Chapter 262

"In other words, love is the opposite of, or even surpasses, the strange ailment within my body; it is a unique treasure in a positive sense."

"No one is immune to the presence of love. The reason you feel you've never experienced it or are not good at loving is simply because you've experienced too little, making it impossible for you to give it an accurate definition."

Hoshino Ai remained silent, feeling that there might be some truth to it.

Sakurakoji Talent's voice was tinged with tenderness. "Heh, you definitely would love me too, otherwise why would you take the initiative to kiss me, right?"

Hoshino Ai shrank back, blinked rapidly, and looked away, pretending to whistle.

"Let's see you pretend!"

Seeing her like this, he was immediately furious and leaned forward.

"Waaaaah~"

A few minutes later.

"And what about you, Mr. Talent? What about your health?"

Hoshino Ai leaned against him; she was more worried about this now.

"Don't worry about that. Just two or three months ago, I finally found a way to treat it, and I'm gradually recovering now!"

"Real?"

Hoshino Ai was inexplicably happy. "Then what's the method?"

That is...

He stammered his explanation, his voice dropping considerably.

"..."

Chapter 308 Loving You and Your Boyfriend.

"No, don't look at me like that. If I could, I wouldn't want to either..."

Sakurakoji Talent awkwardly tapped his finger, not daring to meet her gaze for the first time.

"After all, it's such Strange Illness, I don't know why the treatment is this..."

Seeing that she still didn't believe him, he could only say, "Even if you don't believe in my character, you have to believe in my looks and abilities, right? If I really had any dirty thoughts, I wouldn't need to make up these lies!"

There was a moment of silence between them, until he started sweating profusely. Hoshino Ai finally looked away, nodding her chin as if she had come to a realization.

"That's true."

"Call..."

Sakurakoji Talent's eyes were filled with sorrow. [Will he have to experience this scene every time someone else joins him?]

No, I don't want that kind of thing...

After a moment of melancholy, he steered the conversation back on track. "So, love, would you like to become my family?"

"Family, huh...?"

Her delicate body trembled, a sensation that even he, standing right next to her, could feel.

"Well, because of what I just said, I might... right?"

He cleared his throat and pursed his lips. "But I promise! I'll give you something to fill your body, something that will make you forget all the unpleasant love you've had before!"

"I will give you all the love from my family, making you one of the happiest girls in the world, how about that?"

After saying that, he looked at her nervously, his eyes fixed on her.

The last time I said something so embarrassing was probably just a couple of days ago when I was talking to Kawaragi Momoka... Waaah, why is this kind of confession-like scene even more unbearable than the pain inside my body?!

"Hmm... what should I do?"

Even though she already knew the answer in her heart, Hoshino Ai still cutely shook her head, pretending to be conflicted.

Seeing Sakurakoji Talent's unusually embarrassed and uneasy expression, she laughed heartily, enjoying the process.

Only when beads of sweat, visible to the naked eye under the warm light, appeared on his face, and his complexion turned as rosy as hers, did she give her answer in a low voice.

"Um."

"Huh? What did you say?"

The sound was so soft that it seemed like an illusion.

"I said, I love you, Mr. Talent."

After saying those words with her head down, she covered her mouth in disbelief, her eyes glistening with tears.

"Oops, sorry! This is... I really didn't want it to be like this..."

She kept wiping the corners of her eyes with Hands, but the warm liquid there only increased with each wipe.

"I know."

His gaze softened, and he gently pulled her into his arms, licking away her tears.

The specific answer was already received by his body the moment she chose to kiss him.

This answer simply made her realize her true feelings.

"Don't worry, it's okay to cry. It's normal."

He patted her thin, rounded shoulder and comforted her softly.

"Ugh, uh-huh! Ah-wah, waah..."

The intermittent sobs gradually grew louder until they became wailing, echoing throughout the room and making one worry that they might disturb the neighbors.

Hopefully, no one will be so tactless as to pursue this matter; otherwise, he'll have no choice but to ask the other party to move out.

Half an hour later.

Hoshino Ai nestled comfortably in his arms, looking embarrassed. Although she had long since stopped crying, her face was still burning hot—had she really developed a fever tomorrow after having it for so long tonight?

At the very least, with so much extra heat being released, won't you get hungry very quickly?

Or, I could ask him later if I could have another dessert?

"Hehe... Haha!"

Sakurakoji Talent suddenly burst into laughter.

What are you laughing at?!

Hoshino Ai thought he was laughing at her, so she gently punched him a few times with her little fists.

