The first mission had barely ended. Before I even had a chance to adjust to my new partner, the second mission had already begun.
[This time, rather than everyone gathering in one place, the mission will be conducted with the men and women split up separately.]
[Male experts and singles, please head to the “Day Zone” school.]
[Female experts and singles, please head to the “Day Zone” company.]
The second mission wasn't done together with your partner. Nor was it divided between experts and singles.
Split by gender, this mission was conducted in separate rooms.
[Notice]
[Partner Change Announcement]
[Partner: Yuna → Pop]
“...Haah.”
No matter how many times I looked at it, there was just no fixing this.
There were still so many days left. Was I really supposed to keep being partners in this state?
Can partners be swapped again midway through?
There'd be more missions coming.
Just like a special reward had come out this time, if there were something like a wish coupon later on, maybe I could switch then...
“Oh, right, the wish coupon...”
While one thought led to another, the part I most wanted to forget suddenly smacked me across the back of the head.
Losing the bet wasn't enough; now he'd become my partner too, and since there'd been nowhere to run to begin with, this was, well, basically getting tied up nice and tight.
I'd figured that at least during missions we wouldn't have to see each other, but that happiness didn't last very long.
Cherry. Did you really do something wrong to that guy?
...
I mean, honestly, you've probably already sensed it yourself... it's rare for him to act like that. You know that, right?
Did I ever.
Everything Jerry had said earlier, when he'd whisked me away to escape. Every last word of it, I understood exactly what he meant. Because Raon, too, had sensed something off about him long before.
Whatever the reason might be, the very fact that he was trying to approach things this way wasn't a very good sign.
“Cherry!”
Just then, Quokka approached, giving his back a playful smack as he stood there blankly.
“So this is where you were. I was wondering where you'd wandered off to again.”
“Ah, I was just about to swing by the restroom and then head down.”
“Then let's go together. I've got to go anyway.”
At that, Raon gave an awkward nod. Honestly, he'd have preferred to go separately if he could, but they'd already made it to the elevator, so there was no escaping now.
“What a shame. Getting your level knocked down.”
The moment the elevator doors closed, Quokka spoke. Raon read his expression once, then his lips parted.
“It's fine. It was my own failure.”
“You should've at least done one thing, though. Then you could've asked them to give you partial credit at least.”
“...Sorry?”
Not quite grasping what he'd just heard, Raon asked again. Quokka grinned.
“Come on. Between two guys it'd be a bit gross, sure, but someone like Yuna, that wouldn't be so bad, would it?”
“What are you-.”
“Honestly, you could at least rub some oil on, right? If I'd known it'd turn out like this, I should've picked fewer things I could kiss or touch too.”
To think he'd let a golden opportunity like this just slip away. Displaying tremendous regret, Quokka heaved a deep sigh.
Listening to him, Raon blurted out a remark before he knew it.
“That's... couldn't that end up hurting someone if you do it wrong?”
“Huh?”
As if he'd never expected to hear the opposite view, Quokka's eyes went round.
“Why would it hurt anyone? This isn't like they're openly telling us to get handsy, right? That's the whole point of it being rated R.”
“Still, it's barely been any time since you met.”
“Come on, Cherry. That's way too rigid. There isn't a single person here who thinks like that, I bet. Everyone's probably imagined even more than that.”
“...”
“There's the Red Room, too. In there the only thing off-limits is actual sex. These days the production crew, and the viewers too, they love provocative stuff. You've got to stir up crazy hype for a program to do well.”
As though he truly believed his own opinion was the program's very intent, Quokka spoke with confidence, slipping into casual speech here and there.
“That's exactly why you fail missions, thinking like that. You've got to be aggressive; that's what the women like.”
“The other person might not like it, though.”
“No way. Just coming on a show like this means you're up for going all the way, doesn't it? And here I thought everyone gave their tacit consent...”
“As far as I know, the purpose of the program isn't skinship alone.”
“Ha?”
[Second floor.]
Right on cue, the elevator doors opened onto the Day Zone.
