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[-Continuation-]
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[-Hachiman's POV-]
With a nod of permission from Ms. Hiratsuka, Yukino excused herself, slipping out of the classroom.
She paused by the doorway, glancing back one last time.
Her eyes lingered, meeting mine briefly, then shifting to Yuigahama, before she gave a faint nod and quietly closed the door behind her.
As the door clicked shut, Ms. Hiratsuka cleared her throat, that playful look barely concealed.
"Alright, alright. Let's get back to the lesson, shall we?" She resumed the class, her usual firmness somehow softened by an amused glint in her eye.
The classroom settled back into order, though murmurs of laughter and whispers continued here and there, reminders of what had just happened.
…
The rest of the afternoon drifted by, and as the final bell rang, students poured out of the classroom, each buzzing with leftover excitement.
Some split off toward their homes, others chatted about their plans for club activities, and still more continued to gossip about the confession that had lit up the day.
As Yuigahama and I walked down the stairs and out of the school gate, we waited near the entrance, casting glances back to see if Yukino or Iroha had arrived.
Yuigahama broke the silence between us, leaning forward slightly as she peered down the path.
"You think Yukinon's feeling okay about everything?" She asked softly, her voice carrying a mix of excitement and genuine concern.
"Probably better than we are." I replied with a smirk. "I mean, she looked pretty calm, considering."
Just then, Yukino approached, her expression cool and composed as always, though her eyes softened a bit when she noticed us.
"Sorry for the wait." She said, giving a small nod in greeting.
Yuigahama brightened immediately.
"Yukinon! I am so proud of you! You were so awesome today." She beamed, then added in a quieter tone.
"Thank you…" Yukino gave a smile, glancing briefly in my direction.
Guess they both planned it together.
A minute later, Isshiki joined us.
"Ah, the lovebirds, all gathered up." Isshiki chimed, looking from Yukino to me with a knowing smile.
"Don't push your luck, Isshiki." I replied, giving her a pointed look.
She just shrugged, clearly unbothered.
Yuigahama's eyes widened as something caught her attention. "Yukino, what happened? Did you get a bruise?"
She leaned in, concern evident on her face, reaching out to lightly touch the bandage on Yukino's neck.
"Oh, this…" Yukino startled, her tone calm, but for a second, she almost let the truth slip.
"It's… Hachi–!" She cut herself off, catching her mistake just in time, her cheeks faintly coloring as she realized what she had almost revealed.
A love bite, one she had gotten from her boyfriend, and definitely not something she could casually explain.
After a brief pause, Yukino composed herself, carefully choosing her words.
"Ah, it's… nothing serious, just a minor… rash." She replied, keeping it vague but honest.
Yuigahama looked slightly confused but smiled, satisfied that Yukino wasn't in any real pain. "Okay, well, just take care of yourself, alright? That happens with some clothes."
Yukino returned a small, grateful smile and shot a discreet glance my way, which I caught and pretended not to notice.
But just then, Isshiki, who had been observing us closely, narrowed her eyes, clearly suspicious.
Her gaze flicked between us with a hint of curiosity, her mouth opening as if to pry.
Before she could get a word in, Yukino smoothly cut in, steering the conversation away. "We should get going. We are already a little behind schedule."
Ishhiki huffed but let it go, her expression turning into a playful smile. "Fine, fine… just know I am keeping my eye on you two."
I rolled my eyes, pretending to be oblivious, while Yukino only shook her head lightly, letting a faint blush pass as we continued walking.
As Yuigahama moved back, I caught Yukino's quick, barely noticeable glance in my direction, a silent reminder of our little 'incident' and her quick thinking to brush it off.
She looked calm, but the faintest blush lingered on her cheeks.
We continued walking toward the meeting spot, everyone settling into the usual flow of casual conversation.
Isshiki, ever observant, cast a sidelong glance at the bandage on Yukino's neck, her eyes glinting with curiosity.
Though she seemed still intrigued, she chose not to dig, at least, for now. Instead, she redirected her attention to Yuigahama, her tone light and teasing.
"Senior Yui, I heard some rather interesting things went down in your class during lunch?" Iroha's voice carried just enough intrigue to pique everyone's curiosity.
Yuigahama's eyes widened, and she laughed nervously. "Oh, you heard about that, huh? Yeah, it got a little… fiery."
Then, with a mix of excitement and mild embarrassment, Yuigahama recounted the scene from earlier, giving Iroha all the details, the sudden confession after the one before, the classroom's shocked silence, and Ms. Hiratsuka's amused interruption.
Isshiki's eyes grew wider with each word, her curiosity shifting into pure delight.
"Oh?" She arched her brow, looking between Yukino and me, that signature smirk of hers settling on her lips. "So, that's what all the fuss was about."
Yukino stayed composed, her usual calm unfazed, though I caught a faint blush. She kept her gaze forward, as if unfazed by Iroha's subtle probing.
Then Isshiki leaned close to Yuigahama, whispering something into her ear at a volume low enough that I couldn't quite make it out. "...also, Senior Yui, I have a theory about the 'rash' on Senior Yukino's.."
"Oh… do you really think so?" Yuigahama responded, matching Iroha's low tone, though she sent a quick, curious glance at Yukino from her spot beside me.
Seeing them exchange these little conspiratorial looks, I couldn't help but turn to Yukino, muttering a thought that had been on my mind. "So… they are capable of keeping things discreet when they want to. Makes you wonder why the slip-ups happen at all…"
"It's because they want to make a slip-up." Yukino replied, her voice steady and certain, though there was a trace of amusement hidden in her expression.
"Hmm… that does make sense." I replied, smirking slightly as the reality of it sunk in.
Meanwhile, Yuigahama seemed to grow flustered, her face turning a bright red as she stole occasional glances in our direction, clearly struggling to keep her composure.
Isshiki, catching on, only looked more pleased with herself, her grin widening as she continued her whispered commentary to Yuigahama.
I decided to stay quiet, half-hoping the conversation would steer somewhere else, but Ishhiki, seeing my discomfort, looked far too pleased.
So, in a bid to redirect the conversation, I dropped a casual bombshell.
I glanced over my shoulder, pretending to scan the area. "By the way, I won't be coming to the meeting today."
A small, calculated move.
"Why…" Ishhiki was the first one to ask.
"Oh? What's up?" Yuigahama asked, her interest piqued, her previous embarrassment temporarily forgotten.
I tried to sound nonchalant as I replied. "Got some work to take care of."
Ryota had asked me to stop by the office today.
As it turned out, the deadline for finalizing the first test version of the game was fast approaching.
After that, a select few developers and testers would take it for a spin to identify any flaws or issues.
And as the director of the project, my presence would be needed for this critical phase.
…I also have some deep and energy consuming negotiations to do.
"Work? What kind of work?" Isshiki chimed in, her eyes sparkling with curiosity, clearly not ready to let this go.
"Just some... stuff." I shrugged, hoping to downplay the situation.
"Stuff?" Yuigahama echoed, her eyebrows raised in surprise.
"Senior Yukino, isn't that totally suspicious?" Isshiki declared, darting over to Yukino's side, her intent clear as she tried to rally support.
She knows how to play this game…
Haaa… But that's not going to work.
I had already briefed Yukino about this earlier.
Isshiki, now standing beside Yukino, nudged her playfully and whispered something in her ear, her voice a conspiratorial murmur.
"What if he is, you know... chea–!"
Isshiki's words stopped midway as she felt a chilling glare and aura from Yukino.
At that moment, she understood her joke wasn't 'good' and 'playful' as she thought it would be.
Wow, Yukino sure knows how to shut people like her…
.
….
[To be continued…]
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