‘Can we pretend to be a couple to get the 30% discount coupon and matching keychains…?’
As the school bell rang and the Teacher stepped into the classroom, the students simultaneously returned to their seats to prepare for the lesson.
Akiba Sakura was still thinking about the matter regarding the coffee shop that Momoka Aoi had mentioned this morning.
A new plan for her conquest was quietly sprouting in her heart —
‘Don’t the male and female leads in novels or anime always have this kind of plot? The “pretend couple” trope… this is actually a pretty good plan for winning him over…’
Sakura tilted her head slightly, using her peripheral vision to glance at Yuuma Tsugumu.
‘Right now, this guy still feels guilty toward me because of what happened yesterday. The probability of him agreeing is quite high, so…’
Sakura withdrew her gaze and looked back up, locking her eyes on the Teacher’s whiteboard.
After all, she still had to maintain her facade of being a studious student.
‘So, I must seize this opportunity. If we pretend to be a couple often enough, Tsugumu will slowly sink deeper and deeper into my Gentle Attack — hehe…’
At that thought, the corners of Sakura’s mouth began to curl upward.
She could hardly suppress the joy in her heart, especially since this new plan sounded so reliable.
‘It’s all thanks to Aoi… Even though she was the one who wanted to go to the coffee shop and pretend to be a couple with Tsugumu at first — which is practically asking for trouble and deserves a severe punishment — well! I’ll forgive her since she was the inspiration for the plan and the one who provided the information!’
Sakura propped her chin up with her hand, her mind still mulling over the details of the plan —
‘If Tsugumu likes sweet things, then I can just happen to order sweet coffee. If he likes it bitter… then I’ll just have to suffer along with him. In any case, showing that we have the same interests is very important…’
“Alright — let’s find a student to answer the next question. Miss Akiba.”
At that moment, the Teacher on the podium pushed up her glasses and asked Sakura to stand and answer the question.
“The answer is the square root of three —”
She snapped back to reality, glanced at the problem, and provided the answer before she had even fully stood up.
“That is correct. The answer to this problem is indeed the square root of three. However, Miss Akiba, I know this problem is very simple for you, but please stand up before answering next time.”
“Yes, I understand, Teacher. Next time for sure!”
‘Maybe not next time, hehe~’
—
The bell rang to signal the end of class, and Sakura pushed aside her other thoughts, trying her best to make her expression look serious.
She walked over to Tsugumu’s desk and lightly tapped on its surface.
“Tsugumu… do you have some time today? Can we talk?”
“…”
Upon hearing Sakura’s voice, Tsugumu subconsciously turned his head away, but Sakura could still see the slight nod of his head.
“Then let’s pick a place to have a proper talk —”
At this time, Momoka Aoi also quietly sneaked over to the two of them, looking at them with a face full of confusion.
“What are you two whispering about?”
“Adults are talking, children shouldn’t butt in —”
“Huh?”
Looking at Sakura, who was actually a little bit shorter than herself, Aoi felt deeply wounded.
“Sakura, it really hurts when you say things like that —”
Aoi lunged forward and hugged Sakura, seeking comfort from the culprit herself.
“Alright, alright, I was just joking. Our Aoi isn’t a child at all~”
Sakura laughed and patted Aoi on the back, then gave Tsugumu a look.
Fortunately, before Aoi came over to “cause trouble,” she and Tsugumu had already chosen a meeting place — which was the coffee shop near the school gate that Aoi had mentioned.
Tsugumu thought that Sakura wanted to have a proper talk with him about what had happened yesterday.
It just so happened that he also had some things he wanted to say to her, so he had quickly agreed.
“So where are you guys going? Aren’t you going to take me with you?”
Aoi looked at Sakura piteously.
After all, when she had walked over, she seemed to have heard them making plans to go somewhere.
This feeling of being left out of a meeting between the two of them made her feel as if she were being isolated.
“We are going to…”
“Alright, Miss Momoka. Sakura and I are just planning to go meet someone at the park —”
At that moment, Tsugumu unexpectedly stepped forward to “explain.”
“An elder has returned from abroad. When we were little, Sakura and I were very close to him, so it’s only natural for the two of us to go. It wouldn’t be appropriate for you to come along.”
“Oh~ Is that so?”
Hearing Tsugumu’s words, Aoi looked at Sakura with a hint of suspicion.
“Mm-hmm, that’s exactly right.”
Sakura also nodded.
Her two small hands unconsciously toyed with her sleeves as she responded with a serious expression, “So Aoi, I really can’t take you with us this time~”
“Fine, fine. I’m not the type of person who can’t read the room, so of course I won’t pester you. I’m going to the restroom first, I’ll be right back~”
“Okay, go ahead —”
Aoi nodded with a smile, but the moment she turned around, her expression instantly became devious —
‘They must be lying. Sakura, Yuuma, you two must be secretly planning something… Hehe, I’ll secretly follow you after school and see what exactly you’re up to…’
“…”
As Aoi left, Sakura turned her gaze back to Tsugumu.
“…”
Feeling Sakura’s gaze, Tsugumu felt a little uncomfortable.
“Is there anything else…?”
“Well, Tsugumu, there’s one more thing I want to discuss with you. Is that okay?”
“…Go ahead and tell me.”
Tsugumu did not rush to refuse.
Normally, he would have declined immediately, as the “little devil” in front of him was always harboring wicked thoughts.
“Would you consider… cutting your hair a bit shorter? Especially the ban —”
“I refuse.”
‘What a fast refusal!’
Sakura was once again shocked by Tsugumu’s swift and powerful rejection.
Before she could even finish her sentence, she had been harshly rejected.
Every time this happened, Sakura couldn’t help but marvel at the speed of his refusals.
‘Dammit… Doesn’t this guy want to look handsome at all?’
In truth, the idea of having Tsugumu cut his hair to reveal his true appearance wasn’t part of the plan.
After all, in her NTR Plan, the “childhood friend” relationship was the most important factor.
But Sakura’s vanity was inexplicably acting up.
She thought about how she would be constantly trying to win him over in the days to come.
If he groomed himself to look a bit more handsome, no one would be able to gossip and say her taste was questionable —
‘Most importantly — if Tsugumu styles his hair and bangs to reveal that handsome face of his, I’ll be able to see his despairing, lifeless expression even more clearly… Hehe’
“Won’t you reconsider?”
“No —”
“Oh, alright then. I was just worried that your bangs are so long they’ll cover your eyes and you won’t be able to see where you’re going…”
“…”
This time, Tsugumu didn’t retort; he simply nodded silently.
‘What does that nod even mean?!’
Looking at the silent Tsugumu, Sakura was nearly driven to a frenzy —
‘Forget it, forget it. Everyone has their struggles. Since you’ve worked so hard to grow those long bangs, I’ll just find an opportunity to secretly snip them off!’
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