Chapter Thirty-Two: An Awkward First Encounter with Qiong (Bonus Chapter for Recommendation Votes)

Aoki Tsukasa could never have imagined that his first proper encounter with Sora would take place under such an awkward circumstance.

The Kasugano residence, like most two-story houses, revealed the entryway the moment you opened the door, followed by the staircase leading to the second floor. So, when Tsukasa, weighed down by exhaustion and carrying the snacks he’d bought for Sora, finally pushed open the door, he was greeted by the sight of Kasugano Sora, just out of the bath and swaddled only in a towel—thanks to her chronic procrastination—standing at the foot of the stairs. Their eyes met; both froze as though the world had been paused.

Droplets still clung to Sora’s long silver hair, and her fair skin, tinted a delicate pink by the hot bath, was partially concealed by her crossed arms. The towel, damp with steam, clung closely to the soft curves of her adolescent figure, leaving little to the imagination. Her delicate, pretty face was etched with alarm—her eyes wide, her lips parted, panic written in every feature. Clearly, she had never anticipated such a scene.

“Uh...” Tsukasa rubbed his head awkwardly, but before he could finish, Sora, wrapped in her towel like a startled fawn, darted up the stairs in a flurry of leaps and bounds.

“Be careful!” he called out.

Sora nearly tripped, sprawling on the steps, but managed to catch herself with her hands. She didn’t even cry out in pain—just scrambled away in a clumsy, urgent tumble, disappearing at the top of the stairs. There was a slap as her door swung open, and another bang as it slammed shut.

In her haste, the corner of her towel got caught in the door. Tsukasa only had to imagine what happened next to know that, behind that door, Sora’s towel had likely been yanked away altogether...

A crack appeared as the door inched open, and the trapped towel was whisked inside before the door clicked shut again. Tsukasa’s sharp ears even caught the distinct sound of the lock turning.

“I...” He stood there, utterly bewildered. What on earth just happened?!

Upstairs, Sora was in an even sorrier state.

Her face, flushed from the bath, was now burning crimson. She buried herself in bed beside her beloved giant teddy bear, cocooned entirely in her blanket. The way the blanket rose and fell betrayed her inner turmoil.

Nearly suffocating herself, she finally poked her head out, her expression a mixture of frustration and humiliation. She kicked the blanket with her small feet, letting out a muffled, exasperated wail. “Ugh... Ah!!”

Her rare outburst spoke volumes of her distress. “Idiot!” she muttered, patting her cheeks with cold hands, her young face full of regret. “Why didn’t I just change in the bathroom?!”

She was filled with equal parts anger, embarrassment, and anxiety. In a fit of irritation, she grabbed her cherished teddy bear and pummeled it with her tiny fists until she felt marginally calmer.

He didn’t see anything, did he? The memory of Tsukasa’s stunned expression when he opened the door replayed in her mind.

“Baldy... you’re the worst!” she grumbled, staring up at the ceiling, her emotions a tangled mess. The worst-case scenario haunted her: surely he must have seen something, or why else would he look so dazed?

She quickly dismissed the thought. No, impossible—I was covered up completely.

Still, it was mortifying all the same...

With a huff, Sora slipped into a comfortable nightgown, flung open the window, and let the cold wind brush her overheated cheeks until she finally began to cool down.

What am I supposed to do now... Chin in hand, she brooded over how she’d ever be able to face Tsukasa again.

But then, out of nowhere, she remembered the injuries she’d glimpsed on Tsukasa’s face when he’d come home. Thinking back, that vacant expression of his was indeed marred by several bruises—a dark mark at his temple, a cut near his eyebrow.

So he really is a delinquent? The suspicion crossed her mind, only for her to shake her head. If he’s a delinquent, why would he go out of his way to look after me?

Unless he’s pretending to be nice to lower my guard, all the while plotting something awful until I relax? Her face went pale as her mind conjured up all sorts of stories she’d read online.

She shook her head again, trying to banish the wild thoughts, but unease lingered in her chest.

Wait! Didn’t Dad say Tsukasa was in my class at school? I think I still have the class president’s Line ID on my phone—the Japanese app like WeChat. Remembering this, Sora immediately grabbed her phone and sent a message to the contact labeled “Class President: Kokyo Shimi.”

“Do you know Aoki Tsukasa?” Sora hesitated for a long time before finally biting the bullet and sending the message.

She had to figure out what kind of person Tsukasa really was.

Her fingers fidgeted anxiously with her phone. She told herself it would be fine if he turned out to be a delinquent—then she’d have a reason to convince her parents to send him away, which matched both her suspicions and his image. But deep down, she secretly hoped Kokyo Shimi would tell her it was all a misunderstanding, and that Tsukasa was actually a decent person...

She truly didn’t know whether she wanted that annoying bald head in her house anymore. Even though she’d been so opposed to her parents bringing a stranger home, she’d even quarreled with Masao Kasugano over it.

Ding. Her phone screen lit up. The sound startled Sora so much she nearly tossed the device out the window. With clumsy hands, she grabbed it, shut the window, and jumped onto her soft bed.

After nervously swiping at the unlock key several times, Sora finally steeled herself and opened the chat interface. There, a new message from Kokyo Shimi awaited her.