Tsumi to Kai CHapter 46

Tsumi to Kai Chapter 46 Summary:

Zen sees Hojo getting kissed by Kousuke. Kousuke makes eye contact as he smugly stares him down. Zen runs off with his heart broken. Kousuke tells Hojo that he liked the taste of her lips as he goes in for more, but is surprised when she bites his tongue. She tells him, "Well, yours made me want to puke." Kousuke feigns laughter as he tells her "Oh, so it was that good? Well, anyway... now I know you love bondage. Any time you feel like being tied up, you know where to find me. I'll tie you up a pretty as a flower." He walks off, leaving a disgusted Hojo with her beloved ropes prepared for Zen at her feet.

Elsewhere, Zen is making his way through the crowd, thinking back to what he saw. "I.. was deceived by Hojo!" He is overwhelmed by thoughts of inadequacy compared to Kousuke as he continues to berate himself for how pathetic he appears. He begins to openly weep, as he can't take any more. "I can't stop thinking about the two of them together... I'm starting to feel weird."  Just then, he takes a peak up a girl's skirt. Falling back to his old obsession, which Hojo helped him overcome, he thinks to himself "Without Hojo, this is the only thing I have left. Nothing I do matters anymore. I'll peak up this girl's skirt, and fall back into that sunken place..."  However, the person he was peaking at from behind turns around and calls out to him... it's Aoi!

She goes with him to a restaurant. She asks him "Why exactly were you crying? I... uh, I mean if you don't want to say it, it's okay to not tell me."  However, he eagerly tells her "No... you're just the person I want to talk to."  He tells her the story of what he saw. He confides in her, as he tells her "To Hojo, I was nothing more than a plaything she tied up just to pass the time!"  Aoi pauses for a second, and then she tells him "Hojo didn't think of you that way." Zen is startled by this. "What makes you say that? If that's the case, what was she thinking?"

Aoi replies "...I don't know anything about the Class President or the photos, but I can tell you this: For Hojo, tying you up was more than just a fun game to her. When it comes to Shibari, you are tying up people, not things. So, when you tie someone up, your partner is what you are thinking about the most. When I was learning about bondage from Hojo, this is what she taught me.  You must consider your partner as you tie them up, and be sure to watch if you're hurting them or causing them distress. You must lead your partner with your words and actions to a place where they can expose what's truly in their heart to you. When I heard this, I realized something. Time after time when Hojo tied you up, she watched your condition, and with her touch, she was always thinking about how she wanted to see the real you. It became apparent to me later that you both share this strong desire."

Zen gazes back at her with a wide-eyed expression full of anxiety.

End of Chapter