Chapter 14: Hot Spring Trip, Returning Home

In the morning, I woke up to find Kanata beside me, both of us naked.

Yesterday, I had selfishly asked him to hold me, as a way to repay the debt I owed. At that point, I felt like this was the only way left. I had been cornered so badly that I thought there was no other choice. So I don’t regret it.

Besides, if I had to be embraced by someone, better Kanata than some stranger. Even when I said I’d sell my body if he refused—that had been serious too. I hated the thought of it, but if there was no other way, then so be it.

But that idea had horrified Kanata. He cried, begged me to stop, and told me not to go through with it. Seeing that, I realized just how much he worried about me… but still, I couldn’t back down.

In the end, he did hold me, and even told me it was amazing. As for me—I was completely captivated by how good it felt. That was all thanks to Kanata, no doubt about it. It only hurt at the start. After that, it just kept climbing higher and higher, nothing but pleasure.

……I wonder, does this really count as repaying my debt?

After breakfast and another soak in the open-air bath, I was still smoldering inside, so I kept on “repaying” my debt again and again. I was completely hooked. It felt so good I even found myself thinking, "If it’s this amazing, I should’ve done it sooner." But that was only because it was Kanata—I was sure of that.

I could feel how gently, carefully he treated me, yet he also made it intense enough to drive me crazy with pleasure. It even felt like a kind of affection. That was just Kanata’s nature, I thought—the same Kanata who had resisted to the very end, saying he didn’t want to do this. But once he accepted it, he made sure I felt good too. That was so like him.

Afterward, I soaked in the hot spring again, then finally tried out the sauna I’d been curious about yesterday. I’d looked up the proper sauna etiquette online in advance. Since I had already told Kanata I’d be taking my time there, I figured he wouldn’t be stuck waiting around like yesterday. Well, though he was pretty drained, so maybe he wouldn’t be moving for a while anyway.

At first, I could only dip my feet into the cold water afterward, but by the third round I managed to submerge myself up to the shoulders. That was a surprise. Amazing how fast you can get used to things.

Still, I never did get that supposed “clear and refreshed” feeling people talk about. Maybe I was doing something wrong?

When I got back to the room, Kanata was sitting out on the veranda, gazing idly outside.

“Hey, let’s head out for lunch soon.”
“Yeah, huh… oh, it’s already that time?”

Kanata rose from where he had been sitting on the veranda.

"Heave-ho."

“Are you an old man or something?”

“A thirty-year-old old man, yeah.”

“True. I’m sixteen, though.”

“Inside, you’re the same as me.”

“Still, Kanata, maybe you should work out a little?”
“…Yeah, maybe I should.”

Huh, that was unusually straightforward. Well, a bit of strength training wouldn’t hurt.

We got into the car and started talking about what we wanted to eat today.

“Yesterday we had soba and tempura for lunch, then meat for dinner. So today… fish?”

“Nah, fish around here isn’t that great. How about a katsudon at a soba shop instead?”

“Nice idea. Come to think of it, soba shop katsudon is always tasty for some reason. Must be the dashi.”

“Then let’s find a soba shop.”

So we decided on that. We went to a different soba shop from yesterday and both ordered katsudon.

As expected, it was delicious. We agreed our hunch had been right.

“Hey Kanata, how about today we hit up some roadside stations, buy souvenirs and local sweets, then maybe find a café with a specialty dessert, and afterward just relax at the inn?”

“Yeah, we did say we’d take it easy today. Let’s do that.”

So first, the roadside stations. Usually, there are at least two of them around, so we went to both. One mainly sold alcohol and snacks to go with it, while the other was focused on local specialties and sweets for souvenirs.

There were stalls selling beef skewers too. Not the small festival kind, but big, hearty ones—totally worth the price.

Kanata bought some souvenirs at the shop. I didn’t have anyone to give gifts to, so I just grabbed some sweets to snack on back at the inn. Then we returned.

We had a little time before dinner, so we lazed around in the room, sat out on the veranda, and spent the afternoon in blissful idleness.

