Tokyo: They say it's just dating, but they're serious about it.

Just as he was about to open the door, he put Mikoto down again and said irritably, "One sock is too thin, give me the other one too."

"All right……"

After a flurry of activity, Katsuhiko put on his shirt and looked at Mikoto, who was still covering her face with her head down, and said, "The night shift at the convenience store is canceled for now."

Mikoto tilted her head and glanced at Katsuhiko, asking, "Why?"

Katsuhiko picked Kotoha up again, patted her bottom gently, and said, "I've been working the night shift these past few days, putting Chika to sleep at home. You can't be absent; you have to stay with her while she sleeps."

"Uh... okay..."

The game continued... For the next part of transporting grapes and melon seeds, the host added a rule on the spot: in addition to the forehead, you could also use your nose and mouth.

Katsuhiko wanted to end this boring game as soon as possible so he could get the toy car that attracted him.

Then, without hesitation, he and Mikoto worked together to transport it using their mouths. After all, if the two of them were pressing their foreheads together, it would easily fall off, but if they held it with their mouths, it wouldn't fall off.

During this time, Mikoto asked to go to the rest room, saying she felt a little dizzy and needed to rest and adjust...

Finally, the car was awarded to the family as everyone had hoped, and Chika was the happiest of them all.

After getting the car keys and relaxing, Sheng Yan started to feel sleepy again.

It was already dark by then, and around the tents on the grass, all the other small tents were lit up.

"Take the car back to the convenience store!" Katsuhiko handed the car keys to Mikoto, picked up Chinatsu and walked towards the tent, saying, "I'm going to rest in the tent for a while. Come back quickly and take me to your house."

"All right……"

Mikoto lowered her head, took the car keys, and her flushed face hadn't faded since she left the venue.

The convenience store is only a ten-minute drive away; it takes five or six minutes by car.

Xiaobaihe was standing behind the cashier, settling accounts for customers, looking very happy.

"Good morning, Manager Mikoto," Sayuri greeted with a bow, tilting her head and asking with wide eyes, "You seem very happy, did something good happen?"

Sayuri has been working part-time here since her freshman year of college, and she knows everything about Mikoto's situation. The two have a pretty good relationship, and there's almost no concept of superior-subordinate dynamic between them.

"I'm alright!" Mikoto smiled, rubbing her slightly flushed face. Looking at Sayuri, she continued, "Sayuri-chan seems happy too. Did something good happen to you as well?"

"Ah..." Xiaobaihe's oval face immediately turned red. Then she lowered her head, a smile on her lips, and whispered while twisting her fingers, "It's a secret."

"Congratulations on finding a partner," Mikoto said with a smile. "So Sayuri-chan is in a relationship now."

"Hmm~" Sayuri responded hesitantly, then asked, "What about Manager Mikoto?"

"Me?" Mikoto said, walking to the cashier, picking up a box of safety kits, putting them in her pocket, and walking out of the store. "Same to you~"

Xiaobaihe stared in disbelief at the shelf displaying condoms.

"Oh, right," Mikoto turned back and continued, "we lock up and go home at eight o'clock. We have three days off, so you can go on your date too! Bye-bye..."

Chapter 11: The Charm of Leaving the Lights On

Katsuhiko carried Chinatsu back to the picnic spot, intending to rest in the tent for a while, but after glancing at the items Mikoto had brought, he couldn't find any bedding, not even a sheet.

It seems Mikoto never intended to camp here.

In order to get back as soon as possible, Katsuhiko dismantled the tent.

Qianxia grabbed her pink backpack, lay on the blue plastic sheet, and stuffed snacks into it.

After Katsuhiko folded up the tent, Chinatsu filled her little backpack, then stood next to Katsuhiko with her hands behind her back and her eyes darting around.

Katsuhiko looked down and asked, "What's wrong?"

Chinatsu raised her little hand, which she had been hiding behind her back, high towards Katsuhiko. Then she opened her hand, revealing half a piece of dark chocolate in her palm, which had been melted by her little hand, leaving her hand sticky and black.

Katsuhiko chuckled, then leaned to the side, propped his elbows on the grass, and tilted his head back with his mouth wide open.

Then, with a smile on her face, Chinatsu put the chocolate into Katsuhiko's mouth.

Katsuhiko swallowed the chocolate in one gulp, then hugged Chika and rubbed his face against hers, saying, "Call me Daddy."

Chika kicked her short legs, giggling, swinging her braids, and dodging left and right.

While Katsuhiko was teasing her, Mikoto returned and pushed her bicycle, which was locked by the grass, over.

Katsuhiko placed the folded tent on the back of his bicycle, looked down and said, "Chika-chan, I have nowhere to stay. How about I sleep at your place tonight?"

Mikoto, holding onto her bicycle, lowered her head, pursed her lips, and glanced at Chinatsu with a slightly flushed face.

Chika nodded like a chick pecking at rice.

Katsuhiko then asked, "What if your mother doesn't agree?"

Chika rolled her eyes and whispered, "I'll just cry."

Mikoto chuckled, then said in a deliberately serious tone, "If you dare to cry, I'll hit you."

Her undisguised joy was not something that could frighten a child, and Chika tilted her head back and snorted.

Katsuhiko tied everything to the bicycle, took it from Mikoto, pushed it off the grass with one hand, and then patted Mikoto's butt with his free hand, saying, "If you dare hit Chinatsu, I'll hit you."

Chika giggled.

Mikoto seemed startled and suddenly trembled. She quickly glanced at the passersby around her, then picked up Chinatsu in one swift motion and lowered her head without saying a word.

