I really don't want to have a girlfriend.

She couldn't help but turn her head back, and the next second, her eyes widened in astonishment.

"Well!"

Her pink lips, which weren't covered by a mask, were squeezed together, and she unconsciously let out a soft, panting moan.

He leaned half his body onto the bed, his hot, heavy lips accurately capturing her small lips, forcefully stealing her breath.

The air conditioner showed no change in temperature, but the room seemed to be gradually warming up, with intertwined heat currents flowing between the two of them.

Natsukawa Masaki thought he wanted to feed her porridge mouth-to-mouth.

Unexpectedly, after only a few seconds of such a forceful kiss, Yuu Tenkuji sat back down and casually picked up the spoon from his bowl.

"Come on, have some porridge."

"..."

Seeing her face flushed and her wide eyes staring blankly at him, Tenkuji Yu realized something and said with a chuckle, "You think I would feed you with my mouth? That's too unhygienic. I personally can't accept this kind of pretense."

Natsukawa Masuzu snapped out of her daze, reflexively covering her mouth before quickly putting it down, and gave a nonchalant snort: "I never said I wanted you to say that. By the way, what's with this sudden kiss? Are you in such a hurry to push me down? Trying to recreate the scene of Avdol and Joseph's intimate encounter?"

Tenkuji Yu didn't speak, but just stared at her with a smile, holding out a spoon in front of her, which remained motionless in mid-air.

So Natsukawa Masuzu knew that if she continued to act willfully, she would probably be subjected to something even worse than a forced kiss.

...Although she was somewhat expectant—no, curious—about how she would be treated, she obediently lowered her head to avoid things going in the opposite direction of her expectations, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear with her fingers and gently opening her glistening, soft lips.

"slim Shady."

She sucked on the porridge with terrible movements, as if a small animal were drinking water.

Her silver hair swayed slightly as she cleaned the rice residue off the spoon, swallowed it with a gurgling sound, and then Natsukawa Masaki parted her red lips, removed the spoon, and looked up with moist, hazy eyes, her face flushed as she took a few breaths.

There were clear water stains on the spoon and the corners of her mouth, and her cherry-pink lips looked like the sweetest candy.

Even with Tenkuji Yu's composure, she almost couldn't resist putting down the clay pot and leaving her mark on it.

"It's so...delicious."

That's right, that's just a satisfied expression that comes from eating delicious food. There is absolutely nothing above that would not pass the review!

"Of course my cooking is delicious. Can I eat the rest myself?"

“Hmm…” Natsukawa Masaki frowned and hesitated for a moment, but finally took the casserole from his hands.

Feeding someone bite by bite can be unpleasant, as it can erode their appetite. It can also lead to food dripping onto the bed or onto their mouth, requiring time to clean up afterwards.

It's a bit of a pity, but... well, who can blame him for making such delicious porridge?

"I'm starting..."

After whispering the words, Natsukawa Masaki finished the entire bowl of porridge in a whirlwind of elegant yet swift movements.

Chapter 72 The shortest shortcut is the long way around.

Slurp slurp, am am am.

After a satisfied sigh.

"What do we do now?"

Leaning lazily against the headboard, her lower body covered by a quilt, the pale-faced, silver-haired beauty tilted her head to look at him, a gentle smile playing on her lips.

"What a boy and girl can do when they're alone in a room... I probably don't need to say more, right?"

...If you just keep quiet and don't say anything, the scene before you is as serene and beautiful as autumn leaves.

Yuu Tenkuji felt regretful about this.

"Do you still want to fight a duel that brings smiles? Now go to sleep! If you're hungry, heat up some porridge and eat it. You should feel better tomorrow."

He washed the dishes she had used and left a day's worth of chiffon porridge in the refrigerator; he had done everything he could.

There's no point in staying any longer; going home early to play games with my sister is the right thing to do.

"Leaving your sick girlfriend alone in a cold and desolate house, yet leaving her a heartwarming bowl of porridge... I really don't know whether to call you thoughtful or heartless."

Looking resentfully at him as he slung his backpack over his shoulder and prepared to leave, Natsukawa Masaki let out a heavy sigh.

Nevertheless, recalling the taste of that bowl of porridge, even though her stomach was already slightly bulging, she couldn't help but lick her lips, still feeling a little unsatisfied.

It's just a plain white porridge, but it contains seven or eight kinds of nutritious and complementary ingredients. The complex flavors are perfectly blended in the waltz of water and rice. The moment the warm "snowball" falls into your stomach, it's as if the snow-covered earth has suddenly melted, and the colorful spring has arrived in every corner of your taste buds.

With his culinary skills alone, I bet quite a few girls would be drawn to him.

Winning someone's stomach is equivalent to winning their heart; this applies to both men and women.

"Unless you can give me a reason to stay, I can't stay here and disturb your rest."

