My daily life in love is too contrary to my character.

"It's delicious, I want to eat it often."

"Okay," Chiyo said, taking small bites. "It's really good, but if I want to eat it in big bites, I have to pick out the green peppers, which is a hassle."

"I specially used only half a green pepper just for you."

"I can feel your thoughtfulness, it tastes even better now." Although Chiyo's words were rather perfunctory, Shiraishi Sawa was still very satisfied.

Soga Kirei lowered her head and ate her meal, occasionally pulling up her stray hairs and tucking them behind her ears. Looking at the various dishes in front of her, she sighed when no one was paying attention.

It's time for another part that I'm not good at at all.

--

After finishing their meal, the two girls helped Shiraishi Sawa Hide wash the dishes. Takanashi Yuko still hadn't replied to their messages, so Shiraishi Sawa Hide left some food for her.

Even if I've already eaten by the time I get back, I can manage on my own.

"I'm leaving now, Shiraishi-kun. Aunt Zuoye is waiting for me downstairs," Soga Kirei said after teasing Mimi one last time.

"Let's go downstairs together, my car is always parked downstairs," Chiyo Ichii said.

It's really easy to make money as a driver. Today, I spent most of my time quietly resting in the car.

Shiraishi Sawah, who had been lost in thought, went to see the two girls downstairs.

"Are you coming to visit me tomorrow?" Chiyo asked with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Soga Kirei turned to look at him.

"No way, I was planning to take a nap and then read a book today. Are you here to comfort me? You're ruining my plans. I'm going to bed early." Shiraishi Zexiu yawned at the opportune moment.

“Heartless man, forget it, I won’t come tomorrow.” Shiraishi Sawa Hide didn’t notice that the second half of Ichiyo’s sentence was addressed to Soga Kirei.

“Okay, I won’t be coming.” Suwo Wulian nodded back at her.

The two girls got into their car and drove away slowly as Shiraishi Sawah waved goodbye.

Shiraishi Sawa didn't rush upstairs. After staying upstairs for so long, he wanted to breathe some fresh air, which would also help cure his cold.

Around 6 p.m., the last rays of the setting sun shone through the towering buildings, and the streetlights in the distance began to shine.

A gentle breeze, seemingly from nowhere, brushed against Shiraishi Zexiu's cheek, causing his hair to sway softly and bringing with it a strange fragrance.

Perhaps it was the scent of flowers? Shiraishi Sawa couldn't tell.

There was a small puddle nearby, still containing rainwater left over from yesterday's heavy rain.

As time passed, the filth sank to the bottom of the puddle, making it very clear.

Shiraishi Sawa approached, looked at the reflection in the water, and first praised:

"You're so handsome."

"You too."

The two stared at each other in silence, and Shiraishi Sawah's expression gradually became blank.

"You're disgusting."

"Each each other."

After ending his tedious self-talk, Shiraishi Sawa looked up at the horizon.

As the last rays of sunlight gradually disappeared, wisps of clouds in the vast sky turned from red to dark, and the sun set.

Without the streetlights, this place would be shrouded in darkness.

Takanashi Yuuko hasn't returned yet.

Chapter 200 It's Not Normal to Be a Teenage Girl (4500 words)

At 8:30 p.m., Shiraishi Zexiu was getting a little anxious.

Leaning back on the sofa, I quietly stared at the clock on the wall, my eyes following the spinning second hand. Even so, I would still glance at the watch on my wrist from time to time.

This timing is acceptable; Yuko Takanashi has returned even later before. The problem is, she didn't reply to my message this time.

This is unprecedented and very illogical.

Kuramochi Sakura was also not at school.

Just now on LINE, Shiraishizawa Hide contacted Maeda Shusuke, who had a regular club activity today, but was told that Takanashi Yuko left as soon as school was over, and he didn't know whether she went to the club or outside the school.

After saying all this information, Shusuke Maeda typed these two words.

"What 'that'? Maeda, don't try that in online chat."

"No, it was sent to the wrong person."

"OK OK."

The conversation ended in an odd way. Shiraishi Sawa Hide had no time to care about Maeda Shusuke's sudden display of femininity. What he was really worried about now was Takanashi Yuko.

At 8:31, Shiraishi Zexiu sat up from the sofa and changed into a short-sleeved shirt suitable for going out.

First, walk along the path between the school and the apartment to see if you can run into Yuko Takanashi. If you still can't find her, you'll have to call the police.

"Click".

Before Shiraishi Sawa even started to push the door open, it was pulled open by itself.

Upon seeing Yuko Takanashi appear at the door, Hideaki Shiraishi first carefully examined her, and after confirming that her clothes were neat and her body was clean, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

It seems there are no problems.

What followed was a heart full of resentment, and not wanting to keep it bottled up any longer, Shiraishi Sawa said:

"Takayuki, what's wrong with you? Why aren't you replying to my messages? Do you know how worried this makes people?"

