Chapter 3: Alliance

 

Yuuma had been taking all possible measures to avoid encountering Suzuka and the others—catching a train two departures earlier in the morning, slipping out of the classroom as soon as the lunch bell rang, and taking refuge in the library. After school, he’d dash straight home. This had become his daily routine.

Though he was intentionally avoiding them, he was surprised at how effectively he’d managed to not see them at all, while simultaneously feeling increasingly guilty about it. He had received several messages not just from Suzuka, but also from Kousei and Riko, yet he hadn’t even marked them as read. He was well aware that he was running away.

The duties of a library committee member weren’t particularly demanding.

At most, there was the rotating duty of manning the reception desk, which mainly involved sitting there with time to kill. Even then, few committee members took this responsibility seriously. The library itself was used more for self-study than anything else, and students who were genuinely enthusiastic about reading books enough to check them out were apparently rare.

Among them, Sayuki stood out as both a dedicated student and committee member. She seemed to genuinely love books. Whenever Yuuma visited the library, he would often spot her reading at the reception desk, even when it wasn’t her shift.

Whether she was too absorbed in her books or simply uninterested in others, Sayuki never questioned Yuuma’s constant presence in the library preparation room, nor did she try to engage him in conversation—something he was grateful for.

This morning too, Yuuma greeted Sayuki, who was reading at the reception desk, with a quick “Morning” before heading to the preparation room.

Settling into what was becoming his designated spot, he kept the door open, Sayuki’s back visible through it, and picked up a random book to pass the time. It was a story about tanuki set in Kyoto, one that had even been adapted to screen.

At first, he was just passively following the words, but before he knew it, he found himself drawn into the story, letting out an involuntary chuckle at its comedic content.

Noticing this, Sayuki’s eyes lit up with unusual enthusiasm as she spoke up.

“That’s a fun one, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, the way the tanuki think and act is so unique to them, yet there’s something oddly human about it too. Plus, it really makes you want to visit Kyoto while reading it.”

“I know exactly what you mean! That author has written several other works set in Kyoto too, which makes it even more compelling.”

“Oh really? Any recommendations?”

“Let’s see. There’s one about a college student traveling through parallel worlds, another sci-fi-ish story about penguin flocks appearing in the city… Oh, and some uniquely interpreted parodies of Japanese literature—”

Asked by Yuuma, Sayuki became like a fish in water, enthusiastically recommending one book after another. Her eloquence was remarkable.

It was refreshing to see this side of her, as she’d never seemed particularly talkative before. She must really love books.

Watching Sayuki talk with such animation, even using gestures, Yuuma couldn’t help but find it amusing, letting out a soft chuckle as his shoulders shook with laughter.

Suddenly realizing how carried away she’d gotten with her passionate speech, Sayuki blushed, hunching her shoulders and lowering her head in embarrassment.

“I had no idea you could get so fired up about something, Ueda-san.”

“Ohh… how embarrassing of me…”

“No, no, not at all. It’s great to have something you’re passionate about.”

“I’m glad you think so…”

Yuuma gave a wry smile, thinking she didn’t need to be so embarrassed about it.

Then, something occurred to him, and he let out a small “Ah.”

This time it was Sayuki’s turn to tilt her head quizzically, peering at his face with a curious “What is it?”

“Oh, nothing… I just realized there are some things you can’t understand without talking them through.”

“…Could this be about Kuramoto-kun?”

“!”

Sayuki asked tentatively, her voice full of concern.

Yuuma blinked in surprise when Kousei’s name came from her lips.

“…You’re pretty perceptive.”

“Well, I often saw you two together since middle school. And recently, Kuramoto-kun has… well, his image has changed completely. I was wondering if something happened…”

“Ah…”

Apparently, Kousei’s makeover had become a topic of conversation in Sayuki’s class too.

And naturally, seeing how Yuuma—who was always with Kousei—had been holing himself up in the library preparation room, it was only logical to assume something had happened.

