Oh no! They all seem a bit off!

Chapter 198 Exposed
"I was harshly rejected."

Ji Yexue sat in a chair with her legs crossed, one hand on the table supporting her cheek, watching with great interest as Shiraishi Rin and Akizuki Makoto confronted each other.

Shiraishi Rin's moral compass surprised her somewhat. She had originally thought that Shiraishi Rin would be like that shameless woman, Shiina Maki, and accept Akizuki Makoto.

But it seems she was overthinking it. As expected, there are only two people like Shiina Maki who are shameless and Akizuki Makoto who are morally depraved.

No normal person could accept the ethical views of a scumbag like Akizuki Makoto.

"Shiraishi, calm down."

On Akizuki Makoto's side, he still wanted to try to persuade Shiraishi Rin, even though he had realized that it was almost impossible.

"How can I calm down, Akizuki-kun? What exactly do you want?"

Shiraishi Rin looked at Akizuki Makoto with trembling eyes, her face filled with undisguised fear, and said, "Do you know what you're doing? Does Maki-chan know? Will she allow it?"

It's impossible to imagine that she and Akizuki Makoto could get closer, right?
If Shiina Maki allowed it, it would be truly terrifying; she simply couldn't comprehend such an abnormal idea.

"To be honest, Maki doesn't know, and I will try my best not to let her know."

Akizuki sighed, looking slightly helpless, and said, "I'm sorry, this is for my own selfish reasons, so I won't explain why I did it."

"Shiraishi, didn't you want to repay me? Then don't ask any questions, just let me use you."

"I will do my best to bear whatever the consequences may be, although I cannot guarantee that Maki will not resent you if things are exposed."

At this point, he had made his purpose clear.

His goal was simple: to use Shiraishi Rin's desire to repay a debt of gratitude to make her compromise.

This was his only means; if he wanted Shiraishi Rin to compromise, this was the only way.

Shiraishi Rin has normal moral values, and she is good friends with Shiina Maki. It's impossible for her to betray Shiina Maki through feelings or words alone.

Although it was despicable to use gratitude as a pretext, he had already made up his mind to give up everything for Ji Yexue.

If anyone's to blame, it's Shiraishi Rin's bad luck to be targeted by Himeyasuki, and then happen to owe him a huge favor.

It can be said that Shiraishi Rin's life was saved by him. If he hadn't intervened, Fuyuko would never have taken action, and her fate would have been death.

"This this……"

Shiraishi Rin trembled, caught in a dilemma.

Torn between betraying her best friend and being savior, she was in a truly difficult position.

But if she had to choose, she would still choose...

"Akizuki-kun, you really did something terrible, I will never forgive you."

Shiraishi Rin gave in as if surrendering, revealing a bitter smile of utter helplessness.

A life-saving grace surpasses everything; even if it means betraying her friends, she has no choice but to comply, right?
She was acutely aware of the fear of impending death and the yearning for life, and therefore felt especially grateful to Akizuki Makoto.

She couldn't leave this kindness unreturned, or she would be restless and unable to eat or sleep.

Although, betraying Shiina Maki would certainly make her restless and unable to eat or sleep.

"Hate me all you want, as you say, I'm a terrible man."

Even after being scolded, Akizuki Makoto still smiled, though his smile was filled with a sense of loneliness.

"Alright, let's sit down and talk."

"……OK."

Shiraishi Rin obediently sat down, returning to sit next to Akizuki Makoto, her heart filled with nervousness.

"Pretty capable, huh? What a despicable and shameless man, willing to go to such lengths to achieve his goal. How terrifying..."

Ji Yexue was slightly surprised; the situation had been reversed by Qiuyue Cheng in an instant.

Although this was something to be happy about, since Akizuki Makoto was acting according to her instructions, she couldn't feel happy at all.

There's no way around it, she's just that kind of awkward woman. She wants Akizuki Makoto to get close to Shiraishi Rin, but she also doesn't want Akizuki Makoto to get close to her.

This conflicting feeling made her somewhat irritable, and she wanted to vent her frustration.

"In short, you don't need to do anything; I'll take the initiative."

Akizuki Makoto explained to Shiraishi Rin that, as he said, he intended to completely exploit Shiraishi Rin.

Shiraishi Rin only needs to cooperate with him, without resisting or raising objections.

