— — — — — —
Feeling the warmth of the girl in his arms, Oikawa smiled faintly. He didn't even bother appreciating the pleasant sensation. He adjusted his grip, lifting her slightly higher, and quickly headed toward the exit.
Utaha was completely flustered.
The eerie music echoed around them, mixed with occasional ghostly cries of "Give me your life!" She was terrified.
She watched horror movies all the time and never reacted like this.
But today felt different. The cold drafts brushing past her made her certain that if she opened her eyes, she'd end up crying from fright.
How could a place like this even exist?
Still…
Oikawa was here.
Feeling the heat from his body, Utaha gradually calmed down a little.
She could hear his breathing near her ear.
It sounded slightly hurried.
His warm breath brushed against her cheek again and again.
Utaha suddenly felt flustered, though she didn't know why.
Her heart started pounding wildly, and she could clearly feel Oikawa's heart beating hard as well.
In that moment, the sounds of the haunted house seemed to vanish. Her mind filled only with the sound of Oikawa's heartbeat.
Thump. Thump.
Once, twice, three times…
In her mind, she felt like a princess captured by a dragon, and Oikawa was the prince arriving with a sword to rescue her.
The overwhelming sense of safety made her reluctant to let go.
Utaha sniffed lightly.
A faint lavender scent drifted to her nose. Probably laundry detergent, yet even that smell felt strangely addictive.
It seemed to her that the man in front of her had quietly slipped into her heart without her noticing, taken root, and refused to leave.
...
The eerie atmosphere finally faded.
First she felt a wave of warm air, then heard a noisy crowd.
"W-are we… out?"
Utaha still didn't dare open her eyes. Everything she'd seen inside the haunted house lingered vividly in her mind.
"W-we're… out!"
Oikawa didn't care that Utaha was still clinging to him.
He simply collapsed onto the ground.
He was exhausted.
Utaha was much heavier than she looked. Well, she was a woman far more developed than others her age.
Still, Oikawa also felt like…
He really should start working out. This couldn't go on.
If this kept up, he wouldn't even be able to handle certain… special positions in the future. That would take away a lot of fun.
A long-term fitness plan quietly began forming in Oikawa's mind.
"Ah!"
As Oikawa fell, Utaha let out another scream. She thought they were still inside the haunted house.
But then she heard Oikawa's heavy breathing, felt his chest rising and falling rapidly beneath her.
Utaha froze. Her face instantly flushed red.
Biting her lip, she gathered her courage and carefully cracked her eyes open.
A lounge came into view.
Utaha relaxed and opened her eyes fully. Immediately, she noticed quite a few people nearby sneaking glances at her and Oikawa. Only then did she realize how compromising their position was.
Oikawa was lying on the floor.
And she was sitting on top of him.
The moment it registered, Utaha hurriedly tried to get off him. But her legs were still pinned under his waist, and she couldn't pull them free.
"Y-you… get up for a second!"
With no other choice, she leaned back down, close to his ear, and whispered softly.
That movement made her face burn even hotter, like a fully ripened peach.
Oikawa truly didn't have much strength left.
Still, after hearing her, he forced himself to roll slightly, giving her a chance to escape.
"Is that enough?"
"Just… a little more."
As the girl in his arms shifted and wriggled, Oikawa gradually recovered a bit of strength. But the closeness made him restless. Their bodies were pressed together, and he could clearly feel her now.
It was both torturous and blissful at the same time.
Oikawa felt he couldn't keep this up.
He struggled to push himself up, finally giving her enough space to slip free.
"I-I'm… out…"
Utaha's face looked like it could drip water from the heat. After getting up, she stood awkwardly in place, her body still tingling with a strange numbness.
Sweat slid down her forehead.
Her thighs still held a lingering warmth, reminding her of the way Oikawa had carried her out earlier.
It was true she had felt safe.
But this man in front of her… had definitely taken advantage of her quite a bit, even if it couldn't be helped.
Utaha bit her lip, her thoughts tangled in a mess.
She was starting to regret inviting Oikawa to the haunted house.
More than anything, she hadn't expected herself to be this fragile, getting scared senseless by something like that.
So embarrassing.
"Weren't you not scared? The one who's always watching horror movies?"
"Sigh~ just now you were clinging to me like an octopus. Well, being scared is fine but you almost strangled me to death."
While Utaha was lost in thought, Oikawa had already sat up.
His breathing was still uneven, but much better than before. At least now he had the energy to tease her.
"Y-you don't need to say that!"
Utaha stubbornly replied, "I was just off my game. The haunted house… wasn't scary at all!"
Oikawa rolled his eyes.
Honestly, the haunted house had been far scarier than he expected. Especially in the latter half, there were way more actors. Every one of them looked brutally dead, and one guy even had a length of intestines hanging out.
If time hadn't been tight, he would've liked to chat with that guy.
"Yeah, sure."
"I was the scared one. I was terrified the moment I walked in and cleared the whole thing with my eyes closed."
"I was—"
Oikawa couldn't continue.
Because Utaha's entire face suddenly pressed against his.
Just like he'd imagined back on the bus… Utaha really was sweet.
And very, very sweet.
People around them started cheering and whistling. Instead of feeling embarrassed, Oikawa felt encouraged.
He wrapped his arms tightly around Utaha, preventing her from escaping.
He didn't know how much time passed.
It felt long to him, though in reality it probably wasn't.
Utaha began struggling, finally breaking free from his embrace before fleeing toward the distance.
Just as Oikawa was about to chase after her, she suddenly stopped and turned around.
"I… I'll say this again. I wasn't scared at all!"
"That's it for today. I'm going home. Don't follow me!"
Seeing the tears threatening to spill from her eyes at any second, Oikawa stood up and looked at her quietly.
"When we meet again, you have to be happy, okay?"
"You have to be happy. You have to smile."
Utaha didn't really understand what he was talking about, but she was far too embarrassed to stay. She turned and ran off, disappearing in an instant.
Oikawa touched his lips and stood there in a daze for a long time.
.
.
.