Chapter 225: Skinship with a Slave
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 225: Skinship with a Slave
-Here... It's standing up right here...! Please...!
The heroine says in a coquettish tone, her hand slyly reaching for the male protagonist's lower body.
Watching the seemingly desperate heroine, Renka shifted in her seat and cleared her throat.
“Ahem...”
It's funny how she does that whenever a suggestive scene comes on.
She was even completely engrossed in the movie. It seemed the story was to her liking.
I glanced at Renka, who was gulping and couldn't take her eyes off the screen, then reached for the popcorn bucket she was holding.
Rustle.
“Eek...!?”
For some reason, Renka jumped in surprise.
It didn't seem like she was reacting to the sound of me rummaging through the popcorn...
I guess she noticed how close I was.
Popping some popcorn into my mouth, I asked.
“What is it?”
“...You could have just said you wanted some popcorn...”
“I did, several times. You didn't hear me because you were so focused on the movie.”
“O-Oh, really...? But when did you eat so much of it?”
“You're the one who ate it, Captain. I haven't had a single piece.”
“I-I did...?”
“I'm glad you're enjoying it so much you didn't even notice.”
Renka suddenly smacked her lips.
She was checking to see if the aftertaste of caramel was still in her mouth.
Realizing I was telling the truth, she gave an embarrassed cough and said.
“Just shut up and watch the movie.”
“Should I hold the popcorn?”
“So you can eat the rest of it?”
“I was just offering because you looked uncomfortable. You're so mean.”
“...Just move your head...”
“Why, what's wrong now?”
“It's too close...”
“Don't worry about the little things. I'm fine with it.”
“W-What are you talking about...! I'm the one who's not fine with it, that's why I'm saying something...! I don't care whether you're fine with it or not...!”
“If you don't care, then this should be fine too.”
“That's not what I meant...! Ugh... Never mind, forget it.”
Did she figure she'd just get more pissed off if we kept talking?
Shaking her head, Renka turned her attention back to the screen.
While we were bickering, the heroine was coming on to the male protagonist even more aggressively.
The male protagonist, on the other hand, looked troubled and was trying to push her away.
-Hey... wait a minute. I'm not ready...
-Why are you being shy? We did it yesterday...
-I was black-out drunk then...
-Then should we drink like we did yesterday?
-Why are you doing this to me...
-I told you. I have an illness where I can't control my sexual desire. Let's just do it one more time.
-This is crazy... Fine. Let's have a drink first. But this is the last time.
-Okay, thank you.
The movie's plot seemed to be spiraling into a soap opera.
As I watched the movie, trying to manage my waning interest, I heard Renka let out a long breath through her nose.
Was she getting into character and getting excited?
If so, it seems Renka's the one with the hipster tendency, not me.
* * *
Around the midpoint of the movie, the heroine delivered a peculiar line.
-Um... I'm sorry, but your face is too close... Could you back up a little...?
Her face, once filled with desire, was gone, replaced by a woman acting like a lady in front of the man she likes.
The male protagonist gazed at her deeply and said.
-Should we... kiss?
-...Yes.
Coincidentally, a scene similar to when Renka told me to move my head was playing out in the movie.
Renka must have had the same thought, as she kept glancing my way.
I couldn't possibly pass up a chance to mess with her, could I?
With that thought, I gave her a mischievous smile and stared at her intently.
Then, in the low, deep tone she likes, I mimicked the male protagonist's line.
“Should we... kiss?”
“Nghh!?”
As if she never expected me to actually repeat the line, Renka had an extremely strong reaction.
Her gasp was so loud that the few other people in the theater briefly glanced our way.
Realizing she'd caused a disturbance, Renka shrank in her seat and lowered her voice.
“Y-You crazy bastard...! Die...!”
“So, no kiss?”
“Why the hell do you sound so disappointed...! No...!”
“‘The hell’? What kind of language is that...”
Did she think the curse she'd just spat out was too vulgar?
Biting her lower lip, she softened her tone a little.
“S-Sorry about that, but you keep making me curse...”
“You could just get angry instead... Do you normally swear that much?”
“I almost never do...! This is all your fault...”
“You're going to make a habit of it at this rate.”
Tsking and shaking my head, I ate some of the popcorn from the nearly empty bucket.
Then, I gestured with my chin toward the coffee resting on the outer armrest, next to Renka who was taking deep breaths as if to calm herself.
“Let me have a sip of your coffee.”
“Why...? No. You have your own coke.”
“Hurry up.”
“...Hah... Seriously, how can someone be so selfish...”
