Yukino had "occupied" Haru on the rooftop for nearly fifteen minutes.
For her, that already counted as a pretty bold move.
Kissing him up there? That was the least of it—no one would see anyway.
The real leap was in her attitude. With her usual reserved nature, doing something like this was completely out of character.
Especially when she watched him land smoothly and head off to fetch Utaha and Megumi—the blush on her face hadn't faded one bit.
He had never been the shy type. The moment she gave him permission, his hand moved fast.
Yukino had only meant to let him touch her calf, but the guy went straight under her skirt…
"I must be insane…"
She muttered under her breath, pressing her burning cheeks with both hands under the cover of night.
Later, Haru brought the other two girls up one by one.
He looked like a wall-climbing Spider-Man, but in reality, he was floating on air.
That's why he told them to keep their eyes closed—for the sake of the "surprise," of course.
After all, this inn's exterior walls had almost no footholds. Even the best climber wouldn't be able to scale them without gear.
Neither Utaha nor Megumi peeked during the ride up.
Even girls sometimes liked to indulge in a little mystery and romance.
And Haru had delivered.
When it was Megumi's turn, he originally intended to carry her on his back—just to avoid suspicion.
But Megumi casually said she didn't mind being carried in his arms, and even wrapped her arms around his neck.
With her eyes closed, cheeks pink, and lashes fluttering from nervousness, she looked genuinely adorable.
It was that rare, bashful side of her that finally confirmed it for Haru —this girl did, in fact, like him.
Unlike before, where she always found some "perfectly reasonable excuse" to see him, keeping him guessing…
Tonight, she'd finally shown her hand.
Even if it was just a small glimpse.
The four of them sat on the rooftop for a while, enjoying the evening breeze. The girls snapped a few photos of the night sky and the forest before he guided them back down.
Not long after they each returned to their rooms, there was a knock on Haru's door.
He got up to answer—and found Yukino standing outside.
"So, my time of judgment has arrived?" he said dryly.
Yukino gave a satisfied nod. "I'm glad you're at least self-aware."
He stepped aside to let her in, catching the soft scent of her freshly showered skin as she passed.
"You're just casually showing up like this?" he asked, glancing in the direction of the neighboring room where the other two girls stayed.
Yukino gave him a puzzled look. "Was I supposed to sneak in or something?"
Then a sly smile tugged at her lips. "Or are you afraid that our dear senpai will try to stop me?"
He led her to the sofa and shook his head with a chuckle. "Impossible. Whenever she's around you, she's always at a disadvantage. I'd bet even she knows she doesn't have the guts to block your way."
"And that's what makes her smart," Yukino replied with a satisfied nod.
Haru agreed.
Whether Utaha was acting or not, it helped lower Yukino's guard. Otherwise, there's no way she would've agreed to let the two girls join them for the fireworks trip.
Arms crossed, Yukino took a seat and looked at him with a serious expression. "Alright, you've had enough time to prepare. Now tell me everything. The whole story."
He blinked. "Didn't I already tell you earlier?"
"You were way too vague. I want the full version."
There was a pause. Then Haru suddenly asked, "You know what the phrase 'Bāoyè' means in Chinese, right?"
Yukino froze for a second, caught off guard by the sudden topic switch.
She answered seriously, "Yes, you've told me before. It usually refers to booking an all-night session at an internet cafe."
He gave her a meaningful look. "We're obviously not talking about internet cafes."
"…So what are you talking about?"
"Do you know what people usually do during an all-nighter?"
"I don't."
"They do it all night."
"...???"
That answer earned him a swift kick from Yukino's flushed foot.
Of course, "kick" might be a bit harsh—it was more like a flustered tap with her heel. But still, her face was practically glowing.
Yukino was sharp. Even if she wasn't familiar with something, she could always read his tone and expression—and put the pieces together fast.
Which is exactly why he got kicked.
"I already know what you did with that senpai of yours."
Her voice was flat, but her face was anything but calm.
Haru looked awkward.
