43 - Speaking Like a Couple

RAW

The dojo echoed with enthusiastic shouts.

The squeak of bare feet against the wooden floor, the deep thud of kicks and punches being absorbed, and the sharp slapping sound all blended together.

Haruto aimed a low kick at his sparring partner, Ishikura.

Ishikura deftly dodged by pulling back one leg and then quickly stepping forward, alternating his fists in rapid succession, aiming for Haruto’s chest.

Haruto blocked the sharp punches by swatting them away with his arm. But suddenly, from outside his field of vision, Ishikura’s kick was closing in on Haruto’s temple.

Normally, Haruto would have reacted swiftly to a high kick, dodging it with ease by leaning back. But today, he couldn’t focus on the match, and as a result, he reacted too late, having to raise his arm in defense.

With a dull thud, Ishikura’s heavy kick struck Haruto’s arm.

Even for Haruto, the delayed one-armed block wasn’t enough, causing him to stagger slightly before regaining his balance.

“Hey, Haruto, you’re moving a little slow today, aren’t you?” Ishikura asked, still in the follow-through of his high kick.

“Sorry, Kaz-senpai. My mind was wandering a bit,” Haruto replied, shaking his arm lightly where he had taken the hit, offering a sheepish smile.

“You’ll get hurt if you keep spacing out like that.”

“Right. I’ll focus,” Haruto exhaled sharply, regaining his composure.

Seeing Haruto’s renewed intensity, Ishikura also reset his stance, and they resumed their sparring.

After sweating it out with Ishikura, Haruto sat on the floor of the dojo to stretch and cool down. Ishikura came over, wiping the sweat from his neck with a towel.

“Haruto, you got something on your mind?” Ishikura asked casually as he sat down next to Haruto.

Both of them were instructors at this dojo, and their skills were evenly matched. Normally, their sparring sessions were intense, with both offense and defense switching rapidly. But today, Haruto had mostly been on the defensive.

“During our match, you mentioned something about having a lot on your mind.”

“Yeah, well… I wouldn’t say it’s a problem exactly…” Haruto trailed off as he closed his legs from stretching, seeming hesitant.

“What do you do if you feel like you’re going to lose control of your emotions with a girl you really care about?” Haruto asked.

“Huh? What kind of question is that?” Ishikura replied, caught off guard by Haruto’s unexpected question.

“Are we talking about romance here?”

“Uh… maybe? I guess?” Haruto said, unsure.

“Well, don’t ask me, I have no clue,” Ishikura said, sounding a bit exasperated.

Suddenly, from behind Ishikura, Shizuku appeared out of nowhere.

“What’s this? A boys' heart-to-heart?” she teased.

“Whoa! Shizuku! Don’t sneak up on people like that! You nearly gave me a heart attack!” Ishikura shouted as he spun around.

Shizuku gazed at Ishikura with her typical deadpan expression.

“Kaz-senpai, this was your chance to say, ‘Don’t stand behind me, or you’ll get hurt,’ with a wicked smile. What a waste.”

“Who said anything about a wicked smile? And what do you mean, a waste? That doesn’t even make sense!”

“It was a chance to boost your ‘Kazuaki Ishikura infamy index.’ Anyway, Haru-senpai, have you found someone you like?” Shizuku asked, completely brushing off Ishikura's protest as she fixed her gaze on Haruto.

“Ah… no…” Haruto muttered, scratching his head as he avoided Shizuku’s eyes.

Ignoring him, Shizuku stepped closer, insisting, “Haru-senpai, if this is about romance, I can help way more than Kaz-senpai, like by a million times.”

“That's going too far, don’t you think?”

“Can you hold a conversation with a girl for more than three minutes without making her cry?” Shizuku asked without missing a beat.

“I’m talking to you right now, aren’t I?”

“You don’t count, Kaz-senpai. I know you’re secretly a softie.”

Ishikura, looking slightly drained, muttered, “A softie? Me?”

“So, who’s the girl, Haru-senpai? Is it me? Okay, fine, I’ll go out with you.”

“Thanks, Shizuku. I’ll take you up on that advice another time,” Haruto said with a small laugh, brushing off Shizuku’s playful banter.

“I better head home now. See you,” Haruto said, wrapping up his stretching and heading to the locker room to change.

“Hey, Shizuku, do you think he’s actually fallen for someone?” Ishikura asked.

“Who knows… but if Haru-senpai gets a girlfriend, I think that would be a good thing,” she whispered softly.

Ishikura glanced at her. However, her face remained as unreadable as ever.

―…―…―…―…―…―…―…―

Haruto felt a slight sweat forming in his palms as he followed Ayaka up the stairs.

"This is my room," Ayaka said, opening the door.

"...Excuse me," Haruto said lightly bowing his head before stepping into Ayaka's room.

This was the room of the "idol of the academy," known for being the cutest girl in Haruto's school.

The room was quite ordinary for a girl’s room.

If anything, it was a bit more spacious than Haruto's, and it featured a bookshelf crammed with manga and novels against the wall.

"It's a beautiful and very nice room," he complimented.

"Hehe, thank you. I'll get some drinks. Please sit on that cushion and wait," Ayaka said before stepping out of the room.

Left alone in the room, Haruto nervously glanced around.

It was enough to make him tense, just being in the room of a girl from his class. On top of that, with his feelings for Ayaka and their pretend relationship, he kept fidgeting on the cushion.

Every breath brought a faint, pleasant scent that quickened his heartbeat.

The room was filled with the same fragrance that occasionally wafted from Ayaka's hair, and Haruto's gaze wandered restlessly around her room.

