Without warning, he opened the first button of my shirt, tugged aside my collar, and bit my neck.
“Ngh…”
“Your spiritual energy was starting to overflow again,” he said. “I didn’t want to take any chances.”
“Shinozaki…” My head spun with a sweet tingling sensation. It felt stronger and more intense than Akino’s seduction, as though Shinozaki were devouring my very soul.
“I shouldn’t have let it get to this point,” he whispered, his hoarse voice tickling my eardrum. “But since I’ve marked you, you should be safe for now.”
I stood mutely, my legs shaking, as Shinozaki rebuttoned my shirt.
He wiped his lips. His tailed swayed behind him, glowing faintly. “Sorry.” He ruffled my hair. “I should’ve done more to protect you.” And he withdrew to the hall once more.
I crumpled to the ground, unable to stand for a while.
🍁🍁🍁
✦ ✦ ✦
I worked nights for the next few days. My parents didn’t seem to mind, since Shinozaki chauffeured me every time. Not to mention the sketchy spell he’d cast on them.
Each morning, I immediately passed out after arriving home. Breakfast at noon, then departure at dusk felt incredibly strange. Fortunately, none of the nekomata had tried to seduce me since the incident with Akino. Shinozaki’s hickey—no, his bite mark—seemed to have done the trick.
Even with the air conditioner running, sweat still dappled my skin in the summer evening. After showering, I put on the wrinkle-free dress shirt that I’d worn in perpetuity during my job-hunting days.
Checking my reflection, I placed a hand on my neck. “I can’t see it at all…”
I still lived with my parents, so I definitely wanted to avoid hickeys. Despite its invisibility, some part of me knew that the mark remained. Perhaps I could sense it via my spiritual energy. A blush crept up my cheeks as I remembered my friends trying to hide their hickeys in high school.
“Shinozaki,” I muttered, “this is way too much action for a girl who’s never had a boyfriend.”
I let out a deep sigh in an attempt to cool my flushed face, then fastened my top button. Another night of work was about to begin.
🍁🍁🍁
✦ ✦ ✦
THE club’s fading background music marked the end of a long and busy summer evening. Respectful of the establishment’s hours, the guests started to file out. They weren’t allowed to take the hostesses out after close either, due to the current stance on public safety.
Over the past few days, I’d become acquainted with the bouncers. We often chatted while I helped clean tables, take out the trash, and so forth.
“Damn, Kaede, you really know how to sort garbage,” one said.
“I like this sort of detail-oriented job,” I replied.
“We could really use someone as efficient as you around here.”
“Oh, no, I could never work at this club.”
As soon as the words left my mouth, Shinozaki materialized, clearing his throat with a pointed ahem. Paling, the bouncers scattered awkwardly.
“Well, aren’t you the life of the party?” he observed, narrowing his eyes at me.
“Oh, c’mon, I was just having a normal conversation with them,” I said.
“Don’t get too invested in this place. You’re still my employee, remember?”
“That’s true, but I’m working with them on this job. I need to get along with everyone.”
Shinozaki fell silent.
What’s this? Is he in a bad mood or something?
“Are you jealous, by chance?” I asked.
“Wh-What?!” he spluttered, his eyes bulging wide.
Called it, I thought with a laugh. “Don’t worry. I’m hardly suited to be a bouncer just because they buttered me up a little bit. Besides, I am your employee, and I’m not planning to switch jobs anytime soon.”
An odd expression surfaced on his face. He looked as though he’d bitten something that shouldn’t have been anywhere near his mouth.
“Shinozaki?”
“It’s nothing.”
“Um, really?”
“Look,” he said, gesturing with his jaw. “The girls will be back any second now.”
Right on cue, a chattering group of female nekomata reappeared, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.
“Kaede! Shinozaki!” one called. “Thanks for all your hard work!”
The hostesses all seemed to be in their late teens to early thirties. With their long, slender limbs and delicate features, each of them could have been a model or in the entertainment industry.
A moment later, we received word that a taxi had arrived, and I headed to the elevator with the group of nekomata.
“Kaede,” Shinozaki said as I stepped onto it. The doors began to slide shut, and he raised his hand in farewell. “Be careful out there.”
“Thank you!”
For some reason, his casual parting remark warmed my chest. Meanwhile, the nekomata paid no attention to our exchange, fiddling with their phones instead. Presumably, they’d expended all their charm on patrons.
If I were as beautiful as these nekomata, would I have been embarrassed when Shinozaki kissed me? I wondered as I studied my reflection in the mirrored wall of the elevator cabin. Or able to confidently kiss him back?
🍁🍁🍁