her ghostly chest like a girl after a satisfying sleepover.
"Mmm~ what a delightful morning," she said dreamily. "I didn't think ghosts could get exhausted. But… apparently, we can."
"You… you slept?!" Mei stared, jaw dropped.
Akemi shrugged. "More like drifted into unconscious spiritual euphoria."
"I don't even wanna know what that means," Hana muttered.
Akemi floated down next to Ito, her pale form shimmering. She leaned her cheek on his shoulder, whispering so only he could hear, "Next time, I want you all to myself."
He glanced at her, and though the others couldn't hear, Aisha felt the energy shift and smirked knowingly.
Mei sighed dramatically, looking at the pile of clothes on the floor. "This is gonna be such a pain to clean up…"
Aisha sat up on the futon, stretching her arms high above her head, not even bothering to cover herself. "Let's worry about that after breakfast. Right now, we need to bathe and recover. Poor Aoi's about to faint again."
Aoi made a soft squeak and pulled the sheets tighter.
Mei pulled a blanket over her head like a turtle retreating into its shell.
"Someone please erase last night from my memory…" she groaned.
"Even if you could," Hana smirked, poking her, "your body will remember it."
"Stop talkinggg!" Mei wailed, muffled under the blanket.
Ito chuckled and pulled Aisha closer, kissing her temple. "Well… if every morning starts like this, I'm not complaining."
Aisha leaned against him, smiling. "Neither am I."
Ito rose from the futon, the sheet falling away from his hips as he stood upright—completely bare, unashamed, his body marked with faint red lines, lipstick stains, and the lingering scent of everything that had happened hours ago. His muscles ached pleasantly. His skin still tingled with memory.
His gaze settled on Aoi.
She was curled in a tight ball on one corner of the bed, her entire body wrapped in a sheet like a cocoon, only the top of her head visible. Even then, that black hair of hers trembled slightly with her embarrassed breaths.
He smiled.
Quietly, he stepped forward, padding across the wooden floor without shame, his bare feet barely making a sound.
He stopped beside her, crouching down gently.
"Aoi," he said softly.
The sheet rustled slightly—but she didn't respond.
He leaned in, whispering closer to her ear, "You know… you said some very naughty things last night."
"...I-I didn't mean to!!" she burst out from under the sheet like a spooked animal, face bright red, her eyes huge with panic. "T-That wasn't me! I-It was—It was—ghhnn!"
She immediately shoved her face back under the sheet.
Ito laughed. Not mockingly—gently. Kindly.
He sat beside her on the edge of the bed, then leaned his bare body toward the little lump she made.
His hand reached under the sheet—slow, patient—and found her trembling fingers. He squeezed them.
"I loved every second of it."
"Uwaaaah…!" Aoi curled tighter, trembling.
"But," he added, softer now, bringing his lips to the hidden side of her cheek, "even if you hadn't said anything… you're still the cutest girl in the world when you cling to my shirt like that."
"I-I was d-d-d-distracted…!"
He kissed her again—on her forehead, just over the blanket. "You don't have to be shy around me. Not anymore."
A long silence.
Then…
The blanket shifted.
Two soft, trembling arms emerged from beneath it, slowly wrapping around his neck.
She pulled herself up, her eyes watery but glowing, her lips trembling.
"I-I love you, Senpai…"
"I love you too, Aoi."
He kissed her forehead again—this time directly, skin to skin—then down to her flushed nose, and finally, gently, her lips. She melted instantly, a soft sigh escaping her as her arms held him tighter, their bare bodies brushing together beneath the folds of the wrinkled sheet.
"I'm sorry I fainted last night," she mumbled against his neck. "I was just… overwhelmed."
He chuckled. "You fainted like six times."
"Senpaaaai!" she buried her face in his chest, her small fists thudding weakly against his back.
Ito laughed again, then turned to the other side of the bed—
Where Mei still sat, bundled in a blanket like an angry caterpillar.
Her face peeked out just enough to glower at him.
"I see you're still pouting," he said.
"I-I'm not pouting!" she snapped.
He tilted his head. "Really?"
"I'm—! I'm just mad you went so rough on me for my first time!"
"I was gentle."
