Ch. 72.2 - Ch72 No Lewd Stuff, Okay? Pt2
“Guuuh…”
He honestly had no idea what was going on in Shihou’s head right now,
Was that a yes?
A no?
The mood had already escalated to this point, and the way her slender hands pushed half-heartedly against his shoulders felt way too much like a “please stop… but don’t really stop” kind of signal.
He braced his elbows and pushed himself back up above her, leaning in so he could see her face.
This time, her eyes only met his for a fleeting moment before snapping shut. Her cute brows knitted together, as if she was clenching every bit of courage she had.
“Shihou-san…”
“…O-onii…”
Her delicate brows pulled inward like two willow branches, only to be blocked by how tightly she furrowed them, like the Cowherd and Weaver Girl trying and failing to meet. Her pale lips quivered slightly, letting out a whisper so soft he almost didn’t hear.
…Forget it. This is where it needs to stop.
A sliver of light slid past Harutaki’s shoulder, casting itself across her skin, white as bone china, glowing a gentle shade of pink.
He drew in a deep breath, forcing the chaos in his head to settle. Then he shifted sideways, rolling off of her entirely and sitting down at the edge of the bed.
His upper body slouched forward, elbows on his knees…
Why did this look exactly like someone cooling off after “finishing”? Too natural, damn it.
Now that he’d come to his senses, he had no idea what he was supposed to say to her. He even wanted to go back ten seconds and slap the lust-drunk idiot he’d been, just to snap him out of it.
He barely knew Shihou at school. Outside school, they’d… gone on “two dates,” if that even counted. At best they were friends, more realistically, a rescuer and a victim.
Was it the selfies they’d exchanged? Did that make him start expecting things he shouldn’t?
Was it because she was in a situation where she couldn’t properly refuse, and some disgusting opportunistic instinct inside him whispered, now’s your chance, take what you want?
Silence fell, heavy, awkward, suffocating.
Rustle rustle.
Probably Shihou turning over, he guessed.
Fwoosh fwoosh.
Maybe her pulling at the blanket?
“…So um… Hoshikawa-kun, why didn’t you… earlier…?”
“Shihou-san, do you even like me?”
He didn’t answer her stammering question. Instead, still facing away, he asked his own in a calm voice.
“Eh?”
She hesitated, then batted the question right back at him like a ping-pong ball.
“Do you want the lie, or the truth?”
“Please… whichever one hurts less.”
“…Maybe just a tiny little bit?”
“…Was that the lie or the truth?”
“The lie.”
“…Thanks. Now it hurts way more.”
He turned around to look at her. She was trying so hard not to grin, the corners of her mouth tugging upward like she couldn’t contain it.
What an unfair answer, too clever, too cute.
“Then isn’t it obvious?” Harutaki forced a laugh. “I’m a so-called ‘ethical scumbag.’ Not like that Yobitani bastard who should rot in hell.”
Purple met gold, his eyes and hers locking.
This time he was clear-headed, guilt-free. The pressure was gone. But the girl slowly pulled back her smile, cheeks turning red all the way to her ears as she averted her gaze.
“H-Hoshikawa-kun… your room is really empty, huh…”
She looked around restlessly, eyes sliding over the unused bookshelves and storage racks, pretending to act casual.
“You didn’t panic-clean and hide all the weird magazines and figurines before I woke up, right?”
“Oh yeah. Just like the legends say, I stuffed them under the bed, waiting for Shihou-san to find them so we can study them together and climb the stairway to adulthood.”
“You really sound disappointed, Hoshikawa-kun.”
She peeked at his deadpan expression, then chuckled behind her hand, smug as a cat that found the cream.
“Hehe~ If you want me to say I like you, did you not look in the mirror this morning while you were washing up?”
“Ah, there it is, Kyoto’s finest passive-aggressive sarcasm.”
“Mm-mm~ Stereotypes aren’t allowed~ (dame yo~)”
“Huh? So that wasn’t sarcasm?”
He rubbed his smooth chin like a philosopher pondering the universe, then declared righteously:
“I look in the mirror every morning so I can wake myself up by being shocked by how handsome I am.”
“Ew, that was disgustingly greasy…”
Chouko covered her mouth while laughing, playfully smacking his knee.
Ugh. Fine. Thank you very much.
He silently thanked Ayaka’s pajamas and Shihou herself, for reminding him how wonderful girls could be.
“Right… Shihou-san, do you know Wei Zheng?”
“The Tang dynasty’s most famous remonstrating minister. Hmph, my parents forced me to learn world history, okay?”
Don’t make being forced to study sound like a badge of honor!
Arms crossed under her chest, she looked so pleased with herself it was practically begging him to praise her.
“Oooh, Shihou-san, amazing.”
“Zero sincerity! But why bring him up?”
“Well, if you know he was a remonstrating minister, do you remember what Emperor Taizong said about him?”
“Using bronze as a mirror lets you tidy your clothes…”
Her memory was sharp, she caught on to his point immediately.
“Wait, are you seriously comparing yourself to a mirror?”
“I can’t compare to a person, but can’t I compare to bronze? Stand next to me and you’ll instantly see whether you’re pretty or ugly. Plus I’m a magic mirror that answers questions.”
“Pfft… then, magic mirror, magic mirror, tell me, who’s the prettiest girl in Class 2-3?”
Harutaki could only sigh internally: Truly, nothing is harder to deal with than villains and girls.
He tries to make her happy, and she hits him with a death sentence?
“Magic mirror, magic mirror, tell me, who’s better: Shihou Chouko, or Nogami Izumi?”
Seeing him fall silent, Shihou only grinned wider and tossed another question at him.
Well, he thought, if she can smile like this again, then she’s fully recovered from the earlier mess.
And slowly… she was letting the veil she used to hide her real self slip away, bit by bit.
“Hm… Shihou Chouko is an F-cup bell-shape, and Nogami Izumi is a D-cup round-shape. Obviously, Shihou-san wins by a landslide.”
“Pervert!!”
She clutched her chest and scooted backward in alarm.
For a moment, she actually worried,
…Had this scumbag secretly measured her with a tape while she was unconscious?