บท 243: The One in Kotomi’s Painting Must Be Me!
"Kotomi, we'll be leaving now."
"Bye-bye~"
After saying their goodbyes, Kotomi waved off Ruka Ishikawa and the other members, who believed her excuse of wanting to stay back and review her painting for possible adjustments.
With the National Youth Art Competition's deadline looming, no one found her reasoning suspicious and promptly left the art room without further probing.
However, Kotomi had no intention of revisiting her painting. While the competition was indeed important, as it could secure her a recommendation to university, she was supremely confident in her abilities.
Staying back had nothing to do with nerves—it was solely to wait for Megumi, in accordance with their promise that morning.
"She should be on her way from the library by now," Kotomi mused, glancing toward the window. From the art room, though, it wasn't possible to see the library, so she simply admired the golden hues of the setting sun to pass the time.
She loved sunsets.
Every time the sun painted the sky orange and the day turned to dusk, it stirred a gentle thought in her heart: It's time to go home.
The sound of approaching footsteps interrupted her reverie.
Kotomi turned and saw Megumi quietly push the door open, a playful smile on her lips.
"Getting impatient?" Megumi teased, smirking.
"I am not!" Kotomi pouted, her voice tinged with a mix of shyness and playfulness. She quickly got up and ran into Megumi's open arms, surrendering to her embrace.
"'Not impatient,' huh? Then why do you look so eager?" Megumi chuckled, holding Kotomi closer.
"Why are you talking so much? Are you going to kiss me or not? If not, I'm leaving!" Kotomi feigned annoyance, lightly baring her teeth in a mock threat.
As she pretended to wriggle free, Megumi suddenly tightened her embrace, leaving no room for escape.
"Can't you hold me a bit gentler—mmph!"
Before she could finish her complaint, Megumi silenced her with a kiss.
Meanwhile, Mashiro Shiina, who had just left the art room, was halfway down the stairs when she instinctively reached for her pocket.
Her expression shifted as she realized her keychain was gone.
"The Iriomote cat... my keychain... where is it?" Mashiro murmured, her tone tinged with worry.
She rummaged through her pockets, then her bag, but found nothing.
She was sure she'd been holding it earlier while drawing in the art room.
The art room!
Her spirits lifted at the thought.
"Kotomi should still be in the art room. I need to hurry back before the door gets locked."
Mashiro turned and ran, her steps quick and hurried. The last person to leave the art room was responsible for locking up—today, that person was Kotomi. She needed to catch her before she left.
Even if it had been her phone that went missing, Mashiro wouldn't have been this anxious. She might not have even noticed until someone pointed it out. But the keychain was different.
Despite its modest price, Mashiro adored the Iriomote cat keychain. When she bought it at the department store over the weekend, the salesperson mentioned it was the last one in stock.
If I lose it, it'll be hard to replace.
Kotomi said it was cute, too.
Fueled by these thoughts, Mashiro quickened her pace.
Though physically healthy, Mashiro's stamina wasn't great due to her sedentary lifestyle, spent mostly drawing. By the time she reached the art room, she was breathing heavily.
Leaning against the wall, Mashiro bent over, hands on her knees, and took a moment to catch her breath. Once her breathing steadied, she stood up and approached the door. Hearing movement inside, her face brightened.
Kotomi hasn't left yet.
Placing her hand on the doorknob, she froze. Through the glass window on the door, she saw everything happening inside.
Mashiro would never forget what she witnessed.
Inside the art room, Kotomi and Megumi stood wrapped in each other's arms.
Kotomi's eyes were half-closed, her expression dazed as if lost in the moment, while Megumi gazed at her with a victorious glint in her eye.
Mashiro's breath hitched.
She covered her mouth with trembling hands, her eyes widening in shock. She should have felt anger or jealousy—should have barged in, pulled Kotomi away, and left with her.
Instead, Mashiro felt something entirely different: an intense, inexplicable excitement.
Kotomi was kissed by another girl.
Kotomi was kissed by Megumi Kato.
Why am I not furious?
Why am I not storming in there to stop them?
Why... why am I excited?
She shivered, unable to make sense of her feelings.
Is it because Megumi is doing what I've always wanted to do but never had the courage to?
Mashiro's thoughts spiraled as she sat down outside the door, her legs giving out beneath her.
Disgusting. I'm disgusting.
But I'm also... so jealous. I want to kiss Kotomi like that too.
Her orange-red eyes were wide and unblinking, her expression a mix of fascination and shame.
Back inside the art room, Megumi broke the kiss and smiled.
Kotomi's cheeks were flushed, her face glistening with a fine sheen of sweat. Her lips quivered as she struggled to suppress the words on the tip of her tongue.
"Was that enough?" Megumi asked teasingly, her tone soft but playful.
Kotomi pouted, clenching the hem of her skirt tightly. She looked too embarrassed to respond.
Seeing her nervous expression, Megumi chuckled and lightly tapped Kotomi's nose with her finger.
"Alright, let's go. As much as I'd love to keep kissing you, if we stay here any longer, you'll probably turn so red you could boil water just by touching it. And what if someone sees us?"
Megumi's eyes flicked toward the door, her expression subtly mischievous.
Kotomi hadn't noticed, but Megumi had. When they were kissing, Mashiro had been watching from outside the door.
Now, Mashiro had moved out of view, likely hiding nearby.
Even knowing this, Megumi wasn't flustered. If anything, it had spurred her on to kiss Kotomi more passionately, locking eyes with Mashiro through the glass as if to flaunt her victory.
Half a minute later, the door opened slowly.
