The next world.

After the cafeteria and his last class Kaerith walked out of the classroom, already mentally preparing himself for whatever chaotic nonsense the dormitories might have in store for him. exhaling deeply as he adjusted his bag over his shoulder. The sun was setting, painting the academy in a soft orange glow, and he was ready to check out the dormitories. As he walked down the hallway, lost in thought, something—or rather, someone—collided with him head-on.

"Whoa!" Kaerith stumbled back, barely catching his balance.

"Geez, watch it!" came an annoyed voice.

He looked up to see a girl with dark pink hair and light pink eyes staring at him, her hands on her hips. She was wearing the same academy uniform but somehow managed to make it look effortlessly casual. Her blazer was unbuttoned, her tie loose, and her skirt slightly tilted like she didn't care enough to fix it. Despite her irritated tone, there was something playful in her expression—a glint in her eyes that made her seem like trouble.

"Uh… sorry?" Kaerith offered hesitantly.

The girl's irritation quickly evaporated, replaced by a teasing smile. "Oh, it's you! You're that new guy everyone's talking about. What's your name again? Kay… Kale… Kaerith?"

"Yeah, that's me," Kaerith said, blinking. "And you are…?"

"Koko. Koko Honeysuckle," she said, flipping a strand of dark pink hair over her shoulder. "Future legend of this academy. Nice to meet ya." She stuck out her hand with all the confidence of someone who had already decided they were going to be best friends.

Kaerith hesitated before shaking her hand. "Uh… nice to meet you too?"

Koko grinned. "You're a little awkward, huh? That's okay. I like awkward people. They're fun to mess with."

Before Kaerith could respond, she grabbed his wrist. "Anyway, you're coming with me."

"What? Why?" Kaerith protested as she started dragging him down the hallway.

"Because you look like someone who knows how to handle weird situations, and I need backup."

"For what?"

"You'll see," Koko said cryptically, her grin widening.

Ten minutes later, Kaerith found himself crouched behind a hedge outside the dormitories, with Koko beside him holding a pair of binoculars.

"Okay, seriously, what are we doing here?" Kaerith whispered.

Koko lowered the binoculars and gave him a dramatic look. "There's something weird going on in the dorms. Strange noises, people disappearing for hours, mysterious shadows… I think it's either a ghost or an underground fight club."

Kaerith blinked. "An underground fight club?"

"Think about it!" Koko said, leaning closer to him like she was sharing the secret of the universe. "What better place to stage illegal fights than a dormitory? No one would ever suspect it."

Kaerith stared at her. "Or… maybe it's just someone snoring really loudly?"

Koko gasped, looking genuinely offended. "Where's your sense of adventure? What if it's something cool?"

Another crash echoed from the dorms, followed by a strange growling sound.

"See? That doesn't sound like snoring!" Koko said, grabbing his arm. "Come on!"

Inside the dormitory, Kaerith tried to keep up with Koko as she darted down the hallways like she owned the place. Her energy was contagious, even if he was 90% sure this was going to end in disaster.

"Okay, the noise came from down here," Koko whispered as they approached the common room.

Kaerith noticed the flickering lights and the eerie silence. "This is definitely creepy," he muttered.

"Relax," Koko said, waving him off. "If it's a ghost, I'll just punch it. And if it's a fight club, I'll enter the ring and win us some prize money."

Kaerith gave her a skeptical look. "You can't just punch a ghost."

Koko smirked. "Bet I can."

They reached the door to the common room, and Koko held up her hand to stop him. "Alright, on the count of three, we burst in. Ready?"

"No," Kaerith said, but Koko ignored him.

"One… two… three!"

She kicked the door open, and the two of them burst into the room—only to find a group of students lounging on the couches, eating snacks, and watching a movie.

Everyone turned to stare at them.

"Uh… hi?" Kaerith said awkwardly.

Koko, unfazed, pointed dramatically at the group. "Alright, fess up! Who's running the underground fight club?"

The room burst into laughter, and Kaerith felt his face flush.

"There's no fight club," one of the students said, barely able to contain their giggles. "We're just watching a horror movie."

Koko blinked, clearly disappointed. "Oh. Well, that's boring." Then she brightened. "Can we join?"

Kaerith sighed, running a hand through his hair. "You're unbelievable."

Koko plopped down on the couch, grabbing a bag of chips like she'd been invited. "You'll thank me one day, Kaerith. I make life interesting."

