Unfinished Business

The door slid shut, and at last, silence returned.

Instinctively, I let out a breath I hadn’t realized I’d been holding. I guess I wasn’t as unaffected by the tension as I thought. Peeking through the narrow gap in the partition, I checked to make sure they were gone.

Kazuha-nee lingered by the door for a moment, her hand resting on the handle as if she were waiting to ensure they wouldn’t come back. Only when the coast was completely clear did she turn, locking eyes with me through the narrow gap.

A playful smile tugged at her lips, half amused and half exasperated. She approached the door, and with a soft click, it slid open again.

Standing face-to-face again, Kazuha-nee’s smirk widened. “Why are you looking at me like that? Hiding in here was a bad idea, so I locked it to ensure you wouldn’t misbehave again.”