When was the last ti I kissed gumi Kato?
Maybe I kiss her too often, because Kotomi Izumi couldn't even rember when the last kiss was. It felt like she and gumi were always kissing, like it was a constant part of their relationship.
But it definitely wasn't in the three days she spent in Kyoto. Those three days without a kiss had been torturous for gumi, and Kotomi felt the sa way. Three days without kissing? That was too long for them.
When gumi pulled Kotomi into her arms and kissed her roughly, Kotomi didn't even think to pull away. Normally, when gumi kissed her, Kotomi would feign reluctance and try to turn her face away.
She knew that in their relationship, gumi was probably the one taking charge in these monts, so trying to take control herself was simply impossible. At first, Kotomi had talked about taking charge of their kisses, wanting to pin gumi down and kiss her until she was breathless.
But it seed like reality had caught up with her, and although she was too proud to admit it, Kotomi had eventually co to terms with the fact that it wasn't going to happen.
Unable to take control, Kotomi had developed a strange competitive streak and started subtly resisting whenever gumi tried to kiss her. She would turn her head just slightly to avoid it, or fidget in gumi's arms to show her discomfort. gumi, however, had learned to handle this.
When Kotomi first turned her head away or squird in her arms, gumi didn't panic. Instead, she would take a firr approach. Kotomi, the rebellious little thing, would suddenly settle down, as if she couldn't resist anymore, becoming obedient and allowing gumi to kiss her.
It made gumi wonder if Kotomi secretly had a hidden submissive side, a deep-rooted preference for a stronger, more dominant touch. Every ti gumi took charge, Kotomi seed to enjoy it, even though she was too stubborn to admit it. gumi couldn't help but spoil Kotomi, treating her gently, carefully, as if she were the most precious thing in the world. But Kotomi, in her cheeky way, would tease gumi into taking a firr hold of her.
When gumi first realized this, she paused for a mont to consider it. It was likely true, but she wasn't complaining. Kotomi's teasing kept her coming back for more.
Every ti they kissed, Kotomi would try to resist, and gumi would playfully chase her down, until Kotomi eventually gave in.
It always ended with both of them feeling satisfied.
Today, however, it seed that the three days without kissing had taken their toll. When gumi leaned in for a kiss, Kotomi didn't pull away. It was like the familiarity of the mont made everything fall into place again.
She forgot to avoid the kiss, and before she knew it, gumi kissed her with ease.
It felt like sothing they had done countless tis before, and though there was a mont of awkwardness when they first t after the long gap, it quickly beca natural again.
Oh no, I forgot to dodge... Kotomi thought as the kiss deepened. Her slight hesitation lted away as she stood on tiptoe, wrapping her arms around gumi's neck.
gumi froze for a mont, and without missing a beat, she kissed Kotomi even harder, her desire ignited by Kotomi's touch.
The kiss continued for a long while, until finally, gumi was satisfied. She pulled away and looked at Kotomi, whose face was flushed and eyes slightly hazy.
She didn't let go, instead wrapping her arm around Kotomi's shoulder to steady her, afraid that Kotomi might stumble.
"You..."
As they walked toward Sobu High School, Kotomi absentmindedly covered her face with her hand. Every ti she tried to hide her face, gumi mischievously swatted her hand away. Kotomi pouted, stamping her foot in mock frustration.
"gumi, you're bad!"
"Who told you that when you blush, you're so irresistible? Don't be shy, let enjoy the view a little more, okay?" gumi teased, taking Kotomi's hand away once again. Every ti they shared a kiss or ca into close contact, gumi couldn't help but savor Kotomi's reactions.
"If you really like looking so much, then... I don't mind letting you see," Kotomi replied with a shy smile, still blushing, but this ti she didn't hide her face.
gumi smiled sweetly. Although she was itching to kiss Kotomi again, she didn't dare do it now. After all, they had already walked quite a bit, and they would soon be at Sobu High School. They might even run into so classmates. If soone saw them kissing...
gumi could already imagine what kind of rumors would spread in school.
For the sake of the small, hard-earned happiness between them, she decided to hold back for now.