Muttering a complaint, Renka flipped the straw around and offered the coffee to me.
I'm surprised. I thought she'd take the plastic lid off to give it to me.
I guess just flipping the straw is acceptable to her?
After I took a sip of the coffee and nodded, she carefully pinched the straw with her thumb and index finger—avoiding the part my lips had touched—and flipped it back around.
Watching her silently, I was about to tease her about the indirect kiss, but decided against it.
I just pulled a big prank on her. Better hold back for now.
I picked up a few unpopped kernels from the bottom of the bucket, tossed them into my mouth, and started crunching on them loudly.
Renka gave me a pathetic look and whispered.
“You're going to break all your teeth doing that.”
“They're strong enough, I'll be fine.”
“That's just being reckless. Those are hard kernels. You could chip a tooth chewing on them like that.”
“Are you cursing me?”
“I'm trying to worry about you, and this is how you react...”
“I'm kidding. I'll be careful.”
“...Whatever.”
Acting prickly as usual, Renka turned her eyes back to the screen.
It was too dark to see clearly, but I was sure her face was bright red.
I could guarantee it. Her voice had been trembling when she was worrying about me just now.
Inside the theater, a warm BGM filled the air.
Barely watching the scene where the protagonists shared an innocent kiss under a tree with fallen leaves, I listened to Renka clearing her throat and felt the corners of my mouth lift into a smile.
* * *
“Honestly, that makes no sense. What kind of incurable disease makes you feel horny every day, every hour?”
Renka said as we left the theater and headed for the elevator.
She was so engrossed earlier, and now she's criticizing it... She's unbelievably nonchalant.
I tossed the popcorn bucket, now containing only kernels, into the trash and said.
“Isn't hypersexuality a thing?”
“That's not a constant feeling of sexual desire. And it's treatable.”
“Just think of it as artistic license. Don't be so coy after enjoying it so much...”
“It was fun. I'm just saying it would have been better if they'd polished the premise a little more.”
“What score would you give it?”
“By my standards?”
“Yep. Out of ten.”
“Hmm... I'd say about a 7.”
“That's a generous score for someone as picky as you, Captain.”
Renka scoffed at my words.
“Picky? What are you talking about... What score were you expecting from me?”
“A 5?”
“And why is that?”
“Because you just criticized the premise. But you seemed to enjoy the movie itself, so I thought a 5 would be appropriate.”
“That's fair. But there are other factors, like the actors' performances...”
“The sex scenes were good.”
“N-Not that kind of performance, I meant their acting as the characters...! You ignorant brute!”
Renka scolded me, her face instantly turning red.
It seemed the explicit word had startled her.
“Isn't that part of acting as the character?”
“No... I mean... the overall... yes, the overall performance is what I was talking about...! And could you please use a softer word...! Don't be so blunt...!”
“How do I soften it?”
“There are nice expressions like ‘love scene,’ or more common ones like ‘bed scene’...!”
“What can I do? Like you said, Captain, I'm a bit ignorant and lack expressive vocabulary.”
“Are you being sarcastic with me right now?”
“If that's how you heard it, then I guess I am.”
“Stop playing with words, will you? It's annoying.”
I looked at Renka, who was acting coy with her arms crossed, and took a large step toward her without a word.
Renka flinched and took a step back, matching my stride.
“W-What are you doing...? Get away from me...?”
Her reaction is more intense than usual.
I guess she's still emotionally flustered from the kiss joke earlier.
Watching Renka back away as if she'd seen a ghost until her back was against the hallway wall, I approached until I was right in front of her and put on a serious expression.
“Captain.”
“...What...!”
“What's with you lately?”
“What do you mean...!”
“Why are you acting up so much?”
“A-Acting up...? Is that really something you should be saying to me...?”
“It's not something you can't say between close friends, is it?”
“You keep trying to play it cool and brush things off, but we are not close at all...”
Renka stopped mid-sentence and pressed her lips together.
She even widened her eyes.
It was because I had moved my face even closer to hers, which was already near.
“What are you doing...! Hey...! What do you think you're doing...?”
Renka urgently questioned my intentions.
She seemed to think I was going to press forward and smash my lips against hers.
I gave her a sly grin and,
“What are you grinning at...”
just as Renka was about to grit her teeth and lash out at me, I gently touched my forehead to hers.
A light tap, and I could feel Renka's body heat.
Feeling that warmth through my forehead, I pulled away.
The old Renka would have probably slapped me for doing something so sudden.
But not anymore. She just stood there frozen, her mouth agape at my unexpected action.
Thinking her dazed expression was cute and pretty, I said.
“Let's go.”