I am only one world away from Yukinoshita.

Kiyoshiro was momentarily speechless. She couldn't quite understand the meaning behind Yukinoshita's words. Did she think it was true, or was it just a sarcastic remark about Kiyoshiro's self-delusion?

she does not know.

So Kiyoyori could only vaguely reply, "I don't know..."

This answer elicited laughter from the other person again. Just as Kiyori turned around to ask for clarification, Yukinoshita said with a slight smile:

Goodnight, Tachibana-san.

Kiyoshi could only see half of the black back of his head peeking out from under the towering blankets, while his long, flowing hair cascaded over the other side of the pillow. Kiyoshi could almost smell the shampoo on his hair.

"Goodnight, senior..."

P.S.: We slept together! That's practically...!

Yesterday, I was chatting with some friends in the group about my next book. Would you guys like dark stories?

Chapter 26, Section 248: On the Self-Cultivation of a Drama Queen

That night, Kiyoshi successfully failed to sleep well.

It's not that the two of them were particularly bad sleepers. In fact, neither Kiyori nor Yukinoshita crossed any lines. The blankets that were meant to separate them were still lying between them exactly as they were when they woke up in the morning. Kiyori, on the other hand, was so bad that if she moved even slightly, she would fall off the bed.

Yukino went to bed early. Kiyotori heard her steady breathing almost immediately after the two finished their conversation, but she still didn't dare to turn over rashly. She even subconsciously softened her breathing and dared not make a sound. Kiyotori, who was already on edge, would be woken up every time Yukino unconsciously turned over. By the time she finally drifted off to sleep, it was already dawn.

Ugh, so sleepy...

Kiyoshi propped her head up with her hands, trying her best to keep her drooping eyelids from falling. She desperately raised her eyebrows, but in the end, she almost ended up with a comical image of her eyebrows raised and her eyes half-closed.

The teacher's voice seemed as distant as a mountain, and I could barely make out what he was saying.

Like a chick pecking at rice, Kiyotaka's head bobbed involuntarily, but each bout of wakefulness lasted only a short time before being overwhelmed by drowsiness. Kiyotaka unconsciously increased his small movements, but could not dispel the drowsiness. His mind felt as if it had been filled with glue, and even the words on the notebook became blurry. His fingers gripped the pen weakly, drawing a winding and feeble black line on the blank notebook.

"Snapped!"

A paper stick made from a rolled-up book struck Qinglai hard on the head, the crisp sound drawing the attention of all the students in the classroom.

"Tachibana."

A familiar voice rang in his ears, and following the white coat, Qinglai saw the face of the person holding the paper stick.

"I'm so sorry, Hiratsuka-sensei..."

The slightly hoarse voice, which couldn't hide her exhaustion, softened Hiratsuka Shizuka's heart. She raised the paper stick and tapped Kiyori on the head twice, not too hard, not too soft. "Come to my office after class."

Unable to think, Kiyori nodded blankly, and Hiratsuka Shizuka returned to the podium.

Having finally endured until the familiar school bell rang, Kiyoyori had just rested his head on his desk when he heard a call from hell—no, from Hiratsuka Shizuka—"Tachibana!"

Kiyoyori propped himself up with his hands and sighed heavily, "Yes..."

office

"Tell me, what happened?"

With an unyielding force, Hiratsuka Shizuka pressed Kiyori into the soft sofa chair, then sat opposite him, gently stroking the sofa with her hand.

As soon as her body sank into the soft sofa, an overwhelming drowsiness surged up. Kiyoyori licked her lips and forced herself to stay awake to answer Hiratsuka Shizuka's question.

"I just didn't sleep well last night."

It's that simple.

"I'm asking why you didn't sleep well?"

Hiratsuka Shizuka was always worried that this seemingly mature child would put too much pressure on her.

Perhaps we shouldn't have let Tachibana visit Yukinoshita yesterday.

Chiang Lai: "..."

You can't exactly say that you had insomnia because Yukinoshita-senpai was sleeping right next to you, and you were too excited to sleep because you were afraid of disturbing her.

Kiyoshi didn't know how to answer that question.

The drowsiness had mostly disappeared, replaced by a familiar feeling of guilt.

Why do I feel so guilty when I haven't done anything?

Kiyoshi secretly pinched his earlobe with his fingernail, and the pain relieved some of his fatigue.

“There are all sorts of reasons for insomnia, Hiratsuka-sensei.”

"Is it because I sent you to visit Yukinoshita yesterday?"

Hiratsuka Shizuka subconsciously reached for the cigarettes in her pocket, but then quickly took her hand out and rubbed her thigh instead.

“Even if Hiratsuka-sensei doesn’t ask me, I will still go.”

Perhaps it was the throbbing in his head that made Kiyoyori blurt out the plan involuntarily, while Hiratsuka Shizuka simply raised an eyebrow in silence.

Kiyoyori seemed unaware of what he had said, only belatedly trying to salvage the situation a moment later, saying, "If Hiratsuka-sensei had told Hikigaya-senpai or Yuigahama-senpai first, they would have told me too."

