[Third Person POV]
Miku finally stepped out from the stairwell, the soft buzz of her phone breaking the quiet. She glanced down to see a flood of messages from her sisters.
After a brief back-and-forth of reassurance, she spotted them exiting the bathroom together.
"Miku!!" Yotsuba rushed forward the instant she saw her, worry practically glowing in her green eyes. "Are you alright? That Clark guy didn't say or do anything rude, did he? Just give me the word and I'll strike him where he's weakest!"
"Ah—no… please don't," Miku said quickly, holding her hands up to calm her sister's dangerous enthusiasm. "I just managed to convince him to be our tutor. After all the effort it took, it would be a waste if you scared him off now."
Her words froze the group. All four sisters stared at her in perfect, synchronized disbelief.
"…What?" Miku asked flatly, shifting uncomfortably under their wide-eyed gazes.
Yotsuba seized her by the shoulders, shaking her just enough to rattle her composure. "How did you manage to do that?!"
"No seriously," Itsuki cut in with a skeptical frown, crossing her arms. "Yotsuba is the most social one out of all of us, and even she couldn't get through to someone like Clark. He's unapproachable, ill-mannered, rude, and—"
"—and not exactly likable," Yotsuba added with a decisive nod.
Nino opened her mouth, clearly ready to defend him, but Miku beat her to it.
"Don't say that," Miku said firmly, a frown tugging at her lips. "You don't know Clark well enough to speak badly about him. He… he has his reasons for acting the way he does, so don't judge him based on a small glimpse of him that you have seen."
Her unexpected defense left the group momentarily speechless once more. Four sets of identical eyes blinked at her in perfect unison, jaws slightly agape.
Miku's cheeks began to warm under their collective stare. Realizing how passionate she sounded, she quickly looked away, muttering just loud enough to be heard, "…Or at least, that's what I assume."
"Woooow," Ichika drawled, a teasing smile curling her lips as she nearly burst into laughter. "Not only has Clark managed to enchant Nino, but now it looks like Miku's fallen under his spell too. What a plot twist. Now I'm curious about him."
Her grin faltered, however, when she caught both Miku and Nino shooting her a perfectly synchronized warning glare.
Nino tilted her head toward Miku, her sharp eyes narrowing with suspicion as she took in Miku's awkward fidgeting. "And just how did you convince Clark to be our tutor? You didn't… seduce him, did you?"
"Eh?! Of course not!" Miku blurted out, her voice jumping an octave as her cheeks went scarlet. "I just… talked to him, that's all!"
"Yeah, well, I tried talking to him," Yotsuba said in a hollow voice, her expression distant as if reliving some battlefield trauma, "And he didn't hesitate to spit in my face."
"I already talked to him about that," Miku said gently, a faint smile softening her tone. "I gave him a stern warning not to do it again and He… apologized."
Yotsuba's brows shot up, her voice dripping with disbelief. "If he's really sorry, then where is he? Sending an apology through you instead of saying it to me directly? Sounds like someone who isn't man enough to own up."
Nino barely acknowledged Yotsuba's indignation. Her gaze remained locked on Miku, sharp and probing. "You still haven't actually explained how you got him to agree. There's no way he just… changed his mind out of nowhere."
Miku exhaled, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear with a sigh. "That isn't important right now. What matters is that he agreed."
She hesitated for half a beat, her voice lowering just enough to make them lean closer. "…Although… he did have a few conditions."
As Miku explained Clark's conditions, Itsuki and Yotsuba exchanged a glance, their disinterest obvious.
"I'm not going," Itsuki said flatly, crossing her arms with finality. "I don't doubt Clark's smart—his grades speak for themselves—but I just don't see him as a good tutor. Sounds like a headache and a waste of time."
Pushing herself off the wall, she adjusted her bag strap and added, "You guys can hire him if you want, but count me out. I'm heading back to class."
"I'm not joining either," Yotsuba chimed in, shaking her head with an exaggerated grimace. "Just thinking about his stupid face makes me mad. If I have to sit through lessons with him, I'll lose my mind."
Miku and Nino both turned toward Ichika, who—unlike the others—was already grinning.
"You can count on me to be there tomorrow," Ichika said with a playful thumbs-up. "I'm very interested in meeting Clark and finding out what exactly it is about him that's got you two so enamored with him."
"I'm not enamored," Miku and Nino said in perfect unison, their voices flat and synchronized.
The two froze, blinking at each other before both looked away without another word.
"…Right," Ichika drawled, biting back a laugh. "Anyway, we'd better get moving. We're already late to class."
The others mumbled agreement and the group started down the thinning hall, their footsteps echoing against the lockers as the last stragglers of the lunch crowd disappeared.
---
After school…
Komi's heart felt lighter than usual as she walked alongside Clark, Momo, and Lala. For so long her journey home had been a lonely, silent routine—just her and her racing thoughts—but today the air seemed warmer, the world a little brighter.
She stole a quick glance back. Clark was a step behind, hands in his pockets, eyes wandering as if lost in thought. The faint evening light softened his sharp features. Komi's chest tightened, a small, involuntary smile tugging at her lips before she quickly looked away, cheeks heating.
Momo and Lala chatted animatedly on either side of her, their cheerful voices filling the space Komi once feared.
Before long they reached her home. Komi stopped, turned to them, and bowed deeply—her forehead nearly touching the ground—as gratitude welled up inside her.
"Th-thank you," she managed softly, her voice trembling with quiet sincerity as she forced herself to speak. She would have felt it would have been disingenuous to express her words in writing or text rather than saying it outloud.
Momo and Lala exchanged amused glances before breaking into bright laughter.
"See you tomorrow, Komi!" Lala waved both arms overhead with wild enthusiasm.
"Goodbye, Komi. See you at school," Momo added with a warm grin.
Clark simply gave a single, casual nod. Somehow, that small gesture made Komi's heart skip a beat.
As she slipped inside and closed the door, she pressed a delicate hand over her chest, the warmth lingering. 'Thank you… Clark,' she thought, her lips curving into a tiny, private smile.
---
Outside, Clark turned and continued down the street with the other two.
"So… Fortress?" Momo asked, her eyes sparkling mischievously as she batted her lashes.
"Yeah, yeah," Clark muttered, ruffling his hair with a sigh. "Let's grab Granny Seiko first, then I'll give you a tour."
"Yesss!" Momo and Lala cheered in unison, throwing their arms up and high-fiving each other with enough enthusiasm to make passersby stare.
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