39 Chapter 39: Hot Chocolate

When Tatsuya entered the room he was greeted by a familiar sight.

The room was painted in soothing pastels and had an inviting warmth.

The bed was dressed in floral patterns and on it was a peacefully sleeping girl, surrounded by an assortment of plush pillows.

Personal touches, like a dreamcatcher and cherished photos, adorned the walls, creating a cosy haven.

It was the room of an 'ideal', 'popular' and 'cute' girl, in a sense it was respectable how far Kushida was willing to go to protect her secret and keep her acting up.

His gaze wandered back to Kushida. He had changed her into simple pyjamas and covered her with a sheet.

She seemed to be sleeping peacefully but there was a slight frown on her face.

The sight was truly heartwarming and Tatsuya felt a hint of regret upon remembering his actions on the roof.

He should've broken her more.

In the end, he decided not to disturb her and went to the mini kitchen. He wasn't an incredible cook in his last life but he knew the basics.

But at the moment he was craving some hot chocolate drink perhaps because it was already night.

He opened his phone and as usual, ignored Hasabe's messages.

"I should probably spend time with her since I have nothing to do now till the end of the mid-term exams. I kinda feel guilty ignoring her like this."

He felt a little embarrassed about forgetting about her just because she wasn't in the main cast. She was very attractive but Tatsuya had struggled with an odd feeling in his heart.

His instincts drove him to fuck Airi to confirm how the System worked and to complete his deductions he fucked Kushida.

At the moment he was completely relaxed without a hint of care in the world.

Instead of ignoring Hasabe, he decided to message her about meeting tomorrow.

"But what kind of nickname is Yama-kun?" It really gave him a shock when she came up with this weird address for him.

Horrifyingly enough her first nickname for him was Yama-chan which made him shudder, after much convincing she changed "chan" to "kun"

Shaking his head with a smile he searched for a few hot chocolate recipes before finding a certain Mexican recipe.

"Interesting..."

3 cups whole milk

3 tablespoons crushed cinnamon sticks (preferably Ceylon)

6 ounces semisweet chocolate (preferably Scharffen Berger), finely chopped

3 tablespoons demerara or granulated sugar

¾ teaspoon vanilla extract

Pinch of kosher salt

¼ teaspoon ground chile de árbol or cayenne pepper, plus more for serving

Lightly sweetened whipped cream (for serving)

Preparation

Step 1

Bring milk and cinnamon to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, whisking occasionally and making sure milk doesn't boil until cinnamon is floral and fragrant about 10 minutes. Whisk in chocolate, sugar, vanilla, salt, and ¼ tsp. ground chile and cook, whisking frequently, until the mixture is smooth and creamy and chocolate is melted, about 5 minutes.

Step 2

Divide hot chocolate among mugs. Top with whipped cream and dust with cocoa powder.

"Shouldn't be hard, but I'm missing a few ingredients..." He muttered with an exasperated look before summoning the invisibility cloak.

After wearing it he rushed out of the dorm with the highest speed he could muster. A certain part of him wanted to jump down the railing but then he remembered he was on the 12th floor.

Hah! So what if he had regeneration? He wasn't some kind of masochist.

Tatsuya relished in delight as he dashed down the stairs.

It felt as if he was flying.

"Speaking of flying, I wonder when I'll get a flying ability. I have a few dozen spins... My luck can't be that bad right?"

At an inconspicuous corner, he put the cloak away and went into the shop, buying whatever he needed.

Oddly enough he found no one familiar, some students did point at him talking in hushed breaths but none familiar enough to initiate a conversation with.

When he returned to the dorms barely a few minutes had passed and Kushida was still sleeping.

Tatsuya carefully followed the steps and made some hot chocolate.

The mug held a rich, smooth chocolate blend with tiny marshmallows bobbing on top, like little clouds.

A dusting of chocolate powder adorned the whipped cream, making it extra tempting. As he cradled the mug, the sweet aroma enveloped him.

He sipped the chocolate drink with a warm smile as he thought about a few moments from his previous life.

Shaking his head he muttered with a chuckle, "I followed the steps precisely without an iota of error and yet my hot chocolate is different than how it was shown on the site. I feel kind of betrayed... Or am I just that bad?"

After finishing his hot chocolate he walked to Kushida with another mug in hand and pushed her awake.

Kushida was startled and awoke with a fright. She had a blank look as if trying to remember what happened but suddenly Tatsuya's face came into her view and all her memories came crashing down like a broken dam.

"AAAA-"

Suddenly a large hand clamped down on her lips, pushing her back against the wall. Kushida looked at him with terror and tears in her eyes.

Her body was shaking as if reliving the trauma she faced a few hours ago.

"Shush! What the hell? Everyone's sleeping and you almost made the hot chocolate spill!" He scolded her, upon seeing a drop of the drink slide down the edge of the mug.

For a second he wanted to lick it but remembering it was Kushida's mug he decided against it. It would be insensitive and rude to do that.

He pushed the hot chocolate to the whimpering Kushida, "Not a single sound. You will drink this slowly and enjoy it. Relax, I won't do anything now."

He lied.

But she didn't know, did she?

Game was game.

Kushida looked down and nodded her head. Tatsuya slowly removed his hand from her mouth and pushed the mug towards her.

Ignoring the sight of her frail shaky hands he found a chair to sit on. He turned it around and sat on it with his hands resting on top of the backrest.

Plopping his chin on top of his hands he silently watched as Kushida sip by sip drank the hot chocolate he made.

A few minutes passed in heavy silence as Kushida avoided his gaze.

"Uhm... So how is it?" Kushida looked startled by the sudden question, "The drink I mean."

"... It's good." She whispered quietly.

Tatsuya wondered how she felt. It must be odd to drink hot chocolate made by your rapist who was also watching you drink it.

What an awkward situation.

It was odd seeing the bubbly Kushida so quiet. Even her scary side was silent at the moment.

But he had to break the ice somehow.

"I laced the drink with an aphrodisiac." He said with a smile as he noticed Kushida's eyes widen with horror.

"Just kidding."

"You..." Kushida had a million words to say but they all got compressed to one sentence, "... What's wrong with you?"

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Author Notes- I had a lot of fun writing this chapter, it felt very relaxing and wholesome... Well if you ignore the context I guess it is cute and wholesome?

Well who am I kidding, my sadistic ass will mess everything up next chapter.

Merry Christmas (⁠｡⁠♡⁠‿⁠♡⁠｡⁠)

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