Morning. The sunlight is coming into the room, and my consciousness awakens.

Shaking off the drowsiness, I prop myself up on the bed with just my upper body.

The usual morning. The usual room. However, the scenery was just a little different than usual.

At the foot of the bed, on the carpet, lay the table as if to be stepped on by the table. There lay Rui-san.

Curling up like a caterpillar, she was sleeping soundly.

I recall the memories of yesterday.

After the seminar drinking party, Rui-san came to my room to drink some more, and she got so drunk that she fell asleep without going back to her own room.

Even though I tried to wake her up, I couldn't because her sleeping face was so peaceful. So I decided to leave her as it is. Eventually, she would wake up and leave the room on her own. But the result is just as I see it. Finally, it was morning without waking her up even once.

I gaze at Rui-san's sleeping face from the bed.

Memories are coming back.

Last night, when she kissed me.

I was having a rambling conversation with her while she was in a drunken state.

What we were talking about, I can't remember anymore.

However, every time she spoke, I was captivated by the glimpse of her tongue piercing. Rui-san noticed my gaze. And then she said.

"Are you interested in my piercings?"

Holding a can of highball, she asked with a faint smile. My heart skipped a beat.

"Yuito-kun, you've been watching me the whole time, haven't you? Even when I came to the convenience store to buy cigarettes. You were trying your best to cover it up so it wouldn't be noticed."

"...Did you notice?"

"Yes. From the very beginning. That's why I was deliberately showing it."

Indeed, I was attracted to her tongue piercing.

When she came to buy cigarettes, the silver glimmer that briefly showed when she expressed her gratitude. I felt a faintly dark emotion there.

"Do you want to see more?"

Rui-san let out a smile, turned to face me, and stuck out her tongue, showing it off. In the middle of her light pink tongue, there was a silver piercing embedded.

I was taken aback when I witnessed that scene.

The silver gleam within the slick red. It was terribly lascivious. I felt like I was seeing something I shouldn't be seeing.

But I couldn't look away. As if entranced. Become captivated.

As I couldn't move, Rui-san slowly leaned in closer. Our shoulders brushed against each other. Her pleasant scent filled my nostrils. I can also hear her damp breathing.

Even though I have been drawn into the distance, I can't move.

By the time I realized it, my lips had already been stolen.

It was as if the spider was preying on the insect it had ensnared in its web.

Her tongue is invading my mouth. The mucous membranes of both of us, our tongues intertwining. Hot. It's slimy. It's wriggling as if it were a living creature.

She had a calm demeanor like an intricately crafted doll. However, her tongue harbored an abnormal heat. That overwhelming heat conveyed that she was a living being.

Devour each other. So intense that I can't breathe. I'm about to drown. Our heat is mixing, and it feels like we're going to melt.

Her tongue slithered sluggishly like a slug. There was an inorganic sensation there.

Piercing. I touched her earring with my tongue. It was inorganic. It was like a tasteless candy.

I became engrossed for a while and kept licking the tasteless candy. I couldn't think of anything else. It felt as if the core of my mind had gone numb.

How much time has passed? Rui-san eventually pulled away her lips, seemingly satisfied.

"Did you like the earrings?"

And with a seductive smile, she asked.

I could only nod slightly. My head was numb, and I couldn't find the words. It feels like my language center has melted away.

"...Hehe. I see."

With a faint smile, Rui-san had a much more mature expression than I did. She was beautiful.

There was nothing more.

When Rui-san lay down on the floor, she started to breathe as if her battery had run out, and I still didn't know how to proceed to the next step.

So, that was it.

I have no idea what Rui-san was thinking when she did that. Tomorrow, when she wakes up, she might not remember anything.

But at least I remember. There's no way I could forget.

That heat, that sensation has been etched into me.

After that, I went out to the balcony and stood in the night breeze for a while. To cool down. Otherwise, I didn't feel like I could sleep.

Chapter 10: The Taste of Piercings