Hajime's hands grasped the handle, turning it, opening the door, and revealing a half-naked woman. Their eyes met. His eyes trailed down toward her supple breasts, her eyes following his until the realization hit her. A flush crept across her cheeks as she covered herself with her towel. Only for a brief moment. She took a deep breathe and let the towel fall down. Her eyes focused on the pajama shirt that lay on their bed, picking it up as if Hajime didn't exist or as if he didn't matter. She dressed herself.
Hajime's heart rate finally slowed down, reaching normal teenage levels. With a small sigh, he stopped looking at her. Back to strangers, he thought. He entered the bathroom, leaving the unreadable woman to her business.
Inside the shower, the water fell upon him like a waterfall, the lukewarm water warming his skin. The shower was calm but it did not stop his increasing heart rate. An intoxicating flowery scent lingered in the shared bathroom, possibly enhanced by his new race or his desire for her or the system.
The waterfall stopped. Stepping out of the shower, his feet landing on the plywood floor, curiously searching for his fresh set of clothes, he realized he didn't bring any.
He cleared his throat.
"Aveline. you there?"
His question went unanswered, not to his surprise.
"Aveline, can you bring me a fresh set of clothes? At least a towel?"
At least a yes or no would be enough, he thought.
Thinking Aveline left already, moving towards the door, pulling it towards him before taking a step into their room, his eyes scanning for Aveline, hearing a faint voice coming from below his eye level, a slap echoing through the room, his dick slapped Aveline's cheek.
Aveline stood crouching there as she held a towel, that previously lay on the floor, along with a fresh set of clothes. Her eyes drifted towards the object that touched her face. Her ears turned bright red before she slapped his dick away.
"Pervert!" she yelled, standing up and dropping his clothes to the floor.
"You didn't answer me."
"At least cover that thing!" she pointed towards his dick which was pointing upward as if ready to pierce the heavens.
Hajime grabbed the towel and wrapped it around his waist.
"How's this?" he asked.
Aveline stared at the bulge, peaking through his towel, unable to be contained by mere fabric.
"Out." she said.
"Out?"
She pointed towards the door.
"Don't come back until you control yourself." she said.
"I thought it didn't bother you to bunk with me."
"Out. Out. OUT." she pushed him out of their room, not giving him a chance to ask for his clothes, shutting the door behind him.
Hajime stood in the dimly-lit hallway wearing only a towel. This is awkward, he thought. He heard the door open before he was hit in the face with his clothes.
"Thanks." he muttered, putting them on and ignoring the stares coming from a few maids down the hall.
The sun was still shining when he finished dressing himself. He hadn't seen Sophia in a few days so he decided to go visit her at her work.
He closed the iron gate behind him before following the cobblestone path that led to the main academy building. The path was like a maze yet it wasn't. The walls didn't make him feel trapped, actually, they made him feel guided. Perhaps due to the use of mana devices, that he has yet to understand or perhaps the roots that grew on the stone walls belonged to a certain individual, watching him, watching the students, watching everyone.
After a few minutes of walking, he reached the main building, the building where he was blackmailed by the headmistress, the building where most theory lessons would take place, the building named after its founder, Celosia.
He walked towards the board, which contained the information regarding the day-to-day classes.
"Sophia Starfall, Intro to Stem Lower (Root Realm)." he read out loud.
He couldn't help but smile. Sophia was willingly teaching others who would surpass herself in a few years. He was proud of her.
He walked towards her classroom, passing a few other students on the way, a few of them staring at him, whispering about his earlier achievement. He reached his destination. Instead of opening the door, he chose to look through the window.
Sophia stood in the middle of a small podium with her blond hair wrapped neatly in a bun and her red lipstick perfectly enchanting her beauty. She held a small stick in her left hand and she held a crayon of sorts with her dominant hand. Her crayon touched the board, a small blue light glowing on the board before a design of the human and floralith bodies appeared. Turning back towards her students she noticed Hajime looking at her. A small smile appeared on her face before she focused back on the lesson.
Hajime waited until the bell rang and the students made their way back to their mansions. He entered the classroom.
"Professor Starfall there's an emergency." he said with a slight smirk on his face.
"Oh an emergency? What happened." Sophia said, watching him get closer and closer to her.
"I can feel myself getting faint." he said.
"Did you hurt yourself?"
"No."
"Is your mana drained?"
"No."
"Then what's wrong."
"I missed you."
"Missed me?"
"Hmm. I haven't seen you in a few days."
She put her hands on her waist.
"That doesn't count as an emergency." she said.
"If I went even longer without seeing you, I'd have died." he dramatically wiped a tear away, "So can you please hug me?"
"Oh my god. You're such a drama queen." she smiled, taking a step forward, opening her arms, pulling Hajime into her warm embrace.
Hajime could stay there forever. Her scent was divine; Her breath was hypnotizing; Her heartbeat was music to his ears. His hand reached for her silky hair. He couldn't resist: he had to touch her.
He brushed her hair gently with his fingers, his other hand moving towards her lower back, pulling her closer.
"Okay okay Hajime. We're at the academy."
"No one's around." he said in a low voice.
"You're being inappropriate." she said as she placed her palm on his chest, lightly pushing him back.
"Give me a kiss." he whispered.
Sophia's cheeks turned a shade of red.
"You have no shame."
"It's been three days."
"I'm not rewarding you." she turned away from him, pretending to focus on something else.
"Hmm, you're so adorable when you're shy."
"Am not."
"I don't know why you're being so coy when you're the one who initiated it."
"I-I did not." she stammered.
"Okay." he said as he pulled away from her embrace not before planting a kiss on her soft lips.
"Hey!" she protested as she turned her head towards him, her eyes piercing into his soul.
"What?" Hajime said looking around as if he was a dog with no awareness of his actions.
Sophia crossed her arms and tapped her foot, impatiently waiting for his response.
"You're so cute when you do that." he said.
"When I do what?"
"Act shy and in denial."
She stuck her tongue at him, walking away from him, gathering her materials, and placing them in her leather bag.
"So, care to explain." she said with a smile that looked like a wife daring her husband to lie to her.
"I take it you saw my little show?"
"Who didn't." she raised her eyebrow, "Were you hoping for Princess Aveline to praise you for your talent?"
"Oh is that jealousy?"
"No." she looked away, "Maybe. Yes."
"Why?" he asked, approaching her, wrapping his arms around her, his lips gently grazing her neck.
"A bond between a Floral Attuned and a Floralith can become incredibly intimate. Even if there's no sex involved." she said, "And no matter how much I wish I could be with you the way a Floralith can, I can't. Yet I don't want to hold you back."
"Hold me back?" his warm breath brushed against her ear, "You don't have to worry about that. I'm the only one holding me back." he chuckled.
"If I ever come in the way of your happiness, let me know. Okay?"
"Of course." he kissed her cheek.
"I missed you too, silly." she said.
Hajime walked with her to her home, talking to her, flirting with her, loving her and enjoying their time together. Afterward, he went back to his mansion and found Aveline sleeping, a pillow stood between their sides of the bed, a blank note resting on his side of the bed, a familiar yet unfamiliar tension lingering on both sides of the bed. He went to sleep.