382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0T86w39PmP
I don’t even know when it started—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwpvfADuGj3
this quiet, growing love I have for Kouichi.
When we were little, I always thought of him as my younger brother.
He was always quietly by my side—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfISmfcCD32
picking up my fallen hair clips,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW8dPovsA45
handing me a handkerchief when I cried.
I thought he was smaller than me,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9d8NT8lO9P
someone I had to look after and protect.
But at some point—he had grown taller than I was.
When he walked beside me,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA7NZkR3QQA
his shadow stretched longer, broader.
His voice had deepened.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVCyHobG3IS
His eyes had grown more still.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOStc2h7Mjm
And he no longer nodded at everything I said—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKOfpbNqeAr
he had learned how to say “no.”
It was in that moment I realized—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaMmljJ6QZc
I could no longer see him as a younger brother.
Because he had become… a man.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKJmj5LUSmp
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9TWYLJTDKq
When he stands too close, I blush.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNRuswova17
My heart skips.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡig6OYPTuOf
Even just meeting his eyes makes it hard to breathe.
If I go a whole day without seeing him, I get restless, unsettled—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaUklj8YDlR
and my mind keeps replaying his face, his voice, over and over.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7GLaD6LsVI
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLH0twiLuhF
And whenever I do see him,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0iyVCAt7AR
my gaze can’t help but follow him—
From the tousled strands of his hair,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyMZYaKZwSW
to his long, dark lashes,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyEjgfDCfsi
to the steady rise and fall of his chest as he breathes.
Even the light texture of his skin under the sun,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqcsen5fwvp
the curve of his shoulders… and—
That tiny mole on the right side of his neck.
And then…382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1pEAw5FEub
there’s his Adam’s apple.
It moves slightly whenever he talks or swallows—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡawUsiYtV5x
and every time,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcDUuYfD2eu
I find myself wondering what it might feel like382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIzObUJ4Twa
if I brushed my fingertips across it.
Sometimes, I even catch myself staring at the shape of his lips.
He doesn’t have to say anything—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡe7Q5hzcY8l
and still, I can’t help imagining:
If one day, those lips pressed against my skin…382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvtllWGXhIe
my forehead,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdI2Ts7DSMX
my ear,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlGLdMOILh4
the back of my neck…
And finally—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ77aBZ7FXZf
if they pressed against my lips—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlFQMkTuVjC
what would that feel like?382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaz6LPgvfaq
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8MEe5A5sTk
It’s like a melody.
A melody I accidentally heard the beginning of,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdWFo8181AF
and now can’t stop listening to.
It’s not loud,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDD44MjPF59
but it loops endlessly inside me, quietly—
And before I realized it,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ87SlkYdt71
I was already too deep to escape.
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGNWGE2Ci9x
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyGnbUX0L7K
That day, he was driving me to school.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb7QbyNRIef
It was supposed to be just another ordinary morning.
Until a little girl suddenly dashed into the street—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTSmhUAQiQe
and he hit the brakes.
The tires screeched against the road,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIUkKN5BaUN
and the car jolted violently.
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz3DVBDhEoF
Before I could react—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGSPmsjQWNo
his left arm reached across me,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDLKo4WrDAT
blocking me protectively across the chest.
Just two… maybe three centimeters more,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ41Qaak5SOD
and he would’ve touched me.
That wide hand hovered there, fingers slightly spread,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaQTOQwdK88
knuckles sharp and veins faintly visible.
It was so close I could almost feel the warmth of his fingertips—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUfMHri0I61
and the tremor in the air between us.
His hand was still trembling.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5d1RQtty5v
Almost imperceptibly.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDsgvsoRP00
Not out of fear—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4hAIGDri43
but from the lingering adrenaline, the instinct to protect.
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6uLpxoU5TG
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTXbmehIc42
And me?382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLXa4Ht028D
I was already blushing to the tips of my ears.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ62ihIKFhOx
I felt like lightning had struck me.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPz5jcdCYso
I couldn’t move an inch.
“My lady, are you alright?”
His voice was so gentle—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcKj6Z2nxRt
it felt like it could shatter every piece of armor I wore.
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEaBFIRjsVJ
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9yoSYgg86e
I quickly turned my face to the window,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxAd6cUhoPE
trying to hide the heat in my cheeks and the chaos in my chest.
“I-I’m fine…”382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBivVYEQT5c
The words came out in broken fragments,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPstJgOS1Kr
caught in my throat.
I tried to sound calm,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAha6fGSr1f
but I couldn’t ignore that hand—
The hand that had nearly touched me,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv2mnVu53ay
and somehow felt even more overwhelming than if it had.
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZyBLK6Ruqq
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My heart was in a mess,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxBoE4ZPnMZ
but deep down, in some tiny corner of me, I couldn’t help wondering:
How long has it been since he last touched me?
The last time we held hands was when I was twelve.
He was ten.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfe5MtHDj8G
We were playing hide and seek in the garden.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ZFkovSzZt
He grabbed my hand, sweaty and small, and said:382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKzxCmWfit8
“Don’t worry. I’ll pull you along.”
His hand back then was soft and a little damp, still a child’s.
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUBbkZgQRYp
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo1HLDpcD4F
But now…
I snuck a glance at him.
That hand had long since grown—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtk3BnQqTXq
broad and steady, joints defined,382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMsKOHUF2gZ
carrying the quiet strength of a man.
If I were touched by these hands now…382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡts9CMqoCeU
Would they still make me feel safe?
Or had they changed—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeV1l5REmqj
become something irresistible?
Would his touch still comfort me…382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzydsaNrBEp
or stir up something I’m not ready for?
I couldn’t say it aloud.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWASMiw1c7h
I didn’t dare look at him again.
I just let those chaotic, greedy, and shamefully yearning thoughts382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH8yETf71k1
rise like waves in my heart—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaTThmk3oO7
rippling out in silence.
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKGrWL4QgoN
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoizdmXDvY6
It was a touch that never crossed the line—382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmJYBOJAvaz
but deep down, I quietly longed for it to.382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5CD1kf21wE
382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡippOFCkEqu
You made it this far—you're seriously the sweetest! 🥹💗382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZNgxlo2tfX
If you liked it, don’t forget to like 👍, bookmark ⭐, and drop a little comment 📝~382Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7jsOWYRooA
Your support keeps me going—and keeps the characters falling deeper in love 💞💭
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