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

At this moment, Hanabi Hanabi quickly waved her hand and explained, "No... no, Kai-kun was doing that because he was studying in seclusion in the art research room... He didn't do it on purpose."

"Even so, they shouldn't go a whole week without contacting each other."

"That's it."

"No matter how you look at it, this is a dereliction of duty, a dereliction of duty as a husband."

Once a guy is labeled a "scumbag," it's incredibly difficult to change their impression of him.

Hanabi Hanamaru opened her mouth as if to explain something, but everyone's comments quickly drowned out her opinion.

"Look what you've done." While everyone was chatting, Rika pulled Kitagawa Sakaki aside, raised her hand, and slammed her fist directly onto Kitagawa's head, forcefully pressing her head down.

"I... I was just making a joke on the spot." Kitagawa Sakakisa held her head in her hands, feeling wronged, and stood up again. "But what I said is true, isn't it?"

Kitagawa Sakaki smoothed the messy strands of hair on her forehead and straightened them again.

"This isn't a question of whether it's true or not, but whether it's acceptable to say it." Kyuu Rika put away her fist.

"Oh, don't worry, everyone here is a good person. They just want to speak up for Hanabi-chan, okay?"

"But didn't you notice that everyone was speaking up for Hanabi-chan, and she actually felt awkward?" Rika Kyuju glanced at Hanabi-chan in the crowd.

"The main reason is that Hanabi always thinks of Uesugi's best interests. Even if Uesugi does something wrong, Hanabi doesn't want outsiders to comment on him."

As Kitagawa Sakakisa spoke, she couldn't help but think of her past self. "Waaah, Hanabi-chan was so kind. She used to give me her own bento when she saw I was hungry."

Rika Kyuu sighed, "You're mistaken. It's not that Hanabi doesn't want outsiders to comment, but that she simply doesn't like hearing people say bad things about Uesugi."

"That damned Uesugi," Kitagawa Sakakisa grew angrier as she listened, "He doesn't even treat Hanabi-chan well! Married men are just unreliable! I should have just stolen Hanabi away! Who wants to leave her to him!"

"Alright, alright, that's enough. We should rest a little longer before heading home."

"Alright, alright, let's stop arguing." Kitagawa Sakakisa strode up to Hanabi Hanabi and said with a smile, "Let's practice one more time, then we'll go home. It's getting late, what if you run into a creepy old man in the middle of the night...?"

Kitagawa Sakakisa's voice was quirky and mischievous, and the girls in front of her were all naive and inexperienced young women. Under her encouragement, they began to practice again.

Hanamaru Hanabi: "Thank you Sakakisa-chan."

"It's alright, it's alright! I'm much more reliable than your Uesugi!"

On the other side, Uesugi Kai suddenly sneezed.

I ate an expired cake and got a stomachache, which lowered my immunity and made me catching a cold.

Around 9:30, everyone in the dance studio started to go home.

"See you tomorrow."

"See you tomorrow, Hanabi, Riei, and Rika."

"See you tomorrow."

A few minutes later, Jiu Shi Li Xiang and the others had also packed their things and were ready to go home.

As the group prepared to go out together, they took a special look at Uesugi Kai, who was still practicing in front of the mirror.

"It's still there."

Kitagawa Sakakisa leaned over and whispered in his ear, "Should we say goodbye to him before we leave?"

Rie Ayaka: "If you ask me, it's not necessary now. Letting Uesugi be a little lonely will actually make him realize how good Hanabi-chan is to him."

Kitagawa Sakakisa raised one hand: "I agree too!"

"You two shouldn't meddle in this. It's better to let Hanabi-chan have her opinion," Kyuju Rika said, looking at Hanamaru Hanabi, who was standing obediently in place.

Hanabi Hanamaru had already been gazing at Kai Uesugi's retreating figure.

She paused, gripped the handbag in front of her skirt with both hands, and called out softly:

"Kai-kun".

Meanwhile, Uesugi Kai, who was on the other side, stopped in his tracks upon hearing that familiar voice.

His shoulders slumped for a moment.

Then, he turned around with a smile and smiled at a few girls on the other side of the dance studio:

Are you leaving?

"Hmm..." Hanabi Hanabi said softly, "Kai-kun...you should go home soon too. It's not good for you to train here alone for too long."

The girl had already lowered her voice to a very calm tone, but Uesugi Kai could still hear the concern in her weak voice.

