IA let go abruptly. “I’m sorry. That was inappropriate of me.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvVx6pWIvgK
Yukari croaked, “It’s okay.” She felt as if her skin was on fire. She took a few deep breaths and wiped her tears away.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡveMSQ9I9JN
IA tapped her fingers rapidly against the steering wheel. She looked down at her lap with drooping eyes and sighed.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4Mop5qtwIi
“Are you okay?” Yukari asked.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5OKfhVmZhj
IA’s eyes grew and she lifted her head, putting on a smile.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCg6w2qu6o9
“Of course I am. You’re here, aren’t you?”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHQf6ExhfDC
This comment sent the warmth from Yukari’s skin to her heart. She smiled and turned her head, covering her mouth.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw9xjljZkZN
IA started the car and continued driving as if nothing had happened. Yukari had gotten used to the speed at which she drove by now, but she remained on the lookout for speed limit signs and reminded IA of them whenever they passed one. IA slowed down a bit.
"Please don’t be upset when I ask this, but why do you drive so quickly?” Yukari asked.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvuo86EQLMB
IA chuckled. “I don’t know. I’m just always so excited to get to a different place that it kind of takes over me. If you weren’t here to bring me back to my senses, I don’t know what I’d do.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIRdmA5DqZq
Yukari’s smile grew bigger.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqYxdZ48L8l
At the apartment, IA wiggled her fingers for a while before taking a book off her shelf.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6AwMykm6QS
She immediately returned it to the shelf. Then she took it out again.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdRSvpJDPSA
“Okay, this one’s… Don’t judge me.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9ZY4xNDjy8
She handed it to Yukari while turning her head with her closed eyes scrunched up.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQFlQB9bWZi
Yukari gulped. It was a pulp novel that appeared to be translated into Japanese. The cover had two women in lingerie, one brunette lying on a bed and the other, blonde, sitting behind her with a mischievous expression. In the corner of the room they were in was a table with a coat and a magnifying glass on it.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡemhoJcOXvW
IA’s cheeks turned red. “Don’t get the wrong idea! It’s more than just love scenes. I wouldn’t show it to you if it was just that since, you know, that would be kind of weird. It’s a really intriguing mystery and has an interesting romance between the detective…” She pointed to the brunette. “... and the femme fatale she suspects is the murderer.” She moved her finger to the blonde. “It’s surprisingly good for a pulp novel, but the cover makes it a bit of a guilty pleasure. It has some more mature scenes but they’re not that often.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU6bp964WbQ
Yukari’s chest began to hurt from her heart pounding too hard. She nodded and held the book against her chest.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkXtdhJu5Oi
“I’ll give it a go. I’m eighteen, so I think I can handle it.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT4FvIoMBW5
“Good.” IA’s eyebrows were furrowed as if she felt guilty about something. “If you feel uncomfortable reading it, you’re not obligated to read the rest. You can just return it to me and we can forget I ever lent it to you.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKyI5LiTh6O
“I said it’s fine.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmwrl7lBwSH
The two fell silent, just standing there and looking away from each other. 837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtyzOnONAAB
IA gulped loudly. “Okay. I hope you enjoy reading it.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7XNeGbyiAP
Yukari nodded and bowed before leaving the apartment. 837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFSqptUMdf0
As she headed home she passed Roro’s house and frowned. Her own eyebrows furrowed with guilt, but she continued walking.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrlgYXgwU8i
When she finally made it home, she had dinner with her family. After that, she put her pyjamas on, lied down in bed and stared at her ceiling. One question tugged at her mind.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7bSmCU2VO0
‘Would it be wrong for her to date me?’837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdhAJFdQ4eB
There was no age issue, at least in terms of the law, as IA was twenty-two and she was eighteen, but Yukari was still a student at the school IA worked at. Then again, it wasn’t like IA was her teacher or anything like that. 837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzcldWpmMpb
She remembered what IA said.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZc2I4GsKab
"That was inappropriate of me.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWNje8B697V
Yukari sighed as Roro’s face popped into her head. Was that breakup all for nothing? 837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrcxbKy2FLD
She shook her head. He wouldn’t deserve to be led on like that. 837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPScCNx2S01
She opened the book and began reading it. Some parts of the novel were awkwardly worded, possibly as a result of a bad translation, but the mystery was as engaging as IA said it would be. 837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzhthtKiGRh
When Yukari made it to the first love scene, her entire body went hot. Clunky wording aside, the scene was undeniably attractive to her, and she pictured IA as the blonde girl on the cover as she read the scene. Eventually, she dropped the book and fantasised on her own, the scenario in her mind getting more and more explicit.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmvJnZellH9
When she was done fantasising, she continued reading until Roro’s frightened face entered her mind, convincing her to do homework. After that, she read a bit more until she went to sleep, which was around 11 or 12. It took around half an hour for her to fully fall asleep as the mystery of the novel consumed her mind.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI3fUnyTRZV
As soon as she woke up, she read some more before her mother yelled at her to have breakfast and go to school.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSuZ0v86HOM
She shoved the book in her school bag and did as her mother said. During class she kept getting distracted, trying to piece together the clues presented in the novel. She stared at Roro in the seat next to her. He looked back at her and frowned before turning his head and murmuring something she couldn’t hear. She felt her heart sink. 837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRnww6kqooz
When lunch started, she took her food with her to the library, saw the ‘no food’ sign and ran outside. She sat under a bridge from the classrooms to the club rooms and opened the book. 837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0B9narm4Ox
She managed to get near the end. She was so close, and the answer to the mystery was only a few pages away-837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR62y1F7R61
