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

Page 86

Noon, on the sixth floor of the student association building.

The messy cardboard boxes were stacked together, containing a variety of odds and ends such as bows and arrows, gloves, targets, and ropes.

This used to be a geography classroom, so you can see many dusty globes and maps here.

But now, this place is just a place where the archery club stores its equipment.

In the quiet storage room, white exam papers were scattered haphazardly.

The fifteen-year-old girl sat at the top, picked up the braised pork ribs from the bento box in her hand with chopsticks, and put them into her rosy little mouth along with the rice.

Every bite is filled with happiness.

The sailor uniform top was wide and short, revealing her fair neck and collarbone at this distance, while the area where it met the skirt effectively concealed her slender waistline.

At the same time, it can also accentuate the petite figure of a young girl.

Seeing her snow-white thighs beneath the pleated skirt, Uesugi Kai reminded her, "Skirt."

"skirt...?"

"Um......"

Hanamaru blushed and tried to pull down her skirt, but it still didn't cover her completely, so she stretched her legs out in front of her.

Kai Uesugi smiled and shook her head, took a bite of the bento she had made, and said, "Why is Hanabi always so careless in front of me?"

She can be so careless sometimes; she used to always forget to wear underwear at home.

She actually noticed that she would put them back on whenever she saw them.

"I don't know..." Hanabi Hanamaru shook her head and said. She was very concerned about what Kai Uesugi had just seen, and she was speaking absentmindedly.

Uesugi Kai didn't press the matter further. According to his assumption, Hanabi was probably unguarded around him because of their long-standing relationship since childhood, which made her very familiar with him.

The bento box I prepared today was made entirely according to his tastes.

Although there will be various types of chili peppers that are still within acceptable limits.

She seemed to really want him to like this plant that originated in South America.

"Why does Hanabi like chili peppers?" Uesugi Kai asked the question once again.

“It’s delicious,” she replied softly.

“But chili peppers aren’t a taste, they’re a sensation of pain.” Uesugi Kai picked up a bell pepper and smiled at her. “Hanabi knows what that means, right?”

Upon hearing the question, Hanabi Hanabi tried hard to think about it, but still had no clue and could only shake her head: "Hanabi doesn't understand what Kai-kun means."

Kai Uesugi had complete trust in her innocence.

Do you want to know?

"think."

"Unfortunately, I can't tell you."

Why?

There's no reason why.

He looked at the small red scarf under her collar and reached out to straighten it for her.

Hanabi Hanabi looked at her hand in front of her chest with a puzzled expression, and cautiously reminded him, "Kai-kun, Hanabi's bow tie isn't crooked."

"Does that mean you can't reason with something if it's not crooked?" Uesugi Kai asked her with a smile.

"If there's nothing wrong with it... why bother?"

Kai Uesugi was charmed by her adorable expression: "There's no reason why, but if I had to say, it's because I like you."

"Kai-kun...you're saying things like that again..." Hanabi Hanabi muttered weakly.

Now, Kai Uesugi constantly uses the word "like," which, to outsiders, sounds like scum trying to please a little girl.

"dislike?"

Sunlight streamed through the open blinds, casting rows of dappled patterns. Hanabi looked at her shiny little leather shoes, the word "like" echoing in her mind.

"Kai-kun...likes to trick Hanabi..."

Her voice was very pleasant, but her timid nature meant that she always spoke very softly.

"When have I ever lied to Hanabi?" Uesugi Kai patiently observed her eating slowly and deliberately.

Hanabi Hanabi put down the bento box in her hand, her violet eyes gleaming. She looked at him, her thin lips slightly parted, and said, enunciating each word:

"I like you (in Chinese)".

Although her speech was somewhat halting, she was able to make herself clearly understood.

Kai Uesugi froze, his chopsticks still in his hand, as he quickly recalled that day at Ichiran Ramen.

Hanabi Hanabi turned around, her delicate face showing no displeasure: "Kai-kun confessed to Hanabi, yet he still lied to her."

A wave of guilt washed over him, and after a long pause, Uesugi Kai could only apologize to her:

"terribly sorry......"

Suddenly, I felt inexplicably annoyed by some task from the system.

Hanabi Hanamaru shook her head after hearing the apology: "Kai-kun, you don't need to apologize to Hanabi. Hanabi is very happy after understanding what you said. Hanabi is very happy... Kai-kun, it turns out you don't dislike Hanabi."

Kai Uesugi turned and looked at her soft face.

Hanabi Hanamaru didn't know about any system; in her opinion, that sentence was just a confession he wasn't prepared for.

The girl's shoulders suddenly slumped.

"Before, Hanabi was worried that Kai would always treat her like a little sister, like a little girl who always followed behind her. Hanabi really liked Kai, but she didn't dare to tell him."

"She was afraid that Kai-kun would hate her, afraid that Kai-kun would distance himself from her, afraid that in Kai-kun's eyes, she was just a little sister who would never grow up."

"But Hanabi has always liked Kai-kun, really liked Kai-kun. Her mother knows that she likes him and has been helping her, but Kai-kun has never responded and always politely declines her mother's advances with a smile."

"Hanabi...I'm very worried..."

In this storage room that belonged only to the two of them, the girl's feelings grew stronger.

"Hanabi was both very close to Kai-kun and very far away. Every night when she went to sleep, she would wrap herself in the blanket and imagine Kai-kun holding her hand and saying 'I like you'."

“But every time she opened her eyes, all she saw was the pitch-black ceiling in the dead of night, just like her relationship with Kai-kun—familiar yet never quite close.”

"Fireworks... I'm really scared..."

Hanabi Hanabi turned to look at him again, her smile as radiant as summer fireworks:

"So, regardless of whether Kai-kun actually confessed to her back then, she was already extremely happy just to hear him say 'I like you'."

"Hanabi..."

Her words were affectionate and sincere.

Her trembling pupils and moist eyes stirred the heartstrings that were not easily noticed.

Setting down the carefully prepared bento box, Uesugi Kai reached out and hugged her tightly.

The girl's youthful figure conveyed a heartwarming and delicate beauty, prompting him to softly comfort her:

"I'm sorry to have kept Hanabi waiting for so long."

Their breath was hot and their fragrance filled the air; the rosy cheeks of the little girl in their arms were intoxicating.

"Kai-kun, don't apologize. Hanabi is very happy right now..."

Hanabi Hanabira's two soft hands climbed onto his chest, feeling his heartbeat, while her watery eyes looked up at him: "Hanabi really likes Kai-kun... so I'll try even harder to date him..."

"Hanabi..."

When Uesugi Kai saw her soft, delicate lips, his heart fluttered even more.

Can I...kiss you?

Hanabi Hanamaru's violet eyes narrowed sharply.

Touching his pounding chest, she felt her heart race along with his.

kiss...

Despite having imagined this scene many times, when it actually happened, Hanabi Hanamaru still felt shy and reserved like a young girl.

The afternoon sun warmed her heart, and the girl, blushing, slowly said, "No..."

She quickly added, "A kiss on the cheek... is fine..."

"it is good."

The girl's cheeks were as soft and sweet as cotton candy.

Two unfinished bento boxes sat quietly to the side.