Renji Kamisaka regretted his own cruelty and shamelessness, yet at the same time, he could feel Shiina Mahiru's soft, fragrant touch in his embrace. Be despicable if you want to be shameless, he thought, a thought at odds with his guilt.
"Sayu, don't leave," he whispered again, hugging Mahiru tighter. A warm, fragrant, and soft jade in his arms, or rather, the angel who always had her own ideas, Shiina Mahiru. As a normal boy, Renji Kamisaka naturally felt himself 'standing at attention'. But he claimed it was triggered by his passive skill, "Gold cannot be plundered," not because he wanted to oppress anyone. It's a normal reaction, he tried to convince himself.
Shiina Mahiru felt extremely embarrassed, her cheeks flushed to her ears. She was a little scared, and her expression quickly became panicked. She wanted to push Renji away. I told you I'm not Sayu, you can't hug me like this, her inner voice screamed. However, Renji hugged her too tightly. She couldn't break free for even a second.
On the other hand, Renji Kamisaka caught a cold because he tried to bring her an umbrella. Mahiru thought to herself that this was just compensation for him, so she unconsciously stopped struggling. What's more, this hug actually felt warm. Could Sayu always feel this warmth? She felt a little envious. But... Why is he getting hotter and hotter and more terrifying?
Renji Kamisaka didn't go too far. He did this only to create an unexpected intimacy with Shiina Mahiru. If I go too far and she finds out I'm pretending, she'll hate me and it won't be worth it. So he mumbled, "Sayu, no matter why you ran away from home, Sakurasou will always be your home."
Having said that, he carefully released the girl's slender waist. Shiina Mahiru was stunned for a moment, then immediately broke free from his embrace. She raised her hand to touch Renji's forehead and instantly frowned. "So hot!" "Is he having a fever again?" Even when he's delirious with fever, he still remembers to comfort Sayu. What a sweet relationship, she thought.
As she spoke, Shiina Mahiru couldn't help but purse her lips slightly, feeling a little sour, a small pang of jealousy creeping in. She immediately returned to her room, took a fever reducer from the spare medicine box, and gave it to Renji Kamisaka. Then she gently wiped the sweat from his face.
Otherwise, why is it said that faking sickness is a technical job? Renji thought to himself. It was truly difficult for him to sweat all the time. However, if you want to do something pleasurable and get your blood boiling, it's not impossible to warm up your body. Keep standing.It looks indecent.
Shiina Mahiru's face was flushed the entire time, and she tried not to look. But every now and then, she would glance at him, curiosity mixed with embarrassment. Yet she always couldn't help but cover her mouth when she gasped. So scary...
Confession and the Bond of Friendship: Two Wounded Souls
An hour later, Shiina Mahiru looked at Renji Kamisaka, whose fever had subsided, then stood up, composed herself, and smiled. She felt an inexplicable sense of accomplishment, a relief. However, when I looked towards the door, I felt guilty. Originally, the task of taking care of this boy should have fallen to Sayu Ogiwara. Why did she let me come?
In Shiina Mahiru's mind, she couldn't help but recall Renji Kamisaka's dream talk just now. ["Sayu, don't leave. No matter why you ran away from home, Sakurasou will always be your home."] So the beautiful girl who looks gentle and playful, Sayu Ogiwara, actually ran away from home? She felt surprised. Apparently, she's about my age. It's illegal to secretly take in a high school girl.It seems Renji Kamisaka is very fond of Sayu.
However, why did Sayu Ogiwara run away from home? Now, would she leave Renji Kamisaka and Sakurasou? That's why she didn't mind me taking care of Renji Kamisaka. Is she hoping that after she leaves, there will be someone to distract him? Shiina Mahiru's mood became complicated. She didn't want to be a substitute!
However, she remembered this man who ran to give her an umbrella when she felt so distressed. Imagining the warmth she felt when he held her tightly in his arms earlier, Shiina Mahiru's heart was in turmoil, filled with colliding emotions.
After wiping Renji Kamisaka's cheeks and neck with a towel, Shiina Mahiru tiptoed out of his room. She entered the living room. At this moment, Sayu Ogiwara had finished her housework and was sitting on the sofa to rest. She saw Shiina Mahiru come out, so she asked.
