Chapter 101
A spell for passing! "Jeff."
It was late in the morning, a time when everyone should have been fast asleep. Shine's whisper pierced the silence of the room.
"Jeff. Are you asleep?"
My body tensed. My long limbs, stretched out beneath the blanket, went completely stiff. Surely she isn't going to do something weird to me while I'm sleeping?
I carefully opened my tightly shut eyes just a crack, monitoring Shine's movements. She was lying beside me in a comfortable posture. Having been staring up at the ceiling, she immediately began to move when I didn't answer.
Rustle, rustle.
The sound of the blanket brushing against her skin felt excessively loud. Sliding slowly across the bed, Shine reached out and grabbed my hand. Her small fingers wriggled, worming their way between mine to interlock them. My hand twitched at the strange sensation, and Shine's movements instantly halted.
"Jeff?"
As if trying to confirm whether I was truly asleep, Shine called my name once more.
"You're really asleep, right?"
Whoosh.
Her voice sounded right next to my ear. The moment her hot breath brushed against my earlobe, I almost shrank back in startle. Barely managing to suppress the urge, I merely wriggled my toes hidden beneath the blanket.
Slowly, the hand that had been tightly clasping mine began to loosen, gradually sliding up my arm. The touch gliding over my pajamas was incredibly light. Shine's movements were unhesitating. Traveling up my arm and past my shoulder, her hand came to rest on my chest. As if trying to feel my heartbeat, her hand lingered there for a long moment before starting to move again.
Passing over my chest, Shine's small hand descended toward my stomach. Then, her hand suddenly began to slip under the hem of my pajama shirt.
Startled, I quickly reached out and grabbed her hand to stop her.
"Shine..."
Because I had been holding my breath to endure the ticklish sensation, a ragged gasp escaped my lips. When I looked at Shine while panting for air, she let out a soft chuckle.
"So you weren't asleep?"
"What were you trying to do?"
"I was just checking to see if you were asleep."
As if that were truly all there was to it, Shine gently slipped her hand out of my grasp.
"Really...?"
"Yes."
With those words, she wrapped her arms tightly around my waist and pulled me close. Our suddenly pressed-together skin flared hot. Why wasn't I wearing my dinosaur pajamas at a time like this? I closed my eyes, bitterly picturing my dinosaur pajamas hanging in the laundry room.
"Jeff."
"Yeah."
"Why did you pretend to be asleep?"
I mumbled, keeping my mouth shut without answering. So Shine had known all along.
"I was just... curious about what you were going to do..."
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"Should I show you?"
Amusement laced Shine's voice. Before I could even answer, she moved the hand wrapped around my waist and began to knead my bare, exposed stomach.
"Eek!"
The sudden intrusion of her bare hand and the bizarre sensation of having my stomach squeezed made a breathless gasp leak from my throat. I frantically pushed Shine's hand away.
"Stop it..."
I whispered under my breath, terrified that we might wake Amy up.
"But you said you were curious."
"I didn't want to know this."
"I'll stop if you don't like it."
True to her word, Shine pulled her hand out from under my shirt. The spot where her hand had rested still tingled warmly.
"Did you really hate it?"
Shine pressed herself even closer, whispering directly into my ear. I squirmed uncomfortably.
"Answer me, Jeff. Did you really hate it?"
She was relentless. Was it because of how close she was, or was it due to some other reason? My entire body felt flushed and unbearably hot. I twisted my body to break free from Shine's embrace and kicked the blanket off us.
As I panted softly, Shine propped herself up on one elbow, resting her chin in her hand as she looked down at me.
"Did you really hate it?"
She just wouldn't let it go. Covering my burning cheeks with my hands, I gave a small nod.
"Yeah..."
"Really?"
"Yeah... a little."
At my answer, a bright smile bloomed on Shine's face. Watching her, I buried my face deep into my pillow. I knew I wouldn't be getting any deep sleep tonight.
Because of my fluttering, restless heart, I couldn't fall into a deep sleep and ended up facing a brutal morning.
"Wake up, Jeff."
Amy's voice rang in my ears like a distant buzz. I burrowed deeper under the blanket to escape the bright morning light. As I surrendered my body to the warmth of the covers and closed my eyes, drowsiness washed over me once again. With my consciousness fading, I blankly let my mouth hang open, my tongue lolling out slightly.
"Jeff!"
Amy's voice cut through my hazy mind. Immediately after, the blanket wrapped around my body began to shake violently from side to side.
"Uggghhh."
An incomprehensible groan escaped my lips. I crawled further down the bed to escape Amy's grasp.
Whoosh!
Just as I was burrowing deeper, the sudden onslaught of bright light made me shield my face with both arms. The blanket that had been cocooning me was whipped up into the air.
"You need to get up, Jeff."
"Mmmgh..."
I dragged my heavy body up, reluctantly obeying Amy's command. Now that my blanket had been confiscated, sleeping any further was out of the question. As I sat on the edge of the bed yawning, a toothbrush was thrust in front of my face.
I need to brush my teeth. But it's such a pain.
My mind was completely groggy. Brushing my teeth felt like a monumental chore, but my body moved on autopilot. My hand reached out and took the toothbrush from Amy. Shoving it into my mouth, I began to doze off again.
