章 33: Ch 33. A Treacherous Bento
As soon as the cookie entered his mouth, even before he bit into it, Hoshimi knew what the "trap" was.
The filling of the cookie was wasabi!
The distinct pungent smell of wasabi began to spread in his mouth before he even bit down.
Looking at the sweetly smiling Yukinoshita beside him and the surrounding girls who were watching with great interest, Hoshimi knew he had no choice but to go through with it.
He braced himself and decisively bit into the cookie.
"Crunch---"
Instantly, the strong, spicy flavor of wasabi exploded in his mouth.
His pale face turned slightly red, and his bright eyes filled with tears.
"Crunch--"
"Crunch--"
Hoshimi chewed calmly, swallowing the cookie.
Then, he wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes and praised with deep emotion, "Yukino, now that I think about it, this is the first time I've tasted something you made. It's really good, I like it a lot."
"Is that so? If you like it, have some more."
Seeing Hoshimi shedding tears from the wasabi but still acting as if he enjoyed her cooking, Yukinoshita's smile grew even brighter. She picked up another cookie and offered it to Hoshimi.
"Sure, thanks, Yukino." Hoshimi, with teary eyes, looked "deeply" at Yukinoshita and leaned forward to eat another wasabi-filled cookie.
"Crunch--"
"Crunch--"
As the spicy flavor of wasabi exploded in his mouth again, Hoshimi's calm expression began to falter.
His facial muscles twitched slightly, his eyes watered uncontrollably, and the redness on his face became more pronounced.
Seeing Hoshimi in this state, Yukinoshita felt a wave of satisfaction. She smiled even more sweetly, the malice in her smile becoming more apparent.
Leaning forward, she looked at Hoshimi's reddened face and teased, "Hoshimi, why are you crying? Is it not good? You don't have to eat it if you don't like it~"
"No, how could that be? Yukino, your cookies are so good that they moved me to tears." Hoshimi smiled.
In the gentle April sunlight, Hoshimi's tear-filled eyes and his faint smile looked like the relieved smile of someone who finally got a response from their beloved.
Seeing this, the surrounding girls became excited. They gathered together, whispering animatedly.
"It's so nice, so enviable..."
"Yeah, both Hoshimi-kun and Yukinoshita-san are so enviable."
"I wonder what happened over the weekend that Yukinoshita-san is finally responding to Hoshimi-kun at school. I'm so happy for Hoshimi-kun."
"Hey, do you think Hoshimi-kun and Yukinoshita-san will get married right after high school?"
"Seeing how lovey-dovey they are now, it's possible."
"Wow, that means we might get to attend Hoshimi-kun and Yukinoshita-san's wedding after graduation? I wonder what it will be like~"
"Now that you mention it, I'm looking forward to it too... a wedding..."
Listening to the discussions around him, Hoshimi's smile took on a subtle, unreadable depth, while Yukinoshita's brows furrowed slightly for a moment.
She glanced at the girls in the class, feeling a bit uneasy, but the satisfaction of her revenge quickly overshadowed this unease.
She picked up another cookie and thought silently.
To her, classmates and schoolmates were all just passersby in her life. She never bothered to explain herself to them, as long as those close to her understood her, that was enough.
With this thought, Yukinoshita completely forgot her unease. She picked up a cookie, smiled sweetly, and looked at Hoshimi with amusement.
"Hoshimi, since you like them so much, have another."
Driven by the satisfaction of her revenge, Yukinoshita once again offered a cookie to Hoshimi.
This time, Hoshimi didn't eat it. He took Yukinoshita's white hand, took the cookie from her slender fingers, and put it back in the bag.
Then, Hoshimi took the bag of cookies and smiled, "Yukino, too many sweets before meals aren't good. I'd like to save the rest for later. Can we eat the main course now?"
Yukinoshita tilted her head slightly and smiled brightly, "No, since you like them, you should finish them."
Did she not understand Hoshimi's intention? She knew he wanted to take this opportunity to get rid of the wasabi-filled cookies, but it wouldn't be that easy!
Today, she was determined to feed Hoshimi every single cookie herself!
She wanted to see how long Hoshimi could keep up his calm facade and how he would look crying his eyes out!
"Finish them..."
Facing Yukinoshita's persistence, Hoshimi held the bag of cookies aloft and smiled gently, "Yukino, I believe good things should be shared. Don't you think we should let our classmates try your cookies too?"
Hearing this, the girls around them lit up and looked at Yukinoshita expectantly.
"..." Surrounded by the expectant gazes of the girls, Yukinoshita's smile faded a bit. She stared at Hoshimi and said with a hint of coldness, "Hoshimi, these are for you."
"Ahaha~~" Hoshimi laughed awkwardly and put the cookies into his desk drawer, "Okay, Yukino, I understand. I'll take them home and eat them all."
"..." Watching Hoshimi's natural and smooth performance, Yukinoshita's smile faded a bit more.
This jerk was really hard to deal with. He only ate two cookies and managed to defuse her plan.
But at least she got some revenge, a small victory in the grand scheme.
Proven right, her method of going with the flow worked.
So, she could finally set the overall direction for her future revenge strategies.
"Hoshimi, let's eat the main course."
Yukinoshita's sweet smile returned as she took a bento box out of her drawer, revealing a beautifully arranged and balanced lunch.
Seeing the main course, the girls around them discreetly peeked at the perfectly balanced bento box and some looked at Hoshimi enviously.
"Hoshimi, do you need me to feed you?"
Yukinoshita picked up the chopsticks, her smile exceptionally sweet.
"No, I'll do it myself."
Seeing the sharp chopsticks in Yukinoshita's hand, Hoshimi declined with heartfelt gratitude.
This was different from before. Being fed by hand wasn't very dangerous, but being fed with chopsticks, he was afraid Yukinoshita might poke his palate or tongue.
"Doing it yourself? Fine, go ahead. I made this especially for you. This time, you can't let me down."
Yukinoshita took Hoshimi's right hand, placed the chopsticks in it, and subtly pinched the back of his hand with her nails.
"Alright..." Fully prepared mentally, Hoshimi picked up the chopsticks, held the bento box, and began to taste it one bite at a time.
He started with a small piece of rice mixed with sesame seeds and meat bits.
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