My Japanese Childhood Friend Is Too Flirty

55. July, Just the Two of Us, Childhood Friends, at the Water Park! (4)

Thirty minutes.

It was exactly thirty minutes later that I finally emerged from Aki’s room.

Actually, I could have stayed longer if I wanted to, and Aki seemed secretly to wish I would.

But if I stayed in the room any longer, I felt like I wouldn’t be able to keep the promise I made to Aki’s father, so I half-forcibly broke away.

I convinced Aki with the words, ‘We can k*ss as much as we want later, so let’s go play at the water park first. We came all this way, it’d be a waste not to go at least once, right?’

Ah, and of course, I reapplied sunscreen to everything before we came out. The sunscreen we had on got all smeared onto our clothes from k*ssing too intensely, and for too long.

Thanks to that, Aki and I departed much later than initially planned, arriving at Gimhae Lotte Water Park well after lunchtime.

Entry itself was free, using the tickets we received for k*ssing during k*ss Time at Jamsil Baseball Stadium, but because it was peak vacation season in July, it took almost twenty minutes just to get inside. And even after getting in, it took over ten minutes to change clothes in the locker room and store our luggage in a locker.

And then, changing wasn’t the end of it; stepping out of the changing room to meet Aki, it was just an unbelievable crush of people.

The level of it all? Not exaggerating in the slightest, there wasn’t room to even place a foot, packed full of people everywhere you looked. They say the wait to ride the water slide alone is fifteen minutes – that tells you everything.

“Wow…”

A veritable sea of humanity.

Overwhelmed by the enormous crowd, I stole a glance at Aki.

I was the one who dragged her out of the room against her will, after all. I was watching her, expecting her to say, “See? I told you we should’ve just stayed in the room…”

“Ooh, Uju-chan! There are so many people here, aren’t there?”

Unexpectedly, Aki was beaming.

One could be justified in complaining, even a little bit, with this many people around.

“What should we do first? Tube slide, water slide? Oh, the body slide would be fun too. Hehe…!”

Thwack.

Aki linked her arm through mine.

And, pulling me along, she snugly nestled my forearm into the deep valley between her bikini-clad br*easts.

“Huh? Uju-chan, what do you want to ride? Hmm? Hmm?”

“…Aki, let’s ride whatever *you* want to.”

“Ah, really? Is it okay? Even if *I* choose?”

“Uhm, go ahead and do as you please…”

If she’ll just stay like this… wouldn’t anything be okay…?

Feeling the ultimate happiness a man could feel through his right forearm, I meekly followed Aki, who was smiling brightly at the thought of riding the swing slide.

The wait was about ten minutes.

Aki kept talking to me here and there, but, frankly, I was too out of it to give proper responses.

It couldn’t be helped, because with that soft something pressed against my forearm, my attention just kept gravitating towards it.

It’s not like Aki hooking her arm through mine is a rare occurrence, but maybe it’s because she’s wearing a swimsuit today, but the feeling of skin-on-skin contact is more stimulating than ever before…!

“Hello. Two of you, yes? Please get on this boat here. Hold onto the handles tightly when you go down.”

“Ah, yes. Thank you~”

Aki bowed her head slightly to the safety attendant, releasing her grip on my arm with a little slide.

The release of this bond jolted my dazed mind back toward sanity.

I must quickly ride down and then link arms again…

I sat in the back of the boat, and Aki sat in front of me, gripping the two handles attached to the boat.

The boat is basically for two people, so there are four handles.

Right then, so it means I just have to grab the handle like Aki, doesn’t it.

“Woo-joo-chan, seatbelt!”

“…Huh?”

“Hold me from behind, is what I mean!”

‘Hold her from behind…’

Could she possibly mean… a back hug?

Caught off guard, I faltered, and Aki whipped around.

“Yeah, hurry!”

“Excuse me, is it really okay not to hold the handle?”

“Ah, yes. The course here is short, so it’s fine. Plenty of couples ride like that, actually.”

“See? The staff person said it’s okay!”

“……”

A short course… so it’s alright, then.

With permission granted, I carefully moved my arms and wrapped them around Aki’s waist.

“…It’s not uncomfortable, is it?”

“Ah, u-um. It’s okay…”

Even through her clothes, she felt incredibly slender and soft, but holding her bare skin like this, without any barrier, I felt anew how terribly thin Aki’s waist was.

I forcibly suppressed the urge to trace the hourglass curve of her waist, and glanced at the staff person, a silent ‘we’re ready’ conveyed in my gaze.

“Alright, here we go!”

The staff person standing at the back gave the boat a push.

And then.

“Ack, it’s going, it’s going…!”

“…Uh-oh.”

The boat, and with it our bodies, slowly tilted, and then I felt myself sliding downwards.

Suddenly, we picked up speed, riding the water swirling in the chute, shooting down… down towards the exit!

My body swayed this way and that, and lost in the moment, Aki and I, forgetting we were holding each other so close, lifted the corners of our mouths and screamed with pure, unadulterated joy!

*Thump, splash-*!

“…Ugh, *pfooey*!”

