"What's up?" Hayashi Shuichi turned, catching the flush on Sharon's face, her eyes shimmering with complex emotions.
"…Thirsty?" Sharon held up the half-empty water bottle, her fingers tracing its surface, a hint of seduction in her gaze.
"I…" Hayashi Shuichi's expression wavered, about to say something, when Sharon cut him off impatiently.
"Just say it—want a drink or not?"
"I do," Hayashi Shuichi nodded, almost instinctively.
A satisfied smile spread across the blonde's face.
She unscrewed the cap, took a big gulp, then leaned over, wrapping her arms around Hayashi Shuichi and kissing him.
Sharon's lips were soft and warm, carrying a faint fragrance, like an electric current surging through his body.
This water tastes so good…
Back in the silver Ferrari, Hayashi Shuichi had been on top, Sharon beneath him.
This time, the roles reversed. Sharon took the lead, her arms tightly around the boy, while Hayashi Shuichi, below, felt like a flustered girl at her mercy.
The half-bottle of water took them a full half-hour to finish.
"Kid, about what happened earlier…" Sharon said, settling back into the driver's seat, brushing back a strand of golden hair, her cheeks flushed. Her eyes lingered on Hayashi Shuichi's lower half with a suggestive glint. "Wanna continue at your place?"
"My place is…" Hayashi Shuichi, panting and caught up in the moment, started to respond.
But before he could finish, a delicate little face pressed against the car's front window.
"Onii-chan?"
Hayashi Shuichi's heart lurched, his excitement fizzling out instantly.
"Reiko's back. I gotta go," he blurted, scrambling out of the car.
"Coward…" Sharon bit her lip in frustration, watching as Hayashi Shuichi led his little cousin upstairs. With a scowl, she drove off, annoyed.
…
"Onii-chan, who was that foreign woman driving?" Kujo Reiko demanded, hands on her hips, not even bothering to set down her schoolbag. "Why are your pants all dirty? And that jacket—it's not your Teitan uniform! Weren't you supposed to be at school?"
His previous jacket had been too damaged, so on the way back, Hayashi Shuichi had bought a new one at a mall.
He'd planned to get home and change before his little cousin returned from school.
But thanks to Sharon's delay, he'd been caught at the doorstep…
"This…" Hayashi Shuichi rubbed his temples, at a loss for how to explain.
He considered lying but remembered his recent promise to Reiko not to deceive her.
An older brother couldn't break his word so soon…
"Onii-chan, did you get in a fight?" Reiko asked, her small face stern as she studied him, guessing. "Did your jacket get torn because of it? And that foreign woman—was she a teacher from your school?"
You're the one who guessed it, not me lying…
Hayashi Shuichi quickly put on a guilty look, his eyes darting away. "Hungry? What do you want to eat? I'll whip something up at the izakaya."
His reaction only confirmed Reiko's suspicions. She glared at him, her big eyes filled with confusion. "Onii-chan! Why would you get in a fight out of nowhere? You even ruined your clothes!"
"And what's with that teacher? Did you get in trouble at school because of the fight?"
"…Alright, Reiko, go put your bag away. I'll handle my own stuff," Hayashi Shuichi said, coaxing and nudging his chattering cousin toward her room before fleeing to his own.
He shed the jacket, quickly cleaned the wounds on his back, changed clothes, and headed downstairs to the izakaya.
He'd just finished chopping onions for curry rice when Hiiro Eri pushed open the door.
"Back early, huh," she said, her tone sour. "Couldn't stay with her a bit longer?"
"I dropped Yukiko off and was back in less than an hour," Hayashi Shuichi said with a wry smile, shaking his head. "I almost didn't make it back today."
He could hide the landslide incident from Reiko, but not from Eri. Even if he didn't tell her, she'd hear about it from Yukiko eventually.
"What, Yukiko tried to keep you there overnight?" Eri bit her lip, her face flashing with anger. "That damn curly-haired fox! She promised it'd just be during the day, and now she's trying to sneak an advantage…"
"It's not like that," Hayashi Shuichi hurried to explain. "On the way back, there was an earthquake. The car I was in got buried. If the rescue hadn't come in time, I'd probably be suffocated by now."
"We felt the quake at school around noon, but it wasn't strong," Eri said, rushing to her childhood friend's side, her voice urgent. "Shuichi, are you really okay? Any other injuries?"
"I got some scratches," Hayashi Shuichi said, glancing at the door to make sure Reiko wasn't coming down. He turned, lifting his shirt to show her the scars on his back. "Nothing serious. They're already scabbing."
"The clothes don't matter!" Eri's eyes welled up as she gently touched the scars, her voice thick with heartache. "Your wounds always heal faster than most, but with so many scars, it must've been bad…"
Hayashi Shuichi, still facing away, sensed something off and turned around.
Eri's face was streaked with tears, shimmering droplets falling like broken beads.
"I'm fine, aren't I?" Hayashi Shuichi's heart tightened. He reached to wipe her tears, but the moment his hand touched her face, her crying intensified.
"Why's it getting worse?" Hayashi Shuichi floundered, caught off guard.
"Idiot!" Eri glared at him through red-rimmed eyes, her voice a mix of anger and grievance. "Did you just touch my face with onion hands? My tears are from that, not for you!"
"Right, right, not for me," Hayashi Shuichi said, quickly washing his hands and grabbing some tissues for her.
Eri wiped her tears, glaring at her childhood friend with puffed cheeks. "You almost died for that curly-haired fox! If you'd listened to me and focused on studying, we'd be abroad by now…"
"It turned out fine, didn't it?" Hayashi Shuichi interrupted. "Besides, no one could've predicted an earthquake or landslide."
"You're still defending her!" Eri's face hardened, and she punched his chest with a clenched fist.
"Ow…" Hayashi Shuichi yelped, clutching his chest and doubling over like a shrimp…
(Chapter End)
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