Chapter 229

Hitori's foundation was worse than Ishikawa Hayato had imagined, perhaps even Kita than Kita's, who had only attended classes briefly last semester.

Fortunately, she was serious enough, focused and patient enough that she even surpassed Ishikawa Hayato in her dedication to tutoring him.

"Falcon, this... I still don't quite understand."

She carefully asked her question, and Ishikawa Hayato patted her head encouragingly after hearing it.

"The approach here is like this..."

After studying for a while, Ishikawa Hayato had a general understanding of Hitori's situation.

She's the kind of person who can't find the key point. Despite her hard work, all her efforts seem to lead in meaningless directions. No one tells her what to do, so she doesn't know how to change.

And she didn't dare ask.

He had no choice but to smash his head against the south wall and die.

I'm so glad she didn't stand the guitar upright and play it like a pipa.

Faced with Hitori's extremely poor foundation, Ishikawa Hayato had no choice but to cram in his teaching with the goal of getting him through this make-up exam.

Within the limited time, he not only taught Hitori, but also prepared questions for the areas Hitori didn't understand and the possible questions for the makeup exam.

After explaining the questions, he handed the test paper to Hitori. She didn't complain at all, took the test paper, and started writing.

Their obedient demeanor was extremely pleasing to the eye.

Because the questions Ishikawa Hayato initially set were relatively simple, Hitori finished them in no time.

"There are problems in these few places, Hitori."

After she finished writing down the questions he had given her, Ishikawa Hayato took the paper and began to explain.

Hitori looked at the paper in his hand with great unease, while secretly glancing at him, seemingly a little worried about Ishikawa Hayato's feelings for her.

Ishikawa Hayato immediately noticed her gaze and stopped explaining.

"Oh right, I haven't praised Hitori working so hard to finish it yet."

He smiled and looked at Hitori. To be honest, he found raising Hitori very interesting, and such an obedient fiancée deserved to be pampered.

Hitori panicked immediately, waving her hands and saying, "Then... then, it's even harder for Falcon to give me questions."

"Let's reward each other then."

As Ishikawa Hayato spoke, he stood up and leaned closer to her, who suddenly became honest and shy.

His cheeks touched hers, brushing against hers lightly; his slightly coarse hair rubbed against her fine hair; finally, forehead to forehead, he spoke softly at such close proximity.

"Keep up the good work so you don't end up in the hell of retaking exams!"

"... Um!"

Hitori his words, Ichiri snapped out of her reverie and regained her fighting spirit.

Ishikawa Hayato sat back down, glanced at the exam paper again, and said to her.

"Hitori's current level should be enough to barely pass this makeup exam, but it's safer to do it again."

After he finished speaking, he turned to her and smiled.

Could he really meet his expectations? Under these circumstances, Hitori couldn't help but worry.

But seeing her expression, Ishikawa Hayato seemed to understand something, and he said casually.

"If necessary, Hitori could try to believe in 'Hitori, whom Ishikawa Hayato believes in.'"

Hitori felt a jolt in his heart, and at the same time, he felt a surge of power flowing into his body.

Even after being "mind-read" so many times, she couldn't help but think...

Mind reading is incredibly cunning.

After explaining Hitori's mistakes, Ishikawa Hayato handed her the next test paper he had just finished writing.

Despite the similar nature of the questions, Hitori remained patient and diligently worked through them.

While she was writing, he went and wrote down the key points of the next subject as questions on the paper.

He had finished writing the questions, but hadn't finished the Hitori.

He leisurely looked Hitori.

At this moment, she sat upright, her small and delicate back ramrod straight. Her eyes were fixed on the test paper, her brows slightly furrowed, but this expression did not show any seriousness on her weak face. She still looked like someone who was easy to bully.

Her long hair hung down beside her temples, and her soft strands would sway slightly when a breeze passed by.

Under the table, her feet were also firmly planted on the ground, her fair and soft thighs and calves bent at nearly 90 degrees, and the girl's graceful figure was displayed to the fullest by her upright sitting posture.

In autumn, she exuded a vitality that seemed out of place for the season.

She looks completely different now compared to her former gloomy self. I bet if she smiled now, she could shatter her past self's consciousness and leave her bedridden for days.

Although Hitori was so beautiful that Ishikawa Hayato longed to be closer to her, he still needed to ensure she passed her makeup exams smoothly. Otherwise, a lot of their time together would be taken up, which would be even more of a loss.

He checked the time and decided to finish explaining the important points so that she could find the right direction for problem-solving and learning, after which she could study on her own in the afternoon.

It would be too pitiful if one spent the entire lunch break studying.

As he was arranging the Hitori study session, his phone suddenly rang.

"Oh, I'm sorry."

Ishikawa Hayato took out his phone and stood up.

"Hmm~"

Hitori shook her head in denial, her voice nasal, but her blue-green eyes lingered on Ishikawa Hayato's hand with a concerned look, as if she cared quite a bit about who had called him.

"It's cold."

Ishikawa Hayato smiled and patted her head, then said, "I'll go take it. Hitori, continue with your work."

Hitori nodded easily and continued working on his problems at his desk.

