“Desir, do you want to go on a trip?”

As Althea and I were eating our shrimp pasta, the girl’s eyes glistened right into my soul. Pausing, I dropped my utensils and gazed right back.

“Hmmm? Why all of a sudden?”

“It’s not on a whim,” Althea pouted. “You know that my mid-terms are going to be over soon, right?”

“Yeah,” I replied with a nod. Althea’s university schedule was much like my own. We had breaks at the end of every season, and the Autumn break was no exception. Of course, the holiday will only begin once their mid-terms examinations were over.

“And since it’s going to be the final break of my university life, Grace thought that we should end it with a bang!”

“Bang?”

“Yeah!”

Elated that she had gotten me on the hook, Althea tapped on her touchscreen phone a few times, bringing up a browser showing a beautiful advertisement for an inn. On it, there were mountain ranges, flower fields and an array of different activities that one could enjoy in the midst of Fall. But the thing that caught my eye was…

“A hot spring trip?”

“That’s right!” Althea beamed. “Grace has already invited Kiera, Evelyn and Celeste! We will be gone for a weekend, so it won’t affect your work that much.”

“Hold on, that sounds like an all-girls affair. Do you really want me sticking out like a sore thumb?”

“That’s true, but none of us can drive so...”

Ah, I see where’s this is going. Rather than a boyfriend messing up with their plans, they wanted a designated driver to ferry them around. Well, other than the city, there aren’t many places with exceptional public transport. If they wanted to get around quickly and efficiently, they needed a car.

“If that’s the case, sure I can make time! Just tell me the date, and I’ll take a leave.”

“N-No, you don’t have to waste your precious leave on something like that.”

“It’s really fine,” I replied smilingly. “I don’t have any other vacations to spend my leaves on anyway. Besides, I have accrued quite several leave days as well. If I don’t clear them, they will void it, so it’ll only be a waste.”

“I-If you really say so...”

“Do you need me to book the inn as well?”

“No, that will be handled by Evelyn. It seems like her relative runs the place.”

“Oh,” I smiled sinisterly and rubbed my index finger and thumb together. “Will there be discounts?”

“Haha, apparently yes!”

“Hehe, that’s why having connections is king!”

While I wasn’t strapped for cash, who could turn down a lovely friends and family discount?

But a hot spring trip, huh? Yeah, my shoulders have been becoming kind of stiff nowadays. Perhaps I should book a massage session there? A full body massage after soaking in a mineral-rich pool of volcanic water… Yeap that is what Autumn should be!

❖❖❖

“Phew, we finally made it...”

A few weeks after Althea and I had that conversation, the pair of us had finally arrived at the famed hot spring inn. Just as Althea had planned, the trip was only going to last for a weekend. So, I booked a car in the afternoon and drove us out of the city in the afternoon, giving us plenty of time to reach before dinner.

As for Althea’s friends, they were going to meet up together and take a ride from Evelyn’s relative’s car. Typically, I would have offered to drive them together, but their houses were all far from mine, making it far less efficient for me to ferry them one by one.

In the end, we settled for meeting at the destination itself.

Speaking of the place...

“Yeah, the ride here was hectic, but it was quite a view, wasn’t it?” Althea rubbed her forehead while recalling the beautiful scenery that we passed by.

Just a few hours away from the city, the glorious land was surrounded by mountains and meadows. Words couldn’t begin to describe how colourful the land was, with the empyrean azure of the skies to the brownish-yellow of the earth.

The rivers that flowed from the mountains were a sight to behold as well. All of them flowed with impunity, slowly eroding the rock that surrounded them. The hustle and bustle of the city were replaced by the serene softness of the country.

Goodness, if it weren’t for work, I would have left the city more often.

“Haha, I tried to avoid the rush hour traffic, but it seems impossible.”

“It can’t be helped. Many students are leaving for their breaks as well, so it’s to be expected.”

“Fortunately, we didn’t turn up late.”

I chuckled as I swung the hotel keycard with my fingers. Like most accommodations, the hot spring inn had a check-in and check-out time. And while we were under the good graces of Evelyn’s relatives, it wasn’t good manners to miss the check-in time just because we couldn’t leave on time. Especially when they were kind enough to reserve two rooms for us.

“Will your friends reach on time?”

“Even if they won’t, Evelyn said that her relatives would leave the key at the reception for them.”

“Heh… So are you sleeping over at their place tonight?”

That’s right. For our weekend getaway, Althea and her friends had booked two rooms. If they were just a group of five friends, they would most certainly have booked just one room to save money. But there was a big problem. A 1.87-metre problem, that is.

Where was I going to sleep?

Although I was Althea’s boyfriend, and they more or less trusted me, it was still suspicious to let a twenty-seven-year-old man spend the night with five university girls. Heck, even if they allowed me to sleep in their room, I would be uncomfortable!

So to prevent such a scene from happening, I got a second smaller room which I would share with Althea. Officially, the plan was for Althea to sleep Friday and Saturday night at their room and Sunday night at mine. But plans change all the time. If Althea wanted to sleep all the nights in my room, I wouldn’t be complaining.

