Chapter 350

There is always that one exceptionally unlucky day of the year.

And for me, that unlucky day was today.

Trip.

It started with me catching my foot on a paving stone and stumbling hard. Then I dropped the Suichu that Hiyori handed me on the ground...

After that, I tried to drink the Melon Milk I bought from the Convenience Store, only to bump shoulders with a passerby and spill a bit of it...

Why was my luck so terrible today of all days?

I wondered if God was angry with me, but that didn't seem quite right.

If anything, it felt more like Hiyori had put a curse on me.

"What have you been doing this whole time? You're so clumsy..."

Seeing Hiyori giggle and tease me only deepened that conviction.

"I'm not clumsy, I'm just unlucky. Because of you."

"It only ended there because I'm around. If I weren't, your clothes would already be covered in mud and milk, sunbae-nim."

"Aren't you giving yourself a little too much credit?"

"Call it strong self-love. Here, a tissue."

Hiyori held out the tissue in her hand.

I reached out to take it, but she snatched her hand back. I frowned.

"What are you doing?"

"Lift your head. I'll wipe it for you."

Hah... Did she go around doing this to other people, too?

If she did, I'd feel incredibly jealous.

She only did this for me, right? I chose to believe so.

I didn't argue and obediently lifted my chin. Hiyori lightly dabbed at the Melon Milk on my neck.

Standing on her tiptoes to compensate for our height difference, she looked incredibly pretty as she focused.

It sparked an urge to scoop her up in my arms.

"All done. Aren't you thankful?"

She tossed the soiled tissue into the movie theater trash can and put on a boastful air. I looked at her and spoke.

"Cut your nails. You poked my neck."

"You're thankful, yet you still grumble."

"..."

I felt like I had just heard the exact same words I often said to Renka.

Entering the ticket area with a beaming Hiyori, I printed our movie tickets and headed over to the School Store.

Hiyori stepped in front of me before I could order and spoke to the employee.

"One couple's combo, please. With caramel Popcorn. And..."

Twitch.

Listening to her order, my body gave an involuntary flinch.

It was the exact same thing I'd done back when I was flirting with Miyuki.

Ordering the couple's combo under the excuse that it was cheaper, just to see Miyuki get embarrassed.

Of course, Hiyori was entirely focused on ordering without paying any attention to me; I was the problem.

I was perfectly mirroring the reaction Miyuki had shown back then.

Why did hanging out with Hiyori always make me feel like I was the heroine?

Had she been stalking me or something?

Between her comment about me grumbling earlier and what was happening right now... it felt like déjà vu.

Hiyori secretly watching my every move since the early days, only to show her true colors and try to seduce me once she entered the Academy...

Imagining it was incredibly arousing.

Shift.

While I was lost in those thoughts, Hiyori finished paying, grabbed my arm, and pulled me to the side.

A cold sensation seeped into my lower arm.

Hiyori's hands were usually quite cold. I should warm them up for her.

As she let go of me, I glanced down at her and scratched the bridge of my nose before speaking.

"Put your shirt on properly."

"Ah, why are you doing this again...! Can't we drop it?"

"It's too revealing."

"Isn't it better than subtly showing off?"

True, seeing things through a sheer fabric was definitely hotter than outright exposure.

"Neither is allowed. Hurry up and cover yourself."

"Being with you feels like visiting my grandfather's house, sunbae-nim."

"You already told me that."

"Did I really?"

"Yeah."

"I guess that just means you're really conservative, sunbae-nim."

"No, you're just overly open."

"There are plenty of people showing way more skin than me. Look over there."

"I'm not looking. Just grab the Popcorn and drinks."

Hiyori grumbled cutely at that. She hugged the freshly prepared Popcorn to her chest and grabbed a cola in each hand.

The large Popcorn bucket hiding most of her chest blended so strangely well with her sulky, cat-like expression that a laugh slipped right out of me.

The ahoge sticking up from the top of her head swayed as she trailed obediently behind me, and together we stepped into the Screening Room.

"Why did it have to be a corner seat? It's hard to see one side of the screen like this."

"It's near the aisle, so it's not uncomfortable. Once you sit here, you won't ever want to sit anywhere else."

"What was that...? You sounded like an old street con artist just now. There are plenty of empty seats, so can't we just go sit in the middle?"

"Stop whining and sit."

"Am I not allowed to have an opinion?"

"Yeah. Right now is debt-repayment time."

"Annoying."

Saying that with zero actual annoyance in her tone, Hiyori set the Popcorn and drinks down and took her seat.

Then she wiggled out of her sandals, rested her heels on the edge of the seat, and pulled her knees up to her chest.

I frowned at the sight and scolded her.

"What are you doing? Don't be a nuisance."

"How is this being a nuisance?"

"If putting your feet where people sit isn't a nuisance, what is?"

"They clean it after the movie anyway. Plus, I wiped my heels with a wet wipe..."

"No, you didn't."

"True."

"...You lie with such confidence."

