COTE: The Quiet One Can Be Dangerous

Vol. 7 Chp. 5: Ryuuen Loss

'...': Writing
'...': Sign language
"...": Text to speech

Manabe's POV

I had a dream that a dragon almost killed me.

Perhaps it was for the reason that I betrayed my class.

I slowly opened my eyes as my face felt warm, and my body felt freezing.

I slightly turned my head to the right and noticed Kagurazaka sitting on a chair, reading a book. My body quickly jolted up, causing me to groan in pain. The sound of bags of ice hit the ground, and the idiot looked up from his book.

'You're awake.'

What happened earlier hit me like a truck. 

I had more concerning issues as I noticed that I was wearing pajamas.

"Did you change my clothes?!" I could only give him a cold glare because it hurt my body a lot from moving around.

'This is going to be a long story.'

Flashback

Kagurazaka's POV

Manabe fell asleep crying in my arms. After leaving the rooftop, I continued to carry Manabe on my back as I walked down the stairs. I made eye contact with Chabashira-sensei, and her eyes widened slightly. I stared back at her.

"Did you settle your dispute?" Chabashira-sensei asked.

I nodded.

"Did you do that to her?" She asked.

A deadpan expression formed when she asked that. Even though I slapped Ibuki around, she was the one to try and kick me first.

"Right... Dumb question," Chabashira-sensei placed a hand on her forehead and let out an exasperated sigh, "Well, I'll let you go."

Manabe's room

I used Manabe's keycard to unlock her dorm and entered. Placing Manabe on her bed, I didn't know how to approach this situation. I didn't want her to get sick, but she would likely kill me if I attempted to strip her of her clothes and have her take a bath.

I placed my hand on her forehead and noticed that she was burning up.

I noticed Manabe stirred before she opened her eyes. I don't know what I was expecting, but she turned to me with a solemn expression.

"Kagurazaka-kun... I feel cold..." She spoke solemnly.

Is she not going to question that I took her keycard to enter her room?

I was expecting her to call me an idiot.

"Can you... help me out of my clothes?"

...

...

...

I stared at her with a dumbfounded expression.

I wasn't expecting something like that to come out of her mouth. I don't know if the beating she took from her classmate gave her a concussion or if she was sick.

"Don't look at me like that..." Manabe pouted while her face was red, "My body aches, and my head hurts..."

I was rendered speechless by her vulnerability. I didn't think seeing a cute side of her was possible.

"Go into my dresser and grab my pajamas for me, too..."

How did I get myself into this situation?

She seemed to be waiting for me to help her remove her clothes, causing me to sigh internally. Making my way over, I started helping her out of her shirt.