Without showing any sign of being in a hurry to leave, Tenkuji Yu leaned against the door with his arms crossed, leisurely watching her as she fell into deep thought.

After a long pause, Natsukawa Masaki tentatively asked, "Giving you a chance to attack me?"

"Very well, I'm leaving."

"Wait!" She quickly called out to him as he turned to leave, a light sheen of sweat on her fair forehead, her expression turning serious. "I was just joking earlier, this is my serious answer... If you stay here, you can enjoy the perks of a beautiful girl's sickly appearance!"

Yuu Tenkuji rolled her eyes: "We've seen enough."

"what?"

He didn't speak, but simply pointed to his chest.

Then Natsukawa Masaki looked down and found that the top two buttons of her pajamas had been undone, revealing her complete collarbone and cleavage that was not bound by a bra.

As soon as you bend over, your true form is basically revealed.

Her eyes widened and her pupils shrank. After a few seconds of petrified silence on the bed, she grabbed her collar and shoved herself under the covers like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.

After an unknown amount of time, a faint voice finally came from under the quilt.

"...You...saw it?"

The tone of her voice, filled with shame and indignation, made Tenkuji Yu raise an eyebrow in surprise. She then asked with great interest, "What's wrong? Are you shy? You were just saying you'd give me perks and that you didn't mind making a move on me, but now you're shy about this little wardrobe malfunction?"

"..."

Seemingly gritting her teeth and suppressing her emotions, she trembled slightly under the quilt.

Seeing this, Tenkuji Yu's face lit up with even more pleasure, and she couldn't help but smile kindly as she said, "That's strange. Who was that person who showed me their bare chest in the hallway and told me not to tell anyone? Was it this little girl who was so shy about hiding under the covers with her upper body bare? Or..."

With a thud, she interrupted him by slamming the bed.

"Of course I was joking! Besides, I was wearing underwear that day, I wasn't going commando!"

Her head popped out from under the covers, her face flushed red. Xia Chuanzhen glared at him angrily: "You ruthlessly trampled on a girl's dignity, you idiot, donkey, big dummy, street thug, and magical virgin who's been a virgin for thirty years!"

"Virginity and virginity (CherryBoy) are the same thing!"

"No complaining allowed! I'm really angry right now, I need to rub against you to calm down!"

"That means he wasn't angry at all..."

Without a trace of a joke on his face, Natsukawa Masaki's eyes were frosty as he spoke sharply:

"If you can't even do that, then stay with me until I fall asleep!"

"..."

After those words landed heavily, Tenkuji Yuzai finally realized what was happening and couldn't help but chuckle.

"When you asked me to be your shield, it was like that... You always had to take such a long and complicated route when all you had to do was be honest."

The fierce and cold expression vanished instantly. As if she had used up all her strength, Natsukawa Masaki softly lay back on the pillow, chuckling smugly.

"Thank you for the compliment. 'The shortest shortcut is the longest route'—that's one of the core ideas of JOJO, you could even call it a golden spirit, right? There's nothing wrong with that, is there?"

"I didn't say it was bad."

Yuu Tenkuji closed the door, sat back down on her bed, and placed her bag on the floor.

"But with me, if you just say 'Stay with me,' I'll stay with you unless I absolutely have to go back."

He smiled casually: "You shouldn't have forgotten what we agreed on yesterday, right?"

“Of course, this is our deal,” Natsukawa Masaki said softly.

She lowered her eyes slightly, looking at his large hand resting on his knee, and slowly extended an index finger from under the quilt, hooking it with his index finger.

The warm yet rough texture is like a thread connecting a rootless duckweed, always bringing a great sense of security.

"You give me what I need, and I give myself to you... a bond stronger than so-called love, but it's just about each of us getting what we need."

"Are you going to complain?" Tenkuji Yu asked.

"How could that be?"

With a self-deprecating laugh, Natsukawa Masaki raised his eyes, the azure water reflecting his image on the lake's surface.

"I'm a troublesome woman who can't even speak frankly and always takes the long way around."

"Unable to trust others because I lie, I assume others lie too... Living such a hypocritical life, I've lost the ability to trust, constantly doubting, denying, and despising them."

Like a child abandoned on the platform, unable to catch a ride home, she smiled with loneliness and helplessness.

"Having finally found a trustworthy 'bond,' how could one bear to complain?"

"...That's true."

Tenkuji Yu grasped her hand in return, not with much force, but simply by gently enveloping it.

She closed her eyes, her cheek resting obediently against his palm, as if she were about to fall asleep peacefully.

Silence fell over the surroundings, so quiet that even the sound of birds flapping their wings could be heard, and tenderness flowed through their hearts like a gentle stream.

……rub.

...rub.

...scratching, scraping, scraping.

"I said, it's really cold."

Tenkuji Yu spoke expressionlessly.

"What is it, Ayu?"