Chapter 68: A Warm Hug
Natsume Mio knelt on the tatami, neatly arranging the bento box, chopsticks, and a box of fruit and vegetable drink.
Both were fried pork cutlet bentos, paired with vegetables, fried egg, and triangle rice balls wrapped in seaweed.
Seeing Sakamoto Ken hadn’t moved yet, Natsume Mio turned her head, smiling with her eyes slightly narrowed: “A Jian? Come eat.”
Sakamoto Ken silently walked to the opposite side of Natsume Mio and sat cross-legged.
He didn’t pick up the chopsticks right away, but stared at the girl in front of him.
“Did you make this yourself?” Sakamoto Ken asked.
“Mm-hmm.” Natsume Mio nodded and said, “I specially learned it from Mom. Give it a try? It should still be quite crispy.”
She picked up her chopsticks and lightly poked the fried pork cutlet in her own bento box, making a “crunch crunch” sound.
Sakamoto Ken looked at her proud expression and felt somewhat surprised inside.
In the previous life, her culinary skills were just average—edible, but not delicious.
Back then, the two often ate together, but most of the time it was convenience store bentos.
Now she had specially learned to cook from her mom, and it turned out quite well.
The golden crispy shell of the fried pork cutlet looked almost no different from the ones sold in stores.
It seemed the situation had indeed undergone some subtle changes.
In the previous life, they had confirmed their relationship right after graduation.
By this point in time, the two had done everything, even starting to watch learning videos together to try various positions.
So, for Mikazuki Haruna that girl, this round’s progress was accelerated.
But for Natsume Mio, it didn’t count as accelerated progress.
“I already bought lunch for today, it’s in the refrigerator,” Sakamoto Ken said.
“Convenience store bento, right?” Natsume Mio immediately followed up. “And the half-price one from last night. Sigh, that stuff is just barely edible, not tasty at all.”
Sakamoto Ken shrugged: “Bringing me a bento is too much trouble for you.”
“How could it be trouble?” Natsume Mio’s smile grew even brighter. “I have to eat anyway, it’s just bringing an extra one~ Plus, I can come to your place to eat too, treat it like a restaurant~”
As she spoke, she picked up her own bento box and clamped a piece of fried pork cutlet, taking a gentle bite.
“Crunch!”
The golden crispy shell shattered with a crisp sound.
The girl’s red lips parted slightly as she chewed delicately, contentedly narrowing her eyes.
A few golden crumbs stuck to her moist lips, glistening with bits of oil in the sunlight.
She seemed unaware, simply enjoying the food. After chewing a few times and swallowing, she still licked her lips longingly, extending her pink tongue tip to gently lick the corner of her mouth, drawing the tiny crumbs into her mouth.
Sakamoto Ken said nothing more; the bento was already brought over anyway.
He picked up the bento box in front of him, softly said “I’ll dig in,” and also clamped a piece of fried pork cutlet.
The shell was indeed crispy, and the pork inside was tender and juicy—way better than the soggy texture from microwaving convenience store ones.
He then picked up a seaweed rice ball and took a bite.
The aroma of the rice mixed with just the right salty flavor, spreading in his mouth.
After chewing lightly, the starch broke down into maltose under the saliva, adding a hint of sweetness.
“How is it? Tasty, right?” Natsume Mio looked at him with eyes full of expectation.
Sakamoto Ken nodded: “Very tasty. The rice ball is salty-sweet too.”
“I shaped these by hand~” Natsume Mio’s tone carried a bit of pride.
After saying that, she noticed Sakamoto Ken’s gaze lingering on her face. Her cheeks flushed slightly, and she waved her hands hurriedly to explain: “Eh, no, not hand sweat! Um, the salty taste is from saltwater.”
She gestured as she said: “Before shaping the rice balls, prepare a big bowl of cool saltwater. Dip your hands in the saltwater first, then shape—that prevents burns and adds a little saltiness to the rice ball.”
“I wash my hands clean before cooking!”
Sakamoto Ken listened to her explanation and took another bite of the rice ball, savoring it carefully.
It really didn’t taste like hand sweat—just ordinary edible salt.
He wasn’t some pervert with special tastes anyway.
That said, he’d seen online that Tokyo had some weird theme restaurants where girls shaped rice balls with their armpits in front of customers, or even specified to use feet…
Sakamoto Ken couldn’t appreciate it, but in Tokyo, all kinds of people existed.
Natsume Mio ate in small bites, chewing slowly. After swallowing, she quietly watched Sakamoto Ken, casually saying as if offhand: “A Jian, I finished chapter six.”
Sakamoto Ken set down his chopsticks and looked at her: “How was it?”
“Mm… Denji-kun is different from what I imagined.”
“Is he? How so?”
“You told me last time, A Jian, that Denji-kun likes several girls, but… he actually likes Makima the most, right?” Natsume Mio asked.
Sakamoto Ken thought for a moment and nodded: “Pretty much.”
“It just feels like this guy Denji is all about bouncing chests,” Natsume Mio pursed her lips and said. “Like he’d do anything for it.”
Hearing this, Sakamoto Ken’s expression turned serious.
He set down the rice ball in his hand and stared at Natsume Mio, asking: “You know what kind of life Denji lived before meeting Makima, right?”
Natsume Mio paused, recalling the manga’s opening: “Very… tough… To pay off debt, he even sold his own organs…”
“Exactly,” Sakamoto Ken said. “He had no home, no family, couldn’t even afford a proper meal. When starving, he’d eat toilet paper in park bathrooms. In his world, there was only cold debt and endless loneliness—he’d never experienced true warmth.”
He paused, then continued: “What do you think is the first warmth a baby feels in this world?”
Natsume Mio was stumped by his question. After thinking for a moment, she softly said: “The… mother’s embrace?”
“Right, the mother’s embrace,” Sakamoto Ken nodded and said. “That’s life’s first hug, representing absolute safety and the most primal warmth.”
“So, for Denji, breasts symbolize the warm embrace he lacks most—not just mere lust.”
Natsume Mio stared at him blankly, blinking her eyes, somewhat uncertainly saying: “So… that’s how it is?”
“Meaning every time Denji-kun mentions bouncing chests, he’s actually… craving a warm embrace?”
Sakamoto Ken nodded lightly: “That’s the belief keeping him alive.”
Natsume Mio had a sudden realization.
She’d never thought about it from this angle before.
She’d just thought Sakamoto Ken drew Denji obsessing over bouncing chests to pander to readers, just adding some fanservice…
So… there’s actually such a profound reason behind it.
She suddenly thought that a work actually represents the author’s belief, right?
Does that mean A Jian… actually wants to bounce…
No no!
A Jian actually craves a warm embrace too?
Yeah, A Jian is all alone too, no family, living in this rundown apartment with a huge debt—just like Denji-kun.
Natsume Mio unconsciously lowered her head, her gaze falling on her own chest.
The full curves blocked half of the bento box on the table.
So… this thing isn’t just simple fat and glands.
For A Jian, it actually represents security, warmth?
My… previous thoughts were so shallow…
The girl turned her head to look out the apartment room’s window, where sunlight streamed in and a breeze rustled the curtains.
She lightly bit her lip, pondered for a moment, then her eyes darted as an idea popped up.
“Huh?”
She suddenly exclaimed softly, abruptly standing up and hurrying to the window, pointing downstairs: “A Jian! Look, what’s that?”
Sakamoto Ken puzzledly got up and walked to the window, looking down in the direction she pointed.
Downstairs was empty.
“There’s nothing… huh?”
As he puzzled, his back suddenly pressed against something warm and soft.
A pair of slender arms wrapped around from behind, tightly hugging his chest.
