Underneath The Bandages, You Are Prettier Than Anyone - CH 24.1

Fortunately, neither Yuki nor I caught a cold, even though we were soaking wet and cold. She thanked me again for lending my jacket and cardigan, and I replied, embarrassed, that I was fine thanks to her own warmth.

Then, I remembered a folding umbrella I had as we talked to each other during that rainstorm. I usually carried one of those transparent-plasticky ones only on days that threatened to rain, but after our struggle, I decided to always have one on me.

The folding umbrella is a hand-me-down from my father, and I hadn’t used it much, so I opened it in my room to check if it was working properly or not. However, the moment I clicked on it, it snapped open with a loud crack as the framework popped off.

Yup, can’t use it anymore.

As I looked at the broken umbrella in dismay, the sound of slippers slippering outside reached my ears. Soon, the approaching pat-pats reached my door, which then opened just a crack for her to look through.

“Haru-kun… Are you okay? I heard something just now.”

The noise was pretty loud so she got worried enough to peek inside. In response, I cracked a bitter smile and showed her the broken umbrella.

“Umbrella broke.”

“Ah… That’s what the snap was.”

“Yup. I just opened it like usual, and it just popped open.”

“Folding ones are usually fragile, so it’s not your fault,” she reassured me while fully opening the door and stepping inside. Taking a further look at the broken thing, she nodded her head. “Looks very old, so it lived a good life.”

“Yeah, it’s a hand-me-down from my dad. He used it all the time…”

“I feel sorry for your father, but it’s not usable anymore.”

“Guess so. What’s worse, I don’t have another one on me.”

“Hmm… Why don’t we go shopping this weekend? I was just thinking of doing some winter shopping. We can grab a folding umbrella there. And well, when it starts to snow, going outside just isn’t it. Now’s our chance, I think.”

“I see… Yeah, sounds good to be ready for winter.”

This would be the first time since we moved in together that we’d experience winter. Normally, mom and dad would take care of it all, but now that Yuki and I lived together alone, we had to prepare it all ourselves. So yeah, precautions against the cold were vital.

“If you’d like to go, of course,” she added. “Four hands is better than two for luggage.”

I immediately agreed to it since I have no reason to refuse. Rather, I’d love to spend some fun time with her alone. Honestly, I just can’t wait for our day off this weekend; enjoying a meal with her for the first time in a while would be great.

Checking the dates in my calendar app, I filled the blank date with lovely plans I longed to complete.