Even if it's an intimate gesture that crosses the line, don't resist.

"What exactly are we trying to do? I really don't understand the point of doing this."

Shiraishi Rin gently rubbed her cheeks, looking at Akizuki with a reproachful expression, and muttered unhappily, "If Maki-chan finds out, she'll definitely be angry with me."

Even if Shiina Maki knew that she was coerced and forced to agree because of the life-saving grace, she probably still couldn't forgive her.

Betrayal is like rubbing salt into a wound, especially when it's betrayed by someone you consider family or friends.

If Shiraishi Rin put herself in his shoes, she would be so heartbroken she wanted to die.

"I'm sorry that my selfishness has troubled you."

Faced with Shiraishi Rin's complaints, Akizuki Makoto could only apologize, and then forked off a small piece of thin pancake and fed it to Shiraishi Rin's mouth.

"?!"

Shiraishi Rin was stunned for a moment before realizing that Akizuki Makoto was going to feed her.

In that instant, her cheeks flushed red at a visible speed, quickly turning bright red.

"Woooo..."

Shiraishi Rin bit her lip, a look of hesitation on her face. After a long while, she closed her eyes, revealing a look of resignation, and slightly opened her mouth to eat the pancake that Akizuki Makoto put to her lips.

"..."

Having witnessed everything, Ji Yexue's eyes darkened, and her hands unconsciously clenched.

She had no recollection of giving Akizuki Makoto any instructions to feed Shiraishi Rin.
What is this guy doing on his own initiative? Has he forgotten that he was coerced?

Why does it feel like Akizuki Makoto is actually enjoying himself, and that he did it willingly?
"This guy is too arrogant..."

Ji Yexue muttered to herself, determined to teach Qiuyue Cheng a lesson later.

……

……

Let's go back to right after school.

After saying goodbye to Makoto Akizuki, Maki Shiina also left the classroom to join Rie Niijima in the second year.

"Eh, that's strange. Akizuki-senpai left because of something, and Rin-chan isn't here either."

After hearing Shiina Maki's explanation, Niijima Rie was a little surprised, but then she smiled and said, "Well, let's just ignore them then. I know a coffee shop with good reviews, let's go try it?"

"Well... okay."

After hesitating for a moment, Shiina Maki nodded in agreement. She had come to find Niijima Rie because she wanted to go somewhere fun together.

Now that the Light Music Club has essentially disbanded, it would be too early to go home like this.

Originally, she was thinking of going to the craft club to play with Dongzi, but Dongzi wasn't participating in club activities today and said she would go straight home.

Therefore, it seemed that going to eat dessert with Rie Niijima was her only option. Although it wouldn't be as lively with just the two of them, as they usually went in groups of three, it was still better than going alone.

"Hehe, this is the store. Some famous TV series and anime have been filmed here. The environment is very nice, isn't it?"

Rie Niijima smiled and took out her phone, showing Shiina Maki the detailed information and reviews of the store.

"It looks great, how did you find it?"

Shiina Maki looked at the store's location; it was in Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, a place she remembered—it was indeed a scenic area.

“I already knew about it, but it suddenly came to mind today, so I thought I’d invite you guys over.”

"That's right..."

The two walked and talked, and after changing their shoes at the shoe cabinet, they left the school together.

"Wow, isn't that Akizuki-senpai's new novel? I'll buy a copy!"

As they walked to the station, they passed a bookstore, and Rie Niijima spotted the sign displayed at the entrance.

So she immediately dragged Shiina Maki into the store and bought seven or eight books in one go.

Seeing this, Shiina Maki asked with some confusion, "Rie-chan, why did you buy so much?"

"Of course! Give it to a friend, and help Senior Qiuyue boost her sales!"

Rie Niijima stuck out her tongue and laughed, "Maki-chan, why did you buy two more? Is it even necessary?"

"This one……"

Shiina Maki blushed a little and said softly, "I'll buy one for myself and then give one to my mother."

"That's great, I can brag to my family about having such a wonderful boyfriend."

Rie Niijima immediately understood what Maki Shiina meant and teased, "I'm so envious of Maki-chan. I also want to find a boyfriend I can brag about... or a girlfriend."

Of course, if possible, she would still like to find a girlfriend.

"Rie-chan is so cute and has such a lively and cheerful personality, it would be easy for her to find a boyfriend, right?"

