It was a quiet afternoon in Kazuki's room. He'd been studying hard for the past few days, so he finally decided to take a break and unwind a bit. Sitting on his bed, he absentmindedly flipped through the pages of a magazine he'd picked up at the bookstore out of curiosity. It was a little outside his usual reading material—a magazine with some *suggestive* content. Nothing too serious, of course, just something a bit more playful.
He was halfway through an article, his cheeks pink as he skimmed some of the pages, when the door suddenly swung open.
"Kazuki! I thought we could…!" Shizuka called out as she burst into the room, but she stopped mid-sentence, her eyes going wide as she took in the scene.
Kazuki froze, his face turning bright red as he snapped the magazine shut, but it was too late—Shizuka had seen everything. Her expression shifted from shock to something unreadable, and then… was that jealousy he saw in her eyes?
"K-Kazuki…" Shizuka's voice was low, almost hurt, as she stepped closer, her silver hair swaying with each step. "Were you… reading that?"
Kazuki cleared his throat, suddenly feeling very, very hot under the collar. "I-it's not what it looks like! I was just, uh… taking a break! I didn't expect you to just barge in…"
Shizuka pouted, crossing her arms as she looked down at him with narrowed eyes. "Taking a break, huh? And you thought that *this* was a good way to relax?"
He rubbed the back of his neck, feeling like there was no good way out of this. "I mean… I was just curious! It's not like I do this all the time or anything…"
Shizuka's pout deepened, and she plopped down on the bed next to him, crossing her arms and looking away. "Hmmph. Well, if you're going to be interested in that stuff, then maybe you should just… pay more attention to what's *real* instead of some silly magazine."
Kazuki blinked, caught off guard by her sudden comment. "Huh? What do you mean?"
She gave him a sidelong glance, her cheeks tinted pink, though her expression was still one of mild jealousy. "I mean… why look at that stuff when you have someone like me around? Haven't I been by your side long enough?"
Kazuki felt his face heat up even more. Shizuka's words struck him deeply, and he couldn't deny that she had a point. They'd been close for years, after all, and there was something undeniably special about their relationship.
"Shizuka…" he murmured, trying to find the right words. "You're… you're right. I guess I didn't think about it that way."
Her expression softened, and she gave him a small smile, her usual confidence returning. "Well, just remember that, okay? I'm right here, Kazuki."
He nodded, feeling both relieved and a bit embarrassed. He reached over and gently placed a hand on her head, giving her a soft pat, which made her blush again.
"Alright, alright, I get it," he said, chuckling as he tried to lighten the mood. "I'll remember."
Shizuka beamed at him, clearly pleased with his response. The tension from a moment ago melted away, and they both felt closer than ever.