I am only one world away from Yukinoshita.

Page 277

"We already have a lot of dishes, so it's okay if we don't cook the rest, right?"

Ask indirectly.

The New Year is just around the corner, and both Asuka's work at the law firm and Kaori's work at the hospital are very demanding. Moreover, due to the hospital's shift system, Asuka hasn't had dinner with Kaori for almost a week. Either she's working overtime or Kaori is working overtime, and the two of them are just like when they were sharing an apartment in their freshman year of college.

“That won’t do,” Kaori refused without hesitation. “Haruka will be coming over in a bit, and today’s meal is for three people.”

Upon discovering that the necessary ingredients were placed by the sink at the other end of the kitchen, Kaori unhesitatingly tossed aside Asuka, who was dressed as a sloth, and continued her work, which had just been interrupted.

The neglected Asuka stood aside, watching Kaori's busy figure with a smile. Not angry, she took a beer from the refrigerator and left the kitchen without hesitation.

Kaori's voice, which wasn't exactly gentle, came from behind, "Drink less!"

Asuka responded casually, walked to the living room, turned on the TV, and aimlessly flipped through channels.

She never liked TV dramas that lacked substance. Asuka couldn't muster any interest as she watched familiar faces of celebrities flash by on TV, faces she couldn't quite place.

Until the screen flashed a broadcast of a concert.

Asuka's hand, which was resting on the remote control buttons, suddenly paused.

"Oh, this is a broadcast of this year's national tournament," a head suddenly leaned in beside me. "I heard that Soubu High School performed quite well this year."

The sounds from the kitchen didn't stop, so it was clear that it wasn't Kaori who came over.

"Why does Haruka have a key to our house?"

Asuka pretended to be angry and slapped her thigh, while Haruka nonchalantly took off her scarf and coat and hung them on the rack that originally only had couple coats.

It's very eye-catching.

"I ran into Kaori during the day today. She said she might not hear me knocking while she's cooking tonight, and Asuka might be home late again, so she gave me the spare key." Haruka said before going into the kitchen and greeting Kaori.

Asuka, unusually speechless, took a swig of beer and turned her gaze back to the television.

The wind instruments, emanating from an expensive amplifier, reached her ears but sounded somewhat unreal.

Speaking of which, lately I seem to see Kaori managing her alternate account quite often.

Although she never ignored it in her daily life.

Asuka turned her gaze to her lover and best friend, who were chatting in the kitchen.

He sighed inwardly and silently took another sip of wine.

P.S.: The bonus chapter is here! I'll fulfill all your expectations at once, so get ready.

Note: There are two ways to say "fragrance" in Japanese. One of them is pronounced the same as "Kaori," while the other, which is more accurately translated, is "scent."

Chapter 290 Extra - New Year's Day 2

"I'm starting to eat."

Asuka, sitting at the table, seemed a little absent-minded. She held her chopsticks as if hesitating about what to eat first, but in reality, she was lost in thought. Meanwhile, Kaori and Haruka were chatting about their high school days, and neither of them noticed Asuka's unusual behavior.

“Speaking of which,” Haruka sipped the hot soup, instantly feeling the chill dissipate, “do Kaori and Asuka plan to go back to Chiba for the New Year this year?”

She asked this because in the first two years after graduation, Asuka always found various excuses to stay in Tokyo, as if she were avoiding the raging flood of Chiba. It wasn't until Asuka and Aso's relationship improved that Kaori's parents found out about their relationship in recent years that she became a "wanderer" who had a home but could not go back.

Asuka paused in her eating, managing only to squeeze out a muffled response from her throat.

Kaori, standing beside him, replied without changing her expression, "We'll go back."

Her answer drew the attention of both of them.

"How come I haven't heard about this before?"

"That's great, let's go back together then."

Two completely different responses.

"Is Kaori not scheduled for work this year?" Asuka put down her chopsticks.

"I've already switched with my colleagues."

So that's why I was working overtime like crazy last week...?

Seeing the somewhat tense atmosphere, Haruka thought for a moment and decided to bring it up, after all, it was a task she received from Huang Qian.

“There’s nothing wrong with going back together, right?” Picking up a piece of tenderly boiled potato, the rich flavor overwhelmed her taste buds, and Haruka squinted her eyes in satisfaction. “It seems that the members of the brass band are also planning to get together this time,” she said, glancing casually at the expressions of the couple sitting opposite her. “Taki-sensei also seems to want us, as seniors, to guide the juniors in their practice.”

