The moment she unzipped her own tent, the smile on Hitori's face froze.
Nijika and Ikuyo were already awake, both staring straight at her.
"Ah… Ah, um, I-I just woke up and went to the bathroom!"
Feeling immensely guilty, Hitori's first instinct was to come up with a reason for why she hadn't been in the tent.
"I see. Was it cold outside?"
"Ah, yeah… It was p-pretty cold."
"Then come lie back down for a bit. It's still early, and I bet the others aren't up yet."
"Mm!"
Hitori let out a breath of relief and turned her back to take off her outerwear.
What she didn't know was that Seika and Ikuyo had woken up around ten minutes earlier. When they found she was gone, their first reaction had been to feel under her blanket.
The result was obvious—it was cold.
Both of them were sharp, and judging by Hitori's unnatural reaction when she returned, they could more or less guess what had happened.
Still, the two chose to play dumb and say nothing.
Nijika didn't really mind.
That Hitori had secretly gone to Chisato's tent only made her quietly think, Bocchi-chan's really growing up, and she sincerely felt happy for her.
Ikuyo, however, had more complicated feelings. She had slowly started to realize that she had feelings for Chisato.
But she also knew better than anyone that there were some things she couldn't allow herself to think or act upon.
Even so, those feelings she had already developed couldn't be suppressed.
They had taken root, and were slowly growing stronger with time—something that couldn't be erased through willpower alone.
She didn't know what to do. But for now, the best choice was to make sure no one ever found out about this forbidden affection.
Bearing it alone, and pretending like nothing had happened, was the only way to deal with it.
Once Hitori lay back down, the three girls casually chatted.
Time passed. It was now 8 a.m.
Everyone had gotten up and packed their belongings. After returning the rented camping gear by car, they went back to the hotel to enjoy the final breakfast of their trip.
By a little past eleven, they were on their return flight.
Seeing everyone's faces full of smiles, Chisato turned his head to look out the window at the clouds that seemed close enough to touch and let out a long stretch.
Aside from a few minor mishaps, this could definitely be called a perfect trip.
Back in Tokyo, everyone split up and took taxis home.
Originally, Chisato had thought about grabbing a meal together before parting, but everyone had clearly played and partied hard these past few days.
As soon as they got off the plane, all anyone wanted was to go home and collapse into bed.
Besides, with hands full of souvenir bags, wandering around town wasn't really practical.
"Alright, let's wrap it up here. Same time tomorrow at the office. You still have several jobs to finish before the end of winter break. Don't be late."
"Yes, sir…"
"Message me when you get home."
Seika gave a final reminder to the four members of the band before sending them off in taxis one by one.
"So, President, what are your plans now?"
"Heading to the office?"
"Yeah. I've been away for so many days—I'll feel better if I check in."
"Fair enough."
Chisato nodded in understanding.
He did have the idea of tagging along, but before he said anything, he glanced at Eriri and Utaha.
The two were very considerate. Just a moment of eye contact was enough for them to understand what he meant.
"I need to head straight home. I promised my parents I'd go back as soon as I landed."
"Same here. Remember I told you my novel won an award? My editor asked me to report to the publisher right away after I got back.
There's a lot to discuss about its future development. I'll take a bath, change, and then go meet her."
Eriri and Utaha explained one after the other, then left together in a taxi.
"Alright, let's go too."
After watching them leave, Chisato opened the door of another taxi and gestured for Seika to get in.
As she got in, Seika teased him with a smile.
"I'm surprised. I thought you'd go straight home and crash."
"I was tempted, but as the president, I'd feel bad leaving everything to the others. So I figured I'd tag along."
"Don't overwork yourself."
"I'm fine, really."
…
There were indeed a few backlogged tasks at the office, but nothing too complex.
Inside the company's executive room, Chisato and Seika sat together on the couch and got through the work fairly quickly.
"Well done. Let's grab a meal before heading back."
As they were preparing to leave the office, Chisato put on his jacket and made the suggestion.
Seika was tempted to accept, but just then she received a message from Nijika.
The kitchen at home already had her favorite stew simmering, and Nijika had even sent a video of the bubbling pot with steam rising from under the lid.
"…I'll pass. Nijika's waiting for me at home for dinner."
"I see. Got it."
The two walked together to the elevator.
When they reached the ground floor and were about to part ways, Seika, who had been hesitating the whole time, finally worked up the courage to speak.
"You should come too. You're not going to cook if you go home alone, right? And always eating out isn't healthy either."
In Chisato's gaze, her face was visibly turning red.
And yet she was completely unaware, pretending to act casual as she brushed her hair back—a classic move mature women often did to seem composed.
Honestly, that gap between her real feelings and her outward behavior kind of hit right in Chisato's weak spot.
He hadn't noticed it before, but it turns out the manager is actually really cute. And here he always thought of her as a cool older woman.
"Well, since you're inviting me… I'll gladly accept."
Chisato had originally planned to decline—he'd been hoping to go home early to check on Dark Wing, who had stayed behind.
But perhaps not wanting to waste Seika's rare moment of courage and kindness, in the end, he gave a small nod.
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50 advanced chapters on p@t re on (.) com/SenatusTheta
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