Chapter 97: Jealousy

As the time for the school festival presentation approached, Kai stood outside the student council room, ready to call Hina and let her know about Emi's involvement.

He had to do it to avoid any other complications.

He perfectly knew how his girlfriend was.

The air around him felt heavier than usual, his mind racing with thoughts of how Hina would react to seeing Emi, and worse, working with her.

Just as he was about to reach for his phone, a familiar voice called out from behind him.

"Kai."

He turned around and froze.

Standing right there, almost as if she had materialized from thin air, was Hina.

Her eyes locked onto him like a predator fixating on its prey.

For a split second, he felt a chill run down his spine.

Kai literally saw that deadly stare that scared him in the past.

But that wasn't the only surprise.

Next to him, just a few inches away, was Emi Fujimoto.

Kai swallowed hard as Hina's gaze flickered between the two of them, her expression was unreadable and calm at the same time, but there was something dark lurking beneath it.

A subtle, chilling aura radiated from her, one that screamed *jealousy* and maybe even *imminent death*.

"H-Hina, I was just about to call you," Kai said, his voice betraying a slight tremble.

Hina's lips curled into a sweet smile, but it was the kind of smile you'd see right before a knife gets pulled out. "Oh, really? I thought I'd surprise you."

Behind Hina's smile , there was a very deep anger inside her heart, or that's what Kai thought at least.

The tension was palpable, and Kai could almost feel the temperature drop.

Meanwhile, Emi, completely unaware of the storm brewing, stepped forward with a friendly smile.

"Hi! You must be Hina. I've heard a lot about you," Emi said cheerfully, extending her hand, with a smile print all over her face.

Her friendly behavior could maybe help the situation.

Hina's eyes flicked to Emi's outstretched hand for a moment before she politely took it.

"Emi Fujimoto, right? Kai mentioned you."

Her voice was calm, almost formal, but there was an edge to it.

The kind of edge that could slice through steel.

Kai wondered where he already talked about her, and he then rembered that Emi's name came out during the dinner with his family, when they were talking about Kai's friends.

Hina remembered every detail.

"Yes! I'm the transfer student. It looks like I'll be working with Kai on the festival preparations," Emi continued, her tone completely unaware of the lethal aura Hina was emitting.

Emi actually thought that Hina only knew her because of her popularity.

"Oh, that's wonderful," Hina replied, her tone cool yet polite.

Then, with a slight smile that didn't quite reach her eyes, she added, "By the way, I'm Kai's girlfriend."

There it was.

The line had been drawn.

And she delivered it in the sweetest, most diplomatic way possible while simultaneously planting a metaphorical flag with Kai's name on it.

She clearly marked her territory , like she was saying "That's the line, don't you ever cross it."

Hina was being really polite , but Kai saw her hands trembling a little.

She was trying her best to suppress her feelings.

Kai, standing between them, felt the tension rise another notch, and for a moment, he half-expected Hina to unsheathe a blade from nowhere.

The way she said "girlfriend" was so calm, yet so final, that Kai could almost hear the unspoken *back off* laced into her words.

Emi, on the other hand, didn't seem fazed at all.

"Ah, I see!" she said, flashing a bright but mischievous smile. "Kai's a lucky guy." She said while moving her gaze to him and then back to Hina.

Kai could almost see the fire ignite in Hina's eyes at that comment, even though her outward expression remained perfectly composed.

"Very lucky," Hina agreed, her voice still polite but with a chilling undertone that only Kai could detect.

He could practically feel his life expectancy shrinking with every passing second.

As the conversation wrapped up and they all headed back to their respective classes, Kai couldn't stop wondering how Hina was truly feeling beneath that eerily calm exterior.

But before they separated, Emi exchanged contacts with Hina in order to organize the festival.

And she even said that they called her because of her popularity, and her presence at the school festival would've meant bringing a lot of people.

During the lessons, Kai kept daydreaming while looking out from the window of his classroom.

He couldn't stay calm, that's for sure.

His thoughts kept drifting towards Hina.

He couldn't tell if she was genuinely okay or just biding her time until she could confront him in private.

"She'll kill me one day, I'm completely sure of it." Kai repeated into his mind.

The rest of the day, he felt like he was walking on eggshells, his mind swirling with uncertainty.

A few of his classmates talked to him to ask some informations about the festival, but one of them actually asked:

"Hey, Suzuki, are you really working with Fujimoto Emi? Do you know how lucky you are? People saw you ! She was smiling next to you!! Some of them actually said that you are a couple!" The student speaking was Nagisa Isshiki, a girl with green and long hair tied in a twin tail.

She's the "Journalist" of the class.

She literally knows everyone's secrets and she loves gossiping about everything and everyone.

Kai looked at her and sighed in annoyance.

"Not at all. We just already knew each other. Nothing special. I'm not interested in idols, and you should know that I already have a girlfriend." Kai said, with a polite but annoyed tone of voice.

"Well, yes, of course I know. I was just teasing. Hehe." She said with a mischievous tone before returning to her place.

With another sigh, Kai looked at the sky again and started to overthink once more.

"Maybe I'm overthinking this..." he tried to reassure himself.

But then again, this was Hina.

And Hina was not the type to forgive easily when it came to jealousy.

The rest of the lessons passed in a blur, with Kai distractedly scribbling notes while half expecting Hina to burst through the door and drag him into some dark corridor for interrogation.

Every time the classroom door opened, he felt his pulse quicken, only to be relieved when it wasn't her.

Finally, the bell rang, signaling the end of the school day.

As the students began packing up, Kai couldn't help but wonder if Hina was really upset, or if this whole thing had been just another test of his loyalty.

He sighed, slinging his bag over his shoulder, and made his way to the front gate, where he knew Hina would be waiting since she started living with him literally.

But before he could even leave the classroom, he felt his phone vibrate.

A message from Hina.

**"We need to talk."**

Kai gulped.

"Oh no. That's.."