Yes, even when he hurt her, she still cared about him.

My wife is truly my wife.

Kai Uesugi said to her from a distance, "You guys go ahead. I'll practice a few more times and then go home. Murata gave me the key; I'll just lock the door later."

Hanabi Hanabi hesitated for a moment, then said, "Well... Hanabi will be going now..."

“Okay, let’s go back,” Uesugi Kai said.

"let's go."

"go home!"

Hanabi Hanabi followed them to the door, and at the end, she bowed her head to him to indicate that she was leaving.

When the sound of their footsteps in the corridor completely disappeared, Uesugi Kai also stopped her already tired hands from dancing.

Actually... if Hanabi and the others had left the dance studio without saying goodbye, Uesugi Kai wouldn't have said anything.

Although he really wanted Hanabi to come home with him, he also understood that now was not the time.

Kai Uesugi looked down at the pair of Naruko beads on his hands, which were soaked with sweat.

At this moment, he finally understood a feeling called pursuit.

Through sweat and exhaustion, he could feel his own efforts.

He could feel his own inadequacy by being treated with indifference.

Perhaps, that feeling of being ignored is what it feels like to be rejected by a girl.

But there is one difference: I still have hope.

Hanabi had also promised him that if he tried hard enough to get closer, he could have a birthday party that could be rescheduled.

Looking at her hands, Uesugi Kai could almost see Hanabi smiling as she held the cake in her hands on the last day of the year, softly wishing her a "Happy Birthday."

Since you've made a mistake, you should make up for it many times over...

It wasn't just for my own peace of mind, but also to let her feel my sincerity.

Kai Uesugi looked at himself in the mirror, grasped Naruko's hand again, and raised his arms out to shoulder height.

.......

Two days later, on December 5th.

This is the date that Kai Uesugi saw on his phone.

Compared to herself the day before yesterday, the dance club vice president Murata's evaluation was: she has made great progress.

Kai Uesugi got up early this morning, folded the blankets on the sofa, hung the clothes that had been spun dry in the washing machine last night on the balcony, and started preparing breakfast.

Heat the stove, pour in oil, turn on the heat, crack the eggs, and then pour the beaten egg mixture into the pan.

Not long after, he received a slightly dark and hard egg fried rice that had a bit too much salt.

"Failed again."

He sat at the table for a while.

He felt that his skills might never improve in his lifetime.

Kai Uesugi got up, got a glass of water, and placed it next to him.

Seeing the empty seats opposite him, he felt a strange, indescribable feeling.

He walked over, pulled out the seat opposite him, and then placed a life-sized shark against that chair.

Then they placed plates, bowls, chopsticks, cups... in front of them.

After doing these things, it felt as if there was another person on the other side, and he felt a little more at ease.

Uesugi Kai sat back down in his chair, placed his hands flat on the table, looked at the smiling face of the big shark across from him, then lowered his head, closed his eyes, and clasped his hands together, saying:

"Let's get started."

He paused for a second, seemingly waiting for Shark's silent response.

Only then did he pick up his bowl and chopsticks and begin eating his egg fried rice, which was excessively salty.

After finishing his meal, he bowed his head and said to himself, "Thank you for the meal."

He picked up his rice bowl and went to the kitchen to wash the dishes. As the cold water slid across his skin, he realized that he was sometimes the kind of person who couldn't stand being alone.

That's not entirely true. In his previous life, he lived alone for more than ten years without feeling any unease.

But why do I feel this way now?

With this doubt in mind, Uesugi Kai finished her housework, picked up her laptop, and left the room.

I took the tram, swaying and rocking, to Tokyo University of the Arts, and began my studies for the day once again.

During that time, he kept thinking about why he had become so unable to stand being alone.

But he didn't understand until Hanabi Hanabi, who had come to school, sat down in front of her own drawing board and nodded to Kai Uesugi as if to say hello.

This is a very simple question...

All the reluctance to part with her actually stems from her.

That afternoon, Kai Uesugi arrived at the dance studio as usual, where only Murata was present.

"Uesugi, you've arrived. Good afternoon."

"good afternoon."

Uesugi Kai noticed that he was wearing rather thick clothes.

Underneath her bathrobe, Ye Laiwu even wore an extra thermal vest.

"Well," Murata explained while tying his yukata sash, "it's a bit cold outside, so we're going to go outside and rehearse with the girls today. After all, it's a group dance, and it's definitely not good to practice alone."