“I’ll ask them later… But if they don’t want me...”

“Yes, yes… I’ll book a private hot spring pool for us to soak in.”

“Hehe, that’s better!”

The good thing about this hot spring was the fact that they had private booths for couples and families. While soaking in the large hot springs with facilities such as saunas and jacuzzis were tempting, sometimes, privacy was needed.

“Ah, speak of the devil!” Althea got up the moment a notification came on her phone. “They have just arrived! Oh, they’re going to the hot springs to soak off their fatigue first. That...”

“It’s fine,” I reached for the gift bag the inn provided and pulled out the female bathrobes, towel, and other amenities for Althea to use. “There’s always tomorrow and Sunday. You go enjoy yourself with your friends. I’ll take the evening off tonight.”

“If you say so...”

There was a tinge of reluctance in Althea’s voice as she reached for the amenities. Even without her speaking, I could tell what her mental conundrum was. Her friends had planned this trip and expected to spend time with her, but Althea wanted to enjoy as much of her hot spring adventure with me.

Half of herself really wanted to play around with her friends. After all, a hot spring trip like this doesn’t come very often. However, the girlfriend half of Althea’s brain told her to stay here where we could go to the hot springs together and spend the night cuddling.

That mental dilemma caused the girl to adorably pace around in place. Her feet would move towards the door, but her body would swerve back, causing her to go around in circles.

Good grief… What a troublesome girlfriend I have.

“Althea, you shouldn’t keep your friends waiting.”

“... I know that.”

“How about this?” I moved over and held the girl firmly in my chest. She was stunned by the sudden action but was unable to do anything to stop me. Leaning in, I whispered: “When you sleep here on Sunday, I’ll plan a couples massage session plus a private booth where we can soak our fatigue away. I’ll even do the thing that you like.”

“R-Really?”

“Mmm-hmm,” I nodded before leaving her cheek with a little kiss. “We’ll be separated for two whole nights. When we finally sleep in the same bed… Well, I guess you can imagine the rest.”

“... I understand!”

As I watched my girlfriend leave the room with light footwork, I couldn’t help but break into a smile. Goodness, why is she so cute? Still, since it’s going to be a lonely night, I should take my time at the public hot springs just to melt away the mental fatigue that will pile on throughout the weekend.

❖❖❖

“Wow, your relative’s hot spring inn is massive, Evelyn!”

As the five of us stepped foot into the vast public bath, Grace couldn’t help but speak out with awe. Well, the same could be said about the rest of us. Like most hot spring places, the establishment held many relaxing facilities, ranging from saunas to spas.

Unlike its exterior, the inside of the hot springs was extremely spacious, with several pools ranging in different temperatures. There was a high-pressure jet bath that helped relieve tension in the muscles. There was a simple hot bath that was densely packed with volcanic minerals, which aid in relaxing the mind. There was even a silk bath to help ease the skin and brighten up one’s complexion.

And that was just the tip of the iceberg.

Cold baths, sauna rooms, steam rooms, floral baths… The list of facilities to relax in was endless. It was a pity that men and women had to be separated, else I would have dragged Desir in with me.

“Thanks,” Evelyn replied rather impassively. “It’s not as big as my family’s, but the facilities here are much more comprehensive. Tsk, I should really force that old man to renovate our ancient place.”

Evelyn looked around with a tinge of jealousy in her eyes. Just like her relative, Evelyn’s family ran a similar hot spring inn. However, unlike this one, theirs was far out in the country. I haven’t been there before, but I heard that the water they used for their hot springs was as natural as they come. That’s why her family didn’t feel the need to modernise the place as it gave a traditional feel.

But given how quickly the times were changing, Evelyn felt that her family business should evolve to cater to the younger customers.

“Haha, we can talk about that boring stuff later!” Kiera interjected as she noticed the conversation was about to turn dull.

Now that we were inside the baths, none of us were wearing any clothes. To keep some modicum of modesty, some of us held towels over our bodies to cover our chest and other private parts. Kiera, on the other hand, didn’t have that care. She was waddling around with her birthday suit, seemingly proud of her own proportions.

If only I had her kind of confidence...

Smiling with the face of an old geezer, the girl came up from behind me and playfully grabbed my breasts.

“Ekkk, Kiera! What are you doing?!”

“Hehe, just copping a feel.”

“What are you, a pervert?” Celeste scoffed as she came to my rescue.

“Eyyy, don’t be such a downer. Hmmm? Althea, did your breasts grow by any chance?”

“H-Huh, there’s no way that’s true!”

I replied to Kiera’s question with a blushed face. It’s been many years since I stopped growing there! I mean, they might have expanded just a little bit, but that could be due to many reasons!

“Hoh… I guess Desir has been helping you grow it.” Grace mumbled with a bitter expression.

“W-What do you mean?!”

“Hohoho, is that true?!” Kiera lunged next to me, her eyes sparkling with the curiosity of a cat.

