Chapter 39

Chapter 39: Don’t Move, Close Your Eyes

What does that mean?

Shimizu Sakuya raised her eyebrows slightly in surprise. Considering the current relationship between the two of them, things were indeed progressing rather quickly.

They had only known each other for two days, and now they were about to spend the late night together in the same room?

It was undeniable that Fujiwara Yuki did want to confirm something through her, and perhaps this was her way of probing.

But it’s often in that half-asleep, half-awake state that a person expresses their truest emotions—emotions buried deep within.

So, Fujiwara Yuki truly needed her to stay by her side.

Looking at it this way, the reason for her exhaustion also surfaced.

And that was—only with her company could she sleep peacefully through the long night.

However, in this spacious room, there was no place for her to rest.

Was she really supposed to share the bed with her? That was unlikely.

Besides, what Shimizu Sakuya sought was not to make Fujiwara Yuki fall in love with her, but to help her escape from the twisted Fujiwara family.

Under these circumstances, Shimizu Sakuya bore the task of figuring out the full layout of the Fujiwara residence and planning the best escape route.

If the prime opportunity in the deep night was occupied by the task of sleeping beside her, then how could she rescue Fujiwara Yuki from this prison?

Thus, Shimizu Sakuya spoke, declining in a very tactful manner.

“Master, are you saying you want me to stay by your bedside all night? But… it seems there’s nowhere for me to rest here.”

Upon hearing Shimizu Sakuya’s words, Fujiwara Yuki was startled as if waking from a dream. Her pupils widened in surprise as she suddenly realized how abrupt and forward her words had been.

In an instant, she was sober.

Yet she wasn’t flustered. She quickly regained control of her emotions and countered in a very calm tone.

“What’s wrong? Can’t you just sleep on the floor beside me?”

“But…”

Fujiwara Yuki forcefully cut her off, deciding with an air of dominance.

“No buts. Whatever the master says, goes.”

That had always been Fujiwara Yuki’s personality—once she made a decision, no one could change it.

If one tried to oppose her by force, with her decisive and swift nature, who knew what outlandish thing she might do?

Her birthday banquet wasn’t until next month—there was still time to plan.

Thinking this, Shimizu Sakuya nodded and agreed with Fujiwara Yuki’s request, saying,

“Then we’ll do as you say, Master.”

Hearing her answer, Fujiwara Yuki narrowed her eyes, seemingly very satisfied, then lazily stretched.

———————–

Shimizu Sakuya looked out the window. Morning dew awaited the rising sun, and the heavy mist was being scattered by its rays. The once-sleeping morning roses had awakened, blooming together with pink and white cherry blossoms. It was a scene of spring in full glory.

It was time for Fujiwara Yuki to get dressed and go to school—Shimizu Sakuya had this thought, but then suddenly realized, her current life felt like she was raising a child.

Putting her to sleep, helping her bathe, waking her up, and now urging her to go to school.

She was practically playing the role of Fujiwara Yuki’s mom.

Only, Fujiwara Yuki was quite shy toward her. Did she really have the courage to let her help change clothes?

With that in mind, Shimizu Sakuya lifted her chin slightly toward Fujiwara Yuki on the bed and deliberately asked.

“Master, do you need help getting dressed?”

“……” The girl who had just been stretching suddenly froze, looking at her with a strange, indecisive expression.

She stared for quite a while—it was a little unsettling.

“Master, is something the matter?” Shimizu Sakuya smiled slightly, revealing the well-practiced maid’s smile she had mastered.

After a long silence, Fujiwara Yuki finally said helplessly.

“You’d better step out for now.”

That made sense—she hadn’t had a personal maid for ten years.

Though she was socially adept, she always kept a distance, never letting anyone get too close. As a result, she was extremely unaccustomed to intimate physical contact.

Not letting her help change clothes was expected, and honestly saved a lot of effort.

Shimizu Sakuya pointed to the neatly ironed school uniform placed by the bed.

“Alright, here is your uniform, Master. I’ll wait outside.”

With that, she quietly exited the room.

Fujiwara Yuki changed and washed up quickly. Before Shimizu Sakuya’s mind could drift too far, the red light on her wristwatch had already lit up.

To avoid any unnecessary awkwardness—like walking in and catching Fujiwara Yuki not fully dressed—Shimizu Sakuya called loudly from outside the door.

“Master, are you dressed?”

“Come in.”

Hearing the affirmative response, Shimizu Sakuya finally relaxed and reentered the bedroom.

Fujiwara Yuki sat in front of the vanity, rubbing lotion in her palms before evenly applying it to her face.

Seeing Shimizu Sakuya approach step by step, she suddenly realized something.

“Sakuya, you didn’t get a chance to bring your skincare products, did you?”

“No, it was too rushed,” Shimizu Sakuya answered truthfully.

She had been picked up by the Fujiwara family’s car right after school, without even a chance to rest. She had moved in immediately, so how could she have brought something like skincare?

Fujiwara Yuki looked up at her beautiful and delicate profile and said:

“Then just use mine. I happened to squeeze out a bit too much lotion.”

As she spoke, she reached out with her slender fingers and dabbed some onto Shimizu Sakuya’s face.

Shimizu Sakuya instinctively leaned back.

Fujiwara Yuki grabbed her sleeve and pulled it down, bringing her face closer to her own.

The morning sunlight streamed through the window, casting long shadows on the wall—like two lovers about to kiss.

“Don’t move. Close your eyes.”

Shimizu Sakuya obediently complied.

But as the gentle hands spread the lotion, the cool fingertips caressed her cheeks, and the sensation made Shimizu Sakuya involuntarily open her eyes.

And met hers—eyes shimmering with light. At that moment, there was no other emotion in them, just the focused execution of a single task.

But their faces were so close, eyes locked with eyes. Fujiwara Yuki, who had been completely concentrated just moments ago, couldn’t stand the intimate gaze. Flustered, she pulled her hand back.

“You do it yourself. This bottle is toner, the one next to it is serum, and the gold one is sunscreen.” Fujiwara Yuki spoke rapidly, pointing at the bottles on the table, as if trying to hide something.

Shimizu Sakuya said nothing, gently spreading the still-warm lotion across her face.

At this point, the balance of power seemed to have shifted—Fujiwara Yuki appeared to be the weaker one now.

The stark contrast in her attitude between yesterday and today made Shimizu Sakuya vaguely realize: this was likely the result of Fujiwara Yuki having inherited part of the memories from the previous loops.

She couldn’t fully recognize her—that is to say, she only vaguely remembered, or her image in those memories was as indistinct as looking at flowers in the mist.

What Fujiwara Yuki was thinking now, Shimizu Sakuya had no way of knowing. But she could reasonably deduce that Fujiwara Yuki must have inherited the memories of the HE (Happy Ending) route.

And she had already personally denied that ending.

So the panic and confusion visible in Fujiwara Yuki’s expression when she looked at her—was merely because she saw her as the person from her memory, unable to distinguish reality from dream, thus falling into a daze.