I, who tortured the readers, was knocked to the ground by them!

Seeing that the table was full of dishes that suited his taste, Sakurai Itsuki couldn't help but glance into the kitchen.

Sato Wakaba has always had very sharp ears. Sometimes Sakurai Itsuki even wondered if she had also awakened Observation Haki, so it was impossible that she hadn't heard him coming home.

But now there's not a sound at all.

Sakurai Itsuki checked the time and realized that an hour had passed since he took Hase Shion home, and the distance from here to her house was only five minutes.

Sakurai Itsuki felt a little guilty thinking about how he had promised Hase Shion to cook fried rice for her for the rest of his life.

But the experienced man was prepared: "The pudding and cake are on the coffee table."

When he left Hase Shion's house, just in case, he went to a nearby supermarket and bought some sweets.

As is typical in the Sakurai family, Sato Wakaba should be strolling out of the kitchen at this point, happily shouting, "Where am I? Where am I? Don't lie to me!"

After confirming that a cake had indeed been bought, he warned Sakurai Itsuki not to steal any and to save the first bite for her.

Then he remembered that the food in the pot was still cooking, so he shouted, "Oh no, oh no!" and rushed back to the kitchen.

But today, the person in the kitchen simply responded with a very cold "Oh."

After a long while, she came out of the room carrying the last dish of tofu soup, seemingly completely unconcerned about the dessert.

Sakurai Itsuki thought to himself, "Oh no, I miscalculated. The universal formula isn't working anymore."

Yes, she ate so much cake this morning, she completely forgot about it just now.

I realize I've been a bit perfunctory with her lately.

As usual, Sato Wakaba took off her apron and served the rice.

However, today she was expressionless, unlike usual. After saying "I'm starting to eat," she would chatter incessantly about various topics while eating.

"that."

The one who brought up the question today was Sakurai Itsuki, who felt the atmosphere was awkward.

"Are you acting a little strange today?"

"Really?" Sato Wakaba kept her head down, eating her rice, and didn't even look up at him.

"Shion Utaha seemed a bit off today, probably because of the alcohol. She was concerned about the next manga series, so I chatted with her for a while. It was all work-related."

Sakurai Itsuki, unusually, took the initiative to explain to her.

After remaining silent for half a minute upon hearing this, Sato Wakaba finally raised her head.

A hint of sadness flickered in her azure eyes.

She suddenly asked, "Would you like Kaoru?"

"Yes, so is it time for me to be a good person again?"

Sakurai Itsuki nodded, bracing himself for the "friend zone" card that Sato Wakaba would give him: "You portrayed Kaoru like that, so you must like me! I'm sorry, you're a good person."

Sato Wakaba didn't play by the rules. She sighed, "Sometimes reality and virtuality just happen to overlap like that."

Sakurai Itsuki was completely confused: "What do you mean?"

Sato Wakaba lowered her head sadly again: "I thought you actually knew all along."

Sakurai Itsuki pressed, "What exactly do you know?"

"Will you forget me?"

Instead of answering Sakurai Itsuki's question, she quoted Kaoru's only request to Kousei in the final chapter of "Your Lie in April".

Sakurai Itsuki was taken aback: "Huh?"

Sato Wakaba recites Kaoru's line: "Please don't forget me."

Sakurai Itsuki said, "Stop playing with dialogue. I know you're not happy with this ending, but didn't you already know Kaoru's ending? It's a bit late to get angry now, isn't it?"

Faced with Sakurai Itsuki's questioning, Sato Wakaba did not speak, but simply looked at him quietly.

Sakurai Itsuki, feeling helpless, finally decided to play along with her pretend game. "Ah, no, I'll never forget it, even if it kills me."

Have I entered your heart yet?

"Will this ever end?"

Sato Wakaba ignored Sakurai Itsuki's complaints and continued earnestly, "I'm sorry, I've always been so willful and so rough. Thank you for everything."

Sakurai Itsuki looked at the stern-faced Sato Wakaba, then at the pile of food on the table that suited his taste.

Such unusual occurrences.
Is it really that dramatic?
Sato Wakaba said, "I will struggle desperately, Sakurai-kun."

Sakurai Itsuki: "."

With tears welling in her eyes, she continued, "After I'm gone, even just for a fleeting moment, will you think of me?"

"Where are we going?"

She paused, then replied, "Go to a faraway place, perhaps... in the heavens."

Sakurai Itsuki was a little stunned, and the chopsticks in his hand involuntarily fell to the ground.

Sato Wakaba leaned her head back slightly in the chair, looking up at the ceiling: "Ah, I really don't want to leave."

