Following our arrival at a fairly deserted cafe, Junto excused himself to the restroom. I slipped out my phone to check the time. Waiting to greet me were fifteen unread messages from Hikari.

My eyeballs bulged. What did I do to get on her bad side?

I stared at her latest message.

Good, now you're making progress! Take things slow!

My nerves stiffened as I scrolled through her previous messages. No way! I quickly rose my gaze, scouring the surrounding people for her face. Off in the distance of the cafe, dressed dramatically in a black outfit and shades, similarly to members of the Student Council minutes prior, I found her.

'You were tailing me too?' I texted her back, sending her a look of disbelief.

She held up her thumb before tapping at her cellphone screen.

I was trying to tell you all day but you didn't check your phone!

Obviously I've gotta have your back on your first ever date! You tend to screw things up when I'm not around so I wanted to be there to help. But it seems you managed just fine without me. I'm proud of you :)

My heart swelled. What a kind soul!

'Hikari...! <333 :')'

Speaking of which, where'd you disappear to five minutes ago? You ran off and left Upperclassman Anzai all alone.

I cringed at the mention. 'Nothing too serious. Thought I dropped something, is all.'

Oh, okay.

By the way, the plush he got you was so cute! You lucky tiger!

Sure the rest of the SC had invaded my privacy the same, but Hikari had done it entirely on good intentions. Those sadists (and Wateru and Koga the masochists) were only looking for a laugh.

I should seriously drag Hikari with me to witness their behaviour firsthand. I wonder how she'd react to finding out her princess Juuna was a no-good lunatic...

Oh snap, he's coming back.

Prepare yourself! Talk to you later!

As soon as I read the message, his serenading voice rang out from above me.

"I'm back."

He slipped into his seat across from me as I pocketed my device. He flashed me a demure smile to which I returned one.

Picking up my drink that I'd previously ordered, I brought the straw to my lips and took a tiny sip. Junto's undivided attention was on me, only making my heart swell.

This was such a long day. The only plus side was that I was able to spend it with this charismatic boy. A date, huh?

"Upperclassman Anzai," I said to break the comfortable silence.

"Yes?"

I set my glass down and leaned over the table. "I'm going to be very blunt right now."

Accepting that, Junto didn't move. He only leaned closer, amusement twinkling in his sea blue eyes. "All right."

"Like, extremely blunt. And I want an honest answer."

"Of course, Yonamine. Ask away."

With a gasping breath, I slammed my palms onto the table. "Do you like me, like me?"

Junto's eyelids rose in astonishment. The reaction alone socked me in the gut, and panic seized me.

"Wha—what does that look mean?" I demanded, my voice cracking. "You... don't? I-I mean, not that I expected you would because you're way out of my league. You just asked me out as a pastime, right? Somebody told you I liked you, and—"

"Wait, Yonamine," he interjected.

My eyebrows knitted together. "Why? Am I right? It's my ugly face isn't it? Or my uncouth style? The way I dress? My short stature? I-I—"

"Yonamine." He took my hand in his, and that shut me right up. His gentle grin grew warmer. "There's absolutely nothing wrong with your cute face, or straightforward personality; your adorable height or your style of clothing. Nothing. I was caught off guard a little, because I was so sure I'd made it obvious I liked you by asking you out today."

All of my senses had shut off.

Holy flying penguins.

Holy mother of shit biscuits.

"C-can you repeat that?"

Junto blinked. "Repeat what?"

"When you said you like me," I said eagerly, drawing my face in close. "When you, Junto Anzai, said you like me."

Junto broke into a bashful smile, as if he couldn't believe how endearing I was. But he complied—as seriously as last time. "I, Junto Anzai, like you, Kasumi Yonamine."

"Am I dreaming?" I bit on my lower lip, basking in the surrealness. "This is too good to be true. Just a couple of days ago we'd never even talked but who'd think the both of us were admiring each other from afar..."

Junto chuckled, but as if something had hit him, he stopped. He withdrew his hand from mine and immediately went for his journal that he'd always kept handy. After flipping to a page, he jotted something down.

I watched, puzzled, but seconds later he set it back down. He awkwardly laughed.

"Sorry, I had to write it down before I forgot."

My gaze settled upon the book. "Forgot what?"

"An idea for my story hit me," he answered.

Excitement slapped me in the face. "No way! Are you a writer?"

Junto had gone sheepish, squeezing the back of his neck with his hand. He bobbed his head.

"Oh my gosh!" I cried. "I always noticed you had your journal with you, but... Are you good?"

Junto produced a smile as he elevated the brown leather cover, humming as if in hesitation. "I guess I have a couple of readers telling me I am."

"Readers?" Holy cheeseballs. "You're published?"

"Self-published," he explained. "There are a few manga series I cowork with a good friend of mine to create and then sell at conventions. I come up with the storylines and he draws the pictures."

Absorbing this, my mouth collapsed quite the distance. "Wow," I forced out, awed. A writer? How was it possible for somebody to only get more appealing? This wasn't fair! And such a guy liked me back? "Tell the names of your books."

His cheeks tinged the slightest; a cute, pinchable shade. "You'd really want to read them?"

"Of course!" I said with enough enthusiasm to draw all eyes to us. I brushed them aside. "I love my fair share of mangas."

Junto dropped his head a bit, leafing through his journal. "Then, maybe I'll let you read a bit of the new storyline I came up with awhile ago."

"Seriously?" I beamed as he bashfully handed it to me. My gaze fell upon the page and his neat handwriting with messy jot notes added in here and there. It was cute—a style that suited him. I plugged my eyes onto the first word. "What genre do you write in?"

'"Jack, no."

"You will obey me, Lilly. Now spread your (drumsticks*) for me and let me hear you scream my name."

"No! P-please." Her voice barely surpassed a whisper as his extensive (sausage*) loomed over her poor and virgin (soft shelled tuna taco*). "Jack— ahh!'

The book slipped from my fingers but I caught it before it could hit the table. My once innocent eyes bulged from their sockets while my heart had dropped to my gut, churning with sudden nausea and insurmountable shock.

What in the name of fluffing shitballs did I just read? I feel like my mind had to bleep out very, very derogatory words, too...

"Genre?" Junto's words woke me up and with my wide and used to be innocent eyes, I watched as he produced that blinding, yet proud smile. "It's a tad embarrassing, but I write erotica or erotic romances. Sadism and masochism, BDSM... I typically add those kinds of elements to make it more enjoyable."

"E-ero..." I couldn't form the words but I did know one thing: it was smut.

This entire contents of his journal: smut.

All his mangas: smutty, smut, smut.

My love, Junto Anzai—Mr. Perfect who moments before said he liked me back—wrote about characters doing the devil's tango. He had manga series' with...

"Yonamine?" he asked, waving in front of my face. His once so faultless puppy look had transformed into a twisted, evil smirk—one I'd believed those devilish SC members could only possess.

But it wasn't their witchcraft. It wasn't only them.

Rokura High School was a warden of students with perverse fetishes.

My means of normalcy.

My sanity.

My potential love life.

All was sent down the drain—with me bumbling out of the cafe's door in mere seconds—because of this one, universal fact that was never to disappear for as long as I lived.