Volume 3 - CH 5.5

Volume 3, Chapter 5.5: Rest Assured, She's an Airhead

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Hareyama Hanae, an airheaded runaway, was a girl with a lot of girl power who was perfect at housework.

Even now in front of me, laid out was a table full of sumptuous-looking dishes that looked so well done that I could hardly believe it had been prepared in such a short time.

But this might be a case like in some gag anime. Food that looked perfect but tasted horrible.

This was Hareyama we were talking about. She might have mistaken salt for sugar, or soy sauce for ponzu.

"Thanks for the food..."

"H-hmm. I'm kind of nervous~."

I sat down opposite to Hareyama, and I threw what I assumed to be Hamburg steak into my mouth.

At that moment, my brain got confused. This is crazy, is this for real...was what I thought.

I chewed slowly and swallowed. Then, I looked at Hareyama who was staring at me closely, and said what I thought.

"...Hareyama."

"M-maybe it didn't taste good...?"

"Marry me."

"H-huh?! W-why all of a sudden?!"

What was with this deliciousness?! What was with this beautiful girl who could take care of every kind of housework?!

I felt bad for Hareyama, but I had my expectations low. Maybe because that was part of the reason, but, uh...I found it tastier than Koudzuki-san's.

She was the perfect housekeeper: a great cook, had a cute face, and most importantly, a great body! What else could you even complain about?!

If you arrived at this point, the airheadedness was a bonus. If she was perfect in everything, she might cause others to feel inferior, so thank you for being a disappointment in that area.

"Ugh, it's too delicious...impossible...that airhead munch munch...thanks munch munch munch..."

"Don't talk while eating~...rather, don't call me airhead!"

My impression of Hareyama had completely changed. I couldn't call her an airhead anymore. If we were only comparing housework skills, I was the one who was an airhead.

I continued gobbling on Hareyama's home-cooked meal while Hareyama was at the side, smiling.

"―― Thank you for the delicious food."

I clapped my hands and thanked the ingredients and their cook.

The meal was finished in no time. It felt like it had been a long while since I had helped myself for second servings.

I might have eaten a bit too much. My stomach was screaming with compliments and complaints at the same time.

"Geez~, it's no good to lie down after you eat, you know?"

"Too delicious...too happy...too much food..."

I was already reciting a poem. I couldn't express it simply with 'happiness' and 'satisfaction' ― it was just simply too good.

Those who could eat this regularly was lucky. How nice~, I wondered if her childhood friend regularly ate this.

"R-really? That's the first time anyone ever said that much to me."

"Is that so? Nothing from Tendou or something?"

"Susumu-kun, huh...hm~m..."

Why did she have such a difficult expression? Perhaps she hadn't cooked ever for Tendou?

But with this skill, there was no doubt that she did this on the regular. If so, she must have had opportunities to serve it to her friends or family.

It was impossible for this to taste bad at this level. If anyone says it did, I would question their sense of taste.

Well, if no one ever complimented her, I would give her the most amount of praise I could.

"It's really good, I'm surprised. I think it's on the level of a pro."

"S-such a thing can’t be true~."

"No, really. I want to eat this every day."

"...Every day...huh. Thank you, Jimichi-kun."

Hareyama smiled somewhat sadly. Did I say something wrong? I didn't mean for her to look like that.

Hareyama's expression immediately returned to normal, but I was very concerned what happened earlier.

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After dinner, I spent some time relaxing and watching TV, but it was still too early to go to sleep.

After preparing drinks, I called out to Hareyama, who had changed into her nightgown.

Looking at Hareyama who misunderstood my words, I found myself relieved as usual.

"Open your textbook. We're studying for the follow-up exam set before summer vacation."

"Oh...um, you meant that kind of spread..."

"What else...what do you think I was going to spread?"

"No, nothing really..."

Could she have meant spreading open your heart? I wasn't as pure nor as much of a kid as you might have thought.

She seemed like a pushover, and I didn't know what would happen if I had left her there. I was glad I was able to protect her.

"...Closet pervert."

"I-I don't know what you're talking about~."

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"―― No! Stop! It's...impossible!"

"It's not impossible. You can do it."

"I-it is impossible...I can't...anymore..."

"Don't make strange noises. You have one more question to answer, so go for it."

We had been studying for a few hours now. I was mainly teaching her problems from the last test, but it seemed like she was about to reach her limit.

There was still time until the make-up exam, so this might be the end for today.

"All right, that's enough."

"It's finally over..."

Ah, good. This was how Hareyama should look like. The way she was propped up on the desk, that was Hareyama Hanae.

Certainly, Hareyama's household skills were excellent to the point of perfection. It was great, but it also had me thinking a bit.

Hareyama didn't live alone. So, how did she acquire those skills?

The answer was simple: through sheer repetition. But high school students living at home shouldn't be at an environment where they didn't have any choice but to do so.

"I can't go on~..."

"I'll get you a drink."

"Thanks~."

Because I spent so much time studying and exercising that I often neglected my chores.

Did it mean, on the contrary, that Hareyama neglected her studies and focused more on housework? But that expression from a while ago...could it be that she didn't like doing this?

When I thought about it, what came to mind was a very old-fashioned idea. Bride training.

"Well definitely, I would want her as my bride."

"Hmm~? Did you say something~?"

"No, it's nothing."

I should stop snooping for now. Just like a lot of things happened to me, the same might be the case for Hareyama.

Maybe something happened with her parents, or maybe it was a situation that forced them to do so.

"Hareyama, go take a bath after you finish that drink."

"Oka~y."

Well, a lot of things happened after this, but they would get quite long, so I'd spare you the details.

There were conversations before we went to bed, like how erotic she looked after taking a bath, how cute she looked with no makeup on, and a few more other little talks we had before we tucked in.

Indeed, a lot happened, and I was tired because of all that. I fell asleep as soon as I got under the covers.

Came next morning, I was woken up by Hareyama, who was wearing an apron and her school uniform under, with a slap on the cheek...and that was all that happened.

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――

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I changed into my uniform and got ready for school.

I went to the living room and asked Hareyama what to do next.

"Hareyama, do you want to go together? Or do you want to go separately?"

If we were seen leaving the same apartment building and headed to school together, there was the possibility of fake rumors spreading.

I was fine with it, but if Hareyama didn't want to, I'd go along with her choice.

"Um...sorry. Do you mind if I go ahead?"

"It's fine. Do you know the way?"

"Yeah, I'll be okay."

As she said that, I got up and went to the entrance to see her off.

It was still quite early in the day, but Hareyama decided to leave first, saying she had somewhere to stop by.

"Jimichi-kun. Thanks."

"Hm. If I find Hareyama looking like an abandoned puppy again, I'll pick you up."

"Ahaha, please take care of me at that time, then."

She thanked me many times, then Hareyama left.

Still, she was quite amazing. I really couldn't call her an airhead anymore. I might call her Hareyama-san out of respect instead from now on.

―― With a clang, the door opened.

I turned around and there, was Hareyama, scratching her cheek with an awkward expression on her face.

"I-I forgot my bag. Also, like I thought, I'm afraid of getting lost, so can we go together?"

"...As expected, that's how Hareyama should be. I'm relieved you're still an airhead."

"I-I'm not an airhead, geez!!"