A short while later, Nazuna finally calmed down a little.
Her fear faded, replaced by embarrassment and curiosity.
The mood in the room grew warmer.
Kaoru could tell that Nazuna was trying very hard to be brave, but she was still inexperienced and nervous.
He did not rush her. Instead, he held her hand, spoke softly to her, and let her decide the pace.
At some point, Nazuna leaned closer on her own.
The rest of the night unfolded slowly, with awkwardness, laughter, whispered reassurance, and pauses whenever Nazuna needed them.
When she finally chose to close the distance between them, Kaoru made sure to ask again.
"Nazuna, are you sure?"
Her face was red, but her gaze did not waver.
"I'm sure."
That answer was quiet, but it was firm.
So Kaoru kissed her.
The room gradually fell into a deep silence, broken only by soft breaths and the occasional embarrassed complaint from Nazuna whenever Kaoru teased her too much.
For Nazuna, it was frightening, unfamiliar, and embarrassing.
But it was also gentle.
At least, Kaoru made sure it stayed that way.
...
When Nazuna woke the next morning, the sunlight filtering into the room made everything feel unreal.
For a while, she stayed curled up under the blanket, her mind still hazy.
Then she noticed the faint warmth beside her and slowly remembered what had happened the night before.
Her face instantly went red.
Kaoru was already awake and quietly picking up the clothes scattered around the room. He seemed to be preparing breakfast.
The ingredients were simple: eggs, bread, and milk from Nazuna's fridge, which he could heat up for her.
Maybe his movements woke her, because the bed soon gave a tiny rustle, followed by Nazuna's soft, sleepy hum.
She sounded like a small animal waking up, rubbing her eyes in confusion.
"Eh? Eh!"
A moment later, Nazuna clutched the blanket tightly and stared at Kaoru with a bright red face.
"Want me to help you wash up?"
Kaoru smiled. "It's time to get up. Breakfast is ready."
Nazuna seemed to remember everything from last night, and her face turned even redder. "Turn around. You're not allowed to look!"
She had not changed yet, and even though they had already crossed that final line, waking up like this still made her unbearably shy.
"Okay, I won't look."
Kaoru obediently turned his back to her. "Your towel is beside you. There's hot water in the bathroom, so you can wash up first. Or you can eat breakfast first."
Nazuna was surprised by how cooperative he was, but then she puffed up her cheeks again.
This guy was too experienced. Just how many girls had he done this with?
After waiting for a little while and confirming that he really was not going to turn around, Nazuna crawled out from under the blanket.
She paused slightly, still feeling the lingering soreness from the night before.
She quickly wrapped herself in the towel and climbed out of bed.
Where had she put the clothes she prepared yesterday?
Only after she sneaked into the bathroom did Kaoru finally turn around, amused.
They had already done something so intimate, yet she was still this shy.
Before long, the sound of running water came from the bathroom.
Kaoru waited patiently. By the time the milk was almost cooling down, Nazuna finally came out.
This time, she had tied up her hair so it would not get wet. She was no longer wearing the towel either, but a loose, homey short-sleeved shirt and a small skirt. The white fabric was a little thin, but still covered enough to leave everything proper, only hinting faintly at her soft figure underneath.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
Nazuna looked embarrassed. When she saw the breakfast on the table, her stomach immediately growled.
"It's fine. Next time, just invite me to shower with you."
Kaoru smiled faintly. "Want me to feed you?"
"No way."
Nazuna had been about to sit down, but Kaoru patted his lap.
After hesitating for a moment, she obediently walked over and sat close to him.
The freshly bathed girl carried the familiar scent from last night, and Kaoru had to force himself to stay composed.
"Are you reacting again?"
Nazuna noticed almost immediately and looked stunned. Did men recover that quickly?
"It's a morning thing. Just a normal reaction."
Kaoru tried to brush it off.
Nazuna did not believe him at all.
"If you really can't help it... we can do it again."
Her voice was tiny. "Anyway, I'm not going to school today. If you can't hold back, I can stay with you."
Kaoru paused. "Doesn't it still hurt?"
"If you hadn't gone on for so long last night, it wouldn't hurt!"
Nazuna puffed up her cheeks. "I'm already mostly fine. Don't underestimate your senpai!"
Why did that sound so familiar? Did she and Tachibana Akane both have a strange obsession with acting like proper senpai?
Kaoru wrapped his arms around her waist.
"Nazuna, eat first."
"Eh?"
"You're hungry. We'll eat first."
For once, Kaoru did not push his luck.
Nazuna blinked, then a soft sweetness rose in her chest.
"...You're surprisingly considerate sometimes."
"I'm always considerate."
"You're shameless too."
"That's also true."
Nazuna could not help laughing.
If someone ignored the complicated relationship between them, the morning scene was actually warm. Kaoru fed her small bites of breakfast, and Nazuna occasionally fed him back while pretending she was only doing it because he was being annoying.
After breakfast, Nazuna leaned against him for a while.
"Nazuna, was breakfast good?"
Kaoru asked softly near her ear.
"Don't get too smug. I'm your senpai."
Nazuna puffed her cheeks. "Who eats breakfast like this?"
"So senpai hates it?"
Kaoru looked disappointed on purpose.
"N-no, that's not what I mean!"
Nazuna hurriedly explained. "I'm just... embarrassed. It was my first time being with you like that, and you acted like it was the most natural thing in the world."
