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

“Yesterday, in the back garden of our school, by the pond, I saw her sketching and painting watercolors. She seemed depressed. I went to talk to her, but she only agreed to talk to me. I saw that her reply was very reluctant, so I didn’t bother her anymore.”

"Let's go then, let's go to the back garden."

In the back garden of Tokyo University of the Arts, several white swans dart about in the middle of the pond, while willow trees grow on both sides, their green leaves swaying in the breeze.

The scenery here is nice, but unfortunately there aren't many students.

The main reason is that it's too cold; in Tokyo in December, the air temperature drops below ten degrees Celsius.

Even Kai Uesugi, who is generally cold-resistant, couldn't resist putting on a padded jacket and a scarf.

“No, she’s not here.” Kitagawa Sakakisa stood on tiptoe and looked around.

Looking at the pond in the back garden with only a few scattered people, Uesugi Kai fell into deep thought.

Given Hanabi's personality, it's impossible for her to disappear without contacting me.

This morning he did see many missed calls, and he dialed them back.

However, no one answered the phone.

Even if she's avoiding her, she won't include Kitagawa Sakakisa and the others in her schemes.

So, apart from her being kidnapped, there is only one other possibility.

She's secretly doing something behind everyone's back.

Uesugi Kai roughly understood the situation, but he still wasn't sure what Hanamaru Hanabi was actually doing.

"What are Jiu Shi Li Xiang and the others doing?"

Kitagawa Sakakisa replied, "I'm preparing for the year-end festival with the people from Waseda University."

"Is that the Night Dance?"

"correct."

Kai Uesugi: "Did you ask them where the fireworks are?"

"Of course I asked! I'm not stupid!!"

"In that case, let's go."

"Where are you going?"

"Waseda, huh? We're just sitting here with no information at all."

......

Waseda University's landmark building is a lecture hall located on the West Waseda Campus, which, along with the statue of Shigenobu Okuma, is a symbolic building of Waseda University, a world-renowned institution of higher learning.

Kai Uesugi led Sakakisa Kitagawa through the campus, asking passing students for directions, and finally found Waseda University's club building.

Kitagawa Sakakisa glanced up and said, "Rika is here, but Hanabi is here too? Didn't she say Hanabi wasn't with her?"

"Just go in."

Turn right at the second classroom on the fourth floor and Uesugi Kai knocked on the door.

"Who are you?" The person who opened the door was a bespectacled girl I didn't recognize.

"We're here to find someone."

Out of politeness, Uesugi Kai did not look past her into the room.

Meanwhile, Kitagawa Sakakisa had already tiptoed and peeked inside.

She shouted, as if she had spotted her target:

"Firework sauce!"

Uesugi Kai also looked in the direction she pointed, and saw Hanabi Hanabi dressed in a bright traditional outfit, holding a naruko castanets, practicing dance moves under the watchful eyes of Kyuju Rika and the Waseda students.

"Fine! You guys lied to me!"

Kitagawa Sakakisa was very angry, and she went inside in a few steps.

She approached Rika Kyuu and Hanabi Hanabi, and crossed her arms over her chest.

"How do you explain this?!"

Rika glanced back and asked, "Why did you bring Uesugi along?"

"Is that the point? The point is that you secretly practiced dancing behind my back! And you even came all the way to Waseda! Was that necessary?!"

“I came to Waseda not to avoid you, but to learn about the night dance from the students here. They are much more experienced than us. They attend the Magnolia Festival every year,” Kyushu Rika said, covering her head. “Don’t forget, I am the president of the dance club at my school. I need to be responsible for this.”

Kitagawa Sakakisa then remembered that Rika had this position.

No wonder she asked me a few days ago to help her find some boys to participate in the year-end event; I thought it was a school requirement.

If the previous boys hadn't been so unreliable, she wouldn't have bothered to ask Uesugi for help.

"Even so, you can't sneak off to the school next door without telling me!"

"I already told you, it's not that I'm trying to avoid you, it's that Hanabi-chan is trying to avoid Uesugi."

As soon as Uesugi Kai entered the gleaming dance studio, he immediately saw Hanabi Hanabi trying to hide from him.

"Fireworks?"

"Kai-kun, don't come any closer."

Uesugi Kai immediately withdrew the step he was about to take. He stood there, puzzled, and asked, "Hanabi, what's wrong with you?"

