"What should I draw?"
Eriri stared blankly at the sketch she'd already finished, her mind clearly not on club activities.
It was already mid-October. In just over two months, this year's biggest manga convention would begin. As the well-known 18+ doujin creator Kashiwagi Eri, she'd naturally be participating. But even now, she still hadn't come up with an idea for her exhibition work.
She should've had it all figured out last month, but with that game she'd been anticipating releasing, her entire focus had been on gaming.
She kept telling herself, "Tomorrow. I'll start thinking seriously tomorrow." And then somehow it became today.
How did things end up like this?
Just then, Eriri suddenly sensed someone standing behind her. She reflexively assumed it was the club president, but when she turned around, she found a stunningly beautiful girl with white hair and red eyes instead.
Oh right, she was one of the transfer students who'd just arrived. Despite only being here a few days, she'd already become famous for her gentle personality and gorgeous looks.
What was her name again?
The president had just called her by name earlier—Shirai Mio, wasn't it?
"Can I help you?" Although her mood was a bit sour from her lack of inspiration, looking at Mio's beautiful face made even Eriri, a fellow girl, unconsciously soften her tone.
"Sorry to bother you. I just thought your drawing looked really good, so I wanted to get a closer look."
Being complimented on her work—even though it was just a casual sketch—made Eriri's lips curve into a faint smile.
She glanced at Mio's easel and said, "Yours is pretty good too. Did you just start learning to draw?"
"Yeah, because I want to draw..."
Mio's words stopped halfway. She seemed to think of something, then reflexively covered her mouth. Though her face wasn't visible, Eriri noticed her ears turning red.
That was one of the signs of embarrassment.
As an 18+ doujin artist, Eriri's instincts immediately picked up on the subtle detail. What exactly did Mio want to draw that she couldn't say out loud? Why would it make her embarrassed?
Drawing wasn't something shameful or unspeakable. Unless...
Unless Mio was also drawing 18+ stuff, just like her!
With that thought, Eriri's gaze sharpened. She scanned Mio up and down repeatedly. This white-haired beauty looked like the ultimate normie—the kind who had nothing to do with 18+ artists whatsoever.
But you couldn't judge a book by its cover.
She herself was a perfect example. In others' eyes, she was an honor student and a refined young lady. But who knew she was actually a famous 18+ doujin artist?
"What were you saying you wanted to draw?"
"It's... nothing. My drawing isn't finished yet. Let's chat next time." With that, Mio fled back to her seat like she was running away and pretended to focus on her painting.
Eriri had just asked what she wanted to draw—that meant the fish had taken the bait. Now she just needed to keep stoking Eriri's curiosity, then have an "accident" where Eriri discovered her doujin. The plan would basically be a success.
Earlier, to look embarrassed, she'd even mentally replayed some doujin plot points. Strictly speaking, she hadn't been embarrassed—she'd been... ahem! But it looked similar enough to embarrassment anyway.
As club activities ended, Eriri seemed to have something urgent to attend to. After glancing at Mio and packing up her things, she hurried off.
Meanwhile, Mio walked over to Mashiro's side. Just as she was about to say something, she noticed that the canvas Mashiro had been working on now showed a silver-haired beauty painting.
The silver-haired beauty in the painting was, of course, her.
Mio leaned closer to Mashiro and looked at the canvas. "Do I really look this good?"
"Mio, beautiful!" Mashiro said with certainty.
"What do you want for dinner? I'll make it for you."
"Hot pot."
"Why the sudden craving for hot pot? Well, whatever. I'll make it for you. Before we head back, let's notify Chihiro-sensei."
"Mm."
Mashiro responded, then carefully put away her painting before following Mio out of the activity room.
...
"Hot pot tonight?" Sengoku Chihiro looked at Mio standing before her with some hesitation.
Of course she wanted hot pot, but she'd already made plans to go drinking tonight. This left her torn.
But soon, she realized drinking and hot pot weren't mutually exclusive. So she decisively said, "Mio, buy ingredients for one extra person. I might bring a friend back tonight. You can expense the groceries to me, and I'll expense them to my friend."
"A boyfriend?"
Chihiro's previously decent mood nearly cracked at the mention of "boyfriend." She said through gritted teeth, "It's a female teacher from school. Boyfriends don't exist."
"Alright." Mio pretended to sigh. Before Chihiro could explode, she grabbed Mashiro and made a successful escape.
...
That evening.
Mio had just finished preparing for the hot pot when she heard the door open.
Sengoku Chihiro pushed the door open, carrying a bag of beer.
Just as Mio was about to greet her, a familiar figure in a white lab coat appeared in her field of vision.
"Yo, Shirai. You don't mind if I mooch some hot pot, right?"
Mio glanced at Hiratsuka Shizuka, then at Sengoku Chihiro. Two women who couldn't find boyfriends had become friends. Of course they'd gravitate toward each other—misery loves company, after all.
Though Mio didn't say anything, both Hiratsuka and Chihiro keenly sensed that she was thinking something extremely rude.
To avoid Hiratsuka's Iron Fist of Justice, Mio quickly said, "It's my honor to have Shizuka-sensei join us for dinner."
As if remembering something, Hiratsuka looked at Chihiro and said, "Speaking of which, you suddenly brought a bento today. Don't tell me she made that too?"
"Mm-hmm. Jealous?" Chihiro said proudly.
"Tch. If it were made by a boyfriend, maybe I'd be jealous." Though Hiratsuka said that, she was definitely feeling a bit sour.
"Even if it's not from a boyfriend, it's still better than having nothing at all," Chihiro shot back.
"Actually, if you two teachers weren't so strict about gender, you'd probably find partners pretty easily."
"???" ×2
...
Hey everyone, I'm back!
Gotta admit, I really needed a break. Even though I didn't rest all that much, I did get to go out a bit, travel around, and do some shopping. And yeah… I may or may not have spent money every single day—my wallet is definitely crying right now. ;_;
Anyway, jokes aside, taking this break made me realize I need to set aside a little more time for myself outside of work and school. Because of that, I'll be adjusting my upload schedule. New updates will go live at 7:00 AM (New York time), which is 12:00 PM UK and 10:00 PM Australia.
I've also decided to take one day off every week on Sundays to rest and recharge.
As for extra chapters: if you enjoy the story, you can send power stones—every 50 stones unlocks one bonus chapter. If that's not your thing, you can also support me on Patreon (irisbenton). I currently offer 10-day, 20-day, and 30-day early access tiers.
Thanks so much for reading and for all the support—I really appreciate it