Chapter 282

"Hello!"

Miyuki greeted them with a bright smile the moment we stepped into the cafe. Renka and Chinami stared at us, bewildered by the unannounced visit but clearly glad to see us.

"Hanazawa...? Hey. And Matsuda's here too? What brings you two here?"

"We came to study. Will we be in the way?"

"Study? Here?"

"Yeah."

"It's fine as long as you don't make too much noise..."

"We'll stay quiet in the corner. We'll make sure to order drinks every hour, too."

"You really don't need to force yourselves to order. But is it just the two of you?"

"No. Tetsuya will be here soon."

"Miura too? Ah... you mentioned you were tutoring Matsuda and Miura. Is this that study session?"

"That's right."

Renka's gaze slid toward me. Her eyes seemed to ask why we had chosen this place. She didn't look suspicious—just genuinely curious. That made sense, considering we had dropped in without any warning.

"Hanazawa, have you been well?"

Chinami wiped the water from her hands as she asked, and Miyuki answered with a smile.

"Of course. Have you been well too, Senior Nanase?"

"Yes. Absolutely."

Chinami's face was slightly flushed. Seeing Miyuki for the first time in a while must have reminded her of what happened on Christmas. Caught up in her reaction, Miyuki's cheeks also began to turn a deep red.

"Huh...?"

Renka let out a bewildered sound at the sight of the two girls blushing in perfect sync, like twins. Startled, Miyuki coughed awkwardly a few times and looked at the menu.

"Anyway... Matsuda-kun, what are you going to drink?"

Finding their mutual embarrassment rather cute, I answered.

"A Strawberry Banana Frappe."

Renka's brow twitched, and she glared at me. The Strawberry Banana Frappe was the most annoying drink to make on the menu—one I hadn't even bothered to taste-test.

Realizing I was trying to mess with her, Renka chewed on her lip, unable to curse at me openly with Miyuki and Chinami right there. Then, seeing that Miyuki had finished looking over the menu, she asked her a question in a sweet, gentle tone—the exact opposite of the grumpy attitude she always gave me.

"What about you, Hanazawa?"

She seemed to be saying it purely for my benefit. Did she know that behaving like this only guaranteed a stricter discipline session later? Maybe she did know, and she was doing it on purpose. Begging for more punishment.

"Um... I'll just have a Cafe Latte."

"Hot?"

"Yes, hot, please."

"Got it."

"I'll pay. How much is it?"

"It's on me. It's not every day you come visit."

"Huh? You don't have to do that...!"

"I'd be really sad if you refused."

Renka silenced Miyuki effortlessly with that sly response. She never used to be this shameless; she must have learned it from me.

"Well... still..."

Miyuki hesitated, pausing as she opened her wallet, but Renka soothed her with a gentle voice.

"Don't feel pressured. It's really fine."

Perhaps Miyuki decided it would be impolite to refuse her goodwill. She put her wallet away with an incredibly apologetic look.

"Then... thank you. I really appreciate it."

"Yeah. Take a Pager."

"Okay...!"

Hmm... they were already showing such a strong, sisterly bond. It made the future seem bright, putting me in a great mood.

I was about to head to a corner seat with Miyuki and the Pager when Renka called out to me.

"Hey, Matsuda."

"Yeah?"

"Where are you going?"

"To our seats."

"You pay for yours."

"I thought you were treating us?"

"Not you."

"Are you serious?"

"Yeah."

"Is that so? Understood."

Seeing me accept it and reach to pay without any fuss must have sparked some anxiety in her. Flinching, Renka quickly backpedaled.

"I-I'm kidding. Don't pay."

She was clearly worried I might retaliate.

"I'll just pay."

"I told you not to...?"

"And I said I'm paying."

"Don't pay...!"

It was hilarious watching Renka get genuinely angry just to stop me from paying. Holding back a smirk, I changed my order.

"Alright. Forget the frappe, just give me a Strawberry Latte."

"...Why aren't you getting the frappe? Because it's expensive?"

"No. I never intended to drink it in the first place."

"Is that right...?"

Renka shot me a suspicious look. She seemed to be trying to figure out if I genuinely didn't want the frappe, or if I had changed to an easier drink out of consideration for her.

"Underclassman, Underclassman. Shall I make the Strawberry Latte for you?"

Chinami chimed in, cutting through Renka's thoughts. I smiled brightly and replied.

"Yeah. I'd love that."

"Hehe... I'll have to show off the perfect skills I've honed over the last few hours."

Speaking with absolute confidence, Chinami took a jar of strawberry preserves out of the fridge. All she had to do was pour in some milk and stir, but she sounded like an omakase master chef. Still, it was cute, so I liked it.

The atmosphere was so great right now, yet Tetsuya was going to show up soon... It was utterly deplorable. He'd been learning boxing lately, and his head seemed to be getting a bit too big for his shoulders. I wondered if he'd ask me for a sparring match.

