Chapter 12: Do You Like Rom-coms?　２

“Oops, that was close… I forgot something.”

Kanna was on her way to the gym for the student council president candidate speeches when she muttered to herself and turned back toward the staff room. She rattled the key, unlocked the door, and stepped inside.

“Excuse me~”

Muttering quietly, Kanna entered the staff room. Because the lights were off, she kicked a bucket near the entrance, sending it rolling across the floor with a loud clatter.

“Owww…… Who the hell left a bucket here?!”

Grumbling resentfully, she picked up the bucket and put it back in its original place.

“Oh well…… Now then, where’s my forgotten thing~? Forgotten thing~?”

Humming cheerfully to herself, Kanna stepped lightly as she walked toward her desk.

“What are you thinking, Sousuke!”

“Sorry…… I’m really sorry…………”

Startled by the loud sound of Kanna kicking the bucket, Sakurai and Hachiya quickly hid inside a nearby locker room. They huddled together tightly, pressing against the locker door to keep it from opening.

“Hey! Where are you touching me, you idiot Sousuke!”

“Sh…… It can’t be helped! It’s so cramped in here!”

The two whispered complaints at each other. Sakurai wriggled his hands around, trying to find a more comfortable position.

“Hey…… Hyaa! Stop moving your hands!”

“Be quiet! Someone’s here!”

Their faces were so close they could feel each other’s breath. Both Sakurai and Hachiya blushed bright red.

“Ah, there it is.”

From inside the locker room, Hachiya and Sakurai could see and hear Kanna.

“It’s Miho-nee…… Thank goodness. If it’s Miho-nee, we might be okay even if we get caught.”

“There’s no way we’re okay! Think about our current situation!”

Hachiya sharply retorted at Sakurai’s carefree attitude.

Because the locker room was close to where Kanna was, she suddenly stopped moving.

“No no no no no no no?!”

Thinking they had been noticed, Hachiya nearly had a meltdown from a mix of terror and embarrassment and panicked in a whisper.

“Hey…… Kyoko, don’t make noise!”

Sakurai fumbled with his hands and covered Hachiya’s mouth.

“Nn………… Nnnn!”

On top of the fear and shame, having Sakurai’s hand pressed against her mouth made Hachiya even more flustered. Her eyes spun in circles.

“I thought I heard something coming from the locker room……”

Kanna, who had stopped moving, turned her gaze toward the locker room where Sakurai and Hachiya were hiding. She began walking toward it.

“There shouldn’t be…… anyone inside, right?”

Kanna reached for the door of the locker room and—

“…………!”

She opened it.

“…………Hmm~ That’s strange. I could’ve sworn I heard something.”

Looking puzzled, Kanna closed the door of the locker room.

The one next to the one Sakurai and Hachiya were in.

“Then maybe this one?”

Kanna reached for the door of the locker room where the two were actually hiding.

“…………!”

“……!”

Just as Kanna put strength into her hand to open the door—

Ring ring ring ring ring ring!

The phone in the staff room started ringing.

“Ah, the phone, the phone.”

Before looking inside the opened locker room, Kanna turned toward the sound and picked up the receiver.

While she was distracted, Sakurai quietly closed the locker door from the inside.

After finishing the call, Kanna hung up the receiver with a click and glanced at the clock.

“Ah crap! The student council candidate speeches have already started!”

Realizing she was late, Kanna hurriedly rushed out of the staff room and locked the door behind her.

Several seconds, dozens of seconds, then several minutes of silence passed.

“Puhhaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!”

“Haa… haa… haa… haa… haa…”

Sakurai and Hachiya, both with bright red faces, tumbled out of the locker room, breathing heavily. Because they had been pressed tightly together the whole time, Hachiya wasn’t just red in the face — her whole body was flushed as if she had been boiled, with steam practically rising from her. Sakurai’s face was also deeply flushed. Thanks to the heating in the staff room and the cramped space inside the locker, both of them were thoroughly worked up.

“That…… was really close, Sousuke……”

“Ah…… Yeah, it really was. I thought we were done for when she opened the door…… Haa…… Haa……”

Sakurai and Hachiya looked at each other. Then—

“Pfft…………”

“Ahahahahahahaha!”

Both of them burst out laughing. Having overcome the extreme tension and the intimate situation inside the locker room, laughter came naturally to them.

“That was so funny……!”

“It wasn’t funny at all……”

Hachiya and Sakurai wiped away tears of laughter.

“Alright…… Shall we go now, Kyoko? The student council speeches have probably already started.”

“Y-Yeah……”

Sakurai offered his hand. Hachiya looked down slightly, then took it.

The exhausted pair walked closer together as they headed toward the gym.

Chapter 12_ Do You Like Rom-coms