Close Your Eyes

Haruto turned around and saw Yukino's face had gone pale, leaning against the sofa, looking incredibly weak.

But this appearance made his heart race!

Haruto took a deep breath and felt his heartbeat suddenly quicken.

What was happening?

Why did he suddenly feel the urge to overpower Yukino?

Could it be that he actually preferred dominating weak girls?

Like Miku, and now, like Yukino.

Yukino was well aware of the change in Haruto's gaze. Her heart pounded, and without realizing it, she held her breath.

What if he really couldn't resist overpowering her?

The atmosphere suddenly became a bit tense.

Haruto cleared his throat, breaking the complicated mood, squatted down, and said, "Sorry, I got distracted for a moment."

Yukino turned her face away, raising her hands in front of her chest without saying a word.

What kind of distraction was that...

After some basic treatment, Haruto stopped.

If he didn't, he truly wasn't sure if he could control the beast inside him.

Yukino sighed in relief, then stood up, grabbed a bottle of black tea, and handed it to Haruto.

"Kuromori-kun, can you tell me who that person was earlier?"

"That person…"

Haruto paused for a moment, then continued, "Yukinoshita, have you ever read manga or anything like that?"

"I have."

Yukino's brows furrowed slightly, with a look of hesitation on her face, "Could it be…"

Haruto said, "Just like in manga, there are actually things behind this world that ordinary people can't access, like onmyoji, youkai, ghosts, and so on. But you don't need to worry too much."

Haruto continued, "Onmyoji themselves aren't much different from humans. Their numbers are very few, and they are quite weak. They don't dare to mess around. Of course, the same applies to youkai."

There was nothing to hide about this, and even if he didn't say it, Yukino would end up having random thoughts. In this case, it was better to tell her directly.

And, preparing her ahead of time wasn't a bad thing either.

"..."

Yukino's heart was full of turmoil.

If Haruto had said this under normal circumstances, she would have definitely thought of him as having chuunibyou. Maybe one day, she would've gotten mad and mocked him for being delusional.

But after experiencing what happened today, especially the fear and anxiety from being unable to move, the feelings were unprecedented.

So, it was easy to believe what he said.

After a long silence, Yukino murmured, "So all this time, we've been living in a fake world?"

"This world is real."

Haruto tilted his head slightly and said, "Are you okay? Yukinoshita, that line doesn't seem like something you'd say."

"Huh?"

Yukino pursed her lips, "Then what kind of person am I in your eyes?"

"Cold and aloof, graceful yet venomous, hard to approach… Hey, why did you pinch me?"

"...My hand was itching."

Yukino sighed and softly whispered, "Don't worry, I'm fine. Anyway, thank you, Kuromori-kun, for saving me again."

"A verbal thank you isn't sincere."

"Huh?"

Haruto put on a serious face and said, "So, please show me your sincerity, Yukino-chan."

Yukino turned to look at his face. Under the light, the interplay of shadows made his features appear more distinct and prominent.

She pursed her lips slightly and said, "Kuromori-kun, how about a bento?"

"A bento?"

Haruto didn't expect Yukino to be so straightforward, which actually surprised him.

But a bento didn't seem like enough!

Isn't there a saying that a life-saving grace should be repaid with one's own body, or that one should serve as a cow or horse in the next life?

In reality, paying back with something as imaginary as the next life was just hooliganism.

So, a bento was actually better.

"A week."

Haruto casually said, "Then let's have a bento lunch for a week."

He wasn't too concerned about a thank-you gift or anything.

It was just something he said offhandedly to lighten the mood and calm Yukino down.

But since Yukino was willing, he had no reason to refuse.

To be honest, he was quite curious about what kind of bento could be made by the extraordinary, perfect high school flower of Sobu High.

"Mm."

Yukino raised her hand to tuck her hair behind her ear and suddenly said, "Kuromori-kun, close your eyes…"

"?"

Haruto was slightly surprised and looked at her curiously, "What are you going to do?"

"Just close your eyes first."

"..."

Seeing Haruto close his eyes, Yukino took a deep breath and slowly moved closer, her face blushing.

In the next moment, a warm touch appeared on his face.

Haruto opened his eyes and saw Yukino holding a cat pendant in her hand, suddenly walking away.

Then, the corners of her lips curled slightly, and her eyes sparkled, "Kuromori-kun, this is my favorite pendant. I'll give it to you as a thank-you gift. Do you like it?"

"..."

Haruto's face remained expressionless as he stood up firmly: "Goodbye! No need for farewells!"