Chapter 53: Desiring my smiling childhood friend

Desiring my smiling childhood friend

We were at the top of the water slide.

Looking out over the wide indoor pool from such a height, there’s a decent number of people on the artificial beach, but there are hardly any figures in the flowing pools.

“Seems like it’s not crowded today after all.”

“Yeah, you’re right…”

Aya’s absentmindedly responding to my words, fixated on people sliding down the water slide. Despite her body tensed up with nervousness, her face is excited and her lips have relaxed.

Now that I think about it, this should be Aya’s first time riding a water slide.

“There seems to be double inflatable rings as well. Should we go on that?”

“Sure, sounds good.”

I can tell the tension is leaving Aya’s body.

There aren’t many people in line for the water slide and soon it’s our turn.

“Be careful not to fall, Boyan.”

“You too, Aya.”

Aya sits down between my legs on the elliptical boat-shaped inflatable ring. As I look closely, the contrast between her white back and her aqua blue swimsuit is quite tantalizing. I find myself wanting to trace the line of her elegant spine, but I resist the urge.

“Okay, make sure to hold on tight, we’re starting!”

As the staff member shouts, Aya firmly grips both sides of the boat. It’s amusing how she looks like she’s hugging a big package on both sides.

“On your mark!”

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With that command, the boat we’re on starts descending through the water flow.

“Ah, ah…!”

We drop down at a steeper angle than expected, hurtling through the slide at breakneck speed. Aya lets go of the boat early on and raises both her hands in a triumphant pose, leaning towards me.

“Hyaaahh!”

I can’t quite tell if Aya is frightened or enjoying herself as she lets out a voice that’s a mix of both. Her goofy screams make me laugh.

Successive sharp curves appear, swaying our bodies left and right.

“Whoa, whoaa!”

Aya lets out an entertaining sound each time. Her face, beaming with a full smile, gets splashed with a lot of water.

“Splaaash!”

Even though a lot of water likely entered her open mouth, she still seems to be having fun. Thanks for reading on ManaNovel!

Spinning around and around inside the spiral tunnel, we approach the final steep incline.

“Whoa, here it comes!”

Aya raises her hands in triumph once more and the boat plummets straight down. Our bodies lift up and a shiver runs through us.

“Waaaah!”

Her high-pitched joyful scream is adorable.

Before I know it, we’ve slid down the water slide.

With a splash, we land in the shallow pool, both of us thrown from the boat.

“Ahbaa!”

Aya surfaces from the water in front of my chest.

She quickly wipes the water from her face with both hands and her smile returns.

“Hey, let’s do it again!”

“Sure thing.”

I welcome this attraction where I can enjoy Aya’s cheerful voice that I’ve never heard before.

Hugging the boat on my right side, I’m pulled by Aya’s left hand. Without even fixing the bangs clinging to her forehead, she runs up the stairs.

Watching her back, I’m reminded of when we used to explore the nearby grove during our elementary school days. She used to pull me along, exploring the undergrowth, with me following closely behind her small figure.

Yeah, I think Aya’s energetic side is cute. I haven’t seen her acting so carefree lately, so I’m genuinely happy.

Suddenly, Aya stops on the staircase and turns around to face me. The difference in height disappears due to the steps and her ample bust is right in front of my eyes.

“What’s wrong?”

Avoiding her breasts that seem cramped under the swimsuit, I look up. I meet Aya’s enchanting smile and my breath catches.

“Boyan, your hair is all wet. Let me fix it for you.”

I can’t resist her extending hand. She pushes my bangs up. Her delicate fingers tracing my scalp feel pleasant.

“Hehe, looks good. You’re cool, Ryuji.”

Her unexpected use of my name catches me off guard and my heart skips a beat. My face, my whole body, turns red.

Maybe because her excitement is running high, Aya is using unconventional tactics, which is quite troublesome.

“…I’ll fix your bangs for you too, Aya.”

“Yeah, sure…”

Concealing my flustered heart, I extend my hand towards her forehead as a way of repaying the favor.

