「You put it on for me. Since I’m sick and all.」

          Sendai-san said, as if she was entitled to it.

          Usually, I would’ve tossed the box of cooling patches back at her and forced her to handle it herself. I wanted to do the same today, but it was just as she said—she was sick. That made it harder for me to act as I normally would.

          This was throwing me off.

          I wished she could sound a little more energetic. Her voice was hoarse, making it clear she wasn’t well. Plus, since I was the one who asked about her temperature, being cold toward her didn’t feel right.

          I picked up the box and got closer to the bed.

          「You can sit here if you want.」

          Sendai-san said, patting the spot beside her on the edge of the bed.

          I wasn’t worried about catching her cold, but I couldn’t help but recall the last time I sat here during summer break. That day, she’d licked my feet without me ordering her to. I knew that wouldn’t happen again, but it was enough to make me hesitate.

          「Miyagi, come sit down.」

          As I thought about what to do, her tone shifted from gentle to more demanding.

          I could apply the cooling patch without sitting at all, but something told me she’d get angry if I didn’t follow her request. It seemed like she was trying to make the most of her illness today.

          Left with no other choice, I sat a little away from her and opened the box.

         「Okay, I’ll put it on right now, so turn and face me.」

          When I showed her the cooling patch I had taken from the box, she obediently turned to face me. Yet, she didn’t expose her forehead. As I reached out to brush her bangs aside, she grabbed my hand.

          It was hot.

          The warmth of her hand was enough to remind me that she had a fever, and I flinched. She tugged on my hand firmly, causing the cooling patch to fall onto the bed.

          The space between us shrank until our lips met.

          Just like the warmth of her hand, her lips felt hotter than usual. Without hesitation, she slipped the tip of her tongue into my mouth.

          It felt slick, but more than anything, it burned with heat, leaving me no choice but to accept it. Her warm tongue explored my mouth, almost as though it was trying to entwine itself around mine.

          Sendai-san’s temperature was so high, I couldn’t muster the strength to bite her, push her away, or even complain. The heat of her hand, her lips, and her soft tongue left me unable to escape.

          I wanted to pull away.

          But I couldn’t say I hated it.

          The heat left me unable to think clearly anymore.

          I had no intention of moving my tongue in response, but I didn’t feel the need to push her away either. The feeling of our lips pressed together was so good that I lost track of how long we’d been kissing.

          With my sense of time slipping away, my mind became filled with nothing but Sendai-san.

          I couldn’t breathe properly, and it was starting to feel suffocating.

          When I pulled my hand free to grip her pajamas, she slowly began to pull away from the kiss. Just as I was instinctively about to pull her closer by the pajamas, I couldn’t help but complain, as if to cover up my feelings.

          「… That wasn’t supposed to be an invitation for a kiss.」

          「But you’re the one who came closer, Miyagi.」

          「I didn’t even try to move closer to you. Look, you made me drop the cooling patch. Don’t do anything like that again. That kiss felt gross.」

          I felt so foolish for going along with her just because she was sick.

          If I treated her more kindly, things like this would probably happen all the time.

          I didn’t hate it enough to make a big deal out of it, but I didn’t want her to kiss me again.

          「Can’t you say things a little more nicely? That hurt.」

          「No, and if you’re bothered by what I said, then don’t pull something like that again.」

          「… Are you mad at me?」

          I didn’t think I sounded that upset, but today there was a hint of nervousness in her voice, even though I usually spoke to her like I was in a bad mood.

          Maybe the fever was making her more sensitive than usual.

          This was seriously throwing me off.

          Hearing her ask that made me feel like I’d done something wrong.

          I said the kiss was gross, but that wasn’t really true. I was already used to her kissing me like that. Still, I probably went too far talking to her this way when she was sick. While I wasn’t going to take back my words, I decided to answer her honestly.

          「I’m not mad, but I’m not exactly in a good mood either.」

          「Then let me offer you something in return. Give me an order.」

          「What are you even saying? I’m not doing that.」

          「Why not?」

          「Do I seem like the type of person who’d order a sick person around?」

          I did want to give her an order, but I wasn’t heartless enough to make someone who was sick follow it. Compared to Sendai-san, who seemed like she was trying to make the most out of her being sick today, I was a relatively normal human being, so I figured it wouldn’t hurt to just listen to her a little today.