It seemed Sayuki had been aware of Yuuma’s situation but had chosen to quietly watch over him without asking questions. He appreciated her thoughtfulness. Though in reality, the issue wasn’t with Kousei, but rather with his sister Suzuka.

Still, after these few days, both his head and his desires had cooled down somewhat.

Besides, if he kept putting it off, he might lose the chance to talk altogether.

“Yeah, I think I’ll have a proper talk with them.”

“Yes, that would be best!”

When Yuuma gave his answer, Sayuki clasped her hands tightly in front of her chest. She seemed to be giving him a push of encouragement.

Just as Yuuma returned her gesture with a smile, a voice called out “Hey!” from the reception area.

“…Kousei?”

Looking in that direction, he could see Kousei and Riko approaching with grins on their faces, waving as they came.

“Yo, Yuuma. Here we are.”

“Coming all the way here? What’s up? Don’t tell me you’re actually here to borrow books?”

“Kawai-senpai, as if this Kousei-senpai would ever do something so admirable~”

“Shut up, Riko!”

As Riko chimed in from beside him with her teasing, they all naturally burst into laughter.

From the corner of his eye, Yuuma caught sight of Sayuki’s face—she was smiling but looked slightly troubled. Then it hit him.

“Oh right—keep your voice down in the library, Kousei.”

“Ah, my bad. You’re right.”

Kousei scratched his head sheepishly as Yuuma gave a wry smile.

Though it had been a while since he’d talked with Kousei, seeing him act the same as always made Yuuma feel relieved inside.

However, he also noticed that Suzuka, the person in question, wasn’t there.

What was going on? Yuuma furrowed his brow as he asked.

“Huh? Where’s Suzuka? She’s not with you?”

“Well, about that…”

“Yeah, we’re actually here about Suzu-chan!”

“About Suzuka…?”

His heart skipped a beat at their words.

He had no idea what this could be about. Surely Suzuka hadn’t told them about that?

No, that couldn’t be it—they both had mischievous looks on their faces that didn’t fit with that scenario.

His confusion only deepened.

“Hey, Suzu-chan!”

“Come on out, Suzuka!”

Riko and Kousei called toward the entrance. There was some movement, but no one appeared.

After a moment of anxious waiting…

Growing impatient, Riko let out an exasperated “Geez!” and rushed over, pulling someone by the hand. And there was Suzuka, shyly raising one hand in greeting. Yuuma couldn’t help but stare in amazement.

“…Hey.”

“…………Huh?”

The person before him was Suzuka, and yet not Suzuka at all.

Her once plain black hair was now dyed a lighter shade, with the ends falling in soft waves. Her uniform was styled more casually, with her collarbone peeking out from the neckline, and her shortened skirt revealed alluring thighs. There was a sweet fragrance—perhaps perfume—that tickled his nose, making his head spin.

Suzuka had transformed into an elegant, cute girl, worlds apart from her former self. It was like looking at a different person entirely. His brain couldn’t quite process what he was seeing, and before he could stop himself, the question tumbled out.

“How… why…”

“Well, Suzuka suddenly declared she was going to get a makeover too.”

“What do you think, Kawai-senpai? Isn’t Suzu-chan super cute!?”

In contrast to the excitement of Kousei and Riko, Suzuka was more reserved, playing with her hair with her fingertips. Her cheeks flushed pink as she asked with a hint of uncertainty.

“What do you think, Yuu-kun?”

“…You look really great.”

“R-really?”

Even in his confused state, Yuuma’s honest response came naturally, and Suzuka’s face bloomed into a radiant smile that made his heart skip another beat.

 

 

Yuuma was completely bewildered.

Even during class, his mind wandered, thinking only of Suzuka.

What was going on? What was she planning? It wasn’t like she had found someone she liked, as Kousei had. He understood Suzuka less and less.

To put it simply, her makeover had made her incredibly cute.

While he had vaguely thought Suzuka might have potential after seeing how well her brother Kousei’s transformation had turned out, this was beyond anything he’d imagined. What’s more, she was exactly his type.

So much so that he felt an overwhelming desire to be close to her again.

