Chapter 52 : I also, I, love you!

We simultaneously turned toward the source of the sound.

Beyond the window, a woman was passing by.

A woman walking down the hallway, yawning repeatedly.

She glanced our way, then let out another big yawn and kept walking.

‘What’s with the clenched teeth and avoiding eye contact…?’

Yena’s finger slipped out of my panties.

“Hng, ugh…”

I covered my mouth with my hand to stifle the sound.

It felt like we’d already been caught, but…

I decided to be grateful she pretended not to notice.

After waiting a moment, the sound of her heels gradually faded away.

“She definitely saw us… She just walked past like nothing…”

“She’s a third-year. Pretty sure she’s done way worse.”

Yena replied nonchalantly before sliding her hand back down between my legs.

I flinched.

“Spread them.”

“W-what…?”

“Not like that. Okay?”

Her hand patted my thigh reassuringly.

I checked her expression—it didn’t seem threatening. Though she could’ve been acting.

Half-doubting, I hesitantly parted my legs again.

Her hand slipped inside my panties and began gently wiping me down.

“Hah… D-do it softly…”

“What am I supposed to do? You keep leaking.”

She was right.

Even the faintest rub made my hips tremble.

To react like this from such light touches…

I was starting to hate myself.

So I shifted the blame to Yena.

‘It’s because she’s been pounding me all night, yeah. Not my fault…’

I was a completely normal person with healthy desires—at least, that’s what I told myself.

“Ngh…”

“Done. You better not leak anymore.”

Her fingers pulled away.

A dry, completely dispassionate movement.

A hollow feeling welled up in my chest.

‘Kinda disappointed…’

Ending it like this wasn’t like her.

She could’ve at least gone for two more rounds…

“…Hk!”

“What? What’s wrong?”

“N-nothing. Haha…”

What the hell was I just thinking?

Luckily, I snapped out of it before begging her.

Was I really turning into a pervert just by being around one?

‘Guess we’re a pervert couple now, haha…’

My face was definitely burning red by now.

Yena watched me as she wiped her fingers.

The handkerchief she’d just used to clean me up.

Not sure if intentional, but she rubbed it at the same rhythm as before.

Watching her hand move against my wetness, a phrase popped into my head:

‘Indirect sex…’

God, was I really this horny?

It wasn’t like my brain was marinated in lust.

I shook my head violently to chase the thoughts away.

Yena smirked as she watched me.

“Hmm… What’re you thinking about?”

“N-nothing! Ahem, uh.”

Was I that easy to read, or was she just scarily perceptive?

Yena started doing something weird.

…!

She rolled the handkerchief into a ring, creating a hole.

Her middle and ring fingers slid into the gap.

Licking her lips, she teased me with her gaze.

“Were you thinking about… this?”

“Hn… Stop it…”

It felt like she was really thrusting into me.

Of course, I couldn’t feel anything physically, but it still turned me on.

I needed to escape this bizarre sensation.

First, I had to look away.

I let out a deep sigh and crouched down.

“Haah…”

Where the hell did she even learn this stuff…?

‘Is there some kind of sex academy or something?’

I didn’t have the courage to ask out loud, so I kept it to myself.

Looking at the floor, I couldn’t see what she was doing.

When I glanced up slightly, Yena was wiping her hands clean, as if nothing had happened.

Then she neatly folded her handkerchief and tucked it into her pocket.

Was she not bothered that the handkerchief was still damp?

Or was she doing it on purpose?

Those random thoughts soon vanished.

“What, disappointed? Want me to stop?”

“I’m gonna die for real…”

Her words struck a nerve.

“Heh. I liked it.”

“Well, it’s not like I hated it either… Ugh.”

I immediately tensed my legs and sprang up.

Of course I didn’t hate it.

A secret confession in a place with no people around.

Though the method was a little… wrong.

‘Ah, just thinking about the confession pisses me off again.’

Yena’s expression had already returned to its usual playful self.

“And then—”

She suddenly threw a punch at me, her lover.

“Who the hell, confesses, like that? Huh? Huh?”

“Ow, hey— Ugh.”

Seeing my pervy girlfriend in pain softened my heart a little.

Maybe Yena knew that, because she didn’t try to stop me.

Or maybe she just found my reaction amusing.

‘Should’ve done this from the start.’

Honestly, I never had even a 1% intention of rejecting her confession.

I just didn’t like the way she did it.

Lover, sweetheart, my person.

Those ticklish words filled my head.

Eventually, my fist started hurting more, so I stopped hitting her. I must’ve landed about twenty punches.

‘Now that I’ve actually hit her…’

I placed my hand where I’d been striking and gently rubbed it.

“Does it hurt a lot?”

“…No, I’m sorry.”

