Attending the annual summer festival with both old friends and new, Shouko Komi soon finds herself in a very vulnerable position - one that a certain pink-haired mischief-maker is all too happy to take advantage of.
This story is being uploaded to my Blogger for archival purposes. It was originally posted to my DeviantArt on July 20, 2023.
This story was co-written by myself and the fantastic Crowns_and_Quills (alternative profile here), and is adapted from a scene from Chapter 47 of the manga, which I believe was adapted into the anime wholecloth alongside the rest of the summer festival arc - we used a mix of the two versions for the events and dialogue. There are also references to canon scenes from both before and after that chapter, with their own ticklish twist of course - the aim of this fic's production was to produce a tickling-themed retelling of some of the stuff that actually happened in the manga, depicting what would've went down had the original creator been just a little kinkier. I've already waxed a bit sentimental about Komi-san herself but, being the little shit they are, Najimi honestly deserves a good tickle themselves and I'm definitely considering a follow-up story where they get exactly that. There's a lot of other things I'll need to work on before I can get to that or anything else personal, though, but maybe someday it'll happen. A big thanks to Crowns for their help with this story - while I provided most of the plot beats, proofreading, and plenty of stuff to maintain story flow and put my own creative thumbprint on the fic, the bulk of the writing is their work. Go check out and support their own profiles on dA and AO3 linked above if you enjoy this and would like to see more from them in the future!
Original illustration set by SkaeaDaimonion (me!):January 2023 Reward: Komi Can't Stand It (v1)
January 2023 Reward: Komi Can't Stand It (v2)
PATREON REWARD FOR JANUARY 2022
Komi Can't Communicate (c) Tomohito Oda
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The chatter of cicadas mingled with the sounds of grilling stands, children wandering about, and young couples admiring the scenery. Basking in the pleasant breeze, the summer festival goers trailed from stand to stand as the night droned on. Tadano looked on from a nearby bench, sitting comfortably as the crowd passed him by with little notice—his air of normalcy bordered on the supernatural at times, had it not been for two people who weaved themselves out from the mass toward him.
And to think, just a year ago, I’d have never had the courage to even be here, the tall, raven-haired female thought to herself, daring not to look anyone in the eye as she followed in the wake of her shorter companion. How did it come to this? Has Tadano-kun’s influence given me some emotional strength I never knew I needed?
Ahead of her, Najimi strode toward Tadano with a waddle in their step and a wave of their hand. “There you are!”
Or, maybe, none of us thought any of this through, and we’re all about to embarrass ourselves…
Komi trailed a couple steps or so behind Najimi, her gaze locked on Tadano’s as she approached, raising her hand in an awkward half-wave of her own. Being told that her yukata had looked beautiful had definitely bolstered her confidence, but not by much; still, the urge to keep Tadano from being disappointed was what kept her going tonight.
“Sorry,” Tadano started. “I didn’t mean to make you two come looking for me.”
“Good thing we weren’t far, then!” Najimi chirped. “C’mon — we’ve gotta save some goldfish, and I need you for good luck!”
“But Komi-san is already here,” Tadano said, pointing toward the girl in question. “Isn’t she enough?”
“Nope!” the childhood socialite quipped as they glanced in the direction of the fishing game booth. “It’s always better to have two friends around instead of just one!”
Tadano shuffled in his seat for a moment before meeting Komi’s gaze. The girl looked at him for a moment as silence fell over the trio before she let out a quick, quiet huff and nodded her head. That was all the boy needed before he stood up slowly and followed his yukata-clad friends into the crowd.
This is going to go either really well or really badly, Komi thought to herself as she led the way. Now, where did Najimi-san run off to? It’s such a big crowd here, and they could be anywhere by this point. Maybe they’re stowing away the PS4 I won for them five minutes ago…
Indeed, the previous festival game the two of them had been playing was the “Thousand-Line Lottery”, where each customer chose from a massive selection of ropes hanging from the ceiling of the booth and tugged it to reveal the prize it was attached to. Najimi had managed to retrieve a pack of pocket tissues, much to their chagrin, but despite the volunteer running the booth banking on a special trick to prevent anyone from getting the console — i.e. the rope it was apparently attached to being attached at the midpoint to a different one — Komi had pulled the correct rope to win said console without even thinking, to everyone’s surprise (and the volunteer’s dismay).
