·105｜Exclusive to Jinjiang·105
My sworn brother.
He ate his way from Beika Street to Beika City, and as the sun set and prepared to rise again, Kenji Hagiwara was all alone.
The numbers on the phone had just started pointing to numbers[5], and the area outside the window was still pitch black. It would be an hour later before the sky turned white from the horizon.
Kenji Hagiwara sat up, the blanket slipping down his chest to reveal faint scratches on his body.
"Really..." Kenji Hagiwara's eyes were half-closed, and his face still showed a hint of sleepiness. He smiled helplessly: "Now that the weight in my arms is gone, I can't fall asleep."
With a long sigh, Kenji Hagiwara got up, took a quick shower, and pulled out a well-tailored custom-made suit from his closet. He checked his clothes in the mirror repeatedly before grabbing his car keys and heading out.
Holding a bouquet of flowers, he entered Yomi Yorikawa's room under the guidance of police officers. Mr. Yorikawa had already arrived.
“This is it,” the police officer in a dark brown suit stopped at the door of the room, turned to look at Kenji Hagiwara, and said, “I’ll stay outside to keep watch, so I won’t go in. Excuse me.”
Kenji Hagiwara gave the police officer who was leading the way a suspicious look, then glanced at the other police officers who were waiting at the door.
It was obvious that the two police officers who had been standing with their hands behind their backs at the end of the corridor and the door of the room were the ones truly responsible for guarding and ensuring safety. The fact that the man who was leading the way was unwilling to enter the room must have had other reasons.
Pushing open the door, Kenji Hagiwara immediately realized why the policeman hadn't wanted to come in—the two men, one big and one small, were baring their teeth at each other face to face.
"Mr. Raikawa".
Kenji Hagiwara called out to Mr. Raikawa as a greeting. He placed the white bouquet in the glass vase on the bedside table, then turned to look at Yomi Raikawa: "What's wrong? Did you argue with your father again?"
Lai Chuan Huang Quan snorted and immediately complained to Hagiwara Kenji: "Kenji, let me tell you, that stinky old man is so stupid! He actually fed me rice grains up my nose!"
Mr. Lai Chuan's fingers tightened suddenly. He pretended to be calm, but a blush had already crept onto his face: "Be content. Apart from your mother, no one has ever enjoyed being fed by me."
Lai Chuan Huang Quan looked disgusted and muttered under his breath, "My mother is so pitiful, marrying such a clumsy and smelly old man."
"...?"
With veins bulging on his forehead, Mr. Lai Chuan frowned, looking like he was about to devour someone: "You've gone too far!"
"What!" Lai Chuan Huang Quan bared his teeth and growled fiercely, "You actually dare to yell at me?"
Mr. Raikawa: "...?"
Who's yelling at whom right now?
Kenji Hagiwara, who had been silent since earlier, sighed helplessly. He recalled that when he first met Jinpei Matsuda, he visited his home and witnessed a terrible scene where Jinpei Matsuda and his father, a boxing champion, were fighting, and the coffee table was overturned.
At that moment, Kenji Hagiwara was sitting on the sofa, watching Jinpei Matsuda being unilaterally beaten up because of the age and size difference. He was so embarrassed that he wanted to turn around and leave immediately.
Caught between the two Lai Chuan brothers, Kenji Hagiwara smiled helplessly. He had already adapted to and mastered the skills to deal with this situation, but he roughly understood why the police officer who had led the way was unwilling to go inside. The top boss and his only precious daughter were arguing face to face, and the superior was at a disadvantage. As an outsider, and a subordinate at that, he was so nervous that he didn't even dare to breathe.
Kenji Hagiwara smiled and took the bowl and chopsticks from Mr. Raikawa: "Let me do it. Mr. Raikawa works hard enough, so you should rest now."
He scooped up a spoonful of rice and fed it to Lai Chuan Huang Quan's mouth: "Here, ah~"
"Ah~ Awooo."
Mr. Lai Chuan sat in the folding chair with his arms crossed, frowning as he watched for a while before finally speaking softly, "Hagiwara, you're quite adept at feeding people." But as far as he knew, there were no sick people in the Hagiwara family who needed care. Could it be...?
His sharp, eagle-like eyes glanced at Lai Chuan Huang Quan, who was eating quietly while leaning against the pillow.
