Ch 102. Reluctant Words, Honest Actions

Click!

The flash went off, and Yukino froze for a moment before angrily lunging at Hoshimi, who was on the sofa.

"Hoshimi! You jerk! How dare you take a photo! Delete it now!"

Although she wasn't sure how she looked right now, she was certain it was something that should not be seen by others.

So the photo had to go!

"I'm not deleting it. This is such a memorable moment, why delete it?"

Hoshimi, who had been pounced on by Yukino, kept switching the phone between his hands to avoid Yukino's attempts to snatch it.

"Delete it!"

Yukino didn't want to hear any explanation; she just wanted the photo gone.

Failing to grab the phone, Yukino decided to pin Hoshimi down on the sofa and then try to get the phone.

"Haha~ If you want to delete it, get the phone first."

Hoshimi flipped their positions, reversing the attack and defense. He pinned one of Yukino's hands while slipping the phone into the sofa cushions with the other.

Seeing where the phone was, Yukino wriggled to reach for it. But Hoshimi, now with both hands free, was not as easy to deal with as before. He grabbed Yukino's wrists, trying to pin her down with his superior physique.

However, Hoshimi forgot one thing: he was still suffering from the aftereffects of 'Removal·Modified.'

As he pressed down, his whole body suddenly felt weak and sore, and his strength dissipated.

Yukino seized the opportunity, reversing the situation and gaining the upper hand.

At this moment, Yukino wasn't in a hurry to grab the phone anymore. She looked at Hoshimi with a mix of embarrassment and anger, ready to deal with this overstepping jerk first.

She grabbed Hoshimi's wrist, preparing to apply a joint lock technique to his arm.

"Ow~ Ow~ Ow~"

"???"

Seeing Hoshimi's pained expression, Yukino instinctively loosened her grip.

What's going on? She hadn't even started the joint lock yet, and he was already shouting in pain?

Did she hit a sore spot?

Wrist? Sore spot? Could it be from playing tennis with 'Removal·Modified' this afternoon?

Yukino's breath quickened, and she leaned forward to check Hoshimi's wrist.

"Ugh~~~"

Before she could look at his injury, Hoshimi suddenly started tickling her waist.

"What? Your waist isn't ticklish?" Hoshimi blinked, moving his hands up to find a ticklish spot.

"Hoshimi! Die!"

At that moment, Yukino realized she had been tricked again!

She leaned down and started tickling Hoshimi's waist in retaliation.

Damn jerk, you want to tickle me? I'll make sure to return the favor!

"Hahaha~~ Yukino~ Wait~"

Yukino's eyes lit up; it worked! Hoshimi's waist was ticklish!

"Heh~" She let out a cold laugh, continuing to find more ticklish spots on Hoshimi.

Today, if she didn't make him collapse right here, she wouldn't be called Yukinoshita!

"Haha~~ Yukino~~ Wait~~ If you keep this up, don't blame me for getting rough~~~"

"Heh~ Go ahead and try! Let's see who... "

"Surprise attack!"

"Ugh~~ Hoshimi!"

The two, in their thin clothes, wrestled on the sofa, mercilessly tickling each other.

For a while, the room was filled with laughter, pleas for mercy, and playful scolding.

After an unknown amount of time, the two, exhausted, finally stopped.

Hoshimi lay on the sofa with disheveled clothes, while Yukino sat on his waist.

Both of them were panting heavily, their chests rising and falling.

"Huff~ Huff~"

They looked at each other and inexplicably started laughing together.

Yukino didn't know why she was laughing. Maybe she was in a good mood, maybe it just felt right to laugh at that moment. The reason was unclear, but she just wanted to laugh.

Hoshimi was also laughing, but he knew why: it was simple—he was happy.

They laughed purely, without any pretense.

After a while, Yukino's body suddenly stiffened, and she turned her blushing face away from Hoshimi, avoiding eye contact.

"Being this tsundere is really rare..." Hoshimi couldn't help but tease, seeing Yukino's reaction.

They had come this far, yet had she not acknowledged her feelings?

If that's the case, he really had to doubt whether this dense Yukinoshita had any emotional intelligence.

"Hmph!" Yukino let out a cold snort, pretending to be indifferent.

She unsteadily got up and sat on another sofa, looking at Hoshimi with a cool demeanor and started issuing an eviction order.

"Hoshimi, you should go home."

"..."

Hoshimi was at a loss for words. Yukino's voice might sound cold, but her flushed cheeks, eyes filled with warmth, and slightly disheveled pajamas made her seem anything but cold.

Yukinoshita, why do you insist on pretending to be cold?

Don't you know that this just makes me want to stay and tease you even more?

This is a classic case of "reluctant words, honest actions." Not teasing her would be such a waste!

"Ah~" Hoshimi sighed, lying flat on the sofa like a dead fish.

What a pity. Right now, he had no strength left. Even if he wanted to tease Yukino, he had no energy.

The aftereffects of 'Removal·Modified' were really a pain... He would never use that skill again...

Ah~ What a shame. It looked like he had to go home today.

"Yukino, help me up." Hoshimi stretched out his hand, trembling like a dying person.

"Trying that trick again? Do you think the same trick will work on me twice?" Yukino crossed her legs, looking disdainfully at Hoshimi who was trying to pull the same stunt.

"No, I'm really out of strength. If you don't help me, I really can't get up..."

This time, Hoshimi wasn't lying. He was already exhausted from the aftereffects, and the long bout of playful fighting with Yukino had left him feeling like he was falling apart.

"Really?" Yukino looked at him suspiciously.

"Really."

"... " Yukino remained silent.

After a long pause, she got up and walked to the sofa, pulling the heavy Hoshimi up.

"Now can you leave? Go rest." Yukino stood beside him and said.

"Walk me to the door, and I'll leave."

"No way, don't even think about it!"

"Just to the entrance. It's just a few steps, no need to walk me home."

Yukino raised an eyebrow. She thought Hoshimi was asking her to walk him home.

If it was just to the entrance, then it didn't matter.

She extended her hand, "Get up, I'll walk you."

"Mm..." Hoshimi first retrieved his phone from the sofa cushions and put it in his pocket before grabbing Yukino's hand to stand up with her help.

Yukino saw Hoshimi's phone and hesitated, but said nothing more.

Forget it, it's just a photo. If Hoshimi wants to keep it, let him keep it.

===

Enjoying the novel? If you'd like to read additional chapters, visit my Patreon page at - patreon.com/cherryblooming.

There are already more than 30 extra chapters available.