Don't toy with me Miss Artemis

Chapter 6

Bell breathed a sigh of relief as he walked away from Artemis's office, carrying his lunch under his arm. He was still very hot under the collar after the whole experience that morning. He was trying not to think about it, but the images just kept playing back in his head. He hardly noticed as he joined back in with the regular crowd of the school, moving his way to the lunch hall. Rather distracted, he didn't notice Haruhime wave at him through the crowd.

She tilted her head briefly, noticing how distracted he looked. After a few moments of trying to get his attention, she went for the bold approach, grabbing his arm from the side, squishing it between her ample bosom.

"Bell?" She called gently in his ear.

"Huh? Ohh Haruhime...Sorry I didn't notice you."

"Are you okay Bell? You seem a bit more flustered than usual..?"

'Though distracted!' She thought, noticing Bell hadn't realised his arm was in between her breasts, which had always made him jump and squeal away before.

"Hehe that's more like the Bell I know... Come on, you're free for lunch right? Why don't we eat together?"

"Y-Yeah..." Still though, it was obvious something was on his mind. "That would be nice Hime."

"Great! Come on, I know a great spot!" She grabbed his hand and pulled him along her tail swishing back and forth in front of his face.

Bell was glad for the distraction, letting the smiling girl lead him along. Instead of the lunch hall, she brought him outside to the grass filled courtyard, sitting down in the shade of a lone tree that had been planted.

"It's the last few days of summer Bell." She smiled as she sat down, spreading her skirt out to stop any wrinkles.

"We should enjoy them while we can. Winters can be quite harsh in Orario."

She shuffled closer to him before reaching into her bag and pulling out an ornate box. Bell had never seen anything like it and was curious about what was inside.

Bell had cold curry and rice, left overs from the night before. He watched as Haruhime unwrapped the box she was holding before taking off the lid. Bell looked in to see it was divided into several sections, each one containing a different dish. A larger section contained some cooked rice, but Bell also saw something that was shredded green with sesame seeds in, next to that was some shredded purple vegetable. He also saw some battered prawns.

"Did you make that Haruhime?" He asked as he admired her lunch.

She turned surprised to see the shining glint in his eyes as he admired her lunch.

"Y-yes I did. I... I've been staying with my friend Mikoto and she's been showing me how to make them. Though it's my first time doing it by myself...."

She turned away causing Bell to look up. Her face seemed a little sad though he wasn't sure why. All he could think to do in that moment was try and cheer her up.

"It looks great... I'm certain it will taste delicious as well!" He beamed his typical smile at her. The girl blushed a little, her heated cheeks only made it easier for her to forget what was on her mind. She returned the smile and picked up a pair of chopsticks.

"Thank you Bell... Now let's eat shall we?"

Bell's stomach growled and he clutched at it, making her laugh.

"Yeah, let's." He smiled at her scratching the back of his head.

Having dug into their respective meals, Haruhime took the time to watch Bell devour his curry and rice. At least that's what she had expected him to be doing. In truth he was pushing it about constantly, taking a bite from time to time. His face didn't seem to be enjoying it. However, what caught her eye was when she caught him looking at her bento box.