Chapter 181 – Can I keep relying on you?

Early Wednesday morning, Yukio woke up in Ichinose's dorm room, right on time according to his biological clock. He instinctively tried to lift his hand to his neck because it felt sore.

But his arm wouldn't lift. When he tried, it felt particularly numb, as if his whole arm was wooden and extremely uncomfortable.

Looking around, he awkwardly realized that he and Ichinose were lying on the dorm floor without pillows. No wonder his neck was so sore after a night's sleep.

As for his numb arm, it was because Ichinose had been using it as a pillow.

Yukio carefully tried to pull his arm out, feeling the numbness even more intensely, like invisible electric currents running wildly inside his arm.

Gradually, he remembered what had happened. Last night, after Ichinose had a heartfelt conversation and apology with her mother and received forgiveness, the two of them had talked for a long time.

After the call ended, Ichinose kept crying and couldn't stop. Yukio had to hold and comfort her. It seemed like she was shedding all the tears she'd held back for over six months.

Exhausted from crying, Ichinose finally fell asleep. Yukio, possibly tired from comforting her or just finding it too comfortable to let go, fell asleep with her until now.

Yukio used his other, non-numb arm to grab his phone and saw a message from someone outside: [Ichinose's mother's new job has been arranged.]

He replied with "Well done," promised some benefits, and waited until his arm felt normal again before he gently picked up Ichinose in a princess carry and placed her on the futon. Then he went to the bathroom, washed up quickly, and headed to the kitchen to prepare breakfast.

"Wake up." Yukio, having finished the chores, walked over to Ichinose and couldn't resist playfully pinching her nose.

"Ugh, mmph!" Ichinose, her breathing obstructed, instinctively twitched her nose and then shook her head from side to side, trying to break free. When she couldn't, she started taking small breaths through her mouth.

This almost made Yukio burst out laughing. It was too amusing. He stopped pinching her nose and instead turned to her feet.

Her feet were warm to the touch, with an excellent texture and no unpleasant smell. Her delicate feet were slightly arched, and her five toes, like little white pearls, were neatly lined up.

Tickling her feet was quite fun. Yukio tickled her soles while watching Ichinose's expression.

Ichinose seemed to be extremely ticklish. After just a few tickles, she couldn't help but squirm and let out a muffled groan, slowly opening her eyes... or rather, one eye.

It was evident she had cried too much the night before; her eyes were swollen, making it very difficult to fully open them.

This prompted Yukio to stop tickling her immediately. He went to the refrigerator, found an ice pack, and then to the bathroom, where he wet and wrung out Ichinose's towel, wrapped the ice pack in it, and returned.

"Here, apply this cold compress. Your eyes are so swollen from crying, it must be very uncomfortable."

"Huh? Yukio-kun?" Ichinose stared blankly at him, not taking the ice towel. One moment she was still half-asleep, and the next, despite the swelling, her eyes widened.

As she became fully awake, memories of all the forgiveness she received yesterday flooded back. Recalling the entire sequence of events, her face turned even redder than her swollen eyes.

Did Yukio-kun hold her and comfort her to sleep last night? Did they spend the whole night like that? If so, then... then...!

Thinking about this, she immediately pulled the blanket over herself, intending to hide and never show her face again. At the very least, she couldn't let Yukio-kun see her in this just-woken-up state, which was far from acceptable for a girl!

Fortunately, Yukio was quick and stopped her, firmly placing the ice towel on Ichinose's eyes: "Alright, alright, just apply the cold compress for now."

He knew exactly what Ichinose was thinking. Some things could take their time; he wasn't in a rush.

The warmth of her cheeks gradually cooled down thanks to the ice towel, at least easing the swelling around her eyes, making her feel much more comfortable.

It wasn't just the cold compress that helped; the towel covering her eyes also gave her a psychological sense of "if I can't see him, he can't see me," a self-deceiving comfort.

This eased her shyness considerably, allowing her to recall more detailed events: "Last night, I really troubled you, Yukio-kun."

Now fully awake, Ichinose understood just how important the redemption she received last night was to her. It could be said that the only darkness in her heart was completely dispelled by the three rays of light brought by Yukio.

At this moment, her heart was free of any blemish or stain.

Although her mother, sister, and Mrs. Kobayashi's forgiveness had nothing directly to do with Yukio, without his encouragement and phone, Ichinose would never have known their thoughts.

"Just remember that," Yukio replied somewhat irritably. "You have no idea how numb my arm was when I woke up this morning after you used it as a pillow."

Through the towel covering her eyes, it was impossible to see Ichinose's expression, but Yukio could see her cheeks turning deep red again, flushed with embarrassment.

Ichinose couldn't bear to look at Yukio. Did she really fall asleep using his arm as a pillow last night? Were they that close?

Thinking about how they must have slept so close, Ichinose's heart felt like it was about to explode. It pounded wildly in her chest, sounding like the rumbling thunder inside summer storm clouds.

"Two minutes of cold compress is enough. It's time to switch to a warm towel," Yukio said, timing everything perfectly to reduce the swelling in her eyes.

But he found Ichinose pressing the cold towel firmly with both hands, refusing to let him replace it. Ichinose was so embarrassed she felt she might die if Yukio saw her face even for a moment without the towel. There was no way she could let him switch it.

This childish behavior made Yukio chuckle. Mimicking Ichinose's mother's gentle tone, he coaxed, "Be good, be good..." Only then did Ichinose let go, allowing him to replace the cold towel with a warm one.

Feeling the warmth of the towel, Ichinose's already flushed face became even hotter. This comfortable dizziness from the alternating temperatures made Ichinose say something she normally couldn't: "Yukio-kun..."

"Can I keep relying on you?"

She didn't want to think too much right now. She only knew that she really liked the way he cared for her with the alternating warm and cold towels and even more so the redemption and encouragement Yukio had given her last night.

Without Yukio, she would still be trapped in self-blame and regret, unable to move on.

"Heh." Yukio took the ice pack away, folding the cold towel, and laughed at Ichinose's question: "I won't allow you to rely on anyone else anymore."

"!" Ichinose closed her eyes tightly, feeling the warm towel was a bit too hot.

"Yukio-kun, it's so good to have you here."

***

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