As Yukinoshita Yukino's mind wandered, she felt her senses become exceptionally sharp.
She heard sounds coming from the kitchen and couldn't help but imagine what Masao Tanaka was doing.
[Is that the sound of running water? Is he washing his hands?
Hmm, no, the sound of water is lasting a bit long, he must be rinsing the rice.
But Tanaka-kin is really wasteful, he doesn't turn off the water while rinsing the rice.
How much water resources will be wasted? I must give him a good lecture.
He's been rinsing for so long, the rice must be very clean now. Tanaka-kin is quite particular about his cooking.]
After a while, the sound of running water in the kitchen stopped. Yukinoshita Yukino closed her eyes and listened carefully.
[Hmm, that's the sound of chopping vegetables. Green onions? Will he add anything else?
Has he started cooking? As long as he doesn't overcook it or put strange things in it, it should be edible.]
As Yukinoshita Yukino thought, her somewhat dazed state, combined with the faint sounds from the kitchen, gradually lulled her to sleep.
After an unknown amount of time, Yukinoshita Yukino heard someone calling her.
"Hey, Yukino, Yukino, wake up. Eat something before you go back to sleep."
Masao Tanaka finished cooking the porridge, scooped it into a bowl, and waited for it to cool down before bringing it over.
He originally intended to call Yukinoshita Yukino out to eat, but he happened to see that the door to her room was not closed, and Masao Tanaka immediately understood.
[This must be an invitation for me to go into her room.]
He barely hesitated before carrying the porridge in.
Contrary to his expectation of a minimalist decor, Yukinoshita Yukino's bedroom was surprisingly dominated by pink and filled with many stuffed animals.
Masao Tanaka saw that one of the stuffed animals he had won from a claw machine and given to her was also placed in the room.
There were even several mr. pan panda stuffed animals on her bedside table.
[Speaking of which, does Yukino need to hug a stuffed animal to fall asleep at night?]
Masao Tanaka imagined that scene, combined with the decor style of Yukinoshita Yukino's room.
[Yukino is inexplicably very girlish. This kind of gap moe is a bit cute.
But is this one of Yukino's unspeakable little secrets?
Will she kill me in a fit of rage?]
Just as Masao Tanaka's mind wandered.
Hearing the call, Yukinoshita Yukino opened her eyes.
What greeted her was Masao Tanaka looking around.
"Tanaka-kin, it's very impolite to look around a girl's room like that."
Hearing this, Masao Tanaka withdrew his gaze and looked at Yukinoshita Yukino.
She was lying on the bed, only her head visible. Her words, though the same as usual, conveyed an indescribable meaning in this state.
If he had to describe it, it sounded less like a reprimand and more like a whine.
Indeed, illness not only affects one's physical state but also one's mental state.
[Sick Yukino is really charming. Actually, it wouldn't matter if her cold never got better.]
Yukinoshita Yukino: Let me thank you.
It was obviously unrealistic to wish Yukinoshita Yukino to be sick forever; that would make her head go bad.
Masao Tanaka cleared his throat, selectively ignored Yukinoshita Yukino's words, and said,
"The porridge is ready. Here, I'll feed you. Ah~"
Masao Tanaka took out a spoon, scooped up some porridge, and offered it to her.
The porridge was cooked very thick, and the white rice with finely chopped green onions looked quite beautiful.
A little salt was added to the porridge to give it some flavor and stimulate the appetite.
Yukinoshita Yukino did not obediently open her mouth to eat the spoonful Masao Tanaka offered.
Instead, she sat up in bed, leaned against the headboard, and took the bowl and spoon from his hand.
"I can do it myself."
Yukinoshita Yukino gently blew on the porridge in the spoon a few times before tentatively opening her mouth to eat it.
Masao Tanaka, seeing his carefully prepared, white and very thick porridge being eaten by her, asked with some anticipation,
"How does it taste?"
Yukinoshita Yukino chewed a couple of times and nodded slightly.
"Hmm, it's not bad, edible."
"Is that all? Yukino is really cold."
"Then what should I say?"
Yukinoshita Yukino asked Masao Tanaka while eating the porridge.
"At this time, you should say this."
Masao Tanaka cleared his throat and demonstrated.
"This porridge~, perfect."
"Sorry, I really can't praise it so exaggeratedly as Tanaka-kin, as if nothing happened."
"Then Yukino, you still need to learn and practice a lot.
For example, you can make some onomatopoeia.
Oh~ oh~ oh~, Zetton or something."
...
With Masao Tanaka's words, the originally somewhat quiet room became much livelier.
Although Yukinoshita Yukino didn't say it aloud, she somewhat liked this feeling.
When a person is sick, their body becomes vulnerable, and this vulnerability affects their spirit.
Even Yukinoshita Yukino, who usually appeared confident and strong, was no exception.
Moreover, she only *looked* strong; in reality, Yukinoshita Yukino's heart was also very fragile.
Having a rather distant relationship with her family, she yearned even more for their approval and companionship.
Lying alone in bed when sick, with no one else around, Yukinoshita Yukino also felt loneliness and desolation.
So when she heard someone ring the doorbell, her heart was filled with joy.
Her hazy head cleared, her tired body regained strength, and at the same time, she was full of anticipation.
[Could it be that my family heard I was sick and came to see me?]
So the moment she opened the door and found it wasn't her family, Yukinoshita Yukino felt a little disappointed.
[Does my family really not care about me anymore, not even when I'm sick?
Is my family not even as good as a friend I just met?]
However, Masao Tanaka's arrival indeed made her feel less lonely and uncomfortable, and even gave her a strange sense of security.
Just now, while he was cooking, she felt incredibly warm. That short while, she slept more soundly and comfortably than she had all day.
[This feeling is really nice. How great would it be if it could last forever.]
[+20]