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

Probably not, since it's only been one night apart...

Hanabi Hanamaru didn't know what she was thinking at the moment; she just felt a little flustered because she was about to see Kai Uesugi.

Just like before, every morning when I think about calling him from the Uesugi house to go to school together, I can't help but take out a mirror to see if my outfit looks good, if my bow is crooked, or if my hair is messy.

I always want to leave him with a good impression.

Hanabi Hanamaru freed her right hand, which was carrying a shoulder bag, and placed it on her heart, pausing for a moment.

Sometimes, even after just a short separation, it feels like the place has been separated into one piece.

It was the same when she traveled to England a long time ago. Sitting on the plane, watching her vision gradually rise, watching the map below shrink little by little, she thought of Uesugi Kai, wishing so much that he would rush over decisively, stop her from leaving...

This feeling of emptiness, the more I think about it, the more it surges up from my heart like a tide.

Hanabi Hanamaru took a deep breath and then slowly exhaled. Holding a handbag with a shark plushie attached, she looked towards the school's teaching building.

Go for it, Hanabi-chan!

Kai-kun, I'm sure I still like you!

......

Perhaps it was some inexplicable feeling in her heart, but since earlier, Uesugi Kai had been unable to stop looking out the window, hoping to find a familiar figure on the path under the leaves.

Although there were quite a few people on this path next to the teaching building, Uesugi Kai seemed to be a machine with markings, automatically ignoring those unimportant passersby.

This feeling of anticipation followed by dashed hopes is truly disheartening.

He has been gazing at this spot for a long time.

Is Hanabi-chan really going to skip school?

Thinking that he wouldn't see his wife all morning, Uesugi Kai propped his chin up with a bit of sullenness, placed his hand on the windowsill, and idly fiddled with a small cement block on it.

Perhaps this is what it feels like to like someone but not be able to have them.

Kai Uesugi never imagined that he would experience this again after getting married.

"Ugh..."

He sighed, and taking advantage of the teacher's absence to slack off, he continued to look out the window, hoping for a miracle called hope.

However, he did not notice that Hanabi Hanabi was already standing at the classroom door, looking at Kai Uesugi, who was leaning against the window looking melancholy.

Sitting in front of her easel, Kitagawa Sakakisa clearly noticed Hanamaru Hanabi, who had just arrived at the door. After glancing furtively at Uesugi Kai, she secretly ran towards her.

"Hanabi-chan, Hanabi-chan, good morning!"

"Good morning," Hanabi Hanabi replied in a pleasant voice. She craned her neck to look at Kai Uesugi's back. "What happened to Kai-kun?"

“Him,” Kitagawa Sakakisa said, “I don’t know, but he got a little distracted after painting for about half the time. Hey, why didn’t he come with you today?”

Hanabi Hanamaru didn't know how to answer, because it was all embarrassing stuff. "N-nothing..."

Kitagawa Sakakisa had a hunch, and her eyes widened considerably: "Did he have a fight with you, Hanabi-chan?"

"This...no..."

"If we argue, Uesugi will definitely be in the wrong. How could Hanabi-chan be in the wrong? Uesugi even went to be someone else's boyfriend last time! He's such a jerk! Hmm... Hanabi-chan, you won't be angry if I say that, will you?"

In fact, Hanabi Hanamaru wasn't bothered by this body at all; she knew what she should and shouldn't listen to: "I'm not angry, I'm just a little curious about what Kai-kun is looking at."

"Hanabi-chan, go ask him yourself. He barely pays any attention to me when I try to talk to him. It's so infuriating!"

"Ah."

Hanabi Hanabi nodded, and with light steps, she quietly approached Kai Uesugi.

Then, looking out the window from opposite him, we followed his gaze.

"What are you looking at, Kai-kun?"

"Hanabi?!"

When Uesugi Kai saw the lightly made-up girl wearing a beret in front of him, her familiar appearance and soft voice startled him.

"Kai-kun was scared?" Hanabi Hanabi said with a smile in front of him.

“A little.” Uesugi Kaiya smiled at her and said that his wife’s arrival made him feel much better. “Let’s finish today’s homework together quickly. Although you missed a class, the professor knows that it doesn’t really matter whether you listen or not, so as long as you pass the final exam, he won’t give you any absence points.”

Hanabi Hanabi drawled out her reply: "Then... Kai-kun, did you think about Hanabi today?"

Kai Uesugi naturally replied, "That goes without saying."

"Does Kai-kun still remember his favorability rating?"

"-10."

What can you do with -10 favorability points?

There's nothing we can do!