She whispered to herself in her mind and touched her schoolbag. Feeling the gift for Kotomi inside, her lips curled into a faint smile.
Before leaving the house this morning, she checked her bag multiple tis to make sure the gift was safely inside.
gumi planned to give it to Kotomi later, at school. No matter what, she had to hand it over today!
"The midterms are tomorrow, how prepared are you?" gumi asked with a smile, glancing at Kotomi.
ntioning the midterms, Kotomi couldn't help but sigh with a look of unease.
"Before I went to Kyoto, I thought that ti was like water in a sponge—if you squeeze it, there would always be so left. I packed my textbooks into my suitcase, thinking that when I had so free ti in the evening, I'd flip through them and study a bit. But three days passed in the blink of an eye. When I ca ho yesterday and unpacked my suitcase, I found my textbooks still at the bottom. I realized, wow, I actually brought them with ."
"So, you haven't looked at a single word?"
"Mm... that's right." Kotomi gave an awkward, embarrassed laugh.
She didn't even want to say this out loud. As the top student in Sobu High School, and the top student in all of Tokyo, many eyes were always on her during the midterms. If anyone found out she hadn't studied a single word—let alone reviewed—they'd probably be shocked.
gumi shrugged, her expression almost as if to say, *I knew it."
"I made really detailed notes, though. I can lend them to you so you can copy them. The midterm exam questions will definitely be harder, but the teacher has already marked the key points. With your intelligence, Kotomi, just studying those should be enough. It might not be ideal, but cramming always has so effect," gumi suggested.
Honestly, I don't even need to worry about the exams... Kotomi thought to herself. Ever since she unlocked her study abilities through the system, she hadn't even thought about studying, yet her grades remained at the top.
Her focus was now on creation, earning money, and her relationship. She wasn't a superhero; she didn't have limitless energy. And to be honest, she wasn't particularly good at studying. Without her system ability, just passing the exams would have been a struggle.
As long as she had her study abilities, she could rest easy during exams.
Still, Kotomi replied, "Okay! Thanks, gumi. Please let borrow your notes, I'll try to review as much as I can today."
...
"Yui! Mashiro!"
"Kotomi!"
"Kotomi!"
As Kotomi walked into the 1st-year F class and saw Yui Yuigahama and Mashiro Shiina already there, the next mont, the Kotomi who had been with gumi just seconds ago was now in a big hug with the two girls.
Usually, when this happened, gumi would feel a little jealous inside. But today, she only felt a tiny bit of jealousy. After all, Yui hadn't seen Kotomi for almost four days. Now that they were finally reunited this morning, it was only natural for her to embrace Kotomi with the longing built up over those days.
gumi didn't know that Kotomi had actually t Yui yesterday at the dango shop when Kotomi was buying cake.
It wasn't entirely Kotomi's fault for not ntioning it. After all, gumi didn't ask what Kotomi had been up to after returning yesterday. If she had, Kotomi might have hesitated and considered telling the truth. But since gumi didn't ask, Kotomi didn't feel compelled to lie.
Thinking Yui had been just as deprived of Kotomi's company as she had, gumi beca more understanding. Especially since she'd indulged herself this morning by kissing Kotomi's little face, making her blush, the image of Kotomi as a little shy wife had left gumi smiling from ear to ear. In such a good mood, there was no way she would get upset at Yui.
But why did she still feel a little jealous?
It was because of Mashiro Shiina.
The thought of Mashiro spending nearly three entire days with Kotomi made gumi seethe with jealousy. She had already lost count of how many pens she had snapped in her frustration. Every day after school, she rushed straight to the stationery store to buy a new pen.
Three whole days in Kyoto with Kotomi wasn't enough, and now Mashiro was hugging her too? Of course, gumi felt a bit jealous.
But she couldn't just rush up and pull them apart.
Taking a deep breath, gumi reminded herself to stay calm. I'm the winner here. She made a show of walking to her seat and sitting down, trying to maintain her composure.
What gumi didn't notice was that Yukino Yukinoshita was staring at Kotomi and the others, her eyes seemingly saying, I want to join in too. Her icy expression, which had always been distant and unapproachable, seed to be softening just a little.