"No, no, the boys in our class are all idiots, completely unreliable."

Rie Niijima pursed her lips. Teenage girls are often more mature than boys, and their thoughts are also more different.

High school boys will only do silly things when they like someone.

As soon as they see someone they like coming over, they'll do something inexplicable.

For example, suddenly starting to playfully fight with a friend and knocking the friend down.

Or perhaps you were suddenly being teased, and your friends started to cheer you on.

How could such childish behavior possibly win a girl's heart? Yet they think they're so cool.

“Cheng-kun… is special.”

Shiina Maki spoke softly, a happy smile unconsciously spreading across her face.

Even without comparing her to others, she knew that Akizuki Makoto was outstanding and special.

Although there were excesses and bad aspects, these were like the moon, while Akizuki Makoto himself was the sun. His existence caused the moon to disappear.

"Stop showing off your love, don't you show it off enough already?"

"Hehe, sorry, I just couldn't help it when I mentioned Cheng-kun."

"Ha, what an idiotic couple, they should just get married already!"

Amidst laughter and conversation, the two left the bookstore, arrived at a nearby station, and took a tram to Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden.

On the bus, Shiina Maki sent several messages to Shiraishi Rin on her phone, asking if she was free and if she wanted to come for afternoon tea.

Unfortunately, after sending the message, I didn't receive a response for a long time.

"What is Rin doing? It's so strange. Usually, even if she has something to do, she will tell us before she leaves."

After noticing that Shiina Maki was messaging Shiraishi Rin, Niijima Rie couldn't help but say, "Could she be doing something shady right now? Has something bad happened again?"

"Don't talk nonsense."

Shiina Maki immediately retorted, scolding, "Rin-chan must have had something urgent to attend to, which is why she didn't have time to tell us."

"Hehe, that would be great. It would be troublesome if something like what happened before happened again."

Even though several months have passed since that incident, Rie Niijima still feels deeply saddened when she thinks about it.

After all, her worldview was completely overturned from that day on.

From that moment on, she never dared to watch horror movies again.

Since she has superpowers, it's not surprising that she has ghosts, right? She's terrified of them.

"What is Cheng-jun doing right now...?"

Shiina Maki also sent a few messages to Akizuki Makoto, asking if he would be coming home for dinner that night, and if so, what he would like to eat.

Now, she spends one week with her mother and the other week in Bunkyo Ward.

It just so happens that this week is her turn to stay in Bunkyo Ward, and she's basically the one who cooks dinner.

This was something she volunteered to do; she felt happy and content cooking for Akizuki Makoto.

Seeing that Shiina Maki was staring at her phone, Niijima Rie peeked over and said with a grin, "You two are really inseparable, how far have things progressed?"

"Ugh, stop peeking!"

Shiina Maki immediately turned off her phone in a panic, her cheeks slightly flushed.

The chat history with Akizuki Makoto was all her unilateral flirting, which she couldn't let anyone see because she was too shy.

"What does it matter~"

Rie Niijima hugged Maki Shiina tightly, teasing her with a giggle, "You mean you've already done it? You definitely have, right?!"

She knew perfectly well that Shiina Maki lived next door to Akizuki, and that she lived alone. She wouldn't believe that nothing had happened.

"No, I don't understand what you're saying."

Shiina Maki's face turned even redder, and her ears turned bright red as well.

"Haha, so cute~"

Rie Niijima laughed even harder, relentlessly pressing for answers and teasing Maki Shiina.

After that, until the train arrived at Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, she kept asking Shiina Maki and Akizuki Makoto about how far things had progressed, making Shiina Maki extremely embarrassed.

Although Shiina Maki didn't say it explicitly, Niijima Rie keenly sensed from her reaction that the two of them had definitely done it!
But that's normal, since they're all in the restless period of youth, and that kind of atmosphere will arise whenever they're alone together.

"This is it."

After getting off at Shinjuku Gyoen Station, Rie Niijima pointed to the classically styled cafe, where they were now standing on the side of the shop.

From here, you can see the interior of the store through the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Rie Niijima glanced casually at the floor-to-ceiling window, and the smile on her face instantly froze.

"...Hey, Maki-chan, shall we go to another store? I suddenly don't want to come to this store anymore."

(End of this chapter)