Despite the earful I’d just received from Rui, I welcomed her into my room.
Every time I let Rui inside, my heart started racing for a completely different reason than usual. It didn't help that she had a history of letting herself in without permission just to wake me up.
"Pardon the intrusion~"
Rui stepped into my room with light, rhythmic footsteps.
It was the same old Otaku Room as ever, but the moment she entered, Rui began scanning the premises. Her eyes darted around as if she were documenting the exact coordinates of every speck of dust in the place.
"Mm-hmm. It’s been a while since I was last in Ryouta-kun's Room, but you’ve kept it quite tidy. Good boy."
"W-What’s with the 'good boy'? Just what position do you think you're in to say that, Rui?"
"I'm the Student Council President, remember?"
"That makes even less sense!"
Just because she was the Student Council President didn't mean she had the right to perform a white-glove inspection of the Vice President's bedroom.
"I don't think the others will be here for a bit, so why don't we chat while we wait?"
"C-Chat...?"
Knowing Rui, this was probably just a prelude to another lecture. She was always incredibly overbearing whenever I talked to other girls. It was like having a clingy, heavy girlfriend—even though we weren't in that kind of relationship at all.
"Listen! I’m going to go grab some tea, so just make yourself at home, Rui."
"Tea? Sure. Thank you for the consideration, Ryouta-kun."
Leaving Rui behind, I hurried down to the 1st Floor.
I’d managed to secure a temporary escape from the line of fire. Now, I just needed to avoid the lecture and kill time until Yuria and Airi arrived at the house—
"Ah, Ryouta-kun."
Just as I reached the bottom of the stairs, I ran right into Hiyori-sensei. She was carrying a tray with barley tea and cups.
"Eh, Hiyo—no, Anju-onee-chan!?"
"Perfect timing. I was just about to bring some tea up. I got this from Ryouta's Mother," Hiyori-sensei said with a bright smile. "I figured since you have guests over, we should probably serve something."
"I mean, yeah, that’s true, but..."
Damn it. I’d planned to waste time by getting the tea myself to dodge Rui’s heavy atmosphere. I hadn't expected Sensei to beat me to the punch.
"...Hey, do you think I could join you guys for a bit while I’m delivering this?"
"Eh? You too, Anju-onee-chan?"
"Yeah! The other two haven't shown up yet, and I’m a little worried about what might happen if the Student Council President and Ryouta-kun are left all alone."
W-What did she mean by "what might happen"? Did she seriously suspect us of doing something inappropriate...?
Admittedly, the daily selfies were walking a very scandalous line, but it wasn't like we were doing what Sensei was probably imagining... Wait. On second thought, if Hiyori-sensei was there, I wouldn't be alone with Rui. The risk of getting lectured would drop to zero.
"Oh, in that case, come on up! We might as well all have tea together anyway!"
"Mm-hmm! Thank you, Ryouta-kun."
Without a single thought for the potential consequences, I ended up inviting Hiyori-sensei to join us.