No, I can't look at his face, I'm about to burst out laughing. Hold it in, hold it in.

Despite still being somewhat skeptical, Sakurai Itsuki's heart tightened, and she asked nervously, "What exactly is going on?"

Sato Wakaba sighed, "It's no big deal. Anyway, in your eyes, I'm just a friend A."

"."

"I'd like to go to the UK soon to spend time with my family. What are the differences between hospitals in the UK and those in Japan?"

Sato Wakaba looked up at the ceiling, her voice trembling slightly.

"However, besides my family, I'm also a little reluctant to leave this place, and a little scared."

Sakurai Itsuki glanced at Sato Wakaba, and the more he listened, the more something seemed off. The way she was saying those words was too dramatic.

However, he continued to play along with her, and Sakurai Itsuki tentatively asked, "Shall I go back with you to England?"

Sato Wakaba immediately asked, "But what about your job? Isn't that what you care about most?"

Sakurai Itsuki suddenly realized that he had found the correct password.

Sakurai Itsuki comforted her, saying, "Those things don't matter anymore. Anyway, don't be afraid, I'll be by your side. You're usually so healthy, you can eat half a pound of cake in one go, more than a man, so you'll definitely be fine."

"Hahaha, I can't hold it in anymore, who comforts someone like that?"

Sato Wakaba cried, but it was a kind of crying from laughter.

Sato Wakaba, who was staring at the ceiling, burst into laughter, then wiped away her tears: "You promised you'd come to England with me!"

Sakurai Itsuki raised his arm, placed it on the table, and flicked Sato Wakaba's forehead hard: "If you make this kind of joke again, I won't play along."

"Ouch." Sato Wakaba rubbed her forehead. "So you were just playing along with me?"

Sakurai Itsuki retorted, "There's no such thing as someone with a terminal illness. Why are you making such a fuss? This isn't a manga or a stage play."

Sato Wakaba pouted: "And before? Were you even slightly nervous about me before?"

Sakurai Itsuki picked up her chopsticks again and wiped them with a paper towel: "I gave you a chance to give me a card today, but you didn't seize it, so forget it." "Hmph~ Well, that's a little bit."

Sato Wakaba gave a soft hum, feeling a little better after her prank.

In the scene just now, it was all acting, but her unhappiness was real.

Thinking about how he always took care of Shion, Sato Wakaba hesitated, wondering if she should take the initiative.

Therefore, she used the acting skills she honed while performing in plays to create such a scene.

Even when trying to comfort and conceal his true feelings, he still wanted to prove himself.
He had already met Shion's parents, not to mention Yuki, who was his childhood friend; their parents probably even knew each other when they were little.

Every time she thinks about this, Sato Wakaba feels a little awkward, as if she has lost a step.

Sato Wakaba then asked, "So, you agreed to go to England? Or was it all just an act?"

Sakurai Itsuki then asked, "Are you really going back to England soon?"

Sato Wakaba said, "Yeah, it's rare to graduate, and I didn't even have a family reunion during the New Year, we just video chatted."

Because Sato Wakaba was busy preparing for exams during the New Year this year, she didn't fly to England like she did last year, but stayed in Tokyo to prepare for the exams.

Of course, there were other reasons as well. She didn't want it to be like last year, when someone got drunk and secretly slept in his bed, hugging him and acting crazy.

On New Year's Day, they finally got to eat dumplings made by hand together, but this also meant that she hadn't been able to reunite with her family for over a year.

Now that I've just graduated and passed my exams, I'd like to take advantage of the spring break to spend a few days in the UK.

After thinking for a moment, Sakurai Itsuki said, "If I go, I won't stay for long."

Sakurai Itsuki felt that he had been a bit too perfunctory with her lately, and now that "Your Lie in April" had ended, he could have a little more free time.

Perhaps it's not impossible to give yourself a short break.

Sato Wakaba was overjoyed and quickly said, "It won't take too long, just a few days will do. Consider it a graduation trip. But even though it's a trip, I'll probably need to spend a lot of time with my family. Will you still come with me?"

Sakurai Itsuki: "I don't care, but of course you have to promise your dad won't beat me up."

"It's okay, I'll protect you." Sato Wakaba raised her arm like a strongman, patted her biceps, and looked reliable.

Sakurai Itsuki said while eating, "I hope so."

"By the way, are you afraid my dad will beat you up because you want to kidnap my dad's daughter?"

Although Sakurai Itsuki didn't give her a chance to give him a card today, Sato Wakaba still easily found her own space to perform.

