Editing CubexCursedxCurious:Volume4 Chapter1 (section)

===Part 1===

Caution was of paramount importance.

As careful as a ninja searching for presences on the ceiling, as bold as a thief who had to finish the job within a matter of minutes&mdash;That was what Haruaki's mission demanded.

"Recently, it seems like I keep running into these inconvenient coincidences... Let's hope I can get through today peacefully...!"

He pressed his ear against the bathroom door to check out the situation inside. Despite the instant sense of guilt surfacing akin to that of a voyeur's, this was a necessary precaution. It was not like he could just enter the changing area suddenly. Even suicidal behavior had limits.

The continuous noise of water from the shower head could be heard from the other side. Although it was a slightly imposed invitation, but the girl&mdash;Aiko&mdash;did indeed enter the bath area. In that case, Haruaki was definitely able to avoid the "accidental intrusion in the process of changing" cliche... The next challenge was speed. Haruaki definitely had to avoid what happened with Fear and Kuroe last time, "running into them just as they exited the bath."

Surveying the surroundings, Haruaki did not spot anyone else in the corridor. Fear could be heard watching television in the den. Kuroe was most likely still at the shop. Meanwhile, Konoha was making dinner in the kitchen... If possible, Haruaki really wanted to swap duties with her, but Konoha was currently working on her original meat dish recipe so it could not be helped. Haruaki's pride prevented himself from meddling in other people's cooking and ruining the balance of flavor.

Hence, there was no one else who could undertake this dangerous mission. That article of clothing must be washed as soon as possible because every second counted, otherwise the stain might never be cleaned off...!

Taking a deep breath, Haruaki invaded the changing area at once. He swiveled his neck swiftly to confirm the situation. Then removed clothing was lying in the laundry basket.

(I clearly asked her to throw it into the washing machine... Whatever!)

Ignoring the sight of the small piece of white fabric and pushing other stuff to the side, Haruaki targeted the most soiled article&mdash;the coat. Fishing out the coat from the bottom&mdash;

"So heavy!"

The coat dangled with great weight. What on earth made it so heavy? Upon careful examination, Haruaki found the reason, the objects stuffed into the innumerable pockets&mdash;pebbles.

"...?"

They were ordinary pebbles no matter how you looked at them. Nothing special about their shape, nor were the colors particularly pretty... Yet another mystery was added to this strange girl's repertoire. However, these pebbles could not be allowed into the washing machine, so Haruaki took them all out and threw the lightened coat into the machine. As for the coat, it was luckily one of those rare types with a label saying "machine washable," but one still had to be extra careful when washing large articles of clothing. After cautiously measuring out the laundry detergent and pouring it in, Haruaki then deftly switched laundry modes and pressed the on button. With a trusty rumbling noise, the modern product of convenience started up.

"What should I do with these things? Although I've no idea what is going on, let's just leave them here!"

Haruaki piled up the pebbles in the sink and swiftly withdrew from the changing area. Mission accomplished.

"Wow, I succeeded... Peacefully without incident!"

What was up with the current home situation where his own bathroom had become a danger zone? As this thought suddenly flashed across his mind, Haruaki decided to dismiss it for now. Now, let me savor the value of a miraculous survival...!

Haruaki casually made a victory gesture just as he exited to the corridor. Just at that moment, a faint "...Hweh~" sound was heard from the other side of the changing area's  closed door behind him. Apparently, he had missed Aiko leaving the bathing area by the slimmest of margins. That was close. However, Haruaki had already escaped from the danger zone, so the possibility of Fear or Konoha's cold stares was eliminated&mdash;

Yeah right.

Clack&mdash;! The room to the changing area was opened.

"...!"

"Wha...!"

Aiko rushed out half-naked, with only a blouse over her upper torso. Under the hems of the white blouse, the snow-white complexion of her legs was exposed in full vulnerability. Hitherto unseen because they were hidden beneath the long coat, her legs were long and slender, well-proportioned like a model's. A further problem was Konoha's pair of panties that had been prepared for her along with the blouse, which was now flashing in and out of view between her legs&mdash;

"W-What's the matter? Is there any problem? Could you put on your clothes first, because this is a huge problem for me!"

"...There's a problem."

Aiko frantically tugged Haruaki's clothes. Her strength was unexpectedly strong, thus causing Haruaki to be dragged into the changing area. Back in a difficult predicament, Haruaki's gaze began to wander in avoidance of her half-dressed state.

"Hey, what on earth is going on? Like I said, put on your clothes first!"

"...Clothes... Where?"

"D-Didn't we prepare them for you already? Uh&mdash;my cousin's clothes are all clean and washed, really!"

"No, I mean the ones I wore when I came."

"Oh, the coat is currently in the wash. See? Isn't the washing machine spinning right there?"

What, so it was about that... As Haruaki was thinking of answering, Aiko did something he never expected. Frantically, she went over to the washing machine and opened the lid, reaching in without regard for the spinning motion to drag out the dripping wet coat.

