I Was Hired As A Tutor By A Cute Little Devilish Junior - Chapter 58 Hug

“Shiina, what are you looking at?”
“Mou. Senpai, it’s not good to peek at a girl’s phone.”
“S-Sorry.”

I had only asked out of curiosity, but when she responded in that way, I couldn’t say anything back.
However, considering the situation, I thought it was inevitable…

“Hey, Shiina. I hate to say this after I said it, but can’t I go now?”
“…We’ll stay like this until the end of the day.”
“…In case you haven’t heard, there is a physiological phenomenon in human beings.”
“I don’t mind, please go ahead.”
“What do you mean, ‘Please?’ Shiina, what if you need to use the restroom?”
“You are rude, Senpai. Girls don’t go to the restroom, remember?”
Who are all the women’s restrooms in the world for then……?

Shiina is currently in my arms.
To be more specific, I was holding Shiina with both arms, and she was leaning back on my chest.
If you ask me how I ended up in this situation, I am ashamed to say that it was all my fault.

I understand that it was wrong for the one who started it to ask her to stop.
However, there was no way I could remain calm with her in close proximity for so long, and my heart was racing.

I was too busy holding her, I couldn’t interrupt her, I could only stare at her as she slumped in my arms.
As a result, I inevitably had too much free time on my hands, and my eyes fell on the phone she was fiddling with.

“Well, there is nothing embarrassing about it being seen. Would you like to see it with me, Senpai? Cosmetics.”
“What am I supposed to look at that for?”
“It’s a rare chance for Senpai to get an understanding of what your kouhai is looking for…No, forget it, that’s just plain creepy.”
“Hey.”

Slightly agitated, I did as I was told and looked at Shiina’s phone. She said it’s a famous brand of cosmetics that has just recently started to be reserved.
The price was not suitable for a high school girl, which matched the image of luxury I saw in the picture.
Well, I had no way of knowing how high school girls these days feel about money, but as a high school student who was not allowed to work part-time, the price was not something I would be able to afford easily.

“This may be a wild question, but is Shiina planning to buy this?”
“I have no intention of doing so at this time. You see, I’m pretty to begin with.”
“Well, I suppose that’s true.”
“Eh, ah…umm. T-Thank you…”

Perhaps not the reaction she was expecting, Shiina choked on her words and thanked me awkwardly.
I didn’t know how much makeup high school girls nowadays wear or how much money they spend on it.
But I honestly thought that Shiina is pretty without it.

“…What do you think of girls who wear makeup, Senpai?”
“Hmmm, I think…Of course, it’s up to the individual, but I think it’s fine either way.”
“Either?”
“I don’t think they should have to spend so much money that they’re forced to, but it is nice that they’re willing to try to make themselves more attractive, and I respect that.”

If Shiina were to say she wanted to be more beautiful and wear makeup, I would be a total affirmation machine.

“…I’ll still buy it.”
“Even though you’re pretty to begin with?”
“Don’t bring it back up. Because…”
“Because?”
“…Because I want to be the most beautiful and prettiest in front of Senpai.”

My heart skipped a beat and my voice almost broke at the thought of Shiina saying such a thing in a subdued tone.
The combination of this unexpected line made my heartbeat, which had been racing earlier, beat even faster.

After a few moments in that slightly awkward atmosphere, my heartbeat calmed down.
However, as if in inverse proportion to that, my feelings for her grew, and I found myself holding Shiina in my arms tighter and stroking her head.

“Senpai?”
“Umm…So. Thanks.”
“I didn’t do anything, in particular, to be thanked for…”
“As I said before, I think Shiina is attractive enough as it is. So don’t push yourself too hard.”

After my words, Shiina stopped saying anything. I was worried that I had said something offensive to her.
After a little while, she slowly untied my hand. Then she turned her body and sat back down so that we were staring at each other.

Our eyes met. Shiina’s eyes were clear and beautiful, and I was transfixed by her eyes.
I remained frozen in place, and then she suddenly hugged me from the front.

