Chapter 5: You Can’t Refuse a Female Friend’s Request

“Minato you’ve been weirdly fixated on your hands lately, huh?”

“…You’ve got sharp eyes.”

After school in the classroom—

Minato was chatting with his friends.

They were neither particularly standout nor invisible guys—just an easygoing bunch.

“What’s up? Did you shake hands with your favorite idol or something?”

“Nah, it’s nothing.”

Minato waved it off with a laugh.

Of course, it wasn’t nothing.

Though accidental, he’d touched Serina’s chest—

And thoroughly groped Hazuki’s. That was three days ago.

Even now, he felt the lingering softness and weight of Hazuki’s chest on his hands.

He never imagined he’d not only see a girl’s bare chest for the first time but also get to knead it with these hands—

Directly touching smooth, tender skin, molding it by cupping, circling with both hands to savor the softness and weight.

Minato never dreamed he’d touch such an incredible chest.

If someone asked him to choose between shaking hands with a cute, popular idol or Hazuki’s chest…

No question, Minato would pick Hazuki’s chest.

“Oh, Minato good, you’re still here.”

“Huh?”

Someone grabbed the hand Minato had been unconsciously staring at.

He looked to the side and saw Hazuki standing there.

Her soft, milk-tea-colored hair, a pink cardigan accentuating her prominent chest, and a miniskirt exposing her thighs.

Hazuki was as cute and super sexy as ever today.

“H-Hazuki? What’s up?”

“You free today—well, you look free no matter how I slice it.”

“K-Kinda, yeah. I don’t have plans…”

Seeing the owner of the chest he was just thinking about appear shook Minato up.

“Why’re you so startled? Oh, guys, can I borrow this boy?”

Hazuki flashed a radiant smile, cheerfully addressing Minato’s friends.

“Go right ahead! Take him as long as you want!”

“Thanks.”

Hazuki thanked them with a grin, making Minato’s friends nod eagerly, faces flushed.

Being spoken to by the school’s top beauty clearly thrilled them.

Minato totally got where his friends were coming from.

Just talking to a girl this stunning could easily become the highlight of high school memories.

Originally, Minato was in the same boat as his friends—far from interacting with girls, especially popular ones.

His friends probably couldn’t imagine that someone like Minato could see the panties of social queen Hazuki or even touch her chest.

Though Minato felt a flicker of superiority, he had no intention of bragging to them.

Because—what he and Hazuki did in secret was a friend’s privilege.

By keeping it secret, Hazuki trusted Minato letting him do whatever he wanted.

“So where we going?”

After heading down the hallway and descending the stairs, Minato asked.

“Huh? I dunno.”

“If you don’t know, who does?!”

“Oh, didn’t I mention? Today’s star is Ruka.”

“Huh, Serina-san?”

Minato and Serina were once just acquaintances who nodded at each other.

Her greeting a guy she wasn’t close with was merely out of politeness.

But over the past three days, she’d not only greeted him but also chatted a bit.

Both, however, deliberately avoided mentioning bloomers or the chest-touching incident.

“Serina-san’s the one who asked? Then why’s it you here, Hazuki?”

“‘Cause she felt bad interrupting you and your guy friends last time and didn’t want to do it too often.”

“That’s considerate…”

Since Minato and his friends weren’t discussing anything private, it made him feel awkward.

“Ruka said there’s a place she wants to go, but it’s inconvenient with just girls.”

“What place? A gyudon shop?”

“If it was a gyudon shop, I’d take her myself.”

“True.”

Be it a gyudon shop or a ramen joint, this female friend seemed bold enough to go alone.

Though she often dragged Minato along too.

After leaving the school gates and walking a bit, they spotted Serina waiting on the sidewalk.

“Oh, Minato-kun, sorry for calling you out. Aoi-san, thank you.”

“No prob, Ruka. Waiting out here’s kinda conspicuous, huh?”

“Oh, is something off about me? I feel like people keep staring…”

A striking beauty standing alone on the roadside would naturally draw eyes, especially from guys.

Minato thought as much but kept it to himself.

Her oblivious, defenseless charm was perfect—best not to fix it.

The trio set off, taking a ten-minute train ride—

“Huh? This place?”

