Yuu set down his bento box and took his usual seat across the long table from her.
"President, for someone who's once again successfully completed a request for the Service Club, do you have any kind words to share?"
Slowly, Yukino picked up some rice with her chopsticks, chewing gracefully with her small mouth. After swallowing, her slender, pale neck moved slightly, and she said calmly:
"Thank you for your hard work. You did well."
"That's it?"
Yuu opened his bento box, only then realizing he'd accidentally cooked too much.
A good habit formed over time would take longer to forget—but no matter, with the skills granted by the system, he could finish any amount.
"What else should there be?" Her beautiful, delicate eyelashes trembled softly. Yukino's cool blue eyes glanced over, the corners of her mouth curling up as if mocking him. "What, do you want me to pat your head like you would a cat that successfully used the litter box?"
"Don't cats usually get scratched under the chin?"
Yukino set down her chopsticks, lowered her head, and apologized sincerely: "Sorry, if it's you, I physically can't do it."
"So patting my head is fine? Your tastes are pretty weird."
Facing her sharp gaze, Yuu couldn't hold back a joyful laugh. He thoroughly enjoyed the atmosphere of their seemingly tense but actually casual banter.
In this regard, Yukino was truly a special presence for him—not related to being an ex-girlfriend, purely because interacting with her made him feel increasingly at ease.
The more he got to know her, the more he wanted to be good friends with her, not enemies who despised each other.
…Though not exactly friends, occasionally teasing her like a cat was quite fun too.
As for what Yukino thought of him, Yuu didn't care too much—if she genuinely disliked chatting with him, this girl who valued truth and honesty would say so outright. Then, he'd just need to adjust his approach.
No need to guess her pretenses, no need to correct her deviations…
Similar yet different from Yuigahama, though they hadn't known each other long, Yuu felt an inexplicable familiarity with her, as if they were on the same level, seeing eye to eye.
"Yukinoshita." While eating, Yuu suddenly asked, "Want to come see my cat?"
"…Cat?" Her eating paused mid-motion, as if a pair of cat ears had popped up and twitched on her head. Yukino looked up and stared at him seriously. "Are you serious?"
She remembered Yuu once arrogantly telling her he had a gray tabby kitten that was not only cute but also smart, able to understand human speech.
She didn't understand what it meant for its CV to be Ayako Kawasumi, and Yukino wasn't interested—after all, it was his cat, not hers.
"Just looking at a cat, why so serious?"
It was just a spontaneous suggestion, and Yuu didn't understand why she showed such a tense expression.
Yukino pursed her lips, placed her chopsticks neatly on her bento box, and said softly, "I've seen news reports about plenty of scummy guys using the excuse of showing off pets to trick girls into coming to their homes for nefarious purposes."
Yuu ate casually. "You think I'm that kind of guy?"
"…Let's not talk about personality. In terms of morals, you're still trustworthy." Unwilling to lie, Yukino, who had slept in the same hotel as him for several nights and traveled to Kyoto together, declared as much, her attitude seemingly softening.
"So, you're just shy about coming to my place to see the cat."
Yuu sharply pierced through her thoughts.
Yukino's ears turned slightly red. She cleared her throat and calmly shifted her gaze out the window.
"Just tell me when."
Being unable to lie had its downsides—she had to fight her embarrassment and could only accept the humiliation of feeling exposed.
Yuu smiled, not continuing to tease her, and placed his phone on the table.
"Though my original intention was just to show you a photo, not to bring you to my place to play with the cat… If you want to come, you can drop by anytime this weekend. I'll brew tea with no drugs in it for you."
"…Sorry for misunderstanding. Unfortunately, I don't really want to go."
Clenching her small fist on her knee, Yukino took a deep breath. Realizing her mistake, she didn't retort but shifted her gaze to the phone, her cool eyes unable to hide a glimmer of anticipation.
She set down her bento box and reached toward Yuu with a perfectly natural expression. "Remember to unlock it first."
With a raised eyebrow, Yuu smiled.
"Here."
"…What?"
"If you want to see." Yuu unlocked the screen, opened an album full of cat photos, and waved the phone in the air toward her, his tone casual, "sit next to me and look, or forget it."
With Yukino's excellent eyesight, she could certainly see the cute gray tabby kitten on the screen waving at her.
Her fair, delicate face flushed with a faint red. Whether from embarrassment or anger, she gritted her teeth slightly, glaring at Yuu.
"Now I'm starting to suspect you really are planning something with me."
In a classroom with just the two of them, calling her to his side so forcefully was clearly a sign of intending something improper.
Yet, despite her words, there wasn't the slightest hint of fear or even caution in Yukino's heart—though when they first met, she nearly called the police just because he got close, especially after such a threatening move. It was only natural she'd be extra cautious alone with him.
Was this Stockholm syndrome?
No, she had simply come to truly know this person, who completely lacked the courage to act on any bad intentions.
"Come or don't, I'm not forcing you to look." Yuu shrugged, set down his phone, and continued eating.
To his surprise, without much hesitation, Yukino, with an expression as if she were making a sacrifice, brought her chair and bento box and sat carefully about a meter beside him.
The scent—whether from shampoo or detergent—flooded his nose with all the beauty winter should have, leaving him momentarily stunned.
(This girl smells really nice?)
Yuu unconsciously took a deep breath, only to see the beautiful, long-haired girl immediately cross her arms, glaring at him with embarrassment and anger, her upper body leaning away from him.
"You pervert! You really have bad intentions!"
"…You're overthinking it. Just look."
Too lazy to explain, Yuu gestured to the phone with his eyes and continued eating calmly.
He had no intention of doing anything to Yukino. His earlier reaction was just a male instinct—he always saw her as a friend.
…Maybe there was also a hint of a hesitant kitten being called over lingering in his impression of her.
"I hope you don't do anything to reduce my trust in you again."
Squinting at his profile, she spoke coldly. Then, Yukino let out a soft sigh, relaxed her guarded posture, and picked up the phone on the table with her slender, fair hand, as if she couldn't wait any longer.
Soon after, soft exclamations came from her, occasionally accompanied by the sound of excited footsteps on the floor.