(Words: 2440)
....
After seeing Sasaki off, Reina Hamasaki smiled to herself as she hummed a light, carefree tune.
She retrieved her keys from her shoulder bag and unlocked the door to her rented apartment.
Once inside, she tossed her bag onto a cabinet next to the shoe rack, then flopped onto the sofa, phone in hand.
Based on the conversation she'd had with Sasaki on their way back, Reina started searching for rental properties near his home.
She expected it to be a difficult task, but to her surprise, the first listing that appeared was for a house right next to Sasaki's.
To make sure she hadn't made a mistake, Reina sat up straight on the sofa, legs crossed, and carefully checked the details letter by letter.
After confirming that there was indeed a rental property available right next door to his place, she flopped back down on the sofa, unable to contain her joy as she kicked her legs in the air.
It seemed that she and Sasaki were truly meant to be together—even fate was on her side.
Once her excitement had subsided, Reina rolled over onto her stomach, ready to contact the landlord.
But when she glanced at the monthly rent, she froze.
With her current income, renting a small apartment was no problem.
But renting an entire two-story house?
That was pushing it unless she planned to live on air alone.
Realizing she couldn't afford it on her own, Reina quickly tapped into her emergency backup: her friends.
[Hamazaki's Partners] (3)
Opening the group chat, Reina tagged her friends with a request.
Reina Hamazaki: [@ Sasaki Yukina @ Kurumizaka Ruri I'm thinking of moving to a new place. Can you two lend me some money?] 19:25 [Read]
Kurumizaka Ruri: [Huh?] 19:25
Kurumizaka Ruri: [Why?] 19:25
Kurumizaka Ruri: [Aren't you doing just fine in your current apartment? Why the sudden urge to move?] 19:25
The first response in the group came from someone with a pink heart icon and the username "ruri," which was Kurumizaka Ruri's handle.
Before Reina could respond to her question, the other person she had tagged also chimed in.
Yukina Sasaki: [Yeah, what's up? Did something happen, Reina-oneechan?] 19:25
Reina Hamazaki: [Heh~] 19:25 [Read]
Reina Hamazaki: [Well, you see, I met a guy…] 19:28 [Read]
She then began typing out everything that had happened that afternoon, sharing the details with her friends.
After explaining, she smiled to herself, expecting congratulations from them. But…
Kurumizaka Ruri: [???] 19:28
Yukina Sasaki: [???] 19:28
Reina Hamazaki: [???] 19:28 [Read]
Reina Hamazaki: [Hey, hey, what's with you two?! (Annoyed.jpg)] 19:29 [Read]
Realizing that Reina was actually serious about this, Kurumizaka Ruri got a bit more serious in her response.
Kurumizaka Ruri: [Ahem~] 19:29
Kurumizaka Ruri: [Reina, are you really serious about this?] 19:29
Reina Hamazaki: [Of course I am! You both know how bad our reputation is at school.
And even with that, there's a guy who's willing to stand up for us. Shouldn't I at least give him a chance?] 19:29 [Read]
Yukina Sasaki: [Well~ if he's not like those other guys who are two-faced, it might be worth getting to know him.] 19:30
Reina Hamazaki: [I'm pretty sure he's not like that. I only went back because I realized I forgot my workbook.] 19:30 [Read]
Reina Hamazaki: [And when I was about to go upstairs, I overheard their conversation. There's no way it was an act...] 19:30 [Read]
Reina Hamazaki: [Besides, the guy who got beaten up had blood all over his face and looked like he was about to pass out. If that was just for show, it would've been way too extreme.] 19:30 [Read]
Kurumizaka Ruri: [If Reina is that sure about him, then yeah, he might be worth getting to know.] 19:31
Reina Hamazaki: [So, about relocating our hangout spot...] 19:31 [Read]
Kurumizaka Ruri: [+1] 19:31
Yukina Sasaki: [+1] 19:31
Reina Hamazaki: [Okay, unanimous decision! Moving day on our next day off!] 19:32 [Read]
Kurumizaka Ruri: [Yay~] 19:32
Yukina Sasaki: [Yay~] 19:32
Reina Hamazaki: [All right ~ His place is located at...] 19:33 [Read]
...
..
With her bag slung over her shoulder and her hands full of shopping bags, Akane Nanao followed Sasaki as he led her to a hotel near the shopping district.
