Still that same night, at the Yukinoshita family residence.
After saving and closing the increasingly large Word document, Haruno breathed a sigh of relief and leaned back tiredly into her chair.
The high-end ergonomic chair tilted back one hundred twenty degrees, steadily supporting her mature, firm, and beautiful body. Her unsupported white spheres beneath the pajamas swayed gently.
She reached for the tall glass on the table. Haruno swirled the ruby-colored liquid inside, sniffing the intoxicating aroma that spread, trying to calm the restlessness and gloom in her heart.
"It's already Christmas, huh…"
"If only so many nonsensical things hadn't happened along the way, I'd definitely be cuddling with Yuu-chan in a hotel right now. From today until tomorrow, from night until morning, I'd be applauding with him for love…"
Sighing like someone unsatisfied, she took a sip of the sweet, smooth red wine. Yet, an indescribable bitterness flowed on the tip of her tongue.
Some things shouldn't be thought about too deeply. If pondered too much, she'd find that life is full of difficulties, and only the word 'unhappiness' could serve as a footnote.
First, her first Christmas after starting to date—and a white Christmas at that—was just missed like that.
Even though she had a boyfriend who had already talked about marriage. They had kissed and held hands, just one step away from the final stage. But now, she could only drink wine alone at home to relieve boredom.
What's more annoying, her boyfriend was probably celebrating Christmas with her little sister and her sister's friend right now, enjoying the time and celebration she wasn't experiencing.
Even her status as his girlfriend was only acknowledged by herself. No place to complain, no place to vent. Haruno could only swallow the bitterness alone—
Tell me, is there any heroine in this world more miserable than her?
"I look like a complaining widow!"
Haruno downed the red wine as if venting anger, and a red flush suddenly appeared on her cheeks.
She exhaled the scent of wine and air from her lungs. Her moist lips parted slightly. Her blurred eyes stared at the ceiling.
Suddenly, she laughed foolishly.
"You're too naive if you think everything I'm facing is bad~"
That's right, Haruno still had room to maneuver!
For example, the relationship between those three (Yuu, Yukino, and Yuigahama), which looked mutually supportive, was actually more like mutually restraining.
Family matchmaking didn't need too much thought, but they were practicing polyamory with a mutually acknowledged love triangle. So, the difficulty of romantic development would naturally increase dramatically.
After all, the problem wasn't the number, but the inequality. The most important thing in a threesome relationship was who came first and who came later—what did it mean if both liked him? Yuu only had one mouth, and one... thing. He had to distribute affection according to the order of liking, right?
If they couldn't be in first place simultaneously, the person placed second would naturally feel dissatisfied. This was a problem that a playboy could never solve.
And her little sister's innocent, serious, and rigid nature—first of all, she definitely wouldn't agree to sleep in a big bed with three people, doing immoral and outrageous things!
If it really came time for intimacy, Yukino might just choose to give the opportunity to Dango-chan, while she herself stood outside the door, shyly listening through the wall, and inevitably doing that alone.
Although Haruno didn't know if her sister even knew how to do that...
Back to the main point, with this, isn't it undoubtedly Dango-chan's victory?
Actually, no.
Because from her observation, given Dango-chan's level of gentleness and tolerance towards her sister, she not only wouldn't mind a threesome, she might even help Yuu conquer the inexperienced and less knowledgeable Yukino, so she gets love and girl-love simultaneously, becoming the most perfect winner in life.
After all, for Dango-chan, rather than letting her best friend listen through the wall alone, it's better to give up the chance to take Yuu's virginity, retreat to advance, and show the attitude of a generous wife—but this would conflict with Yukino's thinking.
And Yukino's pride wouldn't allow her friend to give her such charity-like assistance. In the end, the two would push each other, wanting to let the other go first, and as a result, neither would succeed, and the situation would drag on.
With Yuu's nature—put nicely, he's a gentleman; put badly, he's a coward—he probably wouldn't take the initiative to attack. Therefore, the trio's relationship would be stuck in the mud for a while and unable to move forward.
Thus, this gave Haruno room to maneuver.
"Hmph, love is a battle of wits. I've already read all your information~"
She chuckled calmly, like a strategist confident of victory, very different from her previously miserable and lonely appearance.
Of course, analyzing the love triangle was nothing. What was truly important was what she realized during the recent culture festival.
