"Chisa! What do you think if I wear this one? Or this one?"
"They're both great. But Aina, we're going to a water park where we have to strip to enter. Isn't a dress a bit inconvenient?"
That night at the rental villa, lying on a tatami mat and listlessly closing her diving guide, Kotegawa Chisa looked helplessly at Aina, who was tossing things around above her. Since getting home, despite the day's fatigue, she had already cycled through every piece of clothing in her suitcase twice. While changing, she'd occasionally let out a "hehehe" giggle, her drool nearly dripping down to the lower bunk!
Chisa didn't know what had happened, but she felt this silliness... had this girl fallen in love on the spot in the short time Chisa was busy contemplating life?
"Well~ you have a point."
Yoshiwara Aina poked her head out from the edge of the loft. Even though she said that, her hands didn't stop rummaging frantically through the messy pile of clothes.
There wasn't really a reason; in her heart, the little white dress was the perfect choice. Light, airy, and soft—it could definitely fulfill any boy's image of a first love! However, even so...
"I feel like something is missing. What could it be..."
Looking at her bulging satchel, the girl sat cross-legged and fell into deep thought. Finally, she lowered her gaze and fixed it on her chest—
Yes! This is it!
She quickly fished out replacement breast pads from her bag and, without hesitation, stuffed them into her bra, then specifically tightened the straps.
"This should be perfect. A 'normally developed' girlfriend and all that!"
She dashed down the stairs to admire herself in the mirror. Yoshiwara Aina finally nodded in satisfaction.
"Ah~ Aina has reached the age to be in love~ Seems little Chisa is being left behind?"
"You can't compare things like that, Sister!"
"Okay, okay~ But Chisa has to get married eventually. Sister is a bit reluctant to let go."
Lying on her bedding, her chest propping her body up, Kotegawa Nanaka looked tenderly at Chisa and asked seemingly casually: "Chisa, what do you think of Iori?"
"Wh-Why bring him up! I'm going to sleep!"
Her face turned red. Chisa threw the diving guide in her hand at the light switch. Amidst Aina's confused sounds, there was a loud whoosh of a blanket being pulled up.
...
"Ah~ you guys are so slow. Did you stay up late last night?"
"Ha— I'd say it's more that you're just too heartless, Iori~"
The next morning, the engine cut out. Miyazawa Yuu leaned over the steering wheel, looking at the girls who were finally arriving at the villa entrance. He let out a bored yawn while habitually roasting Iori.
Compared to Yuu and Iori's relaxed states, Kohei, squeezed in the middle, was at the opposite extreme. Today, he had rarely used hair gel, and his clothes broke his golden rule of only changing when they were too wrinkled to wear—he had specifically changed into a brand-new outfit for the occasion!
"Learn from Kohei, okay? If you're taking girls out, at least wear something decent. Are you really planning to go in your Dolphin work uniform?"
"What does it matter? It's all going to be stripped off immediately anyway."
Waving to Nanaka-san through the window, Kitahara Iori squinted and looked at the two well-dressed bastards with pure malice. He then spread his hands and shouted out his grievances.
"After all, I'm the only guy here without a girlfriend!"
"If you know that, then hurry up and find one. Complaining won't solve your future happiness, you bastard!"
"Sorry we're late!"
"It's fine, Nanaka-san. You look super beautiful today too!"
Opening the passenger door, Kotegawa Nanaka blushed and reached out to pinch her boyfriend. Her sister and friends are right here; how can he be so shameless!
Yuu had zero self-awareness regarding his lack of shame; his smile wouldn't even fade. After all, an angry Nanaka-san was also very cute~
"K-Kohei, good morning..."
Normally, when friends share a ride, the guys sit in one row and the girls in another. Only if there's no room would someone "passively" sit with a girl they "don't like that much."
But the seating in this car was different. The minivan had three rows, and there were people in all three. It was clearly a setup to "trap the prey," a stance of having the girls all figured out!
"Morn... morning!"
Having specifically dressed up, Imamura Kohei looked at Aina—who had also clearly put in a lot of effort—and his heart began to race uncontrollably.
It just so happened that Yoshiwara Aina had a personality where she pressed forward when the enemy retreated and retreated when the enemy pressed. Seeing Kohei like this, she couldn't help but wear a mischievous, not-so-refined grin. "Eh? Did Kohei actually use hair gel? I'm looking forward to this~"
"Ha, aren't you the same? I told you that you didn't need to bring those things!"
Sweat poured from his forehead. Kohei, holding onto the core belief that he could never let a girl look down on him, scanned her up and down and aimed his spear at Aina's fake chest! Talk about dressing up seriously; Aina clearly put in effort too, right!
"...I guess?"
Ambiguous. Protecting her chest, Aina instantly lost her composure. Without arguing, she obediently sat in the empty seat next to Kohei.
"..."
Watching the friendly interaction before him, Kitahara Iori's eyes turned into half-moons. His head felt like it weighed a thousand pounds, requiring him to prop it up with his hands on his legs just to keep it from falling.
