CH 25

“…..Sigh.”

I wonder how many times I have sigh today. I was in distress as I lay on my bed.

The reason is obvious. It happened on the train on the way home.

“……That’s a foul.”

The warmth of the hand on my back. The warmth of her body. …….I can still remember the softness of it.

In addition, her statement.

[……I don’t mind. Touching with Minori kun.]

Her usual kindness. rather than being careful, she’s acting a little aggressively.

“….No wait. Geez, I don’t know what to think.”

While my head is messed up. Somehow I began to sort it out.

Of course, there’s always the possibility of a misunderstanding. …….It’s like the way men and women treat their friends differently.

For example, boys pat each other on the head and hug each other. ……I’m sure there are some out there, but they weren’t around me. Eiji wasn’t the type to do that either.

On the other hand, girls. Some of them, though. They were hugging and holding hands as if it was natural…..I guess.

I think Shinonome might have been more on that side. ….No, there’s something wrong with that.

“We couldn’t call each other by name.”

Of course Shinonome feels the same way. No, the situation may not have been good at that time.

After saying that she would be a good wife….I couldn’t help but feel conscious of her.

“No, I don’t know.”

I don’t understand anything. I don’t have much experience with women. I don’t know anything about it.

“Sigh……”

I let out another sigh. I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep today.

At that time. I heard a notification on my phone. The person on the other end was–

[Um. Are you still awake?]

It was Shinonome.

◆◆◆

“Ugh…..w-what have I done?”

I went to bed trying to sleep. I can’t sleep at all. I suddenly remembered what happened on the train on the way home.

Minori kun face was so close. Ugh……

A refreshing and reassuring scent spreaded throughout my chest. Also hard, strong, and gentle.

The hand that gently hugged me felt like it was touching a glass ornament. ……Ugh.

“N-no, not good. This makes me look….like a naughty girl.”

If Minori kun knew that I was this kind of girl, he would surely hate me. 

“But……”

I can’t.

I’m so happy that I was grinning all the time. If I press my face with my palm…..it will loosen naturally.

“Ah…..my face, will it return properly?”

When I was eating dinner, it felt stiff. It seems that if I’m not aware of it all the time, my face will naturally fall apart. It was probably as hard as the first time I attended a Japanese dance performance.

And one more thing. There’s one more problem.

“I can’t sleep at all.”

That’s right. I can’t sleep at all. Surprisingly so. Normally, I would’ve fallen asleep by now.

“What should I do?”

Even if I try to think of other things……I can’t sleep because I keep thinking about Minori kun.

Ah, that’s right.

“I wonder if…..Minori kun is still awake.”

I reached my phone while thinking about it.

[Um. Are you still awake?]

Yes, I had sent it. It was immediately read.

“What’s up?”

He said.

[I couldn’t sleep at all. If it’s alright with you, may I call you again?]

[Yeah, that’s fine. I couldn’t sleep either.]

I was relieved to hear his reply. If I could talk to Minori kun, I’m sure that……it would make me sleepy. I’ll be able to relax.

However…..I enjoyed talking on the phone with Minori kun. We talked until the sun came up.

I’ve never done anything like this before. I was a little nervous.

◆◇◆

Ding dong, the chime rang.

“She’s here.”

“Y-yes. I’m a little nervous.”

The next day, just before noon. When I’m in the living room with Shinonome, a visitor came.

“Wait for me, I’m going to open the door.”

“I understand.”

I leave Shinonome and head for the front door. The doorbell rings again.

“Okay, okay, I’m coming.”

I opened the door and saw….

“It’s been a while, Souta. How have you been?”

“Yeah. Come in, Mom. I’ve been doing well.”

I saw my mother carrying a shopping bag. She opened her hand.

…..I was a little embarrassed. I just gave my mom a hug.

My family……or rather, my father and mother are, to put it simply, doting parents. Such expressions of affection were an everyday occurrence.

It has become less common since I entered middle school. This time, since it had been a while, I thought it was okay to show a little affection.

“You’ve grown up. I’m glad to see you’re doing well.”

“Yeah. You too.”

She patted me on the head and pulled away.

“Where’s Dad?”

