With the time allowance that remained before I leave again with Yua, I made use of it to catch up with anything that I missed or they held back on telling me through our messages.

I mean, some things just couldnt be conveyed through texts. And with different unique experiences day after day, things just kept on piling up.

Sweetie Minutes later, Yae fell over as she switched places with Akane on my lap. Shes a little drained of energy after dumping everything thats troubling her mind.

As her diligent boyfriend, I caught her and started comforting her.

She updated me on her brothers situation. With her parents giving up on him, he was being sent away. But at least, theyre not just going to throw him out of their house. Apparently, hes going to another prefecture to wait for another year and enroll in one of the universities there. In the meantime, he was supposed to provide for himself by taking part-time jobs.

That should be fine but with him leaving, theres no chance for him to redeem himself anymore. It would be like accepting the accusations that got him expelled.

Though I planned to meet and talk to him, thats probably not going to happen as well.

As to how that would affect Yae she mentioned how her parents gave her a stricter curfew. At least, until the situation calmed down. Apparently, because of that incident, theyre under scrutiny both by their neighbors and those from the same college. Not that theyd been branded as a menace but they couldnt help but see fingers pointed at them anywhere they went.

It was causing her parents a great deal of stress and Yae was catching it from them.

Alright. Is it possible to have you stay here instead? Will they even accept it?

Uh I dont know.

Well, I was thinking of introducing myself to them and asking them to let her live with me for a while. But that would surely be rejected. I mean, it would just create more problems for them. And I doubt they would allow her to live with a guy, especially her boyfriend.

We could also use the trump card of fronting Akane as an excuse again. However, I had no idea if it would be accepted.

In the following minutes, Yae and I along with Akane and Haruko started brainstorming what to do about it.

And using that as a chance, I also probed Haruko about her situation at their house. As expected, it was still the same. Either she didnt want to worry about her or there was really nothing that could be done about it.

In the end, Akane gathered everyone in the house and we talked about it over lunch.

Solutions were presented but we failed to reach a conclusive solution. Due to that, I told them that well continue this later after we return.

At exactly 11 oclock, only a few minutes after we finished eating, Yua and I left the house with a huge sendoff by my girls.

Except for Chii and Hifumi, all of them mentioned about holding the fort if ever Hana showed up. But in consideration of the two, theyd let them answer the door for her.

Anyway, on our way to the station, I sent a message to that girl earlier, asking her why she didnt tell me that she was visiting yesterday.

She replied right away with an expected answer. Oh. I wanted to surprise you. Unfortunately, youre not there. Akane is very lucky. She can live with you in the same house and sleep in the same bed. How will she react if I take her place?

Thats very cheeky of her, right?

When I asked her if she was going to visit again today, the girl kept the same attitude.

It wont be a surprise if I tell you, Ruki. Though, its a different story if youll admit defeat. Ill run to you right away with all my luggage. Youre the only reason I return to this city. Remember that.

Yep. She seemed to have gotten some confidence since I kept on messaging her. In any case, thats fine. Like she said, it wont be fun if one of us folded right away. Id let her get away with that for now

And yep, if thats her end game, Ill be bringing her home with me once she admits her defeat in this little challenge she raised.

Look at your smile, Ruki. Theres no denying now that you still love her. Should I be jealous?

As I put my phone away after arriving at the station, Yua commented. The way she said it sounded like she was teasing me but at the same time, probing about what I truly felt for Hana.

Yeah. I probably cant deny that by now. But theres no reason for you to be jealous. If she remained adamant about what she wanted to happen, what I feel for her will just be a burden to all of you so I will definitely draw the line there. Anyway, since she wanted to play like this, Im eager to give her a taste of defeat.

Now thats a sinister smile you got there. Im glad I dropped the similar idea of having you all to myself.

Is it? In any case, Im all yours today, you know? Have you prepared yourself for the photoshoot? Changing the subject here, I asked the girl.

She mightve covered it up by joking like that but I already noticed her being a little giddy. Possibly, theres still fear lingering in her mind regarding what happened in the past.

As we made our way to the platform, I held her hand, an attempt to calm her down and also just my way to reassure her that I would never leave her side today.

Uhm, actually, Im having second thoughts. Will I still be able to do it?

Of course, you can. But theres no need to push yourself. Im sure your mother will understand if you ever decide to back out. If it comes down to it, we can just head back.

However, seeing the conviction in her eyes, I already expected her to reject that idea. The same as Yue, she loves that industry just as much as she loves me. And as her boyfriend, Ill keep on supporting her career and not become a hindrance to it.

Fifteen minutes later, our train arrived at our destination and as soon as we stepped outside, her mother was already waiting for us in her car.