Chapter 34: The Umbrella Blockade

【Seda PoV】

The afternoon sky opened up like someone had slashed it open with a knife.

Rain hammered against the windows, turning the world outside into a blurred watercolor mess. Thunder rumbled somewhere in the distance. The fluorescent lights flickered once, twice, then steadied. Perfect weather for what I had planned.

I stood by the shoe lockers, tucked into the shadowed corner where the hallway turned. My position gave me a clear view of the entrance. Students clustered in groups, staring at the downpour with varying degrees of dismay. Some pulled out umbrellas. Others called parents for rides. A few brave idiots prepared to make a run for it.

But I was watching one specific idiot.

Ryuuji Kanzaki stood near the main doors, and he was holding the most obnoxious umbrella I’d ever seen. Custom-made, obviously expensive, with a canopy big enough to shelter a small family. Deep blue fabric with some kind of silver embroidery along the edges. Probably cost more than my entire wardrobe.

And he was waiting.

His eyes kept scanning the crowd, searching for a specific target. I didn’t need three guesses to know who. The leather notebook peeked out from his bag. His posture screamed eager puppy waiting for its owner. He’d positioned himself directly in the path anyone leaving would have to take.

Strategic. Calculated. Absolutely not happening.

The umbrella thing was a classic move. Aiai gasa. The “love umbrella” trope that showed up in every romance manga ever created. Two people huddled together under limited shelter, shoulders touching, creating artificial intimacy through shared inconvenience. It built rapport. It created bonding moments. It led directly to relationship development.​

And in this case, it would lead straight back to the BL route that Elizabeth had explicitly warned me about after the Genre Shift incident.​

I could already hear her lecture. That clipped, professional tone she used when explaining how my impulsive decisions created work for both of us. The way she’d pull up charts and data showing exactly how Ryuuji’s affection metrics were climbing. How she’d make me help debug the app’s genre-filtering protocols while she monologued about “narrative containment” and “route management.”

Hard pass.

I pulled my own umbrella from my bag. Compact, functional, perfectly capable of keeping me dry. I stared at it for a long moment, weighing my options. Then I shoved it deep into the bottom of my bag, burying it under textbooks and gym clothes where I couldn’t reach it easily.

This was going to suck. I was going to get soaked. I was going to be cold and miserable and probably catch an actual cold that would make tomorrow genuinely unpleasant.

But Alfred would have to deal with it. And that was worth any amount of personal discomfort.

I took a deep breath and walked toward the entrance. Each step brought me closer to the rain, closer to Ryuuji’s stupid expensive umbrella, closer to the confrontation I was about to manufacture.

The automatic doors slid open. Rain spray hit my face, cold and sharp. I didn’t hesitate. I walked straight out into the downpour.

The water hit me like a physical force. Within seconds my uniform was plastered to my skin. My hair hung in wet ropes around my face. Rain soaked through my blazer, my shirt, everything. The cold shocked my system, making my breath catch.

I activated my beast tamer aura, just a fraction of its full power. My body temperature dropped artificially, adding genuine biological cold on top of the rain’s chill. My skin went ice-pale. My lips started losing color. Actual shivers wracked my frame, my body responding to the temperature drop with involuntary tremors.​

Method acting at its finest.

I stood there in the rain for a solid thirty seconds, letting myself become thoroughly miserable. Water dripped from my hair. My shoes squelched. I hugged myself, teeth chattering for real now despite starting as a performance.

Then I walked back inside, leaving wet footprints across the clean floor.

The crowd parted around me. Whispers started immediately. Students stared at the soaked foreign exchange student dripping all over the entrance. Someone offered me a towel. I ignored them, eyes locked on my actual target.

Alfred emerged from the hallway, shoving his arms through his jacket sleeves. He looked up at the rain and his whole face fell into that expression of glum resignation. His umbrella was tiny and cheap, one of those convenience store models that broke after three uses. He clutched it like it might somehow grow bigger through force of will.

Ryuuji moved immediately, stepping directly into Alfred’s path. The massive umbrella opened with a theatrical flourish, canopy spreading wide enough to cover both of them with room to spare.

“Sensei! Please, allow me to shelter you on your journey home.”

His voice carried that same reverent tone that made me want to throw something. Like offering umbrella-sharing privileges was some kind of sacred honor he was bestowing.

Time to intervene.

I stepped out from behind a support pillar, moving into Alfred’s line of sight. I let my full pathetic state show. Soaked uniform clinging to my frame. Hair plastered to my skull. Skin pale and cold. Violent shivers wracking my entire body. I stared at Alfred with those blank, empty eyes I’d perfected for the hypnotized persona.​

“Master.”

The word came out with an audible teeth-chatter. Not entirely fake anymore. I was legitimately freezing.

Alfred’s head snapped toward me. His eyes went wide, taking in my drowned-rat appearance.