“Y-Yes. It’s a bit tough to come here alone…”

“Hm, maybe… But this is surprising.”

Three minutes from the station, Minato and the others arrived at a computer parts store.

Though they sold prebuilt PCs and tablets, the main focus was components.

For those uninterested in CPUs, motherboards, RAM, hard drives, or graphics cards, this store would be a total mystery.

“Now that you mention it, you brought up PC stuff before. You were serious?”

“Y-Yes. Prebuilt PCs don’t let you pick the exact specs I want, so I thought I’d look at actual parts to choose.”

“But I’m not super knowledgeable about this stuff. Is that okay?”

Minato used a gaming laptop from a major brand.

He’d love to try building a PC from scratch, but a gaming desktop takes up space.

His small room couldn’t fit one, so he stuck with a laptop.

“No problem. I’ve noted down what I need.”

“Alright, let’s head in… Hazuki, don’t just stand there.”

“Oh, ohh… This is way beyond my imagination. Even I’m shocked. So there’s a store like this?”

For someone uninterested, they’d probably pass by without registering it.

“Go on, Minato. If you don’t go first, Ruka won’t either. GOGO~”

“Fine, fine. Wanna hold hands?”

“Oh, sure. Thanks.”

Serina took Minato’s hand as if it were the most natural thing.

He’d only been joking, but she didn’t seem to mind being led in.

Minato couldn’t exactly pull away, so he walked into the store holding her hand.

Didn’t this make them look like the least likely “couple” to be in a computer parts store?

Minato broke out in a cold sweat.

The girl beside him was a breathtaking beauty, and there was another one just as stunning nearby.

This group looked utterly bizarre.

No—Minato reconsidered.

Three friends hanging out—nothing unusual.

Just a higher ratio of girls, no big deal. Probably.

“Wow, they sell so many parts! It’s a treasure trove!”

“…Serina-san’s vibe is way different from school.”

“This is the first time I’ve seen Ruka so lively.”

A pure, black-haired beauty with sparkling eyes stood before shelves of computer parts.

Minato and Hazuki whispered behind her.

“Um… Minato-kun, you game on a PC too, right? For FPS games, how would you pick parts?”

“Uh, well… For gaming, start with the graphics card. Oh, this store’s stocked up, though prices are steep.”

“But they’re close to MSRP. From budget to high-end, it’s lucky to have options.”

“Cheap ones are still tens of thousands, and high-end ones hit 200,000… These aren’t impulse buys. The 30-series is probably the best, but man, they’re huge—takes up three slots, right?”

Minato’s laptop made swapping parts tough, so he rarely visited component stores.

But he’d always dreamed of a desktop and done some research, so he had decent knowledge.

A graphics card, or GPU, outputs images to the screen.

It’s critical for gaming, where performance can decide victory.

“They’re huge. The 40-series feels like a weapon.”

“You’d need a full-tower case to fit it.”

“But the size has a certain charm, a kind of romance. AIO water cooling’s nice too. CPU water cooling’s common, but I think GPUs could use AIOs too.”

“But some say it just takes up space without much benefit over air cooling.”

“True water cooling looks romantic, though. Like an open case with tubes and pretty pink coolant—it’d get you hyped.”

“Romantic looks versus practicality, tough choice. But esports PC aesthetics matter too, like RGB fans—Whoa, Hazuki, your face.”

Hazuki’s eyes were spinning like a manga character’s, her cute face ruined by a dazed expression.

“Oh, uh. It’s just… you and Ruka sound like you’re speaking alien.”

“We’re speaking Japanese. But, yeah…”

“These must be boring for Aoi-san, huh…?”

Minato and Serina exchanged glances, looking a bit dejected.

They’d gotten so caught up in their world, they’d ignored their friend.

“Oh, don’t worry! I’m just marveling at Ruka’s weird—er, new side.”

“Oh… I didn’t expect such praise.”

Serina didn’t catch that Hazuki wasn’t praising her and had accidentally dissed her.

Still, Hazuki clearly wasn’t having fun here.

While Minato wanted to see more of Serina’s surprising side, he didn’t want Hazuki to feel left out.

Better to leave while Serina was still happy.

“Wah… My wish came true. I’m so satisfied♡”

Serina hugged the store’s paper bag, beaming brightly.

