Bab 161: Ch 161. Reward [Bonus Chapter]
Hoshimi didn't reply immediately. He took his phone to the bathroom and only after getting into the bath did he leisurely pick up the phone to respond.
Meanwhile, Yuigahama Yui was lying face down on her bed, her head pressing against the pillow as she rolled around in frustration.
"Ah~ Hoshimi-kun hasn't replied yet! I knew I shouldn't have been so direct!"
Trying to mimic Yukino's style has backfired, she thought. It would've been better to approach Hoshimi-kun gradually, probing bit by bit, getting closer slowly.
Now what? I've messed up! Maybe I won't be able to contact Hoshimi-kun through email anymore!
Buzz~~
The phone on the pillow suddenly vibrated, and Yuigahama's expression brightened as she quickly picked it up to check.
Sure enough, it was a reply from Hoshimi-kun! Thank goodness, it didn't completely backfire.
She quickly opened the reply to read.
"An impolite question? You can ask, but it will come at a price."
Yuigahama's face fell. A price? What kind of price?
She tentatively sent a message back.
"Hoshimi-kun, what kind of price are you asking for?"
"First, send me a picture of yourself right now."
A picture?
Yuigahama was momentarily stunned. She looked up and down at herself. She was currently wearing fairly conservative pajamas, so there wasn't much of an issue.
After thinking for a moment, she buttoned up her collar completely, smoothed out her slightly messy hair, then leaned against the wall and struck a very normal peace-sign pose by her eye for the selfie.
She sent the selfie to Hoshimi.
"Here's the picture."
Then she quickly typed out another message: "Hoshimi-kun, is this okay?"
Before she could finish typing, Hoshimi sent a picture back.
"Here's my picture."
When she opened the photo, she found that the background was a luxurious bath, and Hoshimi had revealed his entire head and neck, along with his collarbone and part of his bare chest.
Her mouth slightly agape, Yuigahama stared in shock at the sight of Hoshimi-kun, looking as if he had just emerged like a lotus from water.
He looked so handsome, especially with that slightly tilted head and mysterious smile, which made her heart beat a little faster.
Hoshimi-kun had a slightly mischievous look, like a cunning little fox plotting something sneaky.
Cute, sly, and makes you want to pet him…
The next moment, when Hoshimi's next message appeared, Yuigahama's heart nearly stopped, and all thoughts of petting vanished.
"My dear Yuigahama-san, what do you think Yukino would do if I showed her screenshots of our little photo exchange?"
Her heart stopped, her breath caught, and Yuigahama's face flushed red with panic.
Clutching her phone, she jumped up and shouted angrily:
"Hoshimi Kiyokawa!"
You tricked me! I haven't even asked my question yet, and you're already doing this to me?
I'm Yukino's close friend! How could you do this to me?
You damned fox! Not handsome! Not cute at all!
"Ahhhhh!!!"
Yuigahama flailed her limbs in a helpless rage.
Right now, she really wanted to punch that jerk Hoshimi to death!
But she couldn't. She still had to appease Hoshimi, to make sure he didn't show the screenshots to Yukino, or she'd be finished!
Her pajama photo, Hoshimi's bath photo—both were too easily misunderstood! Yukino would definitely get angry!
The thought of Yukino's anger made Yui shiver.
She quickly sat back down, picked up her phone, and tried to calm Hoshimi down.
"Hoshimi-kun, I'm sorry, it was my fault. Please, don't show the screenshots to Yukino. I'll do whatever you ask."
One minute passed, no reply.
Two minutes…
Three minutes…
Ten minutes later, still no reply.
By this point, Yuigahama was starting to despair. She wondered if Hoshimi had already shown Yukino the screenshots.
Is Yukino punishing Hoshimi right now, and would she come after me tomorrow?
Yuigahama became more and more hopeless, slumping against the wall, her phone tossed aside in defeat.
Buzz~
After an indeterminate amount of time, the phone suddenly vibrated again.
Yuigahama's body trembled. Could this be a condemnation email from Yukino?
Gulp!
Yuigahama swallowed nervously and picked up the phone with trembling fingers.
It was a message from Hoshimi-kun. Thank goodness, the situation hadn't completely blown up.
She opened the message.
"Picture."
It was a selfie of Hoshimi-kun lying in bed, covered by a blanket, eyes closed.
Then, another email followed.
"I'm already asleep. What happened tonight is our little secret, okay? Don't tell Yukino, or else...~ (evil smile emoji)"
Yuigahama let out a long breath of relief. Thank goodness, Yukino didn't know.
But, a little secret, huh...
For some reason, Yuigahama felt a slight twinge in her heart, like a soft paw scratching at it, a hard-to-describe itch...
…
The night deepened as the world settled into sleep.
In the dream, Yukino found herself in a library, Kotoko in a beach, and Hoshimi chose to accompany Yukino first before going to Kotoko.
So, Hoshimi appeared in the library.
Seeing him, Yukino stood up, crossed her arms, and slightly lifted her chin, speaking seriously, "Hoshimi, take out your notebook and textbooks. I'm going to tutor you."
"Hmm? You're serious?" Hoshimi raised an eyebrow, slightly surprised.
"Of course, Hoshimi, you can't really be planning to rank at the bottom, can you?"
"...Tutoring is fine, but I have two conditions." Hoshimi raised two fingers.
"Go ahead."
Hoshimi lowered one finger. "First, I want you to wear your uniform."
Understanding Hoshimi's dirty thoughts, Yukino looked at him with disdain, but still chose to nod, "...Alright."
Hoshimi lowered the other finger. "Second, I want a reward, a progressive one."
Yukino frowned. "Be specific. What kind of reward at what stage? Spell it out clearly."
"Alright, I'll explain it in detail." Hoshimi stepped closer to Yukino, smiling broadly as he elaborated.
"Tomorrow, I'll input a set of mock midterm exams for the second year into the bookstore's system. The progressive reward will be based on the daily mock exam results."
"When I score above 80 in all subjects..." Hoshimi grasped Yukino's hand, his smile deepening. "At that point, Yukino, your hands will be mine to command."
"..."
Yukino's expression froze, immediately recognizing Hoshimi's insidious intentions.
She silently stared at Hoshimi, intending to voice her own conditions after he finished speaking.
"When I score above 90 in all subjects..." Hoshimi lifted his foot, gently tapping Yukino's instep with his toe. "At that point, Yukino, your feet will be mine to command."
"And if I get a perfect score in all subjects..." Hoshimi leaned in, touching Yukino's forehead with his own, and gave her lips a fleeting kiss.
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