And that was how Komi had found herself in the awkward position of being Najimi’s “good-luck charm”, as they’d put it. Either that or it was just a natural talent that kicked in whenever she wasn’t overthinking things, but she could hardly tell by this point.
Fortunately, they didn’t have to look for long. Najimi had wasted no second plopping themselves by the pool next to the fishing booth, rolling their sleeves up slightly. A coy, goofy grin stretched across their face as they rolled their arm back.
“All right,” Najimi said, enthusiasm brimming, “I’m winning big tonight!”
“Relax, Najimi,” Tadano said. “Getting worked up like that will just make it—”
A fat goldfish leapt out from the water and into Najimi’s net, breaking it in one jump. Najimi could only blink as the water splashed his face. Tadano and Komi looked on, just as surprised as Najimi was.
“Uh,” Tadano finally said, “I think you’re holding the crowd up. Are you going to—?”
“One more,” Najimi stated plainly.
Tadano barely attempted a word as his friend took another net and watched the tiny schools of goldfish swim by with a focused yet blank stare. Their motions were slow — almost catlike — as they swirled the rim of their net against the top of the water. Then, in a flash, they swept their net deep into the water before flinging it out.
“VICTORY!” Najimi cried.
An awkward silence lingered over the stall before Najimi turned toward Tadano and Komi, their face still stuck in one of muted triumph.
“Um, Najimi?” Tadano said, pointing toward the right. “Your net…”
Najimi blinked. “…Eh?”
It took them a few minutes as their gaze slowly trailed back to their broken net. The fat goldfish’s head bobbed near the water’s surface, taunting Najimi, before shifting back further into the pool’s shallow depths.
Tadano glanced over and noticed Komi watching the way the goldfish swirled around each other for a few moments. “Komi-san,” he said finally, “did you want to try?”
Komi whipped her head to face Tadano as she flinched. “Mmm?!”
“You looked like you wanted to try,” Tadano replied, smiling with gentle encouragement. “Go ahead.”
Komi’s gaze trailed slowly from Tadano toward the pool. Slowly, the girl made her way forward and kneeled down, her hand gingerly grasping a net.
She was seemingly suspended in the air, weightless, with just the balls of her feet in contact with the red geta she was wearing that were in turn planted on the ground. Even with her heels raised, her balance was all but impeccable as she eyed the pool before her, hesitant but refusing to back out. Tadano and Najimi are counting on me, after all! she thought, holding her net just an inch over the water.
Slowly, delicately, the noirette trailed her net through the air, watching as the once scattered mass of goldfish converged to wherever Komi’s net lingered. Najimi watched in blank-faced awe as Komi slowly dipped her net into the pool and the goldfish huddled around, eager to hop inside. Startled, Komi pulled her net away and the goldfish scattered back. The girl took a moment to breathe before she leaned her net forward once more. Straying quickly from the crowd, a small goldfish fluttered forward and plopped onto Komi’s net. Komi raised her net into the air only to watch the fish flounder about before tumbling off the edge and plopping back into the water, bubbling to itself — perhaps in disappointment.
The other two milled about in confusion as Komi stared, wide-eyed, at the pool still full of fish, wondering what had just transpired. Not knowing what else to do, she leaned forward a little further and dipped the net into the water once again.
No matter what Komi-san does, it’s so picturesque, Tadano thought to himself as he watched her move her net through the pool as gently as she could. She was not alone at the pool, either — Najimi had resumed their own attempt next to her despite their broken net, and at her other side, the class chuuni had just joined them as well, to the boy’s surprise and confusion.
“Hm? Nakanaka?” Tadano asked, but she ignored him as she started whispering quietly to herself:
“Ghostly servants of mine, make the fish gather on one side only!”
Silence reigned for several seconds afterwards, but the sight before the three left a lot to be desired as far as Nakanaka was concerned.
“Come on, why aren’t they getting close?!” Najimi asked aloud, watching the fish start swimming away from the chuuni and right past the other two participants.
