Chapter 202 – A budding romance

Even though the members of Yukio's class found the jellyfish mesmerizing, they couldn't stay there forever. Once they had taken plenty of photos, especially the girls, they moved on.

After the jellyfish exhibit, the lighting returned to normal. The path was lined with sand-white gravel, scattered with various shells and sea snails.

If this were a normal beach, the students would have picked up the shells and put them to their ears, not to listen to any possible wave sounds, but because it looked good in photos.

Unfortunately, this was an aquarium, and according to the rules, they couldn't touch the shells or take them out for photos.

Next was the aquarium's main attraction: the super-large water tank. A long corridor ran through the middle, surrounded by water on all sides, filled with a myriad of sea creatures.

It felt like walking through the ocean, witnessing an underwater spectacle.

This scene completely captivated the members of Yukio's class. They were so amazed that they forgot to take pictures. When they remembered, the girls quickly spread out to take various shots, while the boys stared wide-eyed, trying to memorize the breathtaking sight.

Having been cooped up at Advanced Nurturing High School for so long, they could appreciate the grandeur of nature more than ordinary people.

Even Shiina, who had been following Yukio, was pulled away by two girls from the class to take photos.

As Yukio watched a large, flat manta ray swim by, Ibuki suddenly approached, staring seriously at the tank: "You like these skinny fish?"

"Not really," Yukio replied casually. "But since we're at the aquarium, we might as well take a good look. Otherwise, it would be a waste of time."

Ibuki didn't respond to that. Instead, she pointed to a sand tiger shark in the distance: "I prefer those powerful sharks."

Following Ibuki's slender finger, Yukio saw a large, gray-black shark. It was particularly massive, and its size made the other sea creatures in the tank pale in comparison.

Just as Yukio was about to say something, a fast-swimming, unidentified yellow fish darted by, seemingly lost or possibly with poor eyesight.

It swam too fast and bumped into the side of the sand tiger shark. It spun around in circles as if dizzy before quickly swimming away.

After the small fish swam away, the sand tiger shark slowly and sluggishly swished its tail back and forth, using its tail to propel itself like a sloth, turning around slowly to inspect the area it had been hit.

Its slow and silly behavior made Yukio burst out laughing: "Ibuki, you're something else. You know, sand tiger sharks are known for being docile and gentle."

"That's why they are kept in aquariums."

"... " Ibuki's cheeks twitched twice in frustration. After just talking about strength and weakness, the sand tiger shark's silly behavior made her feel exasperated.

Hearing Yukio's continuous laughter, Ibuki's face turned red with embarrassment: "Laugh, laugh at what? The sand tiger shark is the stupid one, not me!"

"Still laughing? Stop laughing already!" Saying this, Ibuki stepped closer, grabbing Yukio's arm as if silently warning him that if he continued laughing, she would be really angry.

Due to the height difference, Ibuki had to pull on his arm, making Yukio look down, trying to get her to let go.

As he looked down, he happened to meet Ibuki's upturned face, telling him to stop laughing. For a moment, they both froze.

In the dimly lit aquarium corridor, they were very close. Fortunately, Ibuki wasn't very developed in the chest area, so even while grabbing his arm, there was some distance from her chest.

If it had been Shiina or Ichinose grabbing Yukio's arm, something soft and pleasant would undoubtedly have pressed against his arm.

But Yukio had no time to think about that now, as he stared blankly into Ibuki's pure eyes.

Ibuki, similarly, gazed into Yukio's pupils, seemingly seeing her own shy reflection.

The aquarium's environment and lighting created a psychological suggestion, generating a strange and ambiguous atmosphere between the two as they stared at each other.

According to science, at that moment, a hormone was released in both of their brains, stimulating the relevant nerves and causing a hazy emotion to arise.

The sound of a "gulp" made Ibuki's eyes instinctively move to the neck, where she saw Yukio's prominent Adam's apple move up and down unnaturally.

She suddenly snapped out of it, like a startled bird, her face flushed crimson. She quickly let go and took a step back, creating distance. Only when there was enough distance did her heart seem to react, pounding wildly.

What just happened? Ibuki couldn't stop questioning herself. How did she end up staring at Yukio like that?

What the hell?

Yukio also just realized that he had felt an impulse to kiss her. Looking around, he understood that it might have been the psychological effect of the aquarium environment.

No wonder this place, along with ferris wheels, is known as one of the top dating spots. For couples, it really is too romantic, too good at creating an intimate atmosphere.

But… was it really just the psychological effect of the aquarium environment? Yukio began to analyze himself. He didn't think he was so easily influenced by his surroundings.

For instance, in the inherently youthful environment of the school even with the second semester almost over, he hadn't been influenced to become passionate.

In other words, as Yukio looked at the retreating Ibuki, he realized it wasn't about the environment; he genuinely wanted to embrace Ibuki and kiss her?

Perhaps his gaze was too strange, making the already embarrassed Ibuki completely unable to resist: "I-I-I'm going to look at the sharks!"

Leaving behind this awkward remark, Ibuki hurriedly walked away, almost like she was rushing to the bathroom, practically running and nearly bumping into people.

She dashed around a corner, finally stopping alone, leaning against the corridor's corner, clutching her heart and panting heavily. She felt as if the originally cool aquarium had turned on the heating.

Otherwise, why did even the glass of the water tank she was leaning against feel so warm?

"Really... really strange," Ibuki muttered, pressing down on her still unruly heart. "It's not like... it's not like I've never seen a guy's Adam's apple before. Why is it that Yukio's Adam's apple is so... attractive?"

While lost in these wild thoughts, she found herself mumbling out loud. As soon as she said it, Ibuki crouched down, hugging her head, and shook it vigorously. Unfortunately, the image of Yukio's Adam's apple moving was deeply imprinted in her mind.

No matter how much she shook her head, she couldn't get rid of it. Slowly, Ibuki calmed down, her cheeks unusually hot. She seemed to understand something.

From the very beginning, seeing Yukio confidently lead the class, guiding everyone to victory time and again, his gentleness towards Shiina during celebrations, her dissatisfaction with his favoritism on the uninhabited island, the sweetness of their late-night companionship, his praise, spending the summer doing fortune-telling with her, their three-legged race training, and his carefree smile after the competition...

One scene after another played back in her mind like a slideshow. Ibuki's grip on her shirt over her heart tightened, the once hazy feelings becoming increasingly clear. It was the first love of a girl's life... a budding romance.

***

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