CH 32

And then, an hour and a little later…

“So… why do I have to wait outside for an hour until Mitoma-san will buy her yukata?”

“Well, if I showed it to you now, Senpai, you wouldn’t have a fresh reaction on the day of the festival, would you?”

“…Then, was there any need for me to be here today?”

“It was necessary. After all, you are acting as my personal guide!”

“Guide… am I a butler or something in your eyes?”

“No, no! You’re my husband, Senpai.”

“What the f—?! When did I become your husband…?”

“Since the day you were born?”

“Don’t I have a say in that?!”

“Huhu… Senpai… I… I’m sorry…”

“That’s not what I meant!! That’s not what I was talking about… sigh, I get it. I won’t say anything anymore, so please don’t cry…”

I patted her head to calm her down and surprisingly it had an immediate effect as she giggled.

“Hehe~…”

“Do you have mood swings?”

“It’s nothing. Anyway, it’s time to go home, Senpai!”

My words were exchanged nonchalantly, and in the end, without being able to say anything in return, we headed back home.

☆☆☆☆☆☆

And then, the next day…

In the break room at my part-time job…

“Hey, are you okay?”

“Uh… yeah, I’m fine, Kinoshita-senpai…”

“What’s wrong?”

“Well, I’m just a little sleep-deprived…”

“Sleep-deprived? Did something happen?”

“Well, just a little. Really.”

The person who spoke to me while I was napping in the break room for about 20 minutes until the next person came was Kinoshita-senpai, my senior instructor at part-time work who was one year older than me. She was usually lazy and used to just sit at the entrance of the cram school, but she was a cool person who could do her job well.

As I yawned sleepily, she sat down next to me and placed a can of black coffee from her bag on the table, holding it out in front of me, saying, “Here, drink up.”

“Is it okay?”

“Ah, or should I be showing off?”

“No, thank you very much then.”

She bowed her head, flicked the pin, and it made a popping sound. She took a sip and placed it on the desk.

“Do you not want any more?”

“Eh, ah… I’m not really fond of black coffee.”

She then frowned and made a disgusted face as her coffee was wasted.

“What are you doing?”

“You’re being rude…”

“But it’s true… And besides, it was given to me by Kinoshita-senpai, so it’s not like I asked for it.”

“It’s fine. If you’re not going to drink it, I will.”

“No, no, I’ll drink it.”

“Okay… So, what’s up actually?”

When I nodded, Senpai patted my shoulder and sat down.

“Something’s up…”

“Wait, hold on.”

“What?”

“Is this about that girl?”

“Well… yeah, but don’t call her ‘that girl’. She’s actually a pretty nice person.”

“Hmm… I remember saying that my intuition was telling me something was off about her. She was dangerous!”

“Off? What do you mean?”

“Just like I said. But I don’t think it’s any of your concern, so don’t worry about it.”

“Okay…”

“So, what’s going on?”

“Well, recently, she’s been acting a bit strange… Not in a clingy way or anything like that, but it’s just… different. I didn’t really mind at first, but now it feels like she’s saying things out loud that she shouldn’t be in the first place. More like, she is more honest with her feelings?”

“Like what?”

“She pulled me along with her to buy a Yukata for her, but she didn’t even show me what she bought and she has been saying hundreds of times that she likes me.”

Yesterday, she confessed her feelings to me. Well, I have been aware of that for a long time now, so I wasn’t that surprised. But what left me completely baffled was the fact that her love was really heavy.

She was clinging to me all the time, and repeatedly saying, “I love you, Senpai!” Her eyes were pitch black like a Black-Hole as if wanting to suck me in it and trap me with her forever and ever…

No, is confession the right word to use in this case? For her, I am already her husband.

But I haven’t given my answer yet… Nah, it’s Mitoma-san we’re talking about. I don’t think she is even expecting that much from me.

“More like, her emotions are starting to surface.” She said

“Well, yeah. I don’t think that’s confessing, though.” I replied.

“Confessing? At this age, I don’t think anyone confesses properly.”

“Confess properly?”

“People who say it outright. We’re just drinking and having s*x, aren’t we?”

“H-having s*x suddenly like that…”

“We’re adults.”

“Adults huh…”

“Words aren’t necessary.”

“Nor are actions.”

“So, do you like her? That girl?”

“I… Well, I don’t hate her. But I don’t know if I like her, either.”

“You don’t like her?”

“I don’t know if I do or not. I’m not sure myself.”

“Well, there’s no need to rush to a conclusion, then.”

“That’s true, but… I don’t think I’ll come to a conclusion.”

Saying this, we nodded in agreement.

“Actually, I might already like her.”

“Huh?”

“And there she is… Hey!”

Before I could ask anything else, Mitoma-san, who had just finished her class, came running over happily.

“Senpaaaaai! It’s finally over! Now I can be with you all day.”

“H-hey, don’t suddenly jump on me!”

“I’m not jumping on you, I’m hugging you! Fufu~”

“That’s not the point!”

In the end, no solution was found to this situation.

☆☆☆☆☆☆