Hearing her younger sister say she would be staying for the next few days, Kirisu Mafuyu turned to stone.
This would definitely expose her!
She had a ton of trash she hadn't dealt with—takeout containers stacked like a shameful monument behind the couch, laundry draped over chairs, dishes crusted with week-old residue hidden in the sink. If her younger sister found out how messy her life was and that she wasn't good at cooking...
Then the brilliant image of her perfect older sister would instantly shatter!
She knew this intimately.
Although her younger sister was a bit naive, she was, to put it bluntly, stubborn as bedrock. Once she believed in something, she would firmly stick to it with the tenacity of a barnacle. If her younger sister really found out that her perfect older sister wasn't perfect, she would definitely be devastated and never recover.
I've spent years building this facade, Mafuyu thought, her stomach knotting. One look at my real kitchen and it all crumbles.
Looking at the happy Kirisu Miharu—cheeks still flushed from the meal, eyes bright with adoration—Kirisu Mafuyu was speechless.
How could she tell her younger sister not to stay with her?
Just as she wrestled with the impossible dilemma, Hozuki Nozomi suddenly spoke.
"Miss Miharu, I don't think that's a good idea."
"Huh? Why?"
Kirisu Miharu's gaze sharpened, her delicate features pinching with suspicion as she studied the handsome boy. The evening light from the window caught the gloss of her dark hair, and her small hands curled into fists at her sides.
Does he think her moving in would disturb him and her older sister's intimacy?
Hmph hmph hmph, then she should definitely move in!
Thinking this, Kirisu Miharu's face showed a hint of smugness, her lips curving into a secretive smile.
Kirisu Mafuyu looked at Hozuki Nozomi with poorly concealed panic, her violet eyes wide with warning.
Don't mess things up!
What if Miharu misunderstands...
Hozuki Nozomi gave Kirisu Mafuyu a reassuring look—a slight softening around his eyes that promised competence—and said to Miharu: "If you move in, you'll disturb my one-on-one extracurricular tutoring with Ms. Mafuyu."
"Extracurricular tutoring? And one-on-one?" Kirisu Miharu's cheeks flushed crimson, her imagination clearly careening somewhere inappropriate.
One-on-one... at night... with this deceptively handsome wolf...
She glared fiercely at Hozuki Nozomi and said loudly:
"I definitely won't disturb you two. At most, you can study, and I'll just stay quiet."
Of course, this was a lie.
She had to keep an eye on this handsome guy and not let him take advantage of her older sister!
"Besides, Nee-san has already agreed, so why do you disagree?"
"Well, it's like this—Ms. Mafuyu is actually moving soon, so she won't have time to entertain you. So, Miss Miharu, you'd better find somewhere else to stay."
"I happen to know a good place. Do you want to come?"
"A good place? Where is it?"
"Sakurasou."
"Sakurasou? Are there cherry blossoms there?"
"Of course there are. Want to go see them?"
"No, I want to sleep with Nee-san tonight!"
Kirisu Miharu gave him a triumphant look and hugged Kirisu Mafuyu's arm possessively, pressing her cheek against her sister's shoulder. The scent of her floral shampoo mixed with the lingering aroma of dinner still hanging in the apartment air.
Don't even think about taking my Nee-san away!
I won't believe your excuses.
Seeing this, Hozuki Nozomi shrugged helplessly and gave Kirisu Mafuyu a "you handle it" look, his hands spreading in surrender.
He was out of ideas.
He couldn't force someone to move in, after all.
Kirisu Mafuyu sighed, the sound carrying exhaustion and resignation in equal measure. She said to her younger sister:
"Miharu, Nee-san is a bit busy today. I still have to go out for a home visit with a student later, so you should go back today."
"Besides, Nee-san is moving. Come over after I've moved and settled in."
"Hmm… Alright, since Nee-san says so, I'll go back today."
Kirisu Miharu's eyes rolled calculatingly, and she agreed with a smile that didn't quite reach her suspicious gaze.
She patted her tummy, showing a satisfied expression.
"Nee-san's cooking is too delicious! If I could eat it every day, I'd be super happy!"
"Haha, it's not as good as you say it is?"
Kirisu Mafuyu waved her hand awkwardly, guilt crawling up her spine.
Because Hozuki Nozomi made all the food.
If Miharu ate her own cooking, her perfect older sister image would instantly shatter.
---
Kirisu Mafuyu saw her younger sister to the door and then returned.
Kirisu Miharu, on the other hand, snorted coldly and waited at the door, pressing her back against the corridor wall where the fluorescent hallway light buzzed faintly overhead.
She didn't want to go back so early.
What if that handsome student did something bad to her older sister?
It's so late, and she's still going to a student's house for a home visit?
She didn't believe it!
---
After seeing her younger sister off, Kirisu Mafuyu breathed a sigh of relief, her shoulders finally dropping from their tense position near her ears. She looked at Hozuki Nozomi, gritted her teeth, and said sincerely:
"Nozomi, thank you today."
"If you hadn't helped me cover it up, my lack of cooking skills would have been discovered."
"You don't know—my younger sister is a bit stubborn. She always thinks I'm an omnipotent perfect superhuman."
"If she knew my true self, she would definitely be devastated and never recover."
