Living in Tokyo, all I want to do is laze around.

When Hanabi got up this morning, she dragged him to admire the little dress she bought a few days ago.

This isn't the first time she's used herself as an example to judge whether the clothes she buys look good or not. In Uesugi Kai's opinion, she looks good in anything.

Hanabi Hanamaru doesn't dress up with pretty clothes; rather, she uses them to accentuate the dress's petite size and cuteness.

"It's been so cold these past few days, aren't you afraid of getting cold wearing a skirt?"

"It's okay, just wear thicker socks."

Kai Uesugi watched her scrutinize herself in the mirror, a smile on his face, but his gaze involuntarily drifted downwards.

Xiaohuahuo had her back to him, and she was wearing a short skirt that she had just bought.

Her figure is impeccable, perfectly proportioned, leaving much to the imagination.

A slender waist, slender legs, and tiny feet... fair skin...

Suddenly, I realized that it had been a long time since I had hugged her, and we hadn't cuddled or kissed recently.

Kai Uesugi watched as she changed into her pretty clothes, put on her hat, and pouted adorably in the mirror, making him itch with desire.

"Firework Sauce".

"what."

"Can I hug you?"

Hanabi Hanabi turned around and looked at him.

Kai Uesugi: "Is it not allowed?"

......

Hanabi Hanabi was quiet for a moment before asking, "Does Kai-kun really want a hug?"

"Really." Uesugi Kai said very seriously, looking at her with unusually earnest eyes.

Kai-kun's eyes... don't seem fake...

Hanabi Hanabi hesitated for a moment, then slowly approached him, finally sitting down beside him. She said in a soft voice, "Well... only once, okay? No mischief, and no touching. Kai-kun's affection level is still negative, so this hug is just a special case."

Kai Uesugi nodded and said, "Yes, I know."

"Well... let's go..." Hanabi Hanabi glanced at him somewhat shyly.

A moment after Hanabi Hanabi said those words, Kai Uesugi stared at her for a while, then reached out and slipped his hand under her arm to naturally embrace the girl's body.

She was so soft and light that I unconsciously pulled her into my arms.

Hanabi Hanamaru leaned on his shoulder, feeling the intimacy emanating from him.

Uesugi Kai wrapped his arms around her waist, closed his eyes, and inhaled her fragrance, his breathing even and slow.

His hands felt as if they were suddenly enveloped by her soft, slender waist. The softness of her body, so gentle, traveled from his hands into his heart and slowly spread across his chest.

Kai Uesugi couldn't help but inhale the fragrance emanating from her body even more deeply.

"Kai-kun... why do you suddenly want to hug Hanabi...?" Hanabi's cheeks flushed as he placed his hand on her waist.

"It's nothing, I just suddenly felt uneasy because I haven't been able to hold you while sleeping for several days."

"Does Kai-kun have such thoughts...?"

"Yes, I feel like a big part of me is missing if I'm not close to you."

He spoke slowly, but his words completely touched Hanabi's heart. Feeling his embrace, she softened and, in a gentle, soft voice, said to him:

"Then... Kai-kun, let's hug for a little longer this time..."

"May I...?"

"Hmm...this is an exception."

Her soft voice was like tender words whispered in my ear in a dream, warm and dreamlike, enveloping my beating heart.

------

In fact, when he won the national championships in archery and kendo and stood on the national podium, Kai Uesugi did not feel happy at all.

Victory, fame, status...none of these matter.

He still remembers standing in the most prominent position in the entire venue, listening to the staff congratulating him...

Despite being the center of attention, Uesugi Kai's gaze had already drifted to the audience, searching for the girl who had been silently watching him.

When I found her in the sea of ​​people and saw her gentle smile, I felt that everything was worthwhile.

Now, when Uesugi Kai recalls that feeling, he understands that he didn't care about titles or bonuses at all.

I did so much just so she could see my success and how happy she would be to see me succeed.

There's a saying...

In the vast sea of ​​people, I can only see your simple smile.

Kai Uesugi thought to himself, "That's roughly the idea."

There weren't many assignments from Tokyo University of the Arts today, so Kai Uesugi took advantage of the free time to revise the manuscript from a few days ago.

......

