Chapter 2-B: Good Night!

"And done!" Eryn turned off the shower. "Now, that wasn't so bad, was it?"

"It was great!" Melty raised her hands in joy. "If Eryn is with me, I don't think I'll ever be afraid of baths!"

"Haha…" Eryn's lips curved into a smile. There was something… nice about this moment.

"Eryn…" a little hand poked his back multiple times.

"Iris?" Eryn turned his head around.

"I know I said I could take a bath by myself…" Iris puffed her cheeks out. "B-But I want you to wash me too!"

"Eh?" He raised an eyebrow.

"M-Me too…" Lofie looked at him with upturned eyes. "It's no fair if it's only Melty."

"Hohoho!" Melty gave a haughty laugh, which took Eryn by surprise. "It's fair! You two can bath by yourselves while I can't!"

I didn't know she can laugh like that. Eryn chuckled. And that's not… something to be proud of, is it?

"You two seem to be done with your bathing. I don't think it will make much difference if I…"

"Oh…" Hearing that, both Iris and Lofie's ears dropped down.

"Uh…" A tinge of guilt appeared in his heart as he watched their expressions grow dark. "H-How about the next time you take a bath?"

Both Iris's and Lofie's eyes lighted up. They grinned at each other. "Okay! Next time!"

Soon, Iris and Lofie finished with their baths. Eryn then helped them off the bathtubs and removed the seal from the water drain.

Eryn took a towel from the top of his washing machine. He had only one towel here at the moment. I should keep more towels here. Now that he wasn't living alone, he'd have to be mindful of this.

"Come here, Iris." Eryn motioned for her to come over. She stood in front of him. He crouched down and wrapped the towel around her little body and gently wiped her body all over.

"Hehe, it feels like a massage!" Iris giggled.

"Really now?" Eryn mused.

After making sure she's dried, he moved on to Lofie, then to Melty.

"And now here's your new change of clothes." Eryn grabbed the clothes he took from his sister's room and handed them over to each of them. "I'm sorry I don't have any better ones. I'll make sure to buy–..."

"Waah!" The monstergirls' eyes sparkled with delight as they held on to their new clothes.

"Thank you, Eryn!" Iris exclaimed. "I've never tried on new clothes before!"

"New clothes from Eryn…" Lofie hugged the clothes close to her chest. "… Thank you."

"I'm going to put it on!" Melty said excitedly.

And my worries were for naught… Eryn sighed in relief.

The monstergirls put on their new pajamas. The pajamas fitted them perfectly, much to Eryn's satisfaction. Iris wore a light blue one, Lofie a light green one, and Melty a light orange one.

"These new clothes are so comfy…" Lofie gazed down at herself. "It makes me feel sleepy…"

Seeing her sleepy face reminded him of one thing. Ah, I should probably introduce them to their bedroom.

"Well, let's check out the bedroom, shall we?" He said. "I'm sure you would love to know where you'll be sleeping from now on."

"Oh! Oh! I wanna see!" Melty hopped up and down, unable to contain her excitement.

"Me too!" Iris raised her hand.

He found their smiles to be too infectious. "Follow me."

And so, Eryn guided them to the bedroom, which was actually his room. He opened the door and turned on the lights, revealing the bed. The bed was wide enough to fit in three children or three adult monstergirls at least.

"Wahh, is this our new bed?" Melty's eyes sparkled with such intensity. "Can I, Eryn?!" She looked at him with pleading eyes.

"… Of course." He nodded. "Go ahead."

"Yay!" Melty charged against the bed and jumped on it, bouncing a few times. "It's so soft!"

"I wanna try, I wanna try!" Lofie followed after her and leaped towards the bed. "Wahhhh, it's so comfy…"

"Thank you, Eryn…" Iris hugged him, wrapping her arms around his waist tightly. "You've been so kind to us…" Tears began welling up in her eyes.

"Hey, now." He gently caressed her hair. "This is your home now. You deserve this."

Iris rubbed her tears away with her hands. Eryn guessed they've been through a lot of terrible shelters… and maybe even terrible owners. Just imagining that made his blood boil… a little.

They deserve the best.

He carried her in his arms, stroking her back to calm her down. "There, there…" he whispered. He walked to the bed and sat on it.

"This room smells like you, Eryn." Melty said, sniffing the air around. "It makes me feel safe!"

"Oh… I see…" Eryn nodded awkwardly. That was an interesting compliment, to say the least.

"I like Eryn's scent…" Iris whispered, nuzzling her head onto his chest. Her eyes looked rather heavy now.

Being monstergirls, he guessed they had sharper senses compared to the average human. Maybe scent was an important thing?

"Let's get you to bed, shall we…" Eryn gently placed her down on the bed.

"… Lofie?" he glanced at the Anubis, who had hit the sack already. She must have been quite tired.

"I've never seen her fall asleep this fast." Iris said. "She trusts you a lot. I'm sure of it!"

"I see…" Eryn hoped that was the case. He hoped he could prove a reliable and capable owner to them.