"If you insist like this, it works a few times. You should try it, sunbae-nim."

"Thanks for the great lesson."

Reprimanding her, I lightly tapped her calf.

It was an unconscious action. A completely natural touch, just like when I went on dates with Miyuki.

While I gave a slight shudder upon realizing that, Hiyori grumbled something under her breath, slipped her sandals back on, and popped a piece of Popcorn into her mouth.

She didn't seem to care about the touch at all, and I didn't know whether to feel relieved or disappointed.

Still, I was happy.

Because despite all her complaining, she still listened to me.

Pushing those feelings aside, I killed time chatting with Hiyori until the lights in the Screening Room dimmed; as the movie started, I looked at the screen.

"By the way, what movie is this?"

Hiyori asked, leaning slightly closer to me.

I pulled my body away by exactly that much distance and answered.

"Action."

"Is it supposed to be good?"

"I don't know. I just booked the one playing soonest."

"Who watches movies like that? Don't people usually at least watch a trailer before booking?"

"Sometimes it's more fun to go in blind than to have a vague idea. Besides, you didn't know what it was until I printed the tickets, either."

"That's true. Do you want some Popcorn?"

"Hand it over."

Hiyori placed a single piece of Popcorn right in the center of my outstretched palm.

I stared at her beaming face in disbelief and spoke.

"You want me to eat just this?"

"If it's not enough, grab some from here. Here."

Hiyori turned her body, showing off the Popcorn bucket resting just below her chest.

If I mindlessly reached out to grab some Popcorn, I'd probably accidentally touch her breasts... She was just trying to tease me. How predictable.

"Never mind."

Hiyori giggled at my aloof response and turned her eyes back to the movie.

How long had it been since we started focusing on the movie?

Once the intro passed and the real action began, grand explosions pounded against our ears. Right around the time a brief lull set in: "Sunbae-nim."

Hiyori called me in a quiet voice.

"..."

When I stayed perfectly still, pretending not to hear her, Hiyori poked my arm.

"Sunbae-nim. Look at this."

I finally looked over at her and lowered my gaze to where she was pointing, only to recoil internally in sheer panic.

Because right on top of her cleavage sat a single piece of Popcorn.

She must have dropped it there while eating.

'Hah... wow...'

Because I kept acting like a herbivore man, she seemed to have gotten fully addicted to teasing me, but I couldn't take it anymore.

The urge to strictly educate her surged within me.

At the same time, I wanted to get closer to her, fast.

With a shrug that practically said 'so what', I reached out and plucked the Popcorn right off her cleavage.

"Eh...?"

Hiyori sucked in a sharp breath and let out a tiny gasp.

It seemed she hadn't imagined even in her wildest dreams that I would be so bold.

She probably expected me to get all flustered and scold her for being ridiculous, didn't she?

Seeing her eyes go wide like a startled puppy staring at something bizarre, I could clearly picture how she would react in the future.

In the battle of getting eaten versus eating, it looked like the winner would definitely be the latter.

Then again, this was Hiyori we were talking about, so I couldn't let my guard down.

I calmly turned my head away from her—looking like she might hiccup if poked—popped the Popcorn into my mouth, and chewed it up.

I didn't forget to put on a face that said what just happened wasn't even a minor incident, treating it as the most trivial thing in the world.

"..."

I could practically feel Hiyori's speechless gaze on me.

I won this battle of nerves. The thrill of this tug-of-war was surprisingly sweet.

Just as I was basking in that sense of victory: "Sunbae-nim. I'm going to the restroom."

Hiyori, who had been silently watching the movie, spoke up. I gave a nonchalant nod.

"Yeah."

"Hold onto my shirt."

"Wear it while you go."

"It's just uncomfortable. Here."

She took off her shirt and dumped it right onto my lap.

Just as I was caught off guard and about to nag her, she stood up and brushed past me.

With the generous legroom between our seats and the row in front, she could have just walked normally, but Hiyori deliberately faced me and sidestepped past my seat.

It was almost as if she were paying me back for what I did earlier.

As I pressed my back deep into the seat to give her more room, I thought I saw one corner of her mouth curl up, but had I imagined it?

The Screening Room was already pitch black, and the movie scene happened to be dark as well, so I couldn't make it out clearly enough to be sure.

Whatever it was, I had a feeling my tug-of-war with Hiyori was about to get a bit more tense.

No, thinking about it again, maybe it was getting slacker... it was hard to pin down exactly.

I supposed the fact that I was so confused meant my date with her was just that wildly unpredictable.

Breathing in the lingering lemon scent Hiyori left behind while my thoughts wandered, I snapped back to reality at a question from her after she quickly returned.

"Were there any important scenes while I was gone?"

What was the intention behind that question?

Was she testing me to see if I actually just calmly focused on the movie while she was in the restroom?

Or did she mean it purely because she was genuinely curious about the movie?

Normally, I would have assumed the latter, but Hiyori was far too unpredictable for that.

Resolving not to overthink it, I simply shook my head side to side.

"No."