Kaoru blinked. "So Nazuna doesn't mind continuing to be with me?"
Nazuna almost nodded, then immediately realized she had fallen into his trap.
"You tricked me again!"
She turned around and sat facing him, her face red but her eyes bright. "Fine. Today, I really need to teach you what it means to respect your senpai."
Kaoru laughed and let her do as she pleased.
...
May gradually slipped into summer.
The cherry blossoms from earlier in the season were already gone, replaced by azaleas, tulips, peonies, photinias, and all sorts of other flowers.
The trees had dressed themselves in fresh green, bright and full of life.
On Sunday evening, tall trees swayed gently in the wind.
A cool breeze carried the faint fragrance of flowers, and the shadows of the streetlights trembled slightly.
"No way. If I go over there, I definitely won't be able to come back."
Nazuna puffed up her cheeks. "Little Honami and the others really haven't been corrupted by you?"
Kaoru had told her that Honami and Kikyō were very warmly inviting her to come over sometime.
But Nazuna was not stupid.
How could she not understand what that invitation might imply?
"No, they really do want to get along with you."
Kaoru realized that this senpai of his was genuinely wary of any overly bold situation, so he had to explain properly.
"Think about it. You only really know Honami and Kikyō, plus Suzune, Kei, and Airi. Have you ever properly talked with them?"
"Really?"
Nazuna looked suspicious.
"Really."
Kaoru gave her his assurance, though Sakura Airi had already been drawn into things before.
"I'll barely believe you this once."
Nazuna thought about it and figured Kaoru's room probably could not fit too many people anyway.
Maybe she had been overthinking it.
Aside from that, she did feel a little embarrassed.
This past month, Kaoru had spent most of his time with her. They were practically dating every day.
Ever since crossing that line, Nazuna had realized that she had become far too attached to Kaoru.
Sometimes they spent time in her room, sometimes in the Student Council office, and sometimes they even found quiet corners around Keyaki Mall.
Whenever Kaoru coaxed her a little, she always ended up half-resisting and half-giving in.
Today had even been in the school gym storage room.
Just thinking about it made Nazuna want to cover her face.
Someone had passed nearby!
She was losing more and more of her sense of shame!
"Nazuna, tonight I want to..."
"No!"
Nazuna glared at him. "You want that every day. Anyway, not tonight!"
"I won't do anything. I just want to stay with you."
As he said that, Kaoru realized he really did sound like a scoundrel. "Fine. I'll just walk you upstairs."
Nazuna looked at him for a while, then lightly bit her lip.
"I'm not rejecting you. I want to be with you too, but you've been spending too much time with me."
If one person took up too much of his time, someone else would naturally get less of it.
Kaoru fell silent for a moment. "Honestly, I'm a little worried you might regret it. Regret not being with Nagumo instead."
Nazuna froze briefly, then smiled.
"I like you."
She looked at Kaoru and added, "I hope you'll keep liking me too, so I can feel that my choice wasn't wrong."
Then she closed her eyes.
At a time like this, no words could compare to that gesture. Kaoru understood what she meant, so he gently kissed her.
A lot of the time, liking someone was an answer all by itself.
Nazuna liked Kaoru, and Kaoru liked her too.
That was enough.
Regret?
She did not think she had ever considered it.
Still, she knew why Kaoru had asked.
During this month's special exam, Kaoru had specifically instructed Kiriyama Ikuto, Tonokawa Sōsuke, and the others to prepare a May surprise for Nagumo Miyabi.
Miyabi fought desperately. This time, they still did not take him down completely, but they managed to drain a considerable amount of his private points.
Kaoru roughly estimated the damage at around five million.
Without the support of the entire year level feeding him resources, Miyabi's recovery speed had become very slow.
Only a portion of Class 3-A was still barely holding him up, and the swing factions that had originally been watching from the sidelines had basically given up on him.
The reason was simple.
The conditions Miyabi had promised them were now very unlikely to be fulfilled.
Many students had supported Miyabi because they hoped that by risking themselves for him, they might eventually transfer into Class A.
But after Miyabi repeatedly lost huge amounts of private points and even failed to protect his position in the Student Council, it was hard for anyone to believe he still had the ability to fulfill his promises.
This conflict was especially intense inside Class 3-A. Some people believed Miyabi was no longer suited to lead the class.
Under Tonokawa Sōsuke's instigation, those students had begun looking for a new way out.
They did not care what Miyabi had done.
They only knew that their class was currently in a dangerous position, and that they had been dragged into this storm because of the fight between Kaoru and Miyabi.
As long as that fight ended, Kaoru would stop. The alliance among the other classes would also collapse.
Perhaps they could even use Nazuna's relationship with Kaoru to get him to help them deal with Kiriyama.
Their plan was very loud and obvious. Even Nazuna had heard about it.
Miyabi's defeat was approaching.
"My feelings for you aren't the kind of feelings I had for a childhood friend."
Nazuna whispered by Kaoru's ear, her breath slightly uneven.
"My feelings for you..." Kaoru hesitated at the crucial moment. "I think I need a little time to think about how to say it."
Nazuna pinched him in annoyance, then laughed again.
She leaned close and whispered, "From now on, let's only be reckless on safe days, okay?"
In the end, the protection Kei had prepared had not been used.
This senpai of his was far bolder than she looked.