Gift
Valentine's Day.
The cool winter morning light streamed through the kitchen window, casting bright spots of light on the countertop.
The air was filled with the slightly bitter aroma of dark chocolate.
Melting, temperature control, cooling, and shaping—I'm getting better and better at it.
Finally, she put the chocolates that had been poured into the molds into the refrigerator to chill.
As soon as she closed the refrigerator door, a pair of arms wrapped around her from behind.
He caught a whiff of the familiar scent of water vapor from her recent bath.
She relaxed and leaned back into his arms, her slightly cool hand covering the back of his hand that was wrapped around her waist. She looked up at him and said, "It's still early, why don't you sleep a little longer?"
This person just got back last night; they should be adjusting to the time difference now.
I didn't see you.
When he woke up in the bedroom, the bedside was empty, and he instinctively looked for her. Hearing faint sounds from the kitchen reminded him that today was a special day, and she should be in the kitchen.
Stepping out of the bedroom, he saw her silhouette in the morning light, and a feeling of longing mixed with peace enveloped him.
So he stepped forward and pulled her back into his arms, resting his chin on her cheek, his high, straight nose brushing lightly against the sensitive skin behind her ear, and called to her in a low, almost sighing voice:
“...Mero.”
This is another side of Tezuka Kunimitsu, who always appears calm and collected, that he has never been seen before. He is deeply in love with someone and can reveal his most vulnerable self to her without any reservations.
He Zou's lips curved into a silent smile.
His embrace wasn't tight, but it carried a deep sense of dependence. His warm breath sprayed against her ear, and his slightly disheveled chestnut hair, not yet completely dry, tickled her.
"Did I disturb you? Do you want to go back to sleep for a while?" Her voice was filled with laughter and affection.
Tezuka shook his head, his deep voice carrying an unusual languor: "I'm not going to sleep."
Kazusa turned her head to the side and could see that he had his eyes closed, his thick, long eyelashes casting shadows under his eyes, leaning against her completely relaxed.
Her heart had already melted, but she still had the urge to tease him.
He Zou turned around in his arms, raised her hand, touched his collarbone with her fingertips, then slid down to rest on his chest.
Her eyes sparkled, and she spoke with a smile: "But, Guoguang..." She deliberately dragged out her words, "I was asleep when you came back last night. Don't you owe me something?"
His bathrobe belt had come undone at some point, revealing his beautifully sculpted collarbone and chest.
No matter how many times I look at this body, I still find it beautiful.
Her hand continued its restless downward movement, its implication clear: "Isn't it said... absence makes the heart grow fonder?"
Tezuka finally opened his eyes.
Those deep brown eyes were darker than usual, with a hint of amusement and... a quiet longing stirred up in the morning.
Although he had kissed her last night without her knowing, he now took her mischievous hand in his palm, lowered his head, and answered her with an upright expression: "Yes."
His voice remained deep, and his breath, close to her lips, had become hot, mingling with her equally hot breath.
A direct and deep kiss.
After a long while, the two pressed their foreheads together to catch their breath.
He Zou felt that the way this person looked when he was consumed by lust was simply too much.
"Does Guoguang want to eat chocolate later, or...?" The last two words disappeared into her breathy voice.
She tilted her head and lightly touched his burning earlobe with her lips, her tone light and mischievous.
Upon hearing this, Tezuka's deep eyes revealed an even more pronounced smile.
He tightened his arms around her, and suddenly, without warning, used his athletic strength to support her buttocks with one hand and, with a little force, lifted her up into his arms.
The sudden loss of weight made He Zou let out a soft "ah" and instinctively wrapped her arms around his shoulders and back. He carried her steadily toward the bedroom.
As the morning light grew brighter, a teasing laugh, tinged with soft panting, drifted from the bedroom—
"Hmm... this year's chocolates, I... I made liqueur-filled ones again... Guoguang, do you want to... try making them again?"
***
"……chocolate?"
During her lunch break, Kazusa stood alone on the balcony, pondering what to give in return. Just as she was racking her brains over what to give, a spiky-haired boy silently appeared behind her and offered her this suggestion.
"Tomorrow is February 14th." Sadaharu Inui's eyes gleamed as he grinned, revealing two rows of teeth. How to describe it? He was the kind of person who would get pointed at by kids and called "weird uncle" if he walked down the street.
Oh, Valentine's Day.
Wakana wasn't surprised that this person suddenly appeared here, after all, the same Liu from Rikkai University was also elusive, and the two were said to be friends.
Moreover, it must be said that his suggestion was very timely.
Wakana wasn't angry or embarrassed at having her thoughts exposed, because she hadn't meant to hide them; her intentions were probably that obvious to others.
She let out a soft breath and looked up at the exceptionally high and distant sky after the snow. The intense light made her squint.
The winter sun is more like the light refracted by glaciers, without a trace of warmth, which she didn't particularly like in the first place.
But now, she feels that this kind of sunlight is also very nice, dignified, silent, profound and reserved.
It looks a lot like someone's gaze.
That was the first time she saw him. When their eyes met, her heart skipped a beat for no apparent reason.
For the first time in her life, she felt that way. It was as if the whole world was gradually receding into the distance, and she was floating in mid-air, the only thing holding her back from drifting away being those deep brown eyes.
The feeling of your heart fluttering is wonderful.