"Hey, are you an idiot? That's very dangerous! Oh, you actually want to wear it? How much do you like this coat, really?"

"...I want to wear it."

"You'll catch a cold if you wear it like this! Listen to me, take it off now, quickly!"

"No, I won't take it off... Hweh?"

As Haruaki began a tug-of-war with Aiko over the coat, she suddenly stopped and inclined her head.

"...Where's the things inside?"

"The things inside? Oh, you mean those pebbles? I took them out because they can't go in the wash."

"...Hweh~"

Aiko relaxed her grip and Haruaki seized the opportunity to pull the coat to his hands. Really, what the heck? Thinking that to himself, he tossed the coat into the washing machine and turned his gaze back to Aiko&mdash;

She was crying.

Still hidden behind her wet bangs, her expression was out of view but she was definitely crying. Because tears could be seen flowing down from under her bangs.

"Woah! What's the matter, what happened? Y-You really hate having this coat washed? But since it's soiled, you can't wear it unless it's cleaned&mdash;"

"...That's not right."

"...What's not right?"

She did not answer but quietly sobbing could be heard from her nose and throat. How troubling.

"Ah~ Umm, I don't quite get it, but what do you want me to do? Listen carefully, this cannot remain dirty so I must wash it. Apart from that, I'll do anything for you."

"...Really?"

"Really, absolutely."

Despite her apparent age, Aiko's personality was surprisingly like a child's, or perhaps a small animal? What a strange girl&mdash;Only now did such an assessment surface in Haruaki's mind. As soon as he spoke, Aiko gripped Haruaki's hand lightly.

"W-What?"

"Lend me for a bit."

Incomprehensible. What did she want to do? Thinking that, Haruaki watched as Aiko lifted his hand&mdash;

And stuffed it into the breast pocket of the blouse she was wearing.

"...!"

The blouse was worn directly over bare skin. Haruaki could feel the beating of her heart through the single layer of fabric. Of course, being the breast pocket, beneath it was a bulge, beautifully shaped despite being inferior to Konoha in size... No wait, now was not the time to be thinking about such things! The cramped feeling in the pocket was turning into an illusion of intimate contact with her skin, progressively tightening&mdash;

"...Pwa~"

In spite of Haruaki whose mind was in turmoil, Aiko made a sound as if greatly satisfied. The atmosphere felt as if they were submerged in a hot spring up to their shoulders, filled with a comforting sense of relief. At this moment, Aiko's warm breath woke Haruaki to a start, prompting him to muster his entire willpower to withdraw his hand from her pocket.

"I-I don't get what's going on, but that should be enough, right? Is it?"

"...Yeah, I'm pretty much satisfied."

"R-Really? That's great. Then this time, please put on your clothes properly and come to the living room."

After saying that, Haruaki was just about to exit the changing area when he heard a voice from behind.

"The pebbles?"

"They're in the sink over there... Are they very important?"

"No, I use them for filling my pockets, that's all."

This young lady made a strange comment again.

"Fine...... Do whatever you want as long as you don't break the pockets. What is the point of doing that anyway..."

Haruaki's final sentence was more like muttering to himself than asking for an answer. But just as he was about to close the door, Aiko replied quietly.

"...Because, emptiness fills me with uneasiness."



Already back in the living room were Fear, Konoha in her apron, as well as Kuroe who had returned home at some point. The trio was bent over the dining table, gathered together to watch something. Haruaki could catch a vague glimpse of what appeared to be... Kuroe's cellphone...?

"Listen to me, take it off now, quickly!"

"No, I won't take it off..."

...This dialogue sounded strangely familiar. What was going on?

Hearing his own voice, Haruaki felt a strange sense of dissonance&mdash;He escaped reality.

"Oh dear~ It really gave me quite a fright. I never expected I'd come across this rare recording moment as soon as I came home. This good fortune must be a sign of the abundant good deeds I perform every day? By the way, this part has sound only, but we'll soon reach the part when I successfully opened the door in secret to catch what was happening inside. Don't worry!"

"Sh-Shameless! Let me say this again, ''utterly shameless''!"

"W-Wha... W-Wha..."

"Kono-san, the plate has been sliced into two. Be careful or you'll split the table in half. Hmm, the sound isn't very clear for this part... But we're almost getting there... Oh! Hurry and watch this, today's shocking scene!"

"...Pwa~"

Aiko was making a sound of satisfaction. In other words, the image on the screen was&mdash;

"Wait a minute, this is wrong, it's not like that!"

Fear and Konoha turned their heads in such a way in sounded as if their necks were creaking. Konoha smiled and waved to Haruaki while Fear took out her Rubik's cube and started turning it noisily as if showing off, 

Only Kuroe raised her hand nonchalantly, going "Hi, I'm home." Since she was present during the recording, she clearly understood exactly what had occurred. Nevertheless, she did not show any intention to explain for the other two girls... She was definitely waiting for a good show.

This home really needs some anti-harassment legislation drafted&mdash;Wishing sincerely to himself, Haruaki sighed deeply as he imagined the effort it would take to explain everything next.