She’d bought a graphics card.

It cost as much as a budget laptop, but she didn’t seem fazed.

Her big house must mean her family’s well-off.

“Man, Minato PCs are expensive. One part costs that much? You could buy ten of that pricey skirt I’ve been eyeing.”

“There are cheaper versions, but performance suffers. If you can afford it, high-end’s more cost-effective.”

“Oh…”

Hazuki seemed uninterested, just shocked by the price.

After shopping—

The trio ended up at Hazuki’s place.

They’d considered a family restaurant, café, or karaoke, but Hazuki suggested chilling at home.

The unfamiliar store had clearly worn her out.

Minato and Serina had no objections.

They settled into Hazuki’s room.

“Whoops, forgot the tea. Hehehe, my bad~”

“Like I said, Hazuki, what’s with that tone?”

“Aoi, Aoi-san, I’ll make the tea today. I just bought some.”

“I was wondering what else you got. I’ve never brewed tea from leaves.”

“I’d like to use boiled water instead of a hot water dispenser, if possible.”

“We’ve got a kettle somewhere… I’ll look for it.”

“I’ll help.”

Both girls left the room.

The cat, Momo, was buried in plushies as usual, indifferent to humans.

Maybe I’ll pet it—Minato thought, but…

“Hey, sneaking up like that’ll make Momo hate you more.”

“…Tch.”

Hazuki came back to warn him.

“Man~ This might be the first time the Aoi house has brewed tea from leaves.”

“That’s dramatic. Where’s Serina-san?”

“Boiling water. I’ve only had tea bags or bottled tea. I’m excited~”

Hazuki plopped down next to Minato.

“Ruka’s so serious about everything~”

“She was super focused picking parts today. If we weren’t there, she might’ve stayed until closing.”

“Hahaha, totally. But I so didn’t get that store~ Is Ruka one of those hackers who types super fast?”

“Your imagination’s wild. But she’s picky about graphics cards.”

“That’s what they’re called? What’s the point of expensive ones?”

“Smoother gaming. Plus, editing photos or videos gets easier.”

“Smoother? I don’t get it. But video editing sounds cool. I’ve got tons of videos—some are too long or have extra bits I wanna cut. Oh, can you do it, Minato?”

“Your video collection’s probably insane…”

Though Minato could do basic editing, he had no idea how many videos a social butterfly like Hazuki had on her phone.

“But it’s hard to picture Serina-san posting videos on social media or streaming sites.”

“Really? She’s a high school girl; it’s not weird for her to use social media. She’s so smart, I bet she could go viral.”

“No matter how smart, going viral’s tough these days—Oh, speaking of…”

“What?”

“Isn’t Serina-san really smart?”

“Her grades are top-tier.”

“Right.”

Being classmates, they could gauge each other’s smarts to an extent.

Minato had seen Ruka answer questions in class without hesitation, always correct.

Serina Ruka was undeniably a far brighter student than Minato who was at best above average.

“Before summer break, for that makeup exam, wouldn’t asking Serina-san to tutor you have been better?”

At that, Hazuki gave a wry smile.

“Ruka’s terrible at teaching. Even if the answer’s wrong, she’d be like, ‘You’re on the right track’ or ‘Your handwriting’s nice, so I’ll give you a point.’”

“…I can see that.”

It was hard to imagine Serina sternly correcting Hazuki.

“Come to think of it~ If I hadn’t asked you to tutor me back then…”

“Hm?”

Hazuki squinted, staring hard at Minato.

“Nothing!”

“Why’re you mad?”

“I said it’s nothing. But Ruka’s too smart. Someone like you is better for teaching me.”

“Oh~ Sorry my grades are just decent.”

Hazuki might be right, actually.

She struggled with studies, so asking someone too far above her level might feel embarrassing.

“What’s wrong, Minato? Sulking? Geez, just kidding. Oh, since Ruka’s boiling water from scratch, she’ll take a bit…”

“…Huh? W-Wait, you mean right here, now…?”

Probably hot from walking all day, Hazuki shed her pink cardigan.

She undid a few buttons on her white shirt, revealing a hint of cleavage.

“What’s with ‘at a time like this?’ You’ve been staring at my chest, looking all desperate.”

“I-I’m not looking desperate… Okay, I am.”

