Yuto was startled when he suddenly felt a hand on his waist. He opened his eyes but quickly closed them again as his head felt heavy and dizzy. Yuto frowned and pinched the bridge of his nose, thinking he must be dreaming because no one should be sleeping beside him. It had been a while since Akiko left home.But then Yuto forced himself to open his eyes, realizing the weight on his waist was real. He also noticed that his body was lying on a bed—on a soft mattress, not on a futon. Yuto turned to the side and widened his eyes. "What are you doing here?"Yuto moved away, grabbing the blanket to cover himself. He realized he was naked. Karin—who was next to him—stirred. Yuto cursed inwardly, noticing that Karin was also naked, just like him.Karin slowly opened her eyes and stared at Yuto—silent for a few seconds before screaming. "AGHH!" Karin yelled as she quickly arranged the blanket to cover her exposed body."How…." Yuto was confused, looking around. Their hotel room was where th
Akiko turned her blushing face away, embarrassed, like a thief caught in the act."Where exactly are we?" Akiko finally found the right question to ask, clearly wanting to avoid discussing why they were in the same bed."A hotel. I couldn't drive all the way to Tokyo last night, so I stopped here," Kenji explained as he pushed aside the blanket, rubbed his head, yawned, and stood up, heading to the bathroom.Akiko just nodded. She wouldn't be upset because Kenji made the right decision. Driving while sleepy is extremely dangerous. Now Akiko remembered what she did before falling asleep.They had stopped for food, and after they set off again, her stomach felt nauseous. Akiko took the last anti-nausea pill prescribed by her doctor a few days ago, and then she fell asleep. Kenji had carried Akiko into this room, and she hadn't noticed at all."We'll have breakfast, then head back to Tokyo," Kenji said after coming out of the bathroom."Okay." Akiko pushed aside all the thoughts she had
Guilt can easily affect courage and self-confidence. That’s what happened to Akiko. She hadn't been able to lift her head, and her whole body felt fragile. Akiko was trembling with guilt.If she counted from the day she tried to meet Yuto, went to the beach, and had to stay overnight for two nights—because her nausea was still quite severe—it added up to a total of eight days Akiko had been absent without a clear reason.Today, Akiko came to the office, preparing herself emotionally. She was ready to be fired and had even planned to start job hunting right away.But Akiko also planned to plead with Watanabe to give her a recommendation letter, which would give her some experience, even if just for a few weeks, hoping it would make finding a new job easier.Akiko placed her bag on the table and sat down, waiting for her fate. Waiting for Watanabe to call her.“Nakamura-san?”Akiko was startled and turned around to see Mori, who had just arrived, looking at her.“Come here.” Mori opened
Kenji realized that Akiko hadn't come home yet, causing his anger, which had slightly subsided over the past few days, to flare up again because Akiko had disobeyed his orders once more.Kenji had clearly stated that Akiko was not allowed to work overtime. He had allowed her to work, but not to stay late. Yet on her very first day, Akiko had easily violated his orders."You sure show up quickly when it comes to Akiko," Ryu greeted him in front of the second-floor elevator. He knew about Kenji's arrival from the security who recognized him."Don't make unnecessary comments; I'm not in the mood to hear them," Kenji hissed, ignoring the jab and heading straight to Akiko's office."She's still inside, right?" Kenji asked."Yes," Ryu replied. As soon as the security informed him of Kenji's arrival, Ryu made sure that Akiko hadn't left the office yet."I've already asked Mori not to burden his team with overtime. It's strange, but Mori—oh no
"Are you sobber?" Akiko asked.But Kyoko just stood there, swaying while pointing at Akiko, who was confused. Then Kyoko burst into laughter—a kind of laughter Akiko had never heard before. When drunk, Kyoko became a completely different person."Calm down a bit. I can't get you into a taxi like this." Akiko tried to snap Kyoko out of it by patting her arm, but Kyoko was already completely intoxicated.They had dinner together earlier—Mori and his two team members, ending with drinks. Akiko, of course, hadn't had any alcohol. Her feelings about her pregnancy were still indescribable, but Akiko wouldn't do anything dangerous like drinking alcohol.A few weeks ago, Akiko had gotten drunk without realizing she was pregnant. She shuddered slightly at the thought of drinking while pregnant. Akiko certainly wouldn't repeat that foolishness.Akiko had managed to avoid drinking with various excuses—the last one being that she lied about n
Yuto stared at Akiko, who was gently stroking her belly. The gesture held no significance for him.But Akiko's thoughts returned to her pregnancy. If only Yuto's offer had come before she knew about her pregnancy, Akiko might have accepted it immediately.But it was too late, and nothing could be fixed anymore. Akiko could never return to Yuto's house while pregnant—it was impossible. One thing was certain: Kaede would not greet her willingly or with a beaming smile."Does your mother know what you're doing right now?" Akiko asked.She held onto a sliver of hope, but the dull look in Yuto's eyes was enough to tell Akiko that what she hoped for was impossible.While many aspects of her life had changed, Yuto remained the same. He was still the sweet Yuto, who wanted to please his mother by always being polite and never contradicting her."It hurts. I feel so much pain," Akiko muttered, putting the empty paper cup she had been holding in