He walked over to Lofie's side of the bed and gently caressed her head. He gently lifted her head, careful not to wake her, and slid a pillow under her head. That's better.

"Eryn, where will you sleep?" Iris asked.

"Oh, I'm going to sleep on the couch," Eryn replied nonchalantly. Good ol' trusty couch…

"You're not going to sleep here?" Melty asked in a concerned tone.

"It's fine. This is your bed now." Eryn smiled, patting her head. "This is where you'll be sleeping from now on." Also, I think it might be a bit too cramped for the four of us…

"But is it okay, Eryn?" Iris looked downwards. "This is your bed…"

"It's okay. Don't worry about it." He stood up, stretching his arms outwards. "Let's get you two to bed. I'm sure it's been a long day."

After laying out the blanket over their bodies and turning on the AC, he tucked them in. "Are the pillows comfortable enough?"

"Yeah! They're really fluffy!" Iris answered, snuggling her head against the pillow.

Eryn hummed in approval. "Well, I'm going to turn off the lights now." He turned around, about to walk to the doorway, but felt someone tug his shirt.

"Eryn…" Melty whispered. "You're… not going to leave us, right?"

She's… really worried about that, huh? He wondered if she faced a lot of abandonment in the past.

Eryn sat down beside her, gently holding her fingers. "I'll be on the couch in the other room. Don't worry."

"Could you… stay here until I fall asleep?" Melty asked shyly.

"Melty…" Eryn smiled softly, caressing her hair. Seeing her like this, it reminded him of his younger days. "Sure."

Eryn rested his back on the headboard as he watched over the monstergirls. Melty was holding on to Eryn's hand tightly as she slept.

He let out a faint sigh, his mind starting to settle down once more. He's gotten to know a bit more about these monstergirls, about what they might have been through.

I can't imagine the pain and struggles they must have gone through…

Was he ready to bear the responsibility of raising them? Honestly, I'm not sure if I have it in myself.

Was he going to leave them? Hell no, I don't want to leave them alone.

Looking over the monstergirls' sleepy and relaxed faces, hearing their faint breathings, he could feel his heart swell up a little. It was oddly… soothing. A sensation that made him feel… alive. A sensation he hadn't felt in a long time.

He may have just met them today, but they deserved to have a home, to have a family…

To be happy.

Against my better judgment, I have adopted three monstergirls.

But I want to make them happy.

He soon felt Melty's grip around his hand lessen, hinting that she may already be fast asleep. Carefully, he slipped his fingers away and moved away from the bed.

Sweet dreams, Iris. Melty. Lofie.

And with that, he turned off the lights and slowly closed the door.

He made his way to his couch and threw his body on it. The trusty ol' couch I know and love since I was a child. He'd slept on it a few times, and it was surprisingly comfortable. He was too tired to change his clothes, he'd figure he'd change them after he woke up. Attached to the seat were extra cushions which could be brought up to increase the seat cushion area, so he did just that.

Taking care of them sure took a lot out of me. It wasn't something he expected yet he knew he had to prepare himself. In a way, it felt fulfilling… he couldn't describe it. Starting today, he would be living with three monstergirls… a new family. This is a lot to think about.

Though, he wasn't feeling tired yet. So, he whipped out his phone and began scrolling through random social media posts… until his eyes felt heavy, bringing him into a slumber.

…

..

.

"Mhmm…" Shifting around, Lofie slowly opened her eyes and raised her upper body. "E-Eryn…?" Being shrouded in unfamiliar darkness right after opening her eyes made her very afraid. "Eryn? Eryn!?"

Her loud voice woke up both Iris and Melty as well.

"… Lofie?" Iris opened up her eyes and yawned. She turned her head to look at Lofie.

"Where is Eryn?" Lofie frantically looked around in a panic. Nervousness and fear began setting into her body, not being able to sense Eryn nearby.

"He's sleeping on the couch," Melty answered, rubbing her eyes.

Lofie got off the bed, taking her pillow with her. She walked to the door and pulled on the handle to open it.

"Lofie?" Iris called out. "Where are you going?"

"Eryn…" was all she answered before disappearing from the room.

"I wanna see Eryn too!" Melty grabbed her pillow and dashed out the door.

"Melty, wait for me!" Iris took her pillow and followed suit.

After Iris and Melty reached the living room where Eryn was, they saw Lofie already sound asleep, lying on top of him against the couch's back pillows.

"She's already fast asleep," Melty whispered into Iris's ear.

"Yeah…" Iris nodded.

"I wanna sleep with Eryn too…" Hugging her pillow, Melty got on the couch and rested her head on his other arm. She snuggled closer to him.

Iris felt conflicted inside. She didn't want to disturb Eryn, seeing as how he provided them a marvelous bedroom, something they've never gotten in the past. But seeing as how her two sisters were sleeping in pure bliss…

"Me too…" Iris climbed onto the couch, tucking her head under his chin and lying down. She could feel his beating heart, and it was soothing to her senses.

Being near to him, added with his natural scent, made them all feel safe and calm.

And thus, a peaceful night descended over them.