Chapter 46: Classmate Fujiang, she won't notice...

With fine weather and bright sunshine, it was a perfect day to burn some sanitary pads.

"Hey, do you think there's any way for girls to just skip their periods?"

Closing the small stove and listening to Tomie's absurd question, Uto Kayash fell into deep thought.

"Normal females can avoid menstruation by undergoing a hysterectomy. In your case... have you tried plugging it up?"

Hearing this, Tomie lowered her arms which had been crossed over her chest, slipped off one of her slippers, and kicked Uto Kayash directly, gnashing her teeth in sheer exasperation.

"Could you spit out something more sensible for once?"

"I was merely offering a suggestion."

"Uto Kayash...!"

As her voice trailed off, Tomie leaped forward like a face-hugger, pouncing on Uto Kayash and biting fiercely into his shoulder.

"Hiss... It's leaking, it's leaking!"

After a brief bout of scuffling, Tomie was lying on the living room sofa while Uto Kayash sat beside her, massaging her lower abdomen.

"I told you not to drink it, but you went ahead anyway... Hurting now, aren't you?"

Tomie put down her comic book and pouted unhappily.

"I can already undergo accelerated regeneration; who would have thought it would still hurt?"

"Do you still need to take a dump then...?"

Slap!

Before Uto Kayash could finish, Tomie delivered a full-force blow to his back that nearly knocked his soul right out of his body.

Her palms must be cursed—Tomie definitely had cursed palms!

Watching Uto Kayash gasp for air from her casual slap, Tomie hurriedly sat up to comfort him.

"No way, I was just swatting you casually..."

Uto Kayash glared at her resentfully.

"Have you any idea how much it hurts when you hit someone?"

Realizing Uto Kayash was genuinely angry, Tomie stuck out her tongue with a cheeky smile and quickly planted a kiss on his lips.

"Well, I've never hit myself before."

Too lazy to argue with her, Uto Kayash accepted his fate. Now, the pain of one had successfully become the pain of two.

Annoyed as he was, Uto Kayash continued to rub her lower abdomen.

After all, she was Tomie...

Uto Kayash's attentiveness brought a surge of satisfaction to Tomie's heart. Overwhelmed by the emotion, she sat up, straddled his lap, wrapped her arms around his neck, and began playfully nibbling at him all over.

However, before Uto Kayash could gently push her away this time, Tomie furrowed her brow and slightly loosened her grip around his neck.

"You're hurting me."

Tomie's soft cry brought Uto Kayash back to his senses, which had been clouded by a sudden wave of dark, violent urges. He quickly pushed Tomie aside and moved to the edge of the sofa.

Up on the second-floor landing, little Tomie watched their interaction through the banister gaps and muttered a curse under her breath.

He was already being so careful; why did you have to open your big mouth and complain to him right then?!

So what if it hurts a bit?!

If you can't handle it, I will!

The strong reproach echoing from little Tomie in the back of her mind caused the bewildered Tomie to hurriedly scramble back to Uto Kayash's side.

"Kayash, I didn't mean to push you away..."

Seeing Tomie's flustered and helpless expression, Uto Kayash smiled and pulled her into his arms.

"I know, it's just that I really couldn't quite control myself just now..."

Just moments ago, the urge in Uto Kayash's heart to pin Tomie down and ravage her had reached an unprecedented height. If not for Tomie's soft cry, something irreversible might have happened.

Seeing the somewhat wistful look in Uto Kayash's eyes, Tomie felt deeply saddened.

Yet she had no idea how to express it. For the very first time, she felt a sense of resistance against her own uncontrollable, eerie allure.

The two of them simply held each other in silence for a very long time.

Up in the hallway, little Tomie covered her forehead in speechlessness as she watched them through the gaps.

What an absolute fool...

If she had just opened up a little bit, the first-time milestone would have been achieved.

So what if it hurts a bit? So what if there's a little blood?

