The first term ended, and summer break began.
Though—
“Eleven… twelve… thirteen… Yuzuru-san, just a bit more!!”
“—gh…”
“Fourteen… fifteen!”
“Haah…”
Yuzuru collapsed onto the floor, limbs spread out.
Meanwhile, Arisa clapped her hands enthusiastically.
“That completes today’s quota.”
Fifteen reps with the ab roller, two sets a day.
That was the goal Yuzuru had set.
His diet was still ongoing.
“…Your turn next, Arisa.”
“Y-yes… I know that! Y-you don’t have to tell me…”
Saying that, Arisa picked up the ab roller Yuzuru had just been using.
“—nn…”
“One… two… three… three.”
“H-hey, wait! Count properly—”
“We agreed sloppy ones don’t count. …Three… four… five…”
“Ugh…!”
Face flushed bright red, Arisa somehow managed to complete her target of eight reps.
Her goal was two sets of eight per day.
She collapsed onto the floor in a starfish position, just like Yuzuru.
Her large chest rose and fell with each breath.
Yuzuru lightly poked her stomach with his finger.
“H-hey, s-stop… hih—!”
A strange sound escaped her—half yelp, half laugh—likely from the ticklishness, the slight pain, and the strain on her abs.
Finding it amusing, Yuzuru poked her side again.
“Geez, Yuzuru-san!!”
Smack—his hand was forcefully swatted away.
Arisa slowly sat up, glaring at him.
“Honestly…”
“Hey, sorry, sorry… it was just kind of funny.”
“…You do realise I’ll be getting you back, right?”
“I do—but I won’t go down without a fight.”
He braced himself.
But Arisa shook her head firmly.
“I’ll settle this tomorrow… when you’re exhausted.”
With it being summer break, Arisa spent most of her free time in Yuzuru’s room.
Lately, she was there more often than at her own house.
Naturally, she’d be back tomorrow for ab roller training as well.
And she planned to strike when he was worn out.
“I’m glad you’ll be here again tomorrow.”
“I’m not foolish enough to fall for that.”
She shot him a flat, unimpressed look.
For now, Yuzuru could only hope she’d forget by tomorrow.
“Well then… next is running.”
“Strength training alone won’t make you lose weight.”
Aerobic and anaerobic exercise—
Both were essential for dieting.
“Still… this is tough…”
Yuzuru muttered.
Arisa replied in a calm, matter-of-fact tone.
“You need to be in shape by mid-August. Honestly… you’re surprisingly lacking in willpower, Yuzuru-san.”
“Well… it’s my first time dieting.”
There were two reasons.
First, he’d simply never gained weight before.
He ate a normal amount, wasn’t a big eater, and stayed active.
He might grow taller, but he’d never grown wider.
Second, he’d never cared about his weight in the first place.
The only reason he cared now was because he wanted to look good in front of Arisa.
Before, he’d never had someone like that—so there’d been no motivation to slim down or build muscle.
“I-is that so… your first time…”
“What about you, Arisa? Do you diet… often?”
“Yes, I do—well, saying it like that makes it sound like I’m constantly struggling with my weight. …I usually just do it before summer.”
“Fair enough.”
He’d never once thought Arisa looked overweight.
Sometimes he wondered if she consumed a bit too much sugar, but she somehow maintained a very slim figure.
“I do keep track of calories regularly, you know.”
“What about the cakes on your days off?”
“Th-that’s… a separate matter.”
The “cakes” were the sweets Yuzuru prepared whenever she came over.
And not just the cakes—surely the sugar and milk in her coffee were also filed under “separate”.
“It’s not really good, those kinds of things… they’re high in calories…”
“Then maybe we should stop—”
“I didn’t say that. …You just balance things out elsewhere!”
For some reason, Yuzuru pictured embezzling company funds with the justification of “I’ll make up for it later.”
“Still… it’s a problem if your motivation is dropping.”
“It’s not like I’ve lost motivation that much.”
“Maybe not now—but if you ignore it, it’ll catch up with you later.”
“…Speaking from experience?”
“Yes.”
According to Arisa, that feeling of “I don’t want to do this” builds up day by day.
And eventually, it turns into “Well, just for today…”
That becomes the breaking point.
“And the rebound afterwards gets worse.”
The stronger the sense of relief after finishing something unpleasant, the more likely you are to overindulge—
like eating a lot of your favourite foods.
“Let’s find something to enjoy. Or a reward.”
“A reward, huh…”
After running came dinner.
Normally, Arisa’s cooking would count as a reward—but—
“Lately it’s been shredded cabbage…”
“I’m doing this for your sake, Yuzuru-san.”
Currently, instead of rice, he was eating bowls of shredded cabbage.
It filled him up decently, but… rice was better.
And not just that—the side dishes had all become healthier too.
Of course, Arisa’s cooking was still delicious—
But for a growing boy like Yuzuru, it felt a bit lacking.
“A reward, huh… what do you think would be good?”
“Hm? Let’s see… maybe a massage? I’ve done that for you before.”
“Yeah… maybe…”
Massages felt nice.
But whether that alone could carry him through this diet was questionable.
More than anything, eighty percent of the appeal was being close to Arisa.
If he just wanted a massage, he could go to a shop.
…And then, an idea struck him.
“H-hey, um…”
“…What is it?”
“Well… actually, never mind.”
He almost said it—but then thought better of it and stopped.
“That just makes me more curious. What is it?”
“N-no, it’s really nothing…”
“…I won’t get angry, you know?”
She leaned in, peering at his face.
Her jade-green eyes blinked softly, her flaxen hair swaying.
“R-really…?”
“Really.”
“Well… it’s just an idea, more like a suggestion…”
He scratched his cheek slightly, then said—
“What if… the reward was… you?”
He nervously glanced at her reaction.
And Arisa—
“…Eh?”
Froze, her face turning bright red.
