Ch.103103. Bunny Girl in Broad Daylight [Illustration]

I had been waiting for ten minutes since Hwa Nabi went to the living room, promising to surprise me. By now, the waiting was starting to get boring.

“Hmm…”

I wasn’t sure what she was planning in the middle of the day, but I figured she must have something prepared.

…Just as I was thinking that.

-Kyaaak!

A loud scream came from the living room outside the bedroom, where Hwa Nabi was. My heart sank with surprise, and I jumped to my feet without thinking.

“What is she up to now…”

Hwa Nabi had earnestly asked me not to come out of the room until she called for me. But when I heard what sounded like something collapsing, I couldn’t help but check.

Still, just to be safe, I first put my ear against the door.

If she was preparing something, I should normally hear at least some noise, but there was complete silence from the living room. So as a second check, I softly called her name.

-….

Again, there was no response.

…I hope she didn’t fall and hurt herself, or lose consciousness. It was very concerning that there was no answer after that loud noise.

Once that thought crossed my mind, I became urgent. Without further delay, I opened the door.

“Huh, what’s this.”

But the moment I grabbed the doorknob and stepped outside, I was met with a pitch-black living room.

It seemed Hwa Nabi had turned off the lights… and today of all days, the weather wasn’t good, and the living room curtains were blackout type, so hardly any light came in.

“Hwa Nabi, are you here?”

“…”

“Where did she go after turning off all the lights…”

With no answer, I had no choice. I had to look for her myself.

I took a step forward while feeling along the wall. Since I wasn’t yet familiar with the layout, I groped along the wall searching for the light switch.

Actually, turning on the bedroom light would have made the search much easier, but I was too flustered to think of that.

Anyway, as I continued feeling my way along the wall…

When I reached what felt like the middle of the living room, something soft and squishy entered my outstretched right hand.

What kind of texture is this… I wondered briefly.

“…Eek!”

Suddenly, without any warning, a shrill scream erupted right in front of me. Startled, I stepped back a couple of paces.

“W-what?”

Could a thief have broken in? But the voice seemed too high-pitched for a thief… All sorts of thoughts raced through my mind as I instinctively tried to take a defensive stance.

-Click!

The ceiling flickered and the living room lights came on. I squinted reflexively and froze. Hwa Nabi was standing right in front of me.

“…”

But her outfit was rather unusual. She had been wearing comfortable clothes just ten minutes ago, but now she was dressed in some kind of shiny black outfit.

No, looking more carefully, it wasn’t an ordinary outfit. It exposed her shoulders, collarbone, arms, and chest area… a very revealing costume.

You know, what people commonly call a bunny girl outfit? I’m not sure of the exact term, but it was something like that.

“Siwoo…”

Hwa Nabi was blushing bright red, crossing her arms to cover her chest. Why is she suddenly like this? After pondering for a moment, I immediately realized the reason.

The soft, squishy feeling in my hand, her face flushed with embarrassment, the defensive way she was covering her chest… all these clues pointed to one thing.

Yes, it seemed I had accidentally touched Hwa Nabi’s chest while feeling along the wall. There was no other explanation for her reaction.

Having belatedly understood the situation, I gulped.

“Ah, sorry. I couldn’t see anything… I didn’t do it on purpose.”

It’s a bit funny to apologize for touching her chest when we’ve already seen everything of each other, but still. That’s that, and this is this.

Hwa Nabi let out a deep sigh, shook her head, and lowered her arms.

“Ah… it’s okay. It wasn’t on purpose.”

I’m glad she understands.

But… why is she really dressed like this? Coming back to my senses, I examined Hwa Nabi’s appearance more carefully.

Her neatly styled pink hair with bunny ear headband on top. White cuffs, a shiny black corset, fishnet stockings with openings on the inner thighs…

“……”

This was definitely not ordinary clothing. The question “Why are you wearing this?” naturally rose to my throat, but I couldn’t bring myself to ask it.

However, Hwa Nabi seemed to read my mind and answered the unasked question.

“Um, you know, right? Our anniversary is coming up soon.”

“Anniversary… oh, you mean our thousand days together?”

To be honest, I was half-guessing, but Hwa Nabi nodded.

“Yes, so to celebrate that anniversary, and moving in together, and also successfully getting into university. I wanted to celebrate together… but…”

Hwa Nabi trailed off and fidgeted with her fingers. I wasn’t sure if she was hesitating to speak or didn’t want to say it, but I could guess what was coming.

