Arriving upstairs, Mrs. Yoshikawa opened the door, stepped aside, and turned around to greet Soya behind her.
"Please come in, Soya-kun."
It was too bright outside the window. In order not to affect the rest of the patient on the bed, the curtains were tightly drawn, leaving the room in darkness.
Entering the room, Zonggu looked at the girl lying on the bed and was speechless for a moment.
It turned out that she was really sick.
The top honors student in Class A of the first year has a body as delicate as most girls of the same age. The only thing that is outstanding is her beautiful and smart head.
"If Sotani-kun feels it's too dark, just turn on the lights or open the curtains. It doesn't matter. I'll go down first."
"Wait a moment……"
He turned around, and Mrs. Yoshikawa, who was wearing a mask, had a smile in her eyes. She closed the door and left without giving him time to refuse.
Snap.
"..."
Zong Gu was speechless and could only stay in the room for a while before going out.
"Mother……"
The successive movements made Hongzi regain some consciousness on the bed and tossed on the pillow a few times.
"I'm so hot..."
After watching her for a while, Sogu walked to the window and opened the curtains further.
It was around four o'clock in the afternoon, and it was still bright outside. The light shone in through the gaps, driving away the darkness.
He walked slowly to the head of the bed. Hongzi closed her eyes, stretched out her arm and a leg from the quilt, and spoke hoarsely.
"Mom...it's so hot..."
Her pajamas were messy, with the top button unbuttoned, exposing one side of her collarbone. Sweat wet her short hair, which stuck to her face as she tossed and turned, and her thin eyebrows were lightly frowned.
There is a basin with a towel on the stool next to the bed. On the other side are her mobile phone and glasses, as well as antipyretics and a water bottle.
Pulling the mask on his face, Soya picked up a towel, soaked it in the basin, wring it out, and then gently wiped the sweat from Anko's forehead and face.
"Well..."
She tossed and turned, twisted her body, and raised her head slightly, revealing her sweaty thin neck, and her meaning was obvious.
"..."
After a slight pause, Zonggu quickly wiped it a few times and made a quick decision.
As soon as she straightened up, she tilted her head again, signaling him to continue wiping the other side of her neck.
After being soaked in cold water, the towel was wet and cool. When it was wiped on the neck to take away the sweat, Hongzi's brows gradually relaxed.
Wow.
After throwing the towel into the basin and washing it for a few times, Sogu wrung out the towel, folded it into a piece, and placed it on her forehead to announce the end of the sweat-wiping service.
Hongzi was not satisfied yet. She closed her eyes and pulled down the quilt covering her chest. She also pulled at the collar of her pajamas to show that she was sweating a lot.
"..."
Before I could wipe my body with the wet towel, the quilt that had been pulled down was pulled back up again.
"Mother?"
Hongzi opened her eyes, but the person standing at the head of the bed was not her mother.
Although her vision was hazy, she immediately recognized the familiar figure in front of her and her eyes widened.
"Eh..."
"Let Mrs. Yoshikawa take care of the rest." Soya took a step back and looked at her, his eyes calm, all his emotions hidden behind the mask, "I'm going back first."
"..."
After a moment of astonishment, Hongzi touched the glasses on the bedside and put them on. When Sogu opened the door, he called out to him.
"Wait a minute...is Akane here too? Ahem...didn't I tell you not to come over?"
"No, Kirino is at home." He stopped and looked back at her, "I'm the only one here."
Hongzi pursed her lips and waited for him to explain the reason for coming to visit alone.
"A-Cheng asked me to send some documents, and they have been handed over to Mrs. Yoshikawa."
"...Really, thank you."
With her arms supported on the pillow, she sat back again, and the towel on her forehead fell down, "Thank you for your hard work, Soya-san."
"You're welcome. After all, we live close by, so this is an unavoidable responsibility."
"..."
"That's it, I'll go back first."
Zonggu glanced at her one last time and closed the door.
"Take good care of yourself and wish you a speedy recovery."
Snap.
"..."
Looking at the closed door, Hongzi was silent for a while, grabbed the towel, tried to use force but had no strength, and only threw it a little distance away.
She even sat up with her sick body in hand, didn't she just want to talk more?
How could he just turn around and leave?
"Sotani-kun, are you going back now?"
Arriving downstairs, Mrs. Yoshikawa also looked over in surprise.
"Yoshikawa-san is still a little weak, so I won't disturb her rest."
Soya bent down, touched Alpine who was shaking her head, and said: "Yoshikawa-san said she was very hot and sweated a lot."
