Stealing Spree

Chapter 1653 Contrast

With how sweaty our hands were becoming, I waited for a while before letting go of Hayashi-sensei’s hand. Then, as politely as possible, I wiped her palms dry before bowing to her with my upper body inclining forward.

She watched every move I made quite carefully. Most likely, she found me silly for doing so but that’s all. Her mouth remained closed.

I retreated shortly after that. But instead of returning to my seat, I only took a step back and stood in front of her.

Given her lack of reaction, I won't be surprised if she dismisses me and tells me to go.

However, even after a minute passed, there was no change in Hayashi-sensei’s countenance. She simply stared at me, her eyes shining in contemplation.

Whether she's doing that on purpose or not, I had no idea. But one thing was for certain, she heard my counter-proposal and she was processing it inside her head. 𝙗𝙚𝙙𝒏𝙤𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝒎

Was this becoming awkward? Maybe. I pushed us in this direction, after all. Because of that, I also couldn’t complain here and endure the growing awkwardness alongside her.

I thought of preparing tea for her but I quickly shelved the idea after considering how long it would take.

I have to go soon. Every minute counts for me. That way, I will still have an allowance to visit my girls in their clubs before I go to meet up with the others.

And so, with nothing else to do except maintain eye contact with her, I used the moment to thoroughly observe her.

Well, I didn't focus on her appearance. It's undeniable that she's still as gorgeous as before. Students are still losing their minds about the mysterious school nurse, after all.

I focused on her minute reactions. The way her eyebrows moved or the gradual contortion of her beautiful face. There were also the subtle movements of her upper body.

Ah. Let's not forget how her legs were crossed and it's giving me a glimpse of her stocking-covered thighs.

I won't compare it to any of my girls since I know how biased I can be. Let's just say it can provide a lot of comfort to anyone.

Wait. Scratch that. I said not her appearance but here I was, getting distracted by what she's unintentionally showing me.

I shook my head inwardly, rebooting my system. Then, I put my attention back to Hayashi-sensei.

Earlier, she looked tired from the issues brought up by the Principal and I further added to it by telling her about Marika.

At the moment, there’s no trace of it anymore. Nonetheless, she’s still definitely bogged down with how our conversation went.

It’s supposed to only be reporting to her about how my day went but we branched off upon my mention of Marika.

She needed peace of mind the most right now. But with me here, I doubt she'd get it.

In any case, waiting it out seemed to work.

Eventually, Hayashi-sensei's indescribable expression gradually melted away. She inclined her head to the side as she stared at me, partly in disbelief and partly in amusement.

After shaking her head as if casting off unnecessary thoughts, a short burst of laughter escaped her mouth.

“Alright, brat. I’ll allow you to help me but on one condition."

A condition, huh? Will it even matter? It’s not like my offer to help will bring her to my table. It’s just going to be my way to ensure that I’ll continue being in her good graces.

Ah. Whatever. If that condition was enough to satisfy her, then so be it.

With that thought in mind, I acted like I was considering my choices.

Since she was watching me closely, that act tickled her amusement. She even looked a little smug from managing to draw a different reaction from me other than my usual poker face.

I let her savor it for a while before raising a finger, “One condition, right? Do pray tell, sensei.”

"As expected, you won’t disappoint me.” Along with a mysterious smile that bloomed as her expression became shrouded in delight, Hayashi-sensei stood up from her seat and approached me.

Then, she leaned closer and sultrily whispered her one condition in my ear…

-

-

Upon leaving the Director’s Office, I looked behind me for a few seconds before shaking my head helplessly.

I thought it would be some mind-numbing condition or something that would put me in a difficult situation. But no… it was so simple I could easily accomplish it without breaking a sweat.

So much for that out-of-the-norm gesture, right?

But I guess that’s what she truly meant to do; shake me off by acting outside of my expectations.

Even as I started walking away, her triumphant laughter continued to leak out from the room. Perhaps she’d even pull a wine from somewhere and drink it to relish upon her supposed ‘victory’ against me.

Admittedly, I did lose that one. But hey, it also moved me towards my goal.

With countless days ahead of us, there will always be a chance to bestow her comeuppance… We’ll see who gets the last laugh between us.

As I left the Administration Building, I stuck to my plan and went to check on each club connected to me.

And since I promised, my feet also brought me to the Theater House to see the innocent forehead girl and my adorable golden ringlet girl.

Visiting Misaki was proven easy as her clubmates somehow recognized me as the girl’s special person because of the previous instances. They would vacate the room, giving us all the space in it.

Well, as long as Misaki is happy, I guess? I spent a few minutes with her, telling her a short but a bit detailed summary of the events yesterday. And because she got barred from jumping in my embrace earlier, I took the initiative to spoil the girl even before she could launch herself at me.

I carried her to the long couch we previously used and spent the time there with the girl comfortably snuggled to my chest.

Although I already knew the answer, I tried inviting her to come with us to watch the basketball match.

If it’s only up to her, she won’t think twice about coming. However, with how strict her parents are, it’s nigh impossible to sneak her out, especially without a proper reason.

Actually, Misaki almost cried from it. She really wanted to come, after all. Due to that, I comforted her and dropped that subject there. In place of it, I brought up the topic of our upcoming date – also known as the day I will take her out to buy a phone for her.

Unfortunately, we still couldn’t fix a date for it but the girl’s mood immediately flipped just from imagining it.

From there, we spent a few minutes together before I escorted her to where her clubmates were practicing.

Before leaving, I thanked them for giving us that chance to be alone together.

Since I was curious, I asked for the reason why they willingly gave us the room.

The Club President only gave a simple answer… “MInamoto-san is always performing excellently whenever you come around, Onoda. She’s drawing inspiration and motivation from you. Please take care of our Princess Star.”

… Yeah. Let’s not comment about it. That result wasn’t within my expectations. My only intention is to visit her, after all.

On that note, I’m glad Misaki joined a great club with similarly great clubmates. I felt at ease knowing that she was in their good hands.

After saying goodbye to Misaki one last time for today, I retraced my steps and returned to the area of their clubrooms.

However, if the Drama Club had this very considerate and welcoming attitude towards me, the Theater Club was the opposite.

As soon as I showed up before their door, Tanaka-senpai alongside the other club members as well as Marika’s other followers piled out from inside.

Not only that.

Coming from outside the Theater House, Ichihara Jun’s dogs swarmed in, joining Tanaka and the others. They used their bodies to block my way from entering the clubroom to see Marika.

Really… They’re making things hard for themselves.