Gathering her wet bangs and slowly lifting them, I gently brush them back.

…

I’m left speechless by the sight of the beauty that appears before me.

That’s right. Aya, with her forehead exposed, her original well-arranged features standing out, her grown-up allure accentuated by slicking her hair back, transforms into a stunningly seductive face.

Intent on revenge but met with a counterattack, I found myself captivated by her.

“Come on, let’s go.”

Once again, my left arm was pulled. Aya’s cheeks were slightly red as she faced forward.

Upon reaching the top, Aya exclaimed, “Hiroto and Haru-kun are here too.”

Looking where she was pointing, I saw Haru-kun and Hiroto-kun waiting in line. Haru-kun, who was smiling kindly, had taken off his glasses and had his hair slicked back even though he wasn’t wet. His well-defined features made him look almost like a model.

Haru-kun was probably the most handsome guy at the pool right now.

While I was strangely impressed by how his attractiveness was enhanced when his forehead was revealed and he innocently smiled.

“It was so much fun! I’ll push your boats, you two.”

“Oh, no need for us, we’re not using the boats.”

“Onee-chan, you’re getting carried away…”

“Whoaa!” I watched as the boats fell with a deep voice and then we slid down the water flow as well.

Aya seemed completely absorbed in the water slide, sliding down and going up three more times in a row.

When we landed for the sixth time, Aya squatted in the shallow pool and didn’t move.

“Are you okay? Are you tired?”

“Oh, Boyan…”

She looked up at me awkwardly, covering her chest with her hands.

“Um, my swimsuit shifted a bit.”

It seemed that the impact of landing had caused her swimsuit to come loose.

Suppressing the urge to see what was underwater, I looked away into the distance.

“Stand here.”

I said, shielding Aya from the eyes of the people around as she adjusted her swimsuit.

“Thanks… It seems the size doesn’t quite fit.”

The scene I saw up close on the staircase a while ago came to mind. I guessed that the swimsuit might be too small.

“Should we take a break? I’m getting a bit hungry.”

“Yeah, sure. Oh, how about going to the hot dog stand?”

Aya, who must have tucked her chest into the swimsuit, stood up and pointed to a distant food stall.

When I stood up, my gaze intentionally avoided her breasts that jiggled, focusing on the hot dog stand.

- - -

Alone in the changing room, I pulled out my wallet.

“…Phew.”

I let out a big sigh to calm myself.

“This is tough.”

Perhaps because of the days we couldn’t meet, or maybe because of how I was left hanging yesterday in that storeroom, or perhaps because Aya’s bikini figure was too fresh and stimulating, I find myself looking at Aya in that way.

Of course, it’s only natural to lust after Aya, but I don’t want it to happen without restraint. A boyfriend who’s constantly indulging in lewd fantasies while enjoying a date is probably a bother to his girlfriend.

I slap both cheeks and head back to the pool.

As I walk through the passage, I feel the warm pool breeze. I leave the passage and look towards the hot dog stand where Aya should be waiting.

Aya was surrounded by two unfamiliar men.

My body suddenly heated up and my legs started moving on their own.

Amidst this, my mind was analyzing the men rationally.

The pair dyed their hair fluorescent yellow and red. They seemed quite flashy. The one with yellow hair was a muscular guy wearing sunglasses, while the one with red hair was a chubby guy holding a stick with a smartphone attached to it.

Probably some kind of streamers, I suppose. They were grinning creepily, engaging Aya in a conversation.

Seriously, it’s only been three minutes since I left.

Meanwhile, Aya was wearing an awkward smile as expected, seemingly troubled.

It’s a bad habit of hers to exude a friendly atmosphere, show a smile to everyone and avoid being disliked. It’s evident now, as she’s surrounded by strangers.

“We have 200,000 subscribers, have you seen us?”

“We’re doing a project about whether there are any beauties in the off-season pool.”

“Super cute, just one person?”

“The swimsuit looks amazing on you.”

“Where are you from?”