Kai Uesugi thought to himself, then smiled and explained to his wife, "It was my fault...it was my fault."

"Since he made a mistake, shouldn't Kai-kun be punished?"

“I’ll give you anything.” Uesugi Kai straightened up.

"Well," Hanabi smiled sweetly, her small white-stockinged feet in black leather shoes pressed together, "you have to listen to Hanabi for the next three days, okay?"

"Small idea."

"Kai-kun agreed to this himself, so you can't go back on your word! Otherwise, you won't be able to see Hanabi for a whole month."

A month?

A month can really kill you. Not to mention how much you'll miss her, the emptiness you feel every night is something that can't be erased no matter how many times you take a nap.

So, Uesugi Kai nodded naturally: "I agree."

"Good! The contract is established!"

Hanabi Hanabi flashed a very cute girlish smile, "Kai-kun, remember that!"

"I remember, I definitely remember."

Although they didn't make a pinky promise this time, Kai Uesugi was completely unable to resist his wife's demands. He did whatever she asked him to do, and went wherever she told him to go.

It wasn't because of her status as his wife or a beautiful young girl, but because Uesugi Kai felt that he had always owed her more than he had ever been.

Even after we got married, she cleaned the room every day, wiped the windows, mopped the floor, did the laundry, washed the dishes, and so on. Before he went out each day, she would also help him tidy up his clothes and remind him in a wifely tone that the weather was getting cold and he should remember to wear more clothes.

Even the lap pillow I gave him the night before last... seeing that he was in a bad mood, I used my gentlest side to warm myself up.

Kai Uesugi sat in front of his easel, looking at his wife beside him, and realized that Christmas was just around the corner.

I wonder if it will snow in Tokyo this year.

......

At noon, in the art research room.

While waiting for lunch and playing a shooting game with Kitagawa Sakakisa, Uesugi Kai received a phone call.

"Wait a moment," he said to Kitagawa Sakakisa, who was happily playing a game nearby.

"Hmph! You'd better hurry up."

Kai Uesugi glanced at the contact's name; it was Morisaki, the former editor at Kadokawa Bunko.

He got up and walked out onto the balcony where he grew vegetables.

"Hey, Morisaki-san."

"Good afternoon, Professor Uesugi. I'm sorry to bother you with a call during lunchtime. Is this a convenient time for you?"

"It's okay, go ahead and tell me, I haven't eaten yet."

"Haha, that's good. I was afraid of disturbing your meal," Editor Morisaki said after a few pleasantries, before getting back to business. "Your work is ready for official publication. Have the cover and illustrations for the first volume been completed?"

"Wait a minute, wait a minute, I'll go ask." Uesugi Kai turned around and glanced at Hanamaru Hanabi in the kitchen.

"Okay, does Uesugi-sensei want me to hang up?"

"No need, the artist is right here with me, I'll just go ask him."

"Ok."

Kai Uesugi returned to the lab and saw Sakaki Kitagawa engrossed in playing video games. He deliberately walked around the sofa to Hanabi's side and asked, "Hanabi-chan, have you finished the illustration yet?"

"Illustrations? Ah, they're finished."

"Is it all done?" Uesugi Kai

"Yes."

------

It was not clear.

Winter is the perfect time to snuggle up in bed and keep warm.

I couldn't bear to get out of bed, nor could I bear to change my blankets into clothes to keep warm.

Even more reluctant to leave the warm little house and go outside to see the snow falling all around.

The fragrance filled her gently rhythmic breaths as Uesugi Kai, enjoying the warmth of the blankets, habitually touched Hanabi Hanabi's little belly beside her.

Her belly was always very soft, smooth and tender, and as you touched it, a warm and comfortable feeling would appear in your palm—and because of this, you would be reluctant to leave it.

But at this moment, Uesugi Kai, with her eyes closed, sensed something strange.

His outstretched hand touched not a soft belly, but a slightly firm, very flat lower abdomen.

Although he was not fully awake and his consciousness was still hazy, he vaguely knew that this feeling was very strange in terms of texture.

He frowned subconsciously, then continued to stroke his stomach, feeling increasingly strange.

Following this feeling, he skipped the belt and slid his hand down.

As he touched her, Uesugi Kai suddenly lost all sleepiness and sat up abruptly in bed.

"you!"

Just as he was about to speak, he realized that the face in front of him seemed somewhat familiar.

Perhaps because he hadn't fully woken up, his eyes were still a little blurry. He blinked several times in a row, and only after his eyes adjusted to the dim light could he be sure that the face in front of him was one he knew all too well.