Episode 177: What’s Up with Yuji and Natsumi-senpai?

Beep… beep… beep…

I don’t hear Sara-san’s gentle voice.

I don’t hear the sound of the knife against the cutting board.

The inorganic alarm from my smartphone blared, forcibly dragging my consciousness awake.

Good morning.

I gave a morning greeting to the Sara-san who wasn’t here. When I picked up my phone, there was a message on RAIN.

「Good morning, Kazunari-san. Please make sure to eat a proper breakfast. You mustn’t skip it just because it’s a hassle, okay? I am looking forward to the time we can talk again tonight. It is only the second day, but let’s do our best. From your Sara…」

That polite phrasing, which felt a bit formal for RAIN, was so typical of Sara-san and incredibly precious.

And the expression「Your Sara」made me reflexively blush.

How should I reply…?

I tried to think of a phrase to pair with「Your Sara,」but would「Your Kazunari」be weird?

In the end, I couldn’t think of a good line, so my message turned out pretty generic.

I stared at the screen for a bit, but she must have been busy, as it didn’t show as read.

Today is day two of Sara-san’s school trip, and day two of my life as a part-timer.

I washed my face and set my hair. The guy in the mirror is the same dull guy as always.

I changed into a shirt Sara-san had washed for me and bit into a piece of toast I’d set in the toaster while standing up.

「Honestly, Kazunari-san, you have such bad manners. No-no.」

…If Sara-san were here, I’m sure she’d give me a gentle warning like that.

I switched on the TV to let it handle the job of masking the silence… but it just started playing some pointless news about celebrity affairs and divorces.

I should at least find a better program… just as I reached for the remote.

Ding-dong…

Huh? At this hour?

It’s been over six months since I started living here, but I’ve never had a visitor at this time other than Sara-san.

Ding-dong…

The chime echoed through the room a second time.

I guess I’ll see who it is…

「Yes?」

Before opening the door, I called out to whoever was outside. The voice that came back was a soft, airy woman’s voice I recognized.

「Takanashi-san, good morning~」

!?

Wh, why is Mayumi-san here?

Click

I hurried to unlock and open the door. Standing there was a mature woman who looked just like Sara-san… I’d known from the voice, but it was indeed Mayumi-san.

「M, Mayumi-san?」

「Good morning, Takanashi-kun. Would it be alright if I came in for a moment?」

「Ah, yes, please!」

「Pardon the intrusion.」

I couldn’t just leave her standing at the entrance, so I let Mayumi-san in.

Checking the time… since I’m on my own, I still have some leeway.

Actually, now that I think about it, I don’t have a meeting with Natsumi-senpai, so it’s fine if I’m cutting it a bit close?

「I’m sorry for barging in so suddenly.」

「No, it’s fine. But what’s going on?」

「Ufufu… I thought I’d give you this…」

With that, Mayumi-san reached into her bag… and what appeared was「something」wrapped in a floral drawstring pouch.

「Here, Takanashi-san. It’s your bento for today.」

Mayumi-san offered the pouch with a smile, and I reflexively took it.

「Eh… a bento? Wh, why…?」

「Well, Sara-chan isn’t here, so you wouldn’t have lunch, right? That’s where Mother-in-law makes her entrance!」

Ta-da!

I didn’t quite follow the logic, but seeing Mayumi-san strike a pose with a triumphant face felt oddly heartwarming.

She’d gone through the trouble of making it, so I should accept it gratefully.

「…Thank you very much. But, did you come all the way here just for this…?」

「It’s fine. He’s taking a bento too, so I just made them together.」

「In that case, I’ll gladly accept it. But what were you going to do if I wasn’t home?」

「Well, I would have gone to the school to deliver it, of course. I’m an alumna of that school too, so I know some teachers who would listen to me, and I have other connections.」

Th, that was close… if Mayumi-san had barged into the school with a bento, I would have been interrogated by the whole class about who she was.

Relieved that it didn’t come to that, I tucked the bento carefully into my bag and turned off the TV. Mayumi-san seemed to read the atmosphere of me being about to head out, because without me saying a word, she returned to the entrance and got ready to leave.

Then, as she turned back and looked around the room for a moment, she suddenly muttered a quiet「Ah」as if remembering something. What is it?

「Right, right. If you have any laundry, give it to me all at once. I’ll do the washing for you.」

「Eh? No, I can at least do that much myself…」

「Just leave it to Mother-in-law. If you won’t give it to me… maybe I’ll just do the laundry at your house instead~」

Whoa, please spare me from that!

If that happened, I have a feeling Mayumi-san wouldn’t stop at just laundry.

I’m already constantly being looked after by Sara-san; having her mother do the same is just… well. If I can’t refuse, I should at least pull out my underwear before handing it over…

「Ah, no taking out just the underwear, okay?」

!?

H, how did she know…?

Mayumi-san, who had been watching my face, gave a smirk and poked my forehead.

