Why did it have to be you, Tomori?!
The person who kissed him was also somewhat beyond Kamijou Mutsuki's expectations.
But at the same time, it felt like something unexpected—yet perfectly reasonable.
Tomori and Kamijou Mutsuki looked at each other, and she seemed to feel that what she just did wasn't enough to "revive" him. She pressed her lips together, looking like she wanted to give him another kiss.
But at that moment, Shiina Taki finally reacted and hurriedly held down this adorable little penguin.
"Tomori, what are you doing?"
It was rare for Taki to raise her voice at Tomori. Her face was flushed red—this time from anger.
"How can you kiss—"
This time, there was a hint of shyness mixed in.
"—kiss that guy?!"
"Because… Mutsuki wanted a kiss."
Facing the visibly angry Taki, the little penguin said this blankly.
"So if he tells you to kiss him, you just do it?!"
Miss Taki was so angry she almost laughed.
"Because… it's Mutsuki."
"Even if it's him, that's not okay!"
"Tomori,"
But in the end, the one in front of her was Tomori.
So Taki suppressed her emotions and began earnestly lecturing her.
"Kissing is very important for girls. It has to be with your future—"
As Taki spoke, her voice grew a little softer, and her cheeks turned slightly red.
This time it really was embarrassment. After all, even a pressure monster is still a girl.
"—your future husband. So from now on, you absolutely can't just casually—"
However, while listening to Taki's advice, Tomori couldn't help but recall the marriage application form she had swiped from Kamijou Mutsuki's car earlier.
According to what Taki was saying… does that mean that as long as she married Kamijou Mutsuki, she'd be allowed to kiss him whenever she wanted?
Thankfully, Miss Taki had no idea what Tomori was thinking—otherwise she'd probably be furious enough to overheat on the spot.
After finishing her warning, Taki looked at Tomori's obedient expression and felt that her words had probably gotten through, so she didn't continue pressing the issue.
"It's already quite late today,"
Kamijou Mutsuki had stood up by now. After Taki finished speaking, he also spoke up with a suggestion.
"How about you all stay here tonight?"
"My place is big. We can all hang out together."
"When we get tired, we can just sleep. No problem at all!"
"Huh? Staying over at your place tonight?"
Faced with Kamijou Mutsuki's proposal, Miss Taki was the most resistant of all.
Because of what had just happened, Taki now felt that even being in the same space as Kamijou Mutsuki together with Tomori was dangerous.
"Still… what that guy said does make sense. It is really late now…"
However, Miss Anon held a different opinion.
"How about we just treat it as our band's first training camp?"
Unlike Taki's resistance, Anon looked full of enthusiasm.
She wasn't really bothered by Kamijou Mutsuki's presence—she simply thought this sounded great.
Of course, the key point was that everyone was here.
If it were just her alone, even if Wakaba Mutsumi were added, she definitely wouldn't dare to stay over.
But now that there were so many of them, what could Kamijou Mutsuki possibly do?
With such a nice big house, not staying would be a waste.
And it'd be perfect for deepening the bonds between band members!
Tomori was naturally inclined to agree with Kamijou Mutsuki, the cat didn't care either, and just like that, the decision was made.
Watching the girls take out their phones to message their parents, Kamijou Mutsuki glanced once toward Sakiko-sensei's bedroom—then looked away.
And because Tomori and the others were staying the night, Wakaba Mutsumi's workload during dinner preparation increased.
Seeing this, Anon immediately said she'd help out in the kitchen. Even though she was a rich girl, her cooking skills were no joke.
After her came Taki. Though she was a pressure monster, she was also a hardworking student who supported herself—there was no way she'd be someone who never touched household chores.
With their help, Wakaba Mutsumi actually ended up being more relaxed than usual.
As for Kamijou Mutsuki…
Naturally, he waited for dinner together with Tomori and the cat.
Dinner was soon ready. Now there was only one last problem—one person still hadn't come to the table.
That's right: Sakiko-sensei. She was still emo-ing in her room.
Even Taki, who disliked her the most, couldn't bring herself to say something like letting her go hungry all night.
And so, the task of going to invite Sakiko-sensei out for dinner naturally fell to Kamijou Mutsuki.
When he entered the room, Sakiko-sensei was just like before, curled up into a ball on the bed.
"Saki-chan?"
"What is it?"
This time, Sakiko didn't deliberately ignore Kamijou Mutsuki.
"Be good, don't sulk anymore. Come out and eat dinner."
"Don't talk to me in that kind of tone!"
Kamijou Mutsuki's child-soothing voice instantly shattered Sakiko-sensei's defenses. She threw off the blanket and snapped back.
"And I'm not hungry. You eat by yourself!"
"Grrr—"
However, the moment her words fell, her stomach let out an extremely well-timed growl.
"..."
Instantly exposed, Sakiko's cheeks turned crimson—but she didn't try to force herself to save face. Instead, she spoke bluntly: "Anyway, I don't want to eat. Just leave me alone!"
"Saki-chan, if you don't behave, I'll call Soyo to come get you."
Looking at the clearly still-pouting Sakiko-sensei, Kamijou Mutsuki directly pulled out his ultimate move.
"You…"
If she had only found Soyo annoying before, then after what happened today, she had clearly developed a pretty serious psychological shadow toward her.
Therefore, when she saw that Kamijou Mutsuki was about to call Soyo, she immediately panicked.
"…I'll go out with you."
In the end, Sakiko-sensei still gave in.
However, the moment she stepped into the living room, she immediately regretted it.
As soon as she appeared, five pairs of eyes locked straight onto her.
Wait—why are they still here?!
Sakiko had originally thought that Tomori and the others had already gone home, which was why she was willing to come out together with Kamijou Mutsuki.
Now that she saw there were still people around, she immediately turned around, wanting to go back and continue emo-ing.
After all, after what had just happened, she really didn't want to appear in front of them.
And more than that, she didn't know how to face Tomori.
But just as she was about to turn back, Kamijou Mutsuki directly blocked her path.
After finally dragging her out, how could he possibly let her run back in?
With Tomori and the others' gazes on her as well, Sakiko could only grit her teeth and find a place to sit down.
And with her arrival, the atmosphere at the dining table—unsurprisingly—froze instantly.
Tomori's mood visibly sank. Taki looked at Sakiko, let out a cold snort, and then started taking care of her own "real dad."
"Tomori, don't mind her. Let's eat!"
"She quit, so she quit. What's there to care about? Does our band really need someone like her?"
"..."
Although Taki's attitude was exactly what she deserved, Sakiko still felt inexplicably uncomfortable.
But she really had no right to be angry.
After all, she knew very well how deeply she had hurt Tomori.
If she could choose, she wouldn't have wanted this either.
Even though she felt fed up with Soyo, deep down, how could she not want to return to the past?
But fate was just like this—cruel and mocking. She didn't have the right to refuse.
The girl named Sakiko Togawa had long since lost the right to be naive. Now, she didn't want to sing—she just wanted to make money!
Feeling the awkward atmosphere in the room, Anon also felt a bit uncomfortable.
But even she didn't know how to speak up at a time like this.
So, subconsciously, she glanced at Kamijou Mutsuki, hoping he would warm things up.
Even Miss Anon herself hadn't realized it yet—she had already started relying on Kamijou Mutsuki without noticing.
"Looks like everyone's feeling a bit stiff. How about I perform something for you all?"
Kamijou Mutsuki said this with a smile, as if he had already prepared for it.
"I'll sing a song for everyone."
The boy said it lightly—words that almost triggered Anon's PTSD on the spot.
PS: Take a guess—what will the protagonist sing this time? (Sakiko-sensei's turn)
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