Then, he suddenly focused on the cushion he was sitting on. Next to it was another cushion.

They were placed almost without a gap between them.

In front of him was a table perfect for studying.

The only other places to sit in this room were the bed or the chair at the study desk.

Haruto glanced at the neighboring cushion once more, then gently pushed it aside to create some space.

Just then, Ayaka returned with a tray, carrying drinks and cups.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Haruto. Is barley tea okay?"

"Ah, yes. Thank you very much," he replied.

Ayaka placed the tray on the table in front of Haruto and naturally sat down on the cushion beside him.

As she did, she perfectly closed the gap that Haruto had just created.

"......"

"......"

Haruto and Ayaka sat close together, their shoulders touching.

"Um... I'm going to drink the tea now," Haruto said.

"Y-yeah. Go ahead," Ayaka replied.

As Haruto reached out for the cup on the table, he accidentally brushed against Ayaka and felt his heart race a bit faster.

He intended to take just a sip, but before he knew it, he had downed more than half the cup of barley tea in one go.

"Were you really thirsty? Do you want a refill?" Ayaka asked.

"No, I’m fine," Haruto replied, waving his hand in refusal.

After a brief moment of silence, Ayaka spoke up.

"So, um... should we start practicing being a couple?"

With a slight blush on her cheeks, Ayaka’s words caught Haruto off guard.

"Yes... uh, where should we start?" he asked, recalling their previous conversation about skinship.

"Well, first, I’d like you to change the way you talk," Ayaka said.

"Change the way I talk? What do you mean?" Haruto asked, tilting his head slightly.

Ayaka looked at him and said, "Your polite way of speaking makes it feel a bit distant... lonely, even."

"You want me to speak more casually?" he clarified.

"Yeah. After all, before we act as lovers, we’re classmates, so I want you to talk to me more normally," she explained.

"I see..." Haruto nodded thoughtfully, placing a hand on his chin.

Their relationship had started with him being a customer and her being a staff member for a housekeeping service, so it had naturally led to him speaking politely to Ayaka.

However, as she pointed out, this formality might create an unnecessary distance between them.

"Then should I interact with you as if we’re just friends?" he suggested.

"Uh... yeah..." Ayaka replied, somewhat hesitantly.

"Wait, was that not right?" he asked, sensing her unease.

"No, it’s not wrong, but... you know, when we’re pretending to be a couple, it means I’ll belong to you, Haruto," she explained with a bit of heat in her voice.

"Is that... well, I suppose that’s true?" he responded vaguely.

Hearing her words, Haruto felt a bit uncertain.

Ayaka continued, speaking with a bit more confidence, "So, instead of just talking like friends, I’d like you to be more... assertive? A little strong-willed and slightly pushy might make it feel more real."

"Is that... your preference, Ayaka?" he asked, somewhat taken aback by her request.

As her face turned red, Ayaka stammered, "W-well, it's not just my preference! Generally speaking, that’s how affectionate couples interact!"

"Is that so...?" Haruto responded, trying to hide his surprise.

He felt that her suggestion might not be entirely common. Still, he hesitated to refuse her request.

This practice of pretending to be lovers was a kindness Ayaka was extending to him.

If he turned her down now, it might seem like he was disregarding her good intentions.

As he was pondering this, Ayaka looked at him with a hint of anxiety and asked, "Is that a no? If you don’t want to, I won’t force you..."

"No, it’s not that. Um, what kind of assertive way of speaking do you mean?" he asked.

As he spoke, Ayaka's anxious expression transformed into one of excitement.

"Well! For example, you could say something like, 'Come closer' in a bit of a gruff tone while putting your arm around me, or say, 'This is mine' when introducing me to someone else..."

"Wait! That sounds a bit too sudden and high in difficulty... it’s also very different from my character..."

"Really?" she asked, tilting her head.

"I’m starting to worry about how you see me, Ayaka-san..."

"When it’s just the two of us, you should call me by my first name," Ayaka pointed her finger at him as if scolding him.

"Ah... that’s true," he admitted.

"Then how about we start with calling me 'Hey, Ayaka'?" she suggested, as if it were already decided that he would speak assertively.

"Are we really doing this?" he asked.

"Yeah!" she replied eagerly.

With Ayaka’s bright eyes looking at him in anticipation, Haruto found himself missing his chance to refuse and hesitantly said, "…Hey, Ayaka."

His tone was a bit rushed, and Ayaka responded with a thoughtful "Hmm..."

"I think I’d like a more assertive tone," she said.

"…Hey, Ayaka," he tried again.

"A little more," she encouraged.

"Hey, Ayaka," he repeated.

"Just a bit more," she urged.

"Hey! Ayaka!" he exclaimed.

"…That’s good," she said, blushing and smiling with satisfaction.

Meanwhile, Haruto wore a tired expression.

"Um, how about we practice that assertive tone later? Shouldn't we start with a casual way of speaking among friends?"

"But you were cool just now, Haruto!" she insisted.

"...No, let’s start with a friendly tone, please," he said, shaking his head.

Though a part of him was swayed by her compliment, he felt he needed to think of the future and refused again.

With a deep bow, he pleaded, and Ayaka reluctantly accepted his request, albeit a bit disappointed.

"Okay. So, let’s practice the assertive tone little by little, and until then, we’ll stick to the friendly way of speaking," she agreed.

While Haruto wished for the assertive tone to be dropped altogether, it seemed Ayaka was not willing to give up that easily.

He was left with a sense of unease about the "practice of being a couple" that was about to begin.