At first, it sure seems like somebody's groping her

Seemingly, the worst had come to pass: while the weary teacher had been sleeping, somebody had slid up to sit down to her right and, as the only other passenger on the car, had begun feeling around the breast of the doctor's jacket she'd been lent by Takemi. Whoever they were, they were leaning over her with one hand just past her upper thigh and one hand groping around the outside of her jacket. Their face was so close, she could feel their breath on her exposed neckline.

Her eyes shot open, but she didn't scream. Instead, she just stared straight forward at the reflective glass window... the person had bent so low that she wasn't able to make out their form. This was everyone's worst nightmare: being alone on a train with a stranger who sees his moment and starts molesting you with no one around to stop them. She wanted badly to see who the jackass was who'd dared to add on to her horrible night, but she didn't so much as dare move her chin... This was because she felt something smooth and hard probing around her chest now. It could be the butt of a knife or even a gun, as rare as those were to see out in the wild in Japan.

Not finding what he wanted, the molester took it a step further... with what could be either hesitation, care, or perhaps just teasing slowness, he began to feel inside the jacket, now probing her bare breast with that foreign object.

"God... Should I just... Club him on the back of the head? Should I scream? Should I just sit and take it?" Kawakami questioned internally, feeling her lips tremble in uncharacteristic fear. She wondered if her legs were shaking too... if they were, the molester would surely notice it.

A new sound surprised her. It was the ring-tone of a phone... actually, it sounded a lot like her own ringtone, coincidentally. That just made her angry, thinking to how all of this mess had started, back at the laundromat. The next time she saw Ryuji Sakamoto, she was going to have to restrain herself from strangling him to ****. Whoever it was that had targeted her, they quickly silenced the phone, then brazenly continued, thinking their target was still asleep.

The awkward searching of her molester continued. It seemed like it was taking a very long time and like, for some reason, they were deliberately avoiding any of the good stuff... that one hand still hadn't actually touched her thigh yet and whatever was going on inside her jacket, they hadn't opened it up to expose her to the open air yet, nor had they even put their hand on her. Finally, she couldn't hold back her curiosity any longer. Kawakami opened one eye to peek down...

Ryuji was straddling her, dripping sweat and wearing a nervous expression as he attempted to slip the phone into the inside breast pocket of her coat. He must have attempted to leave it in an outer pocket, before realizing there were none, and he hadn't had the decent sense to just leave it on the seat next to her to find when she woke up. Or, being generous, perhaps he just wanted to make sure she got it and it didn't get lost under her feet or left on the train. The bin full of clothes, as well as the rest of her personal effects, sat on the floor next to his feet. He must have ended up on the same train as she was, in a different car, and made his way over.

Their eyes met simultaneously as the smartphone's case brushed against Kawakami's bare nipple, covered by the coat. "S... Sensei..." Ryuji gasped out, perhaps thinking if he used a respectful term of endearment, he'd get away with what he was doing.

"Sakamoto..." Kawakami responded, glaring with no amusement. She raised her hand for a killer chop to the back of the head. No one could blame her for corporal punishment in this situation, right?! This wasn't the same as Kamoshida's ****... this was a righteous action of justice!