“I’d ask the same thing myself,” the other brunette added with a glower. She got up to try catching them from the other side of the pool, the trailing tails of the ribbons tying her yukata fluttering close to the ground as she passed right behind the still-kneeling Komi.
The noise the quiet girl made at that precise moment was faint, but unmistakable. An errant breeze had lifted one of the ribbons of Nakanaka’s outfit just enough that its very tip had just brushed her right foot, just below the upturned heel.
Please, please tell me nobody saw that! Komi’s eyes were wide with alarm again for a brief moment as she continued working her net, trying her best to ignore the residual tingling in her partly bared foot. But just as she glanced at Najimi to see how the other was faring, she realized that the pink-head was staring at her in almost as much surprise, not caring about the one fish they had caught freely swimming out of their net.
Uh-oh… They did see it, didn’t they…
The group remained silent as the game ended. As had been repeated with the previous games they’d tried, Komi had outperformed Najimi by a startling margin - there were at least a dozen goldfish in her bag, as opposed to the one that Nakanaka had left with (she hadn’t caught a single one, so she got one for free). Najimi could only sulk in frustration.
“Do we need to get an aquarium for all these fish?” Tadano asked. “That’s… A lot. I don’t think a single bowl is going to be enough for all of them.”
A single bowl isn’t enough for one, even, Komi added in her head. Without missing a beat, she turned back to the pool, opened the bag, and emptied the water, fish and all, back into the pool.
“Ehhhhh?!” Tadano and Najimi exclaimed simultaneously.
Even the volunteer running the stand was baffled. “But miss… Those were free for you to keep!”
Komi shook her head just slightly, not having it in her to say she wouldn’t want to keep so many fish in a household that probably wouldn’t be able to maintain them all.
“I demand a rematch!” Najimi had a fierce look on their face, leaving the flustered Komi speechless. “That last time didn’t count, because I was distracted! Let’s try that again, and this time with nobody else around to screw the game up!”
Komi could only nod. She reached into her pocket and fished out a spare coin she still had on her thanks to not having to spend as much as most other participants in the games overall. When she glanced at Najimi for them to do the same, however, she noticed their face had fallen suddenly.
“I… I may have run out of money trying to get the prizes from before…” the pink-ette said in shame. “I guess you can try it again, right?”
Komi said nothing, but held her hand out to try and pass the coin to Najimi.
“Hm? No no, you do it, not me!” Najimi pushed her hand away. “You’ve had more luck than me at this, so it’s best if you win for me like you did with the ropes.”
“But Najimi, you deserve a fair play—” Tadano started, but he didn’t get to finish. Komi had given him a meaningful look and a small shake of her head.
It’s okay, Tadano-san, she seemed to be saying. I’ll do it for Najimi’s sake. Just call it a favor, okay?
The other two nodded, though as Komi turned back to the pool and accepted a net from the vendor again, she only barely noticed from the corner of her eye that Najimi was now sporting a devious grin, as though plotting something…
Returning her focus to the latest round of the fishing game, it would be to her detriment not to pay closer attention to the way Najimi looked at her. Their gaze was locked on Komi kneeling over the pool, her feet stretching against her sandals as she hovered over the goldfish. The forever-childhood-friend would be lying if they said they hadn’t noticed it before—Komi’s feet were big. From the few glances they got of them before, the tip of Komi’s heels grazed over the edge of her sandals. Stretching them out only furthered their long yet slender shape: a pair of narrow arches between ovoid heels and balls topped with long toes. Najimi’s smirk hitched slightly as they noticed how deep Komi’s arches looked, sloping from her heels to the balls of her feet like a wave.
Najimi’s hands moved on their own, reaching toward Komi’s taut size twelves with one finger each. All it took was a single poke at the center of her arches before…
“Mmmm!” Komi squeaked, flinching where she knelt.
The noirette shot a frantic glance over her shoulder. Tadano stood just as he had when they first arrived at the fishing stand, but Najimi…
The close distance between her and them made Komi shiver slightly before creaking her head forward toward the pool. Something about Najimi’s cheeky grin made the girl shudder, her feet stretching slightly as she knelt closer toward the goldfish—
“MMMM-HMMM?!” Komi squealed, her whole body jolting with renewed fervor.
