"Hey. Wanna see a magic trick?"
As if by magic, Exusiai's halo suddenly snuffs out, and everything goes dark.
"Zoop!"
She giggles. Bison doesn't think it's very funny.
"H-hey! Turn it back on! I can't see anything!" The young Forte almost goes into a panic, at least until Exusiai turns the lights back on - so to speak.
The Sankta halo lights up once more, illuminating the both of them, and the four walls of this little closet. Bison couldn't back away any further - his back was already against the wall, and he felt as though he was going to start hyperventilating. It was almost enough to make Exusiai feel bad… but they couldn't leave the enclosed space. Not until their seven minutes were up. That's how the dare goes, anyway.
"You know… I'm starting to think the others didn't really think this through," Exusiai said, smiling with deep amusement.
"H-how do you figure?" Bison asked, watching Exusiai carefully. He felt like a cornered animal, somehow. He'd never been just locked in a room with a girl before - much less an attractive one. Much less Exusiai .
"Well, the whole point of 7 Minutes in Heaven is that you're locked in the dark with someone, so you can do some raunchy stuff with 'em, you know? Except… I've got a halo that glows!" She pointed to the ring above her head, as if there was any chance in hell someone might miss it.
"That's true," Bison mumbled.
"Also… it's no fun making out with someone who's not totally into it. You know?"
"R-right…" Bison gulped. "Are you… are you saying you don't want to kiss me?"
"You?" Exusiai shrugged nonchalantly. Bison didn't quite know how to feel about that. "I wouldn't mind kissing you. You're really cute! But do you want to kiss me ?"
Bison fidgeted. He hated feeling so small in front of the girls, but at times like these, he simply couldn't help it. "I-I wouldn't… I wouldn't mind kissing you," he stammered.
"Sure, but you're not really FEELING it feeling it, you know? I'm not feeling your energy!" Exusiai shook her head, sadly. "That's okay. Maybe after a few more drinks. Maybe as the night goes on, you'll get that spark, and you'll pull me close, and you'll give me a big, fat, sloppy kiss on the lips!"
Bison thought about doing just that. He wondered if he could ever be that kind of person. If he could ever be that kind of man . The kind of man who just grabs girls by the hips and pulls them into big, fat, sloppy kisses. What would that even look like? He was so scrawny, and so… him. And the girls were so… exuberant. So bombastic. So popular. Would any of them even have him, romantically? He'd thought about it only a few times before, when they first met… his hormones were acting up around them; surrounded by a group of powerful and attractive girls, how could he not entertain his fantasies for just a little while?
The point of contention was that Bison quite simply didn't know how to react around them, more often than not. He wanted to change that. He wanted to be on equal footing for a change. And so he decided to take a chance.
"Can you teach me? How to kiss," he elaborated. Exusiai raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms as she eyed him. She thought he was joking.
"Teach you how to kiss?" Exusiai smirked. "And here I thought you wouldn't be up for something like that. NOW you're getting some energy in you! So, sure, but only if you call me Senpai," she told him.
"Okay, Senpai," Bison mumbled, his face going red with embarrassment. Exusiai blinked for a beat, feeling pleasantly surprised.
"Whoa. I was joking," she said, chuckling, "but I kinda like it… so maybe you should keep calling me that~"
"Ugh… you're teasing me again!"
"Well, you make it so easy!" Exusiai pressed a finger to her chin, tilting her head to the side as she looked him over. "You're just a little bit taller than me, should I be the one calling you Senpai? Are you really going to let me keep teasing you like this? This feels like a slice of life anime," she remarked. She noticed the look on Bison's face, however, and she eased up on him for now. "Anyway… you wanna learn how to kiss? There's really nothing to it."
"When was the last time you kissed someone?" Bison asked her.
"...Uhh… that's classified!" She smiled nervously. "Don't worry about that."
"Whatever…"
"Anyway…! You're pretty bold asking me to teach you. Why don't you try to make the first move, too?" Exusiai took a step closer, closing the distance between them. She could faintly hear the others' chatter on the other side of the closet door, as if they were gossiping about what was happening in this very space. Education! Education is what was happening here!
"M-make the first move? I don't know… what if I mess up? What if…" Bison trailed off, right when Exusiai put her hands on his shoulders.
"Bison, it's fine! Life's full of new experiences. You shouldn't be so nervous! Better you practice with me anyway, so you know what to do once you've got your hands on Croissant!"
"C-Croissant…?!" Bison turned an even deeper shade of red. "W-what does she have to do with any of this…?!"
"Oops! Almost let it slip~" Exusiai giggled, bringing her face right up to his own. "Well then? Show me whatcha got!"
Then she pursed her lips, and closed her eyes. And waited.
