Chapter 98

When Chinami woke up, one of her eyes remained shut.

The other was only half-open.

She smacked her lips. Sleeping with her mouth slightly agape had evidently dried it out.

"Master."

I called out to Chinami as she scratched her neck and looked around. She turned to me, her expression completely disheveled.

"Mmm...?"

"Wait here a moment. I'll get you some water."

"Okay..."

Chinami leaned her head against the wall, her body going completely limp.

If I poked her right now, she'd probably squish like pudding.

Suppressing that urge, I left the Storage Room.

The Club Room was noisy. Everyone was shouting various kiai, practicing head strikes on mannequins fitted with Bogu.

"Haaah!"

Thwack!

"Haaap!"

Thwack! Crack!

In the corner, I spotted Tetsuya smashing away at a mannequin's head.

He was yelling louder than the others, and even louder than his usual self.

Could catching Miyuki's plum scent on me have messed with his head?

Grabbing a water bottle from a corner of the Club Room, I turned to head back to the Storage Room.

Just then, Renka, who had been quietly practicing consecutive strikes, walked over and called out to me.

"Matsuda...! Wait."

The cold sweat beading on her face and long neck caught my eye.

Would it taste like blueberries if I licked it?

I imagined forcing a lick onto her as she glared at me in horror, trembling because she wouldn't dare defy her vicious male master...

Just picturing it turned me on.

"What is it?"

"Did Chinami... wake up?"

"Yeah."

"Tell me... did you by any chance..."

"Can we talk later? Master seems thirsty, so I need to get this water to her."

I shook the bottle right in front of Renka's eyes. Clamping her mouth shut, she let out a long sigh through her sharp nose.

"Fine... then stay a bit after club activities are over."

I gave a vague nod and returned to the Storage Room, crouching in front of Chinami, who was still groggy and half-asleep.

I twisted the cap off the bottle and held the rim to her lips.

"Say ah."

"I-I can drink it myself..."

"Ah."

"...Aah..."

She opened her mouth wide, making a sound like a patient getting their throat checked at the doctor's office.

I carefully tipped the water into her mouth, then spoke.

"You still look dead on your feet. Want to go sleep in the Lounge? I'll handle the cleanup."

"I-I couldn't do that..."

"It's fine, just go. You barely slept."

"Mmm... I shouldn't..."

She mumbled with a pout, glancing at me tentatively, but it was obvious how desperately she wanted to sleep.

Staring at the completely transparent Chinami, I reached out and smoothed her tangled bangs.

"club activities won't be over anytime soon. Are you just going to stumble around half-asleep? What if you mess something up?"

"T-That's true, but..."

"Come on, get up. To the Lounge."

I stood up and offered her my hand. After a brief moment of hesitation, she must have made up her mind; she grabbed my hand and hoisted herself up with a small groan.

"I'll just sleep a little bit... only thirty minutes..."

Hearing her say that, I knew she was going to be out cold.

"Right, let's go with that."

I patted the back of Chinami's Training Uniform pants to dust them off.

I could feel her plump ass right through the thick fabric.

Every time my hand brushed against that spot, "Hnnng...!"

Chinami let out a strange gasp, squirming and shrinking away.

She mumbled something, as if wanting to stop me, but seemed to let it slide on the assumption that I was just doing her a favor.

Having dusted off her already spotless uniform pants, I placed a hand on her back.

Tracing the delicate curve between her shoulder blades all the way down to her external obliques, I stroked her gently with an entirely self-serving hand.

"Eep...!?"

Chinami's head jolted up, hyper-sensitive to the touch.

Realizing I would chase away all her drowsiness if I kept this up, I gave her back two final, light pats and pulled my hand away.

"Want to grab some ice cream after you wake up?"

"Ah...! I'd love to. Then I'll go to the Changing Room and grab some money..."

"You're half-asleep, how long is that going to take? I'll just go buy it."

"Still..."

"Come on, hurry up and get to sleep."

"...Okay..."

Replying like an obedient child, Chinami shuffled away on unsteady legs.

How had she even stayed awake when she was that exhausted...? For Chinami, she had held out for a really long time.

The Club Room had quieted down.

While everyone else was showering, I was mopping the Club Room floor. When Renka stepped out of the women's Changing Room and shot me a look, I followed her.

Calling me to the back of the Club Room, she crossed her arms and fell silent.

She stared at me, clearly debating how to bring it up.

I waited with a relaxed attitude until she finally spoke up.

"How did you end up in that situation?"

"What situation?"

"Why was Chinami asleep on your shoulder?"

"Because there aren't any pillows in the Storage Room?"

Renka's eyebrow twitched.

I let out a chuckle and continued.

"Just kidding. Master looked exhausted, so I lent her my shoulder for a bit."

"I know you two are close. But even so, physical contact like that is..."

"Hold on. President, are you really so stuffy that you think men and women can't even touch each other unless they're dating?"

"S-Stuffy...! Accidentally brushing past someone and resting your head on their shoulder are two entirely different things...!"