“Hey, hey,” Asuka said with a distressed expression that said, “I can’t stand it anymore.” “Let’s not even talk about Haruka. Neither Kaori nor I work in the music industry. Haruka knows how busy we are with our jobs, not to mention that we practice every day. We might not even be as good as our juniors now.”

The refusal was clearly evident.

Kaori's answer wasn't surprising. "I already knew about this from Reina. It's fine if it's just a get-together, but it's not really appropriate for people like us who have long since left the wind band to give guidance, is it?"

Unsurprisingly, she was rejected, and Haruka could only sigh inwardly.

Actually, she hadn't finished speaking. According to her juniors, they wanted to hear more about the performance by the members who created the "legend" of the Soubu High School Brass Band. Looking at her two close friends, whose expressions were somewhat lonely, she couldn't bring herself to speak.

"Exactly! Haruka may not be working with the band anymore, but she's still a well-known music director. She should be a little more understanding of us!"

Asuka playfully poked Haruka's hand with her chopsticks, easing the somewhat tense atmosphere.

To everyone's surprise, among the third-year students that year, only Haruka Ogasawara pursued a career in music. Neither the talented Asuka nor the equally capable Kaori chose this path. Meanwhile, the once-unremarkable club president, whose only redeeming quality among her juniors was "gentleness," has now become a well-known music producer in the anime industry, and her compositions can often be heard in anime broadcasts on television in the evenings.

"Then let's go back and get together with everyone," Haruka said, not dwelling on the topic any further. "Everyone misses you all, especially Yuko."

It is said that the child even formed a band at university, Haruka recalled some information she had heard from someone.

"Um……"

Kaori nodded and buried her face in the bowl.

"By the way," Sensing her lover's unusual mood, Asuka quickly changed the subject, "when is Haruka bringing her boyfriend to have dinner with us?"

Gossip topics always pique the interest of girls this age, and Kaori, who was feeling a little down just now, quietly perked up her ears.

"broke up."

Compared to the astonished expressions of her two friends, Haruka seemed completely unconcerned, her hands moving nonchalantly as if she were discussing something as trivial as losing her keys.

No, losing your key might cause you some regret for a while, and then you might have to painfully replace the lock on your apartment.

"Who are you! Give me back Haruka, the girl who cried for three days after breaking up with her boyfriend!"

Asuka jumped up from the stool and pointed at Haruka, who remained unmoved, with her chopsticks.

Asuka herself said that was 'in the past,' right?

Kaori, on the other side, was clearly surprised as well. "Would you mind telling us what happened?"

“There’s nothing to say,” Haruka said in a normal tone, without any extra sadness or reluctance. “He probably just feels that I haven’t paid enough attention to him.”

"Unbeknownst to me, Haruka has actually developed in the direction of a strong woman."

Asuka sat back down and shrugged as if sighing.

“I think this is good too,” Kaori smiled gently. Perhaps because she had started working, Haruka felt that the saintly aura emanating from Kaori was even more dazzling. “Haruka deserves people who respect her more.”

I was praised.

Haruka buried her face in the bowl shyly.

"Oh dear, could some people be shy?"

"Eat your food!"

He kicked the man with the strange smile hard under the table.

"Kaori~, Haruka is bullying me~!"

Without a second thought, Asuka turned to Kaori and started acting cute.

"Yes, yes, I'll compensate you with a piece of meat."

Kaori is clearly adept at dealing with Asuka's coquettishness.

"Got it!"

Asuka readily agreed and took a bite of the golden-fried hamburger patty with Kaori's chopsticks. The crisp chewing sound of the breadcrumbs in her mouth sounded like a tuneless note to Haruka's ears.

Watching the two interact so oblivious to everyone else, Haruka suddenly realized that her presence here today was a huge mistake.

Why did I accept Kaori's invitation on a whim? Couldn't I have just told Kaori about it later?

She was completely baffled.

I shouldn't be in the car; I should be under the car.

Haruka, who was almost ready to grind her teeth to pieces, turned her anger into appetite.

"Another bowl, please!"

"Haruka, you'll get fat if you eat so much."

"Asuka, shut up."

"You'll never find a boyfriend if you're this fierce~".

"If Asuka can find a girlfriend, there's no reason why I can't."

"That's outrageous! Kaori, did you hear that?!"

"Yes Yes."