The men’s loud voices grew closer. It was almost as bad as aggressive pickup lines. Upon closer inspection, they were looking at Aya’s entire body as if licking her with their eyes.

My fist clenched involuntarily.

“Well, um, I’m here with someone…”

Aya pretended to massage her wrist and subtly covered her chest with her arms.

Scary…

These guys’ eyes are creepy.

…Boyan.

Aya’s voice reached me through the warm air.

Just a few steps away from her, a tall man stood behind Aya. It was Haru-kun.

“What do you guys want with her?”

Haru-kun smiled at the men.

“Oh, were we intruding?”

“Hey, are you her boyfriend?”

With a faint smile, Haru-kun briefly pursed his lips in response to the men’s question, then decisively spoke.

“Yeah, that’s right. She’s my girl—”

I interjected, sliding in between Aya and the men.

“Do you need something from my girlfriend?”

My voice was lower than I anticipated.

“Whoa, you’re her boyfriend?”

“Huh, you’re her boyfriend?”

I focused on the slightly slanted eyes behind the yellow sunglasses, trying to form a mild expression that didn’t quite come together. Probably, at this moment, I was glaring at the man with my eyebrows furrowed.

“Is this being recorded?”

Reaching out to point at the smartphone that was directed at Aya, I realized I had inadvertently grabbed it.

“N-No, we haven’t started recording yet.”

“We were just explaining the project…”

Somehow, the men’s expressions that had been overbearing moments ago seemed to stiffen.

—No problem.

God’s intuition whispered that the record button hadn’t been pressed.

I let out a sigh of relief.

“Excuse us, but we’re on a date, so could you please give us some space?”

I intended to nod slightly, but I ended up getting close to the red-haired man’s face.

The yellow-haired one seemed about to say something, but I had already finished my business, so I turned and held Aya’s hand.

“Shall we go?”

My intention was to smile at her, but my face remained tense.

As I pulled her hand, her surprised eyes met mine and her hand felt slightly sweaty in my grip.

“Boyan, about that…”

Aya, who had been following behind me, spoke with a worried tone.

“Hmm?”

“Are you… angry?”

Her voice trembled with a hint of fear.

I was taken aback. I instinctively turned around and placed my hand on her cheek.

“I’m not angry.”

“Liar.”

“It’s the truth.”

“Um… sorry.”

Aya apologized with a face that looked like it might burst into tears.

What exactly is she apologizing for? Aya did nothing wrong. Those streaming guys didn’t harm her either.

Even my intuition didn’t raise any warnings.

So, this anger is directed at me.

Towards me for leaving her alone.

It’s exasperation at myself for the jealousy and possessiveness that flared up over another guy looking at Aya with lustful eyes.

“No, Aya did nothing wrong. If anything, it’s my fault.”

“Huh?”

“Hey, want to rent a float here?”

“A float?”

It was a stall where you could rent floats. Among the various-sized and colored floats lined up, I picked up a yellow one that seemed big enough for two adults.

After paying the cashier, I placed it over Aya’s head.

“Wow…”

The float, placed diagonally, covered Aya’s chest, stomach and lower body, hiding almost her entire figure.

“With this, no one will see your body, Aya.”

“Huh, um, thanks?”

“No, it’s just that I don’t want anyone else to see.”

Whispering words of possessiveness into her ear.

I’ll never leave her side again.

Even if Aya resists, even if she finds it annoying, never.

Conveying such selfish thoughts without saying them aloud.

“Yeah, thanks…”

Yet Aya smiled with apparent delight.

My heart throbbed heavily.

If it weren’t for the float, I might have hugged her instinctively.

“After we eat hotdogs, how about some swimming practice?”

“Sure!”

Aya’s smile deepened. There were faint tears in the corners of her eyes.

Even without relying on intuition, it was clear.

Her overflowing happiness was transmitted through that smile.

I’m done for.

Even in the midst of a fun date, I can’t contain this desire anymore.

After devouring hotdogs at the stall and taking a short break, we headed to the nearly empty flowing pool for Aya’s swimming practice.