The girl looked back again, now sweating bullets, as Najimi smirked at her. Komi didn’t dare trail her gaze downward to Najimi’s hands lingering near her stretched feet.
“Don’t mind me,” Najimi mused. “You got this in the bag, Komi-san~!”
Not with you distracting me! Komi’s mind cried out in growing panic. Stop it! Please stohohahhahHAHAHAHHAHHAHP!
Najimi’s fingernails had already started wiggling into the exact center of each arch once again, where it was at its deepest. “Just keep your eyes on the prize and you’ll get it in no time, Komi-san!”
But I can’t stand being tickled like this! Komi thought desperately, each quick and teasing stroke of Najimi’s fingertips seeming to claw away at her already faltering concentration. Noooo! I don’t want to have such sensitive arches! NOOOOOO!
If her tormentor could tell what she was thinking, it was more than likely that they weren’t going to oblige her anytime soon. Najimi’s fingers stroked and strummed along the taut lengths of Komi’s flipper-sized arches, the girl shuddering and yipping to herself, trying to keep any laughter down to not attract any unwanted attention. Struggling to move the net through the pool water as gently as possible, her body jolted as Najimi swiveled their fingertips into the center of her trembling-mad. Her toes flinched open, forcing the girl to stumble in her kneeling position, but grasping at the ends of her sandals. Her gaze was torn between the goldfish swimming near her shadow and Najimi casually flicking and stroking their fingers around her arches.
YAHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAH, NOHOHHAHAHAHHAHAT THEHEHHEEERRE! Komi’s mind was screaming at the top of its voice. THAT SPOT IS THE WOHOHAHAHAHHOHOHORST! CUT IT OHOHOOHOOHOUT! NAJIMI-KUN! N-NAJIMI-SAHAHAHAHAN! STAAAHAHAHHAHAHHAAHAHAAPPP!
And yet, her eyes watering and her lips letting out tickly hiccups and yips every few moments, Komi still wavered her net over the pool without daring to break away, slowly sinking it into the pool with a shaky hand. The goldfish inched near the ripples as Komi’s hand trembled ever so slightly. Slowly, Komi dipped the net further and inched her shivering hand toward the approaching goldfish. It seemed to swim along in an uncaring fashion until it noticed the net and tried to dart away, but a sudden three-fingered spidering upon the part of each foot where the arch met the ball of it led to Komi jerking her net and scooping it up. It tried to jump out and swim to freedom, but she hastily fished it out and passed it to the very confused volunteer, who took it to put in the reward bag while wisely deciding not to ask why the sole contestant at the booth was now giggling uncontrollably.
On and on this went, Najimi continued to wiggle their long, sharp nails up and down and all around Komi’s quivering, defenseless arches, her own body weight leaving them unable to move a single millimeter. Her net slipped her net into the water again, her quivering sights set on the fatter goldfish in the group that has eluded Najimi twice. It fluttered nearby, its gaze shifting from the rest of the fish swimming away and the net coming closer. Swishing away, Komi’s net chased after the fish as Komi stilled her body as tensely as she could. As she was mere inches away from the fish, her body jolted with renewed vigor as she felt Najimi’s fingertips dig into the crook at the top of her arches that met the tops of her feet.
“HYEEEEEE!!!” Komi squealed freely, her eyes going wide as she flung her hand upward from the pool.
Raw, tickly panic overtook her so severely that she only registered the shocked gasps of the others around her a second or so later. Feeling a weight in her net, Komi shot a glance upward and saw the fat goldfish that evaded her friend before square in the center of her net.
The booth’s volunteer looked at her in confusion once again, but finally clapped his hands with a pleased look. “Well done, miss!”
“That was fast, Komi-san!” Tadano added. “I never knew you had such quick reflexes!”
Komi’s glance jumped between Tadano, the booth volunteer, and the few from the crowd that clapped at her achievement before her gaze met Najimi’s blank stare.
The perpetual best friend only blinked. “Ah. Good for you.”
Komi only stared at Najimi, seeing their hands near her taut feet from the corner of her eye.
Then Najimi let out a mischievous chuckle, wiggling their fingers in a way that sent a chill up Komi’s spine. “How about a reward for your trouble, then, hmmm~?”