Mashiro stepped into the art room.
"Mashiro?"
Kotomi, who had just finished adjusting her clothes, jumped in surprise when Shiina Mashiro walked in through the door.
Could she have seen what just happened?!
Blushing, Kotomi tightly clutched the hem of her skirt, unsure of what to say. Before she could stammer out a word, Megumi flashed her a reassuring look and calmly greeted Mashiro:
"Hello, Mashiro. Did you forget something?"
Mashiro's gaze flickered between Kotomi and Megumi. Her lips pressed together hesitantly as if she had something to say but couldn't bring herself to voice it. Instead, she nodded slightly and softly replied:
"I forgot my keychain. I came back after realizing I left it behind."
"Is that so? Lucky you didn't go too far, or Kotomi and I would have locked up," Megumi said with a gentle laugh.
Mashiro walked to her seat in the art room and, as expected, found the Iriomote cat keychain lying on the chair where she had left it.
As Mashiro retrieved her keychain, Megumi leaned close to Kotomi and whispered in her ear:
"Relax. We finished before she got here. She didn't see anything."
Relieved by Megumi's words and seeing Mashiro genuinely focused on finding her keychain, Kotomi let out a quiet sigh.
Thank goodness she didn't see anything she shouldn't have. Knowing Mashiro, if she'd seen us kissing, she'd have burst in here demanding answers.
That was close! Any longer and we'd have been caught for sure.
Internally laughing bitterly at her narrow escape, Kotomi resolved to warn Mashiro again about playing with her keychain carelessly.
"Keychains are meant to stay attached to keys, which should be in your pocket or bag. Mashiro, you can't keep holding it all the time—it's too easy to lose. Today you left it on the chair, but next time you might lose it somewhere you can't find it."
Kotomi's tone was firm, though not scolding, as she remembered how earlier she had warned Mashiro about being careful with her keychain. If Mashiro had forgotten about the keychain, she might have stumbled upon something far more awkward.
Mashiro nodded obediently, her soft reply tinged with guilt:
"Got it... I'm sorry... I'll head out now. My cousin is waiting for me."
Her voice seemed quieter and more forlorn than usual. She hurriedly turned to leave, her steps uncharacteristically brisk.
Watching Mashiro's retreating figure, Kotomi tilted her head in confusion. While Mashiro typically spoke softly, today she seemed particularly downcast, and Kotomi could sense the change in her tone.
Did I say something too harsh? No, it couldn't be that. I've said much harsher things in the past—like when I critiqued her first manga draft—and she took it in stride, even improving for her second.
So, what's bothering her?
Puzzled, Kotomi crossed her arms and decided to ask Mashiro about it later. For now, she grabbed her bag, ready to head home.
As Kotomi bent to pick up her bag, she noticed Megumi standing in front of her easel, her eyes gleaming with curiosity at the painting concealed beneath a white cloth.
"So this is your entry for the art competition? Too bad it's covered up. Can I take a peek?" Megumi asked, her hand inching toward the cloth.
"No! Absolutely not! At least not yet!"
Kotomi darted forward and blocked Megumi, waving her hands frantically.
It wasn't that she was unwilling to show others her work; in fact, the whole purpose of Twilight Sky: Sunset was for it to be seen, to win accolades, and secure her recommendation for university.
However, Kotomi's perfectionist streak wouldn't allow her to show an unfinished piece. Even though her current progress was already superior to most students' final submissions, Kotomi still considered it incomplete and unsuitable for viewing.
Faced with Kotomi's adamant refusal, Megumi reluctantly withdrew her hand. She had been dying to see if Kotomi had included her in the painting, but seeing Kotomi's determination, she decided to wait patiently for the unveiling at the competition.
I can't wait to see how Kotomi painted me, Megumi thought, grinning to herself.
After all, it had been her idea to include a figure in the landscape. Although she hadn't outright asked Kotomi to feature her, she had dropped plenty of hints. Surely Kotomi had picked up on them, right?
If she didn't paint me, then who else would she choose?
Megumi hummed smugly, her anticipation growing as she thought about the day Twilight Sky: Sunset would be displayed at the exhibition.
After locking up the art room, Kotomi and Megumi walked out of the school together.
Megumi suggested taking a detour to the Dango Cake Shop to buy some treats.
"Oh, you don't know yet, do you? The shop's temporarily closed because Aunt Yuigahama needs a break," Kotomi explained.
"Really? That's too bad. But if it's for rest, I understand. Running a shop can be exhausting, especially when you're managing everything on your own."
Despite her disappointment at not being able to buy cake, Megumi was empathetic toward Yui's family situation. As a solo business owner, Aunt Yuigahama had to juggle running the shop, paying rent, and supporting her daughters, including the costs of Yui's younger sister's upcoming elementary school enrollment.
Since they couldn't stop by the cake shop, the pair stuck to their usual route home.
When they reached Kotomi's house, Megumi suddenly turned to her with a mischievous glint in her eye.
"I'm so disappointed about the cake. How about you make it up to me?"
"I don't have any cake at home! Well, maybe there's some leftover cookies, but that's it. Want those instead?"
"Not in the mood for cookies today."
"Then what do you want me to do? I suppose I could come to your house and bake a cake for you?" Kotomi's voice trailed off in exasperation, though she was already mentally preparing to do just that if Megumi insisted.
Her cooking skills were top-notch, and baking a cake would be a breeze. However, it was time-consuming, and Kotomi generally preferred buying desserts over making them unless there was a special reason.
But if Megumi really wanted one, Kotomi would do it.
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