All Beautiful Girls Want to Stick with Me

Before long, a large bag of potato chips had appeared in Kotomi's hands.

And it was one of her favorite flavors—tomato.

After hearing that Kotomi hadn't eaten yet, Kumi Motokawa originally wanted to take her to the hospital cafeteria. But then she realized that it was already late, and the cafeteria had likely closed.

So, instead, she returned to her office and brought out a large bag of potato chips for Kotomi.

"Aunt Kumi's office has so many snacks!" Iroha remarked curiously.

"Since I often work overtime, there are at least two days a week when I can't make it in time for meals. But I can't exactly let myself go hungry either, so I always keep a stock of snacks and instant food like cup noodles in my office," Kumi Motokawa said lightly.

Every doctor's office had a dedicated cabinet just for snacks.

Doctors were always the ones advising others to eat fewer snacks, avoid takeout, cut down on instant foods like cup noodles, and drink less soda. But when it came to themselves, their snack stash was massive, they ordered takeout whenever possible, and they drank energy drinks like they were lifelines.

After a short while, Kumi Motokawa, holding a fruit knife as if it were a surgical scalpel, carefully sliced an apple into neat pieces, arranged them in a container, and placed some toothpicks before handing it to Tetsunosuke Isshiki.

His former wife had never taken care of him so attentively—not even something as simple as peeling a fruit, pouring a cup of warm water, or saying a few comforting words.

When Kumi had confessed to him earlier, Tetsunosuke Isshiki had hesitated for a moment. But in the end, he chose to follow his heart and accept her feelings.

Now, looking at her, he felt that he had made the right choice.

Taking the container, Tetsunosuke Isshiki momentarily forgot about the sweet porridge, smiling as he said, "Thank you."

Perhaps feeling a bit flustered, Kumi Motokawa lowered her head slightly and murmured, "No need to thank me."

Realizing that both Kotomi and Iroha were still present, she quickly coughed a few times to regain composure and cleared her throat.

"I have a surgery to perform in an hour. I'll head back to my office to rest and prepare. If anything happens, just call a nurse."

Hearing this, Iroha's eyes flickered with understanding. A playful smile spread across her lips as she swiftly grabbed Kotomi's hand.

After saying their goodbyes, the two quickly left the hospital room ahead of Kumi.

At this moment, both of them were nothing but massive, glowing light bulbs in that room. It would be way too awkward to stay and ruin the mood.

Outside the hospital, the two of them walked for a while along the street outside the hospital before Kotomi finally escorted Iroha back to Chiba City Private Middle School.

Originally, Kotomi had thought that since Iroha had already taken the morning off, she might as well skip the whole day. Maybe she could take her shopping for a bit to relax.

But Iroha insisted on returning to school. When they reached the school gate, she smiled and said:

"I really want to skip afternoon classes and go shopping with Senpai to clear my head... But I'm worried about falling behind in my studies. I keep telling myself not to stress out, but every time I see that countdown to the entrance exams on the backboard of the classroom, my heart starts racing. I can't help but worry—what if I mess up on the high school entrance exams and don't get into Sobu High School?"

"You really want to get into Sobu High School, huh?" Kotomi asked. Iroha mentioned it so often that she couldn't help but be curious.

"Honestly, I never really cared much about which high school I went to before," Iroha admitted, glancing down slightly as she gently tugged at Kotomi's sleeve.

"I used to think I'd just go to whichever school I could get into. After all, with my grades, I was sure to make it into a decent one. But then..."

Iroha lifted her gaze again, her eyes shimmering as she looked at Kotomi.

"...Then I met you, Senpai."

Her voice was soft, nearly whispering.

"The first time I visited Aimi to hang out, I just happened to meet you. After spending so much time together, my desire to get into Sobu High School has only grown stronger and stronger."

"I want to go to Sobu High School... because you're there."

Kotomi froze.

Her body stiffened, her mind momentarily blank, and her mouth opened slightly, but she had no idea what to say.

"…Iroha…"

Just as Kotomi was about to speak—

"Pfft—"

Iroha suddenly giggled.

Kotomi's heart skipped a beat.

No way.

She got played again, didn't she?

As if confirming her suspicions, Iroha suddenly moved in front of her, looking up with mischievous, cat-like eyes, a teasing smirk spreading across her lips.

"Senpai, after hearing what I just said, were you super moved?"

"Could it be… the Dragon Bell's magic really worked?"

"Senpai… have you fallen for me~?"

Iroha's expression was smug, filled with playful mischief.

For a moment, Kotomi was stunned, then—

With visible speed, her face turned bright red.

She got tricked again by this little devil!