Quokka stepped out first, glanced around, then turned back to look at him as he emerged after.
“Cherry. If you put it like that, what does that make me?”
“...”
“It's not like I said anything wrong.”
Boldly asserting his own illogic, Quokka let out a little chuckle.
It felt almost like a sneer, and it soured Raon's mood completely.
“Huh, what's this. What are you two doing?”
Meanwhile, Jerry, who'd arrived early, tilted his head at the sight of the two of them.
Beside him was even Raon's new partner.
“Ah, it's nothing. Just chatting a bit, haha!”
The moment a third party appeared, wherever that cornering momentum from a second ago had gone, Quokka laughed as though he were perfectly harmless and scratched the back of his head.
Watching this, Raon was momentarily dumbfounded, but with the others already there too, it was awkward to add anything.
Left with no choice but to back down, Raon moved off first.
How.
How could he think of someone he'd barely met that way? No, even if it were an acquaintance, doing provocative things without a second thought like that. Was it right to say such things?
And if the other person didn't want it, then what? Then in the end it wasn't dating, was it, just being left holding the hurt?
“Uh, uh-oh!”
So lost in thought that he didn't even hear the sound Quokka made, Raon strode forward.
Then, at some point, sensing a deep shadow, Raon halted with a start.
“I've been waiting, Cherry.”
“...!”
He'd gone to all that trouble to dodge one big stray dog.
Now standing before a tiger, Raon felt a shiver run through him the instant he heard that tender voice.
Leaving the flustered Raon behind, Gijo personally opened the classroom door for him.
“I damn near wore myself out waiting for our Cherry.”
“...”
“Or maybe not. This...”
“Ju-just get inside!”
Panicked, Raon hastily shoved him by the back.
He had to cut off the cause preemptively, before the guy said something weird again.
The classroom-concept room where the second mission would take place really did look like an ordinary school, with a blackboard, a lectern, and desks lined up in neat rows.
Holding a piece of chalk for the first time in ages, Raon touched the dry surface and smiled faintly.
Back in the day, when everyone had gone home after class and he was the only one left. Secretly drawing pictures on the blackboard had been his one and only bit of rebellion.
After becoming an adult, though, he'd had no occasion to touch chalk at all.
“What are you doing, Cherry?”
“!”
Startled, Raon jerked his chin up.
Standing right beside him, Gijo was quietly looking down at the hand that held the chalk.
“You want to draw?”
“No.”
“Looks like you do, though.”
“...”
“You love drawing so damn much.”
Just then, Gijo braced a hand against the wall right beside his mouth and spoke.
You draw my dick pretty damn well, too, seriously.
“!”
Unable to withstand the obscene content, his face flushed in an instant.
Watching that pale skin gradually stain red, Gijo narrowed his eyes.
Maybe it was because he was so put out at not being able to finish what he'd started earlier.
Down below, things quickly grew taut. But before he could tease him a little more, the familiar chime rang out.
[The second mission will now begin.]
[As mentioned earlier, this mission is the “Lie Detector.”]
The narration flowed out from a speaker mounted in one corner of the ceiling.
Raon, too, hurriedly set down the chalk he'd been holding.
[Starting now, please rearrange four desks so they face one another.]
[Experts and singles will sit mixed together.]
[The mission will be explained once all the desks have been rearranged.]
“Should we start by rearranging the desks?”
Jerry, listening to the narration, was the first to suggest it.
At that, Raon was the first to jump in, saying he'd do it, taking an active role.
Really, it was to get away from Ga Gijo's side.
Gijo, staring intently at the man who'd vacated his spot as if fleeing, rolled his eyes once.
There stood Quokka, going through the motions half-heartedly.
“!”
Just then, feeling Gijo's gaze, Quokka flinched. Maybe his own conscience pricked at him a little, because before long he too began to move.
Watching this, Gijo pressed his tongue firmly against the inside of his cheek.
Idiot.
Snickering quietly, he grabbed a nearby desk and dragged it along.
A little while later.
Just as the narration had commanded, the setup for the second mission was complete.
