After returning from Hoshino Ai's house, Chihaya Anon immediately contacted the other two. As it happened, Togawa Sakiko, having finished her design draft, was also looking for a time to have Chihaya Tetsuya check it.
And so, their plans aligning perfectly, the three quickly arranged to meet. On that day, when Sakiko arrived at the Chihaya residence, Tetsuya had just left for the joint exhibition venue to finalize the booth's style based on the hall's overall atmosphere.
Seizing this heaven-sent opportunity, the three girls sat right on Tetsuya's bed and began a girls' talk that he absolutely could not be allowed to hear.
"She refused for that reason?"
After hearing Anon's report, Nagasaki Soyo, who at some point had started hugging Tetsuya's pillow, wore a thoughtful expression.
"It's certainly an important point, but I suppose it's something only a person with a strong possessive streak like her would notice."
"No... I had actually considered that point myself," Togawa Sakiko said.
As the instigator of this plan, Sakiko, who had always been meticulous and thorough, had long foreseen the "problem of the first time."
"If you are all that fixated on Tetsuya-kun's first time, then I will be the first to withdraw from this contest," she stated. "After all, to me, ensuring the plan begins smoothly is far more important than fighting over who gets to be first."
"..."
Seeing Sakiko's expression of forced composure, which was so similar to her own in front of Ai, Anon couldn't help but press further.
"So... you're not actually that interested in my brother's first time, Sakiko-san?"
"Er..."
Faced with Anon's direct question, Sakiko pondered for a moment before finally lowering her head, somewhat embarrassed.
"To say... I have no interest at all... would be a lie. Setting aside vanity and possessiveness, I've always looked forward to observing Tetsuya-kun's expression up close when he's being teased... Y-you two should understand, right? Because Tetsuya-kun is the type who can't hide his feelings at all, all of his reactions show honestly on his face. In that case, if I were to get his first time... it would absolutely be an experience with a strong sense of conquest..."
At this, she suddenly recalled the "maid for a day" experience. Just remembering the sight of Tetsuya gritting his teeth and trying to press his waist against the back of the chair while desperately holding back his urges was enough to make her heart flutter.
"..."
On the other side, after hearing Sakiko's detailed and vivid description, Anon and Soyo didn't reply immediately. Instead, in perfect sync, they both averted their gazes...
Although they didn't say it out loud, the scene Sakiko described was something they both looked forward to as well.
But beyond this reason born purely from desire, the "first time" held another, very important meaning for Anon.
A crucial fact she had realized just recently at Ai's house, while watching her do stretches.
"You two should understand, right? While we've prepared to share him, for my brother... no matter how equally he tries to view the four of us, when it comes to physical matters, a 'comparison psychology' will still exist."
At this, Anon deliberately shifted her gaze to the other two's upper bodies.
The cruel and proud reality of their figures only served to strengthen her resolve!
"You two and Hoshino Ai all have rather impressive assets. But I'm different!"
Anon placed a hand over her chest sorrowfully.
Today she was wearing a thin, camisole-style dress. A major characteristic of this type of clothing was that it accentuated one's figure; even the slightest curve would be made obvious by the close-fitting fabric and the accessories on the chest.
And yet, even with this series of external enhancements, there was still no obvious curve to be seen on her upper body...
"You've heard the saying, right? 'It's easy to go from frugal to extravagant, but hard to go from extravagant to frugal'... If I really go after you all, by the time it's my turn, my brother will definitely compare me to you and lower my score!"
Anon pounded on Tetsuya's bed in frustration.
"To avoid becoming a sacrifice to the three of you, I absolutely have to get the first time!"
"Er..."
"Um..."
So it's not out of desire, but just so she won't be compared to the others?
After hearing Anon's reason, Soyo and Sakiko first exchanged a glance, then turned to look at her with expressions of pity.
"Tetsuya has never said what kind of figure he likes! So, maybe he'll actually prefer your flat... I mean, more slender body type, Anon."
Soyo tried to comfort her with this hypothesis, but Anon just scoffed.
"You can't fool me with that, Soyo. Don't think I don't know... ever since you two made things official, my brother has been secretly glancing at your body more and more often."
"Ugh..."
Soyo was at a loss for words. Not only had she noticed his gazes, but she had even started deliberately choosing shaping underwear to show herself off to him as much as possible.
Faced with this undeniable fact, Soyo couldn't think of any other way to console her.
"I don't think you need to be so pessimistic, Anon-san."
Although Sakiko hadn't known Tetsuya as long as the other two, she had learned a thing or two about him during the "maid for a day" experience.
"Tetsuya-kun's threshold is very, very low. Just a tiny bit of stimulation will get an immediate reaction from him," she explained. "For him, just getting to the 'direct contact' stage is enough to push his senses to the limit. As for anything beyond that, given his current tolerance, it would probably be ignored due to the 'law of diminishing returns'."
"Besides, you have your own advantages, Anon. For example, your legs are slimmer than both of ours," Soyo added, trying to help. "And if we're really going to compare... even if we all combined our assets, we probably couldn't win against Hoshino Ai, right?"
"Ugh..."
