"What about the second volume?" Shizuka slapped his head, responding with action to his previous remark.
Before he could lift his hand to rub his head, Shouko quickly and gently rubbed it for him.
"Just a few hundred more words and it's done."
Shouko said protectively, "Auntie, I've already reserved it. When Tsuna finishes writing, he has to show it to me first."
"Alright, then I'll be second," Shizuka picked up the milk nearby and took a sip, holding up two fingers to the two people next to her.
"After I finish the second volume, I don't plan to submit for a short period," Tsuna interrupted their conversation.
As soon as he said this, it naturally caused confusion for Shouko and Shizuka.
Before they could ask in confusion, Tsuna quickly explained, "I'm thinking of submitting again in my third year of junior high. In the meantime, I'll finish writing this book."
"That's fine. It doesn't matter when you submit, as long as the book is finished," Shizuka waved her hand casually upon hearing this.
She thought to herself, as long as this kid wasn't so discouraged that he didn't dare to try submitting or continue writing.
Otherwise, she was even planning to take him to see a psychologist. Why else would he be so discouraged by just one rejection?
Tsuna rolled his eyes at his mom helplessly. So the book was the main point, huh?
——————
Let's rewind to the first day Tsuna submitted his work.
A middle-aged man with a receding hairline, wearing a suit and carrying a briefcase in his right hand, was in the elevator. At the same time, he was adjusting his clothes using the reflection on the elevator wall with his left hand.
"Ding..."
As the sound of the elevator rang out, it stopped on the third floor, and the elevator doors slowly opened.
The middle-aged man stepped out of the elevator and saw an open glass door. To the right of the door hung a rectangular silver plaque: 'Futaba Publishing'.
The man took a quick glance and walked in.
"Coming in so early today, Uncle?"
"Morning, Takakura."
The middle-aged man forced a smile and greeted the security guard sitting by the door, drinking tea with a fawning expression.
The other party responded to him but didn't pay much attention afterward. Takakura, as the security guard called him, also knew better than to linger and returned to his desk.
At the same time, he didn't forget to curse under his breath.
He placed his briefcase next to the computer, pulled out his chair, and sat down. His beer belly bounced quite expressively with his movement.
After clocking in on his phone, he quietly turned on his computer, ready to handle the day's work. While waiting, he didn't forget to listen to the conversation between the two people at the next desk.
"Do you remember the benefit the president mentioned yesterday?"
"I remember. How could I forget such a great benefit?"
"But I think he's just drawing a picture."
"That's possible."
"For a book, the publisher gets 40% and the author gets 60%. The president said that if we can sign a hit book, the publisher will give up 5% to the signing editor."
"I think it's just a pipe dream, and we don't even know how to define what kind of 'hit book' the president is talking about."
"That makes sense."
As the computer turned on, the middle-aged man withdrew his attention and stopped eavesdropping, beginning his day of reading manuscripts and handling some editorial tasks.
"'Anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day' – what's the point of such a long name?"
The middle-aged man opened the first submission in his email, muttered the name aloud, and couldn't help but shake his head.
"They don't think they can get signed just by having such a long name, do they?"
The middle-aged man simply looked at the name and immediately exited, typing 'What is this?' in the reply field and setting it to send automatically after seven days.
————————
"Tsuna, school starts tomorrow. Are you happy?"
Shouko lay on his bed, staring intently at the ceiling, swinging her fair legs, and asked casually.
Tsuna stopped typing upon hearing this and turned to Shouko on the bed, forcing a smile:
"Happy. I can finally see my beloved classmates and Nobe again. I'm incredibly happy."
He couldn't believe that this nearly two-month winter break had passed in the blink of an eye. He clearly remembered being rejected just yesterday.
How could school be starting tomorrow in the blink of an eye?
"So fake," Shouko turned her head to look at him.
"Then why did you ask..."
Shouko chuckled, ignoring his speechless expression, and continued talking to herself:
"Yesterday, I heard Ajitani and Takagi-chan say that our school seems to have a lot of campus events in the second semester."
"So?" Tsuna wasn't interested in any of those campus events, but he still responded.
He felt it would be better to give him a few more days off instead of having these events.
"Our school is holding a Sports Festival in October."
"Sports Festival?" Upon hearing this, Tsuna's dormant memories began to revive. He thought the Sports Festival should be similar to a sports day.
However, he had participated in sports days in college in his previous life, but as for a Sports Festival, he only knew a little about it from light novels...
Shouko saw his expression and knew he didn't understand, so she patiently explained to him:
"I heard them say that it's basically students participating in relay races, ball games, fun competitive events, etc., grouped by class or grade.
Then, we first-year junior high students will likely be teamed up with older students to cultivate teamwork."
After hearing the explanation, Tsuna nodded and asked further, "Are there any other campus events?"
"Hmm..." Shouko took out her phone from her pocket and looked through their chat history. "Don't rush, let me check."
A little while later, Shouko sat up and read from their chat:
"Found it, found it. There will be a Culture Festival in November." After saying that, she explained on her own:
"It's mainly for students to showcase artistic and academic achievements, such as class plays, handicraft exhibitions, science experiment displays, etc.
Then, we first-year junior high students might participate in simple choral performances, art exhibitions, or class booth operations."
After explaining, Shouko stood up directly, walked quickly to his side, pulled out a chair, and sat down, excitedly saying, "The important part, Tsuna! The important part is here!"
"Go on, go on, I'm listening."
"We might also have a school trip in the second semester!!!
It's just that Ajitani and Takagi-chan said the time for the school trip isn't fixed, and it seems like other schools don't have school trips in the first year of junior high.
But! Our school does!
And the trip for first-year students is usually 1-2 days, mainly focusing on historical and cultural sites in nearby prefectures and cities."
Seeing Shouko say so much in one breath excitedly, Tsuna quietly picked up the water glass from the table and handed it to her: "Drink some water first, calm down, okay?"
"Mhm, mhm."
Shouko saw that it was his cup but didn't hesitate at all. She reached out and took it, slowly drinking after licking the rim of the cup slightly.
This action naturally left Tsuna in front of her completely bewildered...
He hadn't even taken a sip of this water since he poured it...