NO! NO NO NONONONO! Komi thought frantically. NOT HERE, NOT NOW!!
Too late. All ten fingernails swiftly dug into the hollows of her taut arches, the sensitive size twelves unable to escape as their owner felt every muscle in her body lock up in a panic.
Well, almost every muscle.
“AIIEEEEEEEHEHHEHEEEHEHEHAHAHHEEE!!!!”
The owner started, nearly dropping the two fish he was now bagging. Turning to stare at the girl who had just finished playing and who had finally broken her silence with a fit of hysterical laughter, he finally decided to glance past her and immediately noticed what was wrong.
“…eh? That’s what was getting you to make all those strange noises earlier?”
“YYYEEEHEHEHEHEHEESSSS!!!” Komi had found it in her to finally speak up; too bad it was under extreme duress, and it certainly didn’t help that there were too many baffled onlookers to count. “YAAAHAHHAHAHHAHH!!! NYOOOHHOHOHAHAHAHHA! SOMEONE, HEEHEHHEHEEHELP!!!”
“Heh, guilty as charged,” Najimi chuckled themselves as both of their their upturned hands continued with their lightly scratching torment. “But seriously, Komi-san, who can blame me? Your big, soft feet are just too cute to resist. Tickle, tickle, tiiiiiiickleeee~!”
“NOHOHAAHHAHAHAT HEHEHEHHEEERE!!!” Komi shrieked, struggling not to lose her balance. “SOMEBODEEEHEHEHEEEE!!! SAAAAAHHAHAHAHAAVE MEEEEEWHEHEEHEEEEEEEE!!!!!”
Tadano had seen enough. Moving forward, he gave Najimi a very light sideways kick in the shoulder. Surprised at this, Najimi ended up struggling not to fall on their side, reaching out to grab the first thing they could reach. Naturally, it was Komi’s yukata, the result being that she too was pulled down by her friend’s weight, feeling the side of her head enter the pool with a massive splash that soaked her hair and the left shoulder of her costume.
Multiple bystanders rushed forth to assist the pair, but Tadano was the first to reach the two, helping them both to their feet and hastily escorting them as far away from the agitated crowd as they could without leaving the festival venue entirely.
Komi didn’t dare to speak, and looking either of them in the eye was out of the question. She could only cover her face with both hands, trying to hide the fact that it was now red as a tomato.
“Oh well,” Najimi said happily. “It was fun while it lasted!”
Tadano sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Najimi-san…”
Najimi paused, slowly taking in the awkwardness of the situation, and slowly hid their hands behind their back. “Sorry ‘bout that.”
As the evening drew to a close, the trio walked down the booths in utter silence, the only sound from any of them being their lamps swinging faintly in the wind. Still a little flustered from what he’d seen unfold at the fishing game booth, Tadano held the bag of goldfish he’d picked up from the vendor in his hands, looking at the pair as they swam around each other.
“Well… I guess two is more manageable,” he said finally. “You made a good call, Komi-san.”
“Yep!” Najimi added. “Always count on Komi-san to make the right choices!”
Komi, keeping a tense posture, only mustered a slight hum. The incident at the fishing booth had left her an emotional wreck for the better part of a half-hour, and it had taken Tadano at least that long to reassure her that nobody had meant her any ill at all, with the possible exception of a now very apologetic Najimi.
“What was that all about, anyway?” Tadano asked Najimi, looking rightly suspicious and a little annoyed. “Were you trying to distract Komi the way you were distracted yourself?”
Najimi shrugged. “Fair’s fair, I suppose.”
“Let me finish, please. Was that your intent, or were you thinking about tickling Komi-san’s feet for a while before tonight?”
“HMM?!?” Komi stopped dead in her tracks, her eyes wide. H-HOW DID HE KNOW—?!
“H-how did you know?!” Najimi asked aloud, also stopping to stare at Tadano.
“Hmmm… Remember that trip we took to the pool the other day? The one where Komi cut her knee at the diving board?”
Komi could only bury her face in her hands, wanting to ignore this increasingly cringe-inducing conversation but unable to do anything to stop it.
“Yes, why?” asked Najimi.