My head bobbed up and down, my vision blurring. Watching me from the side, Amy let out a sigh.
"Let me help."
Just then, Shine, who had already finished getting ready, stepped up and grabbed my toothbrush. Startled by her sudden intervention, my eyes snapped wide open.
Shine was smiling. Holding the toothbrush with one hand and securing my head with the other, she began to brush my teeth ruthlessly. Chicka-chicka. The toothbrush swept through every nook and cranny of my mouth, moving in a bizarrely precise rhythm. It began to tickle the sensitive areas of my mouth, lightly brushing against my gums as if teasing them.
"Sh-!"
Amy merely nodded as she watched Shine brush my teeth, casually letting it slide as if this were a perfectly normal, recurring occurrence. Shine's brushing was incredibly meticulous.
"Jeff. Stick out your tongue."
Shine's voice sounded somewhat commanding. Suddenly, my drooping hair stood on end. A flash of blue static erupted before us, and Shine, startled by the sudden discharge, quickly let go of my head and stepped back.
"Jeff?"
"I'll do it myself!"
I snatched the toothbrush from Shine's hand and quickly brushed my tongue. Sprinting into the bathroom, I spat out the foam and thoroughly rinsed my mouth. My meticulously cleaned teeth sparkled white in the light.
I stared at myself in the mirror. My cheeks were slightly flushed, and my chest was rising and falling rapidly. The girl in the mirror looked undeniably... excited. Embarrassed by my own reflection, I clutched my chest. My heart was pounding incredibly loud.
"Jeff~"
Startled by Shine's voice, I nearly slipped off the step stool I was standing on. I frantically reached out to steady myself against the sink, and Shine's soft laughter echoed from behind.
"Be careful not to hurt yourself."
"I know..."
Shine stood waiting at the bathroom door. She was already fully dressed.
"I'll help you change."
Shine said, shaking my gym uniform in her hand.
"I... I'll put it on myself!"
I rushed over to Shine and snatched the uniform from her hands. Contrary to my expectation that she wouldn't give it up easily, she simply took a step back and nodded.
"If you say so."
I nodded and clutched the gym uniform to my chest. Lately, Shine's gaze had been feeling increasingly overwhelming. As I went to unbutton my pajamas to change, I froze under the intense weight of her stare. Through my half-undone buttons and parted collar, my pale skin was exposed. Shine's eyes were locked onto it.
"Aren't you going to change?"
After a moment of hesitation, I slid shut the small partition Amy had installed. Shine blinked in surprise. Still feeling exposed, I went ahead and shut the bathroom door completely. Through the closing gap, I saw Shine's disappointed gaze fade away.
Leaning my back against the closed door, I let out a long sigh and began to change. Rustle. My thin pajamas slid off my shoulders and pooled on the floor. I looked at my reflection in the mirror again. There was another bug bite on my body.
"My stomach?"
This time, it was on my stomach. Gently tracing the red mark with my fingers, I shook my head and quickly pulled on my gym clothes.
"Are you all done changing?"
The moment I stepped out of the bathroom with my pajamas draped over my arm, Shine approached me as if she had been waiting right outside. Naturally reaching out, she wrapped her arm around mine.
"Where's Amy?" I asked, quickly looking around. Amy was nowhere to be seen.
"She had some business to take care of and went out for a bit. She said to meet her in the cafeteria."
"Really...?"
"Yeah."
Nodding, Shine suddenly snatched the pajamas I was holding. Looking at her with a puzzled expression, Shine spoke up.
"You're going to put these in the laundry basket, right?"
"Yeah."
"I'll do it for you."
I gave her a skeptical look. The laundry basket was only a few steps away. It was close enough that I could have easily tossed them in from where I stood. There was absolutely no reason for her to go out of her way to take them. But my face flushed red at what Shine did next.
Sniff, sniff.
She suddenly buried her nose into my pajamas and began to inhale deeply.
"W-What are you doing?!"
"Sniffing your clothes."
"Why are you sniffing them?!"
"Just because. I wanted to."
As I reached out to stop her, unable to bear the embarrassment any longer, Shine quickly tossed the pajamas into the laundry basket. My outstretched hand twitched awkwardly in midair, having lost its target.
"Let's go."
Shine grabbed my hand and led me out of the room, not forgetting to grab our bags waiting by the entrance. Slinging our matching shark bag and dinosaur bag over our shoulders, we stepped out into the hallway.
"Shine."
"Yeah?"
"Have you decided on what favor you want?"
"Yes."
"What is it...?"
"I'll tell you tonight."
"Does it have to be tonight?"
"Yes."
Shine didn't say another word after that. Guided by her hand, I walked down to the cafeteria.
"Jeff! Shine!"
Rain had already arrived and was waiting inside the cafeteria. She waved her hand to show us where she was. She always looked so bright and cheerful. I walked over to her with Shine.
"Welcome!"
Rain opened her arms wide to welcome us. My eyes drifted to her food tray. Today, instead of her usual hamburger steak, her tray was piled high with gyoza. Normally, she would have chosen the hamburger steak without hesitation, but it seemed yesterday's cucumber incident had left her deeply traumatized. Licking my lips, I slid into the seat next to Rain.