Mejiro Dober closed her eyes and kissed Fujiwara Shirayuki. She could feel that Shirayuki had completely no experience with this kind of thing. Her movements were clumsy and uncertain. After two or three minutes, their lips slowly separated, and Mejiro Dober took a shaky breath.
Looking at Fujiwara Shirayuki in front of her, Mejiro Dober tried to steady herself. Then her face reddened at a visible speed. Her hands moved helplessly between the tips of her hair and the hem of her skirt. She wanted to say something, but she had no idea how to begin. Her mind was filled with Shirayuki's soft lips and the sweetness of that kiss.
She did it.
She really did it! She had not expected herself to lose her head and kiss Shirayuki without thinking about the consequences. Her goal had been to take Shirayuki's first kiss! It was Bright. Bright had bewitched her mind!
"Dober-Onee-chan."
Just as Mejiro Dober was flustered and almost going mad from embarrassment, Fujiwara Shirayuki spoke. "Um..."
Mejiro Dober suddenly shot to her feet. Using all the strength in her body, she said, "I suddenly remembered something urgent," then ran away at an unbelievable speed. By the time Fujiwara Shirayuki looked over, only her back could be seen disappearing around the end of the street corner.
So fast!
She had not given Shirayuki any time to ask anything.
Fujiwara Shirayuki touched her lips. Like... Did she mean that kind of like?
"Shirayuki, why are you here?"
Tokai Teio walked over while drinking a honey special drink.
"It's almost time to gather. Aren't you going back?"
"Ah... right."
Fujiwara Shirayuki stood up in a daze.
"What's wrong? You look like your soul left your body."
Shirayuki's limp state caught Teio's attention.
"Something happened, I guess... Teio, have you ever kissed someone?"
"Pffft! Wh-What are you saying, Shirayuki!?"
Hearing Shirayuki suddenly ask such an outrageous question, Tokai Teio sprayed her drink out. "How could I possibly have done something like that?"
"That's true. Teio is still a child."
"Hah??"
Just because I haven't kissed anyone, you're calling me a child? What, are you supposed to be an adult then?
Tokai Teio instantly became displeased.
"What's so special about kissing? Kissing is normal, right? You can do it anytime, anywhere. Something like that doesn't count as a symbol of adulthood." Tokai Teio patted her chest. "If your relationship is good enough, you can do it. If I wanted to, I could go kiss the President anytime."
When she said this, Tokai Teio's tongue slipped a little. President Rudolf was her faith, so it was impossible for Tokai Teio to really kiss her like that. If she kissed her, it would not be on the lips. A cheek kiss was already the limit.
However, she did not want to show an embarrassing side of herself in front of Shirayuki. On top of that, she wanted to brag about her relationship with Rudolf, so she said it anyway.
"If your relationship is good enough, then it's okay?"
"Isn't that obvious? It doesn't count as a symbol of adulthood. If you think one kiss makes someone an adult, you're completely wrong... Wait, don't tell me you kissed someone?"
Tokai Teio's tail suddenly stood up, and she looked at Shirayuki suspiciously.
"I'm just asking casually."
"Is that so?"
Tokai Teio took a sip of her honey special drink.
Why would she ask something like that? Isn't it weird? Right after I came over, she suddenly asks whether I've kissed anyone.
Tokai Teio quietly glanced sideways at Shirayuki. Then she noticed Shirayuki's gaze had been fixed on the corner of her lips.
Thump!
Tokai Teio's heart jumped hard.
Could it be that Shirayuki asked about kissing because she wanted to kiss me!? She's trying to figure out what kind of relationship would make it okay to kiss me! Is that it?
Noticing Tokai Teio's gaze, Shirayuki quickly turned her head away. Seeing this, Tokai Teio became even more certain of her own idea.
So Shirayuki really has feelings for me! I already felt something was off during our last outing. Shirayuki deliberately grabbed me and refused to let me leave, making me stay with her longer. How foolish, Shirayuki. To think you developed feelings for your rival. This great Tokai Teio won't accept you that easily!
Beside her, Fujiwara Shirayuki held her stomach.
She was so hungry.
After drinking milk tea, she had started getting hungry. Chiya did not have enough money to spend either. That honey special drink looked pretty good, but she did not know where Teio had bought it. There was no time to go buy one now, so she could only endure until they returned to the cafeteria.
"Here..."
Tokai Teio handed over her honey special drink.
"Hm?"
"This drink tastes really good. I like it a lot. You should try some too."
"Teio, thank you."
Fujiwara Shirayuki accepted it and began drinking. Tokai Teio watched Shirayuki's happy expression. Seeing Shirayuki drink from the straw she had used, Teio's face grew warm, and she turned her gaze away.
Even an indirect kiss didn't need to be that intense.
Well, keep doing your best to chase after this great Teio, Shirayuki!
When everyone gathered, Fujiwara Chiya took out his phone and looked at the message Mejiro Dober had sent him.
[My body feels uncomfortable, Trainer, so I went back first.]
There was also an apologetic emoji after it.
Although Teio said girls with good relationships could kiss, Fujiwara Chiya felt that something was still not quite right no matter how he thought about it.
He would ask her about it tonight.
After training ended, everyone returned to the dorm. Fujiwara Shirayuki went to the cafeteria and ate lunch. After clearing the entire table of food into her stomach, Fujiwara Shirayuki's taste buds finally received brief satisfaction.
"Found you."
With both hands lazily folded behind her head, Seiun Sky walked over.
"As expected, if I look for the place with the most plates, I can find Shirayuki." Her face carried a relaxed and carefree smile.
"Sky-chan... and Spe-chan too." Seeing the two of them arrive, Fujiwara Shirayuki wiped her mouth. "What's wrong?"
"Shirayuki, can we ask you to teach us during the exam review this afternoon?"
Seiun Sky sat beside her.
"That's fine, but aren't your grades both okay?"
"No way. These past few days, my head has gone all scrambled, and I can't read at all. Please teach me, Shirayuki." Spe-chan pressed her hands together.
"Got it. Since we have the chance, let's just have everyone come together."
In the last exam, Shirayuki had placed third in the year. There had been a few questions where she used university-level methods and solved them in two steps, only for the teacher to mark them wrong. Otherwise, her ranking could have been even higher.
Using the knowledge of a top academy student to answer middle school-level questions was somewhat unfair, but Fujiwara Shirayuki very much enjoyed the wonderful feeling of becoming an honour student.
In the dorm room, Fujiwara Shirayuki taught Special Week and the others, patiently explaining each question again and again. Watching her, Grass Wonder rested her cheeks in her hands, her eyes showing a hint of fascination.
Every time she saw Shirayuki sitting properly beside them like a teacher and explaining lessons, Grass Wonder liked her so much she could barely stand it. Shirayuki was both cute and calm. That strange combination held endless temptation for Grass Wonder. Even though her own grades were decent, she still wanted to come over and be taught by Shirayuki.
"Shirayuki really is nice. Just like a mother," Seiun Sky said, sitting cross-legged with her chin resting on the table.
So Seiun Sky understood Shirayuki's charm too.
Grass Wonder silently nodded.
"Even sleeping together gives you this feeling of being taken care of," Seiun Sky murmured absentmindedly, her ears swaying lazily.
Yes, even sleeping together gives you this feeling of...
Hm?
Grass Wonder looked at Seiun Sky beside her.
What did that mean?