Chapter 547: It’s Our Child

Chapter 547: It’s Our Child

“Aah, class is about to start!”

Yuigahama looked at her watch, seeming restless.

The company of three people she was used to every day now felt endlessly uncomfortable.

It felt like she was the extra one…

After learning that the other two really were dating, this frustrating feeling was hard to avoid.

Yukinoshita Yukino sighed, shooting Himekoji a sideways glance. “You can get up now.”

“O-okay!”

Himekoji definitely didn’t like sitting seiza style, but he was relieved nonetheless. When he stood up, he subtly rubbed his numb knees.

“Eh?”

Yuigahama’s “fool senses” were weirdly sharp when she didn’t need them to be. She looked at Himekoji strangely, then at Yukinoshita’s stiff, expressionless face.

Wait… why didn’t they seem like lovers at all? Instead, there was this tense atmosphere.

Was it because she suddenly barged in? Had things… not gone well?

As soon as she thought that, that extremely absurd image slammed back into Yuigahama’s mind.

Yukino-chan…

Why? How… how did she end up doing that with Akito?

If she hadn’t seen it with her own eyes, she wouldn’t have believed it!

She thought someone like Yukinoshita was more conservative and reserved, the type who might even wait until her wedding night… that wouldn’t be surprising at all.

No, actually, that fit her image of Yukinoshita perfectly!

That Himekoji could accept someone and date them properly also surprised Yuigahama.

Ah, she really wished she was the one dating Yukino-chan…

No, no! Shouldn’t she want to date Akito?

Yukino-chan… Akito… Yukino-chan… Akito…

Oh no! She kind of wanted to date both of them!

At times like this, she felt she was closer to understanding her own heart. Or maybe… she was just more confused.

The complicated look on Yuigahama’s face went unnoticed by Himekoji. However, Yukinoshita seemed to have picked up on something. She shook her head, smiling with a mix of relief and shyness, and looked at Yuigahama. “I feel relieved. I actually gave it serious thought before… wondering, Yui, if you were… well, in love with me.”

“Eh?! Yukino-chan?!” Yuigahama jumped, looking totally like her secret had been discovered. She thought for a second, then looked down, laughing a bit childishly. “But Yukino-chan, you should be more wary then, not relieved!”

Yuigahama secretly glanced at the equally startled Himekoji. Then, her gaze became open. When her eyes met Yukinoshita’s, she didn’t look away. For a moment, the two of them burst into a simultaneous “Pfft!”

This a very female-female atmosphere made Himekoji feel strangely excluded, like the odd one outside.

Why did he feel like the third wheel?!

“I’m sorry!”

He instinctively apologized to Yuigahama.

“Eh? Why are you saying sorry?” Yuigahama asked, puzzled.

“I sort of feel like I stole Yukinoshita away. I feel bad…”

“What? Akito really is a fool! Pfft! Haha!”

As if she’d heard the funniest joke, Yuigahama laughed so hard she bent over, tears streaming down her face. She wiped her eyes, taking a while to catch her breath. She looked at Himekoji and wrinkled her nose cutely, sounding both charming and a little mischievous,

“Besides, even if Akito and Yukino-chan are dating, Yukino-chan isn’t Akito’s possession!”

“Ahh, that’s not what I meant. I do understand that much.”

Himekoji’s face flushed, embarrassed by his careless words.

The class bell rang right then. Yukinoshita shot Himekoji a look that clearly said, ‘We’ll settle this after school.’ The three of them left the nurse’s office together.

The bloody bedsheet had been taken away by Yukinoshita. Yuigahama looked noticeably worried, glancing at it repeatedly.

Thinking about her two “favourite people” doing it for the first time… in the nurse’s office… she felt both a bit impressed and strangely captivated.

She thought to herself—

Ah! Love really makes people crazy, huh.

…

Although the mishap at lunch was temporarily resolved thanks to Yuigahama’s sudden arrival, Himekoji knew it was only a temporary fix.

After school, Yukinoshita met Himekoji at an off-campus coffee shop.

Himekoji sat nervously, posture stiff and straight. Yukinoshita sat elegantly across from him.

How should he explain? Himekoji had no idea. He was restless and uneasy.

“We… should we try sleeping together again?”

He tentatively suggested.

That immediately earned him a cold glare from Yukinoshita.

“N-no! I just wanted to prove it’s true… the whole dream thing…” Terrified of being misunderstood, Himekoji panicked, scratching his head, sweating bullets.

Yukinoshita looked at him, then down at her coffee. After a long pause, she sighed half in resignation. “Alright. I believe you.”

“Whaat?!”

He thought the process would be much tougher and more complicated, never expecting Yukinoshita to suddenly give in. Overjoyed, and losing his composure again in his excitement, Himekoji impulsively reached across the table and grabbed her hand.

“I didn’t say you could hold it, did I?”

Yukinoshita looked like dealing with him gave her a headache.

“S-sorry.”

Just as Himekoji was about to pull his hand back, Yukinoshita flipped her palm around and grasped his hand back instead. She kept her head down, staring at her coffee without looking at him. She spoke in a tone that sounded deliberately casual, as if she was pretending to be unconcerned. “If you pull back your hand now… it would be fine. But then… never attempt to hold it again.”

“Eh?”

Himekoji froze for a moment, finally grasping Yukinoshita’s meaning.

‘I want to hold your hand.’ That seemed to be what she meant, unless he was mistaken.

Such a simple sentiment, twisted into something so roundabout…

Truly Yukinoshita’s style – imperious, yet somehow cute.

His anxious heart suddenly calmed. He placed his other hand over hers, sandwiching her cool, soft palm tightly between his own hands.

“Then let’s hold hands for the rest of our lives! For me, Yukinoshita… You’re someone I can’t let go of easily anymore.”

Yukinoshita’s cheeks visibly flushed pink. She coughed lightly, trying to hide her embarrassment.

“I… don’t dislike this feeling.”

That meant she liked it.

Himekoji decided to interpret her words as Yukinoshita’s indirect confession. Just that alone made his heart leap wildly with joy.

“I… don’t dislike this Yukinoshita either.”

Himekoji tried speaking in Yukinoshita’s roundabout style.

That earned him another glare.

“You need to say you like me.”

“Yes, I like you, Yukinoshita.”

“And Yuigahama.”

“Yes, I like Yuiga— Eh?!”

He started replying automatically, but midway through, realized things weren’t right.

It was too late!

Yukinoshita pulled her hand straight out of his grasp. Her face expressionless, she methodically stirred her coffee a couple of times. The spoon clinked against the cup with a crisp sound.

“Alright, let’s talk about my child now.”

“…Our child.”

Himekoji weakly corrected her.

“Pervert-kun, when I’m speaking… don’t interrupt.”

“Yes, yes. Sorry.”

“Hey, your attitude has gotten weird, hasn’t it? You weren’t like this before. Where did your confrontational self go? Are you really that afraid of me now?”

Although she said that, she didn’t seem genuinely angry at all. In fact, she seemed slightly pleased, thinking it was part of Himekoji’s affection, proof that he liked her.

“Yes, I am genuinely quite afraid of you right now, Yukinoshita.”

But when Himekoji said this, utterly clueless about the vibe, Yukinoshita got a little unhappy again. No girl likes to be told she’s scary.

“Hah? Why?”

She would decide how to treat Himekoji today, and maybe forever, based on his answer.

“Don’t laugh… actually… this person…” He covered his face, looking deeply ashamed, but answered seriously. “I guess I’m a bit… scared of my wife…”

…

…