And waited.
And waited…
...and then she opened her eyes again, and she saw that Bison was just staring at her, like he was lost in thought. Exusiai pouted.
"Your halo is blinding me," the Forte complained, "could you turn it down a little bit?"
"Bruh." Exusiai did just that, dimming the light source above her head and making the scene just a bit more intimate between them. "I've heard about turning girls off, but this is ridiculous!"
"S-sorry," Bison sighed.
"Hey, I'm just kidding. Lighten up, will ya?" She reached out, daringly, and held Bison's cheeks. The intimacy came naturally to someone like her, who always strived to make others feel better. "Forget about what happened on Sauin, forget about the stuff I know is troubling ya. For at least a night, okay? We're at a party! You should actually unwind…"
Bison pouted. "I am unwinding."
"No you're not! You're totally wound-up! Wound-up tight!"
"Not that tight," Bison muttered.
"Very tight…~"
"I'm not tight! I'm super loose! The loosest!"
Exusiai almost cackled, but she managed to compose herself. No doubt the others outside in the living room were wondering what was happening in here. How much time did they have left, about four minutes or so?
"We don't have much time, soooo… if you wanna learn how to kiss now, then you'd better not waste the opportunity! My lips are ripe for the smooching, here!" She puckered them to emphasize her point, making exaggerated kissing noises.
"Ugh, okay! So much pressure… s-so, you don't mind if I kiss you, and put my hands on you, and… maybe just, uhh, hold you a little bit?"
"Thanks for asking for consent," Exusiai teased, smiling gleefully, "I SUPER don't mind, dude. I swear it's okay."
"Okay, fine…! I'm gonna do it then…!" Bison warned. "I'm going to kiss you!"
"Okay!" If Exusiai had a tail, it would be wagging right about now. She stayed put, right in front of Bison, letting the Forte take the initiative; make the first move. This time she keeps her eyes open, and she watches Bison close his eyes and pucker his lips, his hands shuddering while he moves them slowly, agonizingly slowly , towards Exusiai's hips, which were just begging to be touched.
Exusiai rolled her eyes, deciding she'd waited just long enough, and she grabbed Bison's wrists, meeting him halfway. Putting his hands on her own hips, she presses her face right up to his, and she gets things started up; she kisses him gently and mildly, sealing her lips against his, and holding his hands against her body to help him hold onto her.
Bison immediately stiffens up, like he's some cornered animal. It takes him another half-minute to loosen up, but once he does, Exusiai can feel it. All of his rigidity just melts down, like butter on a hot pan, and he moves into Exusiai while she wraps his arms more tightly around the angel girl, following along with her motions and matching her smooch in both passion and fluidity.
Exusiai hums into the kiss, smiling, and she can feel him doing the same. Almost reflexively, she wraps her arms around Bison's neck, locking herself around him, and using her tongue to guide him around in her mouth, helping him map it out in case he ever comes back.
The spark persists between them, even after they pull apart. Bison's face is beet red, and he's panting softly; he didn't even realize he'd hardly been breathing the entire time he'd kissed the Sankta, and Exusiai moved her hair away from her face as she made the same realization, her chest rising and falling with her heavy breathing. She blushed.
"Whoa," Exusiai whispered, "you're not bad at all. You're a natural~"
"Did you think I was going to be awful at it? I just kind of did what you did," Bison muttered, before he blinked and remembered that he was still holding onto Exusiai by the hips.
"Should I…" He started to say.
"Let go? Nah." She traced her fingers across Bison's neck, holding him intimately for a few moments before the closet door opens, and Croissant stands in frame, gawking at them.
"Hoo-wee! What's goin' on in here?" She smirked, eyeing Bison and Exusiai locked together. "You kids havin' fun? Least you still got yer clothes on," she teased. "But yer seven minutes are up!"
"Already?" Bison pouted, feeling even more embarrassed that Croissant had caught them like this. "Are you sure we can't get five more minutes…?"
Croissant raised an eyebrow, smiling widely. She only looked at Exusiai, who shrugged her shoulders sheepishly.
"I'm teaching him how to kiss," the angel told her.
"Oh, good." Croissant grabbed the doorknob, giving them a wink. "Make sure he's an expert smoocher by the time I get my hands on him, yeah? I wanna see if he can keep up."
"Sure thing, boss." Exusiai gave a playful salute, before Croissant closed the closet door, leaving Exusiai and Bison in the dimness of the enclosed space once again.
"Once she gets her hands on me?" Bison gulped. "W-what does she mean by that?"
"Hey come on! Less talking, more kissing," Exusiai told Bison, once again lacing her arms around the anxious boy's neck. "And call me Senpai some more. Maybe I'll give you something extra sweet as a surprise…"