After class, the noise of students talking and playing spread across the campus.
In a small white car parked near Building One, a boy and girl sat together in the passenger seat, cuddled close, in an ambiguous position.
Ignoring Sasaki's wandering hands and his offhand dismissal of Temura Kyosuke, Hyoudou Tomoe furrowed her brows, reminding him seriously:
"Don't go doing anything reckless. If you get hurt, or caught…"
Though she was furious with that bastard Temura for manipulating others' minds so disgustingly, and wanted him to be punished…
She didn't want Sasaki doing something stupid for her sake.
Just hearing what he said earlier was already enough to make her heart flutter.
After all, at the very least, it proved the person she gave herself to wasn't some scumbag who only wanted her body and didn't care about her feelings.
Well..
Sasaki didn't answer immediately.
At this moment, he just held her in his arms, looking at the girl in love caring for her liver, enjoying the contrast of her voluptuous figure that was anything but girlish.
To be honest, he really loved her figure, soft and plump in all the right places, slim and delicate where it counted.
Not to mention, the way she treated him so differently from any other man, it was quite awesome.
Holding her in his arms, he looked up from her chest, smiling as he met her eyes. "If I get caught, you'll wait for me to come back, right?"
Hyoudou Tomoe didn't like him saying ominous things like that, so, she covered his mouth, frowned and scolded:
"Are you stupid!? Who talks like that? Don't say that again!"
"As for Temura… if it comes to that, just avoid him."
"I'm not too worried. Transferring to another school isn't a big deal. As long as you don't provoke him, nothing should happen. But just in case… if you can, you should transfer."
"It might affect your studies a little, but if I tutor you, it'll be fine…"
Seeing her seriously planning for the future, Sasaki smiled, gently brushed aside her messy bangs, shook his head, pried her hand away from his mouth, and said:
"You don't have to treat Temura Kyosuke like he's some big scary deal. Without the necklace, he
Is just a normal guy."
"I'll just have someone teach him a lesson."
"There's no danger."
Whether it was because she now understood Temura's weakness, or because Sasaki wouldn't be taking the risk himself, she let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Seeing that weight lift from her heart, the boy's eyes softened with affection as he kissed along her neck, slowly working upward until he captured her soft, cool lips.
It was still after class, people were everywhere—so he didn't push it.
After a brief, light kiss, he gazed at her eyes shimmering with unshed tears and smiled:
"Little Tomoe, seeing you worry about me like this… it makes me so happy~"
"Who's worried about you? Don't flatter yourself. Not having to apply for a transfer means one less hassle for me, of course I'm relieved."
Avoiding his gaze, Hyoudou Tomoe turned her head to look out the window, her tone dripping with disdain.
Though she now knew he cared about her, she still couldn't accept his womanizing ways... She might let him take liberties and get intimate with him, but if he thought she'd give him the satisfaction of a sweet smile—dream on!
With so many suitors chasing after her, if she gave in too easily to him, wouldn't that make her seem cheap?
Clutching her pride and nursing her grievances, Hyoudou , who was sitting obediently in his arms, looked out the window and noticed the necklace he had hung on the rearview mirror.
How did he know about the necklace?'
The question sprouted in her mind, followed by a flurry of others, popping up like persistent groundhogs begging to be whacked away.
She couldn't figure it out, but she desperately wanted the truth, so, she reached out, took the necklace in her hand, then turned to glare at the scoundrel who'd been trying to sneak a kiss.
Running her fingers over the smooth one-eyed gemstone, she met his eyes and asked. "I want to hypnotize you to ask some things... Is that okay?"
Glancing at the necklace between her slender fingers, Sasaki had a rough idea of what she wanted to know.
However, since he also wanted to test the necklace's effect on himself, he nodded without hesitation.
"Go ahead."
Seeing how straightforward he was, her lips couldn't help but curve slightly as she leaned in, giving him an unexpected peck on the lips—her first voluntary kiss.
After pulling away, Hyoudou lifted the necklace, its crimson eye gleaming as she murmured. "Tell me exactly how you found out about the necklace. Leave nothing out."
