Tokyo: Starting with a fake boyfriend

Although she was very curious, Shiratori Osamu chose to keep it a secret.

"Shiratori-kun, are you angry with me for what happened earlier? If you think I went too far, I can apologize to you."

Seeing his attitude, Dongyun Meiyue raised her clear and charming slender phoenix eyes, her gaze falling on his handsome face with a cold expression. She took a deep breath and then spoke sincerely.

Actually, she had noticed before that Shiratori-kun's whole demeanor changed after she severely reprimanded him.

Her emotions were no longer outwardly expressed, and she rarely showed her face. When you spoke to her, the words you used became very formal, as if you were talking to a stranger.

At the time, she thought that Shiratori-kun had a girlfriend, so it would be good to keep some distance... But after Shiratori Shushin distanced himself from her, she began to regret it, and she hated the way things were now.

She was just telling him to be mindful of boundaries, so why did he have to distance himself so much? Did he have to go to such extremes?

"No, I'm not angry, you don't need to apologize to me."

Shiratori Osamu was taken aback upon hearing this, and then shook his head.

"You're clearly angry. I can tell. You only ever have this expression when you're reading or doing tests. You're not like this normally!"

Realizing that even after she had said she was willing to apologize, he was still stubbornly refusing, Shinonome Mizuki bit her lip, feeling an immense sense of grievance welling up inside her. She took a few steps forward and angrily began to accuse him.

As far as she was concerned, she could understand whether Shiratori-kun revealed his secret with Mrs. Yamabuki or not, since keeping quiet was a good thing.

The key point is this guy's attitude towards her. His expression hardly changed, his emotions were completely flat, and he stood far away from her, looking very indifferent and giving people a very strong sense of alienation.

Shiratori-kun was definitely angry because of the argument that happened when he patted her shoulder earlier... But she had a reason for doing that, and she had already explained it at the time; she wasn't throwing a tantrum for no reason.

One is a young and beautiful female teacher, and the other is a notorious delinquent school bully. She and Shiratori Osamu were already quite famous at Takeno High School.

Now, because of their separate tutoring sessions on weekends, their partnership has become the focus of everyone's attention.

If she and Shiratori were simply tutoring each other, completely innocent and aboveboard, they naturally wouldn't be afraid of being gossiped about.

However, if she and Shiratori-kun don't pay attention to boundaries and distance, the consequences could be very serious if they are seen by others.

"..."

Seeing the indignant expression on her icy face, Shiratori, having learned from his previous misunderstanding, carefully analyzed her micro-expressions and psychology.

But no matter how he looked at it, the answer remained unchanged.

Ms. Dongyun seems angry. She feels wronged and is complaining about the unfair treatment she has received.

"Teacher Dongyun, you misunderstood me. I'm really not angry. On the contrary, I'm worried that you might be angry. The reason I have this expression is because I apologized and made a promise to you. In order to show that I admit my mistake, I am strictly following your instructions and paying attention to my words, actions and manners."

Realizing this, and to avoid any unnecessary misunderstandings, Shiratori Osamu had no choice but to explain things to her clearly.

"I just told you to watch your words and actions and not to suddenly have physical contact with me at school, not to stay away from me. You're just angry, that's why you're so cold to me and deliberately keeping your distance... um."

Seeing that he was still being stubborn, Shinonome Mizuki became anxious and raised her voice, but quickly stopped.

Because she suddenly lost control of her emotions, throwing a tantrum like a girl who had been neglected by her boyfriend, Shiratori Xiu reached out and covered her mouth, pulling her into the student guidance room while comforting her:

"Teacher Dongyun, what are you doing? You're making so much noise, aren't you afraid someone will notice?"

Given his previous experience, he didn't want any further physical contact with Ms. Dongyun, lest he damage her teaching certificate. However, his focused rationality told him that if he didn't stop her, things would become very complicated.

He covered her mouth and forcibly led her into the room. Dongyun Meiyue suddenly quieted down and just looked up at him.

She knew that Shiratori-kun had been angry.

Because this is the normal state for Shiratori-kun.

Although Shiratori becomes unusually calm and rarely shows emotional fluctuations when he's focused on studying, he does occasionally experience feelings like joy, surprise, or helplessness, rather than always wearing a sour face and keeping her at arm's length.

"calm."

He covered her mouth with his palm, feeling her warm breath. Shiratori looked into her slender phoenix eyes, hidden behind frameless glasses and adorned with a beauty mark, which were both aloof and charming. He gave her another instruction before letting go of her hand.

