After changing out of my costume and back into my school uniform in the restroom, I returned to the front of the gymnasium. The Beautiful Girl Trio was already there, chatting away happily.
"Seriously, Airi, when that button popped, I completely lost it. Just how big are your boobs, anyway?"
"Moo, it’s not a laughing matter! Ryouta got a total face-full of them!"
"Hehe... then we’ll just have to punish Ryouta-kun later, won't we?"
"What kind of punishment? Oh, maybe a spanking!?"
"Forget it, Airi. In Ryouta’s case, that’s just a reward."
"Eh? Why?"
The three of them were having an outrageous conversation at a volume that was absolutely shredding my reputation—though I suppose I had brought that on myself.
I’d better join them quickly, or this is going to get ugly.
"H-Hey, is this a group-wide bash-Ryouta convention?"
Unable to stay silent any longer, I stepped in, cutting through their conversation with a composed expression.
"Ah, Ryouta, you’re finally here!"
"You're late, Ryouta. The Haunted House is so popular that there's a massive line now, you know?"
"That’s right, Ryouta-kun. Why don't you apologize?"
The atmosphere made it feel like I was entirely to blame, but no matter how you looked at it, this was partly Kuroki's fault too. And yet here she was, acting like a total stranger... As expected, Kuroki is pitch bla—
"Hehe, just kidding. It’s all because I talked for too long, so everyone, please don't blame Ryouta-kun. I'll treat you to whatever you want later as an apology."
"Really!? Rui-chan, you're the best!"
"Thanks, Rui."
Y-Yeah, she really is Lady Kuroki. She was so adept at manipulating people's emotions; that was probably how she managed to keep everything under her thumb.
"Hey, let’s go already! Takoyaki! Yakisoba!"
"Wait, Airi, don't run!"
As the two of them trotted off toward the school building, Kuroki and I started walking after them.
"I feel kind of bad, Kuroki. Even if it's an apology, getting treated to food like that..."
"I'm not treating you, Ryouta-kun."
"Eh?"
"Instead, for Ryouta-kun... I sent you something good just now, so let that suffice, okay?"
"Something good?"
As she spoke, Kuroki pointed to the bulge in my slacks pocket.
Did she mean she sent something to my phone...?
I pulled out my phone as instructed. Sure enough, there was a LIME notification from Kuroki.
Images were sent... which means, could it be?!
When I opened the chat window, my eyes nearly popped out of my head.
"Wh-Wha—! What the hell!?"
The two photos she had sent were selfies: one taken with the front camera as usual, and the other taken through a restroom mirror. I wouldn't have been that shocked if they were just normal selfies, but what stunned me this time was the outfit.
Kuroki was wearing the Snow White costume I had just taken off. To make matters worse, in the second mirror selfie, she had unbuttoned the top just at her navel, flashing it with a deliberate, suggestive peek.
When did Kuroki even get into this costume?! And a navel-peek at that!
"Hehe, do you like it? I took them secretly yesterday after school... What do you think?"
"Umm... what's with the... navel-peek?"
"I just thought there wasn't enough skin showing. Knowing what a pervert Ryouta-kun is, I figured you'd be happy with this."
Guh... called a pervert again... but I-it didn't actually feel that bad. Had she figured it out? My fetish!
Then again, Kuroki was plenty perverted herself for sending such a lewd selfie in the first place!
"Ah, you just thought I was a pervert, didn't you?"
"I-I didn't think that."
"It's fine. I'm a huge pervert just like you, Ryouta-kun."
"Don't say that about yourself! Y-You're supposed to be known for being the pure, refined type."
"Hehe. Then... maybe I only become a pervert when I'm in front of Ryouta-kun?"
"Huh?"
Kuroki was making a lot of those kinds of comments today. Could it be... she was, like... frustrated?
How lewd.
That was the only thought I could form at that moment.
Once we entered the school building, it was clear the afternoon was winding down; some classes had already sold out and were starting to pack up. We decided to buy some food and eat it on the rooftop, so we headed up the stairs, browsing the stalls on each floor as we went.
I was walking with the Beautiful Girl Trio as a matter of course, but I definitely felt more eyes on me than usual.
"Hey, Ryouta, Ryouta! Look! The 3-A French fries shop is half price! Let's go, hurry!"
Miyama, who had been at maximum energy since we walked inside, reported this to me while her chest bounced with incredible momentum. She was as energetic as ever... Miyama-boobs.
"Airi, didn't you want to eat takoyaki and yakisoba?"
"The omelet rice at lunch wasn't enough, so I want fries too! Oh, and some chocolate bananas and baby castellas over there—"
Miyama's appetite really was a bottomless pit. Eat up and grow big, I guess...
"You still eat a lot, Airi. But if we're going to eat on the rooftop, shouldn't we grab a spot first? A lot of people watch the festival campfire from up there."
"Ehh! But the food's gonna sell out!"
"Now, now, you two."
Whenever their opinions clashed, Kuroki immediately stepped in.
"How about this? Airi and I will go buy the food at a relaxed pace, so Ryouta-kun and Yuria, can you two go ahead and secure a spot on the rooftop? That should work, right?"
"Oh! As expected of Rui-chan!"
Being able to take charge like this was very typical of Rui Kuroki the coordinator... she wasn't being "dark" at all right now. In many senses of the word.
"Then we'll leave the rooftop to you two."
"Got it, Rui. Come on, let’s go, Ryouta."
"O-Oh."
And so, Yuria and I headed for the rooftop together.