Chapter 28 – Winter (Part 13)
Winter, Part 13
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 novels.space, the original site of translation. TQ*
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Harune turned his gaze away, pouting. “…With the way things are going, I think it’s already pretty obvious without me having to say it.”
“Even if I know, I want to hear it clearly. Can’t say it? Do you want me to make you?”
Kouki playfully tugged at Harune’s pyjamas, pulling him closer, and the memory of their sensual kiss rushed back into Harune’s mind.
His face burned with embarrassment, and he swatted Kouki’s hand away, blurting out,
“Fine, fine! I like you, okay? I mean I like-!”
“Oh.”
“-I like Swan’s chocolate rolls.”
“Hey.”
Harune slipped out of Kouki’s grasp and opened the cake box.
“Wow, this looks delicious. You’ll have some too, right?”
Without giving Kouki a chance to say anything, Harune cut through the charged atmosphere and brewed some roasted tea with the electric kettle.
The rich chocolate sponge cake, rolled with plenty of fruit and fresh cream, was a dangerously tempting midnight treat. But after their emotionally charged confession session, Harune’s body was craving sugar and fat.
“This is really good.”
The cake, an old favourite, truly tasted delicious. But more than that, Harune was using it to distract himself from the awkwardness of the situation, hiding his embarrassment by focusing intensely on the cake.
“I’m glad,” Kouki said with a satisfied look, then added, “But…”
“But what?” Harune asked.
“I’m feeling a little jealous.”
“Of what?”
“You’re eating that cake like you enjoy it more than the things I make.”
“That’s not true. Sweets are on a different level.”
“Fine, I’ll make a cake for Christmas then,” Kouki declared.
Christmas Eve was only two days away.
“So after you finish work, come over to my place.”
“That’s lucky for me, getting to eat cake that often,” Harune said cheerfully.
Kouki looked at him intently and said, “Make sure you bring an overnight bag.”
“What? Why?”
Harune blinked in confusion at the unexpected request, but Kouki just stared back at him silently. Feeling a bit awkward, Harune quickly swallowed a piece of kiwi wrapped in whipped cream.
“Ugh.”
As Harune washed down the uncomfortable sensation in his throat with some tea, Kouki finished the last bite of his cake, stood up, and grabbed his oil-coated jacket.
“Wait, you’re leaving?”
It was almost 2 a.m., and Harune had thought they’d just lounge around until morning.
“I’m heading home for tonight,” Kouki said as he slipped his arms into his coat.
“I didn’t come prepared.”
“Prepared for what?”
Harune was puzzled. What kind of preparation did they need to just crash at the kotatsu and bask in the afterglow of their mutual feelings? But Kouki’s silent stare made Harune realise what he meant, and his face turned red.
“Oh… um, see you on Christmas Eve then,” Harune stammered, trying to cover up his embarrassment. But his words only made him panic more.
What if it sounds like I’ll be fully prepared for Christmas Eve!?
Flustered, he quickly added, “I’m looking forward to the cake on Christmas Eve!”
“…The cake, huh?” Kouki repeated with a suggestive smile before heading out into the cold hallway toward the back door.
As he reached the entrance, Kouki turned and stretched out his hand, gently placing his palm against Harune’s forehead.
“What? I’m not running a fever, you know.”
Harune thought Kouki might have mistaken his flushed face for a sign of sickness, but Kouki brushed back Harune’s hair and pressed a kiss to his exposed forehead, like a seal.
“Good night.”
In a way, the kiss on his forehead was even sweeter than one on the lips, leaving Harune so shaken that he collapsed into a sitting position on the floor. Kouki quietly disappeared behind the sliding door.
“Huh? What was that? What the heck was that?”
As the sound of Kouki’s car engine faded into the distance, Harune wobbled back to the living room and crawled under the kotatsu.
The sweetness lingering on his forehead and lips, even more overwhelming than the cake he had just eaten, spread throughout his body, making him want to curl up like a cat and squirm in delight.
That night, Harune was left alone, squirming with happiness so sweet that it felt like his whole body might get cavities from it.
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*Translator’s Note: Japanese’s ‘I like you’ is equivalent to ‘I love you’. Just so you guys know. But Harune deflected it there just now by saying he likes the cake. Hahaha. Oh and don’t forget, Christmas, for the Japanese, is like Valentine’s Day. It’s the day for couples. But anyway, it goes without saying that I actually prefer the dark romance type of novel with toxic/manipulative Semes and all. But what the hell is this? Why am I so into this novel? No wonder why Tsukimura Kei is one of the top BL authors. I fell in love with this novel immediately and it made me feel warm. That’s rare, I tell you! I’ll be buying more of this author’s novel! Because sometimes, I need a break from the red-flag Semes too. Hahaha.
-K
Next update: 2026.07.06
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