Hiratsuka Shizuka nodded, acknowledging this statement.

"So why didn't you sleep well?"

There's no escaping it anyway.

However, considering the familiarity between Hiratsuka Shizuka and Yukinoshita Haruno, Kiyoyori could not possibly tell them the truth.

“I was asked by Yuigahama-senpai to help Yukinoshita-senpai,” Kiyoyori answered, racking his brains and mixing truth with falsehood. “I originally thought it was a request Yukinoshita-senpai accepted in her personal capacity, and it wasn’t appropriate to interfere, but…”

Kiyori perfectly portrayed the guilt of wanting to say something but holding back, and even Hiratsuka Shizuka couldn't help but fall into the trap Kiyori had set.

"You didn't stay up all night yesterday helping Yukinoshita with her documents, did you?"

Kiyoyori pretended to avoid Hiratsuka Shizuka's gaze, looking guilty as if he had been caught out, but in reality, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"It wouldn't really be called staying up all night..."

Kiyoyori didn't stay up all night, and he did help process the documents; he wasn't lying, he was just guiding Hiratsuka Shizuka's thinking.

Qinglai tried to convince himself, like someone burying their head in the sand.

A heavy sigh came from the other end of the line. "Although the teacher hopes you can get closer to others, there are no specific requirements for you to go to that extent."

"This is not a mission. No matter who tells you that, you are not responsible for anything."

“It’s not about taking responsibility,” Kiyoyori raised his head and looked at Hiratsuka Shizuka with a very serious expression, without any sleepiness or evasion. “Like Yukinoshita-senpai, this is just my own will.”

I want to help her.

Perhaps this statement is somewhat arrogant, but it is nonetheless Kiyoyori's true feeling at this moment.

"Is that so..."

Hiratsuka Shizuka interlaced her fingers, her right thumb gently tapping the knuckle of her left thumb, as if she were deep in thought.

"In that case, you should attend the meeting this afternoon as well."

"Huh?"

Kiyoshi blinked, puzzled. "I'm not a member of the committee, so it wouldn't be appropriate for me to attend such a meeting, would it?"

“That’s right, as a non-committee member, you really have no reason to show up,” Hiratsuka Shizuka said, taking out a cigarette and putting it between her lips without lighting it. “However, you are also a member of the Service Club, and you appeared there as a member of the Service Club who was asked to help Yukinoshita.”

"As an advisor to the Department of Service and the teacher in charge of this cultural festival, I still have this authority."

Kiyoshi opened her mouth, a habitual refusal welling up to her lips, but she swallowed it back in the end.

Words spoken are like water spilled; no matter how much you regret them, you can't take them back.

And she did not regret it.

"I understand."

P.S.: Updates may be late or nonexistent for the next three days. The department is indeed very busy, with a lot of surgeries scheduled for these three days. I may have to work overtime. However, I'll make up for the missed updates before my surgery. The surgery date is confirmed for the 22nd of this month. So, I will try my best!

Chapter 27, Section 249: Is Yukinoshita-kun Soft?

At noon, Asuka came to ask Kiyoyori to have lunch together.

The two sat in a pavilion not far from the teaching building. There was no glaring sunlight or noisy voices. Occasionally, people in sportswear would pass by, bringing a cool breeze. The fragrance of some kind of flower mixed with the aroma of the bento box and was carried away by the wind.

Sitting on the rather uncomfortable stone bench, Kiyotaka opened the cloth bag, revealing the bento box inside.

Asuka was a step slower than Kiyori because she was quietly observing him.

The plain-colored cloth was no different from before, and the equally plain, unpatterned bento box inside was no different from the bento boxes Kiyoyori had used in previous years. Asuka knew this, of course. Even the chopsticks were the same style, but with different patterns. They each had one, which was somewhat like a couple's set. However, at that time, Kiyoyori called it the "United Front Set," though no one knew what they were fighting against.

Thinking of this, Asuka couldn't help but smile.

What are you secretly laughing at all by yourself?

Kiyoshi clasped his hands together, turned his head, and looked at Asuka with a puzzled expression.

"Hmm~" Asuka deliberately picked up the chopsticks and gestured in the air, "It just reminded me of when Kiyori chose these two pairs of chopsticks..."

"Ah—!" Kiyoshi interrupted Asuka's deliberately drawn-out words with a shy voice, "You always talk about things from the past."

The scary thing about childhood sweethearts is that they know all your dark history, including those cringeworthy lines you desperately want to forget.

Kiyoshi opened the bento box, muttering to himself, revealing a neatly arranged and exquisitely presented bento.

Her movements paused.

"Huh~?"

Asuka leaned closer, and Kiyoshi instinctively tried to cover the bento box, but thankfully he didn't do anything like that.

"Is Kiyoyori free this morning?"

"Hmm...it's alright."

Pretending to be nonchalant, I picked up a piece of potato with my chopsticks and put it in my mouth. The soft and glutinous texture burst in my mouth, tender yet chewy.