          「I wouldn’t mind if you were that kind of person, though.」

          「Stop saying weird things and go to sleep already.」

          I gave Sendai-san a gentle push on the shoulders, but instead of lying down, she coughed.

          「See? Your cold’s getting worse. Now, go to sleep.」

          「I don’t want to.」

          Sendai-san said, coughing again.

          「If your cold’s so bad that you’re coughing this much, you shouldn’t be trying to kiss me. If I get sick, it’s going to be on you, Sendai-san.」

          「I kissed you because I want you to catch my cold, so I hope you do get sick.」

          She tugged on my uniform sleeve as she said something outrageous.

          「That’s awful. I hate getting sick and being stuck at home alone with nothing to do but sleep.」

          Usually, I didn’t understand what went through her mind, but today, with her fever, she was even more incomprehensible. Normal people wouldn’t go around saying they wanted to infect others with their illness, and she’d never said anything this ridiculous before.

          「I’ll take care of you, don’t worry.」

          「You don’t need to do that.」

          「Oh, what if I stayed over at your place to take care of you?」

          「Absolutely not. Who knows what you’d do if I let you. Now go to sleep already.」

          It didn’t seem like she had any intention of listening to me today.

          I didn’t like how insistent she was about taking care of me, and I definitely didn’t want her staying over. While I doubted she’d actually go through with it, it was best to brush it off before a joke like that spiraled into something worse.

          「Miyagi, you’re just going to leave once I fall asleep, aren’t you?」

          Sendai-san asked, her voice unusually sulky.

          I swallowed the sigh that almost escaped me.

          I couldn’t be too harsh today. Who knew taking care of sick people could be such a hassle?

          「I think I’m being plenty nice by staying until you fall asleep.」

          「You could be a little nicer to someone who’s sick, though.」

          「You want me to be even nicer than I’ve already been?」

          「Yeah.」

          「Then stop doing things that are unnecessary.」

          「It’s not like you’d be nicer even if I didn’t, right?」

          That stung a bit.

          I thought I’d been more than kind to Sendai-san, even though she’d done something I didn’t want her to do. But telling her that wouldn’t change anything, so I picked up the cooling patch I dropped earlier, grabbed the yogurt I’d bought, and handed it to her.

          「Here. Just be quiet and eat this.」

          「… Thanks.」

          She took the yogurt, peeled the lid off, and took a few bites.

          「Stay with me a little longer, Miyagi. I’ll get better faster if you’re here.」

          「I’m not some kind of medicine, you know.」

          「I know.」

          「Then stop being ridiculous and go to sleep when you’re done eating.」

          「I told you, I slept too much today.」

          「Sleep more anyway.」

          「I will if you give me a kiss, Miyagi.」

          She paused, her hand still holding the yogurt.

          Leaving the spoon in the container, she gently brushed my lips with her fingertip.

          Sendai-san’s body temperature hadn’t changed.

          It was still as hot as before.

          But the warmth from her fingertip felt comforting. Craving more of her touch, I grabbed the finger that rested on my lips and leaned closer to her. A small sigh escaped me.

          「Stop getting carried away, Sendai-san. You don’t have to sleep, but at least lie down.」

          I took the yogurt from her hands and set it on the table.

          She asked for a kiss like it was the most natural thing, and it made me forget for a second that wasn’t the reason why I was here.

          I pulled out another cooling patch from the box and placed it on her forehead as she frowned slightly.

          「So cold.」

          「It’d be a problem if it wasn’t.」

          「Well, yeah, of course.」

          「Anyway, if you’re not going to sleep, I’m heading home.」

          I spoke in a tone not quite as chilly as the cooling patch, and Sendai-san thought for a second before saying, “In that case…”

          Something about her pause made me uneasy.

          Still, I asked, “What now?”

          Quietly, she replied,

          「I’ll sleep if you give me your hand.」

          「My hand?」

          「Yeah.」

          「Fine. I can do that.」

          This request was a lot easier to handle than a kiss, so I agreed to it. Satisfied with my answer, Sendai-san laid down and held out her hand, urging me to give her mine. I placed my hand on top of hers.

          「Is holding hands really that enjoyable for you?」

          I asked as I held her warm hand, and she squeezed back.

          「It sure is.」

          Sendai-san answered as she slowly closed her eyes.

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