Kaerith sat down beside her, shaking his head with a small smile. She wasn't wrong. Life with Koko around was definitely going to be interesting.

Kaerith was still recovering from the emotional whiplash of meeting Koko Honeysuckle when she dragged him into yet another predicament. Somehow, this girl managed to turn every situation into a whirlwind of chaos. The way her uniform barely adhered to dress code—her blazer sliding off one shoulder and her shirt suspiciously snug in all the right places—only added to the problematic energy she radiated.

"Koko," Kaerith started, already sensing trouble as they crept through the dim dormitory hallway. "I feel like I've been here for five minutes and already made the worst decision of my life."

"That's the spirit!" she whispered back with a mischievous grin, her light pink eyes practically glowing in the low light. "If you're not constantly making questionable decisions, are you even living?"

Kaerith groaned, keeping his eyes focused on the floor. He had to not think about how her skirt swayed dangerously every time she moved or how her low-buttoned blazer offered a scandalous glimpse every time she leaned forward.

As they turned the corner, Koko abruptly stopped, causing Kaerith to walk straight into her.

"Hey! Watch it," Koko hissed, but she didn't move away, leaving Kaerith awkwardly pressed against her back. Her hair smelled like strawberries, and he immediately decided this was a horrible spot to be in.

"Why are we stopping?" he asked, desperate to break the tension.

She turned her head slightly, giving him a sly smirk over her shoulder. "Because I think we just hit the jackpot."

Before Kaerith could respond, Koko flung open a nearby door. Inside was…

A mountain of laundry?

Kaerith blinked as he stared at the massive pile of clothes. Koko, on the other hand, looked like she'd just found a treasure chest.

"What are we looking at?" he asked, trying to keep his voice steady.

"This," Koko said dramatically, climbing onto the pile like a pirate claiming her loot, "is where the real mystery lies."

Kaerith pinched the bridge of his nose. "It's just laundry."

"Wrong!" Koko countered, pulling out a lacy, very revealing piece of underwear and holding it up triumphantly. "This is evidence!"

Kaerith's face turned a brilliant shade of red. "Put that down!"

Koko laughed, twirling the garment on her finger like a victory flag. "What's the matter, Kaerith? Never seen a pair of—"

"Don't finish that sentence!" he snapped, grabbing her wrist to stop her from waving it around.

Unfortunately, the sudden movement caused Koko to lose her balance, and she toppled backward into the pile of laundry—dragging Kaerith with her.

They landed in a tangle of limbs and fabric, Koko laughing hysterically while Kaerith desperately tried to extricate himself without touching anything he shouldn't.

"This… is not how I imagined my first day going," he muttered, his face buried in what he prayed was just a pillowcase.

Koko, still lying beneath him, grinned up at him. "Admit it. You're having fun."

"I'm having a heart attack," Kaerith replied, finally managing to sit up.

Koko propped herself up on her elbows, her shirt slightly disheveled from the fall. Kaerith immediately looked away, focusing very intently on a random sock in the corner of the room.

"You're blushing," Koko teased, poking his cheek.

"No, I'm not," he lied, scooting away from her.

Before she could tease him further, a loud creak echoed from the hallway.

"Uh-oh," Koko whispered, her grin returning. "Someone's coming!"

"Perfect," Kaerith deadpanned. "Because this situation couldn't possibly get worse."

"Quick, hide!" Koko said, grabbing his arm and pulling him deeper into the laundry pile.

Kaerith had no choice but to follow, burying himself in the soft chaos of clothes. As they huddled together, he couldn't help but wonder how his life had spiraled so far out of control in such a short amount of time.

Koko, however, looked like she was having the time of her life.

"You know," she whispered, leaning dangerously close to his ear, "for a newbie, you're not half bad at this whole sneaking-around thing."

Kaerith sighed. "Koko, please stop talking."

Her laugh was soft and mischievous. "You're no fun."

Footsteps approached, and Kaerith held his breath, praying whoever it was wouldn't look too closely. He couldn't handle the humiliation of being found like this—not with Koko lying half on top of him, her hair tickling his face and her laughter vibrating against his chest.

As the footsteps passed and the danger faded, Koko sat up, grinning triumphantly. "See? We make a great team."

Kaerith glared at her. "This is the worst team I've ever been a part of."

"Aw, don't be like that," she said, ruffling his hair like he was a little kid. "You'll get used to it. Adventures with me are never boring!"