While his thoughts were still in disarray, lunch break arrived.

As he sat there in a daze, voices called out from the hallway.

“Kousei-senpai! Kawai-senpai!”

“Yuu-kun! Onii-chan!”

Riko and Suzuka were waving at them discretely.

The classroom immediately erupted into whispers upon noticing them. “Oh, that girl!” “Wow, she’s gorgeous!” “Wait, that’s Kuramoto’s sister!?” “Hey, introduce us!” voices called out from all around.

Hearing their reactions, Yuuma grimaced, feeling as though Suzuka had somehow become even more distant from him.

While brushing off their classmates, Kousei patted Yuuma on the shoulder.

“Let’s go. The cafeteria works, right?”

“…Yeah.”

Having decided to properly talk with Suzuka, he wasn’t planning to run away now.

Still, her transformation was so unexpected that he had no idea what to say to her.

They walked together through the hallway toward the cafeteria.

Suzuka was already drawing attention from everyone around them.

Unused to being the center of attention like this, she seemed unsure how to handle the situation. Whether from shyness or embarrassment, she was unusually quiet.

They left Riko, who had brought her own lunch, to secure seats while they bought their meal tickets.

As soon as Suzuka sat down with her kitsune udon, she let out a dramatic sigh.

“Everyone’s making such a fuss, it’s exhausting…”

“Haha, they’re treating you like some rare creature!”

“Shut up, Onii-chan!”

“Well, that’s because Suzu-chan got so cute~ Even Kawai-senpai seems speechless.”

“Yeah… I guess…”

Yuuma mumbled noncommittally while slurping his tempura soba.

Seemingly unconcerned with Yuuma’s state, Riko turned her phone screen toward Kousei.

“By the way, Kousei-senpai, don’t you think this outfit would be the best?”

“Yeah, let’s go with that one then.”

“That was quick!”

“Well~ When it comes down to it, I trust Riko’s judgment.”

“G-geez, saying things like that!”

Apparently, they were finalizing the discussion about what clothes Kousei should wear for his date.

This was Riko’s domain of expertise. Yuuma just ate his lunch, letting their conversation fade into background noise.

Suzuka seemed to be doing the same. After all, she’d been completely unfamiliar with fashion until just yesterday. Her essential nature probably hadn’t changed much. He watched the two of them while eating his kitsune udon.

Looking at her again, Suzuka had become so cute she was like a different person entirely.

Their eyes met for a moment. His heart fluttered, and he felt his cheeks grow warm.

As Suzuka started to say something, Yuuma quickly averted his gaze, not wanting her to realize what he was thinking.

Kousei and Riko’s conversation continued.

“Anyway! We won’t know until you actually try it on, so we’re going shopping after school!”

“Eh, do I have to?”

“There are things we won’t know until we see how it all comes together! Look, I’ll help adjust everything to make it perfect.”

“Well, if you put it that way…”

“And in return, you’ll come shopping with me too, right?”

“Ugh…”

“What’s with that ‘ugh’!?”

“Ah, haha…”

“Don’t try to dodge this!”

Their conversation continued as they made plans for after school.

Yuuma gazed absently at the two of them. All around, they were still drawing many stares.

It was natural, really. Not only was Suzuka the subject of today’s gossip, but both Riko and Kousei were quite striking in appearance themselves. Among them, Yuuma wondered how he looked, being the only one who hadn’t changed at all.

Just when it seemed like they’d finished discussing Kousei’s matters, the topic shifted to Suzuka.

“Oh, wouldn’t something like this suit Suzu-chan?”

“Eh? Isn’t that a bit too flashy?”

“Hmm~ I think it’d look good, but what do you think, Yuuma?”

“I…”

Looking at the screen, he saw an outfit that was both glamorous and cute, but definitely gyaru-style fashion, with exposed shoulders and thighs.

If asked whether it would suit her, he had to admit it probably would suit the current Suzuka. But when it came to his own personal taste, he couldn’t help but grimace.

