"I am not! I do not! Don't spout nonsense!"
Ruri's pretty face flushed crimson, and she hurriedly and shamefully denied it.
Talking in your sleep isn't embarrassing, but being caught by your little sister is super shameful. If the boy you called out for happens to be right beside you... it's incredibly awful!
I'll never have the face to go out and see anyone ever again!
"Ruri-nee's problem with saying one thing and meaning another has gotten even worse." The sound of an elementary schooler sighing came from outside. "You're already dating Sora-niisan, is it really that hard to admit you like him?"
"I would never like a guy like him!"
Ruri blurted out her denial.
But right after saying it, Ruri's heart suddenly skipped a beat, and she couldn't help but turn to look at the boy beside her.
(Wait a minute!)
(A-Although it's true I don't like him... I absolutely don't hate him either!)
(Should I explain it clearly?)
Ruri parted her pink lips, wanting to explain. But thinking of her sister right outside, she could only regretfully bite her lower lip and swallow the words that were on the tip of her tongue.
Sora's expression remained unchanged, not taking it to heart.
After all, he was currently disheveled, wearing only a single towel. He was more concerned about how terrible it would be if he were discovered.
"That's why I'm saying tsunderes are outdated." Hinata complained from outside. "If you didn't like Sora-niisan, Ruri-nee definitely wouldn't have gone out on a date so late, right?"
Hearing this, Sora nodded in agreement.
As they interacted more, he increasingly realized that Kuroneko was a standard chunibyo tsundere girl.
Thump.
Seeing Sora actually nod, Ruri lightly gritted her silver teeth, unable to resist lifting her right foot and secretly stepping on him. She quickly denied verbally:
"I told you I went out to help, it wasn't a date!"
Hinata asked in return:
"If another boy called Ruri-nee out to help in the middle of the night, would Ruri-nee agree?"
Ruri: "..."
Agree?
How is that possible!
There is an unwritten iron law in the real world: the strong do not seek help from the weak. Just like an adult man—if he asks a passing elementary school student for help, it's highly likely he has ulterior motives.
If a boy asks a girl out to help in the middle of the night, his intentions are definitely not pure.
Of course, Sora is an exception.
Before I knew it, we've known each other for almost a month. Sora is actually a super reliable boy...
"Ah, I forgot." Hinata's giggling voice sounded from outside. "Aside from knowing Sora-niisan, Ruri-nee doesn't have any other male friends at all."
"...Damn it!"
Ruri lightly gritted her silver teeth, unable to resist clenching her pink fists, super eager to go out and physically sanction her sister.
"Eh, how strange..." Hinata's voice suddenly grew confused. "Ruri-nee is clearly taking a shower alone, why... are there two silhouettes on the door?"
Hearing this sentence, Ruri immediately jumped in fright.
Oh no!
I forgot about the shadows on the door!
In this moment of crisis, Ruri didn't have time to think. She directly leaned her entire body into Sora's embrace.
"I was just adjusting my pajamas... that's why!"
"Why does it feel like you've gotten much taller, Sis?"
"You're sitting on the toilet. When you look at others from there, they naturally seem taller."
"Eh, why does your voice sound a bit panicked, Sis?"
"You have too many questions... hurry up and finish using the toilet, then go back to sleep!"
"..."
Meanwhile.
Sora's rationality was rapidly plummeting, while his biological instincts, representing bestial desires, were surging upward.
A cute girl, fragrant and soft, wearing a dark gothic dress, was leaning softly into his embrace. Any normal male would find it impossible to remain completely indifferent, right?
More importantly, although Kuroneko was a flat-chested 'A', her figure wasn't entirely a steel plate. A certain area was distinctly like a full moon...
"If you don't go to sleep right now, you can forget about eating ice cream tomorrow!"
Ruri's expression was stern as she sanctioned her sister.
"Eh, why?"
"You actually ask why? No small cupcakes either."
"Ruri-nee is a tyrant queen!"
"Hmph..."
Ruri gave a light snort. Just as she was about to continue sanctioning her sister, she suddenly noticed something wasn't right behind her.
Wait.
It feels like something is...
Ruri's breathing stopped. She widened her beautiful eyes in a panic, her pretty face flushing crimson at a speed visible to the naked eye.
(C-Could it be...)
Ruri wasn't a delicate flower raised in a greenhouse. As a veteran otaku, she even possessed the ability to bypass the firewall and surf the foreign web. Having played 18+ games and read 18+ doujinshi, she naturally knew why there was a 'murderous aura' behind her.
"L-Lewd!"
"I'm clearly just leaning in your embrace, and you actually..."
"As expected, boys' heads are completely filled with dirty thoughts! Sora is no exception!"
"..."
Ruri's pretty face was burning hot as she carefully tried to adjust her posture.
"Don't move around."
Sora's expression changed slightly. He hurriedly leaned in close to Ruri's ear and whispered a warning.
I know you want to extinguish the danger, but your method is wrong; it will only backfire. Like right now—either dodge away quickly or stay completely still. Dawdling around is clearly just adding fuel to the fire!
"Mmm..."
The boy's scorching breath landed on her ear. Ruri only felt a sudden, tingling electric current sweep through her entire body. Her body abruptly went soft, and she collapsed weakly directly into Sora's embrace.
And then... the 'murderous aura' grew even stronger.
The bathroom fell quietly silent.
Sora held his breath. He couldn't resist looking down at Kuroneko, who had collapsed softly in his arms, her pretty face flushed crimson, her eyes misty. He only felt a bout of dry mouth, and his rationality instantly began to plummet rapidly.
Sensing the change in Sora's gaze, the girl's already rapid heartbeat accelerated once more. Her long eyelashes fluttered in a panic, not knowing what to do.
(I-Is Sora going to kiss me?)
(No!)
(That kind of thing can only happen after we start dating!)
Their eyes met.
Ruri originally wanted to push him away, but her overflowing sense of shame made her close her eyes in a panic instead.
But right after closing her eyes, Ruri regretted it.
(Ahhhhh! Idiot! Why did you close your eyes!)
(Closing my eyes now makes it seem like... like I'm tacitly allowing Sora to kiss me, right?)
Sensing what seemed like scorching breath landing on her face, the girl's long eyelashes fluttered in a panic, her voice shy:
"N-No..."
At this moment, the sound of the toilet flushing suddenly rang out.
"Ruri-nee, I'm going back to sleep first." Hinata's yawning voice sounded from outside. "Goodnight, Ruri-nee."
"...Goodnight."
Hearing her sister's voice, vitality suddenly flooded back into the girl's soft body. She instinctively escaped from Sora's embrace, subconsciously glanced back, and then flusteredly averted her gaze.
T-Terrifying!
It's clearly on the level of a monster from a manga!
With Hinata's departure, the danger alarm in the bathroom was finally lifted.
"Sorry, I really didn't mean it just now."
Sora quickly turned around and apologized in a low voice.
He had really wanted to hold it in just now, but many things in the world do not shift according to human will.
"...Pervert Sora!"
Ruri shamefully pushed the door open and fled the bathroom:
"You are not allowed to tell anyone about what happened today, or else I'll curse you so that your cup noodles will never have a seasoning packet!"