Ome Quartet of Snow Country

Chapter 554 A bunch of ears of rice

After Morimi left, Naruse stayed alone in the clubroom until Naoko came up after finishing her work around five o'clock, but no questions or troubles came to her door.

Of course he won't feel disappointed, he just hopes that everything will go well tomorrow and the day after tomorrow until the flea market closes.

Seeing that he was the only one upstairs, Shangzi was a little surprised.

"Is everyone going back first?"

"After finishing their work here, they went to sit in the cafe." Naruse said, and got up to pack things.

"so……"

Shangzi glanced at the coffee can on the table and thought he had bought it himself. When he picked it up, he found that there was a lot left in it.

"Isn't it delicious?"

“This taste is really bitter, I won’t buy it next time.”

Shangzi took a sip and immediately frowned.

"so bitter……"

Naruse smiled and said, "Don't drink it if it's painful."

She took another sip, raised her head slightly, and looked at him.

"..."

For a moment, Naruse felt as if he had taken another big sip of coffee.

"I told you it was very difficult..."

He still lowered his head, covered her lips, lowered his head and kissed her deeply, swallowing the more realistic bitterness in her mouth and returning the favor with tenderness.

After kissing for a while, Shangzi couldn't stand any longer, and the two separated.

"Let's go back."

"uh-huh."

After looking at the half-can of coffee left, Naruse picked it up and drank it in one gulp. He went downstairs with the empty can and threw it into the trash can.

"It's already this hour, and there are still so many people in the school."

"The cultural festival is coming soon, and everyone is getting nervous."

"Is the handicraft club also getting nervous?"

"It's okay... I'm a bit excited. Even a second grader can't hold back today."

He got on his bike and left the school, passed by the coffee shop, and called the three people sitting here. Haixing was not called to help today.

"The store is not busy today, and the manpower is fully sufficient." She explained, "I am not needed."

"Because many students are staying in school to prepare for the cultural festival."

Shangzi glanced inside the coffee shop and saw that there were still many empty seats on the first floor.Of course, it's not too early now.

"go home."

After riding on the bike and returning to Qingliu, Hikari Takigawa, the leader, suddenly stopped on the side of the road.

After bypassing his car, Naruse stopped in front and looked at the harvested farmland. Then he suddenly remembered that when he passed here this morning, the rice fields were still golden, and every rice ear was full and the stalks were bent. .

"The rice has been harvested."

"Ah."

"When I passed by here in the morning, there seemed to be a harvester parked." He turned to look at his girlfriend behind him to confirm with her.

Shangzi nodded, "Yes."

Feeling that another year of spring planting and autumn harvest has come, a few people only stopped briefly on the roadside before moving on and saying goodbye.

"Bye-Bye."

"See you tomorrow."

When he got home and was about to ride into the yard, Naruse pressed the brakes again and stopped.

He raised his chin and pointed to the extension of the path ahead, "I don't know if the farmland over there has been harvested. I want to go and have a look."

Although he rarely walks that path, Shangzi is still very familiar with the area around his home. "Is the road ahead good for cycling?"

"People can pass, and cars should be able to pass... Just give it a try. At worst, the car will be parked on the side of the road."

"Well... I won't go over. It feels like even if I can go over, it will be very bumpy." Shangzi said.

Naruse let her get out of the car first.

"Give me the schoolbag."

Relieving himself of the burden, he said, "I'll be back soon," and continued riding forward.

The path is really bumpy, and the narrow parts make it difficult to ride too fast, let alone stop, otherwise you will lose your balance.

After finally riding over, he turned a corner and followed a short uphill slope to the cement road. When Naruse raised his eyes, he saw Hikari Takigawa standing at the edge of the field.

She also looked over and opened her mouth.

"Chunhai..."

"I'll come over and take a look." Naruse turned the accelerator and rode to her side to stop. "Sure enough, the harvest here is also clean."

"Ah."

He stopped the car and said, "It's so fast. In just one day, the area nearby has been harvested."

"It's always been like this." Takigawa Hikaru said, looking at him again, "Does Naoko know what Harumi is here for?"

Naruse pursed his lower lip, "Don't worry, she knows I just came here to have a look. And I never thought I would meet Guang here."

She responded, looking at the rice fields in front of her where only a few stalks were left after harvesting, she took another step forward and jumped down.

The water would be cut off some time before the rice harvest, and the fields would have dried up long ago. She jumped without leaving too deep footprints.After staring at her back twice, Naruse looked at the county road in the distance.A small blue motorcycle was riding towards the house further ahead.

The distance eliminated the churning sound of the motorcycle as it advanced, and she moved forward intently, as she did most of the time.

Watching Morimi's figure disappear behind the courtyard wall, Naruse looked away. In the rice field, Takigawa Hikaru had already walked to the other side of the field ridge.

She stopped there, turned around and looked at him, stared briefly and then waved her hand.

"Harumi, please go back first——"

Naruse also jumped down.

"..."

She stayed where she was, waiting for him to come across the field, and then took the shortest way back with him.

"You can still smell the rice now... It's like the harvest was just finished." Naruse followed her one step behind, looking at the short crop of each plant on the ground that was about to be trampled by him.

"It smells like straw." Hikaru Takigawa said.

"Ah."

After walking a few more steps, he bent down and picked up a bunch of discarded rice ears.A full bunch, the grains are still full and the stalks are straight.

He raised his head, and Hikari Takigawa stopped in front, waiting for him.

Naruse followed up in two steps and held her hand.

"..."

She tightened her grip for a moment, then slowly loosened it.

"Picked a bunch of ears of rice."

"Ah."

"Give it to the light."

She took the ear of rice and shook it in her hand, making a rustling sound as the grains collided.

She brought it to her nose and smelled it again.

"What is the taste."

"It tastes a little earthy."

"Isn't there the aroma of rice?"

"Also."

Naruse squeezed her hand and looked into the distance.

When the farmland was full of golden rice, he didn't feel anything. Suddenly the harvest was clean, and the feeling of autumn suddenly became stronger.

"It always feels like yesterday I was playing in the water by the river, and in the blink of an eye I'm here."

Takigawa Hikaru looked at him and looked forward.

"I always feel that Chunhai and I are just friends."

Naruse turned to look at her, "I hope Hikari can continue to treat me as a friend."

"Still friends," she said.

"Whenever you are with me now, you smile less."

She was silent for a moment and looked at the rice ears in her hand, "Because I always think of another friend who was betrayed."

Naruse took a breath and squeezed her hand.

"Look forward."

She looked at him again and looked ahead.

Continuing to walk back to the concrete road that was more than one meter above the rice field, Takigawa Hikaru was about to climb up, but Naruse next to her had already stepped onto the road first, patted the dust on her hands, and reached out to her again.

Pulling his hand up, he took her hand again and kissed the back of it.

"go home."

"Ah."

The two of them got on their motorcycles. The path was difficult to navigate, so he rode back with her, preparing to bypass his home on the county road.

When they arrived at her house, the two said goodbye again.

"gone back."

"OK Bye Bye."

Watching him ride off the path, Takigawa Hikaru also rode to the garage, parked his car and returned home.

"I am back."

"Welcome back...what is Hikari holding in his hand?"

"Ear of rice."

"Speaking of which, the harvester came here today and has been working here all day... Did you pick it up on the roadside?"

She gently shook the rice ears in her hand, "It's from Chunhai."

"yes."

"After the rice ears are cut, can they still survive if put in water?"

"What are you talking about? It would be great if Harumi could give some of his clever brain to Hikaru."

Takigawa Hikaru smiled silently, stared at Inaho for a while, then got up and went upstairs.

(End of this chapter)