"Haha... you live alone."
I'd parted ways with Sabakatani-san at the station and brought Tokoyami back to my place. Some part of my brain was doing math about where this might lead. The rest of my brain told that part to calm down.
"Tea? I've got iced — black, green, or barley."
"You don't have to—"
She was going to say that. I poured the green tea anyway and brought it out to the living room.
"Why did you save me?"
"You had that look. The thinking-yourself-into-a-corner look. I figured it was headed somewhere bad. I was right."
I hadn't been obligated to do anything. But I'd rather carry some inconvenience than sit with regret. Pure self-interest, honestly.
"I'm... glad."
She gripped my sleeve. Her eyes filled.
"No one's ever saved me like that before."
Fair enough.
"So why'd you jump?"
"My boyfriend said he wanted to break up."
"And?"
"And I told him if he broke up with me, I'd jump off a building."
That was a choice.
"Why... why... I love him so much... why..."
"He said your love was too intense?"
"But he told me it was fine! He said he didn't mind how intense I was!"
"I can already tell you're bad at reading men."
"What?"
"Men will say anything to get with a girl they like. Telling you your love is fine — that's not a promise, that's a sales pitch. He hadn't thought it through."
"That... can't be true..."
"That's how men lie. File it away."
I patted her head lightly. She blinked up at me.
"So are you being kind to me right now because you want to sleep with me?"
"Yes."
Obviously, if sleeping with the Moon-Shadow Goddess meant sitting through some heartbreak, that was a fair trade. Hence the kindness.
"Then be kinder."
"Kinder than this costs extra."
"I'll pay with my body. Whatever you want. Just... comfort me."
She fixed me with a look — sharp, unblinking, predatory — and kissed me.
Mnh...♡
She pulled back, eyes half-lidded, expression soft and overheated.
"I know I'm... at least a little cute?"
"Yeah. Akira is cute."
"Call me Akira."
"I can do that?"
"For Nevada-kun, yes."
Another kiss. Her hand found mine and guided it to her chest.
"I'm sorry I'm not bigger."
"Size isn't everything."
(That said — Sabakatani-san's chest was genuinely staggering. Easily an H-cup. Akira was more of a C. Still plenty. More than enough to make a teenage boy's brain malfunction.)
"Nevada-kun... Nevada-kun... Nevada-kun...♡"
She kept kissing me. But she wasn't actually seeing me, was she?
"Hold on. Do you even like me specifically?"
"You caught me when I jumped."
"And that's enough?"
"Yes."
That was fast.
"What about the last guy?"
"He dumped me. Nevada-kun — will you take my love, even if it's too much?"
"What happens if I say yes?"
"I don't come home tonight."
"That's — okay, wait—"
"I'll give you everything. I've never done anything, but you can have all of it. My lips, my chest, all of me. Don't you want that?"
(I really, really do.)
"So it's settled. You can do whatever you want with me."
"This is literally every virgin's dream."
"What are you like? Down there?"
"On the smaller side."
"That doesn't matter to me at all."
That helped more than it should have.
"Wait, are we actually doing this?"
"If we're not, I'll have to take care of myself in your shower."
"That's also a problem."
"Go out with me. Then you can have everything."
"Everything meaning...?"
"I don't have much in savings, but — oh, I have the deed to my family's property."
That's terrifying. She means it. She absolutely means it.
"Also, give me your phone passcode. If we're dating, sharing information is the girlfriend's duty."
"Don't act like you're already my girlfriend."
"You won't... go out with me?"
"Correct. And you're not getting my passcode."
"But you don't need other girls anymore. Let me delete your contacts and social media — all the other girls. I'll be all you need."
So that's what heavy love looks like up close.
"This is exactly why you got dumped."
"But contacts with other girls aren't necessary when you have a girlfriend, right?"
"Okay, I'm going to head out now—"
"Nevada-kun — no — please don't leave me—"
She threw herself at me. Let me touch her. Gasped. Kissed me again and again. Pulled out every stop in what I could only describe as a desperate sales pitch — and I declined every item on the menu.
"Nevada-kun... I love you... I love you so much... I won't give myself to anyone else..."
Kiss. Kiss. Kiss.
"Please. Make me your girlfriend."
"Too much work. Pass."
"You're all I have."
"There are other guys."
"But you're the only one who caught me."
(That was spite. For the record.)
"Then at least let me delete the girls' numbers. We can start dating after that."
"Absolutely not."
"And at school you can't talk to other girls, okay? If you need company, I'm right there."
That's the thing about love this heavy — it crushes whatever it holds. Now I understood perfectly why her ex had bailed. A person could lose themselves entirely dating someone like this. Trading a night for that kind of psychological damage was the move of a fool.
My particular brand of foolishness ran in a different direction entirely.

Chapter 4: A Girl With Love Too Heavy to Carry