Chapter 941: Time to Go Back!

Unfortunately, that kiss became the last memory Higo could make with his girlfriend during this short break, as he had to return to Gelsenkirchen to face the Bundesliga.

Now, he found himself staggering a little, dragging his luggage, breathing heavily as he walked through Sapporo International Airport with a melancholic gaze.

Honestly, the boy was so reluctant to leave right now. He had so many things that he wanted to do, from celebrating New Year together with his family to spending more time with Kumiko to enjoy their hometown properly.

Unfortunately, work always came first, as the league would start soon enough, just on the third day of the new year.

Usually, the schedule wasn’t this tight. Players would always have at least two or even three weeks of a break in the winter. However, it couldn’t be done this year.

No, this year, they started quite late due to the pandemic, so they had to shorten the holiday to keep everything on schedule. As a result, they sacrificed the players’ sanity, forcing the league to continue even when everyone was still in a celebratory mood.

’Hey, if people in England could accept playing on Boxing Day, why couldn’t ours?’

At least, that was the argument to force the competition to continue in this moment. A stupid one, of course, and something that Higo took note of in his head.

’Later, if I have a choice, I would never play in England. I swear, they have too many competitions in a year. They are just too crazy to my liking.’ He murmured secretly.

"Hey, Ryukkun, why are you so slow?" His sister’s voice suddenly snapped him from his own thoughts. "What? Still unwilling to go without your pretty girlfriend? Not having anyone to kiss you anymore?" Her tone was full of teasing as she was imitating a kiss scene mockingly.

Kumiko was blushing red, unable to come up with any response that could save her from embarrassment.

Higo himself was so speechless, giving his sister a karate chop on her head.

"Until when will you bring this up? You know she is too shy to be teased like that, right?"

"Well, that’s what makes teasing her so funny and interesting." Ayaka blew a raspberry before clinging to the blushing Kumiko as if she hadn’t just done anything wrong here.

The boy just let out a deep sigh, somehow regretting being back from the mountain without checking their states. As a result, Ayaka noticed Kumiko’s swollen lips and connected the dots instantly, and all the people in the house had been teasing them about this.

"Oh, hush, you!" Minami slapped her daughter on the shoulder playfully. "Just let them do whatever they like! You will turn into the same lovey-dovey teenagers when you have a boyfriend, you know?"

Higo choked instantly when he heard that, not expecting his mother to throw some shade at Ayaka for not being in any relationship right now.

"Heh! I’m not in a rush right now. Let me do anything I like first before getting into a relationship. I’m sure a lot of people will be willing to be with me." Ayaka just shrugged off the concern, flipping her hair dramatically like she was a princess from a Disney movie.

They kept bickering for a while until the announcement rang, telling that the flight from Sapporo to Tokyo would depart in two hours, so it was better for the passengers to get on the plane first.

Higo sighed once again, somehow feeling reluctant to finally leave his comfort zone.

"Eh, why are you so sad?" This time, Ayaka didn’t tease him, just pulling his head to her shoulder while patting it gently. "You promised that you would invite us there once the situation gets better, right?"

"Yeah, once the travel restriction is lifted, we will go there to support you. Don’t worry about it." Minami joined the party, giving her two children the biggest bear hug she could muster.

Kumiko looked quite awkward in this moment, feeling like she didn’t belong there. However, Minami also noticed that, so she signaled her to come as well to join the group hug.

"Come on, no need to be this sad." Minami, the one who usually became the first to cry, somehow turned into the strongest one at this moment.

Her motherly instinct knew that this separation was so heavy for her son, as he had only been here for six days, too short for him to heal all the feelings of homesickness after staying so long in a foreign country.

She knew that the moment she cried, her boy would break and probably try to find a reason to prolong his stay. No, she had to be strong right now, no matter how much she wanted to cry in that exact moment.

"Yeah, Minami-obaasan is right. It is just a short separation. I will also be back sooner than you think, so don’t think too much about it." Kumiko added, rubbing Higo’s shoulder soothingly.

Yeah, unlike Higo, who still had to play, Kumiko’s break was longer, so she could afford to stay a little bit longer at home.

Even though the girl would love nothing but to go back together with Higo, she still wanted to accompany her mother as well, and Higo also supported that decision.

Still, in the end, he had to go back to Germany alone, which bogged his mind more than it should have.

"Yeah, at the end of the day, I have to be professional, right? I cannot just abandon my job because of homesickness... No, that wouldn’t do..." Higo muttered lowly, trying to convince himself.

Fortunately, no tears fell from any of them, or Higo would never know how he could bear the separation.

In the end, he finally went inside as quickly as possible, not wanting to be seen leaving with his shoulders down by those three important women of his life.

Once Higo found his spot on the plane, he just let out a deep sigh, leaning his body back against the comfortable seat while covering his eyes tightly.

’Yeah, the holiday is finally over, huh? It is time to go back to work...’