The room fell silent for a few seconds.
Suzuran bit her lip.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡot4DfOqdLq
She knew she shouldn’t say it.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJY1UZvFZN9
But still, in a voice barely above a whisper, she asked:
“Then… can I touch your arm muscles?”
She said it quietly, not quite a joke, not quite a confession—25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpwfJZci5rv
just a small nudge to see how close she was allowed to get.
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Kouichi turned slightly, his gaze landing on her.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiK0aN7RZKs
For just a moment, something flickered in his eyes—25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeUgTGfFtsv
but he didn’t reply right away.
Seeing his silence, she hurried on, her voice picking up speed and pitch like she was afraid he’d misunderstand… or worse, say no.
“It’s for the exam! Really! Everyone’s practicing palpation in class—biceps, deltoids, triceps… I have to pass too!”
Her face was already red, but she held her ground,25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGAWJcvOPpI
trying her best to look confident.
Kouichi stared at her—stubborn, flustered, determined.
Finally, his gaze softened.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNyexx2ICXp
A breath escaped his lips, almost a sigh.
“…Fine. Left arm.”
The words were quiet, calm. But they were permission.
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He rolled up his left sleeve, exposing the clean lines of his forearm and biceps—25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdfeEvRL5kX
firm, defined, composed—just like him.
“Ten minutes. Palpation only.”
His tone was as cool as ever, as he added:
“No laughing. No daydreaming. No weird thoughts.”
Suzuran's eyes lit up.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc6u07lVqKi
She nodded furiously, like a kid who just got permission to pet a very fancy dog.
“I swear—study mode only!”
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She carefully reached out, her fingertips brushing his arm.
The moment her fingers touched skin, she froze.
“…Ugh.”
A breathy, involuntary sound escaped her.
This wasn’t like anything in the textbook!
No one ever said muscles could feel like this—so springy, so firm, so…25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkKBrMqwBLX
temptingly real.
She had expected something hard and static.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpgu68IFVsa
But instead—there was warmth. Depth.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKK9CMWNK4q
A weight that made her want to touch again.
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Her eyes focused, hands trembling slightly,25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHio3HXufmH
trying desperately to maintain her “I’m being professional” façade.
Kouichi said nothing.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeaxGDjlIZd
He just lowered his gaze and watched—without pulling away.
He let her touch him.
But it was as if he were silently saying—
You can touch me like this.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZgby7zeYqE
But only like this.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡghtDx6YrLJ
Only from this distance.
25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvpXzWGVPeo
She glanced at him again.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb0gkdzxNC3
Still calmly seated beside her, editing her report without so much as a blink.
As if nothing had happened.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2CUu08aqrq
As if her little emotional derailment was part of the routine.
He didn’t scold her.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDrSSQ6Y3GT
Didn’t dodge her.
He simply… carried on.
And somehow, that made her feel—
Maybe it was because he was always so steady…25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWSVOqjRKoS
that she could inch a little closer each time.
She took a breath.
Then, carefully, she cradled his hand in both of hers.
That hand.
The one that had shot across her chest that day when he hit the brakes.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnvT60cCMS1
The one that had thrown her whole heart into chaos.
Her fingers trembled slightly as they slid slowly over each of his knuckles—25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG4LWHxtjCW
like she was holding something precious, too fragile to grip tightly.
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It was a very quiet hand.
The joints defined, calluses soft at the creases,25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhTDfmM6Zc5
fingertips warm and calm.
As her fingertips brushed his index finger,25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3BZCcVud92
she felt the veins beneath his skin—subtle, winding, like strands of strength coiled under a surface of warmth.
So cool…25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmKp6VOipbF
She thought, and immediately her cheeks flushed hotter.
Her heart stumbled up into her throat.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSKgxOuMQe0
Her gaze followed the path of her own fingers—25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyN01D04YBG
from the web between thumb and forefinger,25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2GxBnmlg6L
to the back of his hand,25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDkhpQ5e3Ej
down to the long, slender bones of his wrist.
There was something addictive in the quiet complexity of it all.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKckdhln2Kb
Something that pulled at her, soft and slow and impossible to stop.
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And then—25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXAtMtbSVfB
her fingers moved again.
Not consciously.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDQcxQUDfJp
As if her body had decided on its own.
She slowly, almost soundlessly—
interlaced her fingers with his.
One finger.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG3vF98sd5i
Then another.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNS9sGvLaQ0
And another.
Until their hands fit together—perfectly.
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Ten fingers. Intertwined.
She froze.
She hadn’t said a word.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPECEri3drK
But her body had confessed everything.