This time, Shiina’s arms were around my back, and naturally, our bodies were in close contact with each other.
I could directly feel her warmth and softness. My heart was filled with so many times more embarrassment and happiness than when I was hugging her from behind that I could hardly breathe.

“I knew it, Senpai is not being fair.”
“…We both know it’s a mutual thing.”

After replying, I put my arms around Shiina’s back, too.
We were closer together than before, and I feel her presence more strongly.
After a little while, all the motivation and shyness in my chest disappeared, as if she had sucked them away.

It was just a happy time. I was seriously thinking about how I wish this time could last forever, which seemed so out of character for me.

“We talked about this a while ago.”
“About what?”
“Hugging reduces stress or something.”
“Fufu, you were too shy to give me a hug then, weren’t you?”
“That’s a false accusation. Besides, we’re hugging like this now. How’s that for less stress?”
“I don’t feel any stress living with Senpai, so there’s no point.”
“Then you’ll stop now?”
“Nope.”

Shiina gave me the answer I was expecting and hugged me tighter than before.
I accepted her hug with open arms. I couldn’t stop myself from wanting to soak up more of this happy time.

After that, I stayed close to Shiina for the rest of the day, changing positions somewhat, but never leaving her.
She snuggled up to my chest, we held hands, and we hugged again.

Even though I proposed to take a break from studying, I couldn’t think of anything else in front of this feeling of happiness, and I was worried if we could start studying again tomorrow.
I was that happy, and the feeling that I might become dependent on her was all over my head.

It was my stomach that first punctured such a time.

“Fufu, it rumbled.”
“Sorry. I’m a growing boy in high school.”
“Right now…I can make omelette rice.”
“Thank you.”

I checked my watch, and the hands were about to overlap at the top. Apparently my belly clock was quite accurate.

Shiina got up and started to change into an apron in the kitchen.
As usual, Shiina does the cooking, so all I could do was watch.

With Shiina gone, I rubbed my knees, which were feeling somewhat lonely, and looked at the kitchen once more.
Shiina was diligently preparing the food, and I was again impressed by her deftness as always.

I was bored, so I went to the kitchen and talked to Shiina.

“Umm, is there anything I can help you with?”
“Fufu, are you that hungry?”
“Don’t treat people like they’re always wanting to eat. See, I can’t just let you do everything and just watch on the side right?”
“I’m doing this because I want to, so you don’t have to worry about it, okay? I appreciate the sentiment, of course.”

I know there was only so much I can do to help, and it was not like I have a choice, but it was aggravating to know that I’m the only one not doing anything.
I just kept staring at Shiina’s back and thinking. I felt somewhat frustrated that I couldn’t do anything, so I came up with a teasing idea.

I slowly approached her from behind as she proceeded to cook, and after a few moments of conflict, I let my momentum carry me and gently embraced her from behind.

“Hyah!”

She let out a small scream and looked back at me.

“W-What is it?”
“No, nothing.”
“No, I mean…I’m cooking.”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“Even if you say that, I’m pretty embarrassed about this…”
“Indeed.”

It was not quite as close as it was earlier, but for some reason, I feel incredibly embarrassed and like I was doing something I shouldn’t be doing.
It was embarrassing just to think about it, but there was a feeling of embarrassment in the air, like that of a loving newlywed couple in a fiction story.

“It’s kind of like being newlyweds.”
“Did you just say that!? I couldn’t say it because I was embarrassed!”
“No, I just couldn’t stand the embarrassment.”
“I saw this pattern earlier, person who is making me more embarrassed!”
“Ehe, well I guess we both fall into that category. Haha.”
“It’s not funny!”

As I was hugging her, she was laughing, but she didn’t stop cooking.

In the end, I was chatting with Shiina until the dishes were finished.
Having a casual conversation with Shiina was a different kind of happiness, and I realized again that just being with her was enough.

Once today was over, it would be back to the usual routine.
The goal was not always easy. That goal was, of course, her academic goal, but as a supporter of it, I have to be more determined than she is.

I have to set my mind on it and just do what I had to do to the best of my ability.
It was for her sake as well as for my own. She would definitely achieve her goal.

And so, the exam was finally coming up next week.