Haruno remembered, when she brought her mother backstage at the gym to look for him, Yuu took the initiative to greet her, and afterwards showed a concern different from before. The expression in his eyes was clearly different.
It wasn't fake politeness, or just a casual greeting. With her sharp observation, she, facing her lover, could see every detail and not miss anything worth noting.
Although Yuu tried hard to hide it and acted as if nothing was wrong, Haruno could still make a bold guess—
Perhaps, something was secretly influencing Yuu, making him regain the tenderness and affection he once promised to always have for her, turning that crooked relationship into reality.
But because of her sister and the existing mission, Yuu refused to admit it and forced himself to suppress his feelings to avoid meeting her.
It was precisely because she realized this that Haruno said those words when she left Sobu High with her mother—
Her confidence came from the results of that observation.
Thinking of this, Haruno couldn't help but lift the corners of her lips and swirl her glass of red wine happily.
"Right, this is a rare opportunity, I must make good use of it…"
"Although the Mission will affect the process of my reconciliation with Yuu-chan, it's only minor. No one understands his nature better than I do."
"As long as his feelings aren't lost, as long as deep down he still loves me, the rest is about tearing down his pretense and politeness, and forcing him to face the fact that his girlfriend has been waiting for him for a long time."
"Next, either I'll interfere in the trio's relationship and become the leading mistress directing all developments, or I'll secretly train him into the shape I desire, ensuring he can never leave me again. Once I have a reason to hold him accountable until the end, I'll find a way to quickly complete Yukino-chan's mission and return everything that should belong to me to the right track."
Whatever she wanted to do, Haruno had the confidence and conviction to break open the situation—she was the perfect and elegant Miss Yukinoshita!
Before, she could make Yuu come looking for her in Karuizawa with just one sentence. Now, she could use three sentences to regain their past intimacy!
…Of course, the most important premise was that Yuu's feelings had truly returned.
That was the only thing she couldn't control, and also the biggest obstacle she knew she couldn't force, and even after using all methods, hadn't made much progress.
Rejected, avoided, ignored…
After regaining her memories, what greeted her wasn't the warm satisfaction of finding a place to lean on, but the despair and pain of seeing him distance himself from her.
Feelings like that, Haruno didn't want to experience again.
"So tomorrow, I must ensure my plan succeeds!"
A sharp glint flashed in her eyes. Haruno finished the remaining red wine in one gulp and slammed the glass down on the table.
Then she straightened up, took out the diary locked in the hidden drawer, and began writing quickly.
It started about a week ago.
To preserve her memories for the next mission, she wrote everything related to Yuu, and her various thoughts, in this notebook. She was afraid that one morning she'd wake up and return to touching his hair while crying for no clear reason.
Of course, she wasn't sure when Yuu would become the Ideal Boyfriend for Yukino—looking at this stalled situation, it might take a few months or weeks, right?
Unless a major emotional turning point suddenly appeared, but the probability was too small, and Haruno was too lazy to guess.
She also wasn't sure, after the mission was completed, whether the Gods would destroy all things related to the two of them as before, and change everyone's memories except hers.
However, exceptions existed.
That wooden comb survived from the past until now and became the trigger for her to regain her memories… If so, why couldn't a diary?
As if facing an unavoidable natural disaster, and knowing the future might be destroyed, she had to use all means to prepare for survival. She had to take out as much insurance as possible.
The diary was just one of them. Various data in the cloud drive, past search history, remnants and defective items left when she made the bracelet for him—all were Haruno's insurance.
She had to be the first person standing by Yuu's side after this natural disaster!
After ensuring everything that needed to be written was recorded, Haruno locked the diary back in the drawer. She stood up and stretched, moving her slender waist and beautiful thighs.
"Hmm—Everything is ready, just waiting for the right time. I'll sleep early tonight! I remember Yuu-chan has a habit of morning runs. Tomorrow morning I'll intercept him in front of his house. The test will only succeed when the two of them are alone!"
With a hopeful smile like a child's, Haruno put on a thick jacket over her thin pajamas. Then she picked up her phone, walked to the window, opened it, and let the cold wind and snow blow in.
Looking into the distance, the quiet, deadly Tokyo nightscape was also slowly donning a white snowy coat.
