Uesugi Shio noticed Uesugi Nobuko sneakily with her ear pressed against the bathroom door, not sure what she was up to.
As she approached, Uesugi Nobuko looked at her suspiciously, "Shio—"
The last syllable dragged on for a long time.
"Um, what’s up?" Uesugi Shio replied while sucking on a lollipop.
Uesugi Nobuko’s gaze locked onto her eyes, gradually focusing intensely: "Didn’t you say before, nothing was going on between Sakura and Hanamaru Hanabi, hmm...?"
"Are you helping them hide something?"
Uesugi Shio hadn’t caught on yet, but she glanced at the bathroom, then at her aunt’s highly unusual expression.
—And ever since she got home, she hadn’t seen Uesugi Sakura or Hanamaru Hanabi.
The light from the bathroom leaked through the crack.
In an instant, she understood a lot.
The lollipop stick in Uesugi Shio’s mouth came to a halt.
She pointed at the bathroom and whispered, "Inside...?"
Uesugi Nobuko nodded slightly at her, then whispered to her: "You can even hear Hanabi-chan’s voice in there."
Uesugi Shio’s gaze lingered on the bathroom door, emitting a soft glow:
Uesugi Nobuko: "Don’t believe me? Have a listen."
"Eavesdropping isn’t good." Ear leaving the bright door, Uesugi Shio said after listening for a bit.
Just now, inside, the showerhead was softly making a sound.
Amidst it, was Hanabi-chan’s faint humming.
Her voice was barely noticeable unless you paid attention.
Hanabi-chan was either taking a bath or bathing.
Yeah, that’s it, definitely.
Uesugi Nobuko suddenly shook her head: "I’ve mentioned this several times before, but Sakura doesn’t seem to listen. This time, when he comes out, I’ll remind him again."
"Auntie... isn’t that not good?" Uesugi Shio tried to stop her.
"What mother wouldn’t be worried?" Uesugi Nobuko waved her hand casually and said, "I’ve gone through Sakura’s room but didn’t find any precautions I asked him to prepare."
Uesugi Shio didn’t expect her aunt to be so concerned, even secretly rummaging through her own son’s room.
"Sigh, honestly, I really don’t want to do this."
Looking inside the bathroom, Uesugi Nobuko sighed, "But Sakura always avoids the subject with me either by saying nothing’s wrong or by not talking at all.
"Hanabi-chan gets all shy and stammering around Meiko too."
"I’m constantly worried."
"Auntie, I think Sakura has a good sense of boundaries."
Middle-aged women always have things to worry about.
Uesugi Nobuko: "Better safe than sorry, I’ll listen some more."
Once more, she placed her ear against the bathroom door.
However, besides the sound of water, there was nothing else.
Uesugi Nobuko furrowed her brow: "Finished so quickly?"
Is the Uesugi Family all ?
Uesugi Shio couldn’t help but massage her forehead and shake her head, gripping the lollipop between her teeth and pulling at the waist of Uesugi Nobuko’s suit with both hands:
"Auntie, we really should leave, it’ll be awkward if Sakura comes out and sees us."
"Sakura has thick skin; he won’t mind." Uesugi Nobuko, knowing her son well, refused to budge.
Uesugi Shio was momentarily speechless and had to look for a breakthrough concerning Hanabi.
"But Auntie, how do you think Hanabi-chan would feel and what expression she’d have if she saw the two of us here? You know she’d be too shy to come to the Uesugi Family again."
Uesugi Shio spoke more gently:
"So, to not disturb Sakura’s happiness, Auntie should be more considerate of him. Personal space is necessary."
"What if something happens? Hanabi-chan is just 15, I wouldn’t know how to explain to Hiroki and Meiko."
"It won’t happen, Sakura is very measured. Inside the bathroom, he’s probably just helping Hanabi-chan scrub her back, nothing more." Uesugi Shio said.
"You really believe something that innocent could happen?" Uesugi Nobuko rolled her eyes.
Uesugi Shio’s eyes were lazy, nodding sincerely: "Yep! I believe it."
And then she continued:
"Actually, Hanabi-chan placed third in the long run today, I heard she almost stumbled, and knowing how much Sakura cares for her, it’s normal for little couples to reward each other."
Uesugi Nobuko expressed some doubt: "Hanabi-chan joined a long run? Her constitution isn’t that good, is it?"
"That’s not the point; the point is we should hurry to the kitchen and prepare food."
Uesugi Shio took her aunt’s hand, trying to lead her away from the area.
Steam from the bathroom was already seeping through the gaps, mixed with the scent of shampoo and water.
After repeated urging from Uesugi Shio, and some inner struggle, Uesugi Nobuko seemed to let go of her obsession.
She sighed once more and said:
"Ah, alright then, like Meiko says, even if something happens, we can raise it together. Worst case, they drop out of school to have the kid and then sort it out!"
Drifting clouds, a bright blue-white sky, continuously hinting at the summer breeze.
"Sakura, Sakura-kun... today, your lunchbox."
At the entrance of the Hanamaru house, Hanamaru Hanabi held out two small hands while looking down.
With a shoulder bag slung over, Uesugi Sakura saw her bashfulness, and his mind couldn’t help but recall the latter part of yesterday evening, where he stealthily played his small tricks after she fell asleep in the bathtub.
The sweet scent back then was lightly intoxicating, the girl so comfortable it bordered on a slight breathlessness, the thighs hidden beneath the bubbles had tender flesh where fingers could sink in.
She never woke up in the end, just remained blushing.
She probably had no idea.
Uesugi Sakura took the lunchbox with both hands, nostalgically and tentatively suggesting: "How about we take another bath together today..."