I Was Hired As A Tutor By A Cute Little Devilish Junior - Chapter 48 I Love You

The effect of the “heart-pounding ranking” magazine article seemed to be powerful, and it caused Shiina to sulk.
After all, she did not even talk to me until the movie was over, but after that, I did everything I could to put her back in a good mood.

The movie lasted a little less than two hours, so it was still early for bedtime.
Well, it was bedtime for good boys and girls, but unfortunately, we were older now.

“Senpai, what do you want to do?”

Shiina asked as she laid down on the bed and rolled around.
The way she was lying there reminded me of a cat, and it was cute. Even though she was wearing light pajamas, her clothes were so revealing and disheveled that it was hard to take my eyes off of her.

Incidentally, I was in Shiina’s room right now, sitting on her bed and Shiina was lying down next to me.
I have not had any opportunities to look at Shiina’s house as a tutor, so today was the first time for me to enter Shiina’s room.

She didn’t bring much furniture from her parents’ house, and it was a simpler layout compared to Satsuki’s room.
A study desk, a closet, a bookshelf, and a single bed.
This was the extent of the large furniture, and there were only a few small things here and there left in the room.

However, it was still a girl’s room, and it smelled of her, which was somehow unsettling.
I tried not to focus on that side of the room as much as possible and answered Shiina’s question.

“Right. I guess the standard thing to do is to play cards or board games.”
“Eh~? It’s a sleepover, you know? It has to be something more, you know, exciting.”
“What the heck is Shiina looking for in a sleepover?”
“For example…love stories!”
“Listen to me. I mean, is a love story exciting in Shiina’s mind?”

I could kind of imagine love storytelling at a sleepover between girls, but would it be fun for a one-on-one between a boy and a girl?
To begin with, I don’t have much of a love story myself.
I had already told Shiina about an episode like that just the other day, so I had absolutely nothing left to tell her.

“I got to hear Senpai’s story the other day, so wouldn’t you like to hear mine?”
“No, I don’t particularly care enough about it to listen.”
“Boo-boo. You should be more interested!”
“That’s what everyone says.”
“Okay then. Let’s do some muscle training together.”
“Hey, wait. This is too intense all of a sudden.”

I couldn’t help but feel shocked at the fact that such words could come out of a high school girl’s mouth so lightly.
No, it’s probably about dieting, and muscle training was probably not an uncommon word.

Shiina’s arms and legs looked so thin that one cannot help but worry.
I don’t think there was any need for her to lose any more weight…

“I don’t have cards or board games in my house, to begin with.”
“Eh, really?”
“I think my parents’ house has one now, but all we have here is that video game console.”

A video game console that we usually used to pass the time or take a break.
Naturally, we could use it to kill time until bedtime, but Shiina seemed to want to play something that only a sleepover can offer.

My mental repertoire didn’t seem to be able to come up with anything more, so I decided to do a little research on my cell phone.
As I started to touch the phone, Shiina came moseying over to me and peeked at the screen as if she were leaning over my lap.

The scent of Shiina after her bath made me nervous, and I entered some keywords into the search site.
I looked at the site at the top of the list, but card games and board games still come up at the top.

“See, these are the standard ones after all.”
“Mhm…No, there must be others…”

Shiina, looking unconvinced, took the liberty of touching my phone and sending me page after page after page.
After a while, “Ah!” Shiina shouted.

On the screen where Shiina’s hand stopped, there were two sentences: “Say what you like about your partner” and “If you get embarrassed, you lose: The ‘I love you’ game.”

“See, this is how it’s done! That’s what I wanted.”
“No, this one says it’s for couples.”
“Heh, you got me…”
“Hey.”

She stuck her tongue out which was strangely appropriate, and I couldn’t help but laugh.
Recently, I didn’t hear any more rumors about us at school, but in any case Shiina and I were not dating.

I was sure that Shiina is important to me, but there was no proof that this was a romantic feeling.
Therefore, I would not impose such vague feelings on her.

However, the website she was looking at had a limited section on sleepovers between a man and a woman. Naturally, it was only for couples.

“I’ve said it many times before, but it’s a sleepover, right? You know, it’s good to do this kind of thing once in a while…”

I was at a loss for words when Shiina sadly and dejectedly spilled out such selfishness.
Today’s sleepover itself was my apology to Shiina. I had come here with the intention of fulfilling Shiina’s wishes as much as possible.

