Chapter 23 – Winter (Part 8)
Winter, Part 8
Novel Title: ツァイガルニクの恋の沼 (Zeigarnik’s Love Swamp)
Author：月村奎著 (Tsukimura Kei)
Illustrator：志水ゆき (Shimizu Yuki)
Translator: K (@kin0monogatari)
Protagonists: 市川春音 (Ichikawa Harune -MC) & 二ノ宮航輝 (Ninomiya Kouki -ML)
*Please read at freenovels.net, the original site of translation. TQ*
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Throwing away such a prized, expensive pair of sneakers seemed too harsh.
As for the stew container, if it had been a cheap one from a dollar store, Harune would’ve thrown it away without a second thought, but tossing out the well-worn enamel container that Kouki obviously cherished felt wrong.
Harune had considered returning the items through Naoki, Kouki’s brother, but explaining why he couldn’t give them back directly would’ve been awkward.
So, he decided to leave the shoes and container in front of Kouki’s house while he was likely still asleep.
Standing in the street by the woods, Harune paused, intending to let a passing small car go by. But the pale green compact car stopped right in front of him.
The person who leaned out of the window was Hinako. She was probably here to have breakfast with Kouki.
“Good morning! What a coincidence to see you here at this time,” she said with a bright, sparkling smile.
Seeing that smile, a cold pain, like the sensation of a tooth being drilled, spread through Harune’s chest.
He loathed himself for still reacting like this. He should hate that awful guy by now.
Kouki, who had done such horrible things to him, was probably acting like nothing but a kind and gentle gentleman in front of Hinako.
Part of him wanted to expose Kouki’s true nature—that he was the kind of guy who’d kiss another man just to torment him.
But beneath the clear, crisp sky on the verge of sunrise, Harune couldn’t bring himself to say something so terrible.
Kouki was likely nothing more than an excessively homophobic jerk. There was a strong chance Hinako would never see that side of him.
If that were the case, then there was no point in saying anything. While Harune wasn’t magnanimous enough to wish Kouki happiness just two days after what had happened, he wasn’t such a villain that he would hurt an innocent person like Hinako.
“Are you here to see Kouki?” Hinako asked innocently, her gaze curious.
Harune glanced around in panic.
“Uh, no, I’m just… here to collect some pinecones for a workshop…”
What kind of excuse was that? He inwardly cringed. The Christmas wreath workshop that used pinecones had already ended, and who in their right mind would come out this early, in the frosty morning, to gather damp pinecones and acorns?
But Hinako’s expression lit up.
“Oh, is there still time to sign up for the Christmas wreath workshop?”
“Uh… yes, today’s the last day,” Harune blurted out without thinking, and Hinako adorably raised her hand.
“Can I join in last minute?”
See, this is what happens when you tell a weird lie—things get complicated.
“Um… I think that should be fine,” Harune answered with a forced smile.
As he spoke, the living room light in Kouki’s house turned on.
Panicking, Harune quickly shoved two eco-bags through Hinako’s car window.
“Please, can you give these to Kouki?”
“Huh? Me?”
Hinako looked taken aback, glancing back and forth between the bags she’d just been handed and Harune.
“But you’re already right here. Wouldn’t it be better if you gave them to him directly…?”
“I don’t want to see his face.”
The honest admission slipped out, and Hinako blinked in surprise, as if doubting what she’d just heard. Harune quickly shook his head.
“No, I mean, I need to hurry and dry some pinecones,” he said, stumbling through the excuse.
He bent down, scooped up a few frozen pinecones, and stuffed them into his pockets before turning back toward the frosty grove.
“Uh, wait!” Hinako called out, sounding confused and raising her voice a little. “When is the workshop starting?”
“Anytime is fine!” Harune replied without thinking and scurried back to his house like a squirrel.
***
Hinako showed up at around 6 p.m. It was already pitch dark outside, and the cold north wind that had started blowing since noon made the power lines hum.
There weren’t any workshops actually scheduled for today, and with the stormy weather, there hadn’t been any customers at all.
Dressed in denim and an off-white quilted jacket, Hinako removed her scarf and looked around the shop with a slightly apologetic expression.
“Am I the only one here?”
“No, it’s not at a set time or anything. People just come whenever they want and make things as they like,” Harune said, mixing some truth with the lie as he smiled politely.
Then, he noticed her scarf.
“You finished knitting it! It looks great on you.”
“I was kind of embarrassed to show it to a pro, but I was so happy with it I had to wear it out. It feels really soft and warm.”
“Doesn’t it? You did an amazing job, especially for a beginner.”
“Harune-sensei, you’re good at giving compliments,” she said, blushing with a shy smile but clearly pleased.
The stitches were a bit uneven in places, but that only added to its handmade charm.
Of course, it was important to get good at knitting neatly, but there was something truly special about the simplicity of a beginner’s handmade work.
As Harune gathered the materials for the wreath on the worktable, he motioned for Hinako to sit on a stool.
“Sorry for the trouble I caused you this morning.”
“Not at all. Thanks to that, I get to make a wreath today. So I’m the one who should be thankful. Wow, it’s so pretty with all the decorations!”
Hinako picked up one of the pinecones, painted gold, with an adorably delicate gesture. The pinecones he had picked up that morning were still drying, so these were some Harune had prepared beforehand.
“And these branches smell really nice, too.”
“That’s Himuro cedar,” Harune explained.
Normally, the wreath-making workshops were aimed at families with kids, so they used premade bases and parts that just needed to be glued on with a hot glue gun. But today, since a local customer had given him some pruned Himuro cedar branches, he decided to use fresh materials.
“I was hoping to make two wreaths, but do you think there’s enough time?”
“How about this—I’ll help you make one, and you can take that one home as well?”
“Really? That makes me so happy!”
The task of securing the Himuro cedar branches to the wreath base with wire was tough on the hands, so Harune had prepared work gloves. However…
“I’m confident in how tough my hands are, so I’ll be fine,” Hinako said as she handled the prickly branches with ease, barehanded.
If Harune were attracted to women, she’d definitely be the type he’d fall for. That thought brought him some comfort.
Wait, why is that comforting?
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Next update: 2026.06.29
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