I am only one world away from Yukinoshita.

"I'll apply the medicine when we get back," Asuka said without turning her head, putting a bottle of wound medicine and disinfectant into her bag. "It won't look good if it leaves a scar."

"It's just a minor injury, it didn't hurt my finger, it's nothing serious."

Asuka then turned around and glared at Kiyori again, before picking up her bag and putting her arm around Kiyori's waist to support him.

"go home."

Kiyoyori first looked at Asuka's profile in surprise, then gave a complicated smile.

"Okay, let's go home."

Chapter 41 If we could still be like we were in childhood

"I am back."

Upon entering her own home, Kiyotaka quickly removed Asuka's hand from her body, pretending that nothing had happened. Asuka merely gave her a reproachful look.

"Sorry to bother you."

"Hmm, Kiyoyori, you're home? Why did you take so long?" Touko peeked into the entryway and was surprised to see Asuka. "Asuka? Did you bring Kiyoyori back? Would you like to come in and sit down?"

Yuanzi wiped the water off her hands and walked towards the entrance.

"Aunt Yuanzi."

Asuka and Kiyori panicked when they saw Touko approaching. Kiyori tried to hide his hand behind his back, but then pulled at the wound on his shoulder, making a funny face. Asuka also lowered her head unnaturally, trying to hide her profile with her hair.

What's going on between you two?

Upon closer inspection, it became clear that both children at the entrance were in a disheveled state. Asuka was somewhat better off, though her hair was very messy and she looked nothing like her usual self. Kiyoyori, on the other hand, looked as if he had rolled around in the bushes by the roadside; his once white T-shirt had turned grayish-white, and Toko, with her keen eyesight, could even see specks of blood on it.

"Ching Lai."

Touko looked at Kiyori seriously, her sharp gaze making Kiyori swallow hard.

"Uh……"

Under her mother's gaze, Qinglai had almost nowhere to hide. She avoided eye contact, her mind racing.

No matter how eloquent she was in front of others, once she was in front of her own mother, her barren brain couldn't even come up with a seemingly plausible reason.

"Um... just now, I tripped and fell..."

Seemingly afraid her mother wouldn't believe her, Kiyoyori raised her scraped hand. She didn't dare tell Touko that she and Asuka had been beaten by Aunt Aso, but as soon as she said it, Kiyoyori regretted it.

Her scraped hands can be explained, but what about Asuka's face?

Can anyone fall to the ground and get their face smashed like this?

Touko immediately saw through Kiyoshi's clumsy lie and was about to press him for more information.

“Auntie,” Asuka looked up, revealing her face without any attempt to hide it, “is my mother…”

Surprise and anger flashed across Touko's eyes, finally settling on heartache. She had watched Asuka grow up and had long regarded her as her own daughter, but after all, they were not family.

"Sigh..." He sighed inwardly.

Touko glanced at the dejected Kiyora and the backpack on Asuka's shoulder. "Alright, come in quickly, Auntie will get you an ice pack. Asuka, have you had dinner yet?"

"I've already eaten, Auntie."

Asuka nodded obediently, then took Kiyori's hand and walked into the hall.

"Hey! Kid, you're home?"

Carol, wearing an apron, peeked out from the semi-open kitchen and unexpectedly saw Asuka, only to be gently patted on the shoulder by his wife, which was not unexpected.

"Here, an ice pack," Touko wrapped a plastic bag filled with ice in a dry towel, walked up to Asuka, lifted her hair, and gently pressed it onto the red and swollen area. "Don't press too hard, take it off for a while if it gets too cold."

"Okay, thank you, Auntie."

"Why are you being so polite with your auntie, child?"

Yuanzi went back to the kitchen to get the medical kit.

"Why don't we let the two little ones take a bath first?" Carol said while chopping vegetables. She immediately noticed the wounds on Qinglai's arms and her disheveled appearance. "Anyway, we still have a while before dinner."

Yuanzi paused for a moment, then said, "Alright."

Not long after, Kiyoyori and Asuka were stuffed into the steamy bathroom by Touko.

"Let me wash it for you."

Asuka took off her clothes first and threw them into the laundry basket next to her. Then she turned around and helped Kiyoshi take off his clothes. Kiyoshi struggled to lift his injured arm and then, with Asuka's help, managed to take off his short-sleeved shirt.

Because Asuka forbade his hands from touching water, Kiyoyori could only maintain the awkward posture of lying on the edge of the bathtub with his hands hanging outside. Asuka placed her ice pack on Kiyoyori's shoulders and back, while she took a shower. She turned her back to Kiyoyori, tilted her head slightly, and accepted the warm water flowing over her cheeks and body.

Kiyoshi stared listlessly at Asuka's smooth back, the rising steam obscuring her view slightly.

It feels like ages since I last took a bath with Asuka...

Kiyotomi recalled the incident of applying medicine to Asuka in Yukinoshita's Records. Just a week ago, through the mist, she could almost see the bruises on Asuka's back that hadn't fully healed.

Kiyoshi raised his hand, seemingly wanting to touch Asuka in front of him, but even though she was so close, he couldn't even touch the ends of her hair.

