Hozuki Nozomi held Miura Yumiko quietly, his fingers idly threading through the smooth, golden waves of her hair. The late afternoon sunlight slanted through the dusty classroom windows, painting her in warm, honeyed light.
"Nozomi," she began, her voice muffled slightly against his chest. She tilted her head back, her large, beautiful eyes searching his face with a flicker of vulnerability. "Do you… think I'm being too clingy?"
A gentle smile touched his lips. "Why would I ever think that, Yumiko? Disliking a beautiful girl who wants to be close? That's an impossibility for me."
"But…" She pouted, a delicate, practiced expression. "Why are you wandering around by yourself? Lately, you and Yui have been running off to the Service Club all the time. I got curious… I wanted to see Yukinoshita-san, too." Her gaze dropped, a faint blush dusting her cheeks. "And… well…"
She glanced up at him through her lashes, then quickly buried her face back into his shirt, her next words barely a whisper. "This morning… it wasn't enough."
Hozuki Nozomi couldn't help the low chuckle that escaped him. They had shared a rather intimate moment before school, a stolen embrace in a similar setting. It seemed his adorable girlfriend was craving more affection, wanting to be spoiled a little longer.
That was a request he would never deny.
Without further preamble, he slid an arm beneath the bend of her knees and effortlessly lifted her, settling her comfortably onto his lap. Cradling her delicate face in his hands, he watched her eyes flutter shut, her long lashes trembling against flushed skin. Slowly, deliberately, he closed the distance.
Kiss.
Her lips were soft and yielding. Miura Yumiko's entire body gave a slight shiver, but there was not a trace of resistance. Instead, her fair arms rose, wrapping around his neck with a tender urgency. She kissed him back with a focused earnestness, as if pouring all the longing accumulated from watching others spend time with him into this single, stolen moment.
Because Mahiru and Sayu could be with him in the evenings, she had to carve out these fragments of time—between classes, during lunch—to feel close to him.
And she had to admit, there was a thrilling, clandestine charge to it.
Hozuki Nozomi held nothing back. Yumiko was his girlfriend, acknowledged and cherished. With his girlfriends, intimacy was a given, a natural expression of their bond. Since she offered no refusal, he freely indulged.
Thus, a significant portion of his afternoon's passion and attention was lavished upon Miura Yumiko, in a sun-dusted, forgotten classroom.
…
By the time afternoon classes concluded, Hozuki Nozomi finally made his way to the familiar door of the Service Club. Pushing it open, he was met with a pleasantly surprising sight: the room held only one occupant.
Yukino Yukinoshita sat at her usual desk, a book open before her. As the door clicked shut, their eyes met across the quiet space. An electric flutter passed through both their chests simultaneously.
A faint, self-conscious blush rose to Yukino's cheeks. Lately, every time their gazes locked, her mind treacherously conjured memories of the increasingly intimate, embarrassing things they had done together. To fortify her composure, Miss Yukinoshita took a subtle, deep breath and lowered her head, pretending to be utterly absorbed in her reading.
A slow, fond smile spread across Hozuki Nozomi's face. He secured the door behind him, then crossed the room. Instead of taking a chair, he knelt gracefully on the floor directly in front of her. Without ceremony, his hand came to rest boldly on her knee.
Her legs were, as always, a masterpiece. Sheathed in sheer black over-the-knee socks, they were exquisitely sculpted, every line pure and lovely, as if she had stepped directly from the pages of a meticulously drawn manga. Truly, Second Miss's legs were in a class of their own.
The warmth of his palm seeped through the fabric. Yukino's fair skin flushed further. She couldn't help but shoot him a glare, though its effect was diminished by the rosy hue of her face. "Remove your paw, please."
Hozuki Nozomi's smile merely widened, turning mischievous. "No."
"Yukino," he continued, his voice dropping to a soft, intimate register. "I missed you."
"Pfft. How utterly trite." She attempted a scoff, but it lacked its usual cutting edge.
Undeterred, he began gently stroking the soft curve of her thigh through her uniform skirt, then leaned forward, resting his cheek against it with a contented sigh.
"Ugh… You pervert. What do you think you're doing?" she protested, though she made no move to push him away.
"Experiencing my fiancée's lap pillow."
"Is this what you call a lap pillow? You shameless scoundrel!"
"Alright, fine. Consider it a face pillow, then," he amended shamelessly, nuzzling closer. His cheek pressed against the soft plain of her lower abdomen, and he playfully pressed a light kiss to the fabric there.
A small, involuntary sound escaped Yukino's lips. She instinctively brought a hand down to press against the back of his head, her watery blue eyes growing slightly hazy. Looking down at the boy who was so openly, infuriatingly enamored with her, she felt her resolve and tension melt away. Her breathing hitched, growing quicker.
This scoundrel just loved to torment her. And yet… she found herself simply unable to refuse him. After all, she was his fiancée now. They had already crossed far more intimate boundaries. What were a few more liberties?
