Sōkyū Hatake found their reactions amusing. He walked over to the bed, sat down naturally on the outermost edge, then patted the empty space beside him and smiled at Ayame. "What's wrong? Afraid I'll steal the blanket tonight?"
"N-no, I'm not..." Ayame's voice was barely audible. In the end, she blushed and carefully lay down beside him, her body a little stiff.
The lights went out.
Only hazy moonlight filtered through the paper doors, spilling into the room and tracing its indistinct outlines. Everything was exceptionally quiet; all they could hear were one another's soft breaths and the occasional chirping of insects outside the window.
At first, everyone lay properly, keeping a little distance between them. But however large the bed was, some physical contact was inevitable with four people lying side by side.
Sōkyū Hatake could clearly feel the slight warmth and tension in Ayame's body beside him, smell the delicate fragrance of Sara's hair on his other side, and hear Anko's slightly exaggerated, steady breathing from the innermost spot, as though she were trying to prove she was asleep.
He smiled silently and reached out, first gently taking Ayame's hand beside him. Her body gave a noticeable shiver, then slowly relaxed. Her fingers cautiously closed around his hand, and her tense body gradually softened.
Then he turned onto his side and reached his other hand past Sara, finding Anko's hand in the innermost spot with unerring accuracy and squeezing it gently. Anko's sleeping breaths faltered, and she turned her hand to squeeze his firmly in return, as though saying, "At least you have some conscience," before continuing her "performance."
Finally, his hand returned to the middle and gently encircled Sara's waist. Sara did not move, only leaning back a little to nestle closer into his warm embrace, letting