Tsukishima let out a cackling laugh and pulled out his phone. "Come on, Saintess. You wouldn't want people finding out your secret, would you?"
Kushida made a disgusted face. "That's such a creepy line. What are you even planning to do? Have you finally given in to your gross desires and decided to make a move on me?"
Tsukishima rolled his eyes. "Strike a few poses. Make them sexy—I need reference material."
"Fuck, I'm right here. Why do you need pictures?"
"You can't come over every day, and I need to practice drawing every day. Hurry up, hurry up. Remember to make it sexy. Pull your top down a little. Make it look messy. Yeah, yeah, just like that. That tearful, about-to-cry look."
Tsukishima gestured wildly. "Now give me a more seductive expression. Seductive, seductive—not that innocent look. Spread your legs a little. Turn sideways."
"Yeah, yeah, just like that. Then take the milk tea and tuck it into your bra. Hurry up, don't dawdle. Who are you pretending to be shy for? Hold a book and look at it, then cross your legs. Put one shoe on, and wear the other halfway."
As Tsukishima moved her around like a doll, Kushida rolled her eyes so hard they nearly disappeared into the back of her head.
She kept swearing under her breath, calling him things like "pervert," "go die," and "disgusting maggot."
Taking advantage of a lull when she'd run out of steam, Tsukishima said, "I think you should read more books and watch more movies. You really need to improve your vocabulary."
"Back where I'm from, your insults would only rate as 'loli.'"
"You can't even insult someone properly, but you're trying to be trendy with that two-faced act? Tsk, tsk, tsk."
The girl's face turned redder than any love confession could make it. "You bastard! Go die!"
Kushida pulled the milk tea from her cleavage and flung it at Tsukishima, but he caught it casually and set it aside. "I'm not dying just yet."
"With that temper, you'll probably die before I do. Anger's bad for your health. Besides, you're such a worrier, so I bet you don't sleep well, either. You spend every day doing things you hate and deepening your self-loathing."
"You might even die before my grandma."
Kushida looked like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, her face so red it seemed ready to drip blood.
She snatched up a pillow and was about to throw it when an unhurried knock came from the doorway.
Knock, knock, knock.
Kushida froze. She shot Tsukishima a vicious glare, then started straightening her clothes, muttering under her breath, "Why are so many people coming to see you?"
Tsukishima lowered his voice too. "Can't be helped. I'm a hot commodity. Unlike certain people, who can only hide under the covers and curse."
Kushida glared at him, quickly put on her clothes and shoes, then sat on the bed with an innocent, adorable smile on her face.
Once she was ready, Tsukishima unlocked the door and opened it. "Come in..."
Hirata Superman had come, with Kiyotaka Ayanokouji standing beside him.
Hirata immediately bowed at a ninety-degree angle. "I'm sorry about Sudo and the others... I hope you won't hold it against them, Tsukishima. I hope you can forgive them."
Tsukishima stepped aside to let them in. "Sudo and the others should be apologizing to Horikita. She's a little cold, but at least she didn't outright refuse them like I did."
He handed Hirata and Ayanokouji each a bottle of mineral water and motioned for them to sit. "Whatever Horikita thinks, the fact is that she offered to help them study."
"Then the three of them flipped the table and walked out just because they didn't like the way she spoke. Who could teach students like that? Chabashira-sensei isn't exactly nice to listen to, either. Why don't they just drop out?"
He stood by the desk and casually handed Kushida her milk tea. "You can't expect the reasonable person to back down just because they're being unreasonable."
Deep anxiety showed in Hirata's eyes. "But... Sudo and the others really are in a dangerous position. We're all in the same class... I'll talk to them properly..."
Tsukishima pressed a hand to his forehead. "Hirata, sit down first. Ayanokouji, you too."
He guided the two of them to their seats, then nudged Kushida off the bed with his elbow to make room.
Kushida silently rolled her eyes, pulled out a chair, and sat down.
Once everyone was seated, Tsukishima leaned against the desk. "Their current predicament has nothing to do with me, and nothing to do with you, either, Hirata. They should bear the consequences of not studying properly themselves."
"After all, I can't pry their skulls open and stuff knowledge inside."
"But that's a minor issue."
Tsukishima changed tack. "Hirata, how can you guarantee Sudo won't pin me to the ground and beat me up over my 'slip of the tongue'?"
He pointed to his nose, his tone exaggerated.
"He's bold enough to flip the desk of an honor student like Horikita. What's he going to do to a prick like me, who's 'rude'?"
"If he really does attack me, I won't just stand there getting angry like Horikita. I'll probably grab a chair and crack him over the head."
"And don't give me some pointless line like 'try to be nicer.' I don't want to hear it."
Hirata Yosuke lowered his head even further, gripping his knees tightly with both hands. His voice was filled with helplessness.
"I'm sorry... I failed to keep things under control. If I'd been there, maybe I could've stopped Sudo. I'll talk to him again and help him understand that you meant well..."
"Stop."
Tsukishima cut him off without the slightest courtesy and rolled his eyes.
"Hirata, still don't get it? I'm not accepting your 'mediation.' Having everyone apologize to each other won't make the world full of love."
"And the more you speak up for him, the more it makes me look 'petty,' and the more he'll think he's the one who was wronged."
"Then he'll come to class full of anger. Am I supposed to teach him math, or how to take a beating?"
"So, please don't waste your energy on me. And to be blunt, you could teach those three yourself with their current abilities. Why insist on finding someone else?"
He glanced at Ayanokouji, who was quiet as a ghost, and stopped paying attention to Hirata Superman. "By the way, Ayanokouji, what brings you here?"
Ayanokouji answered evenly, "Ah... Hirata brought me along."
Tsukishima nodded. "All right, then. If there's nothing else, everyone can head back. It's getting late. Time to sleep."
He gave Kushida a meaningful look, and she immediately stood up. "I'll head back first, then. Goodbye, Hirata, Ayanokouji~"
With that, she slipped out of the room like a nimble butterfly.
Tsukishima watched her go, then glanced at Ayanokouji. "Kushida really is cute."
Hirata Yosuke stood up, his face grim. He bowed deeply again, folding himself nearly in half. "I'm sorry for the interruption, Tsukishima. I'll talk to Sudo and the others..."
Tsukishima helped him straighten up. "Good luck, Hirata."
Before you continue