At half past ten o'clock in the evening, it was already late at night.

In Yoyogi Park, although the street lamps and floor lamps are still lit, the park has long since become quiet.

The same is true near the park.

In the midst of the silence, in a certain bathroom of a high-end apartment, there was a sudden sound of splashing water.

"Ha ......"

After wiping a handful, with water still dripping from his face, Naruse's eyes widened and he kept gasping.

He fell asleep in the bathtub.

"Almost drowned ......"

Shocked, he poured water on his face again to make himself more sober.

When he soaked in the bathtub, because of some strong physiological impulses, he kept emptying his brain and emptying his distracting thoughts.

And then......

"It's too much of a stretch."

Soaking in hot water is already comfortable, and it's not surprising to fall asleep.

Not to mention that he was very tired today.

Whoop -

Wiping a handful of water from his face, Naruse moved back, leaning against the bathtub and looking at the ceiling light.

"Anyway, when I first came home, it seemed like I was going to eat at seven o'clock and go to bed at eight o'clock......"

As a result, I sat and sat down, and it was past ten o'clock.

After soaking for a while, before falling asleep again, Naruse hurried out.

Back in the living room, Naoko and Starfish on the sofa were each tilted to one side, both already asleep.

They were already sleepy, and when he went to take a bath, he lost his attention and soon drifted into the sea of sleep.

Sitting between the two, Naruse wiped his hair, looked at them, and watched TV for a while.

Almost wiped off, he picked up Naoko and prepared to send her back to her room to sleep.

And as soon as he straightened up, she woke up.

"Hmm...... Spring Sea ......"

Naoko fell asleep. Go back to your room and sleep. ”

"Good ......" she smiled, hugged his neck, and suddenly saw the starfish still lying on the couch.

"Starfish!"

“…… Wow. ”

The starfish shuddered, her head turned, and she woke up, staring blankly from side to side.

“……”

Catching up with her, Naruse looked down again, and Naoko tilted her head and leaned on his arms, already "asleep".

"Hey ......"

She didn't react, just breathed evenly.

“…… It's time to sleep. Naruse said to the starfish.

"Oh......"

She sat up, looked at him and Naoko in his arms, and rubbed her face again.

Sending Naoko back to her room and laying her down on the bed, she opened her eyes and reached for him.

Clasp your hands together.

"Good night, Harumi."

"Good night."

She looked at the door again, "Why hasn't the starfish come in yet......"

"I'm probably still confused." Naruse took her hand, "I won't carry her in anyway." ”

Naoko smiled, "Hmm. ”

"Sleep."

She was a little reluctant to let go of his hand, but the sleepiness was not false, and the brief closing of her eyes in his arms almost made her really fall asleep.

She reassured herself with the fact that she had a lot of time to herself when she got home.

"Harumi also rests early."

"Okay."

Leaving the room, the starfish did not fall asleep again, but had already sat up.

Naruse walked over and picked up the towel, "Don't go to sleep yet." ”

She yawned and stared at him.

Naruse ignored her, sent the towel back to the bathroom, and returned to the living room to clean up the things on the table again.

Throwing the box of pizza and the packaging of sushi and dessert into the trash, and wiping the table slightly, the starfish still did not go to sleep.

Naruse turned her head and found her lying on the couch again.

"Starfish."

She closed her eyes, "Hmm. ”

"I'm going to go back to my room and sleep."

She didn't speak, tilted her head slightly, looked inside, and arched her legs again.

"What for?"

“…… I don't have the strength anymore. ”

"Then you lie down."

“……”

She opened her eyes and glared at him, and sat up on her own.

Naruse ignored it and packed the garbage bag, "Good night." ”

Starfish ignored him and quickly got up and went back to his room.

After cleaning up the table in the living room, Naruse sat down on the sofa and looked at his phone.

It's almost eleven o'clock.

After taking a shower and tossing for a while, he was quite sober.

Turning off the lights and TV in the living room, he prepared to go back to his room to rest, took two steps and turned around and walked to the balcony.