He held her delicate fist in his hand, preventing her from moving, and said with a comical expression, "No, I wasn't laughing at you! Really! I just thought of something funny!"

"Fun things?"

"Well, I was just wondering what kind of expressions my parents would have when I introduce you to them."

The thought of that scene was unbearable!

"It will definitely be very interesting!"

His eyes, like red agate beads, narrowed slightly, and a mischievous smile curled at the corners of his mouth.

Even if the other party is his own parents, he still can't help but act out when he's playing pranks.

"Mr. Talent's parents?"

Hoshino Ai looked up curiously, "What kind of person is he?"

Sakurakoji Talent punished her mouth by gently tapping it, making her Shy, and then said, "You should call Talent now, and besides, they are your parents now too."

"... My parents..."

Hoshino Ai muttered to herself, a mix of inexplicable emotions welling up inside her, and she felt like she was about to cry again.

She managed to hold back her tears, sniffling, "What kind of people are they?"

"Let me show you the photos."

He took out one hand, pulled out his phone, found the couple's Group Photo on the screen, and showed it to her.

"They were so handsome and beautiful when they were young, no wonder they were so Talent... our parents."

Hoshino Ai pursed her lips and said slowly, somewhat shyly.

"What are you talking about? These photos were taken for them just a few months ago."

"Huh?"

Hoshino Ai was taken aback, stammering, "But, but..."

"There's nothing strange about it, is there? After all, they're not even forty years old yet, not even middle-aged, right?"

Sakurakoji Talent pondered, "If nothing unexpected happens, they should be able to see their grandson's grandson..."

After all, their family has a history of longevity, coupled with top-notch medical care that comes with plenty of money. Dying peacefully in their eighties would be considered an early death—we really have to praise their great-grandfather for wanting to give Rumin a younger brother.

In addition, their family is quite polarized; those who have children start very early, while those who don't are still single.

If we take twenty years old as the benchmark, saying that someone who is already a grandchild of a grandchild is not an exaggeration at all.

"Grandson's grandson?!"

Hoshino Ai was startled. Wasn't this family's sense of time a little strange...?

"No, does that mean you, Talent, already want... a child?"

Suppressing her embarrassment, she stammered.

"No, how could that be? We should at least wait until we're adults or have graduated high school."

He shook his head in denial, saying that even if he were more open-minded about these ideas, he would never do such a thing.

Moreover... he was far from being mentally prepared; if possible, he even hoped to be ready after he turned twenty...

Well, he himself was conceived by his mother right after she graduated high school.

Back then, my father, who had to repeat the boys' section of high school because he was caught wearing women's clothing, was still in his second year of high school... Hey, what's going on with you guys?

Well, at least he's an adult now, which is commendable.

"That's good."

Hoshino Ai patted her chest reassuringly, feeling relieved.

Sakurakoji Talent leaned closer with a playful grin, teasing, "What? You thought I'd let you...?"

Hoshino Ai lowered her head and covered his mouth, preventing him from saying what followed.

He moved her soft, delicate hand away and continued seriously, "That's a bit too early, but there are some things we can certainly do now."

"..."

Hoshino Ai's heart pounded, producing the loudest engine roar of the night.

She wasn't Okura Rumin, a sheltered young lady raised in a greenhouse; naturally, she understood what he meant.

Sakurakoji Talent walked around behind her, placed his Hands on the sash of her yukata, and whispered in her ear, "Ai-chan ~ Your bath just now was probably a waste of time."

"... Hmm~ Hmph~..."

A few minutes later.

In this cozy little house, decorated by Sakurakoji Talent designer, a voice, different from before but emanating from the same person, rang out, equally unsettling.

If the soundproofing here were even slightly inadequate, the white-collar and gold-collar workers around here probably wouldn't be able to sleep tonight.

Even so, tomorrow is still the weekend, so it should be fine, right?

The next day.

Accustomed to waking up early, Sakurakoji Talent was the first to open her eyes. Looking at the person next to her, wrapped in a blanket, with a peaceful expression, as cute as a hibernating squirrel, she couldn't help but smile, a faint warmth rising in her heart.

Actually, this isn't so bad.

Perhaps because my emotions were too complicated yesterday, I stared at her sleeping face for a long time, but she was still sleeping soundly and showed no sign of waking up.

What a lazy little pig... He resisted the urge to pinch her nose and held back his mischievous hands.

He must have used up the most energy yesterday, right?

He was the one who drove the engine, the one who moved things, and the one who scrubbed her body... He even dried her hair for her after the second bath; she didn't lift a finger!