The next morning, warm sunlight penetrated through the window glass into Yukino's bedroom, licking her pale face.
"!!"
"Hu~hu~"
Suddenly, Yukino's eyes snapped open. She lay on the bed, panting heavily.
After a long while, Yukino finally recovered from that hollow feeling of weightlessness. She extended her right hand out from under the blanket and wiped the cold sweat from her forehead, still feeling a lingering fear.
In last night's dream, Hoshimi had her playing high-altitude free fall all night. Each time, she would plummet straight from the clouds toward the ground, only to return to the clouds just before hitting the ground, repeating the process again.
Moreover, that bastard Hoshimi had a parachute himself but didn't give her one, forcing her to cling tightly to him to avoid really falling to the ground.
Because of this, her entire body was still experiencing obvious phantom pain.
Her arms were sore and weak, barely able to lift, especially around her shoulders and underarms, where there was a lingering, persistent ache.
Her legs were no exception, feeling weak and sore from calves to thighs, with the sensation intensifying upwards.
However, there was some good news.
Since last night was purely about high-altitude free fall without the dizzying stimuli like the previous roller coaster, her sense of balance wasn't disrupted. She didn't have the lingering dizziness she had felt yesterday morning.
The phantom pain in her body would recover soon enough.
"Hoshimi Kiyokawa..."
Pale-faced, Yukino weakly murmured Hoshimi's name.
If this continued, she might be worn out by Hoshimi before she could even complete her revenge.
That bastard Hoshimi, after learning of her fear of heights, had been relentlessly attacking her weak point without holding back at all.
This style reminded her of her sister—Yukinoshita Haruno. If the two of them teamed up, it would likely result in a storm of chaos.
However, there was also a significant chance that they would conspire together against her.
"Tsk~"
Thinking of this, Yukino clicked her tongue.
It was best to avoid letting her sister meet Hoshimi. Neither of them was easy to deal with, and if they teamed up against her, it would be troublesome.
"Ugh~ I'll rest a bit more before getting up..."
Yukino, feeling slightly unwell, gathered her thoughts and stopped thinking about irrelevant matters.
She took out her phone, set an alarm for 7:20, and closed her eyes for a nap.
...
Meanwhile, Hoshimi, who had woken up, was already lying in the bathtub, enjoying the soothing effect of the warm water on his body.
He wasn't particularly afraid of high-altitude free fall; it was just that Yukinoshita had held him so tightly, making his whole body ache.
That woman was too bony. When she held on with all her might, his ribcage felt crushed against hers, and he even had the illusion that his waist was nearly squeezed to the point of breaking by her legs.
Now, when he touched his side, there was still a lingering phantom pain.
"Where does this woman get so much strength from? She looks so delicate..."
Hoshimi, soaking in the bathtub, mumbled his amazement.
"Splash----"
Hoshimi shook his head, deciding not to dwell on it. He stood up from the bathtub, wrapped a towel around himself, and headed to the living room.
Next, he needed to think about how to deal with Yukinoshita's daytime revenge, not knowing what she might do.
...
Things went a bit beyond Hoshimi's expectations.
For the next few days, Yukinoshita did not retaliate against him. Even though he provoked and teased her in her dreams every night, she did nothing during the day, as if she had forgotten about revenge.
However, judging by Yukinoshita's cold and angry eyes every time she was teased, it was clear she hadn't given up on revenge. She probably just hadn't come up with a suitable plan yet, so she was silently waiting for an opportunity.
Additionally, after several days of relentlessly attacking Yukinoshita's fear of heights, she seemed to be gradually getting used to it.
If this continued, her fear of heights might even be cured by him.
"This won't do, I need to think of something..."
In the classroom, Hoshimi glanced at Yukinoshita, rubbing his chin as he pondered how to provoke her into taking the initiative.
His plan required Yukinoshita's constant aggression to be executed smoothly.
"..."
As he thought, Hoshimi suddenly smiled warmly. He glanced at Yukinoshita's profile, his smile becoming even more radiant.
He had an idea.
"..."
Meanwhile, Yukinoshita, who was attentively listening to the lecture, sensed Hoshimi's gaze.
She glanced at Hoshimi from the corner of her eye.
Noticing Hoshimi's bright and sunny smile, her heart immediately went on high alert, her guard fully up.
"Huh~"
Seeing Yukinoshita's tense expression, Hoshimi chuckled lightly, propping his chin as he lazily listened to the history teacher's lecture.
However, Yukinoshita's attention was unintentionally diverted, her pen for taking notes stopping as well.
.....
"Riiiing~~~~"
In the afternoon, as the school bell rang, signaling the end of classes, the teacher left the room, and the students began chatting and packing their bags, preparing to go home or head to their clubs.
Yukinoshita, who sat by the window, slowed down her packing, keeping an eye on Hoshimi out of the corner of her eye.
Seeing Hoshimi's bright smile in the morning made her feel he was up to something.
Yet, up until now, Hoshimi had done nothing, which made her even more suspicious.
Today was Friday, and after school, she and Hoshimi wouldn't see each other for two days.
She didn't think Hoshimi would miss this chance to do something to her.
"Hoshimi, aren't you going home?"
Feeling uneasy, Yukinoshita asked tentatively.
In the past few days, Hoshimi would have already packed up and left by this time, but today he was still sitting there reading a book, which was suspicious.
"Me? I have an appointment with Amasaka-san to visit a club. I'm thinking of joining one."
Hoshimi put away his book, casually stuffing it into his drawer.
Then, he looked at Yukinoshita and asked playfully, "Yukinoshita, why do you have time to care about my whereabouts today? Are you uneasy? Afraid? Or just curious?"
"..." Yukinoshita glanced at Hoshimi, said nothing, and quickly resumed packing her bag.
Hoshimi smiled slightly and didn't say anything more. He turned back to Amasaka Saimizu, who was walking towards him hesitantly.
"Hoshimi-san, um..."
Amasaka Saimizu glanced at Yukinoshita, who had no expression, feeling awkward and stopping in her tracks.
"Amasaka-san, sorry to trouble you. Yukinoshita has club activities this afternoon and can't take me to the tour."
Understanding Amasaka Saimizu's hesitation, Hoshimi explained with a gentle smile.
"Is that so? Well then, Hoshimi-san, let's go."
Amasaka Saimizu understood but still didn't dare to approach Hoshimi and Yukinoshita, waiting for Hoshimi to walk with her.
"Yes, let's go."
Hoshimi stood up, smiled, and left the classroom with Amasaka Saimizu.
Seeing this, Yukinoshita breathed a small sigh of relief. So that's what it was, that bastard took the time to get to know other girls.
But Hoshimi was not a good person, so she would remind Amasaka-san later.
With the situation clarified and the crisis averted, Yukinoshita picked up her bag and left the classroom.
However, on the way to the club, Yukinoshita couldn't help but feel a slight unease rising in her heart.
===
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