He didn't doubt that for a second.

Kaerith stared at Koko, utterly defeated as she sat atop the pile of laundry like some sort of triumphant queen. Her uniform, already a disaster before, now clung to her like it had just declared mutiny. The thin white shirt hugged her chest so tightly that Kaerith could see the faint outline of her undergarments—a light pink bra with lace trim that made his brain short-circuit for a solid three seconds.

Her blazer had slid completely off one shoulder, leaving her smooth, sun-kissed skin on full display. And her skirt? Well, let's just say it was defying gravity in ways that should've been illegal. Kaerith's eyes darted away as fast as they could, landing on the far wall like it was the most interesting thing in the world.

"Kaerith," Koko said, tilting her head as she leaned forward, her curly dark pink hair cascading over her shoulders. Her light pink pupils practically sparkled with amusement. "You've been awfully quiet."

"I'm just… uh… thinking," Kaerith mumbled, desperately trying not to look at the way her uniform's unbuttoned collar dipped low enough to hint at her collarbone—and a little beyond.

Koko smirked, clearly enjoying his discomfort. "Thinking about what? The laundry? Or something… else?"

Kaerith's face turned a shade of red that could rival a tomato. "Laundry! Definitely laundry!"

She laughed, her voice low and teasing as she shifted closer to him. "You're so easy to mess with, you know that?"

As she moved, her body seemed to demand attention whether he wanted to give it or not. Her slim waist contrasted sharply with the way her hips flared out, giving her an hourglass figure that seemed almost too perfect to be real. Her chest—full and rounded—rose and fell with every breath, the subtle movement practically hypnotic. And her thighs… Kaerith had to forcibly remind himself to look anywhere else because the way they pressed against her skirt when she sat was downright distracting.

"Koko, can we please focus?" Kaerith said, his voice an octave higher than usual.

"Focus on what?" she asked innocently, leaning even closer until their noses were almost touching. "You seem pretty distracted."

"I—uh—" Kaerith stammered, his brain running on fumes at this point. "I think we should leave before—"

Suddenly, the door creaked open, and Kaerith's heart nearly stopped.

"Oh, crap," Koko whispered, her grin widening instead of showing any sign of panic. "Looks like we've been caught."

Kaerith didn't even have time to react before Koko grabbed his arm and yanked him down into the pile of clothes with her. He landed awkwardly, his hand accidentally brushing against her pus—

"Hey!" Koko yelped, smacking his arm.

"S-Sorry!" Kaerith stuttered, pulling his hand back so fast he nearly hit himself in the face.

Koko gave him a sly look, her cheeks tinged pink but her confidence completely intact. "Well, well, Kaerith. Didn't think you had it in you."

"I DIDN'T MEAN TO!" he shouted, his voice cracking in embarrassment.

The footsteps outside the room grew louder, and Kaerith panicked. Without thinking, he grabbed Koko and pulled her deeper into the pile, burying them both under a cascade of clothes.

As they huddled together, Koko giggled softly, her breath warm against his ear. "You know, this is kinda cozy."

"Please stop talking," Kaerith begged, his face so hot he was sure he'd pass out at any moment.

Koko didn't listen, of course. She never did. Instead, she shifted slightly, her body pressing against his in ways that made it impossible to think about anything else. Her legs tangled with his joystick, her curves fitting against him like puzzle pieces, and Kaerith was 99% certain he was going to die right here in this ridiculous pile of laundry.

"Relax," Koko whispered, her voice teasing but strangely soft. "I'm just messing with you. You're fun to mess with, Kaerith. You should stick around."

Kaerith couldn't even form a coherent response. All he could do was pray that whoever was outside would leave so he could escape this insanity—and Koko Honeysuckle—before he completely lost his mind.

As the footsteps finally faded away, Koko peeked out from the pile of clothes, her hair adorably disheveled and her grin as wide as ever. "Looks like the coast is clear!"

Kaerith sighed in relief, sitting up and trying his best to ignore how close she was—or how her shirt had somehow become even more undone during their hiding.

"Next time," he said, trying to sound firm despite his obvious flustered state, "I'm not letting you drag me into anything."

Koko laughed, standing up and dusting herself off. "You say that now, but we both know you'll be back for more."

She winked at him before sauntering toward the door, her hips swaying with every step. Kaerith groaned, burying his face in his hands.

This girl was going to be the death of him.

.