"OMG! Really?! So are you two finally together?!"
"No!", I said louder than intended, "no. We're not."
"A-and why in the devil's name is he coming with you to your awful parents then?!"
I grinned.
"I suppose out of pity? Let me explain. Satoru took me out to dinner yesterday and we talked a little about our surroundings and eventually about our parents, and I told him a bit about mine. You know me, I don't hide too much when it comes to that, but I don't spill everything either. And yeah, he just flat-out told me he'd come with me."
Pause. Silence. Until Hitomi audibly inhaled through her nose.
"You. Were. On. A. Date?!"
"That's the only thing you heard just now, isn't it?" I laughed nervously.
"And you didn't tell me about it? Shame on you, Lady. Shame!" she scolded me playfully, making both of us burst into laughter. "No, but seriously now, like my grandpa always says: enough babbling. He just suggested that he'd come with you?"
"It wasn't a suggestion. It was simply decided."
"Dominant, huh?"
"Very much so."
"Ah, finally someone who challenges you," she said openly delighted. "Kei was way too soft for you."
"What's that supposed to mean?!"
"Exactly what I said! You need someone who puts you in your place! From what you've told me, Satoru has just the right touch of dominance that you desperately need."
I furrowed my brows and leaned against the table, crossing my left leg over my right.
"I'm totally sweet though?!"
"Ha. Ha. Not even when you're asleep and I get hungry at night and see a deliciously prepared onigiri from you, which you mercilessly filled with wasabi and chili."
Oops! I pressed my lips together, caught, and pulled up the collar of my burgundy T-shirt. Memories flashed back instantly.
I had stayed the night at her place and we had cooked a delicious dinner together. When Hitomi left briefly to powder her nose and I had way too much wasabi paste left, I got experimental and made an extra spicy onigiri and put it in the fridge. I didn't like spicy food – but Hitomi did.
Except this one was way too fiery for her.
"Sorry," I said amused, "I didn't think you'd eat it in your sleep in the middle of the night."
"You almost killed me with that, darling! Almost killed me! You've never seen me chug a liter of milk that fast! And you know how much I love spicy food."
I broke out into roaring laughter again. I wouldn't forget that sight anytime soon. Oh – never again.
"And at first, I thought there was some monster wheezing in the room. Maybe even breathing fire."
"I was this close, Mayu. This close."
An unforgettable night. I'd never been pulled out of sleep so fast before.
"Whatever! I forgave you that prank among countless others! Let's get back to the point. So, Satoru!" Hitomi just couldn't help herself. "Are you two together now?"
"No. And it wasn't a date either!"
"Seriously?! Are you at least sexing each other?"
"Hitomi!" I grinned, noticing the heat rising in me.
"Oh, come on, Mayu. You said his quarters are right next to yours. Go to him at night. Naked. In a see-through robe. That's invitation enough. You always say how hot you find him!"
I couldn't help bursting into loud laughter again.
"Yo-ou're cr-razy," I gasped for air, "he'd pull the blanket over his head out of shock and in the best case, throw a pillow at me and kick me out... You and your latent sex-addiction problem. I'd never do something like that!"
"Well, but?! What do you mean, he would? For you, eye candy?! I'm absolutely sure he'd pull you into bed first – or better yet, throw you onto it – before even thinking about covering up with a blanket, or just toss it to the floor. Besides – what man doesn't dream of that?! Or surprise him during training, he's always barely dressed there anyway, like you always love to say. Or the desk! Between his work and files he pushes to the ground without a care. The best setting ever, and I'm sure he'd reall—"
"No details!" I cut her off quickly.
Cherry red in the face – me. Why did everyone around me have to exploit my mental movie theater?! Satoru had already done that plenty earlier. And now?! AND. NOW?! I felt my lower abdomen tighten sweetly.
She had me.