The answer was obviously yes.
Once Tatsuya Sakuya had decided to do something, backing out at the last moment wasn't his style.
Besides, he was her officially hired boyfriend now.
Offering a little comfort while his client slept could, in a sense, count as a thoughtful extra service.
As long as he was gentle enough, she wouldn't notice.
Tatsuya Sakuya raised his right hand again and slowly reached toward her.
His palm came to rest lightly on the girl's soft hair.
It was fluffier and softer than he had expected.
His fingertips followed the fall of her hair, stroking downward as his palm gently smoothed it.
Karuizawa Kei, slumped over the table, shivered a few times at the warmth of his touch.
Then, under the gentle rhythm of his hand, she relaxed completely.
The softness beneath his palm and the trust in her unguarded response made his hand pause for an instant. A subtle feeling stirred in his chest.
The girl who always carried herself like a haughty fashionista in class seemed remarkably docile now.
He was just about to withdraw his hand and end this brief overstep
when Karuizawa Kei suddenly opened her eyes, as though something had called to her.
Their gazes met at close range.
Tatsuya Sakuya's hand still hovered over her head. He hadn't had time to pull it away.
The air froze.
He snatched his hand back and hurried to get his excuse in first.
"There was a little bug just now. I was shooing it away for you."
Her reaction was immediate and explosive.
Karuizawa Kei shot upright, clamping both hands over her head.
Her cheeks turned a vivid, burning red.
"A—a bug? Don't lie to me. You were definitely taking advantage of me just now."
Her voice rose sharply, then cut off when she remembered they were in a café.
She could tell his hand had been there for more than a moment.
"And why is it evening already? Didn't I tell you to wake me after ten minutes?"
"You were working so hard, I thought you could use more rest."
"What about my progress?"
"I guess I'll just have to work overtime, then. By the way, what do you like to eat in the evening?"
The sudden question caught her off guard. Her mind was still foggy from sleep.
"What do I like to eat? Hmm... chocolate."
"Are you still half asleep? I asked what you want for dinner. Who eats chocolate for dinner?"
"If I have to pick, omurice."
Karuizawa Kei tried to give her food preferences some serious thought.
"All right. I promised to treat you to a big meal last time, too. Come somewhere with me."
"Where?"
"The supermarket, of course. How else are we going to buy ingredients?"
The supermarket at Keyaki Mall.
"Why are all the meat displays lit up like that? Everything looks so red."
Karuizawa Kei sounded curious.
It was practically her first time coming specifically to this section. She usually ate at the cafeteria and almost never cooked for herself.
"That shade of lighting is used to make the ingredients look fresh."
"Look closely. The meat section uses warm red light at 3000K. It's designed for fresh meat and makes it look redder and more appealing, so customers want to buy it."
"The seafood section uses neutral white light at 4000K. Its cooler tone makes the fish and shrimp look bright and fresh."
Tatsuya Sakuya answered her patiently.
"For omurice, we'll need chicken thighs, onions, carrots, and eggs."
"And ketchup. I like tomato-flavored omurice,"
Karuizawa Kei added.
Tatsuya Sakuya pushed a metal shopping cart ahead of them, while Karuizawa Kei followed at an easy pace.
He stopped at a refrigerated case, picked up a pack of diced chicken thigh, and checked the freshness date on the label.
Standing beside him, Karuizawa Kei caught their reflections in the case's glass out of the corner of her eye. She lightly tapped the bottom of the cart with her toe.
"Hey, pick chicken with less fat. I'll gain weight if it's too fatty."
"And you said you wanted chocolate earlier. Wouldn't that make you gain weight even faster?"
Tatsuya Sakuya swapped it for a pack with a higher proportion of lean meat and dropped it into the cart.
They continued down the aisle.
"That'll be two thousand four hundred points."
The cashier finished scanning the ingredients.
Tatsuya Sakuya held his phone to the reader. It beeped, and the payment went through.
"Thank you. Please come again."
The cashier pushed two filled white plastic bags toward them.
Tatsuya Sakuya picked up the two heavy bags.
"Let's go back to the dorm."
Karuizawa Kei reached for the bag of lighter snacks. "Give me one."
"All right. You can take the lighter one."
Carrying his bag, Tatsuya Sakuya passed through the checkout lane and headed for the supermarket exit.
Karuizawa Kei pressed her lips together and hurried after him.
One behind the other, they left the brightly lit supermarket.
Dormitory 217.
"Come in."
Tatsuya Sakuya opened the door and invited Karuizawa Kei into his room.
She stepped inside cautiously.
Rather than go farther, she stopped at the edge of the wooden entryway and took a careful look around.
"Well, I didn't expect your room to be this clean. I thought..."
"Thought what? I like keeping things tidy."
Tatsuya Sakuya cut her off.
"Try looking over the problems again. I'm going to make dinner."
He carried the ingredients into the kitchen.
Karuizawa Kei went to the desk and spread the test paper out again. At the sight of the dense mathematical formulas and symbols, the corner of her mouth twitched.
"Hey."
Resting her chin on both hands, she tilted her head toward the kitchen.
"You don't actually think I can understand these problems just by staring at them, do you? They might as well be written in another language. I'm hopeless at math."
"Stare at them anyway."
Without looking back, Tatsuya Sakuya chopped the chicken thigh with steady, rhythmic tap, tap, tap sounds.
"Read something enough times and it'll start to make sense. At least get familiar with the questions first."
"Hmph. Easy for you to say."
Karuizawa Kei gave a little snort and rested her chin on the desk.
"Anyway... do you usually cook for yourself?"
"Not really. I eat at the cafeteria most of the time."
"Cooking gives me something to do when I'm bored."
Tatsuya Sakuya tipped the chicken into the pan. It hissed loudly as he stirred it with a spatula.
"Get back to those questions."
"I know."
Karuizawa Kei quickly sat up straight and placed both hands on the paper again, pretending to study the first question in earnest.
She cleared her throat, hoping it would make her sound like she was concentrating.
Before you continue