After more than four hours of driving, they arrived at the doorstep at 6 a.m.

Logically, Taira Sakurako should still be sleeping, as her wake-up time is eight o'clock. Minamoto Tamako also thought she was asleep, so she took a shower right away, jumped onto her big bed, and snuggled under the covers to wait for Fushimi Roku to join her in catching up on sleep.

Fushimi Roku wasn't foolish. While Minamoto Tamako was showering, he touched the heat vent behind the television. It was warm—then he touched the casing, which was a bit hot, feeling like you could fry an egg on it.

There was no need to guess; they knew Taira Sakurako had been playing games all night.

Fushimi Roku didn't plan to expose Taira Sakurako and decided to play dumb while knowing the truth.

He walked into Taira Sakurako's room. The little girl was pretending to sleep, lying motionless on her side. He conveniently confiscated the VCR to prevent any late-night surprises, then sat at the edge of Taira Sakurako's bed and asked sinisterly, "Are you asleep?"

Taira Sakurako naturally didn't respond; she kept her eyes tightly shut, hugged the quilt, breathing steadily.

Fushimi Roku lifted her small hand and said to himself, "I've heard that when people are asleep, they can't feel it when someone lifts their hand."

After saying this, he let go, and Taira Sakurako's small hand fell back onto the bed with a snap.

Feeling playful, Fushimi Roku muttered to himself again, "I've heard that people in deep sleep keep their hands raised when lifted."

After saying this, he picked up Taira Sakurako's small hand again and let go, and once again, her small hand plopped back onto the bed.

Fushimi Roku frowned, thinking it wasn't fun anymore. She was too clever to fall for such a clumsy trick, not behaving like a child at all.

But remembering how Taira Sakurako sensibly took the bus home yesterday, Fushimi Roku decided not to fuss with her and turned back to close the door.

He took a shower, changed into pajamas, and crawled into Minamoto Tamako's bed. Theoretically, they could sleep in separate rooms now, but he chose not to follow theory, instead following his heart.

Just as Fushimi Roku lifted the covers, preparing to hug her, he discovered Minamoto Tamako lying on her side on the pillow, eyes closed, breathing evenly, as if she was already asleep.

Pretending?

Fushimi Roku felt he hadn't taken long in the shower; Minamoto Tamako couldn't have fallen asleep so quickly, no matter how tired she was.

It's very likely that she was feeling shy and chose to pretend to sleep.

Real or not, it would be clear with a test.

Fushimi Roku repeated his trick, asking softly, "Are you asleep?"

Minamoto Tamako didn't react at all, appearing to be in a deep sleep.

Come to think of it, she had been exhausted all day. The eating, drinking, and having fun over this period had drained her energy, and staying up late in the car tonight made falling asleep unintentionally quite normal.

Fushimi Roku tentatively lifted her small hand, raising it high, and said to himself, "I've heard that people deep in sleep can't feel their hands."

After saying this, he let go, and Minamoto Tamako's little hand fell back down.

Fushimi Roku, undeterred, lifted Minamoto Tamako's small hand again and adjusted his script: "Speaking of which, I once heard a fun fact that in deep sleep, people's limbs remain rigid. If you lift their hands, they'll stay put. This phenomenon is called..."

He couldn't think of a proper lie on the spot, so he randomly fabricated, "The zombie effect."

After saying this, Fushimi Roku released his grip, only to see Minamoto Tamako's small hand hang in mid-air, indeed unmoving.

"..."

Fushimi Roku thought, this one is more naive and gullible, too easily believing others, and trusting anything from encyclopedias.

He pressed Minamoto Tamako's little hand down, turned her over to face upward, and said, "I've heard that people who are sleeping will stick out their tongues when kissed."

After saying this, Fushimi Roku leaned over, purposely brushing his finger against Minamoto Tamako's soft lips.

Sure enough, Minamoto Tamako took the bait, sticking out her little pink tongue like a cat. Fushimi Roku touched Minamoto Tamako's cheek with his right hand, rubbing her tongue with his thumb. She quickly realized it, murmured softly, turned her face away, and covered her head with a pillow.

"I-I was already asleep! It's all your fault, disturbing my sleep..."

Minamoto Tamako was very unconvincing when lying; rather than rebuking, it was more like she was acting spoiled.

Fushimi Roku lay down beside her, covered himself with the quilt, closed his eyes, and said, "Sorry, I thought you were sleeping deeply. I won't tease you anymore, sleep now, sleep now. We have to start working tomorrow, so it's better to sleep early and wake up early."

Minamoto Tamako murmured a response, secretly peeking through the gap in the pillow. She observed that Fushimi Roku indeed had no intention of continuing, feeling inexplicably a bit disappointed.

But Fushimi-kun was right, the holiday was over, and they both had to start working again.

As for Taira Sakurako, she should have returned to school long ago. Although she could have skipped grades, frequently skipping classes wasn't a good influence.

Minamoto Tamako lay back down, but couldn't sleep. She opened her eyes, observing Fushimi Roku, watching as his body gradually relaxed, and his breathing became more and more even.

Was he truly asleep?

Minamoto Tamako pursed her small lips, quietly asking, "Are you asleep?"

Fushimi Roku didn't respond, showing no reaction, seemingly genuinely asleep.

Minamoto Tamako then lifted Fushimi Roku's hand, mimicking Fushimi Roku's test to see if he was asleep.

Fushimi Roku's hand dropped straight onto the bed, leaving Minamoto Tamako momentarily dumbfounded, wondering if he was truly asleep or not, only then realizing she had been tricked earlier.

So annoying!

Too annoying!

Minamoto Tamako decided she must win back this round. She extended her small hand, touched Fushimi Roku's lips, and he still didn't react, appearing genuinely asleep.

Next chapter will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.