Kushida's Secret from Middle School

It wasn't that Tsukishima couldn't guess.

First of all, it definitely wasn't that her true personality had been exposed. If it had, Kushida would be Horikita's loyal attack dog by now.

As for what it was, he had to start by thinking about Class D.

What kind of place was Class D? A place for defective students. So how did the school determine that its members were defective?

Either their flaws were so obvious that anyone could spot them at a glance.

Could anyone tell that Kushida Kikyo was two-faced? Not likely. You couldn't judge a person by appearances.

Especially someone at Kushida's level. If she wanted to put on an act, she could fool people for far longer than a single interview. Even after spending six months with her, they might not see through it.

If they couldn't tell, why had the school put her in Class D?

Tsukishima glanced at Kushida beside him.

It could only be because her personality had caused a major incident back in middle school.

That was why she'd been placed in Class D.

Kushida had said she wanted to confirm something with Horikita. Whatever it was, it had to be serious enough for her to abandon her perfect-saint persona.

The answer was obvious: she probably wanted to confirm something about that incident from middle school.

Tsukishima rubbed his chin. Kushida and Horikita were probably from the same middle school, and Kushida wanted to know whether Horikita knew about her "big middle school incident."

But judging by Horikita, she probably didn't. Otherwise, last night's threat would have gone differently.

Besides, Horikita's eyes were always fixed on her brother. She only remembered the rest of them when they might be useful.

Kushida hurried forward and stopped in front of him, wearing a sweet smile. Her words, however, came through gritted teeth. "You're not trying to figure out what I want to confirm, are you?"

Tsukishima was startled. "You can read minds now? I haven't even said anything out loud."

Kushida glanced around. The place was deserted, so she immediately grabbed Tsukishima by the collar. Her sweet smile vanished.

All that remained was gritted teeth. "You always roll your eyes around when you're thinking! And you like rubbing your chin! You bastard! Have you already figured it out?"

Tsukishima patted her hand. "Watch your image, watch your image. You've certainly been paying close attention to me."

Kushida snorted and let go. "If I watched you every day, of course I'd remember!"

Tsukishima nodded. "I've figured out a little about your situation. She probably doesn't know. Otherwise, you wouldn't be getting off so easily."

"A major issue that could make you drop your act would be the perfect thing for her to use against you. She likes going all in. If she had a card to play, would she really hold it back? What would be the point? So she definitely doesn't know about your situation."

Kushida gritted her teeth. "So you're saying I went to all that trouble for nothing?"

Tsukishima nodded. "Yeah. And I think it's better if you don't go. She may be straightforward, but she's also sharp. And then there's Ayanokouji. He's even worse. Who knows what kind of social experiment lab he came from? What if they notice something?"

Tsukishima nudged her with his elbow and lowered his voice. "If they notice anything, they'll test you and try to threaten you. Once they confirm it, they'll make you their dog by any means necessary. Both of them are the type to do whatever it takes to reach their goals."

He suddenly sighed. "Those two really are made for each other."

Kushida fell silent for a moment, apparently digesting what Tsukishima had said.

"...But I have to attend the study group. I can't just skip out on Horikita, can I?"

Tsukishima rolled his eyes. "I'm saying you shouldn't go out of your way to test her. Just do what you normally do. Don't ask about anything from the past, and act like you always do."

Kushida fell silent again, biting her lip as if she were conflicted. She glared at Tsukishima. "You're not saying all this just because you want to keep me tied to your side, are you? Are you worried they'll use me to threaten you?"

Tsukishima rolled his eyes again. "Do you really think I need to keep you tied up now? We're dating, and we've even crossed into adult territory. Why would I need to tie you up?"

"As for threats, it'd be a little troublesome, but not that troublesome. Anyway, it'd be troublesome."

Kushida suddenly moved, lifting her foot and stomping hard on Tsukishima's instep. "You bastard! This is all your fault! If it weren't for you, how could they threaten me? How could I have gone to all that trouble for nothing? Damn you! Foot freak! Pervert!"

Tsukishima wiped his face. "Keep your voice down. If someone finds out, you'll become the saint everyone gets to share. We're dating, and it's not like that's a bad thing for you. You can still be an angel. If it doesn't work out, we can always make up an excuse and break up."

"By the way, stepping on me felt pretty good."

Kushida rolled her eyes, took a deep breath, and glared at him. "Pervert!"

Tsukishima huffed. "So what if I'm a pervert? Am I proud of it? Do I brag about it? Besides, you started things without a word. Ugh, there's no love left. We've been through so much, and you still don't trust me~~"

Kushida gritted her teeth. "You bastard! Aren't you the one who doesn't trust me? You know everything about me, but I don't know anything about you!"

Tsukishima froze. Thinking it over, that did seem to be true. "Would I dare tell you? You're always recording me on your phone like your life depends on it. You practically want to make me your dog and have me lick your toes every day. Would I dare tell you?"

"Besides, I figured out your situation by thinking it through. You're stupid and you blame me? You're careless and you blame me? What kind of logic is that?"

Kushida took a deep breath. "Then how about this? I'll give you my phone. You tell me about yourself—why you were put in Class D—and I'll tell you about middle school."

Tsukishima rolled his eyes. "Who knows if you've got a voice recorder hidden somewhere..."

He suddenly looked at Kushida. "Wait. Are you actually planning to be completely honest with me?"

Kushida's expression didn't change. "Do I have a choice? You know everything about me, but I don't know anything about you. You can threaten me into doing anything you want. What can I do to fight back?"

"We could become allies. I could speak up for you at class meetings."

Tsukishima rubbed his chin and smiled. "Hang on. Why would I become your ally? I've got dirt on you to use as leverage, and you can turn the class against me. Isn't that already a fair balance of threats?"

"As for class meetings, I already deleted Hirata. You can ask him. I never planned to control the class in the first place. Why else would I have pushed for cooperation between Class B and Class D? I could've just paid the points myself."

"Exchanging points for a seat should be easy, right?"

Kushida looked at him, biting her lip, disappointment spilling from her eyes. "So you're still unwilling to trust me, then? You've been using me all along, haven't you? I understand. Don't contact me again."

She lowered her head, tears streaming down her face.

Tsukishima looked at her, knowing full well that she was probably putting on an act.

But that momentary tremble seemed somehow real.

Beneath all those layers of acting, the tremor in her shoulders seemed to carry a trace of genuine hurt, perhaps even something she herself hadn't noticed.