"Tsuna, why haven't you changed yet?"
"Wait..." Tsuna watched her walk in with a bowl of clear water and place it on the coffee table, feeling a bit startled.
"Can you explain what that bowl of water in your hand is for first?"
Shouko tilted her head, feigning composure, her fingers behind her back beginning to twist her hair, the straight brown strands forming layered spring coils around her knuckles as she mumbled softly:
"I'm thirsty..."
"..."
"Really, okay!"
Tsuna noticed the tips of her ears turn a visible coral color and quickly nodded. "I'll go change first." With that, he grabbed a white shirt and swiftly walked past her.
He was afraid that if he didn't speak up, Shouko would use her 'mouth' to prove her sincerity.
When he returned to the living room, Shouko was sitting on the sofa, swinging her feet, her ears now returned to their normal color.
"How is it?" Tsuna turned around grandly in front of her.
Shouko stared at his face for a while, only snapping back to reality when he coughed to remind her. She immediately gave him a big thumbs up.
"I've decided! I'm going to hire you, Tsuna, to be my exclusive model!"
Tsuna sat down beside her, smiling, and joked, "I'm very expensive, you might not be able to afford me."
"I have money!" Saying this, Shouko wanted to show him the balance on her bank card.
"Dong...!"
"Ugh..."
"Tsuna, what are you doing?" Shouko covered her head, complaining pitifully. "It hurts so much..."
"I'm the one who issues your manuscript fees, how could I not know?" Tsuna reached out to gently rub her head, a little speechless. "And are you still going to draw the illustration commission?"
"Draw, draw, draw!"
At this, Shouko instantly perked up, breaking free from Tsuna's head-patting attack, and picked up the clear water from the coffee table.
"Tsuna, stand in the hallway first. I'm afraid I'll get the tatami and sofa wet in the living room."
"..."
"Wait..." Tsuna made no move to get up, squinting at the excited Shouko. "I just want to ask one question right now. You didn't take on some 18+ commission, did you?"
"How could I!?" Shouko hurriedly waved her hands upon hearing this. "I would absolutely never take on an 18+ commission! Tsuna, you have to believe me! It's really just a few poses! I haven't tried drawing those poses before, that's why I need you to pose and I'll draw!"
With that, Shouko took a breath and continued to add, "Tsuna, you have to believe me! I—"
"Wait, wait, wait..."
Tsuna saw her explaining more and more excitedly, her face almost turning red, and quickly raised a hand to interrupt. "I believe you, I believe you. I'll go stand in the hallway now."
He still believed that Shouko wouldn't lie, and besides, he was wearing clothes—nothing was exposed, so it really wasn't 18+...
The clicking sound of the summer fan shaking mixed with the cicada chirps, and the outdoor unit of the air conditioner suddenly rumbled to life, only to be quickly swallowed by the cicada sounds.
Shouko, holding the bowl of clear water and her tablet, came with him to the hallway. "Tsuna, first, put one hand on the wall, and twist your hips to the right a bit more."
"..."
"Can I refuse...?" Tsuna leaned against the wall, feeling a sense of utter despair. "What does this have to do with the Action Kamen victory pose we agreed on?"
"No, you promised me." Shouko refused without hesitation, then tugged lightly on his sleeve. "Tsuna, I really don't know how to draw this pose~"
"You wouldn't want me to get a bad review on my first commission, would you?" As she spoke, she coordinated her actions with her words, looking at him pitifully.
"..." Tsuna shivered, feeling goosebumps rise on his arms. "Who did you learn this from...?"
As for whether Shouko was cute? He definitely thought she was cute, but he felt that her coquetry skills weren't quite perfected yet, a bit awkward...
"It's a secret~"
"Dong...!"
"Go back to how you were."
"Oh..."
Shouko gently rubbed her head, cleared her throat, and returned to her usual tone. "Tsuna, that pose—"
"Stop." Tsuna wagged his index finger. "Don't even think about that pose, I can't do it."
He originally wanted to say it was too 'seductive', but couldn't quite say it out loud.
"Then my commission..." Shouko hesitated.
"How about this, you briefly tell me what kind of poses the client requested, and then I'll pose them for you to draw based on my own experience."
Shouko had no choice but to obediently nod in agreement, then roughly explained the commission to him and even showed him her chat with the client.
"Alright, I know how to pose now, come with me." Tsuna took the bowl from her hand and turned to walk toward the dining room.
"Tsuna, where are you going?" Shouko asked, puzzled.
"To the bathroom. If the hallway floor gets wet, I'll have to mop it." Tsuna explained without looking back.
He had already understood the general meaning of the client's commission, which was nothing more than wanting a few more alluring poses, plus a wet effect—the feeling of clothes clinging to the abs, faintly visible.
This commission was fine, but after she submitted it, he would have to lay down some ground rules. He hadn't thought about this issue before, and if he didn't say anything, he was afraid things would get more and more excessive later on.
Tsuna walked to the shower area in the bathroom and waved to Shouko, who was following behind him. "You go back to the door, I'm afraid the water will splash on your tablet later."
Seeing her retreat to a safe distance, Tsuna turned on the showerhead, and a stream of cold water directly hit his lower abdomen.
Watching the water stains spread into a dark mark on his shirt, he quickly turned off the faucet.
The soaked fabric clung tightly to his abdomen, the previously loose clothing now adhering smoothly to his skin. The crevices of his six-pack abs were clearly outlined, and even the shadows in the indentations of his V-lines showed through the fabric.
Shouko stood frozen in place, holding her tablet, gasping for air, her throat beginning to tighten.
Water droplets slid along his V-lines toward his waistband, the soaked white fabric transparently taut over his abs, forming varying depths of indentations with each breath.
"If you keep staring, it'll be dry soon."
"!!"
Shouko subconsciously licked her lips, met Tsuna's teasing gaze, and abruptly turned her head, her flushed ear hitting the door frame.
But the coolness of the metal frame couldn't suppress the speed at which her ear tips were flushing.
"It's not that serious, is it? It's not like we haven't seen each other since childhood."
Tsuna saw her hit the door frame due to her exaggerated movement and quickly put down the showerhead to check. "It's all red, does it hurt?"
"How is it still so hot?" Saying this, he raised his still-damp hand to cup her ear, hoping to cool her down.
She mechanically hummed and hawed, her actual attention entirely fixated on the wet fabric that pulsed with his breathing.
"Are you listening to what I'm telling you?"
"Um... huh...?"
Shouko struggled to pull her gaze back to Tsuna, but her pupils occasionally shifted downwards, exposing how unfocused her attention currently was.
"..."
Tsuna sighed helplessly, then asked again with concern. "I asked if your ear still hurts?"