"What's everyone thinking?"
Glancing around curiously at everyone's expressions, Nozomi asked with an amused voice.
Hearing the question, Eli quickly went back to her usual self, but the others looked a bit flustered.
"Anoo... can I ask what kind of massage it would be?" Nico raised her hand and asked softly.
"Why are you asking that?" Homura looked puzzled. "Surely, if you're trying to ease fatigue, you massage wherever feel tired. So, considering how much you girls work out... probably neck, shoulders, back, arms, legs, and feet—yeah, that should cover it."
"Uhh... you're right..."
Nico froze, realizing she had just asked a dumb question.
Did she think just massaging her shoulders would be enough to ease all her fatigue?
Regardless, what Homura said was pretty much the whole body, right?
Nico couldn't help but blush at the thought.
While every girl was still immersed in their own thoughts, Nozomi spoke up again.
"But we've never heard of you giving massages before, Homura-kun..."
"Because I've never shown it off. No one ever asked, so I didn't bring it up." Homura shrugged.
"Hmm~ In that case, wouldn't you have no chance to practice?" Nozomi asked with a meaningful smile.
Homura had a feeling that her gossip senses were tingling.
Maybe she was fishing for some juicy scoop?
Judging by her questions, that definitely seemed like the case.
"Y'all know I'm pretty good at fighting, right? Got any guesses why?" Homura asked.
"Maybe... martial arts training?" Kotori guessed.
"Exactly." Homura nodded. "Because of that, I know a lot about the human body and how to control my strength, and coincidentally, those two things are basically the prerequisites for giving a good massage."
"...Why do I suddenly feel so disappointed?" Nozomi looked deflated.
"Sorry to disappoint you with my boring life..." Homura said, feeling a bit speechless.
"Fufu..." Nozomi chuckled mischievously. "Homura-kun, have you ever given a massage to a girl before?"
At this, Homura's lips curled into a sly smile.
"What do you think?"
With that, Homura and the girls chatted and laughed, but nobody really decided whether or not they would take his offer to let him massage them. Maybe they couldn't make up their minds, or more likely, they were too embarrassed to ask outright, so they just left it hanging.
One by one, Homura dropped Honoka and the others off at their homes, and in the end, it was just him, Rin, and Haru left.
"Rin, are you feeling a bit out of place or something?"
Homura asked casually while looking up at the sky, but it didn't hinder his walking.
Rin stroked the cat in her arms, remaining silent for a moment before responding.
"Maybe... You know, when Homura-kun suddenly confessed, Rin was really, really happy, but... Rin has no idea what to do now..."
"Not even a little clue?" Homura asked with raised brows.
Rin shook her head.
"Mmh, that's not it... It's just... Homura-kun likes everyone too, right? But now, Rin's the only one here... It feels kinda sneaky, y'know..."
Upon hearing this, Homura's heart ached a little.
Clearly, that confession was his own selfishness, but Rin was the one worrying about everyone, including him. It went without saying that she didn't want to run off on her own, so she was holding back her feelings.
"Rin, do you regret it?"
"What are you talking about!" Rin raised her voice a bit, looking a little angry. "Rin really thought about this, y'know! Even though no one knows what'll happen in the future because of Homura-kun's selfish desire, nobody's thinking of leaving you, right?"
"Besides..." Rin blushed a bit. "Boys are just like that, right? Even in nature, the best males usually have lots of mates... It's just instinct, I guess..."
Upon hearing this bizarre reason, Homura's face darkened.
Sure, what Rin said made sense, but hearing it out loud was still somewhat weird.
"And… It's not like just any boy can be honest with girls. Everyone can see that Homura-kun genuinely cares, and maybe that's why they can accept this harem thingy..." Rin continued before turning to face Homura. "So... I don't regret it—not one bit, nyaa~!"
'What a wonderful girl...' Homura sighed before raising his hand and gently stroking Rin's cheek. "Rin, do you have any idea how irresistible you're right now?"
"Eh?"
Feeling the warmth of Homura's hand, Rin froze, lifted her head to meet his gaze, and found his eyes looking at her so gently—clearly a captivated gaze.
Realizing this, Rin felt her heart skip a beat and tremble intensely, almost wanting to cry.
It couldn't be helped.
She could hardly believe that she could make someone as amazing as this boy, someone who was liked by many girls, gaze at her like this.
Did she really attract someone like him?
Staring into Homura's gentle eyes, Rin finally broke free from the words, mocks, or insults that had once felt like a curse. From now on, they would never affect her again since his current gaze meant everything to her.
Now, Rin was just as captivated by Homura's eyes.
As they kept looking at each other, their lips gradually got closer and closer, until they finally met.
Meanwhile, Haru, sandwiched between the two, looked utterly confused.
She looked up at the two, who pressed their lips against each other, puzzled by their actions.
'What are they doing? Is it like how cats groom each other?'
'But something seems off...'
It was the first time Haru had ever seen this, so she couldn't quite understand it.
Haru wanted to lick her paw, but there wasn't much room, so she moved a bit more than she meant to, which made Homura and Rin notice her movement.
*Whoosh!*
Homura and Rin instantly separated.
Rin awkwardly stroked Haru's back, looking a little flustered, then a bit dazed.
Homura, on the other hand, looked relieved.
Even though their kiss hadn't been long, it was enough for him to savor the memory for a while.
It couldn't be helped since this moment was something special for him.
Yes, after two lifetimes, he had finally given away his first kiss!
Now that he thought about it, his past life had been pretty pitiful.
"Let's go."
After a moment of silence, Homura reached his hand out to Rin.
Rin looked at his hand, and just as she was about to take it, she realized Haru was still in her arms. If she held Haru with just one hand, it would definitely feel uncomfortable.
In the end, Rin began to hesitate.
Seeing Rin look back and forth between his hand and Haru, Homura understood immediately and shook his head with a chuckle.
"We have plenty of time in the future, so no rush." Homura said while giving Rin's little head a gentle headpat.
Looking at his expression, Rin nodded slightly.
"Mm..."
Neither Homura nor Rin thought about putting Haru down or moving her somewhere else. Even though Haru was just a cat and wouldn't find it strange, they saw her as family, so they wouldn't do that since it would feel like they were annoyed by her or something.
Both of them loved Haru too much for that.
And so, they took a few steps without saying another word, but the change in their relationship was real—they had clearly gotten much closer.
Needless to say, this night was one neither of them would ever forget.
===
The next day, at Toyogasaki High School.
"By the way, Homura-kun, I heard from Elf-chan that Honoka and the others went over after we left yesterday?"
Megumi, who was sitting next to Homura, asked curiously.
"Yeah, Kotori bought some fabric for Rin's outfit, and all nine of them are working on it together." Homura replied while glancing outside the window. "They should finish it today, and Rin will be able to wear the outfit."
"Hmm... kinda wanna see it..." Megumi muttered.
"Then just come back and take a look. It's not like anyone's stopping you from coming just because it's a break."
"Well, Homura-kun, this is a good chance for you to get closer to everyone in Muse over the next couple of days, right?"
'Really? Is that why she's hesitating about coming back? Man... I'm surrounded by such good girls...'
Homura sighed inwardly, feeling touched.