“Well… it was just after she got her scrape bandaged. We were playing at the pool late in the day, when I saw you eyeing a certain part of her when she wasn’t looking. She was resting in the water while everyone else was splash-fighting, and then you came up to her saying you wanted to check on her leg, and she yelped and pulled her feet away a moment later… Don’t think I didn’t see your hand reaching toward her foot like that!”
Najimi struggled to find the right words, taken aback by Tadano’s sudden forthcoming demeanor now that they were isolated. “Oh… Oh, alright, I did it. She’s got cute, big feet, I couldn’t resist. And so soft, too—”
NOOOOOOOOO!!! Komi wanted to curl up into a ball, more flustered than ever. But before she could find the words in her mind to convey her feelings clearly, Tadano spoke again.
“You should’ve asked first. And that goes for tonight, too — you should’ve checked ahead of time if she was okay with you ‘distracting’ her the way you did.”
Najimi chuckled nervously. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. Sorry ‘bout tonight, Komi-sa—”
Komi looked over her shoulder toward the two, her blushing face in a puckered and adorable pout. She stood a few steps or so in front of them, her left foot stretching upward to bare her blushing arch to the wind.
“…Najimi-san,” she finally muttered with a whisper-quiet voice.
Najimi and Tadano said nothing, blinking as they kept their gaze on Komi’s precious pouting face. The instant the glanced down toward her foot, the girl turned forward and continued walking.
“…Eh?” Najimi said. “Komi-san?”
“Komi-san?” Tadano said, following after Komi as her pace quickened. “K-Komi-san? Are you okay?”
Komi’s cheeks burned, reaching the tips of her ears as she kept walking with her friends following behind her.
Some time later…
It was a quiet weekday for Tadano and Komi as they cleaned her house. They worked from room to room, tidying up any clutter and making sure the floors were swept. Though there was small talk here and there, neither felt the need to chat much during Tadano’s visit—they were a very peculiar couple that way. Even though the entire school knew their relationship, Tadano and Komi were content quietly basking in each other’s presence.
“Sorry for calling on short notice,” Tadano mentioned as the two made their way to Komi’s bedroom. “You mentioned your family would be away for the week, so I thought you’d be lonely.”
“Mmm, it’s fine,” Komi muttered. “Thank you, Tadano-kun.”
“Ah,” Tadano hummed, his cheeks a slight shade redder. “Don’t mention it.”
Without another word from either of them, the young couple entered Komi’s bedroom and got to work. Tadano shuffled over to her shelves, his gaze shifting his girlfriend’s assortment of books. Komi took to the floor, filling up a bin they brought with them with any scattered clothes.
The two of them were silent for a while as they tidied up the room, both of them lost in thoughts and memories… one memory in particular. But finally, Komi mustered the courage to speak.
“H-how’s Najimi-kun?”
“Oh, they’re doing well. Why?” Tadano looked somewhat confused by the question.
“Well… I noticed they were trying hard not to look at my feet ever since the festival—”
“Ohhhh…” Even though that had been a while ago, the memory was still rather fresh in their minds. “I see what you mean. They did apologize, at least, so there’s that.”
“I… I’m glad,” Komi replied as she stood up with the basket in hand and made her way towards a nearby closet to put it away, purposely avoiding looking at her friend to try and hide her sudden blush. “It was… quite scary, having to go through that in front of everyone. But you helped me, back there. I… I don’t know what I’d do without you, Tadano-kun.”
“I… Uh… Thank you—”
“Owch!” Komi nearly dropped the basket, stumbling back. Tadano was instantly at her side, fussing over her as he often did whenever something was wrong.
“Komi-san, are you okay?”
“I’m fine, just… I must’ve stepped on a stray piece from one of my brother’s old model kits. M-maybe I should find and pick it up before it hurts anyone else.”
Tadano remained silent for a few moments, still not used to the way she had become much more talkative when there was absolutely no one else around except him. “I guess so,” he said finally. “Shall I take the basket, then? Then after that i can check on your foot—!!”