"You call that gentle?! I feel like I lost ten years off my lifespan!!"
He smirked, rising from the edge of the bed and walking toward her, his naked form unapologetic. Mei's eyes widened slightly—just briefly—before she turned away, flustered.
"D-Don't walk toward me like that, you perv! At least put something on!"
He reached the side of her blanket and crouched.
"Aw, is little Mei-chan still feeling sore?" he teased in a singsong voice.
She growled, "Shut up!!"
"You know," he continued, bringing his face close to hers, "you were clinging to me very tightly last night. Almost like you didn't want me to stop."
"Th-That's because you wouldn't shut up with all those lines!" she blurted, cheeks aflame. "Y-You kept saying weird romantic stuff… and my brain just stopped working!!"
"So you liked it," he grinned.
"N-No, baka!"
"Then I guess I shouldn't do… this."
He leaned in and kissed her.
She froze. Completely.
Eyes wide, lips parted slightly in shock—then slowly softening beneath his.
He deepened it. Her fingers clenched the blanket tighter—then released. Then, like ice melting under sunlight, she leaned into it.
A moment passed.
Then she shoved him away, hard—but not really hard.
"I-It doesn't mean anything, okay!?"
"I love you too, Mei."
"B-B-Baka…"
Behind them, Hana was lying on her stomach, lazily watching everything unfold with a sultry grin on her face, chin on her arms, hair tousled, one leg swinging playfully in the air.
"Well," she said, "if you're done seducing the shy girl and bullying the tsundere…"
She rolled onto her back.
"Don't I get a kiss too?"
Ito turned to her.
Hana stretched both arms toward him, completely unashamed of her nakedness, breasts bouncing slightly with the motion.
"You're so rough when we do it," she purred. "But now you're gonna play the sweet boyfriend?"
He smirked. "Only for you."
He leaned in and kissed her—slow, long, sensual.
Hana moaned into it, wrapping her arms around his neck, one hand running down his back. When they finally parted, she whispered, "You taste like Mei-Chan."
He laughed. "Jealous?"
"Very."
"I'll taste like you in a minute."
"Mmm… promise?"
"Promise."
He pulled away from her, standing now in the center of the room.
Aoi peeked from behind her sheet, eyes dreamy and red.
Mei bit her lip and glanced down at her own trembling legs.
Hana lay stretched like a goddess freshly blessed.
And then—
From behind—
Two arms wrapped around his chest.
Aisha.
Naked. Warm. Her breasts pressed to his back.
"I thought I'd already claimed your kisses this morning," she whispered into his ear.
"You did," he said, smiling.
"But I'm greedy."
He turned and kissed her without hesitation, wrapping both arms around her waist and lifting her off the ground slightly.
Her legs hooked around his hips instinctively.
Their mouths moved together like fire and wind.
When they parted, Aisha looked breathless again. Her fingers tightened around his neck.
"God, I love you," she whispered.
"And I'm not even done."
She chuckled, resting her forehead against his.
"And what about me?" came the dreamy voice from above.
Floating a few feet in the air, Akemi looked down at them, arms crossed under her ghostly chest, eyes teasing.
"You always forget the dead girl," she pouted.
Ito opened his arms.
"Then get down here."
Akemi's eyes widened, then gleamed.
She floated down—phased slightly, ethereal—and landed in his arms. Though no one else could touch her, he could.
And she felt every bit as soft and real as the others.
He pulled her close.
She melted into him, letting out a soft, ghostly sigh.
He kissed her.
And she shivered.
"Mmm~ Still the only one who can feel me," she whispered. "I think I'll haunt you forever."
"You already do."
And then—
All of them.
Wrapped around him.
Laughing.
Kissing.
Blushing.
Complaining.
Loving.
The room smelled of sex, sweat, warmth, and something deeper—something sweeter.
Affection.
Connection.
Family.
Their hands tangled.
Their bodies close.
He kissed each of them again.
Aoi.
Mei.
Hana.
Aisha.
Akemi.
Five girls.
Five soulmates.
All tangled in one beautiful morning that they knew would be only the first of many more.
---
END OF CHAPTER : 60 : MORNING AFTER!
---