But Yukino wasn't about to let him off the hook. "So it seems that movie had more of an effect on her than I thought. To think it actually got her that worked up… What a hopelessly self-indulgent woman. Of course, you're just as bad."
He really wanted to shoot back: Didn't you go take a shower and change your underwear halfway through that movie too?
But his survival instinct screamed don't say it.
So instead, he changed the subject. "So, uh… what do you want to do now?"
Yukino gave him a cool stare. "I'm just here to sit for a bit, then I'll go back."
An idea sparked in his mind. "Wanna finish the movie from earlier?"
"The movie?"
"Yeah. We never got to the end of it."
Yukino went silent.
Her face slowly turned pink again, and her voice came out quieter. "…Are you serious?"
Haru nodded, face sincere. "There were other people around earlier, so I had to stop it. But now it's just the two of us. No reason to hold back."
He leaned forward slightly. "I could tell you were really interested in the cinematography. As someone who's kinda a professional, I'd be happy to give commentary."
Yukino didn't reply.
But her eyes said it all—she was tempted.
Like he said, they were a couple. Childhood friends who'd grown up together. There was no need to keep overthinking things.
Then Haru dropped the final bait. "What, is a mildly spicy romance movie too much for the legendary Miss Yukinoshita to handle?"
She gave him a sharp glare. "Such a low-effort provocation… and you're actually using it?"
"So… yes or no?"
"Okay."
With Yukino's quiet agreement, Haru began searching for the movie.
Years of "torrent experience" weren't just for show.
Even though Japan strictly cracked down on that kind of content, as long as there was demand, someone out there would always be supplying it.
He had exchanged tips with classmates before—plenty of them had their own methods for finding things.
Those who knew what they were doing had already opened their browsers. The clueless ones were still wondering what "magnet links" even meant.
He found the movie quickly. After dimming the lights in the room, he patted the bed invitingly."Come here."
Yukino, cheeks already flushed, walked over and gave him a pointed glare."You planned this, didn't you?"
"Nope. Spur of the moment."
"You mean spur-of-the-moment lust, right?"
"Exactly!"
His shameless honesty left her speechless.
The two of them sat on the bed and started watching Last Tango in Paris.
A flick of her slender finger, and the progress bar jumped—right back to the scene where they'd paused earlier in the day.
Despite the film's critical acclaim and its heavy-hitting award nominations, the content was undeniably provocative.
The intimacy between the leads went far beyond the two scenes they'd seen earlier.
As the film progressed, the room fell into silence, broken only by Yukino's uneven breathing.
Her face gradually turned a deeper shade of red, the heat spreading to the tips of her ears, which glowed with a seductive blush.
Haru slipped an arm around her slender waist and murmured a casual critique,"Some of these intimate scenes feel kind of excessive. Feels like the director did it on purpose."
"Yeah… a bit too much," Yukino nodded, her cheeks burning. She didn't say a word about the hand now resting on her waist.
The longer they watched, the hotter her face became. Eventually, her eyes shimmered with waves of allure, soft and unfocused.
She bit her lip tightly. Her mind started to slow, her thoughts dissolving as her attention drifted toward Haru.
She could hear his steady breathing. She could smell the faint scent of lemon from his shampoo.
Watching a movie like this, in a place like this… she realized she was starting to lose control.
Then he whispered softly, "Still pretending you're fine?"
Yukino froze.
What did he mean by "pretending"?
Her mind was hazy, but she was still Yukinoshita Yukino. It only took her three seconds to understand what he meant.
She had been pretending to be calm when they watched this movie earlier in the day—and he had clearly noticed. That's why he started teasing her, trying to force her to reveal her flustered, unguarded side.
That's when she realized—she was sweating.
Still, pride held her back. "Are you spouting nonsense again…? A-Ah!"
Before she could finish, Haru had already made his move.
His hand slipped under the hem of her pajamas in a surprise attack.
Yukino's body instantly lost strength.
With one hand, he paused the movie; with the other, he gently pulled her into his arms.