"I'm sorry." Takanashi picked up his phone and pressed the power button a few times, but the screen didn't light up. "The phone battery was already low, and it was already off when I took it out last night."

Yuko Takanashi immediately put her phone back in her pocket.

"Then why are you so late?" Shiraishi Sawah stepped aside to let Takanashi Yuuko in first, but still questioned her.

"Because I don't have a mobile phone, I can only buy tickets manually on the subway, using change. I wasn't familiar with the process before, so it took me a lot of time."

"Oh really, why don't you ask a stranger to lend you a power bank? You can just give them your change, why bother buying a subway ticket with change?"

Hideaki Shiraishi was speechless at Yuko Takanashi's bizarre actions; she had never been this clumsy before.

"I'm sorry, I didn't expect that." Takanashi Yuko bowed deeply to Shiraishi Sawa Hide, then squatted down to change her shoes.

"Never mind, never mind, you didn't mean it. Just be more careful next time, no, let's not let it happen again. I'll order a power bank online later, and after it's fully charged, I'll put it in my shoe locker at school. Takanashi, if you encounter a similar situation in the future, just go and get it. I'll make a copy of my shoe locker key for you later."

It's not just talk; Shiraishi Sawa has already started using his phone to search for suitable products.

"Thank you very much, I understand."

Takanashi Yuuko smiled and nodded, then walked towards her room.

"Have you had dinner? You didn't bring any money."

"I haven't eaten, but I'm not very hungry." Takanashi Yuko didn't stop walking.

"It's been more than eight hours since school lunchtime, how could you not be hungry? The kitchen left you a little bit of food and rice, not much. I was worried you might not have enough to eat, but it's perfect now. Even if you're not hungry, you still need to finish it. I'll go heat it up."

Without giving Takanashi Yuuko a chance to refuse, Shiraishi Sawa Hide went straight to the kitchen.

When the reheated food was brought out, Shiraishi Sawa was already wearing a mask—the one that had been placed in the kitchen while cooking. Takanashi Yuko sat quietly at the dining table, her chin resting on the table, her glossy lips slightly parted, and her once ethereal eyes now seemed somewhat lifeless.

There was no focus, and it was unclear what it was actually looking at.

"It's just a little bit, remember to finish it whether you're hungry or not." Shiraishi Zexiu said as he placed the dishes on the table.

"Takanashi?" Finding that the other party did not react at all, Shiraishi Sawa waved his hand in front of Takanashi Yuuko in confusion, finally getting the girl's attention back.

"sorry!"

"I accept the first apology today, but there's no need to say anything more."

"sorry!"

Seeing Takanashi Yuuko immediately lower her head and say another sentence, Shiraishi Sawah sighed. The last time they had such a conversation was when the two of them had just met.

Despite the fact that Takanashi Yuuko has made great progress recently, she can now make small mistakes without caring about them at all.

Although it doesn't sound like a good change, Shiraishi Sawa is quite satisfied with it.

Takanashi Yuuko picked up a small ball of rice with her chopsticks, slowly put it into her mouth, then held it in her mouth and began to chew slowly.

One, two, three...

Next bite...

"Although I know from my experience in the All-Around Knowledge Competition that chewing rice for a long time can produce a faint sweetness, it's because of the starch in the rice and the action of salivary amylase. But we have vegetables at home now, and I'd feel like I'm abusing you if you ate so many mouthfuls of plain rice."

Shiraishi Sawa, who was also sitting at the dining table, sighed and said helplessly.

Takanashi Yuuko's "eating" today really meant she only ate "food".

"sorry."

As if waking from a dream, Takanashi Yuuko finally reached for the side dishes besides rice with her chopsticks.

With another sigh, Shiraishi Sawa said:

"Tell me, what happened today?"

“No, Shiraishi-kun,” Takanashi Yuko retorted quickly.

"Is this how you are without you? You're always full of energy when you come back. Today you didn't even go to see Mimi first. She's your favorite daughter." Shiraishi Zexiu didn't believe it at all.

"Nothing's really wrong, I'm just a little distracted today."

"Do you think the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department will believe your nonsense? You might as well tell me you're old and have symptoms of Alzheimer's disease."

Takanashi Yuuko remained silent, simply picking up rice from her bowl.

"Take a bite of food first." Shiraishi Sawah reminded him again, continuing, "It's okay if you don't want to talk about it. I won't force you or anything. Like I said, if you encounter any problems you can't solve, remember to ask me for help, okay?"

After a silence of more than ten seconds, a soft "hmm" came from Takanashi Yuuko's mouth.

Shiraishi Sawa clapped his hands at the cat tree in the corner, and Mimi quickly rushed over and skillfully grabbed Shiraishi Sawa's hand.

We've had Mimi for a while now, and she looks much better and has grown a lot since she first came home.