Kushida's Probe

Bai Ye took back what he'd said earlier.

He'd thought Kushida had genuinely been helping him get closer to Horikita out of kindness, and he'd even felt a little touched.

But after the three of them had sat in the café for ages, Kushida had only talked to him, fussing over him with sweet concern. Her radiant smile had nearly melted his heart.

Yet in the face of Kushida's enthusiasm, he only felt the temperature around him dropping lower and lower. Horikita's gaze was practically freezing his heart solid.

Finally, at one point—

"I won't keep you two any longer. You... take your time chatting," Horikita said expressionlessly.

"Wait!"

Bai Ye raised a hand and called out, but Horikita seemed not to hear him. She left without looking back.

The next second, Horikita's expression appeared on his face.

Bai Ye looked at Kushida, who had fallen silent, amusement in her eyes. "Satisfied now?"

Kushida shook her head and looked in the direction Horikita had gone. "Are you not going after her? You finally managed to improve your relationship. What if you mess it up?"

"I'll apologize next time. Today... I'll leave it."

"Oh~ Why?" Kushida asked, blinking curiously.

"Even though I feel bad for her, I can't just leave a girl here by herself."

"I see." Kushida stroked her cheek and said softly, "I wouldn't have guessed you were so gentle. I almost fell for you just now."

"I'm only gentle with certain people. If that had been Yamauchi, I'd have sent him flying by now."

"Speaking of Yamauchi, thank you, Jingu-kun, for standing up for me. Though, wasn't that a little too harsh? Hehe~"

Kushida giggled behind her hand, showing not the slightest trace of sympathy.

"I already couldn't stand him. It wasn't all for your sake."

After all, there was also the fake love letter, and he'd been badmouthing Bai Ye every day. There was no way he hadn't been angry; he just hadn't found the right opportunity.

"Jingu-kun, can I ask you something?" Kushida suddenly said solemnly. "If everyone were to ostracize and bully me in the future, what would you do?"

"I..."

"I want the truth. Now that you know what I'm really like, I don't have anything to pretend about. Your answer will affect how I treat you from now on, so think carefully, okay?"

"All right."

After a moment's thought, he gently took her hand.

Kushida's body visibly trembled. She lowered her head slightly and leaned her forehead against one hand, resting it on the table.

"It's simple. I'd teach everyone who bullied you a lesson," he said evenly. "As long as you're mine."

His words were utterly calm, but Kushida could clearly feel how serious he was. It was just like the smile he'd shown her when he'd made that promise in the classroom last time.

As it turned out, he'd meant what he said. From what she'd observed lately, his relationship with Horikita really was ordinary. They weren't even friends.

At that moment, Kushida suddenly felt that he had a unique charm, even though he was usually so calculating that he seemed like a scheming person.

But every now and then, he showed a sincere side. She didn't know if he was like that with everyone, but seeing that glimmer he revealed to her warmed her heart, even if... he might also be lying.

Still, that didn't seem very likely.

If people found out who she really was, they'd only keep their distance. Why would anyone help her or try to get close to her?

Thinking this, Kushida decided to test him a little further.

"What if that person included Horikita? Would you teach her a lesson for me too?"

"About that... would an apology do?"

"Hehe, no." Kushida smiled and pinched his thigh beneath the table. "You're so greedy. Having me all to yourself isn't enough..."

Though she said that, she already believed him.

If he'd immediately defended her and turned against Horikita, Kushida would only have thought he was putting on an act. She wasn't some naive, gullible girl who would be swept away by sweet talk.

Bai Ye had won this battle of wits.

But he didn't feel particularly happy about it.

Those really had been his honest feelings. In his eyes, Kushida was already his, and so was Horikita.

The system had made it clear that all he had to do was break up with them, but he was a little possessive. He didn't like the people he dated having anything to do with other men. Even if they broke up, he still wouldn't let go.

Call him selfish or heartless, if you wanted.

So he didn't want to lie, either. It was too exhausting.

Now that he'd started down this path, he had no intention of turning back. Before, he'd been alone, so he hadn't cared.

But things were different now. From the moment he'd accepted Wang Meiyu, there had been no turning back. It was no longer simply a matter of doing whatever he wanted.

He could only keep growing stronger so he could protect the people around him. Otherwise, the Sword of Damocles would keep hanging over his head, and he'd never be able to feel at ease.

Though things wouldn't go as he wished, and there would certainly be painful moments along the way, he believed he could create an ending where everyone was happy.

On the way back, Kushida walked jauntily beside him and smiled. "Sorry about earlier. I just wanted to test you and see how important I am to you. I'll go apologize to Horikita later."

"Kushida, I know you can't trust me right away. Take your time. Time will prove everything."

"You seem pretty confident," Kushida said, tilting her head to look at him.

"Whether I'm confident or not doesn't matter. This is all I can do." He gazed at Kushida calmly. "I hope the road ahead is one we walk together, not..."

He didn't finish, but Kushida saw the hint of heaviness in his eyes and didn't press him.

"All right. Since you've been so honest, let's make this an official partnership."

"Just a partnership?" he asked meaningfully.

"What else would there be...? Some other kind of relationship..." Kushida instinctively twirled a strand of hair and turned her head away.

"Forget it. We can talk about that later."

"Mm... But there's one more thing. What are you going to do about Horikita? She probably knows about my past just like you do. I can trust you for now, but I can't trust her."

Bai Ye rubbed his temples, already feeling a headache coming on. "What do you want to do?"

"Well... You could trick her into coming out next time, and I'd film the two of you. Once I had something on her, I could feel at ease."

He could tell that the sort of video Kushida meant was definitely not an innocent one.

He had to hand it to Kushida. She'd come up with that idea immediately.

The plan was feasible, but he'd never do something like that. It was too low, and after that, Horikita probably wouldn't speak to him for the rest of her life.

"Forget it. If I did that to you, you wouldn't be happy either, would you?"

"Okay, I'll think of something else." Though Kushida was a little disappointed that he'd rejected her suggestion, part of her was also a little happy.

Because it meant Bai Ye wouldn't do something like that to her, either.

A woman's heart really was complicated.

Even after the two of them parted ways, they still hadn't come up with a good solution, so the problem with Horikita was put on hold for the time being.