Chapter 238: Midwinter Heat #2
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 238: Midwinter Heat #2
“Hey.”
“Yeah.”
“Greet me properly.”
“...Hello.”
“There you go. Good girl.”
“Stop treating me like a dog, will you?”
“Okay.”
After my usual bickering with Renka, I headed to the cafe with her.
As soon as we arrived, Renka clocked in with her attendance card and went into the changing room to get changed.
I followed her in naturally, and just as she opened her mouth to curse me out, I pulled out a piece of candy.
“I brought you candy today.”
Renka froze, then took half a step back.
It looked like she was determined not to eat it this time... but Renka was still Renka.
I strode toward her as she put on her pitiful show of defiance.
“Say ‘ah.’”
“N-No... You’re going to do something weird...”
“What weird thing?”
“Like yesterday...”
“I won’t.”
“I don’t believe you...”
“Then don’t. Say ‘ah.’”
“I won’t...!”
“Do it.”
“You’re speaking informally... Gulp!”
Renka, who had been about to snap at me, swallowed hard.
It was because I had pressed the candy against her lips.
She kept her mouth firmly shut, her eyes full of defiance, but eventually, just like last time, she was half-forced to open her mouth and accept the candy I pushed inside.
She only listens when I do this.
I wonder when she’ll finally open her mouth on her own and say, ‘Please give me candy...!’ It’s going to be a long road.
Clicking my tongue, I gently caressed the cheek of Renka, who was now rolling the candy around in her mouth.
She recoiled as if shocked, glaring at me with fierce eyes.
“You bastard...! You said you wouldn’t do anything weird...!”
“Is this something weird?”
“Of course it is...! A psychopath like you might not think so, but...! Any normal person would obviously think this is weird...!”
A psychopath... That’s a bit harsh.
This is exactly why I feel the need to increase the intensity of her education.
“Is that so? Then let’s just say I felt like doing it.”
“Y-You lunatic...!”
By now, Renka’s insults sound like words of gratitude.
“You cleared your schedule, right?”
I nonchalantly changed the subject. Renka mumbled something before answering reluctantly.
“...I cleared it.”
“Good girl.”
“Did you book the movie tickets?”
“Yes.”
“What movie is it...? Is it a weird adult movie like last time...?”
“It’s not like that. I picked something normal this time.”
“Really...? I find that hard to believe...”
“Stop being so suspicious.”
“I can’t help it, given your track record.”
“Just get changed and come out.”
“Then get out.”
I agreed and obediently left the changing room. When Renka came out in her uniform, I gave her a bright smile.
“What are you smiling about...?”
She keeps talking back. We’ll see if she can keep that up tonight.
I let her defiance slide with a dry laugh and went into the changing room to get changed myself.
* * *
“Are you sure this is a normal movie...?”
That evening, at a movie theater downtown, Renka asked this after checking the tickets I’d booked and the poster on the wall.
I had just taken a number at the snack bar and was waiting for it to be called. I feigned ignorance and asked back, “Why?”
“Well... the poster is just... It’s a romance movie, so why is the poster of them slapping each other’s cheeks...?”
“Maybe it’s a story where they don’t get along at first and slowly open up to each other.”
“But the male and female leads have some pretty serious wounds on their faces for that to be the case...”
“I guess they were like cats and dogs, to the point of getting into fistfights.”
“That’s not exactly normal.”
“That’s why it’s a movie. It’s not just a romance, it’s also a comedy, so I think it’s perfectly plausible.”
“You think so...?”
She studied the poster with a skeptical look before slowly nodding her head.
“Well... I guess that could be true.”
“See? You said the regular popcorn here sucks, right? I’ll get caramel, then?”
“Okay.”
“And to drink?”
“Sugar bubble tea.”
“Feels like you’ve been eating a lot of sweets lately.”
“It’s because you’re stressing me out.”
“My apologies.”
“I know you’re not sorry at all. Stop being so fake.”
“But I am sorry?”
“No, you’re not.”
We got our popcorn and drinks, and soon enough, it was time for the movie to start.
We entered the theater together and sat in our pre-booked seats.
They were in the furthest corner of an already empty theater.
“Do you always have to sit in places like this? I know it’s your preference, but... it’s so gloomy.”
So you remembered that I prefer these seats.
As a reward, I should buy her a plug with a cat tail.
“If you don’t like it, you can go sit in the middle.”
“You want me to go?”
“Go on, try it.”
“Why do you say it like you’re doing me a favor when you’re just going to threaten me like that?”
“Why are you so prickly today?”
“You’re the one making me prickly.”
“Blaming me again?”
“I’m not blaming you, I’m just stating a fact.”
Acting coy, Renka looked around the theater and tilted her head.
“What the...? Are the reviews for this movie bad or something?”
“Why do you say that?”
“It’s almost showtime, but there’s no one here. Just a few people in the center seats.”
“Isn’t it because it’s been out for a while?”
“The poster said it was released two weeks ago. Besides, it’s peak time right now.”
“You’re right.”
“You’re dead if this is boring.”
A warning completely devoid of any real threat.
I answered with a quiet laugh and gestured with my eyes toward Renka’s arm, which was resting on the armrest.
“Move your arm.”
“No. I claimed it first, so it’s mine.”
“How childish.”
“You’re the one who’s obsessed with the armrest, you’re the childish... Eek!?”
