January 31st, 6:20 p.m.
Today, Utaha felt somewhat unmotivated, her mood a little heavy.
Today was her birthday. The most special day of her life.
But… Haizaki, busy in the kitchen, had not prepared any special dishes, nor any special birthday gift.
Filled with anticipation, she waited for Haizaki's surprise, yet after an entire day of waiting, nothing changed. Everything was the same as usual.
Haizaki probably didn't know it was her birthday. That made her feel a little miserable.
It was only an instinctive sense of discomfort.
Her rational side understood that Haizaki must have simply forgotten—if he had remembered, he would never have acted like this. She comforted herself that way.
"Utaha, what's wrong?"
Haizaki was the same as always, without any change. In fact, during the Spring Festival, she could clearly feel the joy he radiated because of the holiday.
"Nothing," Utaha listlessly picked up a piece of beef and replied casually.
"I see… get some more rest… the temperature is still dropping, make sure to keep warm. If you feel cold at night, you can turn up the heating. Don't worry about the electricity."
On the night of the 29th, Wuhua City welcomed its first snowfall. Wrapped in silver, blanketed in white, the earth was covered in a layer of snowy clothing.
"Mm…"
Utaha's gaze drifted toward the window from time to time.
In the night outside the villa, snowflakes could faintly be seen falling.
"Are you going out tomorrow?"
Utaha asked absentmindedly, searching for a topic.
Normally, she could find countless interesting things to talk about. Since mentioning Hiratsuka Shizuka-sensei last time, Utaha had begun asking Haizaki about many things from his high school days.
Previously, their topics had always stayed on his time in the Eastern Union.
"I'm not going out. Everything is basically done."
"Mm, that's good," she responded and continued, "This winter is really cold. Wuhua City feels even colder than Hokkaido."
"I've never been to Hokkaido, so I don't know what it's like there."
It was said that Hokkaido's snow scenery was beautiful, but he had never been there. In his previous life in Japan, he had been busy studying and surviving, without the time or money for a spontaneous trip to Hokkaido.
"Hokkaido is most famous for its winter snow scenery and summer lavender."
Utaha recalled her past trip to Hokkaido, a smile appearing at the corner of her lips—a rare and wonderful memory.
To celebrate her getting into Toyogasaki Academy with excellent grades, her whole family had traveled to Hokkaido.
"But compared to snow and lavender, I hope spring can come sooner. March and April are the peak season for cherry blossoms. I wonder if there are cherry blossoms here in Wuhua City."
Like most Japanese people, she loved cherry blossoms the most, and enjoying them in full bloom with the one she loved was a joy in life. Moreover, April 4th should be right in the middle of cherry blossom season.
"There are. The cherry blossoms at Wuhua University are quite famous in the Eastern Union."
"Really?"
If they were famous, it certainly wasn't just one or two trees—at the very least, it had to be an entire street.
"Really. When the cherry blossoms are in full bloom in March or April, let's go see them together. I've always wanted to experience Japan's so-called hanami."
"Mm. I'll definitely prepare the most delicious food."
Under the cherry trees, dining with the man she loved while admiring the beautiful blossoms—there was no greater happiness in life.
If that day happened to be April 4th, that would be even better.
On the day when the cherry blossoms were at their most splendid, she would accept Haizaki's confession. Like a dream scene straight out of a novel, Utaha—who, like all girls, yearned for romance—was already full of anticipation for that day.
She really hoped it would come sooner.
"I'll be looking forward to Utaha's cooking that day."
Since New Year's Eve, Utaha had continued practicing her cooking, trying to improve further.
Utaha put down her chopsticks. Haizaki looked over and noticed something on the girl's face. He pointed to the corner of his mouth to remind her,
"There's a grain of rice at the corner of your mouth…"
"Help me…"
Utaha froze for a moment, then stood up and leaned forward slightly, tilting her head up.
"Mm. There."
Haizaki gently brushed away the rice grain from the corner of her mouth and smiled.
A warm and sweet life, a gentleness so intoxicating—it was easy to lose oneself in it.
Only two months remained; it would soon come to an end.
Haizaki hadn't forgotten, and couldn't forget, what he needed to do.
If he allowed himself to sink irreversibly into Utaha's gentleness, he would inevitably pay tenfold or a hundredfold for it in the future.
"Go to bed early tonight. The fourth volume is almost finished, right?"
Haizaki was still paying attention to Utaha's novel progress. He was currently her only fan, and toward the light novel she cherished most, he treated it with the utmost sincerity.
This was one of the few things Haizaki could do for Utaha now—to be a loyal fan who would always love her novels.
"Mm. After one more round of checking and polishing, the final volume of Love Metronome 2 will be finished. The theme of the fourth volume is: winter scenery."
After winter scenery, she also planned to write a side story—Spring Love.
Spring was the season when romance truly blossomed. A relationship that had endured the harsh test of winter would finally bloom in spring, blossoming into the most beautiful flowers.
"Then I'll be able to read Kasumi Utako-sensei's complete work."
Utaha smiled mischievously, yet beneath the smile lingered an unshakable heaviness.
"It'll definitely satisfy you. But if you end up falling in love with the heroine, I'll be very, very angry!"
The long, straight black-haired heroine in the novel was modeled after her—both in appearance and personality. If Haizaki really liked her, she could barely accept it.
After dinner, Haizaki said he would take care of the dishes tonight so Utaha chose to return to her room.
At the corner, she glanced downstairs. Hearing Haizaki still focused on cleaning up the tableware, she finally let out a sigh.
Haizaki really had forgotten.
Giving up her last bit of hope, she returned to her room. Tonight, she needed to proofread and check her novel again.
But…
The heavy feeling in her heart ultimately made it impossible for her to concentrate. She changed into her pajamas and lay down on the bed.
"Utaha, happy birthday…"
She forced a smile and wished herself.
There had once been a time when her parents remembered her birthday and celebrated it for her—but today…
She really hoped Haizaki would remember, even if it was just a simple "happy birthday."
But he hadn't.
It hurt, inexplicably so.
Utaha let out a breath and closed her eyes.
After sleeping, everything would be fine.
…