CHAPTER 689: CHAPTER 422 A SUDDEN VISIT FROM HANAMARU HIROKI_2

"Yeah, I told him."

"When we went to the police station, Hanabi wasn’t in a good state. Remember to talk to her more tonight."

"Alright." Uesugi Sakura thought this was the black Hanabi putting on a facade for her father-in-law. That guy named Suzuki said she was smiling after the whole thing.

"I’ll finish up work and swing by to see you all in a bit."

See!?

"Wait a minute..."

Before Uesugi Sakura could finish half a sentence, Hanamaru Hiroki had already hung up the phone on the other end.

He stared at the phone screen that had just returned to the lock screen, remaining silent for a moment.

Great.

The father-in-law is coming.

How should I explain the current situation?

An argument? Separation? Or that I bullied her until she ran away from home?

When we got married, I promised my father-in-law that I would treat her well in the future, and now it’s only been a month since the wedding, and she’s nowhere in sight.

This afternoon, when she was "bullied," I wasn’t even there. How can the elders trust me?

Uesugi Sakura scratched his head, feeling extremely troubled by this matter.

He paused for a while, trying to think of a countermeasure, but Hanabi wasn’t home, so what excuse could he use for her absence?

She encountered something like that this afternoon.

He knows nothing about the black Hanabi; she tries hard to hide her presence in front of her family.

Probably, she also behaved normally at the police station.

Unable to think of a reason, and with his father-in-law about to arrive, Uesugi Sakura decided to tidy up the house first.

The lunch boxes from the past few days were still piled up on the table, several left untouched, and the dishes weren’t washed.

When one lives alone, they indeed can become lazy without realizing it.

He packed the trash from the table into a garbage bag and set it aside, wiped down the dining table with a cloth, then mopped the floor and washed a bowl, busying himself for half an hour before finishing these chores.

The doorbell rang.

Uesugi Sakura realized it was his father-in-law and quickly went over to open the door.

"I brought you some fruits, here you go." Hanamaru Hiroki handed the plastic bag to his son-in-law before changing into slippers and entering, knowing the place well.

He was still in his police uniform, clearly rushing over after work.

Uesugi Sakura looked at his father-in-law, unsure of what he should say now.

Hanamaru Hiroki looked up at him: "Why aren’t you coming in?"

"No, it’s nothing." Uesugi Sakura answered awkwardly.

Hanamaru Hiroki found his demeanor somewhat strange: "Are you hiding something from me?"

"No."

Hanamaru Hiroki didn’t make a fuss about it, instead, he talked about the thing that happened in the afternoon:

"Specifically, there wasn’t anything major. While checking the surveillance videos, we found all the electronic cameras in that area were broken. It’s a bothersome matter, but luckily that guy wasn’t injured, and Hanabi has witnesses providing evidence, so he didn’t have much chance to counter-sue and was already arrested."

"These are side matters; what’s important is Hanabi. She isn’t in a good state. Have you communicated with her?"

"..."

"What’s wrong?"

"Kind of... I did talk to her, she’s fine..."

Hanamaru Hiroki frowned: "Why are you being so vague? Where’s Hanabi? She didn’t come out when I came in; isn’t she home?"

"Well... she’s not..."

Hanamaru Hiroki narrowed his eyes: "Where is she? Such a thing happened this afternoon; where could she have run to?"

His father-in-law’s stream of questions made Uesugi Sakura feel the pressure.

Fine, better tell the truth.

"We’ve been separated for ten days..."

"Separated? Did you argue?"

"Sort of..."

Hearing this, Hanamaru Hiroki actually felt somewhat reassured, "Why’s everything from you always ambiguous? What did you argue about?"

"It’s not entirely that... Hanabi thinks we’ve been together too long... needs some time apart to keep things fresh."

"Such a strange logic, yet it oddly makes some sense." Hanamaru Hiroki found it puzzling, "Yet since that’s the case, let me give you some advice. Though young women say such things, they’re certainly hoping you’ll go find them. Have you looked for her?"

"No..."

"Just waiting for the ten days to end?"

"Yes."