After the group hug with Yui and Mashiro, Kotomi sat down next to Yukino, temporarily claiming Yui's seat.
"Yukino, did you miss after three days?~"
"No."
Yukino Yukinoshita's cold voice answered, but Kotomi wasn't fazed. She could tell Yukino was pretending to be indifferent.
As expected, after saying "no," Yukino paused for a mont before slowly speaking again.
"Welco back. I guess I haven't seen you for the past four days. I might've missed you a little. Hmm."
"Really, just a little?" Kotomi asked, teasing her with a smile, resting her chin on her hand.
Yukino's face flushed slightly, and she turned her head away. If she didn't control herself, her normally cold, stunningly beautiful face might betray a faint blush.
The Ice Queen blushing?!
If the other students found out, it would probably spread throughout the whole school by the end of the day.
Yukino's cold deanor had already beco well-known across the school. How else could she have earned the title of The Unapproachable Ice Queen of Literature?
When Kotomi first heard that nickna, she couldn't help but laugh out loud.
It really did describe Yukino's school persona perfectly.
Ice Queen—yes, very cold.
Literature—yes, always carrying so difficult foreign literature book that most people couldn't even understand.
Most students, apart from English class, wouldn't want to see another English word. Not unless they were alone at night, looking up certain two-letter combinations in films of a specific genre.
During her breaks, Yukino Yukinoshita would still sit by the window, reading foreign literature books, not just limited to English. She also read Chinese, German, French, Russian, and so on.
If it were anyone else, people would probably think she was just showing off.
At the beginning of the school year, when Yukino sat alone by the window reading foreign classical literature, so people started gossiping behind her back, mockingly asking if she even understood what she was reading.
Maybe Yukino didn't hear the veiled sarcasm in their words, or maybe, being the proud girl she was, she simply didn't care to argue with them. Every ti they asked, she'd respond coolly, "I understand."
Her calm, dismissive tone left the girls who tried to mock her not only unsuccessful but also feeling embarrassed.
Kotomi couldn't stand it anymore. Every ti those girls tried to make trouble for Yukino, Kotomi, who had been pretending to sleep, would suddenly raise her head, glaring at them.
Despite their bad personalities, they weren't invincible. After Kotomi's glare, they'd feel like she wasn't just looking at them, but at their hearts, as if they were exposed before her, and a slight movent from Kotomi could tear them apart.
Who wasn't afraid of death?
Even though those girls liked to act tough on Twitter, they were terrified of Kotomi. When Kotomi glared at them, their survival instincts kicked in, and they scrambled away.
They fled without hesitation, and Kotomi was a little disappointed. She had already prepared to charge at them, ready to fight.
After being glared at by Kotomi a few tis, those girls never dared to mock Yukino or disturb her while she read again. Whenever they saw Kotomi, they made sure to stay far away. In their eyes, Kotomi wasn't just a human—she was a demon from hell!
The real end to the criticism ca when the results of the midterm exams were announced. Yukino Yukinoshita had ranked second in the entire grade in English, just behind Kotomi. The voices that had mocked her for reading foreign books suddenly vanished into thin air.
Though Yukino had always been good at English, if Kotomi hadn't helped her deal with those girls, she might not have been able to focus on her studies before the exam results ca out.
Without a doubt, this was a problem Kotomi had quietly solved for Yukino at the beginning of the school year. Since it was solved so easily, Kotomi hadn't even thought much about it and didn't bring it up to Yukino.
But Yukino noticed it all. That's why she didn't feel the sa coldness toward Kotomi as she did with others.
At first, Kotomi thought Yukino was an ice queen, but she was surprisingly easy to talk to. Conversations with her were lighthearted, not nearly as complicated as what Haruno had described.
Little did Kotomi know, it wasn't because Haruno had exaggerated or because Yukino was simply easy to get along with.
For Kotomi, Yukino had made "difficult" things feel "easy."
Initially, Yukino was just expressing gratitude for Kotomi solving her problem at the start of the school year. But as ti passed, Yukino realized that her relationship with Kotomi had grown closer than she had anticipated.
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