The next morning arrived with gentle sunlight filtering through the gaps in Kana's curtains, painting the entire room in warm golden hues that seed to celebrate the previous night's passionate discoveries.
Kana slowly opened her eyes and the first thing she did when she woke up was groan.
Not a sleepy, content groan—
A sore, achy one.
She rolled over in the sheets, wincing a little as she shifted her hips.
"God… I feel like I ran a marathon in my sleep," she muttered.
I watched from my position on the bed as she carefully made her way to the bathroom, where steam soon began rising from what sounded like a very therapeutic hot shower.
The sound of running water mixed with soft contented sighs drifted through the bathroom door, and I found myself grinning at the ceiling.
Last night really happened. The new skill. And judging by those happy little sounds she's making, the Super-speed Recovery ability was definitely a success.
I couldn't help but feel a surge of satisfaction—and not just the regular kind that cos from a job well done. There was sothing deeply gratifying about knowing I'd been able to exceed her expectations so thoroughly.
I barely scratched the surface of what that skill can do.
From the bathroom ca the faint sound of Kana's voice, talking to herself in that way people do when they think no one can hear:
"Young n... really... really incredible..."
Incredible, huh? I'll take that as a glowing performance review.
The admiration in her voice was unmistakable, tinged with a kind of wonder that suggested she'd discovered sothing she hadn't expected to find.
She sounded like soone who just had their world expanded in the best possible way.
Even though I could sense so muscle soreness in her movents, there was no complaint in her tone—quite the opposite, actually. She seed to be reveling in the physical reminders of our encounter.
I heard her moving around, getting dressed and drying her hair with the kind of unhurried contentnt that spoke of genuine satisfaction. When she finally erged from the bathroom, she looked radiant—that particular glow that cos from excellent stress relief and thorough physical satisfaction.
Instead of imdiately waking , she approached the bed with soft, careful steps, clearly not wanting to disturb what she assud was my well-deserved rest.
I kept my breathing steady and my expression peaceful as she stood beside the bed, studying my face with the kind of intense attention usually reserved for artwork in museums.
Through barely cracked eyelids, I could see her hands clenching slightly, as if she was fighting the urge to reach out and touch . Her heartbeat was becoming audible—quick, excited pulses that suggested she was experiencing so very interesting thoughts.
"Sousuke's sleeping face is so cute," she whispered to herself, the words carrying such genuine affection that my chest tightened in response.
Cute? I was going for ruggedly handso, but I'll take cute from her.
After allowing her to enjoy her private mont of admiration for a few more minutes, I decided it was ti to officially wake up. The truth was, thanks to my new Super-speed Recovery ability, I felt absolutely incredible—like I could run a marathon or bench press a truck.
I made a show of slowly stirring, stretching, and opening my eyes with the kind of leisurely movents that suggested I'd had the most restful sleep of my life.
Which, considering the circumstances, might actually be true.
The bathroom still held traces of steam from her shower, so I took a quick rinse to wash away the night's activities and wake myself up properly.
My soaked t-shirt from yesterday's rain rescue mission had been laundered and dried by Kana—another thoughtful gesture that spoke to her caretaking instincts. I dressed quickly and returned to the living room where she was waiting with that particular kind of morning-after anticipation.
She's nervous about how I'll act now. Wondering if things will be awkward, if I'll regret what happened, if the magic will survive daylight.
Ti to put those fears to rest.
"Morning, Kana," I said, running a hand through my still-damp hair in what I hoped was an attractively casual gesture.
"Morning, Sousuke," she replied, offering a cup of coffee with hands that trembled just slightly.
"Isn't this the coffee you wanted to make for when I got back yesterday? I didn't expect it to be delayed until now," I teased, accepting the warm cup with genuine appreciation.
Let her know I rember the small details. That last night didn't erase everything else.
"That's because of you, Sousuke..." she replied with a shy smile that made my heart skip.
"Try it now. I brought this back from Kagoshima," she said, clearly eager for my approval.
I settled onto the sofa and took a careful sip, allowing the complex flavors to register properly on my tongue.
"Yeah, it's really delicious, Kana," I said, aning every word.
"Right? I heard that Kagoshima coffee was supposed to be excellent, so I made sure to buy so during my trip," she replied, her face lighting up with pleasure at my praise.
"I actually brought back lots of local specialties this ti. Wait here, Sousuke."
She headed toward the two massive suitcases I'd helped her carry through yesterday's monsoon, and I watched with growing amusent as she began searching through them with the intensity of an archaeologist.
She returned carrying an armload of various packages and small boxes, clearly having taken on more than she could safely manage.
"Hurry, Sousuke, help !" she called out as several items began sliding toward the floor.
And there's the damsel in distress mont. Though to be fair, she created this crisis herself by being over-ambitious.
I jumped up and caught the falling packages just in ti, helping her arrange the impressive collection on the coffee table.
The coffee table disappeared under an array of colorful boxes and packages, each one clearly labeled with regional specialties from different prefectures.
"How many gifts did you actually prepare, Kana?" I asked, genuinely amazed by the scope of her shopping expedition.
This woman went on a business trip and sohow managed to conduct a comprehensive survey of Japanese regional cuisine.
"It's not often you get the chance to travel around the entire country for work, so of course I had to bring back souvenirs!" she explained with the enthusiasm of soone who took their souvenir responsibilities very seriously.
"These are Sendai miso and Uji matcha for Mrs. Matsumoto," she continued, pointing to specific packages. "I heard she's passionate about cooking, so I thought she'd appreciate authentic regional ingredients."
"And these are Saga seaweed, shrimp crackers, Genji rolls, pickled plums, Moon World cookies..." she continued her guided tour of Japanese regional specialties.
"Of course, there are also Royce nama chocolate and Shiroi Koibito cookies. I made sure to pick these up when I returned through Hokkaido. What do you think, Sousuke? Pretty thoughtful, right?"
"Yeah, you're incredibly thoughtful, Kana," I replied, sampling one of the chocolates.
"Are all of these intended as gifts?"
"Well, I'll keep so for myself, naturally, but most of these are for my new colleagues," she explained while continuing to organize the impressive display.
New colleagues. Right. The promotion.
"Speaking of which, does this an your promotion is officially confird?"
Ti to address the elephant in the room—her career advancent and what it ans for our... situation.
"Yes, it's confird. I'll be working at the company headquarters going forward," she said with barely contained pride.
"Congratulations, Kana! This definitely calls for a celebration."
"Really? Do you actually have ti to celebrate with over the weekend?" she asked, her excitent imdiately spiking to adorable levels.
"No problem at all. It's the weekend, after all," I replied with a smile that promised interesting activities.
And with my new Super-speed Recovery ability, I can celebrate as long and as intensively as she wants.
"That's wonderful, Sousuke! Let's celebrate properly!"
The pure joy on her face was infectious, and I found myself grinning in response to her enthusiasm.
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