After saying that, knowing the hypnosis had a time limit, she quickly fastened it around his neck.
"..."
Sasaki felt nothing—no compulsion, no trance.
However, meeting her expectant gaze, he hesitated for two seconds before deciding not to reveal his immunity.
Since she wanted to find out the truth through hypnosis, it meant that she had doubts about herself in her heart.
The relationship between the two was still fragile, so it was normal to have doubts due to some speculations...
Mere words from him wouldn't erase her doubts now.
Using the necklace as a prop might actually help.
Even if she later discovered his immunity to hypnosis, by then, her heart and body would already belong to him.
She'd understand who he truly was, and this little deception now would just become an amusing memory.
So...
Playing along, Sasaki adopted a vacant expression and spoke mechanically:
"During the morning break today, you called me and Nemoto Kyousuke to the guidance office. On the way, I didn't like the way he looked at you. I was worried he'd harm you, so after he went inside, I hid outside and eavesdropped..."
"I couldn't get close enough to take the necklace from you... I had to wait until tomorrow noon when you'd be hypnotized again... But before that, I needed to deal with Nemoto."
Hearing how he'd learned about the necklace, warmth bubbled up inside Hyoudou like boiling water.
'So he really does care.'
Assured his earlier confession wasn't just sweet talk, she straightened up, wrapped her arms around his neck, and kissed him passionately.
However, even after the passionate kiss, when she saw that he didn't respond, she finally remembered that he was still under hypnosis.
Just as she reached to remove the necklace, his earlier casual attitude toward it resurfaced in her mind... along with the strange dreams she'd been having about him.
To be honest, she didn't think they were connected to him, and she knew she shouldn't pry into his secrets... but if there was really a chance to get answers now...
"If this really has anything to do with you... then you're the worst!"
Since the two of them were already in a relationship, and he just made her dream about him, without harming her mentally or physically, she couldn't bring herself to hate him for it.
After all, compared to Nemoto's outright vileness, Sasaki's possible influence on her dreams was almost... tolerable.
That didn't mean she wouldn't be furious, though.
But first, she had to confirm whether he was behind the dreams.
With mixed emotions in her heart, she straddled his lap, cupped his face, and stared into his blank eyes.
"Those dreams I keep having about you at night... Are you behind them?"
?
Dreams about me?
What?
Sasaki, whose face was held by her, had a hint of doubt in his mind.
'Could it be that she noticed me because she's been dreaming about me?'
'Is there a fourth player in this game—besides me, her, and Nemoto?'
Having encountered the supernatural before, Sasaki was quite certain that Hyoudou's recurring dreams weren't normal.
Someone was manipulating her dreams to bring them together... Some kind of Cupid?
The fourth party's motives were unclear, but for now, they seemed to be on his side.
Analysing all this, Sasaki still kept his dazed act flawless, and answered flatly.
"No."
Receiving the answer she most desired, Hyoudou Tomoe, who no longer restrained by propriety under the assumption he was hypnotized, pulled Sasaki into a tight embrace, pouring out her joy.
Although she had already decided earlier that even if Sasaki had used hypnosis or something like that to influence her dreams, she'd forgive him, afterall, they were already like this and she couldn't deny the fact that she did like him.
But such methods were still underhanded, something to be scorned… If given the choice, of course she certainly hoped that the man she liked wasn't that kind of person.
Fortunately…
Her happiness and tenderness intertwined, overwhelming her restraint as she covered his face in light, fluttery kisses.
Seeing his cheeks dotted with faint pink lip marks, Hyoudou's eyes crinkled with a soft laugh.
The biggest doubt in her mind had been resolved, leaving only one trivial question.
Though minor, if this little bastard's answer satisfied her… she might just indulge him here…
Thinking about this, she pulled him close again, straddled his lap, gently stroking the hair on the back of his head with his small hands, and asked softly. "You already took the necklace from me at noon. Why didn't you imitate Nemoto and turn me into your plaything? Even now… when I've hardly been kind to you, you didn't hypnotize me. You even told me about the necklace. Why?"
