Interlude: Midterm Exam Celebration Party

Ever since Sudo Ken was nearly expelled, Horikita Suzune had completely changed her impression of Onizuka, largely due to a remark he had made to her previously.

It wasn't that they had become particularly close, but at the very least, the feeling of being kept at arm's length was gone.

Consequently, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, who had his own hidden agenda, the malicious Kikyo Kushida, and the idiot trio led by Sudo Ken, who had been saved by her once, all began to cling to him.

...Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's Dorm Room...

Including Onizuka, a total of seven people were squeezed into this room. Fortunately, there weren't many items inside, so it didn't feel overly cramped.

"Hey, Onizuka, I wanted to apologize to you. I had always felt like you looked down on me, but I never expected you to help me so much during this exam. Consider me in your debt."

He didn't know how Horikita Suzune had explained the situation to him regarding his expulsion, but had she actually shared the credit with him? Honestly, he really didn't need the gratitude of someone like Sudo.

Moreover, he had good reason to suspect that a human's sixth sense was tied to their motor nerves; people like this, simple-minded but physically gifted, often had inexplicable premonitions.

He had been hiding his tracks so carefully, too...

"Ah... choo! Damn it, someone must be bad-mouthing me again. Sooner or later, I'll drag those people out!"

Heh, he said it, didn't he?

However, Onizuka had been quite idle lately, so he didn't mind playing along with them.

"Actually, I didn't really do much. It was mostly Horikita and the others who did the heavy lifting."

Sudo immediately turned his head to look at Horikita Suzune, who was sitting to the side, idly reading a classic novel.

"Of course I'm very grateful to Horikita-san. Not only did she lower her own English score, but she also spent her own points to buy me points, saving me twice in a row. Thank you so much!"

Horikita Suzune closed the book in her hands.

"I didn't do it for you; I only did it so that Class D could continue to move forward smoothly."

"Tsk, it's that attitude of yours... forget it. Regardless of what you think, the favor I received is real. Don't worry about those boring things, let's have a drink!"

Although Horikita Suzune looked disgusted, she still picked up her drink and took a few sips.

Seeing the pleasant atmosphere, Kikyo Kushida picked up the cup in front of her and stood up.

"Come on everyone, let's have a toast to celebrate us successfully passing the midterm exams!"

After the gathering, Kikyo Kushida walked up to Onizuka.

"Onizuka-kun, this is for you~" With that, she handed over a magnetic card.

Onizuka recognized it at a glance; it was the key card for the entrance to their dormitory building.

"Is Kushida-san actually a very direct person?"

Realizing that Onizuka had misunderstood something, Kikyo Kushida's face suddenly turned bright red.

"Wh-what!!! What do you mean direct!!! This is the key card for Ayanokoji-kun's room!!!"

"If we have any more gatherings in the future, we can all meet here!"

After saying that, Kikyo Kushida aggressively shoved the key card toward Onizuka.

She stomped up the stairs back to her own room, not even noticing the elevator doors opening right in front of her; her hurried state was quite evident.

Onizuka toyed with the key card in his hand, watching Kikyo Kushida leave with a cold gaze.

"You put on a pretty good act~ It's a pity, though; your eyes still gave you away."