Since Shiina was saying this, I have no choice but to be determined, and not to be stubborn forever.

“…I see. Do whatever you want, Shiina.”
“A-Are you sure? Senpai…”
“Yeah. I’ll do whatever I can do.”

When I responded, Shiina’s eyes sparkled with happiness.
If I could see such an expression on her face, I could try harder to make her happy.

“Then let’s play the I love you game right away!”
“That’s a high level of difficulty right from the start…”
“Whoever came up with this game is a genius. Senpai, are you ready?”
“Yeah.”

The “I love you” game is a game for couples in which they say the words “I love you” to each other, and the first one to be embarrassed loses.
Because the rules are simple and luck is not a factor, it is no exaggeration to say that the game is a game in which the ability of both partners is clearly shown.

I gulped and waited for Shiina’s signal to start.
Shiina said, “Start!” Then she opened her mouth like she was waiting for something.

“Senpai, I love you.”
“…Yeah.”

Shiina, being the first time, told me in a casual manner.
I responded bluntly, trying not to show emotion as much as possible, but my pulse quickened a little.

Even when I was just taking it lightly, as I usually do, I was still a little flustered, but when I accepted her acknowledgement, my heart was even busier than usual.
After taking a small, deep breath so Shiina wouldn’t notice, I responded to her in a defeated manner.

“I love you too, Shiina.”
“Yes, I know.”

Shiina smiled back at me with an ample smile, and my eyebrows raised involuntarily.
How could she have it so easy? In a sense, does it mean that she was not conscious of me as the opposite s*x at all?

I don’t have any particular feelings about it, but I don’t like the fact that I was the only one who’s flustered.
If Shiina was so inclined, I won’t hold back any longer.
I will definitely win, even if she called it s*xual harassment or what not.

“I love you. I really love you, Shiina.”
“Mmm…I really love you too, Senpai.”
“I love everything about Shiina. You’re the cutest thing in the world. I love you so much that all I can see is Shiina.”
“Fu-Funyah…S-Same…”
“You’re beautiful, cute, cheerful, and serious. I love Shiina so much that I’m going crazy for you.”
“A-Ahh…”

I wonder if my attack was working there. She turned her head down without saying anything back.
I was so embarrassed that my face almost felt like it caught on fire, but for the sake of this game, I couldn’t turn my back on her.

“H-How is it, Shiina? You surrender?”
“N-Not…yet”

Shiina replied in a quiet but determined voice.
She patted herself on the cheek to get back into the swing of things.

According to her self-judgment, in addition to the vague rules, that was safe. Don’t tell me that I need to be more aggressive than this…
As I racked my brains over what to do, Shiina’s face came all the way up to me.
She was so close that the tips of our noses almost touched each other.

However, her eyes were already swirling, as if she had not thought beyond that point.
I was already on the edge of my rationality, but if she did not attack me, I would have to go on the offensive.

I looked into Shiina’s eyes as she approached me, and when my eyes met hers, I gently placed my right hand on her chin.
Then I lifted her face slightly and made her turn her head toward me.

“Hyaaaah…”

Shiina let out a muffled scream.
I continued to stare into her eyes, and she stared at me without looking away.

…So, I have done what is called “chin-holding” in the heat of the moment, but what should I do from here?
I know what to do from this point on. But there is no way I would have the courage to do such a thing, and I was stuck here.

“S-Senpai…?”

Finally, Shiina called me.
Her eyes were round and expecting, and my heart jumped.
I can’t stand it any longer, so I brought my face even closer to hers.

There was no one but Shiina in my field of vision, and we were so close that I could even feel her breath.
All of my five senses are filled with her, and my mind goes blank.
She was also dyed bright red up to her ears, and her eyes dazzled as she gazed into my eyes.

“Shiina.”
“S-Senpai…”

I called her name and she returned it, albeit discreetly.
Then, as if on cue, she slowly closed her eyes.
I know what she meant even without saying it out loud. All that remains was my courage, and perhaps this match would be settled.

Taking a breath, I kept my right hand on Shiina’s chin and touched her cheek with my left.
The palm of my hand felt smooth and warm.

I slowly moved closer to her beautiful face and put my lips to hers—

“I s-surrender…”

Unable to bear it, I raised my hands pitifully.