Five or six minutes later, Shizuka Hiratsuka and Hazuki returned.
When Ichin saw the huge pile of stuff they were carrying, he couldn't hold back his reaction.
"All of that is alcohol?"
Thud!
Dropping a large bag onto the floor, Shizuka let out a breath and pulled out a bottle of sake.
"Heh, who knew Hazuki had such a good stash? This one's a real treasure!"
Seeing Shizuka already uncorking the bottle, Ichin quickly said,
"Fine, you can drink—but don't overdo it. We've still got a bunch of activities later tonight."
"Relax, how could I possibly get drunk?"
With that, she poured herself a glass of sake and looked around the room.
"Anyone else want a drink—besides the underage folks, of course?"
As soon as she finished, Hifumi raised her empty glass.
She had been watching the two since they brought the drinks in and had already downed her fruit juice in a few sips—clearly waiting for this mont.
Seeing the eager look in Hifumi's eyes, Kō Yagami lifted her own glass.
"Now that you ntion it, it's been a while since we've gone out for dinner and drinks. We've gotten used to eating at the studio. It's a rare Christmas night—let's all have a little fun. And even if soone's driving, it's fine—we've got rooms, so just crash here."
"Hey, hey, hey! This _is_ my house, you know?"
"What, Ichin-kun, are you saying you'd actually say no?"
Ichin shrugged, replying coolly,
"Not really. But I'll say it again—no getting drunk. Dealing with drunk people is a pain."
And so, with the exception of those under 20, everyone else swapped their drinks for sake or beer.
Hazuki didn't open the red wine yet—she planned to save that for after dinner when everyone could sip and relax.
Utaha, sitting next to Ichin, glanced at him sipping his cola and asked curiously,
"You're not having any?"
"? Nah."
Ichin shook his head and looked toward Hazuki and Hiratsuka, who were already starting a drinking contest, completely ignoring his earlier warning.
"Maybe I'll have a bit of the red wine later. I checked—Hazuki brought so good stuff. Want to join ?"
"Sure, sounds nice. Let's do that later."
Dinner stretched on for two full hours, and every single dish on the table was devoured.
Fortunately, the studio had a dishwasher, so after a quick clean-up, everything was thrown in without needing a second thought.
When Ichin ca out of the kitchen, he noticed the workspace was completely empty.
Sure enough, in the lounge area, everyone had gathered around the Christmas tree, their eyes fixed on the pile of gifts stacked beneath it.
Turning toward him with sparkling eyes, Sakura Nene asked,
"Ichin-kun, can we start picking out gifts now?"
"Sure you can. But are you all sure you're okay after drinking? Don't want anyone suddenly collapsing."
He said that while glancing at Shizuka Hiratsuka and Hazuki, both of whom were now slumped drunkenly on the sofa.
"Just like those two—_the definition of unreliable adults._"
Kō Yagami waved it off.
"Don't worry about them. Let's pick our gifts first. They can split whatever's left."
"Hold on, Kō."
Rin Toyama stopped her gently with a smile. "Didn't we agree on sothing earlier?"
Kō Yagami paused for a mont before suddenly rembering.
"Oh right! I almost forgot—hahaha, I'll go get it now!"
With that, she jumped up and ran to her room.
Sakura Nene also seed to realize sothing and awkwardly stuck out her tongue, deciding not to bring up picking gifts anymore.
Soon, Kō returned, holding a small box. She sat down in front of Ichin and handed it to him.
"Here, Ichin! This is a Christmas present from all of us to you!"
"Huh? A Christmas gift? For __?"
Ichin took the box, looking around at everyone in confusion, then glanced at Utaha.
Utaha shook her head slightly, just as surprised.
"Don't look at —I had no idea either."
Ichin stared at the gift in his hands—completely caught off guard.
"When did you even prepare this?"
"We've been working on it for a week," Rin Toyama replied with a smile. "Over the past half-year, you brought us together again. Thanks to you, we've been able to work like we used to and even develop so great gas. So we all pitched in to get you a Christmas gift."
Suda leaned in and patted Ichin on the shoulder.
"Co on, open it—see if you like it."
Haruno chid in cheerfully,
"I helped pick it out too!"
Feeling the warmth from everyone's gesture, a smile crept onto Ichin's face.
"Thanks, everyone. Well then… I'll open it."
Peeling away the wrapping, Ichin finally saw the gift in full.
"A wristwatch?"
"That's right!"
Just then, Hazuki, cheeks flushed and clearly tipsy, staggered over and slung an arm around Ichin's shoulder.
"When we were out running errands before, I noticed you never wear a watch. But you're the boss of a whole studio now—and we're only going to grow from here! You've got to look the part, right? I thought of having Utaha get one for you, but in the end, we all pitched in under Haruno's suggestion and bought this watch together!"
Inside the box lay a sleek, silver chanical wristwatch.
Ichin indeed never had the habit of wearing one, nor did he know much about watch prices or brands. But he didn't ask—after all, this was a heartfelt gift. All he needed to do was appreciate it.
He strapped the watch onto his wrist and held it up.
"How does it look?"
A round of applause broke out from everyone.
"It looks great!"
"A guy really should wear a watch—it suits you perfectly!"
Utaha looked at the watch they had given Ichin and seed to hesitate. Then she gently poked his arm.
"Ichin-kun, I also got you a Christmas present."
For so reason, her cheeks were slightly flushed—even though she hadn't had anything to drink.
Was it because the room was warm? That didn't seem right either.
Maybe… it was because of the gift itself?
Ichin smiled.
"I actually got sothing for you too, Utaha. Since I've received everyone's gift, I think it's ti I give you yours."
"I'll go get mine too."
Everyone watched the two of them. For now, the pile of gifts under the tree could wait—they were all eager to see what the two had prepared for each other.
"Wait a minute—this isn't right."
Kō Yagami frowned.
"They're giving each other gifts? Isn't that just rubbing it in for us single folks?"
"..."
Everyone fell into a stunned silence.
...
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