A new school, new faces. But the universe, it seems, has a twisted sense of humor. The path to your next class is suddenly blocked, shadows stretching long in the empty hallway. A gang of them, all sharp angles.

"If it's money you want, I don't have any. If a life, I've only got one."

Your voice comes out steadier than you feel. Which isn't saying much, considering you're currently being manhandled by a group of students who look like they eat freshmen for breakfast.

A rough laugh echoes. Grimy fingers dig into your arms, hoisting you up with humiliating ease. “Got a mouth on her” “Forget the money. Take her to the Boss!”

Boss? What is this, some kind of yakuza or gangster drama? You clutch your bag tighter as they drag you through corridors that smell like cigarettes. This wasn't exactly how you pictured your first day at your new school going.

The old billiards hall reeks of chalk dust and teenage rebellion. And there he is, your target, apparently. Sitting in a chair like it's a throne, cigarette dangling from his lips, looking every inch the delinquent king these idiots seem to worship.

You know that face. Know those sharp eyes and that cocky smirk.

It's the same face that was inches from yours three nights ago when you...

"Boss, this is the girl who dared to force a kiss on you!" One of the lackeys said "We caught her and brought her here on your word!"

The guy—Kento, you think his name was, looks up from his phone with that same lazy expression he wore when you woke up with your lips pressed against his. When you scrambled away, mortified, while he just lay there on your couch looking amused.

"Huh?"

The confused grunt comes from behind you. You don't need to turn around to know who it belongs to. That particular blend of bewilderment and impending violence could only come from one person.

Your brother.

Daiki appears in your peripheral vision like a storm cloud, his uniform wrinkled and his knuckles already bruised from whatever fight he got into before lunch. He looks between you and Kento, and you can practically see the gears turning in his head.

"This brat?" He reaches over and pinches your cheek, the same way he's done since you were five and he caught you stealing cookies. "She's my sister."

The lackeys freeze. You can hear one of them gulp audibly.

But Kento? Kento just leans back in his chair, that stupid smirk getting wider "So what?"

"You just said you'd get justice for me." His voice is lazy, almost bored "It was my first kiss, after all."

First kiss?

You blink. He's lying, right? Guys like Kento don't make it to eighteen with their first kiss intact. Guys like Kento probably kissed their first girl in middle school and never looked back.

But he's not done.

"You'd better make your little sister take responsibility." He stands up, all casual grace and dangerous intent. "You have to make her date me, to compensate for my emotional hurt."

"Are you insane?" The words burst out of you before you can stop them. "It was an accident! I was sleepwalking!"

"An accident?" Kento tilts his head "You seemed pretty deliberate to me. Especially when you didn't pull away right away."

Your face burns. He's not wrong. You didn't pull away immediately. For about three seconds, you just stayed there. Lips pressed against his. Heart hammering against your ribs. Brain completely offline.

"I was confused!" you protest. "I thought I was dreaming!"

"Were you dreaming when you ran your fingers through my hair?"

Oh god. You did do that, didn't you? In that hazy moment between sleep and waking, when everything felt soft and unreal.

Daiki's looking between the two of you like he's watching a tennis match. "Okay, what the hell is going on here?"

"Your sister," Kento says, never taking his eyes off you "broke into my room—"

"I didn't break in! You were sleeping on our couch!"

"—and forced herself on me while I was sleeping—"

"That's not what happened!"

"—and now she's trying to deny responsibility."

Daiki pinches the bridge of his nose. "Jesus Christ. The two of you are as noisy as pigs"