Episode 167: Sara’s Papa & Mama POV

「Well then, thanks for keeping me company today. I’ll be in touch.」

「Yes, thank you as well. I’ll be looking forward to it.」

The car had arrived at the station, which was where I was getting out.

He offered to drive me all the way home, but of course, I turned him down. I couldn’t risk Sara-san seeing me by any chance.

In the end, I decided to accept Satsukawa-san’s kindness. Part of it was having no other choice, but filing paperwork would be a huge help physically. More importantly, it meant that even though she’s sharp enough to notice changes in my condition over the phone, Sara-san would be less likely to catch on.

Honestly, I think it’ll be hard to pull this off without her noticing anything at all, but I’m prepared for her to be at least a little suspicious.

After saying my goodbyes to Satsukawa-san and stepping out, the car drove off with a short beep of the horn.

I watched it until it was out of sight, then started walking toward my house.

Is this what people mean when they say they feel like they’ve been bewitched by a fox?

I never thought that picking up that wallet would circle back to help me like this.

What would have happened if I’d just easily demanded a reward back then?

Or better yet, what if I’d never reported it and just kept it?

You really never know how things are connected in this world.

But more than that, experiencing a connection like this makes me think.

How many coincidences… how many events had to repeat for me and Sara-san to meet? If even one thing had been missing, if one thing hadn’t happened, we might never have met. And even after meeting, if one more thing had been missing, we might never have become a couple.

Sara-san once said that even if things were different, we would have definitely met and been together.

Of course, I believe that too, but this event… it really makes me feel all over again that our meeting was destiny.

「I’m home.」

「Welcome back, dear.」

Thanks to a light schedule today, I made it home earlier than usual.

I was lucky enough to run into Takanashi-kun and even had time to talk. The timing was a real lifesaver.

「Oh, did something happen?」

My wife is as sharp as ever.

It’s been like this since the old days. She often notices the things I can’t put into words or the things I intend to keep quiet about. I can’t hide anything from her.

I don’t know about Sara, but if this is hereditary, her future husband might have a tough time… though a man like me would probably be just fine.

「No, on my way back from a meeting with a client, I ran into the high schooler who found my subordinate’s wallet. We went to grab coffee together.」

「Let’s see… sorry, I don’t remember that quite clearly.」

「No, that’s fine. I hadn’t given him a proper thank you yet, so I was wondering if there was something I could do…」

I couldn’t help but smirk as I said that.

My wife looked even more puzzled.

「He seemed to be looking for a part-time job to buy something he wanted, so I offered him a cash reward for finding the wallet, or offered to buy the item for him instead.」

「Oh, I bet he was happy about that?」

That’s the normal way to think.

It’s a total windfall, after all, and there’s no reason to hold back unless it’s an absurdly high amount.

「No, he turned me down.」

I expected my wife to look surprised, but contrary to my expectations, she broke into a smile. Oh?

「Don’t look so confused. You’re smiling too, so the reason must have been something good, right?」

I really am no match for my wife… or maybe I just wear my heart on my sleeve too much.

「Yeah. It’s the first present he’s giving to his girlfriend, so he said he absolutely wants to buy it with money he earned himself.」

「…Oh my.」

「His girlfriend, who I assume is also a high schooler, apparently takes a lot of care of him… but she tells him she’s just doing it because she wants to, so she doesn’t want any thanks or consideration. Doesn’t that sound like someone you know?」

When I said that, my wife looked away bashfully. Well, after saying that much, she’d know exactly who I’m talking about.

「Since back then, you were always looking after my personal needs every chance you got. I always felt bad about it, but you’d say you wouldn’t forgive me if I held back…」

「H, honestly! If you’re going to say that, you were the one who worked a part-time job just to buy my present and even ended up getting injured. Do you have any idea how I felt back then…? Ah, so that’s how it is.」

She seemed to understand what I was thinking and gave a convinced nod.

She’s no match for my wife, I’m sure, but there aren’t many wonderful women out there who could say those words.

That’s exactly why his desire to give a gift with money from his own labor hits me right in the heart.

「Fufu, the kid I know would probably do the same, but it’s nice to know there are still kids like that among high schoolers these days.」

Ho?

So there are other kids like that?

「Personally, I hope Sara has someone like that by her side.」

「Hmm, well, Sara’s developed a bit of a complex regarding her dislike of men. Breaking through that and getting Sara to like him wouldn’t be easy.」

Sara looks just like my wife. Even as her parent, I can see she’s exceptionally beautiful.

Because of that, she’s been hit on by men a lot, and she’s grown to dislike men around her own age especially.

Well, as for me, I don’t want any of those flashy brats getting near Sara anyway, so it worked out just fine…

「Oh, from the way you say that, should I assume you’d have no problem with a man Sara has actually acknowledged?」

「Mu… well, if by some miracle a man appeared that the current Sara would open her heart to, it wouldn’t be bad to meet him.」

That said, getting close to Sara when she’s that guarded would be a Herculean task.

Honestly, Sara is a bit strict even with me, so I can’t imagine her getting along with a man.

「I see… I definitely heard those words, you know?」

「Y, yeah.」

?

Did I say something strange?

「A, anyway, I want to support him too, so I’ve decided to have him help with filing paperwork in my office as a part-time job. I’ll be out most of the time, so sorry, but please teach him the ropes.」

Well, since it’s exactly when Sara won’t be around, there’s no worry of them running into each other and causing trouble.

「Yeah. It’s the first present he’s giving to his girlfriend, so he said he absolutely wants to buy it with money he earned himself.」

My, he sounds like quite a good boy.

Just the fact that he properly returned the wallet makes me think he’s a kind child.

「His girlfriend, who I assume is also a high schooler, apparently takes a lot of care of him… but she tells him she’s just doing it because she wants to, so she doesn’t want any thanks or consideration. Doesn’t that sound like someone you know?」

…I see, so that smirking face of his was because he wanted to say that.

Honestly… I do remember saying things like that, but I guess he really remembered it.

But if you’re going to put it that way, Takanashi-san is just like you were back then.

Usually he seems a bit unreliable, but his decisiveness at the critical moments is surprising.

No matter what he’s thinking or worrying about, he can act with Sara as his top priority. He truly treasures Sara.

I bet Takanashi-san would definitely say he wants to work to buy Sara’s present. He seems like a romantic like that, and you were the same.

Since Sara takes after me, it might have been inevitable for her to fall for a man like Takanashi-san. I suppose blood will tell.

「Mu… well, if by some miracle a man appeared that the current Sara would open her heart to, it wouldn’t be bad to meet him.」

My, my, I’ve managed to get him to commit to that.

When the time comes, I’ll definitely have him meet Takanashi-san.

「A, anyway, I want to support him too, so I’ve decided to have him help with filing paperwork in my office as a part-time job. I’ll be out most of the time, so sorry, but please teach him the ropes.」

This man is such a softie.

Well, he’s not the kind of cold person who wouldn’t lend a hand here, and I’m sure he sees a bit of his younger self in that boy.

I wonder what kind of child he is… I’m actually looking forward to it a little.