From the moment the protagonist, Akizuki Katayama, learns that his childhood friend, Yasukawa Harumi, has died in a car accident and that his mother has passed away in the hospital, his girlfriend's heartless departure makes him lose all attachment to the city.

He began to flee, fleeing Tokyo, the city where he had struggled for ten years but lost everything.

He bought a train ticket to an unknown destination, took only a little money, and began his escape from Tokyo, wanting only to get as far away as possible.

Qiuyue sat on a train with no destination in mind, silently watching the scenery outside the window, her reflection in the mirror changing with the ever-shifting landscape.

Only by seeing scenes of scenery he had never seen before could he feel a little better.

The train ran for several days, and he sat blankly in his seat for several days as well.

When he got hungry, he would get off the train and buy two buckets of instant noodles. After eating his fill, he would find another train and continue to the next place he felt he should get off, repeating this process.

He only stopped when he ran out of money to buy a ticket, and squatted down in the dim light of the station, lost in thought.

His legs went numb from squatting, so he decided to go outside the station for a walk.

He didn't observe the city closely, but he knew it couldn't be Tokyo, because the nights here weren't bustling; they were quiet and still.

......

As Uesugi Kai finished writing, he let out a soft sigh, buried his head under the easel, and began to depict how the male protagonist spent the night in a daze, and how he encountered the female protagonist, Hanabi Chiwa, who was about to open for business at the entrance of a coffee shop.

"Kai-kun".

Just as Uesugi Kai was getting into his stride, Hanamaru Hanabi reminded him from the side.

Kai Uesugi subconsciously looked up and found Professor Eto staring at him with a big smile on his face.

"If I remember correctly, you are Uesugi-kun, right?"

“Yes.” Uesugi Kai closed the manuscript he had only partially revised.

"What are you doing?" Professor Eto glanced at the booklet in his hand.

"I'm writing novels," Uesugi Kai said honestly.

"Oh? Has your novel been published?"

Not yet.

"In other words, it's still considered a hobby for now."

"correct."

"Since it's a hobby, I hope you'll focus on improving your sketching skills before pursuing this hobby. This is my advice to you, otherwise your grades might not be so good at the end of the semester."

Kai Uesugi thought Professor Eto would scold him and make him draw more than a hundred sketches, but he was surprised to find him so kind.

After Professor Eto finished speaking and left, Kitagawa Sakakisa approached, her face full of curiosity: "Uesugi, are you writing a novel?"

"Ah."

"show me?"

“I’ve discovered a problem,” Uesugi Kai said.

"what?"

"That is, everyone around me who hears that I write novels will be very curious and want to see my unfinished work."

Kitagawa Sakaki pulled her head back out and looked at him, saying, "What? We're just curious, aren't we? Besides, the profession of writer is really mysterious. I'm very interested in how they write those stories that make people both love and hate them."

"Hmm." Uesugi Kai nodded, indicating that he was listening.

"So," Kitagawa Sakakisa continued, "let me see it first?"

"Not now. You can buy it and read it whenever you want after my novel is published."

"Show it to me now. Once it's published, I'll buy two warehouses full of books for you. I guarantee your novel won't be canceled because nobody reads it," Kitagawa Sakakisa said with a grin.

"..."

Putting everything else aside, this young lady's wealth is no joke.

"That's not the key point."

"What? You write novels just to make money? Show me now, and I guarantee you'll make a fortune."

Kai Uesugi shook his head and said, "It's not that simple. Besides, I'm not short of money right now. Although I can't afford a house, I can easily support Hanabi."

"Hanabi-chan, Kai Uesugi is calling you," Kitagawa Sakakisa called out, turning her gaze to Hanabi Hanamaru beside him.

"Ok?"

Hanabi Hanamaru, who was drawing, looked at Kai Uesugi with a puzzled expression. "What's wrong?"

Kitagawa Sakakisa covered half of her mouth with her hand and smiled as she said to her, "I just heard it. Uesugi Kai said he would take care of you for the rest of his life."

Hanabi Hanabi's gaze returned to Kai Uesugi.

He nodded firmly: "That's right, that's true."

"Hanabi knows, but... why is Kai-kun saying these things in the classroom?"

For a moment, Uesugi Kai didn't know how to answer her, so she glared at the meddlesome Kitagawa Sakakisa, then smiled at Hanabi Hanabi and said, "Because I like you."