Chapter 138: Warm Hands
After the afternoon break, we returned to work like nothing happened.
The others didn’t seem to notice anything unusual—probably because I did a good job hiding the pain. I’m not sure how I pulled it off, but maybe I’ve gotten used to pretending I’m fine.
I thought we were safe until I saw Aki by the backyard door, squinting at us suspiciously as we entered.
She crossed her arms. “What were you two doing out there? I heard a loud thump earlier. Are you okay?”
I blinked, feigning confusion. “Oh—yeah. I accidentally nudged the trash can and made a mess. Keiko helped me pick it up.”
Aki recoiled dramatically, pinching her nose. “Ugh! Don’t come near me, dirty girl!”
Keiko and I couldn’t help but burst into laughter at her animated reaction. That kind of silliness made the tension easier to swallow. I winced a bit from the sting in my arm, but I managed to endure it without flinching.
---
When we got home after work, we finally got some quiet time to ourselves. Keiko quickly grabbed my arm and examined it under the bedroom light. It had started to swell. She furrowed her brows with a serious expression.
“I’m putting medicine on this now,” she said firmly.
“But I haven’t showered yet. Wouldn’t it be a waste?” I reasoned.
She blinked, then sighed. “Oh—right. Okay, fine. Go shower first. But don’t take forever.”
I nodded and limped slightly toward the bathroom. As I undressed, I noticed the bruises on my knee too. I sighed. “Great,” I muttered. “She’s going to freak out again if she sees this.”
The warm water helped soothe the ache a little. I debated hiding the knee bruise somehow, but I already knew it was pointless. Keiko was stubborn when it came to this stuff. She’d find it no matter how much I tried.
Sure enough, when I stepped out of the bathroom, Keiko was already standing by the doorway with ointment in both hands, her face serious like a battlefield medic. She grabbed my hand and gently guided me to the bed.
“You’re so impatient,” I muttered, half-amused.
“You let it sit for too long. That’s why it’s swollen. Just be a good boy once,” she sighed and began treating the bruise on my arm with gentle pats.
I sat there quietly, letting her fuss over me. There was something comforting about her focused expression—how she pressed her lips together whenever she concentrated, the little furrow in her brows.
When she was done, I muttered a soft “Thanks…” and stood up—only to immediately slip and slam my knee on the edge of the bed.
“Ouch—! Damn it,” I hissed, trying to play it off.
“Sit. Down,” Keiko ordered, already kneeling to check my leg.
“Wait—hey—!” I tried to resist, but she was already rolling up my pants.
Her breath hitched when she saw the bruised knee. “You were hiding this from me too?”
I gave her a sheepish look. “I didn’t want you to feel guilty, since… well… you kinda pushed me earlier.”
“I’m not feeling guilty,” she snapped. “Don’t be stupid!”
“…Sorry.”
To ease the awkwardness, I tried shifting the topic. “Anyway… is Rin coming home late?”
“She said she’s sleeping over at Chiyori’s tonight.”
I chuckled. “Glad they made up.”
Keiko smiled softly, finishing the ointment on my knee. “Yeah… finally.”
“Thanks, Keiko. You—”
I didn’t get to finish. Out of nowhere, she straddled me on the bed.
“W-What the hell are you doing?!” I squeaked.
She was already tugging at my shirt. “Let me see!”
“Hey—stop it! What are you doing?!” I yelped, struggling like it was a wrestling match. My hands gripped the fabric, but she was determined.
Then it happened—a loud rip tore through the air. My shirt.
We both froze.
She was straddling me, hands still clutching the torn cloth, her face only inches from mine. My heart was hammering against my ribs.
“W-What’s gotten into you?” I panted.
Keiko’s face flushed red like she had just snapped out of a trance. “S-sorry—I didn’t mean to tear your shirt!”
“Then what were you doing?”
“I just… I thought maybe you had more bruises, and you were hiding them from me again!”
“…That’s why you tackled me like an angry nurse?”
“You wouldn’t let me if I asked!”
“…Okay, yeah, fair.”
I sighed and gently nudged her off my lap. She blinked as I stood and pulled off what was left of my shirt.
“There. Now you can check yourself.”
Keiko froze, her cheeks turning crimson as her eyes traveled over me. The silence got heavy.
“Why are you just staring?” I teased. “Should I take off my bra too?”
I casually unhooked it for effect, letting the strap slip slightly off my shoulder.
Keiko’s eyes widened in horror. “N-No!” she shrieked, scrambling toward me like I was doing something illegal.
She pushed me backward again—too hard.
I landed on the bed with a flop, and my bra popped off completely in the process.
That wasn’t the worst part.
Her hand… landed right on my left breast.
We both froze.
Her eyes met mine. Her hand still hadn’t moved. My brain short-circuited.
“…Uh.”
“…UHHHHHH,” she squeaked and jumped back like she touched a boiling pot.
We sat there, blinking, red-faced and silent for a good ten seconds.
I finally broke the tension with a strained laugh. “Are you trying to kill me with awkwardness?”
Keiko covered her face with both hands. “I didn’t mean to—I swear—I panicked!”
“I noticed.”
She peeked through her fingers. “Your bra just… it came off…”
“Gee, I wonder why,” I said flatly, pulling a blanket over my chest.
“…Sorry,” she mumbled again.
We both sat in silence, flushed and flustered.
Keiko had been a bit off all day. She wasn’t herself. She poured water without looking and spilled it all over the table. Later, she brushed her bare hand against a hot plate without flinching until someone pointed it out. I watched as she forced a smile, quietly shaking her hand as if the burn didn’t matter. But I knew her—she never messed up during service.
“Keiko,” I said, watching her legs bounce. “You okay?”
She glanced at me, startled like I’d caught her doing something bad. Her expression softened, a little vulnerable. “I think I’ve been acting weird since this afternoon…”
I raised an eyebrow. “Weird how?”
She looked away, cheeks tinged pink under the warm light. “I don’t know… Ever since that kiss… I’ve been feeling strange.”
Strange?
She hugged her arms around herself, not quite meeting my gaze. “It’s like—I don’t know how to say it—I wanted to be close to you. Like… really close.”
My heart skipped. The way she said that—it wasn’t just physical. It was emotional, charged, confusing. She wasn’t just being clumsy today. She was distracted. Caught in something we couldn’t name.
She quickly added, "It’s just—ugh, I hate this.” She buried her face in her palms. “I don’t even know why. I just did.”
I leaned a little closer and gently reached for her wrist, pulling her hand down. “Keiko…”
She glanced at me.
“You don’t have to explain it.”