Noticing Yuuma’s expression, Kousei flashed a mischievous grin and pulled out his own phone, teasing him.

“Yuuma likes this kind of style—a bit modest but still cute.”

“W-what, Kousei!?”

“Oh? So this is what Kawai-senpai likes. More girly than feminine… then what about this one?”

“Oh, doesn’t that look like the outfit of that erotic manga heroine you said you liked the other day?”

“H-hey!”

The outfit Riko showed was exactly Yuuma’s type.

As expected of his best friend—he knew his tastes well. Though perhaps he could have kept certain details to himself.

Adding fuel to the fire, Suzuka leaned in and whispered so only Yuuma could hear.

“Hey, what if I wore something like that?”

“!?”

He couldn’t help but imagine the current Suzuka in that outfit, with her seductive manner.

His face turned bright red, and he found himself unable to stand up for a while, forced to endure the knowing smiles from Kousei and Riko.

Seeing Yuuma’s reaction, Suzuka blinked in surprise for a moment before letting out a small giggle, as if pleased with the success of her teasing.

 

 

During afternoon classes, Yuuma thought about Suzuka until school ended.

In the end, he concluded that no amount of thinking would give him answers.

That’s why he needed to talk to her. No more hesitation.

Having made up his mind, when Kousei asked “Hey, about after school—” Yuuma quickly replied “I have something to do!” and hurried to the first-year classroom where Suzuka and the others were.

There he found Riko, who was just leaving the classroom looking somewhat fidgety.

“Abunaga, where’s Suzuka?”

“Suzu-chan? She said she had something to do and left right away.”

“Huh?”

Of all days, she wasn’t here. His thoughts froze for a moment at this unexpected development.

“Oh, Kawai-senpai, after this, with Kousei-senpai—”

“I see, thanks!”

“—Kawai-senpai!?”

Leaving Riko mid-sentence, Yuuma dashed out of the classroom and left the school building.

He searched all of Suzuka’s usual haunts—the bookstore, the variety shop, her favorite cream puff store—but couldn’t find her anywhere. He even stopped by the Kuramoto house just in case, but she hadn’t returned home yet.

He’d sent her a message asking “Where are you?” but she hadn’t even read it yet.

Could she be avoiding him, just as he had done until this morning?

The thought made his chest ache selfishly, and his feelings of wanting to see her but being unable to only grew stronger.

After exhausting all possible places she might be, he decided to head home and try to catch her tomorrow morning instead.

But when he got there, for some reason, his house door was unlocked.

“…Huh?”

A confused sound escaped his lips. His parents shouldn’t be home today.

And even if they were coming back, it wouldn’t be this early.

When Yuuma suspiciously opened the front door, he saw a familiar pair of loafers.

“…………!”

His heart started racing.

Trying to contain his rushing emotions at the possibility, he climbed the stairs to his room.

“Ah, welcome back, Yuu-kun. You’re pretty late.”

Sure enough, there was Suzuka. She greeted him casually as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

She had taken off her socks and tossed her jacket aside, and was now sprawled on Yuuma’s bed reading manga. Just like she always used to.

But unlike before, her shortened skirt was hiked up dangerously high, and Yuuma had to swallow hard at the sight of her dazzling thighs, nearly exposed all the way to the hip.

“How did you…”

“Oh, the key? You know, under that flowerpot that used to have carnations. The hiding spot hasn’t changed since forever. Though come to think of it, that’s pretty careless, isn’t it?”

Suzuka waved her hand casually, giggling as she spoke.

But Yuuma found himself at a loss for words as their eyes met.

The room was bathed in the same madder red as that time.

Trying to suppress the inappropriate feelings that threatened to well up, he let out a small “mm” and slowly set his bag down on the floor, taking a step forward.

“I’m sorry for avoiding you all this time.”

“You should be. I was actually pretty hurt.”

“Everything was just so shocking, I was confused and didn’t know what to say…”

“To be honest, I thought once we’d done it once, two or three times would be the same, and you’d immediately say you wanted to do it again.”

