After returning from the food court with an assortment of takoyaki and yakisoba, the first things that caught my eye were Airi’s massive breasts and Yuria’s luscious, thick thighs.
"Yay! Airi’s starting with the yakisoba!"
"Hey, wait, Airi! I wanted the yakisoba too!"
"Hehe, come now, don't fight, you two. Which one would you like, Tanaka-san?"
"Ah, in that case, I’ll have the takoyaki."
While the four of them enjoyed their lunch in a harmonious atmosphere, I was struggling to decide where to look. Ever since I’d made that promise for a private swimsuit photoshoot with Rui, I couldn’t cast a single perverted glance at anyone for the rest of the day.
Normally, if I had a spare moment, I could just spend the entire time admiring Airi’s chest or Yuria’s thighs, but both were strictly forbidden today. It was an unavoidable sacrifice if I wanted to have a photoshoot alone with Rui.
I’d be able to photograph Rui’s... navel... from any angle I wanted. Just thinking about it was getting me revved up.
"Ryouta, what is it? You’re acting strange."
"Eh?"
As I was staring at Rui with eyes that were practically licking her navel, Yuria peered into my face with a worried expression.
"You’ve been spacing out for a while, and you keep looking at Rui."
"Hehe... Ryouta-kun, could it be you’ve been captivated by my swimsuit? This is one of my favorites, so if you like it, it makes me happy."
Rui spoke proudly, wearing a smile even more radiant than usual. Immediately, the gazes of Airi and Yuria, who were in the middle of munching their food, flew toward me all at once.
"Listen, Ryouta, I tell you this all the time, but if you cast any weird looks at Rui, I’ll get mad."
"I—I'm not! I wasn't looking! A mosquito just happened to be flying near Rui’s navel, so I was just following it with my eyes."
"Hmph. Really...?"
Yuria looked at me with cold, suspicious eyes.
Shut up! If you won't believe me, I’ll stand up right here and give a ten-minute lecture on my impressions of your bare breasts!
While I was on the verge of shouting that, I suppressed the urge and said, "It’s the truth~," in a flat, uninspired drone, sounding like a bored office lady's automated response.
"Moo, Ryoo-wa! I'b told you be-bore, but I won'b for-gibe you if you do any-thing weird to Rui-chan!"
"Airi, swallow before you speak! I can't understand a thing!"
Gulp. "I mean, like Airi’s been saying for a while, I won't forgive you if you do anything weird to Rui-chan!"
Between Yuria and Airi, they both had such strong feelings about protecting Rui. I didn't know if that was why, but they were perfectly fine with me staring at their own chests and thighs—which meant I really owed Rui a huge debt of gratitude.
"Hehe, I don't really mind... if Ryouta-kun absolutely must look at my body, I wouldn't care, you know?"
"Eh, r-really then—"
"No!" the two of them shouted in unison.
Before I could answer, Airi and Yuria reflexively voiced their objections.
"Rui-chan! Even between friends, things like 'looking' or 'not looking' are bad!"
"That's right, Rui. The person we're talking about is the ultra-pervert Ryouta, okay? Stop making such careless remarks."
These girls... despite giving me perverted permission to look at their own bodies, they talked as if I were entirely the bad guy. Well, there was no doubt my perverted heart was to blame, though.
If it had come to this, it couldn't be helped. Since things had turned out this way, I’d just look at the person who wouldn't complain even if I stared at them, and somehow try to endure this abstinence.
With that in mind, I looked straight at Tanaka.
"Heh? Ry—Ryouta-kun...?"
"............"
"U-Um, if you watch me eating that much, I feel... embarrassed. Unlike everyone else, my bites are small."
"What's there to be embarrassed about?"
"Uuu... because, Ryouta-kun, you seem like you'd prefer watching a girl who eats a lot."
"I'm not some kind of calorie-counting supplement, you know. Just let me watch whatever I want."
"W-Watch, you say... well, I suppose it's fine."
As I watched Tanaka do her best to stuff a whole takoyaki into her mouth, I felt a sense of healing wash over me. I’d been suffering from a sort of visual heartburn lately, the result of a high-calorie diet of high-school-tier massive breasts and thick thighs. Watching Tanaka scarf down her food was like taking a slow-acting dose of stomach medicine. From here on out, I’d call her Sage Time Tanaka.
"Ryouta-kun? You're looking too much."
Suddenly, Rui cautioned me.
Apparently, in Rui’s book, even Tanaka just eating a meal fell under the sensitive category. Fine, then. Sensitive Tanaka it was.
"Ryouta, Ryouta! Here, say 'ahh'!"
As I was spacing out, Airi, sitting in the seat right in front of me, suddenly thrust a takoyaki toward my mouth. Airi always wanted to do this kind of thing.
"Wait, Airi, if you do this in front of everyone..."
The moment I said that, the sharp, piercing gazes of Yuria and Rui flew my way.
"Huh? 'In front of everyone'?"
"What do you mean by 'if you do this,' Ryouta-kun?"
Oh, crap! Without thinking, I’d made it sound like I had some sort of sordid relationship with Airi!
"Ehehe, Ryouta usually eats it, but he's being such a shy person today."
Heyyyyyy!!!! Airiiii!!!!