CH 21

Proofreader: Mowaso

“What’s wrong?”

Yō, who was still pampering Nya~san on his lap, put the phone to his ear and asked Marin.

It’s not normal for a person to want to make a phone call― Yō has already sensed this.

“Ah, Hazakura-kun…Good evening…”

The voice that came out was still as cute as a child’s.

However, the tone was a little different than usual.

In addition, there’s also some small sniffling sounds.

This startled Yō just a little.

“Akimi… Are you crying…?”

“―! I-I’m not crying, okay? Please don’t say anything weird.”

(Then why are you so upset?)

With that in mind, Yō opened his mouth.

“Can I switch to a video call?”

“―Haa!? You’re being too mean, Hazakura-kun! This is the time to talk about something else!”

“That’s not it.”

“That’s not it you say―Kyaa~! You’re switching it on your own! Why did you even ask if that’s the case!?”

When Yō switched without waiting for Marin’s reply, Marin instantly raised her voice and became angry.

She wondered how he could have noticed it, but Marin was prepared for the possibility that Yō might switch on his own.

“Don’t worry, I’m not looking at you. So look at the screen.”

“You’re so naive! That’s what you’re trying to say so you can see my cry! I didn’t know you were such an awful person, Hazakura-kun!”

(What kind of person do you think I am…?)

Yō smiled bitterly at Marin’s words, but made a conscious effort to sound a little more gentle.

“It’s fine, I’m not that scum of a person.”

“I’m terribly afraid of the fact that you suddenly have a gentle voice…”

“…I’m hanging up the call, okay?”

“Ah, I’m sorry! I’ll let you look! I’m letting you look now!”

When Yō, who was annoyed by Marin’s words, tried to hang up the phone, Marin looked into the screen as if in a panic.

And then―

“Meow~”

Marin’s eyes rounded in surprise when she saw that it was not Yō who was on the other end of the screen, but a cute cat.

“Ne-neko-chan…!?”

“It’s Nya-san.”

“You have a very unique sense of naming…”

Marin had an indescribable expression on her face when she heard the cat’s name “Nya~san”.

However, her eyes were firmly fixed on Nya~san through the screen.

“Ahh, I’ll tell that to the guy who gave it to me.”

“Hazakura-kun is not the godfather, are you? Could it be…”

Marin stuttered her words there.

She seemed to be wondering if it was okay to ask or not.

Understanding what Marin wanted to ask, Yō stroked the head of Nya~san, who was staring at the screen of her phone on her lap.

“Nya-san, Daifuku.”

“Meow!”

When Yō said “Daifuku”, Nya~san raised her voice and curled her body.

The appearance was indeed round like a Daifuku.

[EDN: Nya~san was imitating Daifuku, a Japanese confection.]

And when Marin saw Nya~san she said―

“Wow, amazing, truly amazing! Nya~san is so amazing!”

She was like a child, her eyes shining with joy.

When Yō understood from her voice that Marin was happy, he gave further instructions to Nya~san.

“Nya-san, Maneki Neko.” [TLN: Beckoning Cat, or the so-called Lucky Cat. Read more about it here.]

“Meow!”

Nya~san reacted to Yō’s words again, and immediately raised its body and struck a pose imitating an ornamental beckoning cat.

Then, it started to turn its right hand as if inviting people in.

This brought a loud applause from across the screen.

“Amazing, very amazing indeed! Nya-san is so talented”

She’s really excited like a child.

After that, Nya~san continued to entertain Marin by following Yō’s instructions.

After a few minutes, Marin was already in love with Nya~san.

“It even posed with its eyes looking up…! What on earth are you, Nya~san…!?”

“Smart, isn’t it? It learned to charm people. That way, it can get snacks.”

“Please don’t ruin my dream! No, but isn’t it too clever for that?”

“Meow~”

After being praised by Marin, Nya~san squealed in a good mood and rubbed its face with its hand.

And then, it stared at Marin’s face with an indulgent look.

“Kyaa~! Hazakura-kun, may I go to your house now!?”

“‘Of course not.”

It was nice that she was happy to see the cat, but Yō didn’t know what his parents would say if a cute girl like Marin came to his house at this time of night.

That’s why Yō refused, but Marin, perhaps because she wanted to meet Nya~san in person, sulked.

“I’ll let you play another time, just bear with me for now.”

“Okay…”

Marin replied, but one could tell from her voice that she was disappointed.

But he doesn’t really want Marin to come right now, and he’s afraid to let her walk alone at night.

So Yō could not nod his head.

He thought that Marin’s head would be filled with thoughts of Nya~san if she continued to stay with it, so he stopped showing Nya~san, since he had already achieved his goal.

Then, Marin made a very regretful sound, but Yō didn’t care and switched to a normal call.

“Now then, let’s talk about something serious.”

“I’m amazed at how quickly you’ve switched.”

“I didn’t get excited, did I? Akimi was the only one who was excited.”

“…”

Yō was only letting Nya~san perform tricks to cheer up Marin, but he himself was not that excited.

On the contrary, Marin was as excited as a child.

The difference in between their emotions was considerable― But then, remembering that she had been so excited in front of her schoolmate, Marin began to writhe in agony.

“You know how girls change when they’re around cats?””

“Guh~~~! Please don’t say that…! Or rather, don’t pursue me anymore…!”

“Did you know that you can record video calls on your phone?”

“Yo-You’ve been filming me!? You’re a devil! As I thought, Hazakura-kun is truly a devil! Please delete it right now!”

Thinking that her abomination was left on video, Marin shouted out as if in panic.

And then― Yō giggled and laughed happily.

“Ah…”

When Marin heard Yō’s laughter for the first time, she was so surprised that her anger flew out of her mind.

“What’s wrong?”

“Ah, nothing… you really should delete that, okay?”

When Yō asked, wondering about Marin’s attitude, he said it in a slightly confused but gentle voice.

Yō felt uncomfortable with his voice, but he opened his mouth while patting the body of Nya~san, who was tired of playing and began to sleep on his lap.

“Don’t worry, the recording was a joke.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me… Mouu~, you’re such a tease.”

He thought she was going to be more angry, but for some reason, Marin said that in a gentle voice.

When he heard her voice, Yō could see her face laughing as if she had no choice, but he tilted his head, not knowing why she had said that.

And then―

“Are you feeling sleepy?”

Yō asked, since Marin had suddenly become quiet.

Of course, Marin was a bit taken aback when she heard him say that.

After that, the two of them decided on a meeting time for the weekend and had a little chat.

―Yō Hazakura is often misunderstood because he has a personality that keeps others at bay, but he is actually a man who takes good care of others and spoils those who are near him.

Only Nya~san and Kasumi know about this, but later on, Marin will gradually come to know about it as well