Let's do it again, Yukino.

Page 237

Before Chunri could finish uttering the letters "ojbk," the boy, whose hand was still on Xiaoxue's chest, panicked as the doorknob turned at the entrance.

I forgot this wasn't Xiaoxue's upscale apartment; Junko was coming back to cook.

Looking again at Yukino with her long, flowing hair, the fervor in her eyes slowly returned to its clear state.

"...Oh no, I forgot about Auntie... What should I do? If Auntie Junko finds out, I will definitely kill Haru."

Junko had invited the two of them home for dinner, but while their elders were out buying groceries, the two of them couldn't control themselves, which was undoubtedly a rather awkward situation.

So, in her shyness, Koyuki said something that terrified Haruhi.

Indeed, it would be best if Junko didn't see this scene between the two of them. If it became a source of ridicule for them for the rest of their lives, it wouldn't look good.

But the sound of the door being pushed open had already been heard. There was no time for Chunri to hide in the bathroom with Xiaoxue. In the critical moment, she pulled the curtains back up again, and the long curtains instantly concealed the figures of the boy and girl.

Just then, half of Junko's dress appeared in the entryway.

"Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh"

Spring made a shushing gesture towards the still-struggling light snow.

"Keep your voice down. Once Junko goes into the kitchen, we'll pretend we just came out of the bathroom. That way, no one will suspect that our clothes and hair are so messy."

"You really are a genius... How come you can come up with all these clever ideas? Ah Qing, why don't you just die?"

After making a comment, Xiaoxue covered her eyes, unable to bear looking at it.

However, in her panic, she resorted to desperate measures.

The two, barely daring to breathe, stood silently on the other side of the curtain.

……

Not long after, Haruhi heard Junko carrying two large bags of groceries as she changed her shoes and strolled into the living room.

"Xiao Qing, Yukino-chan, we're back! I bought your favorite beef, sea cucumber, and chives."

As they gazed at the brightly lit living room, Junko's innocent laughter reached Haruhi and Koyuki's ears.

"Um, did you tell Xiaoxue about these aphrodisiac and kidney-tonifying ingredients? And when did this become my favorite dish?"

"Don't ask me, I don't know either!!"

Her delicate body pressed tightly against Haruhi's chest. After hearing Junko's blush-inducing words, Yukino shook her head fiercely, distancing herself from all of this.

"Yukino-chan, Haru, are you back? If you are, please let me know."

Junko called out twice more when no one responded, but still no one dared to answer her.

Unconsciously, Junko stroked her chin, frowned, and began to think seriously.

"Could it be that they knew in advance what was going to happen tonight, so they went to the supermarket and bought some safety equipment?"

No way!!!

The boy and girl were both thinking to themselves at the same time that Junko had no sense of seriousness.

……

…………

Sniff, sniff.

Junko plopped down on the sofa, burying her face in the soft fabric. Her high, straight nose twitched slightly. After a while, Junko let out a somewhat puzzled sound.

"Sniff, sniff, I think I can smell the scent of something embarrassing that my Haru and Yukino are about to do. Is it just a hallucination?"

hiss----

Behind the curtain, in the spring sunshine, Xiaoxue, in a fit of embarrassment and anger, pinched the soft flesh around her waist hard.

It's all your fault, you idiot! It's all your fault!!

Springtime begged for mercy with a mournful face.

Hey, hey, hey! It's all my fault, Xiaoxue, you're the most innocent. It's all my fault, okay?

……

"Didn't they say they'd be back for dinner together tonight?"

Junko looked around the living room, but although she found nothing, a childlike smile still lingered on her lips.

"Or are they doing something shameful behind my back, somewhere I don't know but very close to me?"

In an instant, she leaped into the bathroom.

"Here?!"

Then she skipped and hopped into the bedroom.

"Or perhaps here?"

"..."

"Hehehe, it seems like none of them are here. It seems like I really am going to give up."