Something like: I prepared all this and my mistake ruined it…

As evidence, there were unlit mini candles on the partition between the living room and kitchen, and Hwa Nabi was wearing a bunny girl outfit she wouldn’t normally wear.

“…Really, I wanted to do something special for you for once.”

Hwa Nabi hung her head dejectedly. She must be quite disappointed that her carefully planned event fell apart before it even began. I completely understand that feeling. I would have felt the same if our positions were reversed.

“…”

…So how could I comfort this cute bunny girl? Several lines came to mind immediately, but they probably wouldn’t be a fundamental solution.

“Hmm…”

After thinking it over, I quickly came to a conclusion. I approached Hwa Nabi.

“Hwa Nabi, look at me.”

Standing face to face like this, Hwa Nabi had to look up slightly at me due to our height difference. I reached out and gently fixed her bangs.

As confusion began to appear in her eyes while she watched me, I leaned down and…

-Smooch.

Lightly kissed her on the cheek.

“…Oh.”

Perhaps surprised by the sudden kiss, Hwa Nabi stood with wide eyes, not knowing what to do. Then, with a very shy attitude, she rubbed her reddened cheek and looked at me…

“S-Siwoo?”

She looked so cute that I wanted to hug her tightly and kiss her properly.

“Wait just a moment.”

But this was just a temporary remedy for her gloominess, so I suppressed that urge and headed to the kitchen.

Slide,

I opened the drawer and took out a cooking lighter. She looked at the object in my hand and asked:

“What are you going to use that for?”

You’ll see. Instead of answering, I turned on the lighter and lit the mini candles.

“You should have lit these first, then turned off the lights. The order was wrong, wasn’t it?”

With the living room lights off and the torn stockings, the situation was clear. She probably turned off the lights to set things up and tore her stockings in the process. That’s why she screamed in surprise.

“Ah, I see.”

Though I was just guessing, it seemed I hit the mark, as Hwa Nabi let out a short exclamation.

Really, she seems so meticulous with housework sometimes, but then she still has these clumsy moments.

“…All done.”

The mood might be a bit lacking, but this should be enough. Having finished my work, I approached Hwa Nabi.

“Um, Hwa Nabi?”

“…Y-yes?”

Seeing her standing there with her hands neatly folded in front of her, carefully waiting for my words… I found myself getting quite nervous.

I cleared my throat and composed myself. Then, gently taking her hands in mine, I spoke slowly.

“Congratulations on getting into university. Congratulations on our upcoming thousand days together… and congratulations on moving in too, I guess? Hmm. I’m not sure how to express this properly… anyway, you know I like you a lot, right?”

Somehow my words became more jumbled as I continued, but I couldn’t help it as I tried to convey my sincere feelings. Having finished speaking, I waited for Hwa Nabi’s response.

The soft glow of the candle flames, the orange light filling the living room, tinted her cheeks red.

Hwa Nabi stared up at me with a shy smile, and then…

“Yes, congratulations on getting into university, Siwoo. C-congratulations on our thousand days together too. And congratulations on moving in. And, and… I like you a lot too. ……I really, really like you.”

…She said such lovely words in such a lovely voice.

“…Siwoo? I’m feeling shy, so could you say something… Ah.”

I gently held her chin and pressed my lips against hers. She seemed surprised for a moment, but soon closed her eyes obediently and kissed me back.

“Haa, hmmm…”

A brief, short kiss. Our gentle kiss ended when Hwa Nabi pulled back.

“W-wait a moment, Siwoo. I have a favor to ask…”

“…What is it?”

I asked, wiping my glistening lips with the back of my hand. She glanced at me nervously, then carefully said:

“Can we take just one picture together?”

“A picture…? I don’t mind, but why a picture?”

“Just because I want to keep a photo like this. …Is that not okay?”

“…Of course it’s okay.”

I had my phone handy, so it was an easy request. I placed my phone on the shelf and lifted Hwa Nabi up in my arms.

“Now, smile.”

“…Mmph.”

-Click!

“Got it. Is that good?”

“Wait a moment. I need to check if it came out well… Ah. S-Siwoo?”

I can’t hold back anymore. Reaching my limit of patience, I firmly secured Hwa Nabi in my arms and walked forward.

Completely ignoring her surprised murmurs, I whispered in her ear:

“…Prepare yourself. Even if you beg me to stop, I won’t let you go.”

Hwa Nabi’s cute cheeks turned bright red, as if they might burst at any moment.