"What are you doing?"
"Uh... I bought a charcoal grill, planning to have a barbecue at ho today."
"Don’t know how to start a fire, right?"
"...No, not really. It’s just my first ti using it, not familiar..."
"Got it." Fujiwara Reya glanced into the kitchen and doused the charcoal grill with water.
Yukino Ritsuko washed her face and hands at the sink, then dried her face with a paper towel.
It was probably then that she realized how awkward she had been earlier, the more she wiped her cheeks, the hotter they felt, her wrists even trembled slightly. After cleaning up the ss in the kitchen, as they headed back to the second floor, Yukino Ritsuko idly struck up a conversation: "Did Mr. Fujiwara co back to Tokyo this morning?"
"Yes, just arrived in Tokyo." Fujiwara Reya climbed the stairs, "Originally planned to visit the shrine first, but thought it has been a while since I saw Miss Yukino, so I ca here first."
Hearing him say "ca back," Yukino Ritsuko was very happy.
"Have you eaten anything?" she asked with concern, "Would you like to prepare breakfast for you?"
Fujiwara Reya instinctively glanced back at the kitchen downstairs: "Burnt at?"
Yukino Ritsuko quickly lowered her head and muttered, "It’s my first ti grilling, you’re not allowed to make fun of for this..."
"Next ti if there’s sothing you haven’t tried and want to experience, call to join you." Fujiwara Reya grinned teasingly, his eyes returning to her, "After all, this isn’t a wealthy household, can’t afford your antics."
His voice was pleasant, and Yukino Ritsuko’s mood lightened. She chuckled and said, "Oh, alright, I’ll wait for you next ti, but you’re not allowed to call a silly woman because of it..."
If soone else mocked her for being silly, Yukino Ritsuko would feel uncomfortable. But being teased like this by Fujiwara Reya, perhaps because he had already seen that side of her, Yukino Ritsuko felt quite liberated around him and surprisingly relaxed.
Previously, she would want to retort: No, I’m not a silly woman, I just didn’t know!
Now she would simply think: Yes, I’m silly, please take good care of .
Thinking about this change, Yukino Ritsuko’s face showed a pure relaxation, and her eyes sparkled as if brightening the dimly lit room. Her eyes weren’t lively, even a bit clumsy, but still charming.
After reaching the second floor, Yukino Ritsuko washed so fruits and placed them on the sofa.
Fujiwara Reya picked up an apple, took a bite and chewed a few tis, only to have his attention caught by a sight at the side of the sofa.
From beneath the sofa’s armrest, a small head poked out.
Bright eyes watched him unflinchingly, with a seemingly hostile gaze.
At that mont, Yukino Ritsuko rembered there was soone else in the house and looked over, imdiately laughing. The girl on the sofa curiously eyed the suddenly appearing young man, blinking and scrunching her face.
Fujiwara Reya filtered through his mind for a na, then smiled and greeted, "Nice to et you, Ryoko."
"No, you’ve got the wrong person! I’m Sister Yukino’s boyfriend!" Kitagawa Ryoko jumped up like a cat that’s been stepped on the tail, pushing Yukino Ritsuko back into the room. During the process, she muttered sothing, to which Yukino Ritsuko rolled her eyes and laughed in response. Once back in the room, she peeked out, raised her eyebrows at Fujiwara Reya provocatively, as if conquering Sister Yukino was a big achievent, and finally slamd the door shut.
"Girlfriends sticking together is nice too..." Fujiwara Reya found it amusing and couldn’t help but laugh.
After a while, Yukino Ritsuko ca out of the room, sitting next to Fujiwara Reya as usual without any reservations. It was still raining outside, her silhouette barely visible, but the joy at her brows was more evident than before.
"Ryoko has been an orphan since she was young, probably sees as a sister, she gets a bit jealous you see. Mr. Fujiwara, don’t mind her, besides occasionally saying bad things about you, she doesn’t have any ill intentions."
The damp morning breeze blew her gentle voice, blending with the sound of the wind and water, ethereal and serene.
"Only occasionally?"
"Uh... haha, maybe a little more than occasionally. Really, I’m not lying to you."
"I’ll et her myself next ti!"
"Don’t bully the little girl, after all, I’m her teacher."
"Please be my teacher too, Miss Yukino!"
"Why?"
"Because I like teachers the most."
"Eh? Eh! Don’t tease with that, how annoying—"
With the lights off, the room was dimly lit, after all, they hadn’t seen each other for more than a month, there was plenty to say. But the interaction between Fujiwara Reya and her wasn’t a date, it stayed within the bounds of ordinary friends. Moreover, Ryoko was hiding behind eavesdropping, so so things were left unsaid.
Listening to the rain, they popped grapes into their mouths one by one, the rain seed to get heavier.
Yukino Ritsuko quietly savored her complex feelings, softly telling him amusing stories from recent tis, mostly about bakery issues. Fujiwara Reya leaned back against the sofa, relaxing himself, listening to her talk about this and that, occasionally nodding, occasionally smiling... wearing the sa clothes as before, a blue thin sweater, a black pencil skirt, and black tights. Simple clothes couldn’t hide her mature and gentle feminine figure, nor the serene and intellectual aura revealed in her deanor.
If it were ancient tis, she would surely have grown up in a scholarly family.
Thinking of this, Fujiwara Reya couldn’t help but laugh, pondering if he should have the title of a scholar to be worthy of interacting with her...
Reviews
All reviews (0)