Chapter 9:

Kyoko was once again being dissected by his gaze. Not just physically, the way he pieced apart her outfit with his eyes, traced along the subtle curve of her thighs with hungry looks, stared at her as if he could see right through her dress and examine every inch of her skin, but also emotionally. He had not hesitated to tell her that he knew she was lying about not wanting to light fireworks with him after dinner, knew she was lying about not being interested in him. The way he cocked his head ever so slightly to the side to examine her legs, a humorous smile on his lips, teasing her, telling her that he caught her examining his own outfit by mimicking the look she thought was too subtle for him to catch.

Part of her hated him for that. She wanted him to be wrong about anything so that she could rub it into that smug look he got when he was right about her. But part of her knew just the same that he couldn't help it. She was being completely transparent. It was foolish to step out from behind her walls and expose herself to him, then to fault him for seeing her. Still, she resented his smugness on the matter.

Nevertheless, she took her seat across from him without hesitation. And was thrilled when he closed some of the distance between him, leaning into their conversation.

"I'm sorry," was the first thing out of his mouth. He didn't even give her a moment to settle in before he was certain she knew it. "it was wrong of me to corner you like that, to insert myself into a topic that was none of my business,"

"And for making assumptions about me and my relationships?" Kyoko offered up when Koga seemed to be done.

"Nope"

"Huh?"

"I'm not sorry for making assumptions about your feelings because they were right,"

Kyoko was astounded by his nerve, but didn't have time to say as much, because he pressed on without pause.

"But I didn't have a right to say it. I will always be sorry for overstepping, for pressing, or for hurting you in anyway," he leaned in until their faces were mere inches apart, so close he could have stolen a kiss before she even noticed. "but I will never apologize for seeing you, even the parts you don't like"

Kyoko was flushed, and astounded, and irritated all at once. Sure, she could be an open book, but a man she had only known for a matter of months, and barely known at that, was so sure of her that he thought he knew her better than anyone else.

"You're not always right about me, you know," she said. She was a bit angry at his confidence, but more angry at herself. How had she let herself be so open to him? She needed distance between them, to process her feelings, to not let him in so carelessly like some frivolous girl who falls in love so easily that even a near stranger could see it.

"What have I been wrong about," Koga said with an infuriating lack of earnest. He knew that there was nothing.

Kyoko was red in the face, agitated and embarrassed. "I'm not dating Tsuruga Ren," she said. God, why had she said that? She needed to stop bringing up her relationship with him. Was he trying to reveal more about her relationship with Ren, or was she just giving away this information so freely?

Koga didn't respond at first. He stared at her as if he was trying to get her to crack, to break and say "okay, I'm a liar, you know everything about me"

"Good," he said carefully, and she realized why he had paused. She had reacted poorly last time he said this, and now he was testing the waters. He was waiting to see if she jumped to the defense of their relationship a second time. She wouldn't make the same mistake twice.

"What do you mean?" She said. It was exactly what she said before, but it was entirely different now. Her experience with flirting was minimal, sure, but she wasn't blind to what it looked like when women flirted. She batted her eyelashes at and waited for him to respond. She knew he wasn't going to jump up and say "because I'm in love with you and I want you all to myself," and she certainly didn't want him to, but she did want him to think that's what she thought. This was the safest option, right? Coming on a little strong would solve all her problems. He would be pushed back, become disinterested, and she would have a safe distance between them to not have to examine or unpack her feelings, and he wouldn't suspect her and Ren of a relationship any longer.

He tilted his head to the side, seeing through her again. "Because I want you all to myself"