Hozuki Nozomi grew increasingly unrestrained, intoxicated by everything about her—the flawless fairness of her skin, her clean, captivating scent. Miss Yukinoshita finally let out a soft, stifled moan, her fingers tangling in his hair as she pressed his head more firmly against her.
"Mmm… no more…"
He lifted his head, meeting her glazed eyes with an amused look. "No more what?"
"Wuwu… you horrible boy…" she mumbled in embarrassment, finally finding the strength to swat away the hand that had begun wandering further up her leg. "Yui and the others will be here any moment. Behave."
"Eh? They're still coming?" He couldn't hide his disappointment. "I thought this might have been another clever ploy by Yuki to get us some alone time."
Yukino Yukinoshita rolled her eyes, a gesture that had become fondly familiar. "I'm going home with you today. What's your hurry?" The unspoken promise hung in the air: I'm not going anywhere.
"Isn't it because Yukino is just too adorable? I want to stick to you like glue."
"Tch. Shameless. Regardless, you need to compose yourself. Now."
"Alright, alright."
He knew when to heed his fiancée. Hozuki Nozomi obligingly helped her straighten the few uniform buttons his explorations had disturbed. With swift, practiced motions, Miss Yukinoshita restored her dignified, elegant schoolgirl appearance, though a lingering softness remained in her eyes.
Hozuki Nozomi couldn't resist reaching out to stroke her long, silky black hair one more time before pulling her into a brief, tight hug. "Yukino, what kept you so busy at noon? What exactly did Yui use to monopolize you?"
Yukino continued smoothing the nonexistent wrinkles from her skirt, a nervous habit. "We received a new request. We were in the preliminary discussion phase," she explained, her voice regaining its clear, measured tone.
Hozuki Nozomi's brow furrowed. "Why didn't you tell me? Have you forgotten I'm your designated VP? What if you'd run into something dangerous?"
A soft laugh escaped her. "We were just about to inform you. At noon, we merely decided to accept the request. The investigation hasn't even begun."
"So, what is the request? And who's the client?" His mind immediately jumped to a certain notorious figure. "It's not that rotund, aspiring novelist from the next class over, is it? Zaimokuza?"
"Zaimokuza?"
"Ah, he's… a character. He's deeply immersed in his own chuunibyou settings and inserts himself as the protagonist, but his writing is genuinely… agonizing to read." Hozuki Nozomi shuddered theatrically. "So, if he ever shows up with a request in the future, Yukino, just reject him outright. I don't want you developing a headache on my account."
A puzzled frown appeared on Yukino Yukinoshita's flawless face. "Chuunibyou? Is it an illness? Wouldn't that require medical attention?"
"Uh… chuunibyou isn't a clinical disease. It's a term for a certain behavior or phenomenon common among middle schoolers, especially in their second year." He searched for the right words. "It refers to people who are technically in high school or beyond, but remain deeply engrossed in self-created fantasy worlds, spouting lines they deem profoundly cool, and generally appearing quite… eccentric to outsiders."
"That sounds like a psychological condition!" Miss Yukinoshita declared with certainty.
"I said it's not an illness! …You'll understand eventually. Let's move on." He waved a hand, dismissing the complex taxonomy of otaku culture. "So, who is the client, and what is the actual request?"
Yukino Yukinoshita considered for a moment before replying. "It's a girl from Class A. She claims to have encountered a… supernatural incident and, having no other recourse, decided to seek the Service Club's help." A slight, knowing glance flickered toward Hozuki. "I considered that you possess certain… unconventional methods. Therefore, I agreed to hear her out."
"At noon, I intended to call for you, but Yuigahama-san suddenly developed a stomachache. I accompanied her to the infirmary. That is why she was… clinging to me earlier."
"A stomachache? What was the cause?" Hozuki asked, genuine concern in his voice.
Yukino Yukinoshita shot him a look that was half-amused, half-accusatory. "You're quite concerned about Yuigahama-san." She paused, then added with deliberate casualness, "Is it because her chest is more generously proportioned?"
Hozuki Nozomi blinked, taken aback by the blunt, slightly jealous observation. Then, watching her subtly pouting lips, he chuckled. He leaned in, capturing those same lips in a quick, affectionate kiss before pulling back with a grin.
"Yui is my friend, too. It's normal to be concerned about a friend, right?" he reasoned. "And besides, compared to Yui's impressive chest, which I currently have no privilege to touch…" He leaned closer again, his voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper near her ear. "…what I want to touch more is…"
"Mmm—!" Yukino's hand flew up, covering his mouth mid-sentence, her face scarlet. "Enough. It's disgustingly cheesy."
Hozuki Nozomi simply blinked innocently above her fingers, then gently captured the hand sealing his lips, lacing his fingers through hers.
"When Yui and the others arrive," he said, his tone shifting back to business, "let's go handle that request together. I have to admit, I'm rather interested in this 'supernatural incident.'"
"Very well," Yukino Yukinoshita agreed softly, allowing him to hold her hand, the earlier tension dissolving into a comfortable, shared understanding. Everything they needed to say was communicated in that simple, linked touch.