As he opened his hand, Shinonome Mizuki didn't say anything, but simply turned and walked towards the door.

"Teacher Dongyun, I just..."

Seeing her turn around, Shiratori was about to call out to her to explain, but he stopped after seeing what she was doing.

"Crackling".

After taking two steps to the door, Shinonome Mizuki did not go out, but instead closed the sliding door.

Why did she close the door?

Seeing this, Shiratori Osamu, who had assumed she was angry because of his act of covering his mouth, was taken aback and couldn't understand her thinking.

She closed and locked the door, then turned around and walked straight to him, grabbed his arms and lifted them up, placing them on her shoulders.

“You asked me before, and I meant whether it was possible to do this outside of school. I'll answer you again now. As long as no one sees us, it is indeed possible. I'm just worried that if you do it with me and someone sees us, it could cause unnecessary trouble.”

Recreating the scene from before, and upgrading him to have two hands, Shinonome Mizuki looked up at his blank gaze, took a deep breath, and explained.

Actually, she didn't mind Shiratori patting her shoulder at all; after all, that level of physical contact wasn't a big deal and showed that they had a good relationship. However, while it might be okay in private, it was really inappropriate in a corridor where someone could see them at any moment.

Chapter 81 Flirting (Thanks to the patron of [Yu Sheng Family] for their support)

Because her actions were so counterintuitive, even Shiratori Osamu, who had his hands on her shoulders, was completely bewildered.

No, beautiful lady, what do you mean by this?

This is like Shinonome Mizuki holding her teaching certificate, suddenly wondering, "Hey, is this flammable or non-flammable? Let's try it with a lighter," and then actually going to try it. It would be strange if it didn't catch fire.

Shiratori Osamu was stunned into silence by her sudden statement, unsure of what to do.

Take a picture... She wasn't wearing an off-shoulder top, but a suit and shirt. Even if it was a light summer style, with two layers of clothing, it didn't feel like anything.

If we don't film... they've already put it this way, and if we do nothing, it will embarrass her.

Go ahead and take the picture.

Finding that he didn't make a move, Higashion Mizuki, who was holding back her anger, frowned and spoke, her cold voice mixed with a hint of resentment.

She was really angry, aggrieved, and heartbroken after being treated so coldly by him.

She cherished Shiratori-kun like a treasure. After having dinner with her sister last night, she prepared today's lessons and then painstakingly devised a new academic enhancement plan for him to prepare for the University of Tokyo entrance exam in six months.

As a result, Shiratori-kun didn't take her seriously at all. He got angry just because she wouldn't let him pat her on the shoulder. He wouldn't listen to her explanation and was so cold and distant towards her.

"Crack...crack...crack..."

Seeing that she was clearly holding back her anger, Shiratori hesitated for a moment but decided to listen to her and began to pat her rhythmically, regularly, and with restraint.

It would have been better if they hadn't started filming, because once they did, he almost lost his composure.

Because the scene was so bizarre, people who didn't know the truth would probably think it was a bullying incident.

Seeing him start patting her shoulder, even though Shinonome Mizuki rarely smiled, she almost laughed out loud and her lips curled up.

When someone pats you on the shoulder while you're facing them, it's fine if they pat one side, as it feels like comfort and encouragement. But it feels strange if they pat both sides at the same time.

Moreover, Shiratori's expression of utter despair is quite amusing, as if he's saying, "Destroy it! Hurry up!"

"Slap... slap... slap"

Neither of them spoke, but their lips twitched slightly, as if they were participating in a challenge to suppress laughter.

The eerie shoulder-patting ritual continued for quite a while until the lunch break bell rang:

"Ring ring ring!"

Are you still angry?

Realizing it was lunch break time, Shinonome Mizuki looked up at him and asked.

"I'm not angry anymore."

During this time, Shiratori Shu, who had released his [Concentration] state, shook his head and withdrew his hand.

He really wanted to say that he wasn't angry at all, but just didn't want to attack her teaching qualifications, so he was consciously keeping his distance. However, in order to end this farce as soon as possible, he gave up on that idea and chose to play along.

"That's right. If you're angry in the future, just say so. I hope you won't treat me like that again. I hate it."

Relieved to receive this affirmative answer, Shinonome Mizuki looked at him with a hint of resentment.

This is the normal Shiratori-kun; he has emotional ups and downs and changes. His cold and ruthless state just now was obviously wrong and made people feel very distant.

"understood."

Although he didn't understand the situation at first, Shiratori Osamu has now realized that his act of keeping his distance had unintentionally hurt her.