Their eyes met, inches apart. He could see the shyness and nervousness flickering in her gaze, just as she could see the excitement in his.
When his hand brushed her flushed cheek, her breathing hitched. Her heart felt like it was going to leap out of her chest.
"What… are you trying to do?" Yukino asked, already knowing the answer.
He didn't answer right away. Instead, his fingers trailed down from her soft cheek, lingered briefly at the base of her neck—feeling the pulse beneath her porcelain skin—then rested on her shoulder.
He wasn't even trying to hide his intentions anymore. Yukino knew exactly what he wanted.
Still clinging to a sliver of restraint, she whispered, "They saw me come here… If I don't go back, I'll lose face."
Haru chuckled. "We're a couple. Why would that embarrass you?"
Yukino blinked, caught off guard. Her eyes softened.
And in that moment—she let go.
Biting her lip, breath trembling, she asked in a low voice, "What position did senpai use this afternoon?"
Her question stunned Amamiya into silence. He instinctively answered, "She held onto the wall—"
"That's enough. I get it."
Yukino quickly cut him off.
Her cheeks were burning—visibly and unmistakably red.
She was clearly embarrassed.
But embarrassment didn't mean hesitation.
If anything, Yukino was bold—decisive.
Just like when she grabbed his collar on the rooftop, she wasn't afraid to take charge.
She was the rightful queen, the main heroine—and she wouldn't be outdone by Utaha.
What Utaha could do, she could do just as well—if not better.
Meanwhile, in another room...
Utaha stared at the time on her phone and muttered, "So she's not coming back tonight, huh…"
She had actually planned to sneak in for a late-night ambush.
Her cooldown had long reset, and she was more than ready.
But earlier that afternoon, she'd been defeated embarrassingly fast—and Haru still looked perfectly fine afterwards.
That led to a ridiculous thought creeping into her head: "If Yukinoshita and I went at him together… would he still win?"
The thought vanished as quickly as it came—but it etched itself into her mind.
Not far from her, Megumi lay on her bed under a thin blanket, holding her phone above her face.
It was a dangerous position—if she got distracted, the phone might slip and hit her right in the face.
Luckily, though her thoughts were a little scrambled, she wasn't that careless.
Her browser still showed her recent search history: "Where to watch Last Tango in Paris full movie?"
She had planned to slip into Haru's room in the middle of the night with the excuse: "Let's finish the movie from earlier together."
But now… that was no longer an option.
The next morning.
On their way home, Yukino kept up a cold, distant air—like a sign reading "Do Not Approach."
No matter how subtly Utaha tried to tease her with comments like, "Looks like someone had a fun night,"
Yukino didn't respond.
After all, her legs were still sore.
In moments like this, silence was her best defense.
Only silence could preserve her dignity as the main heroine—and suppress the storm of embarrassment inside.
When the weekend ended, life returned to normal.
A week later, the Photography Club's short film was finally published online.
Haru handled the social media account, uploading the film under Yukino's name, and began promoting it.
All with her permission.
Online feedback didn't bother her in the slightest, so when the video started gaining attention, she calmly scrolled through the comments.
To her delight, most of the feedback was overwhelmingly positive—and it was clear they weren't fake reviews paid for by Haru.
But a lot of people were still skeptical.
"How can a high school student shoot something this polished?"
"This can't be a student project, right?"
Yukino couldn't care less.
Even the school principal made time to speak with her and Haru, saying he really liked the short film.
Especially the school motto they added to the credits—he loved that part.
That night, Yukino was casually browsing through comments again.
And that's when she spotted a suspicious username:"FanOfKatsushikoBooks."
This person was actively fighting back against the haters in the comment section—armed with references, quotes, and an arsenal of literary comebacks that left trolls speechless.
Yukino stared at the screen for a while, then opened her chat app and messaged Utaha:"What are you doing?"
Utaha replied immediately:"Tatakai. I'm in the middle of a war!"
Yukino: "…"