Chapter 21: Chapter 21: In Conclusion, Just Wanting to Show Off!
Chapter 21: In Conclusion, Just Wanting to Show Off!
She could feel the temperature from the tips of her fingers.
Kasumigaoka Utaha heartbeat started to accelerate.
The sound of 'thump-thump' in the quiet living room tonight was quite loud.
Anyway, Kasumigaoka Utaha could hear it very clearly.
Yukima Azuma wrapped a bandage around the thumb of Kasumigaoka Utaha, then wrapped it two more times around her wrist.
Finally, he secured it.
Then, he let go of Kasumigaoka Utaha hand and showed her the bandaged wrist.
She could feel Yukima Azuma hand letting go.
Kasumigaoka Utaha felt a little lost.
If only time could last a little longer.
Or rather… if they could just hold hands, it would be nice to keep holding them.
She brushed away the feeling of disappointment in her heart.
Kasumigaoka Utaha began to admire the pristine wrist guard on her hand.
"This can protect the wrist, especially when doing meticulous tasks; it can reduce the strain on the wrist."
"Kasumigaoka-senpai is a light novel author, so you often have to type, right? Typing so much, your wrist must hurt a little, huh?"
"At first, it shouldn't be too serious, but if you're not careful, it could lead to tendinitis, and that would be really serious."
Yukima Azuma explained the function of the wrist guard.
Listening to Yukima Azuma's words, Kasumigaoka Utaha gently traced the pristine wrist guard with the fingers of her other hand.
She did occasionally feel some pain in her hand.
But, she didn't pay much attention to it.
But Yukima Azuma gave her this gift.
So, the joy of the gift was surpassed by the happiness she felt.
It was the feeling of joy in her heart when she sensed the care from someone else.
Kasumigaoka Utaha extended her other hand in front of Yukima Azuma.
To hide her embarrassment, she casually said:
"I thought ex-boyfriend-kun would only bring takoyaki as a gift."
Changing the way she addressed him to a teasing tone was a sign of their close relationship.
Because Kasumigaoka Utaha never teased people she didn't care about.
"If it weren't someone close, I would definitely bring takoyaki from Takomasa."
Yukima Azuma took the remaining bandage, this time wrapping her hand very slowly.
"But if I brought that for senpai, I'd definitely get scolded."
"Am I someone so stingy in ex-boyfriend-kun eyes?"
"So, that means I won't get scolded, right?"
"Yeah, senpai will forgive my kouhai-kun silly actions, and at most, I'll just step on you once."
"Isn't that worse?"
"Oh, is there a problem if I step on you?"
"Absolutely not!"
Though the movement was slow, the length of the bandage was limited.
With each word, the bandage was being firmly secured together.
Kasumigaoka Utaha raised her hand, looking at the pristine wrist guard on her wrist, and the corners of her mouth involuntarily curved up.
Under the light, her long hands, like a piece of art, were even more beautiful with the bandage adorning them.
"Take a picture for me."
Kasumigaoka Utaha suddenly said, pointing at her phone on the table.
Yukima Azuma picked up Kasumigaoka Utaha's phone.
"Give it to me, I'll unlock it for you…"
Before Kasumigaoka Utaha could finish her sentence, she heard the 'click' of the phone unlocking.
Her words stopped, and her heartbeat sped up again.
'This time, it only took one try to unlock, and he didn't even ask!'
The password for Kasumigaoka Utaha's phone was the day they met.
Yukima Azuma moved behind Kasumigaoka Utaha, extending his hand over her shoulder.
He found a suitable angle with her hands raised, then pressed the shutter button.
After receiving the phone back, Kasumigaoka Utaha stood up.
She walked up the stairs, but before leaving, she turned back.
"I really like the gift. I'll give it back to my ex-boyfriend-kun, but it took some time to choose the gift, so I'm not sure when I'll give it."
Yukima Azuma smiled and nodded.
"I'll always be looking forward to senpai gift."
Kasumigaoka Utaha hurried up the stairs, heading back to her room.
Until then, her heartbeat still hadn't slowed down.
She looked at the pristine wrist guard on her hand.
How should she put it?
It felt like no matter how many times she looked at it, she never got tired of it.
After admiring it for a while, Kasumigaoka Utaha finally opened her phone.
She went to Twitter and directly uploaded the photo that Yukima Azuma had just taken to her Twitter account.
The caption was simply the two words "Wrist Guard."
Kasumigaoka Utaha's Twitter account had been verified as the official account of "Kasumi Utako."
As a talented light novel author, the name "Kasumi Utako" on Twitter already had quite a few fans.
Only a short time after the post, the likes and comments began to increase rapidly.
[Such beautiful hands, I'm dying!]
[May I ask, should I send my tongue over or will Kasumi Utako-sensei send her hands over?]
[Wow, I searched for something like this because it's so beautiful, but this is so expensive!]
[Eh? How much is it?]
[I can only say, humans can't afford this price! Attached image of shopping software.jpg]
[Wow, okay, never mind then!]
[Am I the only one wondering, who took this picture?]
[Watson, you discovered the blind spot!]
[Right, Kasumi Utako-sensei has both hands in the picture, could it be... her tongue?]
[Damn it, what do you mean by tongue! Ridiculous! Clearly, someone must be holding Kasumi Utako-sensei while taking the photo!]
[No way! I don't believe it! I wish Kasumi Utako-sensei would say otherwise!]
[What the hell is wrong with you, it could just be a female friend taking the picture!]
Since Kasumigaoka Utaha rarely posted on Twitter before, her account mostly had posts related to her books.
She didn't even have a single personal photo.
As a beautiful novelist, this image was mainly spread through her real-life interactions and book signings.
So, even though it was just a photo of a hand, the level of discussion was extremely high.
Kasumigaoka Utaha didn't care about the comments.
She didn't pay attention to these things.
She just wanted to show off a little.
It was a bit like a child who had just gotten their favorite toy.
In short, she just wanted to show off!