Iruma-san wants to win the Akutagawa Prize

【Xiang won't let me talk to Xiang.】

……

And the answer that Iruma Hibiki got to this question once again returned to the starting point.

After this, his conversation with Wakaba Mutsu came to a standstill. There was no reason to continue and no topic to talk about.

So Iruma Hibiki had to end his conversation with Wakaba Mutsu after a simple greeting and thanks.

But no matter what, Wakaba Mu's words at that time still echoed in Iruma Xiang's heart.

【Shoko...】

He was repeating Xiangzi's name in his heart.

I felt deeply tired all over my body, including my heart.

It was not until night, when it was completely dark, that he heard someone knocking on the ward door.

"Father?"

Iruma stood up and he thought it was Yoshiaki Iruma, but when the door opened, he saw Nagasaki Suyo holding a bouquet of carnations in her right hand and a bag with some meals in her left hand.

"Xiang hasn't had dinner yet, right? I bought some for Xiang."

"How's Xiangzi's situation going? Have you contacted Xiang again?"

"No, but Mu said Xiangzi should be fine."

"That's it..."

Nagasaki Suyo muttered softly.

"Can I put the flowers here?"

"Well, I'll go get some water."

"Hurry up, or the food will get cold."

Facing Nagasaki Suyo's tenderness at this moment, Iruma Hibiki once again felt that strange emotion.

A sort of--

They should have kept their distance from each other like two hedgehogs, but at this moment, the stinging sensation of being pressed close together gradually spread across his skin.

This then brought about mental distress.

Yes, some stings can be numbed and ignored.

But the strange emotions deep in my heart cannot be concealed by deception and numbness.

Gulu-lu-lu-hua——

With increasingly sharp sounds, the vase was filled with water, and the beautiful red carnations became the only bright color in the gloomy ward.

"Let's go out to eat."

After putting the vase away, Iruma Hibiki said to Nagasaki Suyo.

"okay."

Nagasaki Suyo, who was waiting on the side, pulled her skirt a little awkwardly, then walked to Iruma Hibiki with the dinner she brought.

"What's wrong with the skirt?"

Iruma Hibiki noticed Nagasaki Suyo's little movements.

"I fell down when I got here because I was in such a hurry. So the button fell off. Now I have to use a hair tie to tie it up temporarily."

Nagasaki Suyo took out an exquisite button with the Tsuki no Mori school emblem from her pocket, with several circles of black broken thread wrapped around it.

"Is it okay?"

"Well, it's okay. I was just too careless. But... I didn't bring any spare clothes. So, what happens next..."

"If you don't mind, I'll help Su Shi sew."

"Huh? Hibiki can sew?"

Iruma Hibiki opened the door of the ward, then looked at Nagasaki Suyo's face, and then showed a look of nostalgia.

"Xiang, you learned this in Shanghai, right?"

"Ah."

With mixed feelings, Iruma Hibiki nodded.

"That might be a problem. I'm a little embarrassed. I'll give the skirt to Liu Yin. It's another matter for the group to tease Xiang."

In front of Iruma Hibiki, Nagasaki Suyo chuckled.

"But, that's great. Thanks for teaching Hibiki how to sew—"

"Is it mom?"

"Ah."

"Then, thank your mother for teaching Hibiki how to sew."

Nagasaki Suyo put her hands together and pretended to be expressing her gratitude sincerely.

And for some reason, Iruma Hibiki, who was standing by, felt the waves in his heart grow stronger and stronger, like a hurricane passing through, stirring up countless waves.

Now he just wants to escape from everything.

If only it were all over.

Iruma Hibiki had thought so.

But Wu Yiqi⑧"? Pu [〈Phosphorus〤Nihong镏印/——

"This is the share of the ringing."

Nagasaki Suyo handed over the dinner she had bought for Iruma Hibiki. It was an exquisite meal from a nearby family restaurant. The vegetable content in it was particularly alarming, and the protein supply was probably only a small slice of cheese.

14 Iruma Hibiki's Sharp Thorn

Toyokawa Shoko's reply was late, and midnight in the hospital arrived too early. It was a slightly cold night, and in the eerily quiet night, Hibiki Iruma sat on the recliner beside the bed and looked downstairs worriedly.

Maybe it was Yoshiaki Iruma's arrangement, or maybe it was just good luck.

The location of this ward is just right. Looking out, you can see not the dark roofs on the other side and the road in the distance, but the hospital gate and the greenery in the distance.

The scenery was nice and the view was wide. What Hibiki Iruma was staring at was actually the street leading to the hospital.

A few minutes later, Iruma Hibiki saw Nagasaki Suyo coming downstairs and entering the 24-hour drugstore on the left side of the gate.

