Utaha didn't want to open the door; she knew the consequences of letting Eriri in.
But after Eriri rang the doorbell three times and stood stubbornly in the rain holding an umbrella, determined to wait there until she was let in, Utaha had no choice but to open the door.
Seeing Utaha at the door, Eriri walked in without hesitation.
She put her umbrella aside and, with wet hands extended, charged straight at her.
"Ahhhhh!!! You schemed against me! How despicable! Do you know how long I had to explain to my mom last night just to convince her I wasn't out messing around with boys?!"
"Calm down!"
"Calm down? This morning you swore you wouldn't do anything behind my back! You even said, 'Have I ever broken a promise?' How could you be so shameless, Utaha!"
This idiot is surprisingly strong!
Utaha struggled to hold onto her wrist.
"It's not what you think! We can talk this through, and I can explain!"
"There's nothing to explain! If I don't deal with you today, you'll think I'm a pushover! You're just a rotten woman, right?"
Once a charming princess admired by many boys, Eriri was now showing her frustration with eyes wide open and her chest heaving from heavy breathing.
"Are you insane? My parents are resting in the other room. Do you really want to wake them up?"
Feeling guilty about her actions, Utaha tried to use the presence of others in the house to calm Eriri down.
This had some effect.
Eriri wasn't afraid, but she was subconsciously reluctant to display her angry side in front of others. She was a girl who cared about her image.
She released Utaha's hand, then turned to place her shoes and umbrella properly.
"Go to your room. Don't think about running away. I need to settle this with you!"
Imitating the provocative stance and tone from movies, Eriri approached Utaha, sneering as she clenched her small fists and then turned to head upstairs.
She had been to Utaha's house before and knew where her room was.
Utaha watched her go upstairs, rubbing her wrist, and sighed when she saw the water stains on the floor.
She went to the washroom to get a dry towel and poured a cup of hot water before heading upstairs to her room.
After Eriri's outburst, she seemed to have calmed down a lot.
It was a relief not to have the intense confrontation from earlier.
Utaha sighed and handed her the dry towel.
Eriri, not one to harm her own body, took the towel and first dried her damp hair.
"Don't think you can just get away with some small favors. You wanted to explain, right? Fine, I'll listen."
"But if you don't give me a satisfactory reason, I'll spread rumors about you messing around outside!"
Utaha found Eriri's bluster somewhat amusing but held back her laughter.
If she laughed now, she'd probably be attacked by the furious idiot and wouldn't get out of it for a while.
"First, I need to clarify that I did talk to your mother, but that was before we had that dream together."
"So what?"
"At that time, we hadn't done anything... intimate. In a way, we were still enemies."
"..."
The two of them, one explaining and the other listening, exchanged looks in the room.
Utaha kept her explanation brief.
Even though she had labeled Eriri as a "blonde idiot" in her mind, she figured that Eriri, having experienced the dream world, should understand this explanation.
Their gazes met, and after a moment, Eriri stopped drying her hair and smiled.
"So you're saying, after last night, you haven't done anything else?"
"Absolutely not."
"Then why did my mom ask me so seriously if I like... those kinds of things?"
Eriri's face turned red.
"Like what?"
Utaha frowned.
"Handcuffs, blindfolds, and stuff like that! Do you dare say that's not what you told her later?"
"I swear I didn't! What kind of idiot would tell someone's mother that her daughter has such submissive preferences? Can you imagine that scene?"
"But my mom asked so seriously!"
"At first, she carefully asked if I had been feeling bored lately, if I ever felt lonely, or had trouble falling asleep alone at night…"
"Think about it! She was testing if I was dissatisfied!"
"What kind of nonsense is that!"
"That's what I need to ask you!"
"...Ugh—"
Utaha sat on the bed and sighed deeply.
"I can tell you clearly that I didn't say those ridiculous things."
"Do you think I'll believe what you're saying now?"
"..."
Utaha fell silent, and the situation grew more complicated.
Without giving her much time to think, there was a vague noise from downstairs, followed by her mother's loud voice.
"Utaha, do we have guests?"
"It's Eriri. Don't worry about it."
After answering loudly, she looked at her closed bedroom door and then at Eriri.
"By the way, how's the soundproofing in your room?"
"Why are you suddenly asking that... ah..."
Eriri realized the implications of what she had said during their earlier scuffle.
"It seems the misunderstanding has finally been cleared up."
"...But the fact that you schemed against me hasn't changed."
"I'm not denying it, do whatever you want."
"Hmph... shameless."
"Since you're here today, there are some things I need to clear up with you."
"What?"
"About Chisato. He came to see me yesterday."
Seeing Eriri's sudden look of tension and concern, Utaha smiled slightly and added with a hint of malice,
"Just shortly after you left school."
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