He had to say, these guys were really disloyal. They were all supposed to be poor souls forcibly conscripted by the "Scumbag Group." Yuu had long ago used physical means to convince the scumbags, and now even Kohei was visibly betraying the revolution. At this rate, before the first year was over, he'd be the only one left alone!
"I came to a seaside university specifically to be popular... how could this be!"
He clutched his chest in frustration. The more he thought, the worse he felt. His gaze toward Kohei gradually filled with malice. I can't mess with Yuu, but can't I mess with you, kid?!
"Dammit, I'll let you be smug for two more minutes at most. Just you wait, Kohei!"
"What's wrong? You're gritting your teeth so hard. You're not jealous of Kohei and planning to cause trouble, are you?"
The moment she got in the car and saw Iori's face full of bitter resentment, Kotegawa Chisa wordlessly placed her bag between them and closed her eyes as a warning. "You can't, okay? Kohei would be so pitiful!"
"It's fine. This guy is built tough. A little wind and frost..."
Turning toward Chisa, Kitahara Iori was about to say that a little wind and frost were nothing, but in the next second, the second half of the sentence was swallowed back into his throat.
Her hip-hugging jeans outlined the perfect curves of her rear and long legs, and her short-sleeved top, which barely covered her shoulders, emphasized her perfect figure. Not only that, in addition to the brand-new clothes he had never seen, Chisa was even wearing light waterproof makeup today. She was sparkling to an intimidating degree!
Iori stared with wide eyes, taking it all in. He froze for several minutes, and only the slight jolt of the car starting woke his soul.
"Wh-What is it? Is this outfit really weird... I won't wear it again!"
"No, it's just... why is Chisa suddenly dressed so nicely today?"
The hair on his body stood up. Seeing Chisa's face turning red as she violently shook her head and spoke harshly, Iori hurriedly scrambled to cover for his earlier daze.
And this wasn't right! Chisa wasn't usually a girl who liked dressing up; except for that one time at the school festival, he'd never seen her research new clothes. Now, she was suddenly in new clothes and acting so bashful—there was definitely something going on here!
"It's nothing. I just suddenly felt like wearing it."
That was a lie! In fact, the moment Chisa decided to go to the water park, she had decided to buy a new outfit for the occasion. She even dragged her sister along, and amidst the familiar yet embarrassing "slurping" sounds, she had finally chosen this outfit after much hardship. As for the makeup, she had her sister do it this morning. Because the three of them shared one "makeup artist," she was a little late...
Who are you kidding! No! This is definitely a setup! It can't be exactly what I think it is, can it?!
His heart was screaming. Iori didn't even dare move his hands on his shorts. The three couples (?) in the van fell into a long silence. The two (?) pairs in the back were silent out of awkwardness, while Yuu and Nanaka in the front were pure spectators, trying to eavesdrop on the strange little sounds of the new couples behind them.
...
The water park wasn't far from the beach. After a thirty-minute drive, the car pulled steadily into the vast parking lot.
Since it was peak season, a long queue had formed at the water park entrance before it even opened. As the guide, Miyazawa Yuu naturally held Nanaka's hand and walked at the very front.
Amidst the noisy crowd, he tilted his head and glanced at the remaining four awkward individuals. The corners of his mouth curled into a mischievous arc. "Oh, right. Iori, Kohei, there's one thing I forgot to tell you!"
"Go ahead..."
"That's right, we'll forgive you no matter what it is!"
So awkward their toes were digging into the floor, Aina and Chisa were definitely beauties with an 80% turn-around rate. The word "couple" occasionally drifting from the surrounding people felt like Iori and Kohei were being roasted over a fire! Now, they didn't have the energy to care what trick Yuu was about to pull; figuring out how to handle the girls beside them was the unsolvable problem!
"Eh? So decisive? Fine. Actually, we came to Palau for work, so the holiday and the water park fees have to be self-funded, OK?"
"Er... isn't that a given? So?"
They weren't so despicable as to ask Auntie Sayaka for reimbursement, but Iori still keenly caught something wrong in Yuu's devilish smile.
At the same time, Iori and Kohei's gazes gradually turned to terror! Everyone knew that besides lacking morals, the PaB members also lacked money. If Yuu was plotting against their finances, neither of them could take it!
"Well~ don't worry. Actually, the water park I chose is the kind where the price is just a little bit higher, so..."
Pointing to the sign at the front of the queue, Miyazawa Yuu narrowed his eyes and smiled, as if he could see the text on it from miles away— [Admission: 14,500 Yen for the full course including meals. Couples' Shocking Discount: 60% OFF!]
"In short, that's how it is. I trust you guys won't be troubled by this? Then Nanaka and I will go queue first. Bye-bye~"
"..."
Although they were miles away, the visual range of a scumbag far exceeds that of a human!
"Um..."
Their teeth gritted with a loud crack. Kitahara Iori and Imamura Kohei simultaneously shed two lines of bloody tears, kneeling on the ground and screaming in agony—
"YOU BASTARD AHHHHH!!!"
"YOU ANIMAL!!!"