"I'm sorry, although I felt a little bit of that, I'm not very happy today because the ending of 'My Lie in April' was so heartbreaking. I just can't be romantic at all! Next time, could you please find a romantic scene that will make me happy and give it a try? You're actually a good person."

She squinted, grinned, revealing a bright smile as radiant as the sun.

Sakurai Itsuki shook his head helplessly, too lazy to comment.

Sato Wakaba didn't seem to mind his silence.

She quickly finished her bowl of rice, then jumped up from her chair with boundless energy and skipped over to the coffee table. "Oh! I've been so bored! Finally, I can eat my cake! Cake~cake~my cake~"

Sakurai Itsuki watched Sato Wakaba start eating dessert right after finishing her meal and complained, "Can't you eat it later or tomorrow? Your sugar intake is way too high."

He really thought the sweets code wasn't working anymore, but it turns out she really never gets tired of them.

Sakurai Itsuki threatened, "You'd better watch out for diabetes."

Sato Wakaba said, "Hmph, that just means that a girl like me is a true sweet girl from head to toe."

Sakurai Itsuki had a rather vulgar thought flash through his mind for a moment, but ultimately didn't say it.

After finishing his meal and cleaning up the dishes, Sakurai Itsuki turned on his computer in the living room and started working again.

He needs to finish all his recent work so that he can make time to accompany her on her "trip" to England.

Sato Wakaba chewed on her cake with her cheeks puffed out, looking at Sakurai Itsuki who had started working again, and said a little embarrassedly: "Well, actually, if it's too much trouble for you, you really don't have to come with me!"

Actually, just knowing that he was willing to go with her was enough to make her happy.

She didn't really want him to get too tired from accompanying her, and since she also needed to spend time with her family, the trip definitely wouldn't be very exciting.

Sakurai Itsuki asked, "Really? Then I won't go."

"woo"

Sato Wakaba, who said it didn't matter whether Sakurai Itsuki went or not, frowned instantly upon hearing Sakurai Itsuki's words.

Then, with cream still lingering on her lips, she pouted and muttered under her breath, "Liar, liar, big liar."

Sakurai Itsuki retorted, "Didn't you say it didn't matter whether I went or not?"

"So, I was just speaking very quietly." Sato Wakaba crossed her arms and thought to herself, if I hadn't spoken, my voice would have been at least 50 decibels louder, and my attitude would have been much more aggressive.

Sakurai Itsuki said, "Alright, alright, you said you'd go, so we'll go."

"Huh? You sound really reluctant."

Faced with someone who gets the benefit but then acts innocent, and whose attitude is arrogant and overbearing.

Sakurai Itsuki sighed, pulled out a tissue from the table, walked up to her, and immediately shut her mouth, which was about to launch into a tirade, while vigorously wiping her mouth.

Sakurai Itsuki found a reasonable reason for revenge: "Can't you eat a little more politely? Your mouth is covered in cream."

However, Sato Wakaba didn't quite agree. She clenched her fist and lightly punched Sakurai Itsuki's chest: "Hey, you better be gentle, you're hurting me."

Sakurai Itsuki loosened his grip and gently wiped her fair face: "I'm wiping your face, and you still want to hit me? What kind of unreasonable woman are you?"

Sato Wakaba sat on the sofa with her head tilted back, her azure eyes reflecting his image.

In this somewhat ambiguous scene, she blushed slightly and said, "Ah, I am such a troublesome, unreasonable, and capricious woman, so you should go find a gentle and virtuous woman to cook for you."

"By the way, when are you going to book your plane tickets? I need to go to Yuki's place tomorrow."

"."

Those eyes, which were brimming with a hint of shyness, suddenly darkened.

"It's just work-related, work."

Sakurai Itsuki explained it this way, thinking to himself, "Even if I really contacted you, you wouldn't be happy."

As Sato Wakaba listened to his explanation, she thought to herself, "Your lines sound exactly like those men on TV who use overtime as an excuse to cheat on their wives and have secret meetings with their mistresses."

"Then you have to bring me dessert tomorrow. I want coffee pudding."

"Alright, alright, I'm going upstairs now. We'll talk about it tomorrow."

After finishing speaking, Sakurai Itsuki picked up his laptop and prepared to return to the studio to focus on his work.

After watching him go upstairs, Sato Wakaba turned her head and let out a long sigh.

I still feel a little depressed.

What should I do if he really is the kind of man who would cheat?

What if he really cheats on me someday?

Thinking about it, he shook his head again, realizing he was overthinking things. It was still far from certain; that was something to consider only after success.

Right now, we still need to get him back first. (End of Chapter)