Kenji Hagiwara understood Mr. Raikawa's unspoken meaning. He used a spoon to pick up a piece of stewed pork that had been softened, mixed it into the rice, and fed it to Raikawa Yomi: "When I was in college, Jinpei and I would volunteer at orphanages, so I'm pretty good at taking care of others."
Upon hearing this, Raikawa Yomi first scoffed and muttered under his breath, "Jinpei doesn't look like someone who can take care of people at all."
Kenji Hagiwara frowned and smiled helplessly: "Jinpei's job is to repair all sorts of random home appliances. It's really too much to ask him to take care of people."
"You guys are really shameless, talking badly about me behind my back."
The ward door was pushed open again, and Matsuda Jinpei held another bouquet of light-colored flowers, his sea-blue eyes sparkling and captivating.
Yomi Laichuan: "Jinpei, what brings you here too?"
Matsuda Jinpei raised an eyebrow: "What, you won't let me come?"
Seeing that the vase was already full of flowers, he casually placed the bouquet on the table: "If nothing unexpected happens, Hagi and I will be taking turns taking care of you for a long time to come."
Lai Chuan Huang Quan's body had been bedridden for three years. Even though someone spent more than four hours a day exercising her muscles, she still needed at least two weeks to adapt on her own and gradually increase her exercise until all her bodily functions were fully restored.
The person chosen to take care of Yomi Laichuan must be trustworthy, attentive to Yomi Laichuan, and have sufficient strength to perform actions such as carrying or lifting her.
Mr. Raikawa couldn't possibly take care of her; he was already working himself to the bone. So, the task of helping her with her rehabilitation undoubtedly fell to the two SWAT aces.
Upon hearing this, Yomi Laichuan tightly wrapped her arms around Kenji Hagiwara and looked at Jinpei Matsuda with disdain: "I have a feeling that Jinpei will bully me when you're not around."
Matsuda Jinpei: "? Am I that kind of person?"
"do not you?"
Matsuda Jinpei sneered: "Ha!"
He really is.
But no matter how unwilling Yomi Yorikawa was, she had no choice but to accept being taken care of by Hagi and Matsu in turns.
Although Yomi Laichuan complained about Matsuda Jinpei, she was actually quite grateful to him. Besides, she couldn't possibly ask Kenji Hagiwara to take a month off to take care of her.
but!
The condition is that Matsuda Jinpei doesn't pinch her cheeks every time he passes by!
After disposing of the sorted trash at the designated location, Matsuda Jinpei washed his hands and came out of the bathroom. As he passed the sofa, he casually pinched Raikawa Yomi's cheek and said, "I used to think that the baby fat on your face was from eating too much, but it turns out it was something you were born with?"
I pressed my index finger firmly on Lai Chuan Huang Quan's face twice; it was soft and easy to pinch.
Lai Chuan Huang Quan glared angrily at Matsuda Jinpei, wishing he could break his hand: "You stinky gorilla, wait until I'm fully recovered, I'll beat you to death."
“Oh,” Matsuda Jinpei said coldly, “It’s not certain who will win, you weakling bread.”
Lai Chuan Huang Quan: ?
"Matsuda Jinpei, you deserve to be single! Do you hear me?! You deserve to be single!"
“Tsk,” Matsuda Jinpei raised an eyebrow, “Believe it or not, I’ll just abandon you right now.”
Lai Chuan Huang Quan suppressed the urge to roll his eyes and responded with an "Oh" just like Matsuda Jinpei had done.
Upon hearing this, Matsuda Jinpei stood up without hesitation and walked out.
Although Lai Chuan Huang Quan can now stand up and walk independently, she still needs help most of the time, and can only walk independently for a minute at most. This time, he's determined to teach Lai Chuan Huang Quan a lesson, so she won't get too cocky with him lately. Whenever he makes a move to leave, Lai Chuan Huang Quan will pout and offer him a way out, just like how they used to tease each other and then offer each other a way out when they bickered.
As Matsuda Jinpei squatted in the entryway to change his shoes, he had already planned what he should say when Yomi Raikawa showed weakness to him. But even after Matsuda Jinpei finished putting on his shoes and stood up, Yomi Raikawa did not say anything to stop him.
Matsuda Jinpei: ...?
A sense of unease swirls within him. Matsuda Jinpei suppresses the urge to turn around and look at her, taking two steps forward to steady himself on the doorknob: "Hagi won't be off work until 8 PM tonight. So, besides me, there's no one else who can take care of you."