Hearing this, Hozuki Nozomi showed a mischievous smile, something dangerous flickering in his dark eyes.
"Since I helped Ms. Mafuyu such a big favor, how will Ms. Mafuyu thank me?"
"Hmm…" Kirisu Mafuyu heard this, stroked her delicate chin with slender fingers, thought for a moment, and tentatively said:
"I'll invite you over for dinner again next time?"
Hozuki Nozomi's face darkened.
"Ms. Mafuyu, you're so insincere!"
"You say you're inviting me to dinner, but I'm the one who cooks."
Kirisu Mafuyu's small face flushed pink, and she also felt a bit embarrassed.
But then she became indignant, crossing her arms beneath her chest. The motion caused her ample breasts to bounce softly under her thin sweater, and she huffed:
"Most boys don't even get a chance to come to my house for dinner, and you're actually complaining?"
"Uh, it's not complaining, it's just… I want other benefits."
"Other benefits? What do you want?"
Kirisu Mafuyu looked at him confusedly, her head tilting slightly.
Nozomi smiled and didn't answer. Instead, his gaze traveled slowly—deliberately—down the length of her body. Over the graceful curve of her neck. The swell of her chest straining against soft fabric. The indent of her waist. The flare of her hips beneath her skirt. His eyes carried heat, unhurried and appreciative.
Kirisu Mafuyu's delicate body trembled visibly, and her cheeks ignited with warmth.
"What are you looking at? Don't look at me with that kind of gaze!"
"What's wrong with my gaze?"
"Hmph, that's… a perverted gaze! Ms. Hiratsuka was right—you really are an evil little brat!"
---
Nozomi gave her a speechless look.
"I'm clearly looking at you with admiration."
Kirisu Mafuyu, however, straightened her posture, glared at him with violet eyes sharp as glass, then took two steps back until her hip bumped the edge of her couch. She said seriously:
"I'm your teacher. You absolutely must not have any impure thoughts, understand?"
"Yes, yes, yes. But how are you going to thank me?"
"I'll tutor you individually. How about that?"
"I'm second in the grade. Are you sure I need your tutoring?"
"I'm a teacher—I can give you practice questions. Maybe you can even get first in the grade. Young people should be ambitious. Don't you want to surpass Yukinoshita and Shiina?"
"No."
Nozomi's voice dropped, and before she could process the refusal, he moved.
One step closed the distance between them.
His hand caught her wrist—gentle but firm—and his lips pressed against her cheek. The kiss landed soft and warm against her skin, just beside the corner of her mouth, lingering for a heartbeat longer than necessary. She felt the heat of his breath, caught the clean scent of him—soap and something faintly cedar—before he pulled back.
Then he ran off toward the door.
"Mafuyu-sensei, that's the reward I want."
Kirisu Mafuyu froze.
Her fingers drifted up to touch the spot where his lips had been. The skin there tingled, impossibly warm.
"Ah… you… how could you kiss me?"
She cried out in surprise, then stomped her foot in embarrassment and anger, her heel striking the floor with a sharp thwack . She chased after him, her hair flying behind her.
She raised her slender hand, intending to grab him and teach him a good lesson.
However, Hozuki Nozomi suddenly turned back and said seriously:
"Mafuyu-Sensei, do you need me to help you clean up?"
Kirisu Mafuyu's body stiffened mid-stride.
The trash. The dishes. The evidence of her disaster of a life.
"Hmph, no need!"
"Oh, no need, then I'm leaving."
"Wait—come back!"
Hozuki Nozomi turned to look at her with a knowing smile, his hand resting on the doorframe.
"Do you want it or not?"
Kirisu Mafuyu looked at him with a complex expression—irritation warring with desperation warring with something softer she refused to name. Then she lowered her head in shame, her voice small:
"Wuwu… then… then I'll trouble you."
"No problem!"
Nozomi dealt with her long-accumulated takeout boxes efficiently—styrofoam containers reeking of old soy sauce, plastic bags crinkling as he stuffed them into garbage bags, empty cans clattering together. The apartment slowly transformed from disaster zone to habitable space.
As he finished and moved toward the door, trash bags in hand, he paused.
Then he turned.
Kirisu Mafuyu barely had time to register the movement before his free hand cupped her jaw—thumb brushing her cheekbone—and his lips pressed against her other cheek. This kiss was slower, more deliberate. She felt the soft pressure of his mouth, the warmth spreading through her face and down her neck, the way her heart stuttered traitorously in her chest.
"Mm—!"
The sound escaped her before she could stop it.
He pulled back with a satisfied grin and slipped out the door.
This made Kirisu Mafuyu stomp her feet in fury, her face burning scarlet.
She glared fiercely at his retreating back, but her heart was pounding so hard she could feel her pulse in her throat.
This brat is too audacious!
By now, she also understood—this guy was after her.
---
Hozuki Nozomi left Kirisu Mafuyu's house feeling deeply satisfied, the cool evening air kissing his face as he descended the apartment stairs.
He knew that Kirisu Mafuyu would definitely distance herself from him for a while.
But it wasn't a big problem.
As long as she still needed his help, she would eventually be unable to resist asking him for assistance again. He tucked his hands into his pockets and walked toward the station, whistling softly into the night.