“G-Guys, I’m going to ignore you if you continue teasing me!”

“Haha, we’re joking~ Joking~.”

Grace waved her hands in jest as she reassured me. Falling back in the pool, the girl suddenly added: “Hah… Time really waits for no man. One minute your friend is single, and the next, she’s in a committed relationship. I’m really getting old...”

“Grace, you’re twenty-two...” Evelyn chuckled as she gently pulled on my best friend’s leg. “But I get what you mean… To think that our Winter Princess has finally found her Summer Prince.”

“You guys...”

Is it that hard to believe that I have finally found someone that I love? Hah… It’s really during times like this that I miss Desir’s embrace. Urgh, and I have to spend two nights without him? This is going to be torture.

“So? Are you going to sleep with Desir tonight, or are you staying with us?”

“W-With you guys, of course.”

“Oh? Look at this girl… She says she wants to spend time with us, but her heart is clearly pointing in the other direction!”

“Hah, what do you expect? Althea is basically head over heels for Desir. Telling her to spend one night apart from him is basically asking her to give up a day of her life.”

“Kakaka, I didn’t expect that Althea would be the overly-attached girlfriend in our clique. Now we have collected all the rare cards!”

“Rare cards?” I tilted my head at Kiera’s odd declaration.

“We have the committed girlfriend that plans all the way till marriage.” Kiera first pointed at Evelyn. “Next, we have the girl that can’t keep a boyfriend.” She then pointed to Celeste. “Then, we have the girl next door that befriends many guys but doesn’t date any of them.” Kiera’s finger found her spot right at Grace. “You also have yours truly, who is a girl who fools around with many guys.” Kiera pointed to herself before finally pushing her index finger in my direction.

“... And finally, we have the girlfriend that is fully devoted to her boyfriend! Isn’t that all of the rare cards?”

Now that she pointed it out… Maybe that was the case…

“Hey, what do you mean I can’t keep a boyfriend?!” Celeste yelled out in discontent.

“And it’s not like I don’t want to date any of them… They just don’t see me as a love interest.” Grace followed up with a remorseful frown.

“Haha, I’m just playing...” Kiera waved her hands to soothe their anger. After all, she didn’t bring up the topic to waste time on them. Turning towards me, she lowered her tone and asked: “Now that we have you alone, I have a crucial question to ask you, Althea.”

“W-What is it?” I gulped, thinking that Kiera was going to ask a profoundly severe question. But to my utter surprise.

“How big is Desir’s package?”

“What?”

“How big is his junk?”

“... Huh?”

I couldn’t comprehend what I was hearing. They were asking for… the size of his thing?!

“Come on, I’ve had many men in my life, but I’ve never had a specimen quite like Desir!” Kiera cried. “That man’s body is something that you’ll only see in movies! Also, I wanted to see if the stereotype is true.”

“Stereotype?” Grace answered in my stead. However, just like me, her face was gradually turning red. And not from the hot steam that the mineral-rich water was emitting.

“Yeah, you know they say that those men with big muscles to show their masculinity are overcompensating for something.”

“And you mean that...”

“That’s exactly what I mean!” Kiera leaned in with an impish smile. At the same time, all of my other friends were also opening their ears, curious as to how I was going to answer. “So… How big is it?”

“... I’m not telling you!”

This was Desir’s private matter! Besides, why on earth will I tell another girl about Desir’s thing?! It’s mine! I mean, Desir’s!

“Oh, don’t be that way.” Kiera wasn’t going to give up that easily. She took her face towel and wrapped it into a burrito shape. Then, using her two hands, she roughly gauged the size and asked: “How about this? Is it bigger or smaller?”

“...”

I’m not going to tell! Besides, that’s barely the size of my thumb! Do you really think that my boyfriend’s size is that poor?! That’s just insulting!

“Haha, look at how disgusted she is. It’s obviously bigger.” Celeste, who had nothing better to do, joined in the conversation.

“Hehe, thankfully, Althea can’t hide her emotions! Now, what about this?”

“...”

“Oh damn! It’s bigger? What about now?”

“...”

“Bigger, again?! Wait, let me add a little more length!”

In the end, the pattern repeated itself until they roughly guessed Desir’s overall size. I covered my face in embarrassment as the other four watched on in awe at the length of the towel.

“... Jesus, Althea. How on earth did you manage to take this?” At this point, even Kiera was lost for words.

“... My innocent little Althea has turned into a fully-grown woman.” Grace rubbed her forehead while swallowing her saliva.

“Not only is he good at cooking and every other thing but… What can I say, Althea? You really found a guy with the full package.” Celeste gulped similarly.

“...” Evelyn, the only one with a boyfriend, didn’t say anything extensive. But I could see her face blushing as she peaked at the final size that Kiera had stopped at.

“I’m sorry, Desir! I’ve failed to protect your modesty!!!”

Meanwhile, at the men’s side of the hot springs…

“Ah, this is the life...”

Desir was calmly sitting in the outdoor hot spring, blissfully unaware that his privacy was being violated right next door.