“That’s… actually because I probably would have said that, I kept my distance until I could cool my head.”

“……………………Huh?”

When Yuuma sheepishly revealed his true feelings, Suzuka let out an utterly dumbfounded sound.

They blinked at each other for a moment.

“…Ahaha, ahahahahahahahahaha!”

“S-Suzuka!?”

Eventually, Suzuka burst out laughing, holding her stomach as if she couldn’t contain herself. She came over to Yuuma and started playfully slapping his shoulders.

Caught off guard by her sudden action, Yuuma could only stand there flustered.

Wiping tears from the corners of her eyes with her index finger, Suzuka furrowed her brows slightly and whispered with a troubled expression.

“Ah, what a relief. You know, I used to be so plain and rough around the edges, right? I was worried that maybe you regretted that your first time was with a girl like that. That’s why I tried this makeover.”

“Your transformation really surprised me. If you weren’t Suzuka, I’d probably be too intimidated to even talk to you, you’ve become so beautiful. …Well, I’m still a bit nervous even now.”

When Yuuma glanced away, Suzuka blinked in surprise before a mischievous smile spread across her face. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed closer.

“Hmm~ Getting compliments from you like this is something new. I don’t hate it.”

“H-hey, Suzuka! Back up a little!”

“Why?”

“W-why, you ask…”

Her soft body pressed against him, her now-cute face, and the sweet scent rising from her—it all invaded his thoughts until his mind was filled with nothing but Suzuka.

Though Yuuma tried to scold her with a somewhat desperate voice, Suzuka paid no attention. If anything, she seemed to be in a good mood as she entangled her legs with his.

Her clearly provocative approach made his consciousness reach its boiling point in an instant. The small part of his mind that remained rational warned him that it was only a matter of time before he lost control, just like that time.

The only thing holding him back was the vivid memory still etched in his mind: Suzuka’s pained expression after he had attacked her on pure instinct, and her bitter words: “You beast, Yuu-kun. Even when I said it hurt…”

So Yuuma mustered all his willpower and grabbed Suzuka’s delicate shoulders, pleading with a strained voice.

“I told you why I was avoiding you. You’re way too attractive now. If this keeps up, I might lose control like last time.”

“That would be… troublesome. Last time, Yuu-kun really lost all composure and restraint.”

“Then…”

But even as Suzuka muttered these words with a troubled expression, she showed no signs of pulling away.

If anything, her conflicted expression only stirred him up more.

If she was doing this consciously, it would be quite the sin.

As Yuuma was utterly at a loss between instinct and reason, Suzuka suddenly took something from her skirt pocket and pressed it into his hand.

When he realized what it was—a condom—his eyes widened, and Suzuka whispered shyly.

“You know, I came here today to redo that day.”

“Suzuka…”

“I don’t want my first time with Yuu-kun to be just remembered as painful. Let’s overwrite it, okay?”

“But, I…”

He swallowed hard. Back then, he’d let his lust take over and done something terrible. Even if she talked about overwriting it, he might repeat the same mistake, and that thought filled him with intense resistance.

He was afraid of failing again.

“It’s okay, Yuu-kun.”

At that moment, Suzuka gave him a gentle, floating smile. It was as if she was embracing his fears, forgiving them.

Then, while his emotions remained turbulent, strangely enough, the core of his mind began to cool.

He made up his mind and accepted the condom.

“…Alright.”

Come to think of it, that time he hadn’t considered any of the various risks, hadn’t truly thought about Suzuka at all.

If she was giving him a chance to do it over, he should face it properly.

As Suzuka’s moistened eyes lowered, their lips met in a gentle kiss.

“Mm…”

“Chu… nn…”

With that modest kiss as a signal, Yuuma slowly pushed Suzuka down onto the bed, this time removing her clothes one piece at a time. Their bare skin pressed directly together.

Yuuma embraced her with the utmost care and gentleness—and Suzuka came completely undone.

 

 

The sun was sinking into the western sky.