"How is Renji Kamisaka?"
Shiina Mahiru answered truthfully, her voice a little subdued. "He had a fever again, but he's fine now."
When Sayu Ogiwara heard that he had a fever again, she suddenly became nervous, her eyes widening, but when she heard that the fever had subsided, she immediately felt relieved, a long breath escaping her lips.
Shiina Mahiru observed her expression, and after hesitating for a moment, she still asked, "Sayu, did you run away from home?"
"Hey, how did you know?" Sayu Ogiwara looked surprised, her eyes wide.
Shiina Mahiru sat down beside her and said with mixed feelings, "Student Renji just spoke in his sleep, and I accidentally overheard him." She lowered her head. "He asked you not to leave, saying that Sakurasou will always be your home."
Sayu Ogiwara was stunned for a moment, then the corners of her mouth curved into a sweet arc. "I won't leave, this is my home." Her tone was firm.
Shiina Mahiru frowned, a genuine concern radiating from her face. "But taking in a high school girl without permission is an illegal act. What if your family comes looking for you?"
However, Sayu Ogiwara had a confused expression on her face. "He won't look for me. If he really cared about me, why hasn't he come to me yet? Hey, Shiina, do you know why I ran away from home?"
Shiina Mahiru shook her head, her eyes filled with sympathy. "I don't want to know. If you're willing to talk, I'll be the best listener." She paused for a moment, then her voice trembled, "Besides, I'm in the same situation as you. My mother didn't approve of me leaving that [house] because I moved to Sakurasou without permission and she scolded me for it." A bitter smile etched her lips. "It's so funny. I've tried to be an excellent person and remain excellent, wanting to gain my parents' approval, but yesterday I was told that no matter what I do, my birth was a mistake from the beginning." She lowered her head. "So I'm also a runaway."
When Sayu Ogiwara heard this, her eyes suddenly brightened, full of understanding and sympathy. No wonder she always felt that behind Shiina Mahiru's perfect smile, there was an unknown secret hidden. It turned out that she, too, was a child unloved by her family.
After composing herself, Sayu Ogiwara took a deep breath. "Hey, can you listen to my story, Shiina-san?"
"Of course, I'd like to listen," Shiina Mahiru replied quickly, raising her head, her eyes full of attention.
Sayu Ogiwara smiled and said, "Then you have to promise not to tell Renji. I'm not ready to tell him yet."
Shiina Mahiru nodded eagerly, an unspoken promise between them. "In return, I'll tell you my story too, and you mustn't tell anyone either."
Then, the two exchanged their life experiences and current situations, amidst the warmth of Sakurasou's living room. After they finished talking, the way they looked at each other changed. Although their situations were different, their experiences were too similar, a common thread of shared past wounds.
Yet there were still differences. Sayu was betrayed by her best friend, who committed suicide in front of her. Sayu was forced to bear all the blame, and then was hurt by her mother's disbelief. Her brother also didn't care about her. He just gave her 300,000 yuan and let her relax. As a brother, he didn't realize that what she needed wasn't money at all, but a little attention would satisfy her, otherwise she wouldn't have run away from home.
Shiina Mahiru was more prominent. She wasn't aloof and wasn't isolated because of her beauty. On the contrary, because of her approachable demeanor, she gained many "friends." But all those efforts became futile because of her mother's words yesterday. Her mother clearly said that she was an unwanted child. Neither her mother nor her father cared for her. Because of her existence, her mother and father couldn't divorce. She only lived in that "house" according to the money her parents gave her, finished high school, went to college, and gained the ability to live independently. The two would soon divorce. At that time, she would have absolutely nothing to do with those two.
After finishing her story, Shiina Mahiru couldn't stop crying, tears drenching her cheeks. Sayu Ogiwara couldn't help but open her arms and hug this girl who was so much like her. She herself cried, tears streaming from her eyes. I cried so hard out of embarrassment. However, after talking about the issue with someone else, she seemed to feel relieved and somehow became better. The main reason was that Shiina Mahiru recognized her and felt it wasn't her fault that things turned out that way.