“…My head hurts.”
“Well, drinking and then taking a warm bath, what were you thinking?”
I clearly told you it would be better not to do that.
Corbin, having just woken up, was still feeling exhausted from the morning.
It was no surprise considering he had been drinking and had spent so long in the warm water that his body temperature must have skyrocketed.
Naturally, that was not going to do him any good.
And to top it off, he did it all the way until dawn.
“Ugh…”
“Sigh…”
“Ugh… Should I just go buy some hangover cure?”
“If your head hurts that much, there’s no helping it.”
“That’s true…”
“And anyway, you’re just going to drink some sugary drink later.”
“…That’s also true.”
I was all too familiar with Corbin’s reactions when he drank.
I had seen him suffer from hangovers far too often.
It felt stranger not to see him like this.
Despite not being able to handle alcohol, his behavior was all too familiar.
He always looked like this the day after a drinking session.
In fact, he seemed to lack any pure drinking skills.
When drinking, you need to eat well… but he wasn’t good at snacks either.
Like a fool, he switched between different kinds of drinks, mixing everything up inside him.
“Geez… I told you to be careful…”
“……..”
“How many times have you drunk by now? How can you still be like this?”
“That’s… true…”
Corbin, clutching his head.
After all the alcohol we’d shared over three years, I had no idea when he would learn to drink properly.
At this rate, by the time Charlotte grew up and could drink, she might be better at it than him.
As absurd as that thought was… it wasn’t impossible.
“Ugh… my head hurts.”
“Next time, don’t drink and don’t take warm baths.”
“I think that’s a good idea.”
“And just stick to one type of alcohol.”
“But… Lindera gave me a mix in the first place.”
“Right.”
That was true.
At first, there was just beer and canned highballs, but he bought expensive drinks.
It would be foolish to waste the drinks he bought, right…?
So I started giving him other drinks.
Still, to show some consideration for Corbin, I mixed whiskey with tonic water.
I tried to make it as easy on him as possible.
Of course, the outcome was him suffering yet again from a hangover.
But I had done my best!
“Let’s go eat something for breakfast. We need to cure this hangover.”
“…Okay.”
As I pulled back the blanket, I spoke.
Like I was talking to Corbin… I felt it was time to alleviate our hangovers, or else I’d be stuck with my head in my hands all day.
It would be better to eat something warm and soothing.
*
There were definitely more differences between Zone 07, where we lived, and Zone 16 than I expected.
It wasn’t just the weather; it felt different in so many ways.
“…Should we get odeng?”
“I think anything would be better than this.”
“…That’s true.”
I led Corbin to a restaurant.
Even after washing up, he was still clutching his head from the hangover, which was a bit annoying, but I thought it was better to feed him.
The restaurant we arrived at was a Japanese place.
Most of the food options in our Zone 07 weren’t from restaurants and barbecue places; there were plenty of burgers and pizzas too.
Especially, there were many places selling meat.
Not just grilled meat, but tacos and more… There were various options.
Yet, given that the weather here was far colder, most restaurants had lots of warm soup options.
There was meat available, but the broth options were certainly more abundant.
“I’ll have ramen.”
And most of these soup options… well, they were Japanese dishes I was familiar with.
I think I saw something like gukbap too.
Zones 00 and 07, where the headquarters are, felt like a mix of different cultures.
So there was nothing odd about it.
“Hmm… Should I order a side too?”
“…Let’s decide on something to cure the hangover first.”
“Can’t I just order the same ramen as you?”
“I’m going to order spicy. You can’t handle spicy food, right?”
“…Ah.”
I already knew Corbin’s taste well.
That’s why I was insisting he decide properly.
“I’ll just get tonkotsu and a side of tempura?”
“Sounds good.”
“…Should I order quickly?”
“…Yes.”
After drinking the amount he did yesterday, spending over 30 minutes soaking in the tub was definitely a problem.
Considering the amount he drank, it was unusually bad today.
It had to be because of that.