Since the hotel didn't require ID for check-in, the process was quick and easy.
After entering the room with the key card, Sasaki set the bags down and immediately turned on the air conditioning.
He wasn't bothered by the heat, but he wanted to make sure she was comfortable.
Big-breasted girls often suffered the most during the summer, and with her thick baseball uniform, even the cool evening breeze wasn't enough to keep her from fanning herself periodically.
After closing the door behind her, Akane Nanao walked in and noticed this detail, and the shyness in her heart due to buying clothes and entering the hotel for the first time was slightly reduced.
However, the question that had been on her mind since they bought the clothes still needed to be addressed.
"Sasaki... you..." she started, embarrassed to say what was on her mind.
Instead, she reached into the shopping bag and pulled out the clothes he had bought for her.
The loose-fitting, oversized light grey T-shirt and matching long pants were perfectly normal and nothing to be concerned about.
But the other items—the various pieces of short skirts and shorts—were a different story.
Sure, it was summer, and girls wearing short skirts and shorts were pretty standard.
But the ones he had chosen for her were incredibly thin and short.
Holding them in her hands, Nanao could feel the smooth, cool texture of the fabric, which seemed to be made of something like ice silk—slick and almost see-through.
Clothing made from ice silk usually hugged the body, accentuating every curve.
And these shorts and skirts... well, they were so short it was almost scandalous.
The skirts barely covered anything, definitely more revealing than even a micro-mini skirt, and the shorts... they were just a step above swimwear.
Before, they were outside and there were strangers around, so she was embarrassed to ask.
Now there were only two of them, she held the shameful clothes in her hands and looked straight at Sasaki.
The latter, noticing her displeasure, sat on the bed, undoing the buttons of his shirt, and tilted his head with a slight smile. "Hey, hey, don't give me that cold look."
"When I was buying these earlier, I glanced at you, and you didn't object, right?"
Akane Nanao stayed silent.
The reason she didn't object was because the shop assistant had said to Sasaki, 'Your girlfriend is so pretty, she'll look great in these.'
At that moment, how could she have spoken up to deny it?
If she jumped out at this time and said that they were not boyfriend and girlfriend.
What would her role have been then?
If they weren't a couple, why would a guy be buying a girl such revealing clothing?
How could she face the store clerk, or all the other shoppers in the store, if she had spoken up then?
It felt like she had been tricked by Sasaki, the girl bit her lip and said, "I'm not wearing these. Forget about it."
Sasaki, now leaning back on his hands on the bed, looking a bit lazy, responded, "My plan is guaranteed to make Katase realize Tougou's true intentions. Are you sure you don't want to consider it?"
Hearing his words, Nanao hesitated, rubbing the soft, smooth fabric between her fingers, her head lowered.
But she didn't hesitate for long before nodding in agreement.
"I'll wear it, but only if you tell me the plan first."
Though the clothes were embarrassing, they were still better than a swimsuit.
As someone who had participated in a swim club, Akane Nanao, although disliked showing off her body in front of guys, wasn't overly prudish about it.
Plus, since Sasaki's request was just for a back massage, he couldn't really do anything inappropriate.
Thinking of it like wearing a swimsuit for a massage made it easier to accept.
Seeing her agree, Sasaki smiled and explained his plan. "The plan is simple. You just need to quit the baseball team, Nanao."
"Quit the team? Are you joking?" Nanao was incredulous.
She wanted to work alongside Shou-kun for his dream, to witness his success.
How could she quit the team?
Sasaki seemed to have anticipated her thoughts and scoffed.
"What? You're going to lose everything just for the sake of some symbolic gesture?"
Hearing his words, the girl was silent for a moment before saying, "Quitting requires Tougou's approval. He won't let me leave."
"Doesn't matter," Sasaki said, sitting up straight. "You don't actually need to leave the team."
You just need to submit your application to resign from the club.
I'll put up some money to get another guy to apply for the manager position in the baseball team."
"If that happens, there's no way Tougou can keep me there, right? How will Shou-kun know Tougou's real intentions?"
"Are you asking me to quit the club, so that Shou-kun will lose the support of Tougou and no longer be the main force of the baseball club?"
"This is not…"
Akane Nanao considered for a moment.
In that situation, Tougou couldn't force her to stay.
