As he stammered his way through that, Yasui Makoto found that he simply could not tear his gaze away from Kitasan Black.
The girl before him was completely different from her usual energetic self on the racetrack. There was a different kind of gentleness and charm about her now, and it sent an indescribable flutter through his heart.
The moment she got a positive answer, Kitasan Black immediately let out a sigh of relief. The trace of shyness on her face vanished at once, and she returned to her usual lively self.
She hurried over, gave him a thumbs-up, and declared confidently,
"If Trainer says it's fine, then it's definitely fine!"
"Then from now on, I'm Trainer's exclusive little nurse!"
"If you need anything at all, make sure to tell me right away, okay?"
"O-oh... r-right..."
Yasui Makoto answered twice on reflex. Looking at Kitasan Black standing so close to him, smelling the faint scent coming from her, he could feel his heart start beating faster all over again.
He suddenly realized that this recovery period might end up being far more eventful than he had imagined.
Now that she had changed into the nurse uniform and gotten Yasui Makoto's approval, Kitasan Black was visibly full of energy and immediately bustled into action.
"Trainer, just sit still. I'll go pour you some water."
"Trainer, do you want some fruit? I'll peel it for you."
"Trainer, are you tired? I can massage your shoulders."
And then night came.
After taking a bath and changing into his pajamas, Yasui Makoto poked his head out into the living room like a thief. Seeing that Kitasan Black seemed busy in the kitchen or somewhere else, he quickly slipped into the bedroom and let out a sigh of relief.
After a whole day of this, he felt like a spoiled child. He had not needed to do a thing, while Kitasan Black had taken care of everything perfectly.
That feeling... really was comfortable.
But he was used to living by himself, and once the initial novelty and flutter had passed, he still felt a little uncomfortable.
At the same time, he found himself hoping these days would last a little longer, because this kind of meticulous care... really was comfortable.
Caught between those feelings, he walked over to the bed and lay down, staring at the ceiling as his thoughts drifted, uncontrollably, toward Kitasan Black outside the room.
It was already this late. She should be heading back to the dorms—or home—soon, right...?
The moment that thought crossed his mind, a faint reluctance welled up inside him.
Just then, there was a light knock on the bedroom door. He answered with an automatic "Come in," and the next instant, Yasui Makoto stared in astonishment as Kitasan Black walked in carrying a sleeping bag taller than she was.
"Trainer! I'm sleeping in the living room tonight!"
Her eyes sparkled with excitement.
"That way, if you need anything in the middle of the night, I can take care of you right away!"
Yasui Makoto blanked out for a second, then immediately understood what she meant.
A trace of awkwardness and unease appeared on his face. He sat up and said stiffly,
"Um... Kita-chan, that's not really appropriate, is it?"
"How about... you go back to the dorm—no, wait, you're on break now, so home."
"How about you head home for tonight? This is only a minor fracture. I can take care of myself."
Kitasan Black quietly waited for him to finish, then shook her head—fast and firm, with utter certainty in her eyes.
"No!"
"Trainer knows he's still injured right now, doesn't he? Then how can staying alone possibly be okay?"
"Anyway, I'm not comfortable with that."
"And besides, I already brought the sleeping bag. It'd be such a pain to take it back."
As she said that, she gave the sleeping bag in her hands a little shake, looking completely certain of herself.
Seeing how insistent she was, Yasui Makoto wanted to keep trying to persuade her.
After all, accepting her care during the day was one thing. Kitasan Black had been so determined that it would have felt wrong to dampen her enthusiasm.
But at night, even if they were not sleeping in the same room, they were still, in the end, living under the same roof. No matter how you looked at it, that was a little hard to explain.
But before he could say anything, Kitasan Black had already closed the bedroom door.
From outside, her firm and cheerful voice quickly rang out.
"I've been thinking for ages about what I could do for you, Trainer. So even if it's maybe a little wrong to say this..."
"Now that you're hurt, I can finally do something for you."
"Anyway, don't worry, Trainer! I'll take good care of myself, and I'll take good care of you too!"
The moment she finished speaking, rustling sounds came from the living room.
As expected, she was probably getting the sleeping bag ready.
...Ah, man...
Staring at the tightly shut bedroom door, Yasui Makoto let out a helpless sigh after a long moment.
Somewhere deep down, he already knew there was no way he was going to win against Kitasan Black on this.
So he lay back down, pulled the blanket over himself, and wrapped himself up tightly like an ostrich trying to block out the entire outside world.
But the moment he closed his eyes, images of Kitasan Black in that nurse uniform, bustling around in front of him during the day, rose uncontrollably in his mind.
The fitted nurse uniform. The white stockings. That bright, energetic smile...
Every single detail was crystal clear.
Then, without meaning to, he started imagining what Kitasan Black looked like asleep in her sleeping bag out in the living room.
Would she wrinkle her nose playfully from time to time, just like she did during the day?
Would she unconsciously curl up a little because she was not used to sleeping in a sleeping bag?
Would she wake up thirsty in the middle of the night and, half-asleep, stumble off to get a drink of water?
Image after image of cute, playful versions of her—so different from the lively, energetic impression he usually had—kept circling through Yasui Makoto's mind.
He started tossing and turning again.
He rolled back and forth, trying to drive every last thought out of his head.
But they were like roots sunk deep into the ground. No matter how hard he tried, he could not get rid of them.
In the darkness, he opened his eyes and stared at the ceiling.
After gazing blankly for a while, he unconsciously got up as quietly as he could, slipped on his slippers, and carefully took two steps toward the bedroom door.
Then, like a thief, he darted straight back and lay down on the bed again.
Then he did it all over again—sitting up, lying down, sitting up again, lying down again.
In the end, after no one knew how long of tossing and turning, a deep wave of sleepiness finally washed over him, and he slowly drifted off.
And in the living room...
Kitasan Black was tossing and turning too.
Lying there in her sleeping bag, her heart was full of satisfaction and happiness.
Just thinking that she could take care of Yasui Makoto like this made her feel incomparably happy.
In the darkness, she kept her crimson eyes wide open, while Satono Diamond's advice replayed again and again in her mind.
Cooking, changing into a nurse uniform, all kinds of things to watch out for when taking care of an injured person—especially how to choose and prepare nutritious meals...
Each of those suggestions passed through her mind one by one.
She secretly made up her mind that tomorrow, she absolutely had to get up early and make Yasui Makoto a rich, nutritious breakfast.
She had to help Trainer get better as quickly as possible. That was what she thought.
But the moment that thought crossed her mind, she suddenly felt a little down for no reason.
If Trainer recovered, then she would not have any reason to stay with him like this anymore.
The thought left an empty feeling in her chest.
But very soon, she remembered something Grandpa had said.
Grandpa had said that Trainer had done so much for her that, during New Year's, they absolutely had to invite him over properly, have him stay for a while, and thank him the right way.
The moment she thought of that, she grew happy again, and a smile rose unconsciously to her lips.
Right. Once Trainer's injury healed, they could still spend New Year's together!
She thought that quietly to herself, and her mood gradually settled again.
Carrying her hopes for tomorrow, and her anticipation for spending more time with Yasui Makoto in the future, she slowly drifted off to sleep.
---
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