Miyuki took a sip of the hot Cafe Latte Chinami brought over, her face softening into a relaxed expression. She wasn't usually one to enjoy coffee, but it was so cold outside today that the warmth spreading through her must have felt nice.

"Is it good?"

"Yeah. Do you want to try some, Matsuda-kun?"

"No. I'm good."

"Why are you drinking something cold, Matsuda-kun? You were complaining about the cold in the car earlier."

Did I? I couldn't remember.

"I probably just said it out of habit. Want some Strawberry Latte?"

"Yeah. Just a sip."

I held out my cup, and Miyuki leaned in to take the thick boba straw into her mouth. I was thrilled to see her bite down on the very tip of the straw my lips had just touched without a shred of hesitation. Had Renka seen this? She'd been sneaking glances at our table while she worked, so she might have caught it.

"Hello, President."

I snorted as Tetsuya's innocent-sounding voice drifted from the cafe entrance, interrupting my sweet time with a giggling Miyuki. The guy sprinkling shit over a bed of flowers had arrived.

"Welcome."

Deciding I absolutely had to whip Renka for greeting him in such a sweet tone, I watched as Tetsuya bowed to Chinami as well.

"Hello, Senior Nanase. It's been a while."

"Hello. The underclassmen are waiting for you over there."

Hmm. Chinami's voice made it clear she didn't care about Tetsuya at all. It was a natural reaction since she barely had any interaction with him, but she was still a good girl. Unlike Renka, I'd have to reward her with a deeply attentive massage.

Tetsuya looked where Chinami pointed, spotted Miyuki and me sitting side by side, and gave a little wave. At a glance, it looked like a greeting to both of us, but in reality, it was only meant for Miyuki. His eyes were locked entirely on her.

After pulling his usual useless stunt with that idiotic look on his face, he thanked Renka when she offered to buy him coffee and immediately placed his order. Just like the clueless bastard he was, he didn't even refuse out of politeness.

Sure, I'd accepted the offer as a given too, but I was Renka's master, and I was already planning to buy her a gift in return. But that guy, grinning like an idiot right now, would just blindly accept her goodwill. He was probably deluding himself into thinking Renka had a crush on him.

While I continued to nurture my hatred for Tetsuya, the guy walked over to our table and flashed a pathetic smile at Miyuki.

"I'm right on time, aren't I?"

"Yeah, good job. Hurry up and sit down."

"Are we starting right away?"

"That's the plan."

"Can't I just take a little break until my coffee gets here?"

"What the... procrastinating like that makes you just like Matsuda-kun, huh?"

I couldn't just let that slide. Even if you gathered every insult in the world, being told I resembled Tetsuya was too much to bear. I was feeling very, very offended.

Whether she knew how I felt or not, Miyuki told Tetsuya to sit down quickly, then shifted her seat so she was sitting right between the two of us. After that, she picked up the cup in front of me as if it were the most natural thing in the world, leaned into the straw again, and took another sip of my Strawberry Latte.

'Huh?'

I couldn't help but widen my eyes at her sudden action. I knew Miyuki had no intention of hiding our relationship anymore, but I never expected something like this to happen out of the blue.

To Miyuki, it was probably just a casual gesture. But what Tetsuya felt seeing it would be entirely different. To him, this action carried a massive amount of meaning. It was the killing blow. His suspicions had just turned into hard confirmation.

Sharing a straw was something even couples were sometimes divided on. Sure, if they were extremely close, mere friends might do it too. But that was incredibly rare, and Miyuki definitely didn't fall into that rare category.

Even though she and Tetsuya were childhood friends who grew up together, she had never initiated any real physical contact with him, and she had certainly never shared a straw with him. True to their childhood bond, she treated him more affectionately than others and took care of him often, but that was where it ended.

And yet, under these circumstances, she did something with me without hesitation that she had never once shown him? No matter how thick-skulled Tetsuya was, there was no way he could witness Miyuki doing this and still remain clueless.

"..."

Just as I expected, Tetsuya's face rapidly stiffened as he watched Miyuki happily chew on a chunk of strawberry that had traveled up the straw. Was he burning up inside? I'd wanted to peek into his head before, but I'd never felt the urge as strongly as I did today.

"What are you two doing?"

Miyuki looked back and forth between us—both frozen in shock for entirely different reasons—and asked the question. Snapping out of it before Tetsuya, I answered.

"Looking at you."

"Why?"

"Just 'cause."

At a glance, it sounded like an ordinary, meaningless exchange laced with a bit of a joke, but our expressions told a different story. As we looked at each other with our eyes crinkling in smiles, there was an unmistakable sweetness flowing between us.

Miyuki was exceptionally lovely today. It made me want to kiss her right then and there. I could probably let it slide just this once that she said Tetsuya and I were alike. Once we were done studying and went home, I'd give her whatever she wanted.