Chapter 0155: Cool Down a Little
"Tch—"
Hayashi sat restlessly on the hotel sofa, distractedly watching the comedian's energetic performance on TV while occasionally stealing glances toward the bathroom.
'You're testing a man's willpower with this?'
'Who could handle this!?'
The bathroom glass was only frosted at chest and hip height—the rest was completely transparent. As a result, Hayashi could clearly see Erina's slender silhouette.
Combined with the sound of running water and the occasional soft hum of comfort from Erina as she enjoyed the hot shower, Hayashi was nearly overcome with the urge to barge in and join her.
No, no, hold it together! You're a responsible adult man—you can't do this to a minor…
Damn it, she's already an adult!
Hayashi raised his hands to cover his face. Ah, crap, that excuse doesn't work anymore.
Creak—
Just then, the sound of the faucet turning off signaled Erina's exit from the bathroom, wrapped in a towel. Her eyes darted around nervously as she spoke. "U-um, Hayashi, you should go take a shower too… Even if your physique means you won't get sick, wearing wet clothes must be uncomfortable…"
"O-oh… right!"
Hayashi nodded stiffly, walking toward the bathroom with awkward, robotic steps. As he passed Erina, he could almost feel the warmth radiating from her body, along with a faint, sweet fragrance that made him instinctively take a deep breath.
Weird.
They used the same shampoo and body wash, so why did it smell so much better on her?
Too weird.
...
...
Uwah, uwah, uwah—
After drying her hair and body, Erina sat on the bed, fanning her flushed face with her hands.
Uwah, uwah, we really only got one room! This is… this is way too bold!
It wasn't like she had never been alone with Hayashi before—even back in Sky City, she often lounged on his bed reading novels and manga. But back then, it had felt more like "hanging out." Now, though…
Come on, this was a hotel!
The hotel's décor—
The bathroom glass, frosted only at suggestive heights;
The tutorial next to the TV on how to access adult pay-per-view channels;
The extra-charge, ultra-thin 0.01 gum on the nightstand—
—Everything was a constant reminder that this was a place meant for that kind of activity.
The steamy scenes from the shoujo manga she had read before began uncontrollably flooding Erina's mind—
"I—I belong entirely to Master Masaki, please take me—"
"Mariko, I won't let you sleep tonight—"
"Zero's burning passion inside me, drowning me in ecstasy—"
Those sensual images and lines made Erina cover her face and collapse onto the bed, rolling back and forth.
'Ahhhh, calm down, calm down, Erina Nakiri!'
'Don't act like some perverted woman!'
'B-besides, this—this is just to take shelter from the rain, yeah, just shelter!'
'It's—it's not like we're doing this on purpose!'
'Calm down, calm down!'
Erina pressed her hands against her burning red cheeks, then forced her attention onto the TV, where a prank show was playing.
...
...
About ten minutes later, Hayashi emerged from the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his waist, drying his damp hair with another towel.
'Whoa—'
Erina, who had just barely managed to focus on the TV, instantly had her attention yanked back and locked onto Hayashi—even though she had seen it countless times before, she still couldn't tear her eyes away.
Thanks to Akisame Kōetsuji's brutal hell training, Hayashi had the kind of physique that drew admiration from both genders—eight-pack abs and a sculpted V-line, but without the overdone bulk of a bodybuilder. Instead, he had the perfect balance of looking lean in clothes and toned without them.
"Ahem, so—"
Hayashi noticed Erina's lingering gaze on his abdomen and cleared his throat awkwardly. "Th-this variety show seems pretty interesting, huh?"
Clearly, the atmosphere in the hotel was getting to him too.
"Ah… yeah!" Erina nodded hastily, tearing her eyes away and pointing at the TV. "Especially this King guy—his reactions every time he gets pranked are hilarious!"
"That's probably why he's a regular on these kinds of shows," Hayashi said, sitting down a full meter away from Erina and staring rigidly at the screen. "S-speaking of which, Erina, do you think these guests actually have any mental preparation before going on these prank shows?"
"Huh?"
Erina blinked, then reflexively looked back at the TV, murmuring, "Well… they probably do, right?"
