"Here… isn't exactly the place for this, is it?"
Hayashi Shuichi glanced awkwardly at the stall's partitions around them.
This wasn't some risqué manga—kissing in a bathroom?
"You… you don't want to?" Fei Yingli's voice quivered. Was she really about to lose to Fujimine Yukiko?
Seeing the dejection in her eyes, Hayashi Shuichi didn't want her to hurt. Steeling himself, he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers.
So what if it's loli training? I'll own it!
Unlike their accidental kiss before, this time Fei Yingli was determined to outdo Fujimine Yukiko in intimacy. Though she usually buried herself in studies, she'd caught glimpses of romance dramas. As Hayashi Shuichi's lips met hers, she mimicked those scenes, parting her lips slightly, her tongue brushing forward.
Hayashi Shuichi wasn't exactly experienced either, but feeling her intent, he instinctively took the lead.
…
Ten minutes later, they parted, breathless.
Fei Yingli's cheeks glowed faintly, her eyes sparkling. The kiss had been clumsy—proof that Hayashi Shuichi was as inexperienced as she was. He hadn't lied; aside from their accidental kiss, this was truly their first.
At least in this, she'd beaten Fujimine Yukiko!
"No more tears?" Hayashi Shuichi teased, wiping the remnants of her earlier tears from her face.
Fei Yingli ducked her head, embarrassed. Now that the heat of the moment had passed, the memory of her bold kiss made her heart race, her face burning.
It's all that stinking fox's fault! If it weren't for her, I wouldn't have…
Biting her lip, she pinned all the blame on Fujimine Yukiko.
Then, she felt something uncomfortable beneath her. Without thinking, she reached down—only to freeze as she realized what she'd touched.
"You!"
Fei Yingli shot to her feet, flustered, staring at her childhood friend.
"It's… a natural reaction, okay? Can't control it," Hayashi Shuichi said with an awkward laugh, tugging his pants to make things less obvious.
Blushing, Fei Yingli turned away, grasping for a distraction. "Why hasn't Teacher Murakami left yet?"
"Why don't you check?" Hayashi Shuichi suggested.
This was the girls' bathroom; Fei Yingli hadn't even needed to hide with him.
Opening the stall door, she cautiously peeked out. The bathroom was empty, save for the persistent sound of running water from the outer area. Approaching the sink, she saw the faucet still on—Teacher Murakami must have forgotten to turn it off when she left.
Checking the entrance to ensure no one was coming, Fei Yingli signaled to Hayashi Shuichi. Like thieves in the night, they slipped out of the girls' bathroom.
Thank goodness, my reputation's safe! Hayashi Shuichi thought, relieved.
"Shuichi?"
A shocked voice rang out behind him, freezing him in place.
No way. This unlucky?
Caught sneaking out of the girls' bathroom?
"Shuichi, what are you…?"
Mouri Kogoro, fresh from the bathroom, stared in disbelief at his friend, then at the girls' bathroom sign.
Having grown up together, Kogoro knew Shuichi's character. He'd never believe his friend would sneak into the girls' bathroom out of curiosity or perversion. But what other explanation was there?
Maybe it was those Thai movies he'd watched recently, but Kogoro's eyes drifted to Shuichi's lower half, his imagination running wild. "Shuichi, did you… get a sex change or something?"
Relieved it was just Kogoro, Hayashi Shuichi was about to retort when Fei Yingli snapped, "Kogoro, what nonsense are you spouting? As if Shuichi would do something like that!"
"Just throwing it out there! Why so defensive?" Kogoro shrugged. "Besides, you haven't seen it, so how would you know?"
I didn't see, but I felt it… Fei Yingli's face reddened, leaving her at a loss for words.
"What's going on here?" Kogoro asked, eyeing them suspiciously. "Yingli, it makes sense for you to be here, but Shuichi? Why were you in the girls' bathroom?"
"It was an accident," Hayashi Shuichi said, scanning their surroundings before explaining quickly. "We were passing by when we saw Teacher Murakami. Afraid she'd spot us, we ducked in to hide."
"Makes sense. You're supposed to be out sick. If Murakami saw you bouncing around, you'd lose your perfect student cred and end up like me," Kogoro said, then grinned curiously. "Wait, you took the day off… was it really to go out with Yukiko—"
He stopped, remembering Fei Yingli's presence. "Sorry, Yingli, I didn't mean…"
"It's fine. I'm over it," Fei Yingli huffed. "Go to your baseball thing. Shuichi and I are heading back."
Wait, she was pissed all afternoon, ready to cut ties with Shuichi. He takes her into the girls' bathroom, and now she's fine?
Kogoro scratched his head, watching their retreating figures. Women are impossible to figure out.
…
As Hayashi Shuichi and Fei Yingli walked back, the kiss in the bathroom had shifted the air between them.
Nearing the Mouri family's building, Fei Yingli mustered her courage to ask about their relationship. Before she could, a small figure darted forward, throwing herself onto Hayashi Shuichi.
"Onii-chan, why are you out?" Reiko's voice was full of concern. "Is your fever gone? Is it okay for you to be up?"
Before Hayashi Shuichi could respond, his little cousin turned on Fei Yingli, fuming. "Yingli-nee, Onii-chan's not feeling well, and you let him go out? What if he gets worse?"
Her words snapped Fei Yingli back to reality, reminding her why Hayashi Shuichi had taken the day off.
"That's a question for your Onii-chan, not me!" Fei Yingli shot them both a glare before storming off toward the izakaya.
"She's the one who messed up, and she's mad?" Reiko stuck out her tongue at Fei Yingli's back, then tugged Hayashi Shuichi's hand to make him crouch.
Puzzled, he bent down, and Reiko pressed her hand to his forehead.
"No fever. Looks like it's gone," she said, hands on hips like a scolding adult. "Still, Onii-chan, you shouldn't be out! Do you know how worried I was all day?"
(End of Chapter)
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