It was dark now, so it wasn't clear. But she was sure that tomorrow morning, when the curtains were opened, she would see a boundless snowy scene under the hazy sunlight.
If Yuu were in it, even a Christmas with sub-zero temperatures could become warmer than a blooming spring.
With bright eyes gazing into the distance, Haruno smiled calmly in her heart, hoping the sun would still rise tomorrow, and her love would proceed smoothly as usual.
Suddenly inspired, she picked up her phone, made a V-sign with one hand, and took a selfie with the dimly lit snowy night as the background.
After that, she sent it to her sister and Yuu. She closed the window, took off her jacket, turned up the heater, and lay on the bed, closing her eyes to rest.
Ten minutes later, Haruno picked up her phone again. Seeing no 'read' notifications in either chat column, she frowned.
"Why hasn't it been read or replied to…"
Normally, both Yukino and Yuu would read messages within ten minutes… Replying wasn't guaranteed, as that was just their nature.
But Yuu was understandable; she could comprehend his desire to avoid her.
However, Yukino, even if she hated her, would still read it as a form of politeness, then ignore it, or sneer at it…
Maybe both happened to be busy and didn't have time to check their phones?
Even so, it didn't mean Haruno was willing to understand Yukino.
"How dare you ignore a selfie from your big sister! Yukino, your wings have truly hardened."
She pouted with her soft lips in annoyance. Haruno glared coldly and directly made a call.
However, the busy tone rang for a long time, and no one answered.
Without hesitation, she called Yuu via LINE. Half a minute later, the result remained the same.
"..."
Her expression slowly faded. Haruno put down her phone silently and calmly watched the screen automatically switch to standby.
As if the window wasn't closed tightly, cold wind mixed with snow swirled beside her. Her amber-brown eyes were like amber sealed under Arctic ice, emitting endless coldness.
"Hopefully, it's not as I imagine, right…"
On Christmas Eve, a situation where a couple loses contact is never good—the difference is only how bad.
And Haruno always trusted her instincts. Even if there was only a slight clue, she wouldn't miss it due to carelessness.
When the thought that they must be busy having sex and didn't have time to answer the phone crossed her mind, she had already jumped out of bed, quickly searched for outerwear, and started taking off her pajamas.
Could she rush to her sister's apartment now and prevent what had already happened?
Haruno didn't have the leisure to think about such things. Just because she wanted to do it, she moved without hesitation.
However, just as she took off her pajamas and was about to put on the black lace underwear, there was suddenly a knock at the door.
"Haruno, are you still awake?"
Haruno stopped her movements. A bad premonition rose again.
After hesitating for a moment, she chose to answer: "...Mother? It's so late, what is it?"
Through the door, her mother's gentle yet authoritative voice sounded: "There's an issue at the office that requires you to come immediately to help resolve it. Change out of your pajamas and set off right away. Be as quick as possible."
"This…"
Hearing those words, Haruno's expression unconsciously became distorted.
(This is too coincidental! Even fate is blocking me from catching them in the act?!)
Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to remain calm. In a lazy, slightly reluctant tone, she replied: "Eh~ I'm already in bed. What about you and Father? You shouldn't be asleep this early, right?"
Saori sighed helplessly, as if lamenting her husband working hard far away to support the family.
"Haruno, your father has been on a business trip for some time now… If possible, at least pay some attention to your father's existence."
"No need to mind him is fine too, Yuu-chan is more important now…" Haruno muttered softly under her breath.
"What did you say?"
"Nothing!"
Rubbing her face and struggling internally for a long time, after a fierce battle and clash between rationality and emotion, Haruno finally lost to her sense of responsibility and her mother's authority—
She couldn't possibly abandon her work just to catch an unproven affair.
"I understand, I'll go now!"
Stamping her foot in annoyance, she threw the luxurious, beautiful underwear aside. She randomly grabbed thermal underwear and dressed at the fastest speed.
However, before she picked up her work bag and left the room, Haruno still couldn't help biting her lip and glaring sharply at the vast snowy night outside the window, as if warning someone.
"Yuu-chan's virginity belongs only to me! You'd better not let me find out you two secretly did something like that behind my back, otherwise…"
As for what lies behind that 'otherwise,' perhaps only she herself knows.
The lights dimmed, the door closed, followed by the sound of quick footsteps descending the stairs.
Tonight, the snow enveloping all of Tokyo continues to fall.