In the morning, sunlight streamed in through the curtains, heralding the arrival of a new day.
A faint rustling sound arose in the room. After another five minutes or so, Ichin slowly opened his eyes.
Earlier, Utaha had gotten up, leaving the spot on his right empty.
On his left, Yukino was still sleeping deeply.
"…"
Ichin didn't really know how he had made it through last night, but there was one thing he was certain of—both Utaha and Yukino had been completely clear-headed the entire time.
As for himself, he had slowly sunk into it.
Letting out a breath, Ichin carefully got up, tucked the blanket around Yukino, gently tidied her slightly messy long hair, then put on some clothes and got out of bed.
Leaving the bedroom, he went over to the hot spring bath, where Utaha was already soaking.
Taking off his robe, Ichin opened the door and walked in, sitting down beside Utaha.
Utaha, who was bathing, opened her eyes and smiled. "Good morning, Ichin."
"I'm not doing so great."
As he spoke, Ichin pulled Utaha into his arms. "What exactly happened last night? From the looks of it, you two had planned this for a long time. Why did you do something like this?"
"What else could it be? You should already know—Yukino's feelings."
"But Utaha, you—"
"As for me, I thought it through very carefully too." Utaha cut him off, leaning against his chest and speaking softly. "Surprised? You didn't expect me to do this, did you? To be honest, I was surprised by my own thoughts as well. But after talking with Yukino all night, I realized that a lot of things really aren't that complicated. It's just that… if her family finds out in the future, it might be troublesome."
Not "might"—it would definitely be troublesome.
The corner of Ichin's mouth twitched slightly. He didn't continue the topic, simply holding Utaha as the two of them quietly soaked together.
After more than ten minutes, the two of them finished bathing, put on their robes, and returned to the bedroom, just in time to see Yukino waking up.
Seeing them come in, Yukino—who had just woken—didn't panic, but the faint red on her cheeks still revealed a bit of unease.
Ichin knew he wasn't the type who could pull up his pants and pretend nothing had happened. Besides, many things had already been confirmed last night—this morning, he had merely gained a clearer understanding through Utaha's words.
Walking over to Yukino, Ichin looked at her and asked softly, "How are you feeling now?"
Shaking her head, Yukino replied, "It still hurts a little, but I can move without any problem. Um… about last night—"
"Everything that needed to be said has already been said. Even if there are many difficulties ahead, I won't shirk my responsibility." Ichin gently touched her cheek. "Yukino, I've received your feelings."
Pressing her lips together, Yukino was just about to say something when a gurgling sound came from her stomach.
"…"
Seeing Yukino's face turn even redder, Utaha smiled. "Looks like you really are hungry. Since your body's fine, get up and wash up, then let's go eat something at the restaurant. We won't make it to the morning classes, but the afternoon ones should still be doable."
Responding softly, Yukino was about to lift the blanket and change clothes—after all, she wasn't wearing anything yet.
But the next moment, she noticed Ichin sitting in front of her and Utaha standing to the side. She immediately lowered her head and said in a small voice, "Please go out for a bit. I'll put something on."
Hearing that, Utaha couldn't help saying, "We clearly saw everything last night—why are you still so shy now?"
Before she could finish, Yukino grabbed a pillow and threw it at her, smacking her in the face.
Catching the pillow, Utaha tugged at the corner of her mouth. "Oh? Now you dare to bully your senior, huh? Fine, since you haven't fully recovered today, I'll let it slide. But you'll pay for it later. Ichin, go wait in the living room."
With the three of them now tangled in such a messy relationship, was she really worried there wouldn't be chances to tease Yukino later? Utaha's mental was already clicking away.
Seeing the expression on Utaha's face, Yukino felt a sense of foreboding, but she still stubbornly glared back.
Future problems were for the future—she couldn't show weakness right now.
Half an hour later, after getting ready, Yukino followed Ichin and Utaha downstairs to the hotel restaurant.
Since it was already noon, they skipped the buffet and instead went to the hotel's Western restaurant for a proper meal.
After taking a bite of her steak, Utaha looked at Ichin and Yukino and said, "I have three classes this afternoon. You two only have the first class, right?"
Both of them nodded.
After thinking for a moment, Utaha said, "Then after your classes, just head back first. Don't wait for me. After my classes, I still need to go to the publishing house—the final volume of my novel is partly done, and I need to take it to Sonoko for her to look over. And I also need to discuss the theme for my new book with her."
Ichin asked in surprise, "Huh? You're starting a new book already? You didn't tell me anything about that."
Utaha looked smug. "Heh-heh, because it's still in the planning stage. A lot of things aren't fully fleshed out yet. I want to prepare everything properly and then give you a surprise, Ichin! Oh right—Ichin, I want sweet-and-sour ribs for dinner tonight!"
"Sure, I'll go buy ribs this afternoon." Ichin smiled and nodded. How could he possibly refuse such a small request?
After agreeing, Ichin looked at Yukino beside Utaha. "Yukino, is there anything you want to eat tonight?"
"Me?"
Yukino put down her knife and fork, thought for a moment, then said, "Fish?"
"Alright. Then this afternoon we'll go check out the supermarket, see what fresh fish they have, and buy some to cook. We'll also ask Haruno-nee if she's back yet, and make a portion for her too."
Yukino nodded, her heart filled with joy.
After finishing their meal and checking out, the three of them drove to school. Skipping two classes in the morning wasn't a big deal—they had already previewed most of the material in advance, and if there was anything they didn't understand, they could always ask the professor later.
Arriving at school and parking the car, Ichin turned to Utaha in the back seat. "Utaha, after your third class, will Sonoko-san come pick you up, or should I take you to the publishing house?"
Utaha smiled. "Sonoko will come over. She's going around chasing deadlines today anyway, so she has plenty of time to pick me up. Ichin, just focus on your own things. Come on, Yukino, let's go to class—our classrooms are in the same building."
With that, the two of them got out of the car together and headed toward the teaching building.
Ichin followed shortly after, scratching his head as he did.
He had a feeling that the days ahead were going to become increasingly difficult for him to handle.
But no matter how you looked at it, he was the one who had come out with the biggest gain.
---
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