He gulped, his cheeks feeling warm as Komi too blushed with wide eyes, both of them realizing what he’d just said almost simultaneously. There was an awkward silence for a few moments, and then she nodded slightly and mumbled, “I-I guess…”
Before Tadano could respond to that, she’d passed the basket to him and turned away, letting him carry it over to the shelf while she got down on all fours to look under the bed for the kit. Once he’d put the basket away and looked back at her, he felt his mouth fall open.
Komi’s head and shoulders were hidden under the bed, but she was on her hands and knees while reaching for the kit, and her large bare feet were now fully exposed with her toes pressed against the floor. It seemed that she’d felt his eyes on her, because an instant later, she stopped moving, and her quiet voice came from under the bed.
“Tadano-kun…” Komi said with a hesitant tone. “You don’t have to hide anything from me while we’re together. …You do want to tickle me, too, yes?”
He gaped at her, completely taken aback. “I — uh — but I—”
“You’re already staring at my feet… I can tell you wanted it, too. Just like Najimi-san did.”
He gulped, and then sighed. She was right, and he felt bad for being such a hypocrite when he’d tried to get Najimi to stop tickling her at the festival. But he had to admit… Najimi wasn’t wrong when they said her big soles were too cute to resist.
“Yes, I actually do,” he said finally. “But I didn’t know if you were okay with it.”
“I… I guess you can. If it’s you, at least I can trust you to be gentle…”
He blinked in shock. “You… You mean it?!”
She paused. “If… if I know it’s you doing it, and we’re in private, then… Then yes, it’s alright, I suppose.”
His eyes widened as he stared at her protruding lower half with his mouth agape. “Y-you really mean it?!”
She paused, her arm already extended to try and reach for the kit box she’d just spotted. “…whatever you want,” she said finally. “Just… just be gentle, okay?”
Tadano nodded, forcing down the nervous lump in his throat. As Komi continued trying to retrieve the kit box, she could almost feel her friend creeping ever closer, and a slught shiver went down her spine as she all but sensed how he took a seat in front of her still-crouched figure. Komi’s soles seemed to stretch slightly in his presence, as if practically presenting themselves to her boyfriend, and Tadano’s face grew several shades redder in response before he slowly inched his hands forward.
The instant his fingers grazed along the edges of her heels, Komi’s feet shuffled slightly and the quiet girl gasped sharply. Tadano flinched away for a moment, his breath catching in his chest, before he noticed Komi’s feet shuffling about to stretch her soles more. Slowly, Tadano’s hands returned toward Komi’s feet and he took to slowly slipping his fingers up and down her soles. His hands trailed along the sides of her feet, around the bottom of her heels, and snuck between her insteps with Komi gasping and mewling all the while, her feet trembling ever so slightly. After a long minute of teasing, Tadano’s fingers slowly slipped inward and he begun slowly stroking along Komi’s taut arches. Immediately, Komi tensed beneath the bed as Tadano’s slow, restrained tickling forced her to wiggle about, a hand clasped over her mouth to muffle a few giggles. Compared to Najimi’s attack on her feet before, Tadano approached tickling his girlfriend in a more patient—almost sensual—manner. Komi’s muffled giggling mixed with bouts of weak gasps and barely-restrained moans that made Tadano’s face heat up further.
“T-Tadano-ku-huhuhuhuuu-n~!” Komi begged from under the bed, even as she finally managed to get the pad of just one of her fingers on the corner of the kit box and began pulling it towards her.
Komi-san! Tadano thought, his pulse raising as he teased his girlfriend’s feet. Y-You’re making it sound worse!
As his nerves were reeling from Komi’s unique reaction, Tadano failed to consider his fingers speeding up. Komi shuddered against the bed frame as her feet squirmed and quivered against his touch before she felt his fingers strike at her “spot”. Feeling Tadano’s finger strike the top of her arches made the girl flinch as she strained to look behind her.
“T-Tadano-kun!” Komi started. “W-Wahaha—HYAAAA?!”
Tadano’s fingers briefly scribbled along the crook in Komi’s arches near the balls of her feet and Komi squealed with renewed panic, jolting up slightly and banging the top of her head against the bed frame. He fell back, face still beet red.
“Ah!” Tadano yelped. “S-Sorry, Komi-san! I didn’t mean to get carried—!”