Yena turned her eyes away awkwardly and apologized.

A deflating sound escaped my lips—pfft.

She’s grown so much. Who knew she could do something this cute?

The remaining bitterness melted away like snow under sunlight.

Hug.

I stepped into her arms and embraced her.

Now familiar, her arms wrapped around my back.

If this were before, she’d have gone straight for my butt.

But Yena just held me tight.

‘Yena’s scent…’

It had been a while since her shower, so most of the body wash fragrance had faded, leaving only a faint trace of her natural scent.

I buried my nose into her shoulder and took a deep breath.

Filling my lungs with Yena’s sweet, lingering aroma.

“Hayul…”

“…Yeah.”

Yena spoke slowly.

Our bodies were so close that our voices resonated between us.

I lifted my head slightly and met her eyes.

Then, terrifying words tumbled out of her mouth.

“Break time’s over.”

“…Huh?”

My mind, which had been on a brief vacation, scrambled back to reality.

My eyes flew open, and my foggy brain started working again.

“W-what? Eek—! Right, we were on a break—”

“Pfft. Just kidding, we still have two minutes left. Relax.”

“You’re kidding?!”

Two minutes wasn’t nearly enough.

Even if we ran, it’d take at least three minutes to get back.

“Relax? What’s there to relax about?!”

“Ah— Ugh— Ow.”

My arms, back in combat mode, found their target again.

“We have to go— all the way back!”

“Your fists… are getting sharper, huh…”

Of course, the target was her shoulders again.

This time, I put my full strength into it.

Only when Yena grabbed my wrists did the cycle of violence end.

“Dammit… Even if we run now, we’ll be late… I don’t wanna get scolded…”

With both my hands restrained, I grumbled. Yena rubbed her shoulder with her free hand.

So she does feel pain.

I felt a little bad, but…

She brought this on herself, so I won’t apologize.

With my hands tied, I considered just walking slowly since we were already late anyway.

“We can cut across the field. Let’s run for once.”

“…I’d rather just be late. Better than following you—”

“Hup!”

“Ah— Waaah?!”

In the blink of an eye, her arm slid behind my knees.

At the same time, my legs lifted, and my body tipped backward.

“Uh… C-can you put me down…? It’s okay to be late once, right…?”

The so-called “princess carry.”

It was way more embarrassing than I’d imagined.

Like I’d become the heroine of a fairy tale, surrendering my whole body to the prince who came to rescue me…

Based on experience, she’d probably get us there safely.

“Put me do— AAAAAH!”

Of course, that thought didn’t last.

My upper body wobbled unstably, so I wrapped my arms around Yena’s neck.

My vision spun wildly as the air whipped against my face.

All I could do was squeeze my eyes shut, tighten my grip, and endure.

“Haah… That was exhausting…”

The eventful day was finally over.

I was heading home with Yena.

“Wasn’t it kinda fun? We didn’t end up late.”

“You wanna die?! Did you see the kids’ faces?!”

In the end, Yena carried me all the way into the classroom in a princess carry.

‘Ugh… Seriously…’

Her trembling expression, like she was holding back laughter, was still vivid in my mind.

“Tsk tsk, Hayul. Use pretty words.”

“…Do pretty things if you want pretty words.”

“Boo hoo, my girlfriend keeps swearing at me, hitting me…”

For some reason, Yena only put me down after walking all the way to our seats.

The look on Gyoul’s face as she shook her head at us flashed in my mind.

Even Gaeul beside her shot us a disdainful glare.

I really wanted to bite my tongue and die on the spot.

“…Sorry about that. But— Huh?”

The familiar front door of our house came into view.

I thought we still had a long way to go.

Somehow, we’d arrived way earlier than expected.

Yena, dropping her poor acting, bid me goodbye.

“Hayul, you worked hard today. I’ll pick you up tomorrow.”

“…Yeah, go ahead.”

I didn’t want to let her go.

Picking me up must be a hassle.

Should I just tell her to stay over?

“I’ll watch you go in.”

“…Do what you want.”

Walking toward the house absentmindedly,

something suddenly flashed in my mind.

“Ah, right.”

“Hm?”

I dashed back to Yena, who was standing blankly, and hugged her.

“Thanks… for walking me home today.”

“Mhm.”

“And for confessing first… Thanks for that too.”

“Mhm, I did good, right?”

“Ugh, seriously… Tch. Yeah, you did great. And also… I-I love you too!”

“…Eek!”

Her body jolted. The corners of her lips twitched upward, and she didn’t bother hiding it, grinning brightly.

I pulled back slightly and looked up at her.

“Hehe, did that make your heart flutter?”

“You— seriously!”

If I didn’t tease her, I’d die of embarrassment.