Bravery and anger surged within Akiko, as she was genuinely irritated by what Kenji had done. Yuto had disappointed her, but, in her opinion, Kenji had gone too far by threatening Yuto earlier.“How can I not get involved? Right now, you're carrying my child, and you're going to take him to that cursed house. Now you see, don’t you? Your beloved man is nothing more than a coward pretending to be a real man.” With a mocking grin, Kenji sneered.“I've already promised to protect this child, and I will. I won't foolishly take him to the Nakamura family! But what I do after that is up to me! It’s up to me to decide who I want to live with and how…”"You are contemplating reuniting with that scumbag following the birth of my child?" When he realized Akiko's hidden desires, Kenji hissed in a low voice.“Yes!” Akiko replied, but she turned her gaze away, pretending to brush her hair aside. Akiko wasn’t sure about the plan, but she still thought that Yuto was the best option for now.“Kiko-ch
Akiko couldn't help but smile as she gazed at the item she had longed for. She had been delaying purchasing this item since yesterday, but Kyoko's persistent encouragement made her feel compelled to make the purchase. So, Kyoko would be the first person to see it—besides herself.Akiko stepped out of the elevator and her smile grew wider when she saw Kyoko already there, waiting for her computer to boot up."Kyoko-chan..." Akiko called out sweetly, and Kyoko immediately looked wary, bracing herself for Akiko's sweet and clingy attack."What’s making you so happy today? You've been gloomy for a while now."Kyoko eyed her suspiciously, but Akiko just chuckled. Though the question sounded like a insult, Akiko knew it was Kyoko's way of showing concern, paying attention to her emotions every day.Of course, with all the problems Akiko had been facing, it wasn't surprising that she didn't always appear cheerful."I bought this, and you'll be the first to add your contact!" Akiko exclaimed,
Kenji glanced around, squinting in the dim surroundings. A few people stared at him—understandably so, as he towered over the others. Those who recognized him bowed immediately, pausing their movements, ignoring the pulsating music.The club wasn't far from Kuryugumi's main house, so it was no surprise some people knew him. However, Kenji did not reciprocate their gestures or show any concern. His focus was on one person he had been looking for.That person stood surrounded by at least three women, laughing as they offered him drinks."I haven't seen you like this in a long time," Kenji said."Hey! You came! Look!" Ryu shouted excitedly, raising his glass—likely filled with brandy judging by its color. Ryu, walking unsteadily, rushed toward Kenji and clung to his shoulder."Look who's here, everyone! Isn't he handsome? This is one of my friends."Ryu proudly introduced Kenji to the women who quickly gathered around him. Some of t
"What's going on with them?" Kyoko asked Akiko, glancing at Kenji and Ryu, who hadn't spoken to each other during breakfast.Now that the breakfast table had been cleared, Kenji still hadn’t said a word to Ryu—or vice versa.Usually, even if it was just a question about work or plans for the afternoon, they would talk. They never stayed silent like this. Akiko noticed it too. Yui was as quiet as usual, but Kenji and Ryu seemed odd."Did you two have a fight?" Akiko asked, sipping her tea and looking back and forth between Kenji and Ryu."Yes.""No."Kenji said yes, while Ryu said no. The two contradictory responses only made it clearer that something was going on between them.Ryu angrily glared at Kenji, to which Kenji responded with a defiant look."What? I'm just being honest," Kenji shrugged."Since when have you cared about being honest?! Choose the right time to be honest!" Ryu snapped."I was ju
"Are you leaving?" Akiko inquired, observing that Kenji was still wearing his shirt, even though his jacket had been removed. He clearly wasn't ready to sleep yet.Akiko herself was already under the covers. Today had been exhausting for her, especially after experiencing such extreme emotional shifts from fear to joy."Yes, I need to talk to Ryu. There are some work adjustments I need to discuss with him," Kenji said, sitting beside Akiko."Should I stay with you until you fall asleep? I can postpone it," Kenji offered, noticing the disappointment in her eyes.Akiko thought for a moment, then nodded. She did want that."But are you sure it's okay? Whatever you need to discuss with Ryu, can it wait?" Akiko asked.Kenji nodded. "Of course it can. If it was something urgent that couldn’t wait, I'd ask Kyoko or Yui to come stay with you. But this can wait."Kenji grabbed a pillow and placed it beside Akiko, who was lying down