Ishikawa Hayato answered the phone after leaving the classroom.

Liang: "Why did it take you so long to answer?"

Her flat tone carried a hint of dissatisfaction.

Ishikawa Hayato chuckled inwardly. He felt that his future wives were all incredibly jealous and extremely wary of him.

"I'm in tutoring Hitori, Liang. What's up?"

As he spoke, he stood in the corridor and Hitori at the classroom. Seeing her diligently working on her problems, he walked a few steps further away.

"Yes, I heard about the tutoring."

Liang casually changed the subject, her tone becoming cheerful as she skipped the pleasantries and got straight to the point, offering her win-win proposal.

"I went home to study for my makeup exam today, so I won't go to the CD packaging shop. Hayabusa, buy me that bass I sent you on LINE later."

Her final tone was practically like a pouty whine.

Ishikawa Hayato seemed to see Ryo's adorable smile as she begged for money.

Although he had considered whether to take this opportunity to be alone with Nijika, he didn't expect Liang to give him a "helping hand" first.

"You sold your childhood sweetheart with just a bass guitar," Ishikawa Hayato said without hesitation.

"I feel like I got ripped off by being left out, but that won't do. We need to add another one."

"What?"

"Go home tonight, wash up, and wait for me."

His meaning was clear enough, and Liang paused for a moment before smiling and speaking.

"Don't go with Nijika, she won't be back tonight."

"There's no way Nijika would be that proactive."

Hearing Ishikawa Hayato's words, she gave a soft "hmm" in agreement.

The call between the two was silent for a short while. Ishikawa Hayato heard Ryo sigh and then hang up the phone without saying a word.

Ishikawa Hayato stared silently at the frozen call time on his phone.

He could sense a hint of amusement in Liang's voice, but it sounded like she had been troubled and hesitant for a long time.

Even someone as proud and self-assured as her would back down for him; love truly is an addictive thing.

Ishikawa Hayato put down his phone, leaned against the railing, and looked ahead.

Sunlight shines on the sandy ground surrounded by the rubber track, where white lime lines define the terrain in the yellowish-brown sand.

He let out a long sigh.

A moment later, the late autumn wind ruffled the handsome boy's long hair in the corridor, but his sharp eyes beneath his raised bangs were softened by the gentleness of spring.

The collar of his school uniform jacket swayed slightly.

After a day of classes, the trio who used to go to the Starry Night together were now reduced to just Ishikawa Hayato.

But Ishikawa Hayato still glared at the make-up exam group in the distance, looking pitiful as they headed to the cram school together.

He'd done everything he could, even tutoring Kita during the afternoon study session. Now, all he could do was wish the two of them a safe departure from the tutoring room.

"I'll be waiting for your good news from the other side of the stars."

He called out to the two of them.

They stopped and turned around.

"We'll definitely get through the make-up exam! Hayato-kun, just you wait."

Kita, who had been looking dejected, suddenly smiled and waved energetically Kita hearing Ishikawa Hayato's words.

Hitori glanced at Kita with slight admiration, then clenched his fist and nodded to Ishikawa Hayato from afar.

Ishikawa Hayato smiled, turned, and walked towards the stars.

On the Shimokitazawa, Ishikawa Hayato walked slowly. Although Ryo had given him a chance, he wasn't in a hurry to resolve everything today.

There are five days left until the deadline Nijika agreed to give him a reply.

Everything settled down naturally after that.

He's not the kind of person who'd use any trick to win someone's heart. Rather than going to great lengths to win someone over on a whim, he prefers a stable relationship that can last a long time.

He has a very open-minded view of things; he moves forward when he should, retreats when he should, and even goes as far as he feels like, acting entirely according to his mood and in a direction that feels comfortable.

He strolled leisurely, observing his surroundings. The summer heat in Tokyo was dissipating quickly; it was only early September and the weather was already quite comfortable. On the street, you could see people wearing short sleeves, long sleeves, or even just a light jacket.

The scenery here is very similar to the first time he came to Fanxing.

He walked slowly, wondering what kind of expression Nijika would have when he saw her later.

But not far from the flowerbed next to the Stairs to the Stars, he saw Nijika.

She hesitated during the night raid, standing by the flower bed with an expression that suggested she was about to look down at the Starry Night Shop, but dared not. Ishikawa Hayato walked over and asked her when he was a few steps away.

"What happened? Are you locked out of your house?"

Nijika's back trembled slightly, and she turned around in surprise.

"Hayato-kun?"

Ishikawa Hayato walked to her side, glanced down, and seeing that the gate to the Starry Sky was tightly closed, he asked Nijika, who was still in a daze.

"Could it be that you really forgot your keys?"

"I brought it." Her expression was complicated. After saying that, she walked towards the front of the Starry Sky store and asked.

"Why are you so late today, Hayato-kun?"

Ishikawa Hayato followed her; he sensed what she was thinking, he said.

"Although Ryo gave me a chance, I don't want to rush things. Anyway, Nijika will give me an answer in a few days."

He never treated them like idiots. Liang deliberately gave them opportunities, and there would be time for them to spend alone together. Nijika would definitely notice.

Since she definitely knows, there's no need to hide it.