By Zephyria 
“So, don’t fret and worry so much. There’s still plenty of time left.”
“That’s why I’m doing this, because there’s plenty of time left.”
Something welled up inside me, and I deliberately slapped the surface of the water lightly in front of Kyle’s face. As soon as the water splashed, Kyle flinched and turned his head away.
“We might regret not spending a little more time together, you know. Traveling and searching for Ruins, we can do that later…”
If it would make Kyle even a little less sad, I could postpone traveling or anything else. Because it’s not what we do that matters, but being together.
“Even if we stick together every moment until we die, won’t we still be sad?”
But Kyle didn’t seem to think so. He turned his body completely to face me and said firmly.
“It’s going to be sad anyway.”
“I just…”
“Aska.”
“……”
Kyle’s low voice resonated, vibrating my eardrums. It was definitely a small voice, but it sounded unusually loud.
“Sakira is a mother now, too. Like Jia.”
“……”
“Abyss, who was always alone after losing his sibling, now has people to protect again.”
Kyle’s cloudy eyes lingered in the air as if recalling the past. In a short time, Kyle’s gaze changed dozens of times in the silence. His eyes, once turbid with mixed emotions, soon cleared and reached me.
“Now the three of them will continue to live well together. Because that’s the life they chose.”
“……”
“So, you and I should live well together too. We wanted a family, and now we have one.”
We’re a couple, so it’s natural to say we’re family, but strangely, my eyes welled up.
“Mahir told me that I’m all grown up now, so I should choose how to live my life myself, right? Remember?”
I was afraid my voice would tremble if I spoke, so I just nodded slightly.
“What did I say?”
Kyle, oblivious to my feelings, insisted on making me speak. His gaze was so intense that I couldn’t help but answer in a slightly choked voice.
“That you’d live for me…”
“You remember well. I made that promise, so do you think I’d postpone things I want to do with you and do something else?”
“……”
“So, stop worrying about useless things and look at the sky. There are so many stars, and the hot spring is warm. You sang about wanting to come so much, why are you just worrying…”
Kyle, who had been talking for a while, paused and then stopped. Then he sighed, touched his forehead as if blaming himself, and made excuses.
“No, it’s not that the worry you have is useless, but…”
“I know.”
I pulled Kyle back into my arms, which had quickly cooled down from being apart. Kyle straddled my thighs, facing me.
“You kept saying you wanted to come.”
Kyle leaned his chin on my shoulder and mumbled. I moved my lips and answered briefly.
“Yeah.”
“But you don’t seem to like it much and you keep worrying, so that’s why. Saying it was useless was a slip of the tongue.”
“I know. And even if that was your true feeling, it’s okay. You’re just a bit like that with your words anyway.”
Kyle slyly raised his head and looked down at me with a sullen expression.
“I know my way of speaking is a bit annoying, but it feels strange to hear you say that.”
“What’s strange?”
“I always try my best to be nice to you, you know.”
His expression was somehow sulky, and I burst out laughing. I hugged Kyle tightly, took a moment to catch my breath, and then raised my head. As Kyle had said, the black night sky was densely studded with stars.
“There are so many stars, right?”
Kyle said with a proud expression, as if he had put all the stars in that sky himself. In fact, watching his face was better than looking at the stars in the night sky.
But his eyes were so expectant that I couldn’t help but look up again.
“Come to think of it, we’ve never really looked at the sky leisurely together, have we?”
As I muttered to myself, Kyle said.
“We did once. When we went to Pukara village, on the tree.”
The scene flashed through my mind. A scene I could never forget. I opened my mouth with a slightly excited tone.
“When you were scared because it was high up on the tree.”
I thought he would deny it, but Kyle chuckled and nodded.
“Yeah, I was actually really scared then. Not because it was high, but because I suddenly saw hallucinations.”
I was startled by the unexpected words.
“Was it because I hadn’t recovered my memories yet? But I’ve had hallucinations and heard voices since I was a kid.”
He was saying something huge as if it were nothing. I felt like trash for simply being happy that it was a different side of him.
“I’m sorry…”
As I mumbled softly, Kyle tilted his head.
“What for?”
“When you said you were scared then, I didn’t know any of that and I was just happy.”
While I was talking, Kyle just stared at me blankly with a blank face. Then he said out of the blue.
“Take out your wings. Like back then.”
I couldn’t help but be puzzled by the words that were so out of context.
“Like when we were in the underground Ruins.”
Kyle added, looking at my bewildered face. If it’s the underground Ruins, is he talking about when I was completely out of my mind, really? It’s not just telling me to take out my wings, but I couldn’t figure out why he was saying ‘like back then.’
“You were cute when you did whatever you wanted back then. It was a bit overwhelming, though.”
“……”
What on earth is he talking about… I asked, dumbfounded.
“I’m saying I’m sorry, why suddenly wings? And it wasn’t just because of the wings.”
Is he getting a fever because he’s too cold? Is that why he’s losing his mind? I quickly touched Kyle’s forehead and neck to check his temperature. He wasn’t particularly hot.
“You told me not to meet anyone back then, and to live together in a cave with just the two of us. You said you’d pick fruit for me and let me swim, right?”
“……”
I had almost nothing but instincts left at that time, so it couldn’t be helped. I was lucky that it stopped there because I rummaged through Kyle’s stomach and drank his blood, otherwise, I don’t know what would have happened.
Suddenly, a chill ran down my spine, and Kyle narrowed his eyes.
“Do it like back then. Don’t hold back on what you want to do because you’re worried about me.”
Only then did I realize why Kyle was saying this. Still, I couldn’t understand it. Why is he like this? Or is it a problem with his way of speaking?
“Don’t even consider my situation, just use your strength and force me.”
“No.”
“Why? Just do it? Isn’t that what you really wanted? To tie me up so I can’t move and lock me up in a place where no one can come, and only look at you.”
It was true that I wanted to do that for a moment. But it wasn’t that I was holding back for Kyle’s sake, it was that I really didn’t want to do that anymore.
I wanted to go anywhere with him, rather than being alone with him in a strange place with nothing.
I stared at Kyle and said.
“You were really scared back then.”
“It wasn’t that I was scared of you, but it was a creepy situation because it was the first time I’d experienced it. Because I didn’t know what you were going to do to me.”
“That’s the same thing. Anyway, no. That’s not really my thing.”
At my firm words, Kyle clicked his tongue as if he was disappointed and muttered.
“You can be more greedy without holding back.”
I had never just held back, and I had never not been greedy. In the first place, I even heard you say you’d live for me, and I received your entire remaining life, if this isn’t greed, then what is?
“Then what’s your thing?”
Then Kyle snuggled into my arms and asked. The small voice whispering in my ear was excessively lewd.
“Do you like it when I stick close like this and whisper ‘I love you’ in your ear? Gently stroking you and slowly licking and sucking you until you melt?”
“……”
It felt like he was licking my eardrum, and my hair stood on end. I shuddered involuntarily, and Kyle slowly licked my ear.
“You don’t even put it in all the way because you’re afraid I’ll hurt.”
I held back and held back, but eventually couldn’t stand it and tried to turn my head, but Kyle grabbed the back of my head. It wasn’t a force strong enough that I couldn’t shake it off, but I couldn’t move at all.
“Do you hate me hurting that much?”
“Just a moment…”
“But I’d rather be in pain. It’s more agonizing to pant until all my muscles are relaxed to the point where I can’t even walk.”