Looking at the empty street below, and then at Yoyogi Park opposite, he sent a message to Matsuchiaki.

Her reply was a video.

Naruse clicked.

She was already in a seaside park in Tokyo Bay.

Towards eleven o'clock, some wandering figures can still be seen in the park.

The camera is not far away, and some of the crew's staff are busy.

"The staff over there is debugging the equipment." Matsu Chiaki's voice rang out.

"In the evening, the situation was more optimistic, and we could probably start shooting early, and the initial time was 11:05. I'm walking here right now, looking for my form...... Is it possible to shoot? ”

Another female voice rang out: "Huh? ”

"I want my son to see a partner like me who can't sleep in the middle of the night and was caught filming at the beach."

"Hahaha, okay."

As soon as the camera turned, a somewhat familiar face appeared on the screen.

“Hi…… Ah, what is Miss Song's son's name? ”

"Spring Sea."

"Hello, Harumi~"

"Hello, Maki." Song Qianqiu responded to greet him.

"I heard from Miss Sato that Miss Matsu's son looks very similar to you, so he should be a handsome guy too."

"It's very handsome."

"I'd love to see it."

"The day after tomorrow, I'll take him to the set to see it."

"Really?"

The female artist smiled at the camera, "I'm looking forward to it." ”

“……”

Standard business smile.

The video is not long, only a short paragraph, but it is enough for Naruse to understand the state of Matsu Chiaki at this time.

Knowing that she had already started working, he didn't say anything, replied a few more words, and prepared to go back to his room to sleep.

As a result, as soon as he turned around, he almost threw his phone out.

"Ah, sorry......"

Seeing that his whole body trembled, the starfish holding the floor-to-ceiling window also knew that he appeared too quietly and scared him.

"I was just going to say hello, but you seem to be busy......"

“…… Sooner or later, I'll be scared to death by you. ”

Naruse took a deep breath, his back was hot, and his legs were still a little weak.

"What are you doing when you don't sleep?"

"Just came back from the bathroom and saw you on the balcony and came over to have a look...... I seem to hear my aunt's voice. ”

"Well, I asked her about the situation over there, and she sent a video over."

"Ah, let me see."

Naruse glanced at her and handed over the phone.

She took her phone and went inside.

"Hey ......"

"Huh?" Starfish sat down on the couch.

"It's fine." Naruse also returned to the living room and sat next to him at a distance.

Starfish has clicked on the video.

After looking at it for a while, she suddenly whispered, "Ah, Yoshimura Maki! ”

"Sure enough, it's her." Naruse also remembered the female artist's full name.

"It turns out that my aunt is going to make a rivalry with her......

"Hmm."

The video was quickly watched, and Starfish returned the phone to him, "Thank you." ”

"Go to sleep."

"Hmm...... What about you, do you still want to play games? ”

"No, I'll be asleep right away."

"Oh."

The starfish answered, still cowering on the couch, not moving.

Naruse looked at her.

"Is Naoko asleep?"

"Asleep...... She seemed tired. ”

"I'm tired too." Naruse said.

Starfish muttered.

"What?"

"Nothing."

"If you don't say it, I won't take you to Disney tomorrow."

"How do you ...... like this?"

She watched him in the dark for a moment, but still confessed.

"I mean...... You obviously still have the strength to carry Naoko back to the room. ”

Naruse was silent for a few seconds, then leaned back, "That's the last bit of strength." ”

She didn't believe it......

Starfish only muttered in their hearts.

Darkness and tranquility enveloped the living room, with only a glimmer of light outside.

At the end of the conversation, neither of them spoke again, sitting wordlessly on the couch.

What can make people feel more at ease than a warm night is the silent companionship of each other.

But after all, it's not early.

Vaguely aware of his intention to end this brief companionship, Starfish spoke.

"In the evening, you gave Naoko a massage."

"Huh? …… Well. ”

"Help me press it too." She said to him.

Ask for a commuter pass

(End of chapter)