There was no way to explain this as "studying."25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXZpvdNo6QV
This wasn’t about anatomy.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDx5OIZylY1
This was… the way lovers hold hands.
She stared down at their joined fingers,25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxtcXtS9xDW
her palm burning from his warmth.
And somewhere in her heart, a soft voice whispered:
If only I could stay like this.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJZRoa2dqII
Not just for palpation.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPjAZiUHcQv
Not just for ten minutes.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkXkY1SKmST
But forever.
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She bit her lower lip.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdaoZQv0IIC
Too afraid to look up.
Because what she feared most…25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMrhFgTmNyz
wasn’t rejection.
It was the possibility—
that in his eyes,25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzslh19pXGo
she might see a tiny flicker of indulgent gentleness.
The kind of look that would make her25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxTDIN0VUGk
lose all ability to pull away.
The kind of look25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDTrmieJ1PE
that would make her fall even deeper.
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“…My lady,”25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIY5EdlPUql
His voice was low, the calm she always knew.
But this time—25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQmBBFZ6OBM
there was a faint huskiness to it, like he’d just pushed something down.
“Are you sure this part… is covered in the textbook?”
Suzuran snapped back to reality.
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She looked down—
Her right hand, still holding his left.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3jnZF10t8O
Their fingers laced tight.
Like lovers.
Like a secret promise in the middle of an ordinary afternoon.
Her heart dropped.
“I—I…”25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfvFwXHoOH6
She couldn’t even finish.
Her face had turned red to the roots of her hair.
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What. Just. Happened?!
She meant to feel his tendons. Just the hand. Just for class!
But somehow—her fingers had just slipped into his without her noticing?!
She yanked her hand back in a panic—25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ25TEP8AgH6
but fumbled halfway, making it seem more like she didn’t want to let go.
Kouichi didn’t release her immediately.
He simply watched her.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPYzKGxjTv8
Quietly.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF4SSdHWhYU
As she panicked like a kid caught sneaking cookies before dinner.
Her lips moved, but no words came out.
And then—finally, he spoke.
“…Time’s up.”
His voice was calm as ever. Composed.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRieJAoBLEF
As if absolutely nothing had happened.
But only he knew—
That for one second,25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAb4CJVJp8T
his fingers had gently squeezed back.
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“I-I was just checking your muscle tone! That’s all!”
“Mm. Got it.”
He calmly pulled his hand away—unhurried, smooth.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjmPHRFaPWp
But there was still a faint warmth left behind in her palm.
He paused for a second.
Then added, as if it were a matter-of-fact follow-up:
“So… would you like to check any other muscle groups?”
“…What?”
“For example—pectoralis major, biceps brachii, wrist flexors…”
“Wait a second.”25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt1fM2LrOVO
Her eyes suddenly lit up.
Her brain raced through the names he just listed:25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgbQJTYG841
Pectoralis major, biceps, wrist flexors…
Every one of them…
were the muscles you use when you hold someone close.
“Wait—are you saying… I should test them by having you hug me? For accuracy?”
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Kouichi didn’t reply.
He just turned and gave her a look—expression neutral, eyes steady.
Suzuran, meanwhile, lit up like a Christmas tree.
“Yes! Yes yes yes!! Obviously!!”
“….”
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Without a word, he slowly raised a hand…25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjJxV8ebycx
and pressed it flat against her face.
“Idiot.”
Tone completely deadpan.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRWuBSc2z4s
As if stating “Your book is upside down.”
Suzuran’s face exploded red.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmw29Bb9grB
“Wh—Hey!!”
“I was kidding,”25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0EHAnlCqD0
Kouichi muttered, calmly returning to her report.25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRW9YQWkxcS
His voice dry as ever.
“I didn’t think you’d actually take it seriously.”
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“No wonder your etiquette grades are so borderline…25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKhs6LAeiTN
You’ve probably been reading shoujo manga under the desk instead.”
“Hey—!”25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyMUmgKi3mb
She exploded, grabbing a pillow and rolling back and forth in outrage.
“You can’t say stuff like that in that tone!!25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAjFUaoU1RR
Don’t forget who your master is!”
Kouichi shot her a glance and deadpanned:25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWCg6KiKyyv
“You were the one who took it the wrong way.”
“I did not! It’s called hands-on learning, thank you very much.”
“Mm. Real dedication. I’m impressed.”
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He nodded with mock sincerity, then looked back down to continue writing comments, like he was grading some kind of midterm paper.
But in that moment—
facing away from her—
his lips twitched25Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaCJ3qFyml7
into a small, unmistakable smile.
and then Add to home screen.