In the now-darkened room, Suzuka lay on the bed with her face buried in Yuuma’s chest, grumbling her excuses with a hint of resentment.

“That wasn’t right… that wasn’t like me at all…”

“Yes, yes.”

“Next time I’ll be the one making you breathless!”

“Looking forward to it.”

“That composure of yours is so annoying…”

Despite it being after the act, there was absolutely no sweet atmosphere between them as they traded light banter. Their interactions remained unchanged, just like always. Having finally released all the worries they’d been carrying lately, both their minds and hearts felt unusually clear.

But of course, there were still things to worry about.

The thought escaped with a sigh before he could stop it.

“…What are we going to do?”

“Hm? About what?”

“Well, about what we just did.”

“Yeah… we really did it, huh?”

This time, he had deliberately chosen to become physically intimate with Suzuka.

It had felt incredibly good. The pleasure had been even more intense than last time, branded into both his body and mind. He could already tell he might become addicted to it.

And yet, his perception of Suzuka hadn’t changed.

She was still the same girl he’d known forever, someone he could talk to about anything without reservations.

Suzuka probably felt the same way.

Neither of them had any romantic feelings for each other.

But they both wanted to do it again.

It was a corrupt, unhealthy, and dishonest relationship.

“So…”

“So?”

“What should we do from here on out?”

“Well, I have absolutely no intention of saying we should date or anything. I don’t even care about being in a relationship, and I can’t imagine myself being lovey-dovey with anyone, even if it wasn’t Yuu-kun.”

“Surprisingly, I completely agree with you on that.”

They exchanged troubled looks.

They were both well aware that what they were doing fell outside the bounds of proper behavior, both socially and ethically.

Friends with benefits might be the closest term, but somehow this felt different from that too.

Normally, they should probably set some kind of boundaries.

But neither of them had any intention of doing so.

As Yuuma frowned at this thought, Suzuka suddenly rested her head on his shoulder and asked a question.

“By the way, Yuu-kun. You mentioned before that you got rejected, but why did you like that girl?”

“That… I just thought she might be interested in me, that we might be able to date. I didn’t even know her that well. With such impure motives, if you asked me if I really liked her, I honestly couldn’t say I did. I was just caught up in the temptation—just being led around by desire. …Is that bad?”

“Nuh-uh, I get it. I mean, when I see pictures of hot guys with toned bodies in magazines, I can’t help but stare, and I eagerly read any romantic features too. So if some good-looking guy sweet-talked me and earnestly said he liked me, I’d probably get caught up in the moment and do it too.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, that’s just how it is. Isn’t it natural to want to do that kind of thing with cute girls or handsome guys? I think at our age, love is basically just us being led around by desire. It clouds our judgment.”

“That’s a bold statement, but yeah, you’re right.”

“That’s exactly what happened to you recently, right?”

“…Shut up.”

When he poked her side in response to her teasing giggle, she let out a strange “Eep!?” and glared at him… then let out an exaggerated sigh and muttered self-deprecatingly.

“You know, I don’t really understand love. But I don’t want to be controlled by desire. Don’t you feel the same way?”

“Well… yeah.”

“So let’s form an alliance.”

“An alliance? You mean like a mutual cooperation to not let desire dictate our love lives?”

“Ooh, that sounds cool. Yeah, something like that. I think we could make it work. As for how long… well, it’s cliché, but how about until either of us finds someone we truly like, beyond just physical attraction!”

“Got it. Though this setup sounds like something straight out of an erotic manga.”

“Ahaha, maybe it does!”

Suzuka held out her pinky as she laughed, and Yuuma linked his with hers, giving a wry smile.

Taking this as his agreement, Suzuka showed a mischievous smile and brought her lips close to his ear to whisper.

“But we can’t tell Onii-chan or Ri-chan about this relationship.”

“Given what it is, I’m scared to think what would happen if they found out.”

“Hehe, then it’ll be our little secret for now.”

They made their new promise, one that suited them both but couldn’t be shared with others.

But Yuuma and Suzuka laughed together as if they’d just come up with another of their usual pranks.