The Midterm Exam Leak

Three days before the exam.

Kushida bashfully led Tsukishima into her dorm room under the gossipy gazes of the girls.

"Bunch of gossips, so annoying. They ask me about how things are going with you every day—whether we've held hands, kissed, or done anything inappropriate for teenagers."

The moment Kushida closed the door, her expression changed. Gritting her teeth, she muttered, "Bet those bitches are pressed up against the door listening right now. How many do you think I'd scare if I suddenly screamed?"

Tsukishima laughed, set down his drawing board and schoolbag, then pulled out his phone and put on some music. He leaned close to Kushida's ear and whispered, "Don't. What if they get the wrong idea? Besides, isn't this all your own doing?"

Without hesitation, Kushida lifted her leg and stomped hard on the top of Tsukishima's foot. "You! You! Jerk!"

Tsukishima rolled his eyes. "Would we be in this situation if you weren't so twisted? We're sneaking around like we're having an affair. Can't you just act normal? Why do you have to get along with them so badly? Is that really such an accomplishment?"

"If you ask me, you should just study hard and get into Tokyo University. That would be an accomplishment. Then there'll be plenty of people begging for the honor of getting a glance from you. Why be everyone's emotional punching bag?"

"If all else fails, you could become a therapist someday. With your skills, you'd have more clients than you could handle."

Kushida couldn't be bothered to respond.

"Anyway, I called you here to talk about the midterms. That deadpan Ayanokouji came to me and said he'd discovered the secret behind the midterm exam..."

She looked at Tsukishima, who was currently pulling desserts and cups of black tea out of his bag.

Tsukishima listened as Kushida suddenly fell silent. "Go on. What's the secret? Don't tell me he found the answers to the midterm."

Kushida walked over to the table and took a sip of tea. The sugar in it made her brow relax a little. "More or less. He found out that they're using last year's test. We bought the questions from a second-year student for 15,000 points."

As she spoke, she pulled last year's test out of her schoolbag and handed it to Tsukishima.

Tsukishima casually took it, clinked his teacup against Kushida's, and glanced over the questions. "How did he find that out? The test's been leaked before we've even taken it. Does it even matter whether we have the original questions? Chabashira-sensei's pretty suspicious."

He put the test back in Kushida's bag. "Have some dessert. I just learned how to make these—macarons and cream puffs. Try one."

Kushida picked up a cream puff and took a small bite, chewing with a frown. "It's a little salty...and kind of hard. A bit rich, too."

Tsukishima frowned as well. "I think it's fine. Maybe I just like stronger flavors? The saltiness and richness are the cream's fault. Maybe I can use less next time. As for the hardness, that's just what happens when they cool down. They're best fresh from the oven, when they're really soft."

Kushida took a sip of tea and gave her verdict. "Still, they go pretty well with tea."

Tsukishima took some more desserts and a few cups of tea out of his bag. "There's more here. After I leave, you can invite those gossips outside in for a little tea party or something. That'll stop them from getting the wrong idea, and you can explain our relationship, too."

Kushida rolled her eyes. "You sure are thoughtful. So, what information do you want me to find out for you? Or are you planning to screw someone over again?"

Tsukishima looked at her strangely. "I think you have a weird impression of me. Want me to screw you over while I'm at it?"

Kushida gave him a strange look, too. "Do you have no self-awareness at all? Seriously? Have you turned into a second Yamauchi? Well, at least you know to bring gifts."

They started chatting, and Kushida also told him about Ayanokouji approaching her and planning to hand out the test papers the day before the exam.

Tsukishima waved a hand indifferently. "What's that got to do with me? What does it matter to me where Ayanokouji got his information? Just be careful and don't overthink it. You won't be able to figure it out with that brain of yours. Exams are just a test of what you've learned so far."

"Study hard and keep improving."

He wasn't interested in the topic, so he changed the subject and teased her. "Speaking of which, you seem pretty comfortable with me now. Last time I came to your dorm, Horikita threatened you. Now you're bringing me here again. Are you trying to turn our act into reality and make our relationship official?"

Kushida ate a cream puff and rolled her eyes. "You wish. Didn't I let you into my room the first time because I was afraid Ayanokouji had planted a voice recorder in your dorm?"

"As for this time, after you leave, a bunch of bitches are bound to come ask me all sorts of nonsense. So leave a few of your sketches behind, along with some manga story drafts or something. That way, those bitches won't let their imaginations run wild, and I can salvage my reputation a little."

Tsukishima nodded, took a few rough sketches off his drawing board, then pulled out a sheet of paper and started scribbling on it. "I've got sketches ready. I'll have to come up with the story now. I draw stuff about succubi and saintesses, so I'll set it in a fantasy world. A brave hero ventures into another world to save it—that kind of trashy story."

"If they ask you for the earlier chapters, just say I took them with me and tell them to ask me. Let's see who dares. I'll tear into anyone who does."

Kushida casually gathered up the sketches and set them aside. "That should at least keep those bitches from spreading rumors as much."

As Tsukishima wrote the story, he complained, "Could you stop calling everyone bitches? Are you some kind of bitch hero from another world? Besides, you're so popular. Do people still spread rumors about you?"

Kushida gave a cold snort. "Hmph. You don't understand the world of girls. Those bitches complain to me and gossip about other people, and they gossip about me to everyone else. That's the world of girls, Tsukishima-kun. There are fifteen girls in our class. I'm in more than thirty group chats. I know about another ten I'm not in, and who knows how many more I don't know about. Heh..."

Tsukishima's mouth twitched. "How do you even keep up with all those chats? What if you send something to the wrong group? Wouldn't that be a disaster?"

"Just thinking about it scares me. A message here, a message there—it must take so much brainpower. Your fingers and screen must get tired, too. You don't mind all that work? Thank goodness my social circle's simple."

Kushida didn't reply. She just silently slurped her tea.

Was it tiring? Of course it was. Wasn't girls' social life a lot more exhausting than boys'? Boys could get into a fight and then go have a meal together, but girls could steal your boyfriend while making you think they were doing it for your own good.

But you got used to it. At least Kushida felt like she had.

Kushida really wanted to give herself a compassionate hug, but she didn't want to show Tsukishima her vulnerable side...

She watched Tsukishima sway to the soft music, and a mischievous idea began to form. Maybe I could use this to make him trust me more? And then...

And then what? It seemed the two of us were allies right now...

One of these days, I'll make that bastard lick my toes and be my footstool!