Junko scratched the back of her head shyly, and in the process, the delicate cell phone fell out of her pocket.

She hurriedly picked up her phone from the floor and accidentally touched the menu button. The glowing screen first flashed a photo of her with a childhood spring day, and then, as her fingertip accidentally touched a button, it jumped to a photo of Junko with a handsome young man.

In the photo, Junko is standing close to the somewhat aloof young man, with a cherry blossom tree behind them. However, at the moment the photo was taken, the seemingly aloof young man revealed a smile as cold as an iceberg.

Unconsciously, Junko, looking at the photo, suddenly stopped her silly grin and instead smiled like the young man in the photo.

As if she had forgotten to search for the whereabouts of spring and light snow, she sat cross-legged on the floor, gazing at the photos on her phone.

Junko stared blankly as she touched the photos of herself, the young man, and the spring day from her childhood.

In the quiet living room,

After a long while, Junko's voice, which was usually a bit silly in Haruhi's ears, inexplicably revealed a faint sadness.

“Hey, Yan’an, our son has grown up completely. Before we knew it, he didn’t need us to worry about him as much as we used to.”

The woman touched her long, curly hair that covered half of her face, murmuring softly.

"Although this day was bound to come sooner or later, it's come much earlier than I expected."

"Ever since I left the Shinomiya family with Haru, my only reason for living in this world has been to raise him to adulthood. While thinking only of that, I unintentionally hurt that child. And now, when I come to my senses, I'm almost a forty-year-old old lady! Hehe, even though I'm so old, I'm still the beautiful girl who once captivated countless young men!!"

"However, even as we get older, many things cannot be changed because of our age."

"Did you set a good example as Xiaoqing's mother? In order to prevent Xiaoqing from becoming disillusioned with life at that time, you deliberately drank and smoked in front of her, and made a scene and went out to play wildly."

"Later, Yukino and Shizuka really helped us a lot. It was the two of them who gave Haru the motivation to truly live."

"Especially Xiaoxue, the moment we first saw her, we knew why Xiaoqing wore those silly glasses and why she changed herself. Even we couldn't help but be moved."

"However……"

She continued to stroke those few curly strands of long hair, but her chuckle seemed somewhat forced.

"Without realizing it, they abandoned us and disappeared. Just thinking about it makes me feel a little lonely. When I turned around, I was all alone."

“Leaving Junko behind is absolutely unacceptable! Haru needs to be well, Yukino-chan needs to be well, Junko needs to be well, and as for you, Karian… well, that’s it.”

Haruhi, hiding behind the curtain: "..."

"Hey, so Yan'an, if you're watching from heaven, you must support Junko, Haru, and the other two being together forever!!!"

"The lost time is over!!!! Amen!!"

With her hands clasped together, Junko's carefree voice rang out again.

Hey, Junko, play is play, joke is joke,

The tears that my mother had almost brought me to in the spring were forced back down again.

But our cheapskate father isn't dead yet!!!

Chapter Seven: Junko's Love

"If, in a certain year and month, you were given a second chance to do something you regretted, how would you seize that opportunity?"

……

"I don't know what your answers are, but right now I want to become the student council president of our Zongwu High School. It's not for honor or so-called power. I just want to put a final period to my regrettable high school life."

In the end, Chunri silently lowered her head.

"Please, this is not an order, it is my request."

"And it's a request that we absolutely do not want you to refuse."

In the classroom, Chunri uttered these last words under everyone's gaze.

……

"Are you satisfied with this speech, senior?"

Before school ended, Haruhi called out to Shiromaru-senpai, who was about to return to the student council.

"It's a secret."

Shiromaru-senpai still had a gentle smile on her face. She shook her head and didn't tell Haruhi the result.

"However, I think I can understand why Hiratsuka-sensei and Haruno-senpai treat you differently now."

Before parting, Senior Shiro said these words.

……