Around four in the afternoon, Ichin woke up groggily.
As soon as he opened his eyes, he realized his body felt much better—at least not as heavy as it had been that morning. He was drenched in sweat, though, his clothes sticking uncomfortably to his skin.
Sitting up, he noticed that Yukino was no longer in the room.
Checking his phone, he saw the time and figured she must've gone to her afternoon class.
He changed into clean pajamas, threw on a jacket, and stepped out of the bedroom.
The moment he did, he heard the sounds of someone working in the kitchen. When he followed the noise, he found Utaha already home, busy preparing dinner.
Hearing his footsteps, Utaha immediately turned around and said with concern, "Ichin, you're awake? How are you feeling now?"
"Much better," Ichin replied with a smile. "When did you get back?"
"About three o'clock. I picked up some ingredients for dinner on the way."
After washing her hands, Utaha gently pushed Ichin out of the kitchen and guided him to the living room.
She made him sit on the sofa, turned on the heater, and handed him a thermometer.
"When I came back, I touched your forehead—it felt cooler, but let's check your temperature just in case."
Ichin nodded and tucked the thermometer under his arm, then looked at her curiously.
"When did you come back last night? I kind of remember hearing something… but maybe I just dreamed it."
Utaha smiled and sat beside him. "It wasn't that late. I came home right after eating, but as soon as I got back, I found you burning up. I immediately called my mom over to take a look, and we put a cool towel on your forehead. If your temperature hadn't dropped, we would've taken you to the hospital. Luckily, around midnight your fever started to go down, so we could finally relax. Otherwise, I wouldn't have dared go to class this morning."
"I see… no wonder I felt so heavy and dazed last night," Ichin said, nodding in realization. Then he looked at her gratefully. "Thank you, Utaha. And please thank your mom too."
Utaha smiled softly and brushed his hair aside. "It's fine, as long as you're okay. Besides, every month when I have those days, you're always the one taking care of me—so now it's my turn to look after you. I actually planned to skip class today, but Haruno-senpai came by in the morning and told me to attend as usual, since Yukino didn't have class and could watch over you first. Thanks to her, I could go to class without worrying."
"So that's how it was. I was wondering why Yukino was here when I woke up."
Glancing at the clock on the wall, Ichin said, "Judging by the time, Yukino should be back soon. We should treat her to something nice for dinner to thank her."
Utaha chuckled. "Don't worry, I already bought fish and sweet-and-sour pork ribs—her favorites."
Before long, the thermometer beeped.
His temperature was still a little high, but noticeably lower than in the morning. Another good night's rest and he'd probably be completely fine.
Looking at the reading, Ichin smiled. "Even though I got sick, my body still bounces back fast. Just one day, and I'm already halfway recovered."
The sudden illness had caught him off guard, but years of regular exercise had clearly paid off—his immune system was doing its job.
After chatting with him for a bit longer, Utaha saw that the room had warmed up and went back to the kitchen to finish dinner.
At five o'clock, Yukino returned from her class.
As soon as she stepped inside, she saw Ichin sitting on the sofa, watching TV.
"Big brother, how are you feeling?"
"Don't worry, much better now," Ichin said with a smile and a nod. "Thanks for taking care of me today, Yukino. Utaha's making lots of delicious food tonight—so eat plenty."
Seeing that Ichin had recovered well, Yukino finally let out a small sigh of relief.
Not long after Yukino arrived, Haruno also showed up.
"Little Ichin~~ your big sister's here~! Feeling better yet?"
She came running in with a bright smile, still in her office attire, not even having changed yet.
Ichin looked at her and asked, "Haruno, you got off work early today? It's not even six yet, right?"
Hands on her hips, Haruno said proudly, "Hey, I'm the boss too, you know! Leaving an hour early once in a while isn't a big deal. Besides, I came not just to check on how you're feeling—there's also news about that office building you wanted!"
"Huh? Really?"
At that, Ichin immediately perked up.
The last time they'd talked about the company's new office building was back in early September—nearly three months ago now.
Haruno had found two standalone buildings before, but none of them really satisfied Ichin, so he told her to keep looking slowly.
And now there was news again? Judging by the sparkle in Haruno's eyes, it must've been something good.
Taking the cup of tea Utaha handed her, Haruno took a sip, then said proudly, "It's a newly built independent office building. Originally, it was leased by a software development company, but their operations went south—the shareholders started infighting, and the company collapsed in less than three months after moving in. I just got word about it and immediately contacted the developer. If you're interested, once you're fully recovered, I can take you there in a couple of days. I've already seen some photos and videos—the place looks great."
"If you're saying it's good, Haruno, then it must be," Ichin said with a smile. "All right, let's go check it out in a few days."
After that, Haruno leaned over and touched his forehead, nodding in satisfaction. "Mm, you're recovering nicely. Looks like you can join us for dinner tonight."
Ichin rolled his eyes at her, watching as she followed Utaha into the kitchen to check on dinner preparations.
After inspecting things to her satisfaction, Haruno happily went next door to change clothes.
Shaking his head, Ichin took a sip of water and said, "I can't help but feel Haruno's personality's gotten even more… lively lately. What do you think, Yukino?"
Yukino smiled faintly and glanced at him. "It has, yes. But compared to before, she's much easier to get along with now. Though… she still likes to tease people every now and then."
"Well, as long as she's not actually causing trouble, a few jokes now and then are fine," Ichin said with a chuckle.
After another full day of rest, Ichin's condition had almost completely recovered.
He still had a slight cold, though, so whenever he went out, he made sure to wear a mask—to avoid passing it on to anyone else.
When he arrived at the company after class, everyone welcomed him back warmly.
Aoba looked at him curiously. "Ichin-kun, it's only been a few days! Are you sure you don't need to rest a bit more?"
Kō Yagami, standing nearby, laughed. "Don't be fooled into thinking he suffered! When I dropped by, oh boy—Utaha, Yukino, and even Haruno were all fussing over him. Fruits and tea delivered right to his hands, meals prepared and served—a full-on lord's treatment!"
"Eh?! Seriously?"
Aoba looked at Ichin in disbelief. "Utaha and Yukino I can understand, but Haruno-senpai? She's that type to take care of people?"
Ichin slowly turned his gaze toward her, narrowing his eyes. "Aoba… if those words ever reach Haruno's ears, what do you think will happen?"
In an instant, Aoba clapped her hands over her mouth and shook her head violently, eyes wide with panic.
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