A massive wave of snow rolled down.
It churned up chunks of snow that grew larger as they fell, bringing an icy chill.
"Hurry, back to the villa!" Kogoro Mori shouted, his face pale.
"Heiji! What about Heiji?"
Kazuha's face was white as she watched Heiji's back disappear into the trees.
"He'll be fine. Listen, let's get back to the villa," Vermouth comforted her.
Although the avalanche wouldn't hit them here, it was better to be safe.
Luckily, this was just a partial avalanche, not a major one. A major one would be a real disaster.
The group quickly left to get help at the villa.
Heiji skied quickly through the forest. He didn't need to look to know what the thunderous sound behind him was.
[I'm so unlucky.]
If it were Vermouth out there, he definitely wouldn't care.
But Sonoko... honestly, that girl was careless, but he remembered that kiss at her birthday party.
"I've got to save her first."
He sighed.
He shot through the trees.
Sonoko was leaning against a tree, her eyes wide with terror as she watched the snow roll down.
Her snowboard was broken. She couldn't run.
"I'm going to die~"
Her face was pale. She had nowhere to run.
Even though the snow was still a ways off, she couldn't escape unless she could fly.
Her mind went blank...
"Dad... Mom... Heiji..."
Only those words echoed in her head.
"Heiji? Heiji wouldn't give up."
Sonoko suppressed her fear, quickly took off her snowboard, and started to trudge through the deep snow, one difficult step at a time.
She had no chance, but she didn't give up.
She bit her lip and moved forward alone.
The sound grew closer, the rumbling shaking the ground.
"I'm going to die... Heiji..."
She didn't have to look to know the snow was close. The last person on her mind was Heiji.
"My only regret... is that I never confessed to you."
Sonoko stopped and slowly closed her eyes, waiting for death.
Swoosh~
Suddenly, Sonoko felt herself being lifted into the air.
"Heiji???"
She opened her eyes and was overjoyed at who she saw.
"Are you okay?"
Heiji looked gently at her. He had been right there, ready to grab her, and had heard her last words clearly.
"Heiji, did you come to save me?"
"Obviously. What, you think I came out here for fun?" Heiji said, annoyed.
Sonoko froze for a second, then burst into tears, hugging his neck tightly.
She was crying from sadness and joy, but mostly from a deep sense of happiness.
"Sonoko, where's a cliff?"
Heiji's expression was grim. This was no time for crying.
"Over there."
Sonoko pointed, her eyes filled with tears.
"Are you afraid to die, Sonoko?"
Heiji turned and skied straight for the cliff.
"I am. But since you're here, I'm not afraid."
Sonoko buried her face in his chest and whispered.
"Good. Let's take a gamble. We're going to jump. Let's hope a tree catches us."
He felt her tremble at his words, but then she just held him even tighter.
Heiji smiled. It was a silent trust.
They burst out of the trees, and the cliff edge was right in front of them.
"Sonoko, hold on tight! Close your eyes."
He felt her grip tighten. A glint appeared in his eyes. He was about to use his "Air Glide" skill.
Luckily, the gap wasn't huge. Only about ten meters.
Even if he made the jump, it wouldn't be that suspicious. It could just be called good luck.
Sonoko felt her body go light. The wind whistled in her ears. Her face was pale, and she hid in Heiji's arms.
RUUUUMBLE!
The avalanche poured into the ravine, sending up a white mist and a deafening roar.
THUD!
Sonoko felt them hit something, but she wasn't hurt at all.
She carefully opened her eyes, and they went wide.
"Heiji, we..."
"We got lucky. There was a ramp-like shape in the terrain. We just flew right over," Heiji chuckled.
"We're not dead?" Sonoko cried out with joy.
"Of course..."
Suddenly, Heiji's eyes focused. Sonoko was kissing him.
He sighed inwardly, then wrapped his arm around her waist and took the lead.
A long time later, Sonoko rested in his arms, her face bright red.
"Heiji, can you accept me as your girlfriend? I'll beg Kazuha... I won't make her sad."
"I'll talk to her."
Now that he had accepted Sonoko, Heiji wouldn't play any secret games. It wasn't fair to either of them.
Sonoko said nothing. It all felt like a dream. She suddenly had the absurd thought that she was glad the avalanche happened.
With the satellite phone, Kazuha and the others found them easily.
There were, of course, many dramatic tears of relief.
With Kazuha's satisfied cry, the room finally went quiet again.
"Kazuha..."
"Heiji... did Sonoko confess to you?"
Heiji's eyes went wide.
Kazuha rolled her eyes and hugged him. "Don't think I don't know. If I want to be a lawyer, I have to be observant."
"When we got back, the way Sonoko looked at you was the same way I look at you."
"She must have confessed. Otherwise, she would have been more careful."
"You knew all along. What are you going to do?"
Heiji admitted he had underestimated Kazuha. It wasn't that she didn't know; she was just pretending not to.
"What else can we do? Sonoko is my best friend. And... she can help me share some of the... pressure."
Her voice became very quiet at the end, full of shyness.
"I'll talk to her tomorrow, then."
"No, let me. Otherwise, Sonoko will just overthink things."
Heiji could only hug her tightly.
Kazuha rested in his arms.
----
In another room.
"Gin, I've discovered a very interesting secret."
Vermouth's voice was sly.
"Can you jump ten meters on skis?"
"With momentum and a ramp, ten meters is no problem."
"But what if there is no ramp? Just skiing straight down and clearing a ten-meter cliff."
"Impossible. With wind and no ramp, even eight meters would be difficult."
"But Heiji Hattori did it. While holding a woman who weighs about 90 pounds."
The other end of the line went silent.
"Drop it for now. You have a mission. Come back immediately."
Vermouth put down the phone, a smile on her lips. "Heiji Hattori... what kind of secrets are you hiding?"
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