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

"Besides holding hands?"

"No...that's all..."

"Really none left?" Mrs. Hanamaru narrowed her eyes, her smile widening.

Hanabi Hanamaru suddenly remembered the strange yet vivid dream she had just had, and thought of how she looked. She immediately wrapped herself tightly in the blanket, not letting a single ray of light sneak in.

"N-no!"

Her voice was much louder, but still weak.

"Hmm~"

Mrs. Hanamaru understood and nodded with satisfaction. She felt that if things continued at this pace, she would soon be able to hold her grandson.

She reached out and gently stroked Hanabi's head, her smile unwavering.

"Get up quickly and have breakfast first. There's chili peppers that you like. Don't forget that you also need to make a bento for Xiaozhao this morning."

"Um......"

Hanabi Hanabi nodded in agreement, her shy face radiating a dreamy glow.

After her mother came downstairs, she sat up in bed, and with her bare feet, quietly walked to her wardrobe.

Girls naturally have many different kinds of clothes, and most of Hanabi's clothes were bought for her by Hanamaru Yuuki.

Because Mrs. Hanamaru's opinion was sought, every piece of clothing here is expensive and suits her personality.

However, during school hours, she can only wear the sailor uniform in the spring.

She slowly took off her pajamas in front of the mirror, revealing her slender figure.

Hanabi Hanamaru didn't dare look at herself in the mirror for long. She quickly put on her pleated skirt and zipped up the side of her sailor uniform, which was close to her waistline.

Finally, put on another layer of over-the-knee socks as required by the school.

Watching the black stockings slowly rise along her rounded ankles, clinging to her skin, finally outlining that curve.

Hanabi Hanamaru's little head was filled with random thoughts when she suddenly became flustered.

In the living room of Hanamaru's house.

Hanamaru Yuuki put down his phone after finishing a call and saw Hanamaru Hanabi coming down from upstairs.

After a long night of work, I had no peace even in the morning. Only when I saw my daughter's adorable face did my irritable mood feel much better.

He smiled and called out, "Fireworks, eat your breakfast first."

"Um......"

Hanabi Hanabi absentmindedly responded, her face flushed, and she subconsciously avoided her father's gaze, like a child who had done something wrong.

She was still lost in her blushing fantasy.

Even the smallest details were noticed by Hanamaru Yuuki, let alone Hanabi's unusual behavior.

what happened?

He instantly came up with dozens of hypotheses in his mind and quickly locked onto the most likely one.

Uesugi Kai.

His smile froze for a moment, but he didn't show it immediately in front of his daughter. Instead, he patiently waited for her to sit down in front of him.

"Hanabi."

“Dad…” Hanabi sat obediently on the stool, looked up at her father, and for a moment she saw him holding a gun and looking very angry in her mind, and her heart skipped a beat.

Hanamaru Yuuki noticed this detail, picked up his morning tea, and casually asked, "Did you go to Kai's house again yesterday?"

"Ah."

Hanabi Hanamaru's face was still red, but she didn't think much of it. These past few days, whenever her father didn't come home at night, she would ask him the same question the next morning.

You just need to answer truthfully.

Hanamaru Yuuki took a sip of tea and glanced at Mrs. Hanamaru who was carrying a tray as she approached: "What time did you get home?"

"10...11 o'clock..." Hanabi was a little scared, after all, her father had said before that she shouldn't stay out too late.

Surprisingly, Hanamaru Yuuki did not show any discomfort; he simply responded with a nod to indicate that he understood.

"Dad...aren't you angry?" Hanabi Hanamaru asked softly.

"Why is Dad angry?" Hanamaru Yuuki asked casually as he took the plate and chopsticks from Mrs. Hanamaru.

Mieko Hanamaru didn't interrupt the father and daughter's conversation, but when handing over the plate, she subtly gestured to Hanabi, reminding her not to reveal too much.

However, she completely failed to understand the meaning behind her mother's wink.

Furthermore, Hanamaru Yuuki keenly noticed Mrs. Hanamaru's slight pause in front of him, and a sharp glint flashed in his deep eyes.

###Chapter Seventy-Eight: The Lost Morning###

"Because...Hanabi came back so late last night...Dad clearly told Hanabi..." Hanabi continued softly.

"As long as I don't spend the night there, it's fine."

