Like You, But I Don't Want You to Know

"Why, you ask?"

Already having put his blindfold back on, Gojo Satoru repeated the question while slouching in his chair.

He definitely couldn't tell the real reason, so in that case, he'd just tell a lie!

"It started back in middle school—no, actually, from elementary school.

Because I've got good looks, I often got approached by girls. If it was just that, it wouldn't have been a big deal.

But in my second year of middle school, I realized someone was targeting me. Every day, I'd find the same love letter in my shoe locker, and the same one in my desk.

Even the gym clothes in my school locker would go missing all the time, and I'd feel a strong gaze on me whenever I walked down the street.

I couldn't take it anymore, so I had no choice but to transfer schools. That's when I started wearing the blindfold too.

After all, compared to being seen as some weirdo, being stalked by a creep scared me a lot more!"

Listening to Gojo Satoru's far-fetched excuse, Kamuro Masumi didn't argue. Ever since she'd seen that face of his, she hadn't truly calmed down.

She didn't know if something like that had happened to Gojo Satoru in middle school, but the current Gojo Satoru definitely could!

Even someone like her, who had a bit of a distaste for men, couldn't resist that appearance. If those love-crazed girls saw it, she couldn't even imagine the consequences!

By the time they left the Cat Cafe, it was already 8:00 PM.

Following behind Gojo Satoru on the way back to the dorms, Kamuro Masumi watched his back flicker in and out of the streetlights' glow, still finding it hard to believe.

Had she fallen for him?

When did it start?

Was it when she saw him dominate in the gymnasium? Or was it the racing heartbeat triggered by his words, "I'll keep you company"?

Or maybe it was seeing his true face today?

She couldn't figure it out. By the time she realized it, her gaze was already fixed on him. Not looking at that back was far too hard for her!

But confessing was out of the question, right? He'd just told her today about being targeted by a stalker. If she confessed now, it would definitely scare him.

Still... she couldn't accept it. She really couldn't!

"Hey, Gojo-kun," she called out lightly.

"Just call me Satoru. Didn't you already do that today? What, getting shy now?"

He stopped and turned around.

Ignoring his teasing words, she pressed on. "If, hypothetically, I mean.

If I got expelled from school, what would you do?"

"Worried I'll report you? Don't worry, I already deleted the video. As long as you don't do it again, you'll be fine."

Thinking she was afraid of being reported, he laid it out clearly.

'No, that's not it.'

Kamuro Masumi believed Gojo Satoru wouldn't lie to her, but what she was worried about now was her situation in Class A.

But she couldn't say it. Satoru-kun was a student in Class D, and the school didn't allow students to switch classes unless they had a huge amount of points.

He couldn't help her. Nine million was too little compared to twenty million. Even if he had it, she wasn't worth him spending that much.

Seeing Kamuro Masumi fall silent, Gojo Satoru didn't know what was wrong. He raised his right hand, extended two fingers, and gently tapped her forehead, comforting her.

"Don't worry about pointless stuff. I'll always be watching you. If you really get expelled, I'll definitely leave with you. Don't worry."

The moment his fingers touched, the Nano Camera attached to his fingernail directly covered the forehead it contacted.

The process was extremely fast, and at the nano-scale, such a small area of coverage was impossible for an ordinary person to detect.

Though he didn't understand what had happened, it seemed like she was in trouble. Since she wouldn't say, to prevent any accidents, he'd just have to keep an eye on things himself.

"Mm, I believe you, Satoru-kun!"

Hearing words she hadn't expected, Kamuro Masumi felt a little happy.

'I'll find a chance to apologize to Sakayanagi. It'd be too much of a loss to be forced apart over something this small.'

She stood on her tiptoes, reached out with both hands, and pulled Gojo Satoru's face down.

Caught off guard by the sudden kiss, Gojo Satoru didn't react, instead quietly experiencing her inexperienced kissing technique.

After about three minutes, their lips parted, but no silvery thread connected them. It seemed she didn't know what a real kiss was.

She stepped back a few paces, clasped her hands behind her back, and said playfully, "Don't get the wrong idea! This is just a reward for deleting that video!"

As if afraid the other person might misunderstand, she quickly added, "I won't steal anything anymore. If I get caught on camera again, I'd be in serious trouble.

This is my first kiss, you know—you're the lucky one!"

'You're special!'

Seeing Gojo Satoru still frozen in place, Kamuro Masumi couldn't hold back her shyness any longer and ran off.

Watching her retreating figure, Gojo Satoru muttered blankly, "I guess this counts as my first kiss too? Across two lifetimes."

"Well, whatever. It was bound to happen sooner or later."