But at that time she was still a little unsure whether it was because she had saved a patient with her own hands for the first time and had too many complicated emotions in her heart, and his appearance was just right, and his eyes gave her an undeniable sense of reality, which made her have a misconception.
She thought that the feeling would fade away with time.
More than a month later, time seems to have proven her right.
Until I saw him again.
In the winter, she felt something reviving within her.
He, despite all this, still moved her deeply.
He was certainly an outstanding person. However, Kanade knew that it wasn't just those qualities that attracted her.
Her mother once told her, "If someone brings you joy, touches your heart, or even calms your soul, and their inner qualities are a wonderful calling and a touch to your soul, then they must be the right person for you."
She shook her head when she heard a doctor say such mysterious things, and thought that such a person was troublesome.
Just like how her father treated her mother, she would feel restricted and find it too troublesome.
At that moment, Mom laughed so hard she fell into Dad's arms. What did she say as she stroked the top of Dad's head?
Hezou easily unearthed that sentence from the depths of his memory.
Mom said, "We'll encounter it, and we'll understand when we do."
Sure enough, Mom is always right.
He Zou suddenly realized that Valentine's Day really is a holiday.
"But Tezuka doesn't like sweets~"
Um?
He Zou turned his head to look at the newly emerged cat head.
Um……
This was the first time she had met someone who was even more afraid of the cold than she was, and that person was an athlete.
It was his break time, so he wrapped himself up again, layer upon layer, until he was a fluffy ball.
He Zou was a little worried that if he accidentally slipped and fell, he might bounce twice on the ground.
She remembered that the cat-headed boy's name was Kikumaru Eiji. She didn't bother to recall his information; mainly, it was because in the training hall that morning, as soon as he took off his jacket, he started his usual hissing and hugging her tightly.
Seeing how cold he was, He Zou felt the same way, as if his own warm, fresh arms had just been exposed to the cold air.
If he's so afraid of the cold, what force compelled him to come and climb onto the open-air balcony?
Those big cat eyes looked at me excitedly, blinking.
Harmony and clarity—the power of the Eight Trigrams.
It must have been the limit for a curious and active cat to have been holding back since morning.
However, Kazusa did not intend to reveal more of her thoughts to them.
She smiled and said to the two of them, "Tezuka-kun has been a great help, so we should give him a chocolate."
Sadaharu Kan provided a useful piece of information: "Based on past experience, Coach Hanamura will definitely organize everyone to make handmade chocolates together in the evening."
"The liqueur-filled chocolates are nice, meow~"
"Very useful information, thank you both."
After watching Kazusa walk out of sight, the two faces, which had been wearing enthusiastic smiles, exchanged a knowing smile, which turned into cunning and anticipation.
As Gan said, at dinner time, Coach Huacun and the German team borrowed the kitchen of the training center and, amidst the chaos, finished making the obligatory chocolates for everyone, ensuring that no one was missed.
Coach Huacun is a person who is passionate about life and has a strong sense of ritual. She even prepared different colors and patterns of wrapping paper from somewhere in this environment.
He Zou carefully selected one from among them, a dark blue that looked the simplest and most understated.
The next day, the training center was bustling again because of a gift from Coach Huacun.
"Happy holiday, Tezuka-kun. This is a thank-you gift." She smiled gracefully as she handed out the chocolates, just as she had when giving them to others.
Tezuka paused for a moment, then regained his composure, politely accepted the gift with both hands, and nodded slightly: "Thank you for your trouble."
Back in his room, he looked at the box of chocolates for a moment, and although he rarely ate chocolate, he opened it anyway.
Inside is a common dark chocolate shape, which doesn't look fancy. Perhaps it's not made often, because there are still some jagged edges that weren't completely cleaned up when it was unmolded.
It made people smile.
He picked one up and put it in his mouth—the taste was mellow and slightly bitter, a flavor he could accept.
However, once you bite into it, the rich liquor filling inside bursts open instantly!
Caught off guard, Tezuka swallowed the whole thing, and being completely unprepared, the taste of the strong liquor almost immediately hit him.
When Kanade arrived at the agreed-upon medical room that evening to perform his routine check-up, she immediately noticed that something was wrong with Tezuka.
He was still standing by the window, this time with his arms crossed over his chest and his shoulders resting on the window railing, in a relaxed waiting posture.
Hearing footsteps, he turned around, still expressionless, but Kazusa noticed that his reaction was a beat slow.
Upon seeing him, he paused for a second or two before speaking in a lower, slower voice than usual: "...You've arrived."
Something's not right.
He Zou frowned slightly and quickly walked up to him. Only when she got closer could she smell a faint scent of alcohol mixed with chocolate on him.
"...!"
He Zou immediately understood, feeling both guilty and amused. How could his alcohol tolerance be so poor?
But leaving him leaning there wasn't a solution, so she leaned closer and whispered, "Tezuka-kun, are you alright?"
Upon hearing the voice, Tezuka slowly lowered his head, seemingly having some difficulty focusing. His gaze fell on Kazuna's face, and his usually sharp and clear eyes now seemed to be veiled in mist, appearing exceptionally gentle.
Suddenly, he raised his hand and, rather clumsily, gently touched her cheek. Then he whispered something, his voice so soft it was almost inaudible:
"Thank you, chocolate...it's delicious."
After saying that, he breathed a sigh of relief, and his body swayed slightly.
He Zou instinctively reached out to help him up—
"?!"
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