"Akira, I'm going back to sleep now. I have to get up early tomorrow," Shouko Nishimiya said after finishing the last bit of water in her cup and standing up.

"You don't have to wake up so early," Akira replied, watching her walk lightly toward the door with the empty cup. He tried to persuade her—Shouko had been making his school lunch since the first semester. If she didn't, she could sleep an extra thirty minutes.

"No," Shouko shook her head firmly as she pulled open the door. Before leaving the room, she added softly, "Good night," and closed the door behind her.

"Click…"

Only after the door shut did Akira withdraw his gaze. He checked the time: 22:13, then turned back to his unfinished manuscript of Anohana. Just the final volume remained.

He felt 100% confident in this light novel. Unfortunately, his first submission had landed in the hands of a shortsighted editor. Even though Akira had deliberately chosen someone with four to five years' experience at Futaba Publishing, his work still hadn't passed.

Shaking off the irritation, he rubbed his brows and focused. He wanted to finish the last few hundred words before 10:30 p.m., then sleep early to be ready for his morning run.

———

Meanwhile, Shouko went downstairs, washed the cup clean, and put it back in place. Slowly, she walked toward the living room.

"Auntie, same as usual tomorrow. No need to prepare a lunch box for Akira."

Miyamura Shizuka, who had paused mid-yoga stretch, turned back to look at her and nodded. "Alright, but it's no tr—"

"It's no trouble, Auntie. I'm going to sleep now. Good night!"

Shouko quickly cut her off, waved, and hurried away.

"Click…"

Shizuka stared blankly at the door until the faint sound of the main door closing reached her ears. Only then did she return to her stretch.

———

"I'm home!"

"Lower your voice. Your grandma and sister are already asleep," came Yaeko Nishimiya's voice from the living room.

"Oh," Shouko said quietly, shutting the door behind her before slipping into her slippers. She padded quickly into the living room.

"Mom, you're still working?"

Shouko sat down beside her, noticing her mother still focused on the laptop screen.

Without looking away, Yaeko asked, "When you came back, did you see whether Uncle Miyamura was resting?"

"No," Shouko shook her head. "I saw Uncle Miyamura still in the study. He should still be working."

The sound of typing filled the silence. After ten minutes, Yaeko finally stopped and turned to her daughter with a puzzled look.

"Is there something you want to tell me?"

Shouko hesitated, then nodded. "…Mom, I want to learn how to draw."

She braced herself for rejection, but Yaeko only said calmly, "Okay. Why?"

When Yaeko asked for her reason, Shouko found herself unable to speak. She could easily tell her godmother that she wanted to illustrate Akira's novels—but with her own mother, the words stuck.

The second hand of the wall clock ticked loudly.

Yaeko broke the silence. "Is it because of Akira?"

Shouko's head shot up in surprise before lowering again. "…Mm."

"Because Akira wants to be a light novelist, you want to learn art and be his illustrator. Isn't that right?"

"…Mm."

"Then have you thought… what if Akira can't become a light novelist at all?"

Yaeko swallowed the harsher truth—that Akira would one day inherit his father's office, leaving little time for such pursuits. But saying that would crush Shouko completely.

"I don't believe it!"

Shouko suddenly raised her head, her eyes blazing with conviction. "I believe in Akira! I've read his novels. I know he'll succeed!"

For a moment, Yaeko was stunned. Her usually timid daughter was staring at her with unshakable faith.

"Then—"

Before Yaeko could continue, Shouko interrupted, shifting her gaze. "Mom, get some rest. Good night!"

She stood quickly and fled the living room.

"Click…"

Only after her bedroom door closed did Yaeko come back to her senses. She hadn't expected Shouko to show such defiance, even if only briefly.

Trying to return to work, she found her concentration broken. Shouko's determined expression lingered in her mind.

With a sigh, she closed the laptop and rubbed her tired eyes, just as a small figure appeared at the doorway.

"Mom?"

"Did we wake you?"

"No," said Kei Nishimiya, padding softly inside with a gentle smile. She sat beside her mother and tugged her back into her seat.

———

"Ring… Ring… Ring!"

"Bang!"

On her bed, Shouko reached out, shut off her alarm, and promptly fell back asleep.

"Ring… Ring…!"

"Bang!"

The second alarm finally forced her upright. She rubbed her bleary eyes, having fallen asleep late after the argument with her mother.

For a moment she sat dazed, then pulled the curtains open a crack. The sky was only just beginning to brighten.

After a sharp slap to her own cheeks, she climbed out of bed. She spent thirty minutes preparing lunch with her grandma, washing up, and changing into her uniform.

Why not wash up first? Because then her face would get oily again, and her uniform would smell like cooking. She couldn't let Akira notice that.

Walking into the dining room, she spotted someone unexpected at the table.

"Mom? Why are you up so early? Don't you usually sleep in?"

"Yes," Yaeko said after swallowing a mouthful. "There's something important at the office today, so I have to go early."

"Oh."

Shouko sat down, eyeing the hearty breakfast on the table.

Yaeko added casually, "If you have an art class you'd like to join, let me know after school. I'll look into it."

------------

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