0𝙁𝙇𝙐𝙊𝙓𝙀𝙏𝙄𝙉𝙀ˢʰⁱⁿˢᵒᵘ

𝕤𝕝𝕖𝕖𝕡ˢⁱˣ

SLEEP —

chapter six

"I'm relieved it's you," Shinsou confessed, tightening his grip on the single strap over his chest. Korei smiled brightly, ignoring the burning in her calves. She probably wouldn't be able to move when she laid down. Luckily, they only ran at the end of the week. This meant she had time to recover. "I couldn't stand someone else tutoring me."

"Awe, that's sweet," she cooed, nudging his side lightly. Shinsou rubbed the back of his neck, a nervous chuckle leaving his lips. Why is it that he always started freaking out when he thought of confessing to her? Sure, it had only been two weeks but he knew he liked her. "I think it's awesome! We'll have more time to hang out and everything! I'm looking forward to it! When should we start?"

"Monday. I need the weekend to recuperate," he mumbled out. Korei hummed in response, agreeing that she needed the weekend to heal. Running always did them in, but at least it wasn't as bad as the first time. "Do you think..." his voice trailed off as he stared ahead at the students in front of them. They were walking towards the train station, something Shinsou did just to make sure Korei was safe. He'd wait there with her until she got on and then he'd text her the rest of the way. "You think you could stay over at...my...place...this weekend?" He flinched at how bad it sounded, sparing a glance in Korei's direction to catch her reaction. The poor girl didn't know how to react.

"W-what?"

"My mom is out of town and I've had the apartment to myself for the past week. I know you're just as exhausted as I am. You can take the bed and I'll sleep on the couch. I just...don't want you taking a four-hour train ride back to your house." He rambled over, uncharacteristically expressive. Korei glanced at him warily, not sure why he was acting so strangely. It sounded like he cared about her.

"I'd love to, Shinsou-san. I just doubt my Gran would let me stay if she knew that there was no adult—" he cut her off by grabbing her forearm. They both stopped and stared at each other, a serious air surrounding them.

"Don't tell her about that, Saito."

"But what if she asks!"

"Lie."

Korei felt her stomach bubble and gurgle at the thought of lying to her grandmother. But she'd be in Shinsou's apartment for the full weekend! She didn't have an extra pair of clothes or even a toothbrush! How would she get by on this one?

"W-well, sure. I'd love to spend the night with you Shinsou-san." Nodding, the two of them switched directions and started heading towards one of the neighborhoods across the street. "I'm not prepared at all but I'll definitely enjoy it."

"You can borrow some of my mom's clothes or even something of mine. I'll make sure your stuff is washed before Monday." He mentally congratulated himself on asking the question. It had been gnawing at him for the past week now. He was thinking that Korei had better things to do. "And the convenience store has toothbrushes."

"By the way, I'm not taking your bed from you. Sleeping on a couch is uncomfortable. Plus, it's your apartment so you should get the bed." Korei made a motion with her hands that didn't really make sense, nerves eating away at her as she tugged her phone out. The phone call with her grandmother was not going to be pretty.

"You treat the guest, Saito. You'll be my guest," he enunciated, stressing each syllable. "You can take the bed."

"But your back! You can't injure yourself before the Sport a Festiv–!" A loud gasp interrupted her sentence and she smacked Shinsou's shoulder. "We'll share the bed! How big is it?"

"I have a full." Just the thought sent shivers down his spine. Were they really going to share a bed?! He was going to be sleeping beside her?! "Is that good enough for you?"

"Oh! I wasn't meaning it like that Shinsou-san! It's just that I don't want it to be too cramped, you know? Maybe we could build a little barricade of pillows?" She was relatively flustered, realizing that she just agreed to sleep in the same bed as the person she liked. He'd be able to see her at her most vulnerable state! He's going to think she's ugly! How could she get out of this?

"So you don't want to sleep with me?" He smirked slyly, wording the sentence in such a way that would have made any girl blush. Korei didn't catch on to the underlying meaning, not really familiar with the world of sexual education.

"Oh no, I'll sleep with you! I was just saying that we could put up a small separation of pillows if you'd prefer that. I mean, you were originally going to sleep on the couch, so—wait, why are you laughing at me?" He wasn't laughing, it was more of a snicker than anything. Korei looked up at him with wide, innocent eyes. She didn't understand what had caused the soft flush of pink on his cheeks. "Did I say something funny?"

"No, it's fine," he chuckled, shaking his head and facing forward. Out of habit, his hand reached up to rub the back of his neck. "We can sleep together."

"Great! Would you like to grab anything to eat? I'm actually pretty hungry," she said, forgetting why she had taken her phone out. As she tucked the device back into the pocket of her shorts, Shinsou mentioned something about that convenience store again. "Heck yeah! Let's go! Do you think they'll have the rice crackers that Yuuei serves?"

"I'm sure they do."

fluoxetine