"I'm going back now." Aren't you going to call me?
There was still only deathly silence behind me.
Matsuda Jinpei swallowed hard, realizing he might have gone a bit too far. He slowed his pace, each second feeling like an eternity. When was Yomi Yorikawa finally going to call him back?!
Just as Matsuda Jinpei's patience was about to run out, Yomi Raikawa finally spoke up: "Jinpei~"
The soft voice sounded like a pardon to Matsuda Jinpei, who secretly breathed a sigh of relief and gave a slight smile: "What?"
"When you come back, please remember to bring me a serving of peach yogurt and oden, plus double the amount of fish balls, thank you~"
...?
Before Matsuda Jinpei could even suppress his smile, he was stunned by Raikawa Yomi's outburst of demands. He twitched his lips twice, his brows furrowed as he grinned through gritted teeth: "I never said I would come back."
Lai Chuan Huang Quan rested his chin on his hands, staring at the Nichiuri TV program that was showing the Earth Ladies' Team's performance, and coldly uttered a single syllable: "Oh."
Matsuda Jinpei: "..."
Seeing that Matsuda Jinpei hadn't moved for a long time, Yomi Raikawa finally spared a glance at him: "Did you forget to bring any change?"
"...?" Matsuda Jinpei almost laughed out of anger. "Just you wait, I'll kill you sooner or later!"
After saying that, he slammed the door shut, but then eased off the force just before it hit the frame to prevent a loud noise.
Matsuda Jinpei possessed a handsome face that rivaled that of a movie star, yet his innate aura of a powerful family made people hesitant to approach him. At this moment, his face was dark, and the oppressive black aura emanating from him seemed to steal the very air, causing those around him to keep their distance.
Matsuda Jinpei silently accepted the steaming oden from the clerk and slowly walked back to his apartment with one hand in his pocket.
Light snow began to fall from the sky at just the right time.
The early winter air wasn't cold enough yet; the fine snow melted quickly before it even reached his shoulders. Matsuda Jinpei looked up at the misty sky, thinking he should hurry back, or the oden would get cold.
He quickened his pace, braving the light snow as he hurried towards his apartment. Turning into an alley uphill, Matsuda Jinpei arrived at the apartment with his curly hair already damp from the melting snow.
Matsuda Jinpei exhaled a puff of hot air and unlocked the door with his key: "I'm back."
Then he saw Kenji Hagiwara standing in front of the sofa, bending down to kiss the little girl on the sofa.
Upon hearing Matsuda Jinpei open the door, Raikawa Yomi blushed instantly, lifted the blanket and wrapped herself up like a ball, revealing only her soft, thick hair—Raikawa Yomi had been wearing her hair down for a long time and hadn't tied it up in a little bun.
Whether it was his imagination or not, Matsuda Jinpei felt as if he could see a wisp of heat rising from the top of Yomi Yorikawa's head.
But more concerned with something else than whether Yomi Laichuan was so shy she could steam her own head, Jinpei Matsuda was glaring at the smiling Kenji Hagiwara through gritted teeth: "Hagi, what's with that look? You think I came back at the wrong time?"
Kenji Hagiwara feigned delight: "Oh my, Jinpei, you can actually read the air now, that's progress!"
"Tsk, really," Matsuda Jinpei said as he slipped on his shoes and put the oden on the coffee table. "What are you doing here? Don't you still have a long time before you get off work?"
“I was craving soft bread, so I took leave and came back. Besides, Mr. Lai Chuan had explained things to the Metropolitan Police Department beforehand, and the superiors approved it quite quickly.” After saying that, he raised his hand and wiped away a trace of saliva from the corner of his lips with the back of his hand.
Kenji Hagiwara gave Yomi Rikawa a gentle smile: "Sweet and soft bread, what do you want to eat tonight~?"
Lai Chuan Huang Quan wrapped the blanket tighter around himself, his voice barely audible: "I want to eat curry rice."
"Okay, I'll go downstairs and buy it for you in a bit. Make sure you eat your fill."
"Um."
Matsuda Jinpei, caught off guard by the dog food that blocked his esophagus: "..."
Having known Kenji Hagiwara for nearly twenty years, this was the first time Matsuda Jinpei had such an urgent desire to get rid of him.
[Author's Note]
Matsuda: The root of all resentment lies within myself.
-
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