Renka was uncharacteristically flustered.

It looked like I'd hit the nail on the head.

I shrugged. "It's just surprising, considering how revealing your casual clothes are."

"Why bring up my clothes out of nowhere?"

"I just find it fascinating how your outward appearance and your inner thoughts are total opposites."

".... Think whatever you want."

"Will do. Anyway, why did you call me out here? Just to ask me that?"

"That was..."

Renka trailed off, clamping her mouth shut.

The look on her face made her inner turmoil glaringly obvious.

If she pried any further, she'd sound like a nagging boomer, but backing off meant leaving Chinami to fall into my evil clutches. She was visibly torn.

"Oh, right. About the Bogu you picked out for me."

"Huh...? Oh... that...? What about it? Is there a problem?"

"No. It feels great, so I just wanted to thank you."

"Well, it's... nothing to thank me for, really..."

Changing the subject worked like a charm; she took the bait immediately.

You really are easy to read.

"It's a little tight around my head, though. You didn't give me a smaller size on purpose, did you?"

".... I'm not petty enough to mess with someone using expensive gear. The Men is supposed to feel tight at first. That way, once it's broken in, it sits securely without hurting."

"I was just joking. But seriously, President, why do you dislike me so much? Is it because of the bad rumors?"

"It's not that I dislike you... It's just that, during sparring, and even normally... you..."

Renka was just about to explain her reasoning in a serious tone when we were interrupted.

"Junior...! Where are you...?"

From the corner near the Club Room, Chinami's drowsy, weak voice called out.

Renka perked up and turned her head. Footsteps shuffled closer, and Chinami peeked her head around the corner.

Spotting Renka, she tilted her head in confusion.

"close friend Renka...? What are you doing out here with Junior...?"

Renka shot me a quick glance before answering.

"We were just chatting about this and that. Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah... I'm supposed to get ice cream with Junior. Can I take him with me...? Or would you like to join us, close friend?"

"I'm good. Thanks, though."

"Why not? Let's eat together. It's the peach flavor you like."

"No, really... You two go ahead and enjoy it."

Given her fears that something unholy would happen if Chinami and I ate ice cream alone together, I'd totally expected her to tag along...

It was surprising coming from someone as rigid as Renka.

"We'll be on our way, then."

Giving Renka a brief nod, I turned and walked into the Club Room with Chinami without looking back.

"I ended up sleeping for a whole hour."

Chinami mumbled as she sat in the corner, happily munching on her ice cream.

I let out a chuckle, still just holding my ice cream stick.

"You must have been exhausted. Is it good?"

"Yeah. I could eat this all day and never get sick of it. It's cheap, too. If the School Store ever stops selling these, I might just transfer to another school."

"That hurts a little. Is this peach ice cream really more important than I am? What would I do without you?"

I put on an exaggerated look of disappointment as I pressed the issue, and Chinami's eyes crinkled into a smile.

She gave my back a few reassuring thumps and spoke.

"I'm just joking! Why would I ever leave close friend Renka and you behind? That would never happen."

Seeing her so suddenly full of energy brought a smile to my face, too.

Sleep really was the best medicine.

"Thank god. I was almost heartbroken."

"You worry far too much, Junior. But why aren't you eating your ice cream?"

I'll be honest. I was completely sick of it.

Now I understood exactly why Renka had turned down the offer to join us.

Spending so much time with Chinami, Renka had clearly reached her absolute limit with anything peach-flavored.

Honestly, it was a rock-solid hypothesis.

"I only bought two... I'm holding out in case you want seconds, Master."

"I appreciate the thought, I really do, but I'd rather eat with you, Junior. Come on, take a big bite!"

Right... how could I possibly refuse when she put it like that?

Suppressing a groan, I forcefully bit into the ice cream. Stomaching the overwhelming wave of artificial peach flavor, I swallowed it down barely chewing.

"It makes me so happy seeing you enjoy it! Let's get the yogurt peach flavor next time."

".... Right. Actually, speaking of yogurt peach... want to go grab some after club activities this Friday?"

"This Friday? Why not today?"

"Because I want to give you a massage on Friday."

"Mmm...? Already...?"

Already? It was about time, wasn't it?

"We can work out all the stress you've built up since Monday, grab some yogurt peach ice cream, and head home... What do you think?"

".... I guess you're right... since the next day is the weekend... I could sleep in..."

"Exactly. You'll wake up feeling completely refreshed for the weekend. And if we happen to find any used Momo-nim Merchandise, we can go buy it together on Friday, too."

"Hmm... That is a wonderful idea..."

I wrapped a tissue around my index finger and reached out, wiping a smudge of apricot-colored cream from her upper lip.

Instantly, her face flushed as red as a perfectly ripe peach.

"So, it's a plan?"

"....."

Chinami pulled her knees up to her chest and took a tiny nibble of her ice cream.

Chewing delicately, she gave a small nod.

"Okay... let's do that..."

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