"Oh……"
Mrs. Yoshikawa was startled and put down what she was doing, "I'll go up and take a look. Soguya-kun, please feel free to do so. There are cold drinks in the refrigerator."
"I won't bother you. I have some things to do after I get back..."
"Okay then. Be careful on the road."
Saying goodbye to the Alps, Soya walked out of the yard of the Yoshikawa family and looked back thoughtfully.
"..."
Hongzi stood by the window on the second floor, holding the window sill with both hands, looking at him expressionlessly.
Zonggu shook his head secretly, waved to her, and left without looking back.
After watching his back disappear around the corner of the alley, Hongzi lay back on the bed. After a while, Mrs. Yoshikawa came up with a basin that had been replaced with water, and the towel she threw on the ground was also washed carefully.
"Feeling better?"
"Well... I'm not that dizzy anymore."
The wet and cold towel fell on his forehead again. Hongzi turned to the side and said, "I wiped it here."
Mrs. Yoshikawa picked up the towel and was not surprised, "Sotani-kun?"
"..."
She said nothing and nodded.
"What about this side of the neck?"
"I wiped it too." Hongzi looked out the window, "Just wiped it here."
"Are you embarrassed to wipe other parts?"
Mrs. Yoshikawa smiled, unbuttoned her pajamas, and pulled them open to both sides.
"Sotani-kun is so gentle and shy...Did he notice that Anko was not wearing underwear?"
"..."
Hong Zi curled his lips.
That's not what happened... He just didn't want to touch her more.
With the turn of her body, her pajamas were completely taken off. The towel wiped her chest, armpits and arms on both sides. She turned over again and let her mother continue to wipe her back.
"Okay..." Mrs. Yoshikawa wiped the sweat from her forehead, "I'll take my temperature later."
"Um...thank you, mom."
"What do you want for dinner?"
Hongzi thought for a while, "Rice balls..."
"Rice ball? Can you eat it?"
"Then make it smaller, I want to eat it."
"Okay... then let's make plum rice balls." Mrs. Yoshikawa agreed, but then changed the topic, "Why didn't Anko act coquettishly with Soya-kun when he was here just now?"
"..."
The daughter didn't say anything. She twisted the towel and continued: "Sotani-kun likes to cook, and I think he will be very happy with it. Besides, there should be no boy who can refuse our Hongzi's coquettishness."
"..."
He can refuse.
With her upper body naked, Hongzi lay on the pillow, her face turned to the window again.
"He doesn't want to."
Several days had passed, and those intense, unforgettable and hysterical experiences had soaked into the pillow with tears. Once she calmed down, her mood became much more stable.
"Ah, did Hongzi and Sotani-kun have a fight?"
"No."
"Then why has Hongzi been so depressed these past few days?"
"...The weather is too hot and I'm in a bad mood."
Mrs. Yoshikawa smiled, stroked her daughter's smooth bare back up and down, and patted her twice more.
"Could it be said that Sotani-kun has got a girlfriend?"
"..."
Hongzi was silent for a while, "I don't know. What does this have to do with me."
"Are you so dishonest in front of your mother?"
Turning her head inward a little, with half of her face buried in the pillow, she whispered: "If you are too frank, I will cry."
Mrs. Yoshikawa opened her mouth and probably understood.
"Is there a cuter and more outstanding girl beside Soya-kun than Anko..."
"have no idea!"
"Have they started dating?"
"..."
Hongzi was silent for a while, "Probably not yet...otherwise Akane would definitely tell me."
"In this case, Hongzi still has a chance, right?"
"..."
She buried her face completely into the pillow.
"I'm going to cry."
Mrs. Yoshikawa turned her daughter over, "Isn't she still crying?"
Pulling the quilt, Hongzi completely covered herself in it, and a dull voice came out.
Mrs. Yoshikawa sat down by the bed, "Mom has been married for more than 20 years, and she married your sister. It turns out that she still doesn't understand anything."
"..."
A hand slowly stretched out from under the quilt and touched her lower back.
"Has Anko confessed to Soya-kun?"
"No……"
Mrs. Yoshikawa's tone became surprised, "Without a confession and without being rejected, Hongzi just gave up?"
"Confess or not, the result will be the same..."
"Hongzi is so unsure of herself."
There were dull words coming from the quilt, "He doesn't like me."
"Is this what Soya-kun said?"
"That's what I think..."
Mrs. Yoshikawa smiled.
"But mom feels that if you had no feelings for Anko at all, Soya-kun wouldn't be so cautious."
"..."
After a moment of silence, the quilt was pulled down a little, and only Hongzi's eyes were exposed underneath.