After they walked around for a while, they headed for their next destination. Yuhi, however, didn't take her to his apartment but the bar where his fellow M5 members were. Sumire seemed startled but happily went along with the mini party.

At some point, Hino, Shin, Aika, and Asami also arrived, and Yuhi silently watched over her from his usual couch. This situation is fine, isn't it? Sumire is happy. She is able to smile.

But a part of him wants to know what happened in the last two months. This is one of the main reasons why he hasn't visited her in the hospital every day. The less time he is around her, the less chances he will slip up and ask.

Yuhi knew that if he really wanted to ask, she would give him the answers. She won't hide anything from him, but a part of him worries how she will answer. He doesn't want to hear her speak fondly about Mamoru anymore.

His gaze fell on the girl who was walking over to him with flushed cheeks. Yuhi extended his hand out, and she buried her face in his arms.

"You drank?"

It was a stupid question; he could tell from the way she staggered over.

"You don't like alcohol; why did you drink so much?"

"Isn't it obvious, Yuhi-san?"

He raised his eyebrows. "Obvious?"

She looked up. "It is so you could take advantage of me."

Yuhi pinched her cheeks, and she pouted. "Yuhi-san."

"Atushi get her some wate-" Before Yuhi could finish those words, a certain teal-colored-haired man passed him a cup.

"I was watching Ran-san encourage her to drink for a while now."

"Thanks."

As expected of these guys, they are very attentive when it comes to Sumire. What he said to Sumire isn't a lie; he has come to see these guys as friends and not just team members. But at the same time, he has to keep a certain distance; they are still his biggest rivals when it comes to Sumire.

Yuhi passed the girl the cup, but she pushed it away. "Hey, you need this to feel better."

"But if I feel better, you won't do anything."

He looked over at Jun apologetically, but the teal-colored-haired man didn't seem to mind.

"She tends to turn to things she hates when she has a lot on her mind. You should talk to her about it before she does anything else stupid." Jun commented.

Yuhi felt very conflicted hearing this piece of information. "You know a lot about her, huh?"

He thought he responded normally, but Jun caught him out.

"Nobody plans on taking her away from you."

"That's not-" Yuhi trailed off and sighed. "I can't help but be uneasy; you guys spent two years with her. I only spent a year, or was it shorter? I have known her since we were younger, but the actual amount of time we spent together is very short."

"I don't think the amount of time you spend with someone determines the level of your bonds with them."

"That's-"

"Put it this way, even though you have not spent that much time together. At the end of the day, she still chose you, you not only got her heart, but you obtained her trust too. That is no easy feat."

Indeed that is the case. He wonders how Jun and the others feel about this. The fact that he could do this for her and not them.

His thoughts broke off when Sumire wrapped her arms around his neck. "Take me away."

Geez, how much did she have to drink? Yuhi scooped her up in his arms. "We're going upstairs. Tell the others that she needs to rest early."

Jun nodded, and with a few more words, Yuhi quickly headed upstairs with Sumire. He brings her to his room, knowing that she would kick up a fuss if he left her in hers.

He placed her down on the bed, and the moment he did, she buried her face in his arms. "What's the matter?"

"Uh." Sumire laughed softly. "I'm a bit nervous. Are we going to-"

Yuhi immediately understood what she was trying to say. His gaze is gentle as the sun as he caressed her cheeks. "You know when you get like this, I almost forget how you like to tease people."

"Be quiet."

"Only if you want to. Besides, everybody is here tonight." Yuhi knew her very well. She is not the type of person to publicly display her affections. Moreover, Sumire should know about those guys' feelings for her.

"Mmm, then maybe I should rest." Sumire trailed off. "Lately, I don't have urges anymore."

Despite the sudden shift in topic, Yuhi understood what she was referring to. "Blood urges come and go." The more tolerance she develops, the more it should go away. But even then, it is odd that it went away qui-Yuhi paused in mid-thought as something came to mind.

His gaze dimmed, and he immediately turned to leave, but Sumire sat up and hugged him from the back. "Don't."

"They experimented on you?" Yuhi growled. Just the mere thought of it made him sick.

"They only managed a few blood samples. Of course, they can't do anything to me."

But even as she said such confident-sounding words. Yuhi already sensed that there was something wrong.

"I wasn't going to ask you, but now that it has come to this, you have to tell me what they did to you." He turned around with an angry look on his face. "Sumire, you have to tell me."

The girl, however, remained silent, and Yuhi placed both hands on her shoulders. "Please talk to me. I wasn't going to ask you because I didn't want to hear you speak about Mamoru but now." His sentence fell short when the girl suddenly pushed him down.

Her brown hair fell past her shoulders, but there was something alluring about this sight. "What? Are you going to be stubborn?"

"I also thought the same," Sumire mumbled. "I didn't tell you anything because it would mean talking about Mamoru."

His eyes widened when he heard those words.

"I don't want to hurt you, Yuhi. I knew if you learned what happened there, you would end up more hurt than me."

"Your so foolish."

Sumire buried her face in his neck. "I am, but I am doing all this because I love you."

She really has changed; in the past, she would not have been able to say such a thing to him. Sumire still wore the dress from earlier, but she had loosened it slightly, and now he could clearly see her pretty shoulders.

The fact that they were in this position was not very helpful.

Before he knew it, his hands went around her waist. Sumire raised her face with an innocent expression.

"What are you doing, Yuhi?"

She is asking even though she already knew—what a cheeky woman.

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