“Thermal regulation failing. Hypothermia imminent.”

I took one shaky step toward him. Water dripped from my hair onto the floor. My hand reached out, trembling visibly, and grabbed his wrist.

The cold shock made him jump. His skin was warm compared to mine. The temperature difference was startling even for me.

“Seda?! You’re freezing! Where’s your umbrella?”

His voice pitched up with genuine concern. The Virgin Shield was already activating in his brain. I could see the gears turning. Damsel in distress. Medical emergency. Responsibility override engaging.​

Perfect.

“Lost. Hardware malfunction detected.”

I pressed closer, my wet shoulder making contact with his chest. He jerked back from the cold but I followed, maintaining contact. My shivering intensified, body temperature still artificially suppressed by the aura.

“Core temperature critical. Need heat source. Immediate transfer required.”

I turned my head slowly, mechanically, until I was staring directly at Ryuuji. Then I looked at his massive umbrella. Then back at Ryuuji. My expression stayed flat and robotic.

“Incompatible.”

I pointed at him with my free hand, the gesture stiff and accusatory.

“Unknown variable detected. Stranger danger protocol active. Cannot accept assistance from unregistered entities.”

Ryuuji’s face cycled through confusion and hurt. His grip on the umbrella handle tightened.

“But Sensei, surely—”

“Master only.”

I cut him off, pressing even closer to Alfred. My wet uniform was soaking into his jacket now. He made a small sound of discomfort but didn’t pull away. Good boy.

“Exclusive heat transfer protocol. Single authorized user. No exceptions.”

I looked up at Alfred with those empty doll eyes, letting my genuine misery show through the robotic facade. I was cold. I was wet. I was shaking hard enough that it had to be visible even in the dim light.

“Please. Temperature approaching critical levels. System shutdown imminent without immediate intervention.”

The medical emergency angle was working. I could see it in Alfred’s expression. The way his concern overrode his usual anxiety. The way his hands came up automatically, hovering near my shoulders like he wanted to warm me up but didn’t know how.

He looked at Ryuuji. Then at me. Then at the rain. Then back at me, still shivering violently against his side.

The Virgin Shield made his decision for him.​

“Sorry, Kanzaki. She’s malfunctioning badly. I need to get her home before she actually gets hypothermia.”

His voice carried apologetic tones but his body language was already shifting. Already angling toward the exit. Already accepting the responsibility I’d forced onto him.

Ryuuji’s shoulders slumped. The umbrella drooped slightly in his grip. For a moment he looked like he might argue, might push back, might try to salvage the situation.

Then his training kicked in. That formal, polite persona he defaulted to when overwhelmed.

“I understand, Sensei. Duty must come first.”

He bowed, the motion crisp and proper despite his obvious disappointment. When he straightened, his expression had smoothed into neutral acceptance.

“Please ensure she receives proper care. I will check on your progress tomorrow.”

He turned and walked toward the exit, that massive umbrella opening above him like a personal storm shield. The rain drummed against expensive fabric. He didn’t look back.

Victory tasted like rain water and triumph.

Alfred’s tiny cheap umbrella opened with a sad little pop. The canopy was barely bigger than a dinner plate. It would maybe cover one person if they hunched.

I immediately pressed myself against his side, huddling under the inadequate shelter. My wet uniform soaked into his jacket. My cold skin leached warmth from his body. I was shivering so hard my teeth clacked together audibly.

“Can you walk?”

“Affirmative. Motor functions operational. Temperature regulation compromised but ambulatory capacity maintained.”

We stepped out into the rain together. The umbrella did almost nothing. Water hit us from the sides, splashed up from puddles, soaked through shoes and socks within steps. Alfred tried angling it to cover me more, which just meant he got wetter.

I pressed closer, using the excuse of cold and malfunction to plaster myself against his side. His arm came around my shoulders automatically, trying to share body heat. Exactly as planned.

The walk home was miserable. Rain pounded us relentlessly. My uniform became a cold, clingy second skin. Water squished in my shoes with every step. The wind picked up, driving rain sideways under the useless umbrella.

I was freezing. Actually genuinely freezing now, the aura having dropped my temperature low enough that recovery was taking time. My shivering wasn’t fake anymore. The cold had seeped into my bones, making my joints ache.

And it was absolutely, completely, perfectly worth it.

Alfred’s warmth radiated through his jacket where I pressed against him. His arm tightened around my shoulders every time I stumbled. His voice kept asking if I was okay, if I needed to stop, if we should call someone. Genuine concern colored every word.

Ryuuji was walking home alone under his stupid expensive umbrella. Alfred was here with me, sharing his body heat and his terrible protection from the rain, choosing me over comfort and convenience.

The rain kept falling. My teeth kept chattering. Alfred kept asking worried questions I answered with robotic monotone.

Best walk home ever.