Without undergoing desensitization therapy, when on earth are they ever going to consummate this?!

Such a useless teammate...

Count me out, I'm out of here...

Tomie possessed the innate sensitivity of a young woman, and the sudden incident earlier left the pretty girl feeling somewhat depressed for the rest of the day.

Not knowing how to cheer her up under such circumstances, Uto Kayash could only keep her company in silence.

Fortunately, Tomie wasn't the type to dwell on negative emotions for long. After a while, she transformed back into her usual spoiled, capricious self.

"I want to go swimming..."

"Swim my foot. You want to dye the entire pool red?"

Lying on the sofa, Tomie kicked Uto Kayash and let out a yawn.

"I want to go camping, then lie on the grass and count the stars~"

"Mosquitoes, ants, and stink bugs warmly welcome you."

"...."

"Get lost outside!"

Banished from the sofa by Tomie, Uto Kayash felt deeply aggrieved.

This is my house!

Grumbling aside, Uto Kayash still began pondering suitable locations for camping.

"Shall we go to Mount Asai?"

"Mount Asai? Isn't that pretty far?"

"Yeah, we can take a bus there when the time comes."

Tomie rolled her eyes as she lay on the sofa.

"Who's taking a bus with you... When are we leaving? I'll have someone drive us. Oh, and by the way, remember to get your driver's license."

"Four days from now, then? Right at the start of the break, and by then your period should be just about over. How does that sound?"

Tomie thought about it for a moment and nodded in agreement with Uto Kayash's arrangement.

Four days passed in the blink of an eye, bringing them to a secluded pool deep within the Mount Asai mountain range.

Having changed into denim hot pants and sneakers, Tomie wore a short-sleeved top and sunglasses as she soaked her fair feet in the water.

Not far away in the shade of the trees, Kayoko—dressed in a printed logo t-shirt, matching hot pants, and a ponytail—was helping Uto Kayash set up the tent.

Glancing at Kayoko's bouncing curves and her surprisingly mature, voluptuous figure that belied her years, Tomie frowned slightly.

How on earth could someone be so absurdly gifted by nature...

Unlike Tomie's wandering thoughts, Uto Kayash was actually having a rather agonizing time.

In the process of pitching the tent, close contact was inevitable. Every time he looked down or raised his head, a generous view was thrust right into his field of vision.

Even though Uto Kayash tried his absolute best to control where he looked, he couldn't stop Kayoko from stepping closer with flushed cheeks yet refusing to look away...

"Kayoko, hand me the pole..."

The fleeting depression caused by a slight, accidental brush of contact made Uto Kayash quickly shift away.

"Kayash-kun... here you are..."

Guiltily, Uto Kayash glanced over at Tomie, who was sitting on a boulder observing tiny fish fry, and gave a stiff nod.

Once the tent was fully pitched, Uto Kayash called out in the direction of Tomie.

"Don't go wading around in the water trying to catch fish for no reason, you might slip!"

"Got it, mind your own business!"

Frustrated after failing repeatedly to catch a single fish and locking horns with them, Tomie snapped back angrily, completely ignoring the two people currently sitting by the tent.

"Have some water, Kayoko."

"Thank you, Kayash-kun~"

A stray droplet slipped from Kayoko's chin, plunging down into her deep cleavage.

Not daring to look any further, Uto Kayash averted his eyes in a hurry.

Taking in every detail of Uto Kayash's reaction, Kayoko clutched her bottled water with reddened cheeks. For a moment, an awkward silence hung between them.

"Um..."

"What is it?"

Glancing down at Tomie, who was now hidden behind a boulder in a squatting position, and then back at Uto Kayash, Kayoko took several deep breaths and finally mustered up her courage.

"Kayash-kun..."

"?"

"You... you can touch them, if you want..."

"...."

"Tomie-san won't find out..."

As he looked into Kayoko's moisture-filled, pleading eyes, the shrill chirping of the cicadas suddenly faded entirely from Uto Kayash's ears.