In the evening, Nagasaki Suyo finally did not choose to return to the hotel, but stayed in the hospital.

To accompany him.

This is natural and there is no need to question it.

……

Iruma Hibiki actually refused and wanted to say:

【Su Shi's words, my own affairs are more important. 】

But he couldn't say it, he couldn't say such words to Nagasaki Suyo.

The reason is naturally very simple. He understands it, knows it completely, and even knew it in the past, because he is Nagasaki Motoyo's lover and ex-boyfriend.

Despite being rejected.

But being rejected doesn’t mean you don’t understand the other person at all.

On the contrary, sometimes the end of a relationship always begins with knowing the other person's full picture, just like people always hope that a good person will always be a good person, and if he makes a mistake, he will be sent to hell immediately, but for a bad person, as long as he puts down his butcher knife, he can immediately become a saint.

It's a little unfair and a little difficult.

But many romances naturally end here.

There are also many expectations.

But no matter what, Iruma Hibiki and Nagasaki Soyo have not reached such a point yet. It is better to say that Iruma Hibiki can actually understand Nagasaki Soyo's feelings at this moment.

It is precisely because he can understand and figure it out that he is helpless.

Yes, he and Nagasaki Motoyo are now two hedgehogs. If they rely too much on each other, they will definitely hurt each other and bleed. But if they are too far apart, the night in Kyoto will be too cold and long.

Iruma Hibiki sighed.

His thorn is probably Xiangzi.

The person he was still worried about even now, even though he was exhausted, Toyokawa Shoko's reply actually came very late. Just now, around 12 o'clock, she hurriedly explained:

[Sorry, Xiang, I just encountered some emergencies and had to deal with them, but it's all settled now! We can continue chatting later. By the way—]

[Higashi will take care of Nagasaki-san's matter, right?]

In response to Toyokawa Shoko's question, Iruma replied with a hint of trust:

[Xiangzi, I won't break our contract. I'll talk to you in detail about Sushi's situation next time. Her situation is very complicated... I'm a little unsure what to do.]

Iruma Hibiki wants to apologize here.

It's probably a subconscious behavior.

But in the end, he still didn't say the word "sorry" or "excuse me", because adding such words here was a little scary and terrifying.

He didn't want Xiangzi to misunderstand.

But he was deeply distressed about his current situation.

It wasn't until the routine checkups every half hour that I felt a little more at ease.

Iruma Yoshiaki said that things would be better tomorrow.

Iruma Hibiki actually breathed a sigh of relief. After all, the most dangerous stage had probably passed, and he didn't have to accept the death of his loved ones too early.

The fields of Kyoto and his hometown in the countryside, which he had only visited a few times, could still exist for a while longer, waiting for him, a guy who had not yet come to terms with this world.

Nagasaki Suyo opened the door, casting the light from the corridor into the room at Iruma Hibiki's end and shining on his face.

With her back to the light, she looked at Iruma Xiang for a while, then closed the door and came to Iruma Xiang carrying a small bag.

I'm going to change into my pajamas.

She sent this message to Iruma Hibiki, being extremely considerate and worried about disturbing the patient.

【Um. 】

Iruma Hibiki responded.

After waiting for a few minutes, Nagasaki Suyo came out. She was wearing a cute pair of pajamas on her lower body. The white pants had some cute strawberry decorations on them. Then Iruma Hibiki got Nagasaki Suyo's skirt.

That was the Tsuki no Mori school uniform, an ordinary one. Although the material was expensive, it was still a common style.

There was no tear at the button position, only a corner of the broken thread was exposed, tied by a white hair tie and temporarily fastened there.

A fall that could break such a strong button must have been quite severe, but Nagasaki Motoyo said, "It's okay."

Hibiki Iruma actually remembers the time when he practiced bass with Soyo Nagasaki.

She is the same, overly focused on the people around her and the things in front of her, without caring about herself at all.

Just like Nagasaki Suyo who is beside him at this moment.

Yes, Iruma Hibiki understood Nagasaki Suyo, at least he felt so, and he also understood why Nagasaki Suyo was here at this moment——

After the band suspended its activities, Nagasaki Suyo's only destination, in her opinion, was him.

For some reason, Iruma Hibiki realized this.

Obviously, he and Nagasaki Suyo should be very far apart.

They had clearly troubled each other, hurt each other, brought him the most painful Golden Week, lost his most important band, hurt many people, and nearly lost everything -

They should have been far away.

But don't know why.

Iruma Hibiki could understand what Nagasaki Soyo was thinking at the moment, and he couldn't even be angry with Nagasaki Soyo.

【Let's go back. 】