Akira left after a brief introduction to Fujiwara Kyoko, leaving Sajuna and Fujiwara Kyoko to continue chatting.
Although Sajuna bringing a friend to see him made him a little happy, working part-time was more important at the moment.
After all, Sajuna would surely want him to focus on his work for now; she was just coming to see him.
There was no need for intimacy to happen in the store, nor was there any need to pick a break during his work hours.
After all, in such a short amount of time, it would be hard to even create the right atmosphere.
"Excuse me, I'm leaving now. Thank you for your hard work today."
"See you tomorrow, Akira-kun."
When it was time to clock out, after finishing his work for the day, Akira bid farewell to the store owner and his wife and set off for home.
After walking a few steps, he saw a convenience store and, as if by a ghost's whim, walked in.
What should I buy?
After thinking for a while, he decided he should pick up some ingredients for cooking, so Akira walked to the shelves and slowly began to choose.
After selecting several pre-processed ingredients, Akira thought for a moment and then picked out a few snacks that girls love.
They were for Shinju, probably, and Sajuna could try them too.
It cost quite a bit of money in total.
Leaving the convenience store, he looked at the night sky, felt that it wasn't too late, and turned to go to Sajuna's house.
When Sajuna opened the door, she saw a fully "armed" Akira.
"Aki-Kun, what is this?"
Sajuna asked, a little bewildered.
"Ah, these are ingredients for tomorrow," Akira said, holding up the plastic bag in his left hand.
"And these are snacks I bought for Shinju. Of course, Sajuna can eat them too," he added, raising the bag in his right hand to show Sajuna.
"Can I come in?"
Akira asked, as it was quite tiring to carry such a large bag of things, and it would be better to put them down soon.
"Oh, Aki-Kun, please come in."
Sajuna invited Akira in, and Shinju, wearing her pajamas, came over.
"Is that Akira-gege?"
"Of course it's me. Otherwise, why would Sajuna open the door?"
Akira gently stroked Sajuna's head and said with a smile. Sajuna blushed and nodded slightly.
Even now, with such a touch, her cheeks still turned red. Sajuna still needed more practice.
Akira thought to himself, then took out the purchased ingredients from the bag, placing them one by one into the refrigerator, and poked his head out toward Shinju, saying, "Shinju, I also bought you some snacks. Do you like them?"
"Thank you, Akira-gege."
Shinju walked over curiously. "Akira-gege, can I open it?"
"What nonsense are you talking about? I bought them for you. Why are you still asking me?"
Akira pretended to scold her. "Go on, open it and see. There might not be any surprises, since I bought them all at the convenience store."
Shinju slowly opened the bag, and the snacks inside were revealed. As she expected, most of them were quite expensive.
"Big Sister."
Shinju looked at Sajuna with a little worry.
"Take them. After all, they're from Aki-Kun."
Sajuna now had a strange sense of trust in Akira; she figured Akira wouldn't spend a fortune just to buy snacks.
Perhaps these snacks were just an ordinary expense in Akira's eyes.
Sajuna thought, It feels like Aki-Kun will earn a lot of royalties after his light novel is published.
Seeing her sister say so, Shinju's heart also settled down.
Akira-gege is so inexplicably generous to her; he's truly a good boyfriend.
Silently wishing her sister and Akira well in their relationship once more, Shinju then put the snacks back into the bag.
"You can share them with your friends tomorrow too."
Akira suggested.
Shinju nodded lightly and, at Akira's urging, slowly took the snacks away.
Only Akira and Sajuna were left in the living room.
"Sajuna."
"Mm."
Sajuna felt that Akira really liked to call her name.
Does he feel like "this girl belongs to me"?
Sajuna quietly called out "Aki-Kun" several times in her heart, and it did bring a strange sense of peace.
"Does it make you uncomfortable that I always come to your house, Sajuna?"
"Eh? Aki-Kun, why would you think that?"
Sajuna asked, looking puzzled. Shinju had already gotten used to it, so why was Aki-Kun still worrying so much?
"That's good, then."
Akira let out a slight sigh of relief; at times like these, he always had a strange worry.
After all, he always wanted to do his best to make his girlfriend happier.
"How was your day with your friend today?"
Sajuna shook her head, looked at Akira, and smiled softly.
"Today, I felt like I was thinking about Aki-Kun the whole time."
"Then I am truly both honored and happy."
"Then, Aki-Kun, did you miss me?"
Although she already knew the answer, Sajuna always wanted to hear Akira say it himself.
Whether it was sweet nothings like "I like you," "I love you the most," "I really like you," or "I miss you," Sajuna always felt she could listen to them a hundred times and never tire of them.
"I'm always thinking of Sajuna. If you don't believe me, you can ask my heart."
Sajuna hesitated, somewhat sensing Akira's intention, but still asked, "How do I ask?"
"Of course, you come closer and ask with words."
Akira reached out and gently pulled the nearby Sajuna into his arms. Sajuna's delicate body seemed boneless, softening at his touch.
"Do you feel my heart?"
Akira gently stroked Sajuna's head, subtly guiding her closer to his chest.
"You won't faint, will you?"
He suddenly remembered Sajuna's shyness and added the question.
Sajuna gently shook her head, indicating she wouldn't faint. Then, following Akira's movement, she leaned softly against Akira's chest.
His thick, broad chest, radiating a warm temperature, enveloped Sajuna's cheeks. She felt Akira's strong heartbeat and experienced the charm of a man.
Sajuna closed her eyes and gently snuggled deeper into Akira's embrace, as if to inhale his entire scent.
The two held each other gently, each feeling the other's affection.
"Sajuna."
"Mm."
"Do you feel my love for Sajuna?"
"No, I don't."
Sajuna looked up, her cheeks visibly red, but the smile on her face was even more captivating than her blush.
"But I can hear the sound of Aki-Kun's heart beating, and I can feel the quiet atmosphere when Aki-Kun holds me."
"I feel Aki-Kun's gentleness toward me, and his patience in our relationship."
She paused, then, as if understanding something, her smile grew even brighter as she said, "More importantly, my heart here likes Aki-Kun even more, you know."
"Perhaps even more than Aki-Kun can imagine."
Let the matter of their short time meeting and falling in love drift away with the wind; Sajuna had now completely understood her feelings.
Indeed, she loved him the most, loved him so much that she might never love anyone as much as she loved Aki-Kun now.