...
Lucian's thin lips were like magnets; whenever he drew near, Seiun Sky would instinctively lean her head forward.
But when they were about a finger's width apart, Lucian would suddenly pull back, "Hmm? Not talking?"
"Trainer... don't tease me."
"Tease you? I'm seriously asking what you were trying to do just now."
Seiun Sky lifted her head, looking at Lucian with a slightly pitiful expression.
She wanted to kiss him, but he always managed to slip away quickly.
"What were you trying to do? If you don't tell me, how's your Trainer supposed to know?" Lucian rubbed Seiun Sky's pursed lips with his fingertip, one hand steadying her waist. "If you don't say, I'll just carry you down."
Seiun Sky's face scrunched up, and she opened her small mouth.
"Hmm? Gonna bite me?" Lucian didn't retract his finger, and she didn't dare bite, only brushing against it.
"No."
Lucian: "..."
"Pure little me doesn't play with naughty kitties."
Lucian tried to pull back, but it was too late. Seiun Sky's legs crossed behind him, as if tying a knot, trapping him so he couldn't escape.
And that knot kept tightening, bringing Lucian and Seiun Sky ever closer.
"I want a kiss... the book says a morning kiss can deepen our bond."
"Oh? What else did the book say?" Lucian tilted his lips, brushing against Seiun Sky's cheek as he spoke. "And how am I supposed to know if our bond has actually deepened?"
"It has deepenedmand."
Seiun Sky hugged Lucian's head, pulling it toward her chest. "Trainer, my heart's beating so fast... Trainer, will you kiss me, please?"
Her whole body felt warm, like soft bread just pulled from the oven, its rich aroma wafting out, inviting a taste.
No one could resist, least of all Lucian.
"Alright." He kissed her, savoring his breakfast.
...
Their lips parted, and they gazed at each other in silence.
Seiun Sky's cheeks were flushed, her legs still locked around Lucian, unwilling to let go. "Trainer, I want to stay with you just a little longer... much longer."
"Come on, we're not apart right now. Let go already, I've got to go collect the markers."
Seiun Sky shook her head petulantly.
"We've been kissing for so long already." Lucian suddenly eyed Seiun Sky's outfit—a small dress she had just changed into.
Lucian deliberately pinched the hem of her skirt. "Be good and let go, or I can't guarantee what I might do."
He was often the one overpowered, but with Seiun Sky, he could occasionally be the firm one.
"Trainer... are you going to open Pandora's Box?" Seiun Sky grabbed Lucian's hands.
"Pandora's Box, usually a metaphor for something that, once opened, triggers uncontrollable consequences."
"So? Is Trainer going to open it?"
"Cough, cough... no way, I'm afraid you've got a little monster hiding in there." Lucian pulled his hands back—he wasn't some reckless Trainer indulging in daytime debauchery.
But with that, the dynamic shifted.
"Little monster?" Seiun Sky propped her hands behind her, leaning back with a mischievous grin on her lips.
The flush on her face hadn't fully faded, making her look like a little succubus from some fantasy.
"Isn't Trainer's little monster the one in your heart? Or... is it in the same place as Pandora's Box?"
"Let go already... no, I mean, let go now." Lucian pinched the inside of Seiun Sky's thigh, and she released her hold with a wince of pain.
Seiun Sky was a glass cannon.
And he was a hot-blooded man, so he couldn't withstand too much temptation—because temptation filled him with even more vigor.
"That hurts..."
"Rub, rub, rub~ There, there, be good and wash up."
Lucian hadn't even pinched that hard; he knew Seiun Sky was just pretending. So he casually rubbed the spot he'd pinched.
"Trainer, you're such a buzzkill~" Seiun Sky hopped off the bathroom counter.
Lucian didn't respond, just grabbed a toothbrush with toothpaste already on it and stuffed it into Seiun Sky's mouth.
...
After washing up, the two donned transparent raincoats, grabbed an umbrella, and headed out.
"Trainer, hurry, hurry, hurry!"
"Always rushing me—what's the big hurry?" Lucian teased, starting the car.
"I'm worried they'll wake up. Then I won't get to go out alone with Trainer." Seiun Sky held the umbrella in one hand and hugged Lucian's waist with the other.
The pattering raindrops landed on Seiun Sky's shoulders and splashed against Lucian's forehead.
"Hold the umbrella straight... ugh, don't block my view."
"Cold, icy rain is slapping me."
...
Lucian called out from the front, while Seiun Sky giggled behind him.
"It's pouring like this, and you still insisted on coming along?" Lucian said softly.
"To keep Trainer company, of course. Without me, Trainer would already be a soaked chicken."
"With you, I'm just a slightly less soaked chicken?"
But Seiun Sky's presence did make Lucian feel less lonely and bored.
Seiun Sky glanced at Lucian's leg, where raindrops clung but were kept at bay by the transparent raincoat.
"Trainer..." She placed her hand on his leg, her voice suddenly softening.
"What's wrong?"
"If I get injured someday, or end up in a situation like Silence Suzuka, I don't want you to do that for me."
A faint sadness seemed to settle over Seiun Sky's face.
"Little crow's mouth..." Lucian fell silent for a moment. "Why are we talking about this again?"
"Then promise me." Seiun Sky pouted playfully. "If I can't run anymore, would Trainer abandon me?"
"Of course not."
"Then that's fine. I don't want Trainer to sacrifice anything for me, whether I'm injured or not, no matter how serious it is. I promise Trainer I'll always keep moving forward."
When you love someone, you naturally think of their well-being. Seiun Sky's thoughts were simple and pure. "What about Trainer? Will you promise me?"
"Alright~" Lucian was a straightforward person, and he understood that one-sided devotion wasn't the same as respecting Seiun Sky. "I want you to keep running happily."
"Trainer promised me, so of course I will~" Seiun Sky rested her chin on Lucian's shoulder, her expression relaxed and content.
The curtain of rain was like a transparent dust veil, and the misty forest across the mountains seemed to grow lusher in the haze.
But none of that had anything to do with the sunshine in her heart.
...