“N-no, it’s… it’s fine,” she replied softly, pulling herself out of the bed and sitting cross-legged in front of her, the kit box in hand. “I… I should’ve been more careful, that’s all.”
Tadano couldn’t help but fidget over the spot where she’d hit her head, running his fingers through her hair. “You’re, um… you’re not hurt, are you?”
She reached up to feel the same spot. It was still a little tender, but nothing too serious, thankfully. “I… I think I’m okay. Th-thanks… for your concern.”
“Is your foot still hurt?” Tadano asked, glancing down at her legs. “The one that stepped on the part from that old model?” Reaching around to his side, he picked it up and examined it. “At least, my guess is this belongs to the kit you’re holding, so…”
Komi rubbed her foot, her gaze shifting from her sole toward the model part. “Mmm—I think it’s from the same kit.”
“I never thought Shosuke was a fan of boats,” Tadano said, giving the piece to her.
“Well, he does like models,” Komi clarified. “It’s a hobby of his. All sorts of them, too. Planes, boats, robots…”
Tadano looked at the model kit for a moment before looking up to his girlfriend.
“Well… D-do you know how to make models, too?” he asked.
Komi paused in thought. “I…suppose I’ve picked up a few tricks from helping him out. Did you… want me to put this together? I… I feel my brother would appreciate that.”
“It’d be better than leaving it under the bed forever, I guess. If only so we can have a good memory to attach to it. And I… I can help, too, if you want.”
She looked at him with wide eyes, and he could almost imagine a pair of cat ears eagerly sticking straight up out of her hair. “Y-you mean it?”
“Of course,” Tadano said with a smile. “I don’t see why not.”
She blushed a little. “I was thinking, though… it seems like you enjoyed teasing me, while I was under the bed. So I was thinking… Can I see if I can assemble it… you know… while being distracted?”
Tadano flushed harder than ever. “Huh?! W-what do you mean?”
“W-well, my brother is able to do it even with a lot of noise around the house. Television, conversation… But everyone’s out of the house except us, so… if you want to try and break my concentration the way you were… doing… earlier…” She blushed hard, covering her face with both hands while the kit box lay in her lap.
Tadano fell silent for a moment, stunned, before fumbling his hands in his lap. “S-Sure! I can be a great distraction! You know… if you’ll have me.”
Komi nodded, setting the box on the floor with her back to her companion; seated on her heels with her knees and the bottoms of her toes planted on the floor, her arches were once again stretched out as tightly as could be.
She’d barely managed to get the first few pieces out when Tadano’s nails began wiggling into her soles once more.
“Khhh… mmheheheheh… pfffeeeEEEhehhehHEHEEHHEE!” she squealed, her toes flexing against the floor as she quivered in place, nearly dropping one of the plastic pieces she was trying to fit into another.
“Let me know if it’s too hard,” Tadano said. “I can slow down if you want, Komi-san~!”
“KYAHAHHEEHhehehehehhHAHAH! I-IT TICKLES SO MUHUHAHAHACCCHH! L-lets see, so this part goes hehehHEEHEHHERE— FFFHHHH — KEHEHEHEHEH! AAHHEHhehhahHAHE HWWAAHAHOHoohohohahhHAH! TADANO-KUUHUuhuhuHUHUNNN!”
Pausing to wipe her tears of laughter from her eyes, Komi barely managed to pull herself together even as the very centers of her arches were subjected to her friend’s fingertips stroking oh so lightly upon them. If there was one thing Tadano had that Najimi lacked, at least, it was courtesy — it was clear that he was being as gentle with her as he could, and if she was feeling overwhelmed, he’d know when to dial back. If there was anyone she’d allow to tickle her long soles, she’d rather it be him, if only in private, and she had a feeling he’d be happy to do so as long as she was in the mood to let him. There was some measure of comfort in that thought, and it certainly motivated her to do her best to assemble the kit model together for his sake, despite the feeling of every one of Tadano’s nails playing upon her stretched-out soles driving her to utter distraction.
Eeheheheek! Even now, I truly can’t stand being tickled! she thought to herself. Even then, though, she still allowed herself a smile that wasn’t exactly forced. But you know what? Having such sensitive arches is fine, actually!
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