It seemed possible, but it wasn't the outcome she wanted.
Just as she was about to reject his idea, he pulled her to sit on the edge of the bed and tapped her forehead.
"Let me finish first."
Sasaki gently tapped her forehead and then softly stroked the spot where he had tapped, meeting her slightly displeased gaze and said,
"In a normal situation, just like you said earlier after you quit the baseball club, Katase might realize that Tougou only made him the star of the baseball team because of you."
"But that scenario happens when everyone knows you've quit the team, and someone else has applied to be the baseball team manager."
"What if Tougou concealed the fact that someone wanted to apply to become the manager of the baseball club, but Katase finds out anyway?"
"Wouldn't he start to find it strange that Tougou is hiding your resignation and not letting you leave?"
After hearing Sasaki's plan, Akane Nanao's eyes lit up.
Her biggest issue right now was that Shou-kun trusted Tougou too much, seeing him as a mentor and not believing her warnings.
Sasaki's plan wasn't about someone else telling him that Tougou was a problem; it was about making Shou-kun suspect Tougou himself.
People often trust what they see with their own eyes, believing it to be the truth.
Once Shou-kun starts doubting Tougou, her previous warnings would keep resurfacing in his mind, reminding him that he might indeed have ulterior motives.
If things go this way, Shou-kun would eventually stand by her side.
Even if she returned to the team afterwards, with Shou-kun working with her to keep an eye on Tougou, she wouldn't be in any danger.
Feeling confident in the feasibility of Sasaki's plan and hopeful for the future, Nanao turned to the boy, sitting beside him, and sincerely thanked him, "Thank you, Sasaki."
'Heh... I just set you up, and you're thanking me for it.'
Amused by the irony, the latter smiled and shook his head.
"Even though I'm reluctant, this is what we agreed on before, so no need to thank me."
"…"
To be honest, Akane Nanao also felt it was weird to ask her suitor to help her mend her relationship with her boyfriend, and she felt sorry for Sasaki.
But when she thought about the fact that he was a scumbag who had several lovers, the guilt that had just emerged in her heart was instantly extinguished.
She couldn't believe she almost felt sorry for a guy who wanted to sleep with her and then bring her into his harem... Such a person isn't worth feeling bad for.
With a soft snort, the girl grabbed the short skirt and the new underwear and then headed to the bathroom.
As the sound of running water filled the room, the smile on Sasaki's lips twisted into something more sinister.
The plan he laid out for Nanao was solid.
The issue lay in how Tougou might react afterwards.
She was focused on Katase Shouya but overlooked Tougou.
From what he knew, that guy was ruthless and unscrupulous—evident from how he drugged Shouya and had someone beat Tanabe so badly he ended up in the hospital.
A person like that, once realizing his prey was trying to escape, would undoubtedly use even more extreme methods to ensure his control.
Based on Sasaki's predictions, once that guy realized he could no longer keep her in his grasp, he would likely seize the opportunity to force himself on her.
He has invested too much effort into her to just let her slip away.
To prevent her from escaping, Tougou wouldn't give Katase Shouya much time to start suspecting him.
This meant the plan Sasaki suggested to the girl was doomed from the start.
However, Tougou wasn't stupid.
Even if he forced himself on Nanao, he'd be careful not to leave any evidence.
But there weren't many methods that allowed for quickly overpowering her without leaving traces.
As it happened, there was one perfect method right in front of them.
Nanao wanted to quit the baseball team, right?
After serving as the manager for so long, it wouldn't be unreasonable for Tougou to throw her a farewell party, right?
At the party, it was perfectly plausible that she and Katase might accidentally switch drinks and end up drinking alcohol.
So, if she got drunk, that would also seem reasonable, right?
Then, as the baseball team's coach, it would be normal for Tougou to show concern for his manager's well-being and check on her condition, right?
After the examination, it would not be excessive to let her sleep in the same bed with her lover, right?
Then blackmail her and continue.
…
Sasaki couldn't think of a more foolproof plan, which was why he was certain Tougou would use this method.
And if Tougou couldn't come up with this plan himself?
Well, Sasaki could always plant the idea in his head. It wouldn't be hard to pass along the suggestion.
Listening to the soft, suggestive sound of the water running in the bathroom, he suddenly remembered something and got up to walk over to the window.
.
.