"But that’s a lie. I just pretended to be pregnant," Akiko replied, shaking her head. She sensed that the doctor in front of her was making fun of her because the outrageous lie was too much for her.“What?” Rin was, of course, confused by Akiko’s reaction. She understood Akiko might find it hard to believe, but the confession was strange. She had no idea Akiko had ever pretended to be pregnant.“Yeah, she didn’t ask for mochi or anything,” Kenji chimed in, expressing disbelief.“What?”Akiko and Rin asked at the same time because Kenji’s response was even stranger.“She wasn’t nauseous or anything; she looked normal,” Kenji said, still trying to steer the conversation away from Mochi.“Pregnancy without nausea is quite possible. It’s likely Tanaka-san is experiencing such a pregnancy. You don’t remember when your last cycle was; that’s prob
"Are you sure you're not experiencing dizziness or nausea?" Kyoko inquired, observing that Akiko was dismissing the symptoms."Not at all." Akiko shook her head and moved on to the next question.Akiko was sitting on a hospital bed, filling out a questionnaire to narrow down what was happening with her body. Akiko had already undergone several tests, including CT scans and more, with Dr. Hayashi earlier in the day. But the results were negative.Dr. Hayashi had confirmed there was no recurring tumor—for the second time. So, he concluded something else was causing the nosebleeds, though he didn’t yet know what.Hayashi asked Akiko to answer a series of questions to better understand her condition. It was a somewhat strange method, but necessary since Hayashi was still in Tokyo and couldn’t come immediately as Kenji had requested. He had a few surgeries to perform and could only fly to Osaka the next day.So, Akiko had been answerin
"Is this the last one?" Akiko asked as she stepped out of the car and looked at the building in front of her.The large building was shaped like a church, with towers and a European-style design in a reddish hue. But Akiko didn’t see the name of a church on the sign attached to the gate. The sign read "Akarui Hizashi," which roughly means "bright sunlight.""Yes, let's go inside." Yui opened the iron gate and entered as if the place were very familiar to her.Akiko understood the building's purpose after seeing its huge yard. Children were running around, playing with the fallen leaves scattered everywhere. Akiko noticed a broom lying near their feet; they were too busy playing to finish their chores."This... is an orphanage," Akiko finally understood."Yes, this is the orphanage where Ryu and I grew up," Yui said."Oh, Ryu was here too?" Kyoko stepped forward to observe the surroundings."Yes. This is one of the orphanages man
"What is that?" Ryu asked, intrigued as Kenji suddenly stopped moving."A letter." Kenji snapped out of his daydream, startled by seeing the name Ishida. It was his name; there was no doubt about it, but seeing Masaki write that name felt like something unpleasant was looming.Upon opening the unsealed envelope, Kenji discovered several documents of varying sizes and thickness. He chose one particular piece of paper that stood out—it was sealed in a plastic clip and folded. Kenji opened it.The document inside was a marriage certificate, with the names Kenji Tanaka and Akiko—Ishida. The certificate also included their photo, stamped with a hanko seal."What does this mean?!" Ryu exclaimed, staring at the name Ishida following Akiko’s name, confused."What kind of crazy joke is this?" Kenji was furious. He had no idea what the letter meant, especially with Akiko being referred to as Ishida.Kenji grabbed another sheet, sligh
Kenji drummed his fingers on the table, staring at Murakami, who was bowing deeply before him, clearly displeased."Is that all you have to say to me? Don't make me regret sparing your life! I want information, not nonsense about how you don’t know anything!" Kenji hissed as he stood, and Murakami immediately recoiled in fear."I truly don’t have any information about the other ichizoku involved in that business. Everything was handled by Nidaime himself. I only found out by accident that there were other clans involved. Nidaime unintentionally let it slip."Murakami explained, glancing at Kenji's feet, which were now positioned close to his face. He bowed again, his body trembling as he imagined those feet flying toward his head.But Kenji was in a far better mood than before. He simply looked down at the back of Murakami’s head."My father couldn't have handled this on his own! He must have—""Maybe he did. Nidaime
Akiko, together with Kyoko, followed Yui down the unfamiliar corridor of the house. Even for Kyoko, who had been there longer than Akiko, the place felt foreign. Eventually, Yui led them to the second floor.The large wooden staircase, a deep brown, appeared sturdy, though it likely had been there for many years."I’m taking you upstairs so that you can have a better view of this place and what you now possess," Yui said, directing her words specifically at Akiko."Yes," Akiko nodded. As Akiko was now Kenji's wife, she understood that Yui was referring to ownership."We’ve arrived." Yui spread her arms, leaning against the wooden railing of the second-floor balcony.Of course, Akiko gasped in awe. From the balcony, they could see the entire area surrounding the large house.In addition to a garden, Akiko could make out the roofs of smaller houses scattered around the estate—houses she had seen when she walked in the day bef