Trial Lover 2 (Patreon)

Main Story 1 - Trial Lover, Begun.

RAW

“It's because I love Aoyama-san.”

I finally told Aoyama-san herself about the affection I had been harboring for about half a year.

Aoyama-san's eyes widen and she lowers her gaze a little.

“You... love me?”

“Yeah. Since around six months ago, I guess. Since I saw Aoyama-san petting a black stray cat at the park just outside the main gate.”

“I see. I've met the black stray cat-chan several times at that park since the second term of my first year. She's a cute stray cat who lets me pet her, especially on her head and back, ever since I met her.”

“So that’s how it is. Stray cats that let you touch them are especially cute, aren't they?”

I have met many stray cats until now. But, there aren't many stray cats that will let me touch them. That's why I think stray cats that you can touch are really cute.

“Aoyama-san's gentle smile when you were petting that stray cat was so charming. That I fell in love at first sight. I also thought it was wonderful that you treated the cat so kindly. Ever since then, seeing Aoyama-san fills me with happiness. Your usual cool side, and the smile you sometimes show to your friends as well.”

“I see. You fell in love at first sight of my smile... is it?”

As she says that in a quiet tone, Aoyama-san's expression becomes serious and she lowers her gaze even further. She looks like she is lost in thought.

“Aoyama-san?”

When I call out to her, Aoyama-san's body twitches and she looks at me again.

“I-I'm sorry. I was remembering a lot of things.”

“I see. I've been in love with you since half a year ago. Will you go out with me as a lover?”

Somehow, I managed to put my feelings for Aoyama-san into words.

So confessing my feelings can get me this nervous. My heart is pounding and my body is getting hot. The people who had confessed to Aoyama-san up until now were amazing, I thought.

Aoyama-san continues to stare at me. I wonder what she's thinking now that I confessed to her. I wonder if she's thinking of turning me down, just like her previous confessions.

But, although it’s only as far as I can remember... Aoyama-san has never been silent for so long after receiving a confession. Most of the time, she immediately says “I'm sorry” or “I refuse.”

While thinking about various things, I wait for Aoyama-san's words.

“...This is different from the confessions until now.”

Aoyama-san finally opened her mouth and said that.

“Different from the confessions until now?”

Since those words were unexpected, I parroted the question. When I did, Aoyama-san slightly shook her head vertically.

“Yes. When Kamitou-san confessed to me, different from the confessions until now, I felt a slight warmth in my heart. I don't know if this is affection, though.”

“I see.”

“Because of that feeling, I can’t bring myself to refuse your confession... I'm sorry for being so vague.”

From what I've seen from Aoyama-san so far, I thought there was a 99% chance that I would get dumped. She even goes by the nickname Absolute Zero Lady.

Aoyama-san takes her gaze away from my eyes. She may be lost on how to respond to my confession.

“My confession is different from any confessions you’ve received until now. But, you’re not sure if you hold affection for me or not. But you can't bring yourself to refuse my confession.”

“Yes. But, if I start a relationship with Kamitou-san when my feelings for you are not clear, I’d feel sorry for Kamitou-san. I'm sorry for saying this.”

“Don’t mind it.”

Most likely, Aoyama-san believes that “mutual love is a prerequisite for dating as lovers.”

The best solution I can think of based on Aoyama-san's words so far is──

“Then... how about we start dating on a trial basis? We’ll become trial lovers.”

“Trial... is it?”

Aoyama-san looks at me with wide eyes. She might not think I’d ask her to start dating on a trial basis.

“We decide in advance how long we’re going to date. During that period of time, we will spend time together and see if we like each other or not, and if we have fun together. If we like each other, and want to continue to be lovers, we'll officially start dating.”

When someone confesses to you, you accept them and officially become lovers. Or you clearly refuse them. Looking at Aoyama-san, I thought that maybe we don't have to stick with either of these. You go out with them as lovers on a trial basis, and see whether you’ll come to love the person who confessed to you. Isn’t it okay to have a period of time to think whether you want to officially go out with them or not?

“Of course, we can extend the trial period, or if either of us think that it's not working midway through, we can end the relationship. Since it's a trial, we can also set up rules. I guess those things depend on the couple.”

“I see. Now that I think about it, the romance novel I read before featured a couple who were dating on a trial basis.”

“I see. I saw a couple like that in the manga my older sister lent me.”

“Is that so? Also, Kamitou-san has an older sister I see.”

“Yeah. I have an older sister who is a college student. What about Aoyama-san?”

“I have a younger sister who is in her second year of middle school. She is very cute.”

“I see.”

Perhaps because she is talking about her sister, Aoyama-san's eyes are shining a little. Maybe she likes her sister.

Aoyama-san's younger sister, huh? Aoyama-san even says she is cute, so she must be a wonderful girl just like Aoyama-san.

“Let's get back to the topic. After reading that manga, I looked it up online to see if there were any couples who actually started dating on a trial basis. It turned out that surprisingly, there were. Some of them officially started dating, and remain a good couple even after many years.”

“Is that how it is? So there are actually couples who make it work.”

As she says that, Aoyama-san's voice sounds higher than before. Apparently, my proposal to go out with her on a trial basis is well received.

“I thought trying out trial dating might be okay. I do want to spend time together and get to know Aoyama-san better. How about Aoyama-san?”

“...That's an attractive proposal. I would like to try dating on a trial basis, and think about my feelings for Kamitou-san and whether or not we can officially date as lovers. Maybe I can discover the true nature of the warmth I felt when you confessed to me.”

“I see. Then... I guess we’ll be lovers on a trial basis.”

When I say that, Aoyama-san looks me in the eyes and nods firmly.

“Yes. It's just a trial, but... from now on, please take care of me as my lover.”

She said that in a tone that made me feel her kindness. Aoyama-san's words just made my heart feel warm.

“Thank you. I'm really happy. I love Aoyama-san, to be able to go out with you even on a trial basis.”

I almost think I'm dreaming. When I lightly bite my tongue, I feel a definite pain. This is reality. My feeling of happiness grows even more.

“When I look at Kamitou-san's face, I can feel that you’re happy. I think that's good.”

“I'm happy you said that.”

“I see... Since it’s a trial, we should decide on the rules. After cleaning up this trash, why don't we decide on the rules somewhere calm?”

“Yeah. Let's do that.”

In order to have a smooth relationship, let's set the rules properly.

As a result of confessing my feelings to Aoyama-san, we decided to start dating on a trial basis. I'm really happy to be able to spend time with Aoyama-san. I will be even happier if Aoyama-san feels happy and enjoys dating me.

With my spirits soaring, I resume picking up trash with Aoyama-san.

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(T/N: schedule: 1 chapter a day. I might do a double release on Sunday, but I can't be sure I can do it. some chapters are pretty long.)

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