"I suggest you go find her. After experiencing such an event this afternoon, she’s probably not in a good mood. How many days have you been apart now?"

Not in a good mood?

According to what that customer said, Uesugi Sakura thought she should be in a pretty great mood instead.

"The fifth day, tomorrow’s the sixth day."

"That’s long enough for a few days apart; you could try looking for her, even if you don’t find her, knowing you tried would certainly make her happy, at least providing some solace and comfort."

"Megumi made dinner at home; with Hanabi not here, I won’t stay long either. Visit us more often if you can."

Leaving these words, Hanamaru Hiroki turned and left.

Uesugi Sakura was somewhat relieved; his father-in-law wasn’t as hard to deal with as he imagined.

Perhaps it’s because they are married now, so they’re more relaxed with them? Not like when they were dating where questions were more detailed.

Running the bath, Uesugi Sakura gazed at the bathroom’s overhead light, contemplating going to search for Hanabi.

Hanabi-chan might want him to find her, but the black Hanabi might not be as willing.

It’s still unsure which of their personalities is dominant during normal times.

From the current known situations, the black Hanabi appears more assertive.

The maid café has been increasingly busy lately, he’s worried he won’t have the time to go find Hanabi.

Fine, I’ll take a day off tomorrow then.

As long as his wife comes back, there’s no rush to settle the property fees either.

Thinking like this for a moment, Uesugi Sakura stepped out of the bathtub, dried off, went to the bedroom, turned off the lights, and went to sleep.

On the next day, in line with his routine, he ran ten kilometers in the morning, then rode his bike to attend classes at Todai (Tokyo University).

Today’s schedule was pretty packed, no free time all morning. He wanted to skip class, but the professor was especially demanding today, leaving no chance at all.

In the afternoon, he received a call from the store manager telling him to hurry to work, sounding very urgent.

"But, Manager Yanagi, I wanted to take a day off today." Uesugi Sakura said, holding the phone in his hand.

"No way, the café can’t run without you. Kobashi can’t handle such a heavy task yet. All right, come over, and I’ll pay you double wages today."

Without a word, Manager Yanagi directly hung up the phone.

Perhaps life is filled with disappointments like this. When you want to accomplish something, troubles come one after another.

Fortunately, he’s without burdens. If he were the kind that’s overwhelmed by pressure, trapped by work, forced to work for a living type of person...

In such a case where Hanabi suddenly went to Britain for further studies, it would indeed be almost impossible to bring her back.

From childhood through youth, they’ve had such a good relationship, yet they went their separate ways. Even in future reflections, it would always be a heart-wrenching regretful thing.

Uesugi Sakura rode his bike, imagining all these scenarios, and the image of Hanamaru Hanabi suddenly became much clearer in his mind.

She was with him, by his side.

She would act spoiled in his arms, lift her head to giggle at him, accompany him to outings where they’d stick closely together inside the cramped photo booth for couple stickers.

She never once complained to him and was happy to tears during their wedding.

He had seen her every emotion, she was so near, so near.

The more he thought about these things, the more intense his longing for her grew.

Uesugi Sakura could even recall the unsteady feeling when he first held her small hand, the kind of love where his heart would race with just one glance at her.

Hanabi...

Where would you find such a wonderful childhood friend?

Uesugi Sakura rode along the street, feeling the wind grazing his ears, the wide city street made him feel as if there’s nothing beside him, his pedal rotating faster and faster.

In this world, she’s his wife.

What if in another world, he didn’t bring her back from Britain?

How would that Uesugi Sakura face the coming days?

Passing a line of beech trees, turning a street corner, Uesugi Sakura parked his bike under the mimi café, locked the rear wheel, placed the key inside his pants pocket, then stood up.

As he turned around, he suddenly saw a familiar figure appearing right in front of him.

She was wearing a black dress, a blue crystal hanging from her chest, slim long legs encased in black stockings, her tiny feet in round-toe shoes, a bow tied around her neck, and a blue-black butterfly accessory at her ankle.

She was smiling at him.

Her facial expression already spoke the words of greeting.

"Sakura-kun."

Uesugi Sakura was instantly stunned.