Being held against her chest, Sasaki's voice was a little unclear, but because there was only one sentence and the car was very quiet, she could hear it clearly. "Because… I like Hyoudou Tomoe, not a doll named Hyoudou Tomoe."
That was the most truthful answer he could give.
She liked him, he liked her, why would he turn her into a toy with no emotion, no soul.
He wanted her everything
"..."
Silence stretched in the car for a long moment after his words.
The next sounds weren't Hyoudou lifting the hypnosis, but the rustle of fabric, the soft thump of something dropping (like an eraser under a desk), and then… the slick snap of a popsicle being freed from its wrapper.
Finally, the wet, rhythmic squelch of a gas tank stubbornly refusing to fill properly.
...
Ding-dong-ding—
Not the school bell, but the end-of-day chime echoed across the empty campus, drifting into the car.
Still straddling Sasaki's lap, with her face flushed and glowing, Hyoudou rested her chin on his shoulder and weakly whispered in his ear.
"W-Wake up…"
"..."
Well...he'd been awake the whole time, but he couldn't do anything but play along.
Now that he finally didn't have to pretend anymore, Sasaki breathed a sigh of relief in his heart, blinked a little dazedly, as if only now realizing their… intimate connection.
Reaching out his hands to hold on her slender waist, he asked in shock.
"Since… when?"
Ignoring his question, the woman weakly lifted herself, her damp eyes flickering with a mix of embarrassment and something warmer as she mumbled. "You must have quite enjoyed it, right… getting your way in a place like this."
Of course he enjoyed it, after all, his beautiful teacher, who was cold and felt disgusted towards every other man on the planet, with a strict personality, was voluntarily sucking his cock with such love and devotion...but that was for him to know.
He couldn't say it out loud.
So, outwardly, he showed an aggrieved frown on his face and sighed as if he suffered a great injustice.
"I didn't even notice when it happened… I have no memories at all. What's there to enjoy about?"
Put that way, it sounded like she was the only one who'd… enjoyed it.
Thinking about it, Hyoudou's blush deepened.
She wanted to say something apologetic, but she was too embarrassed to tell him the reason why she didn't release him from hypnosis.
In the end, she could tighten her walls around his tool to express her apology to him.
However even after giving him comfort, she still felt it wasn't enough.
So, as her heart melted with his words, Hyoudou leaned in, wrapping her arms around Sasaki's neck and nibbling his ear as she whispered. "Didn't you say you wanted to come to my place? Tomorrow morning… I could walk you to school."
The implication was obvious, and Sasaki wasn't about to miss it.
Staying overnight might be off the table, but staying with her until evening was definitely possible.
But before that, there was still Nemoto Kyousuke to deal with.
It was a plan set in stone, and now, he could even use it to further win over Hyoudou. Why not?
After checking the time, and figuring out that they still had a little while to enjoy each other's company, Sasaki relaxed into the seat, and patted the smooth fabric of her skirt, teasing,
"Not worried about 'danger' anymore? You were so against it at noon."
That was different!
Back then, she'd given herself to him in the heat of the moment, not expecting him to take responsibility or anything in return.
But now? Remembering the answers he'd given under hypnosis, Hyoudou tightened her arms around his neck, nuzzling his temple as she murmured.
"If we really end up with a little consequence… you'd better take full responsibility, you little rogue~"
Knowing his answers had cracked open her heart, Sasaki grinned and pulled her closer, murmuring against her ear.
"Well then~ If you want me to take responsibility, shouldn't you change how you address me?"
Hearing his words, Hyoudou Tomoe, who was now certain of his genuine feelings, no longer resisted or scowled like before, obediently spoke in a soft voice. "Darling~"
The tender, sultry note in her voice sent a shiver down his spine as Sasaki inhaled her sweet scent, savoring her sudden docility.
But the act had to be maintained.
To sell his confusion over her drastic change in attitude, he gently sucked her earlobe and asked. "By the way... what did you ask me while I was hypnotized for so long?"