And then, dinner time came. Once again, a lavish meal was brought out, and we ate.

After killing some time browsing the ryokan’s souvenir and shop corners, we spent the evening soaking in the open-air bath together, then lying down in the futon until sleep came—repaying my debt all the while.

But when we entered the open-air bath, Kanata resisted.

“Hey, is this really the only way? Can’t you reconsider?”

Even now, Kanata still said things like that. But I had already made up my mind. Besides, I enjoyed it too, so what was the problem?

“What, is holding me that unpleasant for you?”

“No! That’s not what I meant! Getting to hold you, Nobu, is the happiest thing in the world for me. But that’s a separate

issue—I just think there must be a better way.”

“There isn’t! I’ve already decided. Unless, Kanata, you’re saying you don’t want—”

“Wait! You don’t need to say it. I get it. I’ll do it… just, don’t let anyone else.”

“Relax. As long as you don’t say no, I won’t go to anyone else. Honestly, the very thought of being held by another guy makes me sick to my stomach.”

“—What!? Then aren’t you forcing yourself with me too?”

“It’s fine with you. You make me feel good.”

“…Huh? You mean—”

“Ah, don’t get me wrong! It’s not like I’m saying it’s fine because I love you, so don’t worry about that. It’s just that, unlike other guys, when I imagine it with you, I don’t feel disgusted. That’s all.”

“…I-I see. I guess that makes sense…”

For Kanata, being with someone like me—someone who used to be a guy—must not be easy either. But I looked like a beautiful girl now, so I wanted him to endure it.

The next morning, I woke up, showered, and then went to wake Kanata.

Today was the last day of our two-night, three-day trip. Really, all that was left was to eat breakfast, check out, and head home. We weren’t planning on going sightseeing anywhere.

I got dressed, and when Kanata came out from his shower, we went to breakfast. Just like yesterday, it was a buffet-style meal. Since this was our last one here, I picked out the dishes that looked the most expensive.

We still had a little time before checkout.

“Hey, Kanata, there’s still some time left before we have to leave. Want to soak in the open-air bath one last time? No talk about debt or anything—let’s just go normally, for once.”

“Well, if that’s how you put it, fine. But really, none of that this time.”

So for our last soak, we sat side by side in the open-air bath. We simply enjoyed the scenery, reminisced a bit, and before we knew it, we were soaking right up until just before checkout.

We checked out of the ryokan and started the drive home.

“You know, this trip… we were basically like a couple the whole time.”

“Eh!? Nobu!?”

“I mean, that’s how everyone treated us. And at the ryokan—no matter the reason—we really were acting like lovers. The staff who changed our sheets probably thought, ‘what a pair of lovebirds.’”

“Hmm… well, yeah. Actually, it’s probably better they saw us as a couple. Otherwise, with our age gap, it would’ve just looked weird.”

“Pretty sure we looked weird anyway. I mean, we’re an age-gap couple, and I’m sixteen.”

“You look about eighteen right now, Nobu. So in that sense, it should be fine… probably.”

“Hope so. Anyway, this just means that from now on, as long as I’m with you, people are always going to see us like that. …But you know, compared to when we went furniture shopping, this time it didn’t really bother me. Maybe I’m just getting used to it?”

“……Yeah, maybe. People get used to things. And besides, we can’t react to every single way others might see us.”

“Says the guy who keeps worrying about how I look.”

“Of course I do. There’s a world of difference between sixteen and eighteen.”

“True that.”

We kept up that kind of lighthearted chatter on the way back. On the drive, we stopped at a service area for lunch, then bought dinner groceries at the supermarket near home, and finally returned.

Even though it had only been two days, it felt like we’d been away for ages. And the house felt small again. But still, in the end—

“Home really is the most comfortable place.”

“Yeah. In the end, nothing beats home.”

It hadn’t even been a month since we moved in here, but I already felt like this was truly home.

Welcome back—to our home, mine and Kanata’s.