Hanamaru Yuuki waved his hand dismissively and smiled casually at his daughter, who was speaking very carefully in front of him.

"Fireworks...I understand..."

Hanabi Hanabi looked down at the steaming hot, spicy fried rice in front of her. Her father's violent reaction in her dream made her a little worried and scared.

"dad..."

She hesitated for a moment, then cautiously asked, "If...if Hanabi really did spend the night at Kai-kun's place..."

Upon hearing this, Hanamaru Yuuki paused in his tea-drinking motion.

Do you really want to spend the night with that guy?

Is it because the daughter has grown up, or is that boy just too charming?

Hanamaru Yuuki's expression was quite complicated as he interrupted her, "Anyway, it's absolutely not possible now. Even if Kai is more mature, you are all still just children and are not prepared for this at all."

He put down his hot tea and placed it next to his plate.

"Go ahead and date, it's something both families agree to, but remember that you and he are both students, and there's still a lot to learn. You absolutely cannot make any decision hastily."

"Um,"

Hanabi Hanabi nodded, then gently shook her head, continuing in a barely audible voice, "What Hanabi actually wanted to say was... if Hanabi really was at Kai-kun's house last night... would Daddy...?"

"I will definitely teach that kid a lesson," Hanamaru Yuuki said quietly.

Hanabi Hanabi paused upon hearing this, then looked up at him: "Dad won't shoot, will he...?"

shot?

Could it really be that outrageous?

Looking at his daughter's worried eyes, Hanamaru Yuuki couldn't help but chuckle, while sighing deeply in his heart.

It turns out that what she had been worried about all along was not that her little secret would be discovered, but the consequences that would follow, and how he would treat that boy.

Although he knew that Hanabi's inquiry was just out of concern and had no other meaning, he still couldn't help but feel a pang of pain in his heart.

Because it means that the father is no longer as important as before, and that the daughter who used to cling to him since childhood has grown up.

Such a simple question suddenly made him, the father, feel distant and estranged.

His mood suddenly turned heavy, but in front of his daughter, he still maintained a smile and prepared to answer her questions calmly.

"How could Dad do something so inconsiderate?" Mrs. Hanamaru sat down opposite Hanabi, carrying her breakfast.

"Yes—" Hanamaru Yuuki hadn't even had a chance to speak.

"Really...no...?"

The same simple question, but this one carries a strong sense of distrust.

Hanamaru Yuuki's smile froze for half a second.

In my daughter's eyes, have I become such a despicable person?

The thought of her holding my hand and smiling when I was little makes my heart clench with a bitter pain.

But he quickly reverted to his original state, and he wouldn't show this emotion in front of his daughter.

Hanabi Hanabi had barely finished speaking when she inexplicably realized she had said the wrong thing. Looking at her father, whose expression remained unchanged, a strange sense of guilt welled up within her.

Although she didn't know what she had said wrong.

She opened her mouth, but then suddenly closed it tightly, because she didn't know what to say.

"Of course not," Hanamaru Yuuki replied naturally, without any discomfort.

A phone suddenly rang.

Hanamaru Yuuki snapped out of his daze, pulled out his phone from his clothes, and said to the mother and daughter with a smile, "I'm going to take this call."

He walked out of the living room.

Mrs. Hanamaru noticed that Hanabi Hanamaru in front of her had her head down, her hands on her lap, looking very dejected.

"Let's eat first, let's eat first," she said quickly with a smile. "No need to wait for Dad, he'll be back after he finishes his call."

"Um......"

Hanabi Hanamaru responded softly, but remained seated and didn't touch her chopsticks for a long time, even though she was facing her favorite food.

Soon, Hanamaru Yuuki returned from outside the living room.

He saw the look in his daughter's eyes and smiled at her, saying, "I'm sorry, Hanabi, Daddy has to go to work."

"Aren't you going to eat...breakfast?"

"I'm sorry, Dad doesn't have time."

Mrs. Hanamaru stood up and frowned as she looked at Hanamaru Yuuki, who was hurriedly putting on civilian clothes: "Is it the Metropolitan Police Department?"

“They’re all unreliable guys,” Hanamaru Yuki said, taking the car keys she handed him. His tone suddenly turned serious. “They let the opponent get away three times, and now they’ve just dumped the problem on me.”

"Is he someone dangerous?" Mrs. Hanamaru would always be extremely worried at times like this.