In the past, he'd been so focused on liking someone that he forgot to consider whether they were actually compatible!

But now it was different—as long as he liked someone, they could all become the right fit.

The next morning, he lay sprawled on his desk, listening to the boys' loud discussion nearby.

"Hey hey, swimming class is this afternoon. Who do you think has the biggest chest?"

"Definitely Kushida-chan!"

"Huh? Ike-kun, don't let your bias show. Sure, Kushida-san is cute, but she clearly can't dominate in that area. I think it's Hasebe-san—those proportions don't even look like a high schooler's, right?!"

"Eh!? I think it's Sakura-san."

"That glasses girl? Sure, she's big, but don't you think she's too plain? She confessed to me the other day, and I turned her down."

Ike Kanji said proudly.

"Seriously?"

Yamauchi Haruki couldn't believe that a girl he had a crush on had confessed to his friend.

"Of course it's true! But she was too plain and antisocial, so I rejected her. I still prefer little Kushida."

Ike Kanji answered without hesitation, as if it were the truth.

Hearing them drift further off topic, Sotomura Hideo interrupted impatiently, "Hey hey, you're getting off track! Anyway, Sudo, who do you think it is?"

"Huh? Me? I don't know."

Since Gojo Satoru seemed to be sleeping, Sudo Ken sounded a bit hesitant.

As the discussion grew louder, the nearby girls shot them disgusted looks, but they didn't care—as if they were deliberately trying to attract attention.

Hasebe Haruka, the center of the topic, glared at them with contempt.

'They're all just a bunch of perverts who only stare at chests.'

Then she looked over at Gojo Satoru, who had stood up and was walking over.

'Men are all the same. Turning down Kushida publicly was just to get her attention, wasn't it?'

"Hey hey, I heard Sakura-san confessed to you?"

Resting his right hand on Ike Kanji's shoulder, Gojo Satoru asked with a smile.

"Of—of course! I'm not bad-looking, so it's normal for a plain girl to confess to me, right?"

Glancing at Sakura Airi's empty seat, Ike Kanji forced himself to say.

But as soon as he finished, the person in question walked in through the back door.

"Sakura! I heard you confessed to Ike Kanji—is that true or false?"

Ignoring the trembling from Ike Kanji, he called out loudly to Sakura Airi.

"Eh!?"

Startled by being addressed, Sakura flinched, then quickly refuted, "No!! That's not true! I've never even spoken to Ike-kun!"

Hearing Sakura Airi's denial, everyone turned to look at Ike Kanji with contempt.

"You did that on purpose!! You're still holding a grudge from last time, so you're making me look bad now!"

Unable to bear the contemptuous stares, Ike Kanji snapped, slapping Gojo Satoru's arm away and pointing at him excitedly.

"Is it that obvious? I did it on purpose. So, what are you going to do about it?"

Unfazed by the other's anger, Gojo Satoru spoke with a smile.

"You!!"

Staring at the mocking Gojo Satoru, Ike Kanji was furious but helpless. The other was far taller and bigger than him—his safety mattered more than his pride, and even if he started a fight, he couldn't win.

"It's just a lie being exposed. Seeing you this angry makes me look like the bad guy."

He teased with a laugh, biting down hard on the word "lies."

Hearing this, Kushida Kikyo's pupils contracted. She stared at Gojo Satoru in shock.

Does he know about my past?!

"Everyone, let's calm down! This is just a small matter, no need to ruin the class atmosphere."

Hirata stepped forward as the scene grew more intense.

"Is humiliating a female classmate a small matter? Spreading rumors a small matter?

School bullying keeps happening because bullies treat it as a small matter.

So what do you consider a big deal? Does someone have to get hurt or even crippled before it counts?"

He didn't say suicide—that would be stretching it too far.

Looking at Hirata, who had nothing to say, Gojo Satoru only felt growing disgust.

Why couldn't he have stepped in from the start? Why did he only move when things got bad?

"Or did you vote too?"

Gojo asked with a smile.

Silence. The whole class fell silent, the only sound being Koenji Rokusuke softly combing his hair.

At first, only a few nearby classmates had noticed the incident, but with Hirata—the most popular boy in class—joining in, more eyes followed.

No one refuted Gojo Satoru. Even Hirata himself was frozen, the words striking deep into his heart, stirring up memories he wanted to bury.

Even the girls who usually liked Hirata dared not speak now.

One, because Gojo was speaking up for them. Two, because the pressure radiating from Gojo Satoru was too intense—they simply couldn't open their mouths.

"Clap, clap, clap~"

"Eyepatch boy, well said! I like it!"

Koenji Rokusuke clapped cheerfully, breaking the silence.