“There you go. Honesty’s good.”

Hazuki leaned in close.

She climbed onto his lap as he sat cross-legged.

“By the way, if you beg me nicely… I might not say no~”

“B-But now… Serina-san might come back for some reason.”

“You say that, but your hand’s already in my shirt.”

True enough, Minato’s hand had slipped into Hazuki’s open shirt.

Not only that, he was kneading her chest through her bra.

Though not as intense as touching directly, the softness and weight still came through.

“…Just for a bit, please let me knead.”

“Ugh, geez♡ Didn’t you just say ‘Serina-san might come back’?”

“That’s… what makes it exciting…?”

“Well said. Are we… kinda pervy?”

Hazuki seemed thrilled by the risk of Serina being nearby, possibly returning any moment.

Though she wasn’t into being watched, the thrill heightened her desire.

“B-But… really just a little, okay? Eek! Hey, don’t get so intense…”

“Maybe shopping with two girls got me hyped.”

“D-Does that even make you excited? Total perv. Eek, stop… You’ll ruin my bra… Mm… Is this okay?”

“Ughh…”

Hazuki opened her shirt wider and unhooked her bra with a snap.

“Hey, you’re being way generous today. Taking off your bra yourself?”

“Shut up. Didn’t you knead super hard last time?”

“D-Did I? I thought I was gentle… polite.”

“You were kneading like you wanted to rip my chest off. Don’t rewrite history.”

“…”

Minato wasn’t playing dumb, but Hazuki was probably right.

He might’ve thought he was polite, but his actions were frantic.

“If you go wild like last time and wreck my bra, that’s a problem… Mm, bras are expensive.”

Glaring at Minato, Hazuki set her bra on the bed.

Her chest bounced free with the motion—pink nipples fully exposed.

“You can knead, but… n-no looking. Y-You can knead without looking, right?”

“Yeah…”

“But man, you’re kneading hard… Eek.”

Direct kneading was definitely better; the sensation was incredible.

Minato savored the supreme softness, his hands moving more intensely—

“I-Idiot, I said you’re too rough. Geez, Ruka’s right nearby…”

“Just a bit more, just let me knead a bit more.”

“T-That’s obvious… Mm…! Geez, you love my chest too much…!”

Blushing, Hazuki pressed closer to Minato.

“Feels like you’re more excited than me, Hazuki.”

“I-I’m only letting you knead ‘cause you begged… You already did it once, but you’re way too into it…♡”

“There aren’t exactly other chests for me to knead.”

“Oh, oh… So you’ve got your eye on Ruka’s chest too? Didn’t you touch it before?”

“That was an accident. Even if I begged, she wouldn’t let me, right?”

“Hard to say… Ruka’s too kind. If you begged hard, Minato you might have a shot… Ah♡”

“Y-Your voice is too loud. If Serina-san hears—”

“S-Sorry… I already heard…”

““……!””

Minato and Hazuki jolted apart like they’d been shocked.

Serina, sleeves of her white shirt rolled up, sat by the door of Hazuki’s room.

She’d apparently taken off her outer shirt to make tea.

Though blushing furiously—she hadn’t left the doorway.

“U-Um… D-Do you… want to knead my chest too?”

“N-No way. That’s…”

“But… like you felt when you touched it, compared to Aoi-san… m-mine’s less impressive…”

“Hey, hey, Serina-san, what’re you doing?!”

For some reason, Serina started unbuttoning her white shirt.

Her smooth, fair skin and pure white bra came into view.

“…It’s not that small.”

Hazuki muttered.

She was right. Serina had a visible cleavage—not small by any means.

“N-No, showing you such a small chest is kinda embarrassing…”

“You’re embarrassed because of the size?”

Minato couldn’t help but retort.

Rather than being seen in her bra by a guy like Minato she was more embarrassed that her chest was smaller than Hazuki’s.

“Being with you and Aoi-san is so fun, I’d feel left out if I was excluded… S-So… if… um… you ask me… i-it’s okay, you know?”

““……””

Not just Minato even Hazuki gaped in shock.

Serina Ruka, it seemed, was just as wildly eccentric as the rest.

In the awkward silence, Minato, Hazuki, and Serina froze, none knowing what to do next.