And then a teacher walked up to her. He was tall and had eyebrows so thick it felt as if he could crush someone with them. She hid the book behind her back and the teacher scowled at her.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDeKy8x7c7d
“Show me what you’ve got.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfigOaEwUKV
Yukari groaned but complied, her hands shaking as she held the book up. The teacher raised an eyebrow. 837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeM8nmyiL7I
“Come with me to the Principal’s office.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaQiazL6Dh9
“I-It’s not what you think! It’s a mystery novel!”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfB1wOFohTN
“Nice try.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT1bFCFoI7y
Yukari stood up, trying her best not to cry. She followed him to the Principal’s office, which was inhabited by a short man with a toupee. The teacher handed him the book and the Principal’s eyebrows jumped through the roof. Yukari lowered her head and bit her lip.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm1ztWbjIOS
“This is… I’ve never seen a girl bring this sort of material to school before. I’m going to have to call your parents.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPS3Z2KejLV
Yukari cried, “They don’t know! Please don’t tell them!”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsHnuZaw1Gu
The Principal shook his head. “This is very concerning. Now, where did you get this book?”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQP5yNGR6kL
“That’s…” IA’s pearly white smile jumped into her mind. “I bought it.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6uX2iuww5b
“And you brought this book here because…”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFMhyfuL8H1
Yukari turned her head and scrunched up her eyes. 837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlK5cs83hia
“I wanted to get answers to the mystery in the book. It’s a murder mystery. Look at the magnifying glass on the cover.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiT5pu9dH5t
The Principal stared at the cover, trying to keep himself from smiling.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNDihucBwTy
“I’ll have to confiscate this.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbFODypbcyh
“For how long?”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT814rU3WKs
“I don’t think a girl like you should be reading something like this.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqaQ87yzq9F
“But… please…. I’m really sorry. I won’t bring it in again.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoEb232h8lw
“Well, since this is your first offence, I guess I can give it back at the end of the week.” He ran his thumb against the cover. “Yes, a week should do. You’ll have learnt your lesson by then. I’m still going to have to call your parents. Come here after school for a meeting. And if you try to leave school before then, I think this book will look nice on my shelf.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU3ikRUMQqe
Yukari bowed and left. She headed to the library, finishing her food on the way.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6E2tTx5Pgu
“IA, can I talk to you about the book?” 837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6zzvH6vbqV
IA nodded, leading her to the librarian’s office. Yukari took a deep breath and bowed again.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqBS127rZsQ
“I’m really sorry.” She explained what happened.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaIvxQ5YRHh
IA’s eyebrows were furrowed as she rubbed the back of her neck.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK8ZxEjMgP0
“I… I see. The one who should really be sorry is me. Giving you that book… how inappropriate of me. Should I… stop giving you these books? I went too far. I knew this was a bad idea.” Yukari noticed that there were bags under IA’s eyes. 837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdp8zYci2lS
Yukari raised a trembling hand up to IA’s cheek.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeUYaOaUgMa
“It’s okay. I… I don’t want to end the time we’ve spent together. I do hav something to tell you, though. Hopefully it won’t end… whatever it is we have.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxdlgLufujl
IA turned away and took a book off the shelf, her breaths ragged. 837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGlc9ESnWnU
“I know what you’re going to say.” She and Yukari spoke at the same time. “You’re straight and feel weirded out by me giving you these books.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡR9ggLzHFzz
“I like you. Could we maybe, I don’t know, go out for coffee sometime?”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrz1hAa3Ahl
IA dropped the book and whipped her head around.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0DkekgnAMd
“Could you… repeat that?”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCG1CRBWG5t
Yukari’s cheeks went pink. “Well, I like you. You know that breakup with Roro? It was because I liked you more. You kind of made realise that I’m bisexual. I was thinking… maybe we could go out somewhere. I get it if you don’t want to! You probably want to keep your job. But we could keep it a secret if you want. But, you know, if you don’t want to… that’s cool… I’ll act cool as a cucumber. Cool as ice. Cool as… What am I saying?”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6VjvXkn6Xk
IA grinned and giggled, her eyes welling up with tears. She wrapped her arms around Yukari and started to cry on her shoulder.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaApwMSW8vc
“Thank you. Thank you so much!”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfbL2Pq2IjU
Yukari patted her head before stroking her hair.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiTU5bhnvkO
“I-Is that a yes?”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkuy79PgIqV
“It has to be secret, though. Are you sure you want to worry about keeping secrets?”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIgGTSeJY4A
Yukari chuckled. “So long as I don’t do anything as stupid as bringing a dirty book to school, I’ll be fine. By the way, please don’t spoil the ending. I didn’t get to finish it.” She released a short gasp. “Wait, can I tell Roro if he starts talking to me again? He already knows I like you and I know he won’t tell anyone.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQwXL8b30nU
IA frowned and let go. “I… I guess. No one else, though. Not even your parents.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkUA1c33J1R
Yukari eyes widened. “Oh god, my parents. Well, I’ll see you tomorrow since my parents are probably going to drag me home after this meeting. Thanks for reminding me.” Both her body and her voice shuddered as she shook her head like a dog trying to rid its fur of water after a bath.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxFVJwMVhUs
IA took several books off the shelf and made a pile of them, giving them to Yukari, who stared at her with one eyebrow higher than the other.837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7OiLAY1MOS
IA winked. “We have to keep this a secret, right? Don’t want to arouse suspicion around me taking you to my office.”837Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBZ9vbSCrFc
Yukari nodded with a smile. She turned towards the door and breathed slowly. She took a few moments to appreciate the moment she shared with IA before having to deal with her parents. For a few more seconds it was just her and the ghostlike librarian who became her girlfriend.
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