章節 232: Ch 232. Love is a Light, So Green That it Makes You Panic
If the other students from Sobu High saw them, what would they think about Hoshimi and Yukinoshita?
Oh, no need to worry about Hoshimi. The fact that he didn't avoid it means he had already prepared himself internally.
But what about Yukinoshita? In the eyes of the students at Sobu High, they probably imagine a vast green field growing on top of her head by now.
Hikigaya glanced at the expressionless Yukinoshita standing beside him, her demeanor as cold as ever.
In the fading evening light, he almost thought he saw a green glow flickering above Yukinoshita's head.
[Love is a light, so green that it makes you panic.]
Yukinoshita has really grown... She can endure all this...
Three minutes later, Kotoko, her face blushing, finally let go of Hoshimi.
She looked at Hoshimi, slightly out of breath. "Hoshimi... put... put me down now."
Also slightly out of breath, Hoshimi silently set Kotoko down.
To be honest, he was a little tired. Kotoko wasn't heavy, but she still weighed over seventy pounds. Holding her for so long was exhausting.
Moreover, during the kiss earlier, Kotoko had been a bit too aggressive, leaving him a little short of breath...
"Hoshimi, I'm leaving~" After steadying herself, Kotoko waved goodbye to Hoshimi and walked off without looking back.
A female driver, who had been waiting by the roadside for quite some time, quickly came up to her, respectfully escorting Kotoko into a black sedan.
After watching the black sedan drive away, Hoshimi took a few steps and casually moved closer to Yukino's side.
He took hold of Yukino's cold little hand and turned to bid farewell to Yuigahama and Hikigaya.
"Yuigahama, Hikigaya, see you tomorrow."
"Uh... see you tomorrow..." Hikigaya, as usual, awkwardly responded to the farewell.
"Mm, see you tomorrow, Hoshimi-kun," Yuigahama replied, avoiding his gaze before looking toward Yukino. "See you tomorrow, Yukinon."
"Mm..." Yukino responded with a cool nod.
Understanding that Yukino was likely in a bad mood, Yuigahama said no more. She glanced at Hoshimi once more before quietly turning to leave.
Then, Hikigaya also turned and left, pushing his bike along.
With everyone gone, Hoshimi naturally didn't linger either. He quietly held Yukino's hand as they started walking home.
...
On the way home, Hoshimi pondered whether he should say something, but he had no idea where to start.
After thinking for a long time, he decided to go home first and spend some time with Yukino. Based on her attitude, he could then decide what to say.
"Hmm?"
Just as Hoshimi made up his mind, he suddenly noticed that the road Yukino was leading him down wasn't the way home.
He grew alert, observing Yukino at his side out of the corner of his eye.
"Hoshimi," Yukino called coldly.
"Yeah, I'm here. What is it, Yukino?" Hoshimi responded, his tone uncharacteristically gentle.
"Let's sit over there," Yukino said, raising her hand to point to a small park on the other side of the street.
Hoshimi glanced in the direction Yukino was pointing and nodded thoughtfully, "Alright."
"Mm, let's go," Yukino said as she led Hoshimi across the pedestrian bridge to the small, somewhat abandoned park.
Although the park was small, it had everything: slides, swings, a small fort, a sandbox, a seesaw, climbing nets... pretty much all the standard park features were there.
However, the equipment looked heavily weathered, clearly having been there for years.
Seeing the dust covering the park equipment, Hoshimi knew it probably wasn't visited very often.
"Hoshimi, can you tell? This park has been abandoned," Yukino said, stopping in front of two side-by-side swings.
She took a tissue from her bag and handed it to Hoshimi, gesturing for him to wipe the dust off the swing seats.
Hoshimi obediently complied. He took the tissue and began wiping the swing seats while asking, "Yukino, did you come here often when you were younger?"
Yukino didn't answer but instead asked, "Hoshimi, do you know why this park was abandoned?"
"Declining birth rate?" Hoshimi guessed uncertainly.
Yukino replied, "That's one of the reasons."
After cleaning the swing seats, Hoshimi turned to Yukino and smiled, "The declining birth rate is indeed a big problem, so Yukino, let's have several kids in the future and build them a playground, so they can have a complete childhood."
Yukino shot him a reproachful look in response to his joke.
She took a couple of steps forward, pressed down on Hoshimi's shoulders, and seated him on the swing. "Hoshimi, wait here for a while. I'm going to buy something."
With that, Yukino turned and left.
Watching her retreating figure, Hoshimi thoughtfully rubbed his chin.
Could this be Yukino's way of punishing him? Telling him to sit here and wait, while she watches from somewhere nearby?
If he patiently waited, Yukino might reappear, satisfied, and tell him he passed the test.
But if he disobeyed and left, she'd have a reason not to forgive him, or perhaps even increase his punishment.
After thinking it over, Hoshimi couldn't be sure what Yukino's true intentions were.
But since it was possible, he decided to just sit and wait. After all, as a grown man, he wasn't worried about being approached by random troublemakers.
Besides, he could use this waiting time to continue practicing his breathing technique.
The training for this technique was really a test of patience. If he wasn't careful, he'd lose the rhythm of his breathing. At this rate, with his half-hearted practice, who knew when he'd fully master the technique?
"Hoo... Hoo..."
Shaking his head to clear his thoughts, Hoshimi emptied his mind and began practicing the breathing technique required for "Water Breathing."
Nine shallow breaths, followed by one deep breath — the first cycle was called "Nine Shallow, One Deep."
The second cycle involved alternating one shallow breath and one deep breath — "Rise and Fall."
The third cycle used reverse abdominal breathing, "Nine Deep, One Shallow"...
Each set consisted of seven cycles, completing one full round of the Water Breathing technique.
Such a complicated breathing pattern... Hoshimi had no idea how the "Martial Artist" had managed to invent it.
As he continued practicing, doubt crept in — was this really effective?
"Hoo... Hoo..."
Distracted by his wandering thoughts, Hoshimi's breathing began to falter.
He scratched his head, preparing to clear his mind and start again with the Water Breathing technique.
But just then, he saw Yukino returning empty-handed.
Raising an eyebrow, he looked at her as she approached. "Yukino, where's the stuff you were going to buy?"
Yukino took two pieces of chewing gum out of her skirt pocket and handed them to Hoshimi. "Chew both at once."
"..."
Puzzled, Hoshimi unwrapped the gum and popped both pieces into his mouth.
They were mint-flavored, and as he chewed, the refreshing taste of mint filled his mouth and throat.
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