“Dad is at home with tears in his eyes because he can’t finish his work. [I want to see Sota ! I want to say hello to your friend !] He said.”

“Oh, I didn’t know that. ……Come in for now. I want to introduce you to a friend of mine who has been very kind to me.”

“Right. I want to say hello too. I want to know what kind of friends you have made Souta.”

I went to the living room with my mother.

“Looks like you’re cleaning properly, interesting.”

“I have friends over every week. I did my best to keep the house clean.”

We went straight to the living room.

“Oh my !”

My mother saw her sitting there. She raised her voice happily.

And…..she too. She fluttered her snow-white hair and stood up.

“N-nice to meet you ! I’m Shinonome Nagi ! Minori kun has been very kind to me !”

“Oh my my ! Your friend was a girl !　Thank you for your politeness, Nagi chan. My name is Kazumi, Minori Kazumi, Souta’s mother.”

Then the two of them bowed. ….My mother looked at Shinonome and me with a huge grin.

“Even so. Why didn’t you tell me there was such a cute girl, Souta?”

“……Well. I missed the opportunity to tell you.”

When I said that while looking away, Shinonome chuckled. My mother…looked at her.

“You’re so beautiful……your skin is so plump, and your hair has a beautiful white color.”

“Thank you very much. My birth parents are from a foreign country. I was taken in for various reasons. As an adopted child.”

“Oh, so that’s what happened. Did you have a good mother who took you in?”

My mother asked. Shinonome answered cheerfully. 

……The question just now. Even though some people think it’s quite a landmine. Shinonome seemed to have a good relationship with her parents, so it looks fine. I breathed a sigh of relief.

“I’m blessed with a very good father and mother.”

“I’m glad to hear that. ……Where did you meet such a good girl? Souta. From school?”

“No, Shinonome and I went to different high schools.”

“Oh? Is that so?”

……Well. Normally you would think we went to the same high school.

When I tried to explain, Shinonome opened her mouth first.

“Minori kun….um, well. I met Souta kun on the train.”

Shinonome said my first name. I knew she would call me that. My face is getting hot. I saw that Shinonome was also blushing. But she continued to explain.

“I was being molested, and he saved me…..when nobody helped me. I was so scared and disgusted. When I was about to cry. Souta kun saved me.”

I was a little embarrassed by those words and……I chuckled.

“It’s an exaggeration to say that I saved you.”

“No. I was really happy. But, um. Because of that, I was really scared of men.”

“…..I see. It must have been difficult.”

My mother reached out her hand and patted Shinonome’s head. Shinonome was surprised, but she accepted her hand.

“Yes. I became especially afraid of riding the train. Therefore, I asked Mino–Souta kun to stay by my side while I was on the train. Then we became good friends.”

Then, Shinonome stared at my mother.

“Souta kun was. Sota kun was the only one I’m scared of. He was very kind and cared for me. ……I think that Souta kun grew up to be such a gentle person, in no small part because of the influence of his parents. That is why I wanted to thank his mother. Thank you, mother.”

Shinonome bowed her head again. my mother smiled……happily.

“Fufu, you’re welcome.”

Those words made Shinonome’s ears twitch. And she smiled.

“You’ve inherited it from your mother, right?”

“Maybe so.”

Shinonome’s words made me smile wryly. Even so…..no, don’t think about it.

Somehow I managed not to be aware of it. My mother was looking at me with a grin.

“You know. I didn’t think that someone other than Souta……and such a pretty girl would call me mother.”

“Eh, ah, no, I mean…”

Shinonome panicked at my mother’s words. Seeing that, my mother smiled even more.

“This is already the day when I’ll become your mother-in-law.”

Shinonome is blushing more than before……well, I’m in no position to say that.

“Oh my, I’m sorry, okay? I just got too happy.”

“N-no, it’s fine…..”

“Well, let’s go make lunch. You two haven’t eaten, right?”

“Yeah, thanks, Mom.”

“T-thank you very much.”

My mother went to the kitchen……but came back soon.

“Souta, can I have a word?”

“What’s wrong?”

My mom looked at me and smiled.

“Perhaps, did Nagi chan cook for you?”

That sent a shiver down my spine. I felt uncomfortably cold.