Sayuri clearly heard Mrs. Yuigahama's shout.
But instead of responding, she tightened her arms around Hachiman's neck, leaning in as if she were about to kiss him.
"?"
Mrs. Yuigahama's mind went blank for a second.
Hurriedly, she rushed toward them, reaching out to separate the two.
"Sayuri, you're seriously desperate, huh? Hachiman's still just a kid! You old—"
But just as she reached them, in her urgency, she tripped over something.
Her expression changed drastically.
"Wahhh—!"
"Careful!"
Hachiman reacted swiftly, moving to catch her, but instead, Mrs. Yuigahama's momentum pushed him to the ground.
That alone would have been bad enough.
But the real problem was…
Their lips had accidentally met.
Again.
Sayuri: "?"
Hachiman: "!!"
Mrs. Yuigahama: "!!!"
Silence filled the air.
The mixed scents of the mature woman and the young man intertwined, lingering between them.
Both of them froze, their faces flushing slightly.
Mrs. Yuigahama's hand, almost instinctively, started to move toward Hachiman's body—
Sayuri, finally snapping out of her shock, was on the verge of exploding.
"And you were lecturing me?! Look at yourself—kissing him already!"
A strange, sour tension hung in the air.
She had wanted to kiss him first, but instead, her best friend had beaten her to it. How could she not be frustrated?
"!!!"
Mrs. Yuigahama shuddered, her scattered thoughts snapping back into place.
She instantly pulled away, scrambling to sit up while hastily helping Hachiman up as well.
"S-Sorry, Hachiman! Mama didn't mean to! I really didn't! You're not hurt, are you?"
"...I'm fine."
Hachiman coughed lightly and shook his head.
"I'm a guy. I can take a fall. But, uh… are you okay, Mrs. Yuigahama?"
"Ahh~ What a good boy, worrying about Mama. As long as you're fine, that's all that matters."
Overcome with emotion, Mrs. Yuigahama couldn't help but pull his head into a gentle embrace.
"!!"
Hachiman stiffened.
With the way she was pressing against him, he could hardly breathe.
"Seriously? You're still holding onto him?"
A certain jealous voice spoke up from behind.
"I…"
Mrs. Yuigahama flinched, but she didn't let go. Instead, she held on even tighter, turning to glare warily at Sayuri.
"I'm just protecting Hachiman from being seduced by you, you shameless old woman."
"Ha! I'm the one seducing him? Take a look at yourself! You're practically suffocating him right now!"
Sayuri shot a sharp glance at a certain abundant part of her friend's physique.
"Ah?"
Noticing Hachiman's increasingly pained expression, Mrs. Yuigahama finally let go, looking flustered.
"Sorry, sorry! That was my bad—Mama didn't mean to—"
"You totally meant to."
Before Hachiman could even say a word, Sayuri took a step forward and pulled him into her embrace.
"Hachiman, listen to me. Don't be fooled by Nana's gentle act. She's actually incredibly devious on the inside."
"W-Who's devious?!"
Fuming, Mrs. Yuigahama grabbed hold of Hachiman's other arm.
"You're the shameless one, openly seducing him! You're the devious one!"
"Oh, am I? And what about you? That 'accidental' kiss just now—was that really an accident?"
"It was an accident!!"
"What a coincidence, huh? Just happened to land right on his lips?"
"..."
The two women bickered fiercely.
Hachiman, caught in the middle, was utterly mortified.
"Ladies, please… calm down."
After some effort, he finally managed to break free from both of them, quickly trying to diffuse the tension.
"You two are best friends. You shouldn't be fighting over me, of all people."
"Hachiman's not just 'some outsider'!"
Both women spoke in unison.
Then, as if coordinated, they moved to embrace him again.
Hachiman panicked.
"I just remembered! I have something really important to talk to my girlfriend about—I gotta go!"
Throwing out the excuse, he immediately bolted.
To hell with going to the restroom.
Getting away from these two before things escalated any further was the top priority.
"Hachi—"
The two women reached out, but he had already put considerable distance between them.
Seeing this, Sayuri called out in a teasing tone:
"Hachiman~ Think about what I said earlier~~~"
Hachiman visibly stiffened for a second before sprinting even faster.
Mrs. Yuigahama raised an eyebrow.
"What exactly did you say to him?"
"Fufu~ That's for me to know and for you to guess~"
"You shameless woman."
Mrs. Yuigahama gritted her teeth at Sayuri's smug expression.
"All of this is for my daughter's sake. You'd better not resort to any dirty tricks."
After saying that, she turned toward the restroom.
Sayuri, however, tilted her head thoughtfully.
"Just for your daughter, huh…"
She pondered for a moment, then suddenly spoke again:
"Asuna, tell me… When you kissed him just now—how did he taste?"
"?"
Mrs. Yuigahama, about to walk away, froze. A faint, unreadable expression crossed her face.
"Hachiman's taste… What are you trying to say?"
---
Meanwhile.
Yukinoshita clutched her pillow, rolling excitedly on her bed.
Her beloved husband was being fought over by two women.
For some reason, that thought sent a thrill through her heart.
And there was even a kiss!
More points gained!
Even better!
"Cough, am I getting too excited about this?"
Realizing something was off, she quickly composed herself, regaining her usual reserved demeanor.
"Hmm… But looking at it this way… maybe Hachiman evolving into an incubus wouldn't be so bad…"
****************************
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