"Letting my guard down even for a second, only to get played by you again, you pesky little devil—this is definitely the biggest mistake I've made today!"

But despite her flustered frustration, Kotomi couldn't deny it—

This little devil in front of her was just too cute.

Iroha glanced at Kotomi, then suddenly pouted, looking quite displeased.

"So mean, Senpai! I always thought I was your little angel, but it turns out you don't see me that way at all. You even called me a little devil~"

Kotomi had to admit—

She was once again charmed by Iroha's adorably sulky expression.

Damn it.

It wasn't like she had never seen a beautiful girl before, so why did she always find herself getting flustered over Iroha's little actions and expressions?

Not wanting to continue this dangerous train of thought, Kotomi simply waved her off and watched as Iroha entered the school building. Then, she turned and made her way back toward Sobu High School.

She had already asked Megumi Kato to help excuse her absence with Hiratsuka-sensei, so she technically didn't need to rush back.

However, if she went straight to class now, she'd be walking in during the middle of the lesson.

And honestly, Kotomi found it pretty awkward to enter the classroom while the teacher was lecturing.

Even if not everyone turned to look at her, just a few classmates glancing her way would be enough to make her self-conscious.

So instead…

The supposedly diligent student, whom teachers often praised as someone who never played on her phone during class, casually spent 35 minutes at a bookstore reading manga.

She then proceeded to finish the entire bag of tomato-flavored chips that Kumi Motokawa had given her, took a short nap on the bookstore's sofa, and then finally began walking back to school at a leisurely pace.

By the time she returned, the bell signaling the end of the first afternoon class had just rung.

Perfect timing.

Kotomi strode confidently into the classroom without a care in the world.

"You're back, Kotomi!"

Yui Yuigahama, who had been napping at her desk, immediately perked up at the sound of approaching footsteps. Recognizing them as Kotomi's, she sat up straight and grinned.

"Where'd you go this morning? I asked Megumi, but she only said you had something urgent to take care of and left in a hurry."

Yukino Yukinoshita, seated nearby, didn't say a word. She continued reading her hardcover German novel as if she hadn't noticed Kotomi's return.

But in reality…

Her gaze never actually focused on the words on the page.

She had been quietly stealing glances at Kotomi from the corner of her eye ever since she walked in.

Even her small, delicate ears twitched slightly as she silently eavesdropped on Kotomi and Yui's conversation.

"Let me drink some water first—I'm so thirsty."

After eating an entire bag of tomato-flavored chips, Kotomi's mouth was parched. She instinctively reached for the bottle of mineral water on Yui's desk and tilted her head back for a drink.

Gulp, gulp, gulp—

Seeing Kotomi drink so naturally from her bottle, Yui's smile nearly reached her ears!

Yukino, meanwhile, instinctively glanced at her own desk.

…

Apart from a pencil case and a book, there was nothing else there.

No water bottle.

No drink.

No opportunity.

What a shame…

Wait.

Why did she feel like it was a shame?!

Yukino kept her cool exterior, but her mind was in turmoil, and she barely held back an embarrassed sigh.

Across the room, Mashiro Shiina quietly stood up, left the classroom…

…And came back holding six bottles of mineral water.

She carefully lined them up on her desk, one by one.

At this point, she might as well have written a sign that said, "Water. Drink it. Drink mine!"

Meanwhile, at that very moment elsewhere on campus—

Chihiro Sengoku, feeling an inexplicable burst of motivation, had decided to go for a 1000-meter run around the track.

Halfway through, she was already regretting her life choices.

As a young woman still in her twenties, she was technically still in her prime. But ever since becoming a teacher, she had seriously neglected exercise.

By the time she finished her run, she was panting like crazy, barely able to catch her breath.

To make matters worse, her throat was dry as a desert.

She felt as if a fire was burning in her chest, and all she could think about was how desperately she needed water.

God, I'm dying... I can't believe a measly 1000 meters is enough to kill me. I really need to start exercising more.

Ughhh, I'm so thirsty, I feel like I'm going to dry up and disintegrate on the spot!

Luckily, she had planned ahead.

She had six whole bottles of mineral water stashed under her desk in the faculty office.

As long as she could make it there, she'd be saved.

Come on, Chihiro! Just a little more! The path to survival is right ahead! Do not give up!

Muttering words of encouragement to herself, she finally reached her office.

She practically collapsed into her chair and immediately reached under her desk for the water.

Her hand grabbed—

…Nothing?

She blinked.

Maybe she missed it?

She reached again.

Still nothing.

Confused, she bent down to take a look—

And the next second, her eyes widened in sheer horror.

Where the hell did my six bottles of water go?!?!

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