_______________________________________________________________________________________________________
After Andrew's figure disappeared, Haruno Yukinoshita held her hand over her pounding heart, and a soft smile appeared on her lips.
"A demon, huh? He's actually kind of gentle…"
Willing to take the pain himself just to heal her little sister—Andrew's actions had completely moved Haruno.
Even though he'd paid a price for it himself.
From now on, she belonged to him, body and soul.
But she didn't regret it one bit.
When her prayers to the gods went unanswered, it was Andrew who showed up and answered her wish.
And he wasn't like those demons you see in movies or fairy tales, who torture people who make deals with them and bring them tragedy and despair.
No—he was so gentle with her.
Though… that unreserved attitude of his did make her feel a little annoyed.
But overall? She was pretty satisfied with her first time.
What she wasn't happy about… was how damn experienced he was.
That womanizing demon!
Sitting by the bed, Haruno gently brushed the hair from her little sister's forehead. Looking at Yukino's now-rosy cheeks, a tender smile formed on her face.
"Yuki-chan, you'd better wake up soon. I'll be right here with you."
What she didn't know was…
Yukino Yukinoshita had actually woken up.
Or rather—she'd been awake the whole time.
She just couldn't open her eyes.
She'd felt everything when Andrew kissed her—clear as day.
What she really didn't want to admit was…
That guy used tongue!
What kind of person does that?!
It was bad enough he stole her first kiss, but he had to go that far?!
Yukino didn't want to open her eyes.
Not because she didn't want her sister to know she was awake… but because she was embarrassed. She had no idea what to do in that situation.
Plus, she'd already decided not to tell her sister that she remembered everything.
Otherwise, Haruno would probably die of embarrassment.
And honestly, after what her sister had done to save her, Yukino was more touched than she'd ever been in her life.
…Until the urge to pee hit her like a truck.
She couldn't pretend to be asleep anymore.
Opening her eyes, Yukino looked up at her sister in utter shame.
"Sis, I…"
"Yuki-chan, you're awake! Oh my god, thank god!!"
The moment Yukino opened her eyes and spoke, Haruno threw her arms around her and burst into tears, her eyes already red and watery.
"Ugh… Sis… can you let go of me first? I need to use the bathroom…"
Even though she felt like dying from shame, Yukino knew she had to handle the pressing matter first.
"Ah—sorry! Let me help you."
Haruno was stunned for a second, but quickly smiled and gently helped her sister out of bed, supporting her like she was made of glass. That warm, caring gesture made Yukino's heart ache with emotion.
At the same time, Yukino made up her mind—
She had to find that demon and figure out a way to break the contract.
She couldn't let her amazing sister be tied down to him for the rest of her life just because of her.
…
The news of Yukinoshita Yukino waking up was nothing short of a miracle, and all the doctors at the hospital were wide-eyed in shock.
After a thorough exam, they found her body completely healthy—not a single issue.
The attending physician wanted her to stay for further observation, but Mrs. Yukinoshita turned on the "Senator's Wife" mode, gave him a sweet but firm smile, and said a few words.
That tiny little scheme the doctor was cooking up immediately fizzled out. All he could do was obediently process Yukino's discharge papers.
Like hell Mrs. Yukinoshita didn't know that guy wanted to run extra tests just to "study" Yukino's special condition.
No chance she was letting that happen.
One phone call to her husband, and that shady doctor was dealt with.
Only then did she turn to her now-healthy second daughter.
Yukino lowered her head, looking awkward. She had no idea how to face the mother she'd always clashed with.
"Mother… I…"
But the scolding never came.
Instead, Mrs. Yukinoshita pulled her into a tight hug.
Her eyes were glistening, on the verge of tears.
"Yuki-chan… welcome back."
"..."
After a few seconds of silence, Yukino's eyes welled up too.
Clumsily, she raised her arms and hugged her mother back.
"I'm home… Mother."
Watching the heartwarming scene, Haruno spread her arms wide and joined in.
Geez.
How could they leave her out of this?
She wanted to hug Yuki-chan and Mom too!
For the first time in a long while, the gloom hanging over the Yukinoshita family lifted, and everything started looking up.
—
Back home, the first thing Yukino did was dash straight to the bathroom.
She'd been lying in a hospital bed for so long—even though her sister had been wiping her down regularly, she still felt gross.
Girls liked being clean, after all. Who could stand the smell of disinfectant and medicine all over them?
While she scrubbed her pale white body, Yukino covered her mouth with one hand, her thoughts wandering back to that guy and that tongue.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she got.
She didn't feel clean anymore.
But then she thought of her sister… and suddenly it didn't seem like that big of a deal.
After all, her sister had sacrificed everything for her—including her purity, and even her future.
Yukino clutched her chest, a heavy feeling weighing on her heart.
She had no idea what she could possibly do to repay her sister's sacrifice.
She'd been in a vegetative state, practically a corpse. The demon had paid the price to bring her back to life.
How was she supposed to get him to undo the contract?
What, go back to being a vegetable?
It wasn't even about what she wanted anymore—she couldn't let her sister's sacrifice go to waste.
Still feeling lost and conflicted, the second daughter of the Yukinoshita family left the bathroom and crawled under the covers.
Only to be immediately snuggled up by her sister, who rubbed her cheek against Yukino's arm like a spoiled cat.
"Yuki-chan, I'm sleeping with you tonight, okay? Don't you miss this?"
Back when they were kids, Yukino used to follow Haruno around like a little duckling.
No matter where she went, Yukino would be right behind her.
But as the eldest daughter, Haruno had to shoulder the responsibility of the Yukinoshita name. She'd endured strict, pressure-filled training to become the family's perfect successor.
All that pain and hardship—she didn't want Yukino to experience any of it.
So she'd started teasing her little sister, playing little pranks that eventually made Yukino flinch every time she saw her.
In the end, Yukino stopped following her around.
But that only made Haruno feel more alone.
This time though, when Haruno clung to her like a child, Yukino didn't push her away.
She simply curled up in her sister's arms and nodded softly.
"Mm… let's sleep together."
Just thinking about everything her sister had done for her made Yukino want to cry.
But she couldn't let her sister know that she'd already figured everything out.
She'd keep this to herself—this burden was hers to carry alone.
Haruno, on the other hand, wasn't thinking about anything that deep.
Her precious little sister had finally woken up, healthy and happy.
She couldn't be more grateful.
Especially to that certain demon.
"..."
______________________________________________________________________________________________________