Hearing this, Anon reluctantly nodded.
"That... well, yeah. If you want to compare with Ai, you'd probably need a beauty on Uika's level..."
"So you see, comparison and competition are endless. Instead of worrying about things that are destined to never change, we should be learning more skills and knowledge beforehand!"
Sakiko said in all seriousness.
"Overcoming a natural-born powerhouse through acquired practice, isn't that the most common kind of story?"
"Soyo, Sakiko-san..."
Anon had never expected her complaint to be met with such earnest consolation from the two of them.
Faced with her companions' kindness and consideration, Anon felt a rush of warmth, but she hadn't completely lost her senses.
"You two... you're not trying to use this to get me to lower my expectations and give up on my brother's first time, are you?"
"..."
At her question, the two, whose motives were not so pure, both tacitly averted their gazes.
Seeing this, Anon was instantly reminded of what Ai had told her.
[I'm sure those two... are coveting Tetsu's first time, just like you.]
"Just as Ai said, this plan still has a lot of room for discussion," Anon said. "Why don't we just give up on it for now?"
"Eh? Are you backing out, Anon?" Soyo blinked. "Without Hoshino Ai... the three of us could probably manage to move forward together. But if you're not in, Tetsuya will definitely have reservations and reject me and Sakiko."
"I know that, but... if we don't solve this problem beforehand, the three of us might really start fighting during the main event!"
Just the thought of that scene made Anon shake her head in resistance.
"I don't want to make things too difficult for my brother!"
"...If you're really that worried about it, then like Sakiko, I can give that position to you," Soyo said with a helpless sigh. "It's a bit of a shame, but my view is basically the same as Sakiko's. The impact of this plan and our prospects afterward are more important than who gets to be first."
"Ugh..."
Hearing Soyo's tempting offer, Anon's head perked up with interest, but then she immediately shrank back.
"No, let's not. This feeling of being specially catered to because of my selfishness... it feels a little uncomfortable."
"You can be a real handful sometimes..." Soyo couldn't help but retort at her incredibly awkward reaction. "I can't tell if you want to do it with Tetsuya or not."
"Ooh... I do, I do! But I already feel like I can't hold my head up high just from being taken care of by my brother. If I have to be taken care of by you two now, my position will be way too weak..."
"Then show some reliability for once! Like, come up with a solution yourself!"
"I came to you guys for advice because I couldn't do it!"
"If you can't do it, then don't complain! Just be good and let someone else make the choice!"
"I don't want to!"
"...Pfft."
Watching Anon and Soyo bicker, Sakiko was stunned for a moment, then couldn't help but let out a laugh. Hearing her, the bickering pair stopped and turned to look at her.
"What's wrong, Sakiko?"
"Don't tell me you thought of a good idea?"
"It's nothing."
Sakiko shook her head.
"I was just thinking... that for us to spend time arguing over something like this is a real luxury."
"A luxury?"
Hearing this word, Anon looked puzzled.
"Why do you say that?"
"Because, no matter what the final outcome of this discussion is, we are destined to be with Tetsuya-kun and find happiness together with him, right?"
Sakiko, who had been living in anxiety and despair until just a few days ago, said with deep emotion.
"And what we're discussing now is simply how to amplify that happiness... Don't you think that's a luxury?"
"...Mhm, I know what you mean."
Soyo nodded in agreement.
"Not having to worry about unnecessary things, just thinking about how to be even happier... At least, before I met Tetsuya-kun, I could never have imagined things would turn out like this."
"..."
Anon, who had always lived under Tetsuya's care and affection, couldn't quite feel the "luxury" the other two were talking about. But at the very least, she knew that with these two, no matter the final outcome, they would cherish her brother just as she did.
If that was the case...
"Why don't we... just let Ai be the first?"
Her competitive spirit gradually fading, Anon suggested.
"I'm still a little frustrated, but if Hoshino Ai is the first, I think I can accept it."
"I've said from the beginning, I was never that fixated on being first," Sakiko added. "As long as the result is good, that's all that matters."
"It's the same for me... Actually, I'm more worried than I am lustful for Tetsuya," Soyo said, hugging the pillow tighter. "Putting the first time aside, will making him handle four people at once be too harsh on him?"
"...Well, that's probably a trial he can't avoid no matter what," Sakiko shook her head. "He's the one who said he'd bring happiness to all of us. If that's the case, then he naturally has to prove it with his body and his actions first."
If that was the case, then the conclusion had been reached.
They would leave the first time to Hoshino Ai, whose status was more special and whose obsession with Tetsuya was much deeper!
"Phew~ That takes care of the biggest problem, I guess."
Anon let out a long sigh of relief.
However, Sakiko and Soyo exchanged a strange look.
"It's not over yet, Anon-san."
Sakiko shook her head, and then, to Anon's completely baffled expression, she said slowly.
"Now that the person for the first time has been decided... naturally, it's time to decide on the 'second time'."
"Uwaah... give me a break!!!"
It seemed this luxurious and private girls' talk would not be ending anytime soon.
—25 days remain until Chihaya Tetsuya's "day of suffering."