Mikoto's house is nearby, separated from Kenta's newly bought second-hand house by only a small alley. They are in the same phase, both being detached houses surrounded by dirty courtyard walls.

Mikoto's father passed away a few years ago, her mother back in her hometown remarried, and her husband divorced her and went on the run. Now she and Chinatsu live alone.

The house was inherited from her parents and has no mortgage. Mikoto's debts are partly due to raising Chika and partly due to running the convenience store.

Running a convenience store during this period was indeed a good idea, but unfortunately, gangs were also rampant at that time, making it difficult for a single mother with a daughter to steadily build up her business.

Some deliverymen even deliberately make things difficult for people.

When I got home, it was almost eight o'clock, and it was completely dark.

Katsuhiko parked his bicycle and was about to unload his things when Mikoto came over with Chinatsu in her arms and whispered, "I'll do it tomorrow. Go back to your room and rest."

The breath that Mikoto exhaled from her lips hit Katsuhiko's face, and it felt a little hot.

As she spoke, she didn't stop walking, cautiously heading towards the room as if she were carrying a bomb.

Sheng Yan took off his shoes in the entryway. There was only a pair of dusty men's plastic slippers at the bottom of the shoe cabinet, so he picked them up and put them on.

Mikoto had already carried Chinatsu into the children's room.

Katsuhiko entered the living room.

One word: chaos.

A dirty, worn-out fabric sofa, toys scattered all over the floor, snacks strewn about, paintbrushes strewn haphazardly, and a broken children's chair. Various women's clothes are also scattered on the sofa...

In the kitchen sink, there were piles of unwashed dishes and chopsticks, the stove was covered in grease, and there were unwashed pots.

On the clothesline on the balcony, Chika's clothes were hanging, along with cloth diapers drying in the sun... Disposable diapers were already popular back then.

Raising a child is not an easy task. After all, she has to take care of everything on her own, and it's already quite an achievement that she hasn't raised the child to have any problems.

Katsuhiko went to the restroom, then tiptoed to the door of the children's room.

Chinatsu was already asleep in her crib. Mikoto slowly turned off the bedside lamp with her finger, then slowly turned around and tiptoed out. Her eyes remained wide open, her gaze fixed on Chinatsu, like a thief.

Katsuhiko almost burst out laughing.

The four-year-old child was shouting and jumping all day long, and is probably sleeping like a log by now, not even needing thunder to wake him up.

"Shh~sh~"

Mikoto gestured for silence, quickly closed the door, then pushed Katsuhiko back onto the living room sofa. She then slumped down next to Katsuhiko, resting her head on the back of the sofa, closing her eyes slightly, tilting her fair neck back, and letting out a long sigh.

"Today was the most relaxing day of my life."

As Mikoto spoke, she tilted her head slightly, opened her eyes a crack, and looked at Katsuhiko.

“You’re going to be very lucky from now on.” Katsuhiko rested his right hand on the back of the sofa above her head, then leaned over, grabbed her collar with his left hand, and peered inside. “I look like I’m quite lucky too…”

Mikoto looked down in bewilderment, let out a nasal "ooh," and her face immediately turned red as she tried to suppress her laughter. She then frowned and smiled as she pressed Katsuhiko's forehead, pushed him away, stood up, and walked towards the bathroom.

"Playing all day is quite tiring; I'm all sweaty. Let me check if the water heater is on..."

Katsuhiko followed him into the bathroom.

As the sound of rushing water filled the air, the two began to mutter to themselves.

"Stop messing around~ You haven't rested since last night..."

"That's my wife's greatest charm—she knows how to take care of people..."

There was only a single wooden bathtub in the bathroom, and we used a shower, so it didn't take too long.

Katsuhiko left the bathroom alone, and Mikoto stuffed his clothes into the washing machine.

The bedroom was quite messy, with small toys scattered everywhere by Chinatsu, and a few pieces of clothing lying on the off-white mattress.

On the bedside table was a thick stack of purchase orders, along with bills, a notebook, a calculator...

Unable to find any pajamas to wear, Sheng Yan simply threw himself onto the mattress.

A moment later, Mikoto walked in, drying her hair. Her fair skin had a rosy glow from her recent shower.

She was wearing only a lace slip dress, made of black silk, with a deep V-neck and lace trim at the chest. The hem of the dress just reached below her knees and bounced as she moved.

Sheng Yan didn't get up. He spread his arms and legs, taking up the entire bed, and tilted his head to look at her.

Mikoto casually closed the door, glanced back at Katsuhiko lying down, and quickly looked away as if stung.

Katsuhiko patted the mattress gently, gesturing for her to sit down.

Mikoto walked to the bedside with a wandering gaze, slowly sat on the edge of the bed, turned her back to Katsuhiko, and whispered, "I took three days off, so I have plenty of time... How about we rest tonight? After all, you haven't slept since last night!"

"I've been paying tribute to you, I just can't sleep,"

As Sheng Yan spoke, he took her left hand, which was gripping the edge of the bed. Her hand was a little warm and trembling slightly, indicating that she was somewhat nervous.

Katsuhiko gently pried open her slender fingers, then interlocked all five fingers together. He then sat up, rested his chin on her smooth shoulder, and inhaled the warm scent of her shower gel. He whispered, "You'll have to do this tonight. I'll come tomorrow."

Mikoto stood up somewhat flusteredly: "I, I'll go turn off the lights..."

“Don’t turn off the lights,” Sheng Yan said, pulling her down onto the mattress. “It’s alluring.”