If it were just one or two pranks, maybe not—but these guests were clearly "regulars" on prank shows. There was no way they went in completely blind. They must have some level of preparation, and those exaggerated reactions were probably at least partly acted.
But who cared? The audience only cared about whether the reactions were entertaining. As long as it was fun, acting was fine.
"Probably."
Hayashi sat properly, watching the scenes on the television—at this moment, the pranked KING was waiting in the conference room for the "next instruction." Amidst the dull wait, the table in front of him suddenly split open, and a person dressed in black leaped out, shouting "Boo!" while smearing a dollop of cream onto KING's face.
"Waaahhh—!"
Even though there was a full two seconds from the moment the person jumped out until the cake flew toward him, KING just sat there dumbfounded in his chair. Only after the cake hit his face did he let out a panicked scream, now covered in cream.
Then, the narrator chimed in: "KING, lost in thought, suddenly came under attack—"
Beside him, Erina let out a light chuckle. Clearly, KING's performance had struck her funny bone, and her reaction made Hayashi exhale slightly in relief—at least part of Erina's attention was now on the TV show, sparing them from the awkwardness of sitting in silence.
'Still, this is so unbearable—' Hayashi raised a hand to cover his face, muttering inwardly, 'Are we really going to stay in this awkward state until bedtime?'
'Maybe I should just…'
A thought suddenly popped into Hayashi's mind, startling even himself. Subconsciously, he turned his head to look at Erina, who was draped in a loose bathrobe and "focused" on the TV show. Under the warm lighting, her freshly bathed skin seemed to glow, exuding an alluring charm. Through the loose collar of her robe, Hayashi could faintly glimpse the tantalizing curve of her ample bosom.
It had to be said—men were strange creatures. Hayashi wasn't unfamiliar with admiring, or even indulging in, the sight of Erina's assets. Yet, at this moment, that half-hidden glimpse felt more enticing than ever, even more so than the first time he had laid eyes on them.
"Gulp—"
Unconsciously, Hayashi swallowed hard.
...
...
Next room.
"Tch, it's been over an hour, and still not a single sound?" The old man stood by the headboard, pressing a water glass against the wall to eavesdrop on the happenings in Hayashi's room. He grumbled unhappily, "Is he really that useless?"
Hisako twitched her lips and explained, "Well, Director, if the young master had the guts for it, we wouldn't have needed to set up this assist in the first place."
"True enough—"
The old man shook his head in disappointment. With a wave of his hand, he ordered Hisako, "Hisako, initiate Plan B!"
Hisako nodded solemnly. "Understood!"
...
...
"Mmm… ah… ngh…"
Just as Hayashi was wrestling with his thoughts, a faint, breathy moan—heart-racing, blush-inducing, and utterly suggestive—suddenly drifted from the room ahead, freezing both Hayashi and Erina in place.
'Holy hell, that sound…'
Of course, Hayashi was no stranger to this. As a boy who had been educated by Teacher Aoi, Teacher Yoshizawa, Teacher Julia, and Teacher Bodo, how could he not know the meaning of those sounds?
But, but...
'Why does it have to happen right now?!'
Just as Hayashi was inwardly wailing in despair, as if by some prearranged signal, faint sounds began to emerge from the room behind him...
No, it wasn't just behind him—even the room across the hall seemed to be joining in the symphony!?
'You've got to be kidding me. Did you all plan this—'
Hayashi twitched the corner of his mouth. Unconsciously, his gaze drifted toward Erina, only to find that although she was still pretending to watch TV, her attention had long since strayed from the program.
"Haa... haa..."
A captivating pink hue spread across her cheeks, and soft gasps escaped her slightly parted cherry lips. Her eyes were so moist they seemed about to overflow, and with the way her thighs subtly rubbed together, the allure was magnified tenfold.
Watching Erina, who was now exuding an unmistakably seductive aura, Hayashi felt his blood rushing toward a certain part of his body. Even his breathing felt scorching hot.
He lowered his head and looked at the lifelong companion he'd had since birth.
Cool it down, buddy!