When will you turn around and look at me?

Kiyoshi let his arms hang limply, resting his chin on the edge of the bathtub, looking at the water with bubbles floating on the floor.

The ice pack was moved aside, and warm water was splashed on his back, thoughtfully avoiding the bruises. Asuka knelt behind Kiyori, her fingertips gently touching the red and swollen area. Although the box of chestnut buns provided some protection, the broom handle still left a shallow mark on Kiyori's back.

"sorry."

Asuka held the ice pack firmly to the bruise.

"What does Asuka have to apologize for?"

Kiyoshi turned his head with difficulty and saw Asuka with her eyes downcast. Despite being taller than him, she was huddled up behind him.

"Don't be so reserved. I have everything you have. Besides, I've already seen everything." Kiyotaka teased Asuka deliberately. "Mom even bought a double bathtub. I didn't know those two were so romantic..."

Although Kiyoshi's intention was simply to make Asuka feel more relaxed, for some reason, after saying those words, both of them inexplicably felt uncomfortable.

Qinglai awkwardly turned his head back to stare at the door, and heard the sound of splashing water behind him.

She wanted to ask Asuka about what had just happened, but she knew she wouldn't get an answer; Asuka was always like that…

"Hmm, let me see if little Qinglai has grown up over the years~."

After a moment of silence, Asuka's teasing tone, as always, rang out behind Kiyori.

Kiyoshi, dragging his disheveled body, dodged Asuka's attack, saying, "Don't take advantage of me!"

"Don't be shy~, you can touch my too, no problem."

"Who wants to touch it!"

The two then started making a ruckus in the bathtub. Asuka pretended to try to catch Kiyori, who was hiding in the water, while Kiyori, who couldn't touch the water with his hands, simply picked up the showerhead and sprayed water at Asuka.

"watch out!"

"Where do you think you're going!"

"Hahaha!"

Although Asuka made teasing remarks about Kiyori, she didn't actually touch Kiyori's body except for helping her with necessary cleaning, and Kiyori was fully aware of this and cooperated with Asuka.

They need to relax, especially after leaving such a stressful environment.

"Kiyoshi, Asuka, dinner's ready! Are you done washing up?" Touko knocked on the door, but the sounds of playful laughter and frolicking inside completely drowned out her call. "How old are you, still playing in the water?!"

The two stopped playing around immediately, and their laughter seemed to be paused, like two elementary school students caught playing a prank by their teacher, scrambling out of the bathtub.

As soon as Kiyoyori stepped out of the bathroom, Touko grabbed him and gave him a lecture. Then she took a new ice pack and applied it to Asuka's face. Both of them had rosy cheeks, much better than when they came in.

Kiyoshi and Asuka followed Touko downstairs, and as soon as they got close to the living room, they smelled the rich aroma of grilled chicken wings.

"Alright, let's eat!"

Chapter 42 Liz and the Bluebird

"I'm starting to eat."

Even simple movements became extremely difficult at this moment. Qinglai struggled to lift her right hand and place it on the table. Her scraped arm stung with pain whenever it touched the table. She had to hold on as long as it didn't pull on her shoulder, but the strained muscles immediately protested.

Qinglai used chopsticks to pick up the boneless and chopped chicken wings, but he could barely lift his hand.

Carol watched Kiyoshi's movements intently, seemingly waiting for her evaluation, but Kiyoshi picked up the chicken with a rather hesitant air.

"Won't Qinglai eat?"

Carroll acted as if he hadn't noticed Kiyoshi's awkward movements.

"Mom, don't look at me like that, I can't eat."

Kiyoshi put down the chicken, picked up the miso soup with his left hand, and took a sip to hide his unease.

No one touched their chopsticks. The other three people at the table were watching Qinglai's every move, which made her feel extremely uneasy. "Everyone, aren't you going to eat...?"

The original plan to start eating when no one was paying attention was thus ruined.

"I just want to see how you eat?"

Carroll said with a smile.

Sitting next to Carol, Touko sighed helplessly, "Are your arm muscles injured too? Let Mom feed you."

Kiyoshi blushed and shook his head, "I can do it myself."

She picked up the chicken with chopsticks, ignoring the pain from the cut, and then lowered her head to feed herself the rice and vegetables in a very awkward and unseemly manner.

Asuka, unable to bear it any longer, snatched Kiyoshi's bowl and chopsticks away. If Kiyoshi hadn't taken those blows for her, she wouldn't have been injured. "Let me feed you. You two aunties, please eat your dinner too. I've already had dinner."

"I'm not a child anymore."

Qinglai looked uncomfortably at the chopsticks near his mouth, tilted his head back, and refused to eat no matter what was said.

"Asuka, don't worry about her," Touko said, picking up her bowl. "If she's happy to eat, let her eat by herself."

Qinglai raised his eyebrows smugly.

"Mom wasn't praising you."

"I'll help you ask the club for leave. Don't participate in training during this time." Touko's words were like a royal decree in the Tachibana family. Kiyori opened his mouth unwillingly, but in the end, he couldn't say anything.