Renka, who was talking back as if determined not to lose, suddenly let out a gasp as if she were about to faint.
It was because I had reached over her arm and interlocked my fingers with hers.
I watched Renka, who was completely flustered by the blatant skinship, and gently stroked the knuckles of her thumb.
With every brush of my fingers, from the back of her hand, over the first knuckle, past the middle, to the tip, her body twitched.
She looked as if she were getting static shocks. I let out a small laugh and said nonchalantly, “If you don’t want to move it, then we can just stay like this.”
“I-I’ll move it...!”
“No. Your hand is soft, so I think I’ll just stay like this.”
“Hey...! This is...”
“Be quiet.”
My tone was completely different from before—a cold, commanding order.
Renka swallowed hard, and her mouth snapped shut.
Pleased with her reaction, I gave a satisfied smile. As the theater lights dimmed, I gestured with my chin toward the screen, where the distributor’s logo was now appearing.
“Now be quiet and watch the movie.”
“I’ll watch, but... my hand...”
“Quiet.”
“But...”
“I said, be quiet.”
“.....”
As I continued to cut her off, chiding her in a stern voice, she bit her lower lip and finally turned her gaze to the screen.
If she really hated this, she would have struggled and done whatever it took to break our hands apart. But seeing as she only put up a little bit of non-resistance, it seemed she didn’t mind it that much.
And so, I watched the movie, holding Renka’s hand tightly.
About five minutes after the movie started, her hand was slick with sweat.
She seemed incredibly nervous.
The light from the screen revealed what she was doing.
She kept glancing my way, fidgeting in her seat. It was clear the movie wasn’t registering with her at all.
I continued to stroke her hand while pretending to watch the movie. When a long sigh escaped her nose, I turned my head and asked quietly, “Are you uncomfortable?”
“O-Of course... With you doing this, it’s hard to eat the popcorn...”
“Just put the container between your legs.”
“But that’s an uncomfortable position...”
“Alright.”
I couldn’t just ignore the now-girlish Renka when she said she was uncomfortable.
I nodded and gently let go of her hand.
“.....”
Renka let out a long sigh—it was hard to tell if it was relief or disappointment—and wiped her hand with a tissue she’d brought.
Then she sank deep into her seat back, repeatedly taking slow breaths in and out.
How can you relax already when it’s not even over?
I glanced at Renka, who was letting her guard down as if a weight had been lifted, and raised the armrest that separated us.
Then, ignoring the questioning, suspicious, and anxious look she shot me, I shifted in my seat until I was pressed right up against her.
Next, I slowly reached my arm over her shoulder, which was flush against the seat back.
“Eek...!?”
Was the feeling of my arm brushing against her shoulder and the base of her neck strange and startling?
Renka let out a bizarre sound as her entire body went rigid.
Seizing the opportunity, I put my arm around her shoulder. I began to gently press and knead her long, slender neck with my fingers, pushing and pulling from side to side.
“Ah...! Hh...!”
A strange moan escaped Renka’s lips.
Only then did I turn to look at her, giving her a soft smile as I continued to massage her neck.
“This makes it easier to eat, right?”
“Wh-What...?”
“The popcorn.”
“What kind of nonsense is that... Hyak...!”
As I gently tickled the thin skin between her collarbone and neck with my fingertips, Renka’s attempt to glare at me dissolved into a grimace as she squeezed her eyes shut.
“Hmph...!”
Realizing how loud she was, she clamped a hand over her mouth, her body shrinking as if to hide from the few other people in the audience.
I gave a warm smile at Renka’s raw display and continued to caress her skin, which was growing hotter by the second.
“Haaaah...”
Before long, a completely drained moan escaped her.
Her whole body was trembling as if she had a bad cold. She really had no tolerance for this kind of touch.
Once Renka got used to this unfamiliar skinship, she would surely unleash a torrent of curses at me.
But unfortunately for her, I had no intention of stopping here.
My plan was to move to the next step just as she was about to regain her senses.
I had to make it so she wouldn’t remember a single thing about the movie.
It was still too early to go any deeper.
If I rushed things now, the tower I’ve painstakingly built would crumble—not completely, but a significant part of it.
The movie was still in its early stages. There was plenty of time.
So, I would be patient and gradually raise the intensity.
That suited Renka’s disposition better.
Inhaling the sweet blueberry scent that was growing stronger, I carefully observed Renka’s condition and pulled her body even closer to mine.
At that, the focus returned to Renka’s hazy eyes, and she furrowed her fine brow.
“Hey...! What do you think you’re doing, you...”
This is the moment. When Renka tries to resist, that’s when I need to take another step forward.
Having made my decision, I simply stared at Renka as she was about to get angry.
Until now, Renka had always found it difficult to meet my gaze head-on, but at the same time, she secretly liked it.
It was the perfect move for a situation like this, and my prediction was spot on.
“Ugh...!”
Renka’s expression shifted to one of distress, and her mouth momentarily closed.
Timing it perfectly, I pressed down firmly on the spot just above her collarbone with the tip of my middle finger.
“Hyat...!”
Renka’s body jolted violently.
The popcorn container bounced so hard that popcorn spilled onto the floor.
I gave her a meaningful smile at her reaction, then turned my eyes back to the screen, waiting for her to get used to this touch.