Thinking about it carefully, even if he should indeed keep his distance from Professor Dongyun and be mindful of his boundaries, this approach shouldn't have been taken after the argument, as it could easily lead to misunderstandings... He seriously underestimated the damage his actions could cause.

Although Ms. Shinonome's serious and decisive manner makes her seem like a mature and aloof adult, she is actually just a young woman in her early twenties who has only been working for a little over a year. Coupled with her very earnest personality, her sudden change in attitude towards him, characterized by hot and coldness, immediately made her feel insecure and anxious.

"Shiratori-kun, if you ever want to pat my shoulder again, you can just tell me."

Having finally resolved the previous misunderstandings and disputes, Shinonome Mizuki, after some thought, clarified things once again.

Although patting someone on the shoulder is strange, she wouldn't mind doing it a few more times if Shiratori-kun liked it.

"Do you think I'm some kind of weirdo? Someone who likes to pat people on the shoulder?"

After figuring out what was going on, Shiratori decided to treat her the same way as before, as a mentor and friend, as long as he was careful to be mindful of boundaries when necessary.

"First of all, as long as it doesn't hurt or affect others, personal preferences are harmless. Secondly, what if you're a shoulder fetishist? Otherwise, why did you suddenly pat my shoulder before?"

Because of her extensive reading and extensive viewing of films, Shinonome Mizuki is well aware of the diversity of the human species. She raised her hand to adjust her glasses and said earnestly.

"I just wanted you to believe me... and even if there really are people who are obsessed with shoulders, it's impossible to get aroused by the shoulders of someone wearing a suit, right?"

Although what she said made sense, Shiratori Osamu didn't want to be labeled as a shoulder fetishist.

There are so many attractive and beautiful parts on a woman's body. If he really had to choose one, would it be that her breasts aren't beautiful enough? Or her buttocks aren't sexy enough? And then there are her beautiful legs and feet. No matter what, it wouldn't be her shoulders.

Even if there are terms like "pearl shoulders" and "fragrant shoulders," after taking so many pictures of his suit just now, even if he really liked shoulders, he lost all interest in them.

"..."

When Shinonome Mizuki was refuted like that, she looked down at her shoulder, paused, and choked.

Are you angry?

Seeing her head bowed in silence, Shiratori Osamu immediately had a bad feeling.

He had just managed to cheer the other person up with that strange shoulder-patting ritual, but could they have gotten angry again after just a few words?

“I’m not angry. I’m just wondering if you’re playing hard to get, deliberately lowering my guard so that I’ll wear an off-shoulder dress for you to see next time I have tutoring, and then you can take the opportunity to pat my shoulder.”

Shinonome Mizuki shook her head, indicating her emotional state, and then spoke in a serious tone.

Upon hearing this, Shiratori Osamu subconsciously looked at her shoulder.

While a suit jacket with bare shoulders might not be interesting, he would have to say something different if it were an off-the-shoulder outfit.

"Humph~"

Noticing his subconscious gaze, Shinonome Mizuki couldn't help but let out a soft hum.

They actually said her suit shoulders were uninteresting. Her shoulders are actually very beautiful, white, tender, and rounded; she just doesn't show them off.

Although she has never worn an off-the-shoulder top, her twin sister does, because they look exactly alike, so she knows what she looks like in an off-the-shoulder top.

"You should cherish your teaching certificate and stop messing with me."

When he noticed that she was even humming softly, Shiratori Xiuzhen was at his wit's end.

No, what exactly is she trying to do?

She had just been ignored by him, and suddenly she seemed like a completely different person, as if she had aged ten years and turned into a moody young girl.

"I was just guessing what you were thinking, I didn't say I wanted to wear it."

Upon hearing this, Shinonome Mizuki was taken aback, realizing that she had been playing with him too enthusiastically and had become carried away. She muttered something, turned around, and walked away.

"Teacher Dongyun, where are you going?"

Seeing her sudden movement, Shiratori realized that he couldn't keep up with her pace.

"It's lunch break time, I'm going to the cafeteria for lunch."

Because the atmosphere was starting to get awkward, Shinonome Mizuki didn't dare to play with him anymore, and left without looking back.

"Want some lunch?"

Watching her figure disappear around the corner, Shiratori Osamu turned to look at the table in the room and walked over.

He sat down and reached into the drawer, pulling out a bento box wrapped in a cloth bag, which his mother-in-law had brought him.

When he saw his mother-in-law off, he didn't take it with him... because he didn't want Dongyun-sensei to find out that his mother-in-law had given him, her son-in-law, a lunchbox along with her daughter.