“Ptoo, yuck…”

As the boat landed in the pool below, Aki and I simultaneously wiped our faces. There was some machine spraying water at the end of the slide and we were just drenched because of that.

“Heehee, this is fun…! Woo-joo~chan, how is it? Fun, right, fun, right?”

“Yeah, it’s fun…”

“See, it’s fun, right? Should we ride one more time…?!”

“……Just a moment.”

Coming to a water park, I expected to get wet, but I thought I’d get wet playing in the water, not like this.

My hair and swimsuit completely soaked, the clinging strands of hair on my forehead were bothersome. So, I swept my bangs back with my hand, pressing down like I was slicking it all back to roughly fix it.

“Alright, let’s go up now.”

“……”

Aki is staring intently at me.

‘……What’s wrong?’

Could it be that sweeping my hair back looks a little strange?

Feeling unnecessarily awkward, I fidgeted with my hair and said,

“What, is it weird?”

“……Huh? Ah, no.”

Making eye contact, Aki quickly avoids my gaze.

“The, the hair all up, it looks, it looks good though…”

“Ah, really…?”

“Uh-huh, it’s a little different than usual. Um, it gives a slightly more adult feeling…? …Ah, not that you don’t usually seem like an adult.”

Fingers wiggling and fidgeting, she glances at me with a slightly bashful expression, whispering softly.

“Anyway, you look handsome…”

“Uh-huh, thanks. …You’re really cute too.”

“……Heeh.”

‘……This is ticklish.’

Is it because of the location? We give each other this level of compliment often enough, but the feeling is strange. I can’t exactly explain it, but it makes me feel a little more excited, or should I say, a little happier.

“Woo-joo~chan, after a few more times on the slides, shall we go swim in the pool?”

“Okay. Let’s do that.”

“……Uh-huh, but before that.”

Aki glanced around quickly.

And.

Slightly avoiding the gazes of others, she stood on tiptoe and gave me a light k*ss on the lips.

Their lips met. A truly fleeting moment.

“Sorry, Uju~chan. You just looked so handsome, I couldn’t help myself…”

“……”

Aki was the one who k*ssed me, so why did I feel all the embarrassment?

I unconsciously touched my lips, cleared my throat a couple of times for no reason, and climbed out of the pool. Then I reached out a hand to help Aki out.

“Let’s go, to the slides.”

“Can we do that again, Uju~chan?”

“……Why?”

“You look handsome even when you pretend it’s no big deal…?”

“……”

I wasn’t pretending it was no big deal… or was I?

* * *

We were only supposed to go a few more times, but Aki seemed to get hooked, insisting on riding the slides again and again. It was nearly five more times before we could finally make our way to the artificial beach pool, a little removed from the slide zone.

Though it was indoors, it had all the essentials. There were sunbeds, and there were palm trees, and then there were more sunbeds, and more palm trees.

Which is to say, there wasn’t much besides sunbeds and palm trees.

“Heh, Uju~chan. Come here.”

Aki was already in the pool, gesturing for me to come over.

I carefully approached, and Aki stared intently at me before grabbing both my hands.

“Got you…!”

“Yeah, you got me.”

But what was she going to do with me? We can’t play together like this.

That thought barely formed before Aki splashed closer, pulling me into a sudden hug.

“Aki…?”

“……Just a moment, stay like this.”

Pressing her ear tightly against my chest, Aki stood still, listening.

There was no one in front of us, so from behind, it would look like I was standing alone in the pool, frozen in place…

The thought that someone might see us like this made my heart start pounding erratically.

“……Uju~chan.”

“Mm.”

“What do you think…?”

About what, exactly.

“…Me.”

Aki’s fingers, pressing against my chest, tightened.

I stood in the pool, water reaching my waist, contemplating Aki’s question.

Then, moving my hand slightly, I reached around and softly embraced her back.

“Pretty, cute, playful, always cheerful…?”

“…Am I, cute?”

“Yeah, super.”

“…Heh, I know that.”

Aki lifted her head.

“I know… but not that.”

“Not that…?”

“Mm.”

“……”

If I said, ‘What else are you asking?’ she’d probably get really mad…?

“…Well.”

I wasn’t exactly oblivious either; I had a pretty good idea of what Aki was getting at.

If I didn’t know, I’d be an idiot, really.

I gently stroked Aki’s back, thinking carefully.

What kind of answer would make Aki the happiest?

After a long moment of contemplation, I finally spoke.

“…Cute enough to want to k*ss?”

“Hmm… 50 points.”

Aki’s assessment was harsh.

“That’s all…?”

“Mm, because you were only half honest.”

“I was being completely honest…”

“Liar. …You don’t *only* want to k*ss me, do you?”

“……”

*How did she know?*

A jolt ran through me, and without realizing it, I cut myself off mid-sentence.

“Uju-chan, don’t you wanna do something…naughty with me?”

And, in a situation like this, silence practically screams agreement.

Aki must know that too.

“Right now, if you’re honest with me…”

She tilted her head up slightly, giving me a smile that felt dangerously alluring.

“I’ll let Uju-chan do anything you want… How’s that sound?”

*