“Sigh…”
Anyway… I placed the order.
Stalling any longer would only make it worse for him.
Despite holding his head, he still looked like he wasn’t doing well.
I figured it was best to get the food fast and get him feeling better.
Of course, I wasn’t sure if eating ramen would actually cure his hangover… but…?
“Wow… seriously?”
“…Well, why did you suddenly suggest we wash up?”
“I didn’t expect this. I never thought my head would hurt this much… honestly…”
Looking back, asking to wash up again after already having done so seemed really foolish.
When I asked why he wanted to wash up, he just…
“Sigh…”
“…Sorry.”
“I was just surprised at how foolish I looked.”
I only sighed out of disbelief.
Truly.
I wasn’t angry or upset; it was just astonishing, making me laugh and sigh.
After all, the person who had been so passionately involved yesterday was now sitting with his head on the table, looking completely out of it.
I couldn’t help it.
“Next time, don’t drink and don’t do things like this. Got it?”
“…Yes.”
He was acting like a child.
Making me worry about this was a talent in itself.
I didn’t have much to worry about concerning Charlotte, which was kind of surprising…
When he first started learning the job, he made me worry a lot.
How is it that since having a baby and raising it, he still hasn’t matured but merely maintained?
“Corbin, just drink this.”
“Huh?”
I handed a cup to Corbin, who still had his head on the table.
Apparently, it would take a little longer for the ramen to come, so I thought it would be good to clear his mind a bit.
If I left him like this, he might really keep his head down until the ramen arrived.
“…Phew.”
“…How about now?”
“My head still hurts.”
“…….”
When he downed the tea in one go, I thought he might feel better, but his response and words hadn’t changed.
…I had fed him a hangover cure, but it didn’t seem to have much effect.
In the past, I had felt much better after taking hangover cures.
Perhaps Corbin just didn’t respond well to it.
“Let’s just eat the ramen and head back to the hotel to get some real rest.”
“…That sounds better.”
“Yes, it seems like wandering around in this state today would really be dangerous.”
“…Sorry.”
“Don’t worry about it. You didn’t mean for this to happen.”
I really wasn’t angry.
I was just in disbelief… it was actually kind of entertaining.
Seeing someone in their mid-20s drink like a newly 20-year-old and genuinely feel the effects of a hangover was amusing.
“But, honestly, the bathing agent was fascinating, right?”
“Huh?”
“I actually wanted to try the bathing agent, so I suggested we wash up together.”
“…….”
“I mean, it was genuinely interesting…”
“Corbin…”
I maintained eye contact with Corbin for a moment.
I had something to say, but if I just blurted it out… I felt like I would sound foolish too.
But… honesty is the best policy, right?
“Honestly, I found the bathing agent fun too.”
“See?”
…Well, it really was an entertaining experience.
Since I had never used a bathing agent before, I naturally found using it for the first time enjoyable.
And it really was fun.
Watching the bubbles form and the colors come out…
“How about we buy some as a set next time we go home?”
“I think that sounds good, doesn’t it?”
“I’m in favor.”
“Me too.”
“Then let’s buy it.”
The color looked a bit too much like blood, but the bathing agent itself seemed pretty nice.
It had a unique feeling and the color was rather pretty.
Honestly, I had no idea why I hadn’t used it even once before.
I had been to motels and hotels with Corbin plenty of times… yet I never used it.
“Your order for karaage and tonkotsu… assorted tempura is here.”
After waiting and waiting, the ramen finally arrived.
As soon as the staff brought the food, I noticed Corbin looking at the ramen with gleaming eyes filled with anticipation…
He must be feeling rather hungover.
“Ugh…”
Seriously, how much more do I have to take care of him?
“Why are you staring at it like that?”
“I just… thought maybe there was no need to make Charlotte a sibling.”
“…Huh?”
“I just thought about that.”
Corbin looked at me stunned, but who could blame him?
A father showing more concern for his first daughter.
I genuinely didn’t feel the need for a sibling at all.
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