"You bastard!" Hanabi Hanabi peeked out from behind Rika Kyuju and whispered to him.

"Are you still angry?" Uesugi Kai guessed that she was angry because of what happened a few days ago.

Sigh, it was only when I asked her for advice that I secretly grabbed her waist...

Anger... it shouldn't be this bad, ignoring me for several days in a row.

Kai Uesugi then thought about the level of affection between the two of them.

The favorability ratings for Little Firework and Black Firework are not shared.

Black Flower Fire's current assessment of him is quite high.

Little Firework... since you're avoiding me like this, your favorability rating must be negative.

"Someone's coming to see you, so we'll be leaving now. Actually, there's nothing more to teach you. Just practice the movements a few more times and you shouldn't make any mistakes. Contact us again if you need anything," the Waseda representative said.

“Okay.” Rika Kuju nodded to them and watched the Waseda students leave the dance studio.

She noticed that Uesugi Kai was still standing there, and he coughed twice, his right fist placed near his mouth, and said:

“Uesugi, as a boy, you should apologize to Hanabi for making her angry, right? But for the past week, you haven’t apologized to her, and you’ve ignored her completely. You even stay out all night, locking yourself in the art room.”

"I..." Uesugi Kai felt that he had no way to express his suffering.

He was working so hard because of the professor's strict orders.

If I fail the assessment again, and fail the final exam this semester, not only will I be unable to stay at Tokyo University of the Arts, but it will also be very difficult for me to get a degree from Tokyo University.

For the past week, in order to catch up on the basics, I turned off my phone and did nothing but study, eat, and sleep.

Ever since that day when he angered Hanabi, he thought that Hanamaru Hanabi was deliberately being stubborn and didn't want to disturb his studies, which was why she hadn't contacted him.

Ninety Pear Fragrance: "Do you have anything else to say?"

There's really nothing more to say.

Even if you patiently explain, they will ask themselves, "It's just an apology, it doesn't take much time at all, why don't you do it?"

But... Kai Uesugi had no idea that.

"I have nothing more to say." Uesugi Kai glanced at Hanabi Hanabi's slightly angry face, who was hiding behind Kyuju Rika.

She noticed him looking at her, so she immediately turned her face away and avoided looking at him.

this--

This was the first time Uesugi Kai had ever felt a sense of alienation from Hanabi.

If Hanabi Hanabi's head had a display of affection level, then she would definitely have a negative 100 points right now.

"very good."

Kyuu Rika turned around and whispered a few words to Hanamaru Hanabi.

Then, Uesugi Kai clearly saw Hanabi Hanabi nod.

She walked towards me.

"Hanabi, I'm sorry." Uesugi Kai knew that simply saying "I'm sorry" was completely insincere, but as a gesture of goodwill, he still had to say it.

Hanabi Hanamaru simply stood there, still holding the naruko she had used for the dance.

Her fingers nervously gripped Naruko's grip, then she spoke:

"Kai-kun...that's so mean..."

"I..." Uesugi Kai opened his mouth, but ultimately didn't know what to say.

"Kai-kun...do you know what day it was yesterday?" Hanabi Hanamaru never looked at him.

yesterday?

January 30th?

Kai Uesugi carefully went through the memories in his mind, but still couldn't remember what day it was.

"What was it... Sorry, Hanabi, I can't remember. Could you please tell me?"

Hanabi Hanabi raised her purple eyes, looked at him, and then lowered her eyes again: "Yesterday was Kai-kun's birthday. Hanabi didn't even tell Ai-chan, Rika, and Sakaki-sa... she just wanted to prepare a surprise for Kai-kun... but during those days, Kai-kun not only didn't answer the phone or reply to messages, he didn't even come home on the night of his birthday."

Rika Kyuu added to Kai Uesugi from the side, "I only found out the next day that Hanabi-chan prepared a cake, a gift, and a surprise for you on your birthday..."

Kitagawa Sakakisa understood too, and punched her right fist against her left palm: "Oh! I get it. So Uesugi didn't go home, and Hanabi-chan just sat in her room all night with a bunch of gifts and a cake she made especially for him, right!"

Unfortunately, no one praised her for being smart.

The air has become cold and desolate because she spoke the truth.

"Haha, hahaha..." Kitagawa Sakakisa tried to ease the awkwardness with laughter.

......