A smile finally appeared on Kushida's face. She looked like a little demon who'd caught someone in a compromising position. "I never knew you had a past like that, Tsukishima. How heartbreaking."
She pulled out her phone and tapped the play button. Tsukishima's voice came from the speaker: "It's probably a family problem... That old man wants to get me..."
She stopped the recording, a smug smile on her face.
"Oh, dear, Tsukishima. You let your guard down. This is 'arson,' 'assaulting a religious figure,' and 'juvenile delinquency'... Tsk, tsk. If Chabashira-sensei heard this, you'd be in for more than just staying in Class D. Expulsion would be the least of your worries. You might even get sent to juvenile detention for a few years."
"If you come over and lick my toes, maybe I'll let you off."
"Actually, licking toes would probably be a reward for a pervert like you~"
She walked over to Tsukishima and looked at his face, twisted with "anger." "Then I'll have to come up with another condition... Maybe you could put on a dress and shout 'I'm Lady Kushida's loyal dog' three times in the hallway?"
A gleeful smile spread across her face. "Looks like you're going to be my slave from now on, Tsukishima!"
Tsukishima finally couldn't hold it in. He leaned over the desk and burst out laughing. "Hahahaha! You fell right into my trap, Kikyo. You're really adorable."
Kushida Kikyo's face darkened. "Hmph. You think this little act will make me believe the information is fake? Do you really think I'd fall for that?"
Tsukishima wiped away the tears of laughter. "Oh, I can't—this is killing me. Kushida, your need for control is terrifying. The second you got the chance, you started recording me."
"Think about it carefully. I'd gotten to the point where I was eating garbage. Where would I have gotten the money to go to school?"
"Maybe... Maybe someone sponsored you later."
Tsukishima patted Kushida's little head with pity. "Ah, Lady Saint, if saying that makes you feel better, then sure."
Kushida turned bright red, like a boiled prawn. "You... You tricked me!"
She wanted nothing more than to smash her phone into his face!
Tsukishima spread his hands. "All's fair in war. Besides, you've stopped cursing me out lately. You used to viciously wish me dead, but now you just make mean remarks and sarcastic comments. I'm not used to it."
"So I kept an eye on you and tested you out."
He suddenly perked up his ears and asked in confusion, "Huh? Kushida, is there a mouse in here? What's that grinding sound?"
He turned to look at Kushida and immediately realized what was going on. "Oh, it's you grinding your teeth. Do your gums itch?"
Kushida turned scarlet with rage and charged at Tsukishima like a raging bull. "Drop dead! You bastard! Why don't you just die?!"
Tsukishima put a hand on Kushida's head, spun her around, and gave her a shove. Still dazed, she ended up face-down on the bed.
"You're not very bright, and you're not much of a fighter either. I'm worried about your future."
With that, he sat back down in his chair, picked up his pencil, and resumed his drawing.
Kushida buried her face in the pillow. After a long while, she finally pulled her head out and sat on the bed, glaring viciously at Tsukishima.
She opened her mouth to curse him out, but then remembered that nothing she said ever made him angry. She wasn't sure what to do.
She parted her lips, intending to curse him again, but swallowed the words before they could leave her mouth.
Curse him? He'd never get angry. He'd only laugh at her.
Hit him? His little "charge" just now had proved there was an overwhelming gap in their physical strength.
Get something on him? He didn't care in the slightest. He'd even dig an even bigger pit for her instead.
Worst of all, he had all her little secrets—the ones she couldn't let anyone find out—firmly in his grasp.
What was she supposed to do?!
The soft scratch of the pencil became the room's background noise.
She bit her lip, finally unable to stand the silence any longer. Her voice carried a hint of frustration and intense curiosity.
"Then... what was the real reason you got placed in Class D?"
Tsukishima glanced at Kushida. "You really want to know? No more recording?"
Kushida clenched her teeth and said nothing.
Tsukishima chuckled softly, set down his pencil, and turned to face her. His gaze grew somewhat distant.
"So, you don't think I became this way in a single day, do you? You don't naively think someone with a personality like mine would be a 'normal person,' do you?"
Kushida paused, her brow furrowing. "What do you mean?"
Tsukishima sighed, as if recalling something from the distant past. His expression was so serious that no one would dare interrupt him.
"The teacher who interviewed me seemed normal on the surface—wearing a suit and looking perfectly respectable. But in reality... that guy was a closeted gay man."
Kushida's eyes widened. "Huh?"
Ignoring her reaction, Tsukishima continued in a tone as casual as if he were talking about the weather.
"To make sure I passed the interview and got into the school I'd always dreamed of, I put in a little 'effort.' I hinted that I could introduce him to a very suitable boyfriend."
"And the 'boyfriend' I introduced was my junior-high homeroom teacher's husband."
He suddenly scratched his head in frustration. "I thought a married man would be straight. I figured he'd turn down the interviewer and everything would be fine."
"But who could've guessed that those two guys would end up in bed together the very next day?"
"Then my homeroom teacher caught them in the act. Apparently, they were still connected when she walked into the room."
"Then the three of them chased me down the street for five blocks."
With that, he turned back around and picked up his pencil. Just as he was about to sketch the outline, he seemed to remember something.
"Oh, right. My junior-high teacher got divorced afterward, and the interviewer got transferred. Apparently, my homeroom teacher's husband and the interviewer are together now, and things are going pretty well for them."
"I'd say I did a good deed and brought two people together. Don't you agree?"
Kushida sat there dumbfounded, as if she'd been struck by lightning.
Th-this could actually happen?
No, wait!
She glared at Tsukishima's back and asked through clenched teeth, "This one isn't fake too, is it?"
Tsukishima didn't turn around. His pencil drew a smooth curve across the paper.
"Does it matter?"
"If this version is true, spreading it would damage my already bad reputation even more. And I wouldn't mind or blow up at you, so you'd get to vent. Sounds great, doesn't it?"
"But if the previous version is true, then I'll have to show you the dark side of the world."
Tsukishima turned back and smiled at her. "Which version do you hope is true?"
The dorm room fell silent once again.
Time passed to the soft scratch of the pencil. The fluorescent light hummed, and the faucet that hadn't been fully turned off dripped steadily.
After who knew how long, Tsukishima raised his head, stretched, and looked at his drawing with satisfaction.
Before you continue