「Nfufu. You’re just like a certain someone, so you’re easy to read. But if you’re thinking like that, does it mean Sara-chan hasn’t washed your underwear yet? That girl would never be disgusted by anything involving you, so it’s fine to leave it all to her.」

「H, hah…」

Even if she says that, having Sara-san wash even my underwear… it makes me feel way too guilty.

「Well, I’m sure Sara-chan will eventually just wash them by force anyway. Regardless, don’t hold back!」

「Y, yes!」

Unable to resist Mayumi-san’s smile, I had no choice but to follow her lead…

Chime-clash…

The chime announcing the end of fourth period rang through the school. As the teacher left, my classmates started moving all at once.

Now, what should I do today…

「Excuse me~」

The polite, healing voice belonged, of course, to Todo-san.

「Takanashi-kun, it’s lunchtime~」

From an outsider’s perspective, it sounded like a conversation between elementary schoolers, but Todo-san’s vibe made it feel perfectly natural.

It wasn’t just Todo-san approaching; Hayato entered the classroom beside her today as well. Naturally, the eyes of the classroom (mainly the girls) gathered on them.

Setting that aside, I’m just glad things seem to be going smoothly.

「Kazunari, shall we go?」

「Yeah.」

I pulled the drawstring pouch out of my bag and headed for the door. The other two walked beside me as we left.

It seemed they were both curious about the pouch hanging from my hand.

Well, it must be strange to see me with a bento when Sara-san isn’t around…

We arrived at the usual, quiet flowerbed and sat on the bench just like yesterday.

The order was the same: Hayato, Todo-san, then me.

「Hey, hey, Takanashi-kun! What’s up with that bento?」

Here it comes.

I knew they’d be curious.

And of course, it was Todo-san who broke the ice.

I knew this topic would come up from the start, so I figured I might as well explain that I’m working at the Satsukawa home.

I could have given a vague explanation, but there was no reason to do that with friends.

「Kazunari, you don’t cook for yourself, right? And Satsukawa-senpai is away…」

「Actually, Mayumi-san made this bento for me…」

I explained the chain of events: how I ended up working at the Satsukawa home due to Masaomi-san’s kindness, how I hadn’t realized he was Sara-san’s Father, and how Mayumi-san had made not only dinner but also my bento.

Since Todo-san didn’t know Mayumi-san, I gave her a bit of background too.

「Whoa, what a coincidence. Before, Satsukawa-senpai said your meeting was destiny… but when things are connected this much, it really makes you think that’s true! That’s so nice… a fated encounter.」

That’s so Todo-san; she looked like she really loved this kind of topic.

She seemed deeply moved, as if she had a longing for the phrase「fated encounter.」

But I also constantly feel that my meeting with Sara-san was destiny…

When coincidences stack up this much, can’t I say for sure that it really was fate?

…Maybe that’s a bit too romantic?

「But what are you actually going to do? You’ll have to tell her Father eventually, right?」

「That’s the thing. Mayumi-san told me I should just act normal… but I don’t want Sara-san to catch on if possible, so I’m planning to keep it like this until the surprise birthday is over. Once things settle down, I’ll give him a proper greeting myself.」

It’s true that I didn’t know Masaomi-san was Sara-san’s Father, so I plan to tell him the truth, including that part. Plus, Mayumi-san said she’d help me out later…

「Whoa, does that mean you’re going to say, ‘Please give me your daughter’!? Just like in a drama!」

「No, that’s the greeting before marriage…」

Todo-san, with her eyes sparkling, blurted out something way ahead of schedule.

Well, I’d panicked and thought the same thing yesterday, but I’ll keep that to myself.

「True, you are planning a surprise. If you’re going to talk about all that during the greeting, waiting until after the birthday might be best. Still, to think you’re finally going to greet Satsukawa-senpai’s Father… to do all that when you’re the same age as me, I honestly respect you, Kazunari.」

Hayato seemed to mean it, not as flattery or a joke, as he nodded with a serious face.

I don’t really know, but is this something worthy of respect…?

And once that talk settled, it was bento time.

Mayumi-san’s bento was delicious.

Perhaps because the seasoning is close to Sara-san’s, I felt a sense of relief while eating it.

It was something I was grateful for, but it also made me miss Sara-san’s cooking even more… I guess this is what they call a luxury problem…

Since the two of them helped, the maintenance of the flowerbed finished quickly.

I separated from them for a bit to stop by a vending machine, and while I was on my way, my phone vibrated in my pocket.

The RAIN message was from Yuji…

Since it was a message checking in on me and worrying about my current situation, I decided it would be faster to call him than type back.

It only rang a few times before he picked up.

「What’s up, Kazunari?」

「Nothing, just figured a call would be faster. Is your timing okay?」

「Yeah, I’m good. So, how’s the job going?」

I should tell Yuji the same thing.

Just like I told Hayato and Todo-san, I explained the circumstances of how I ended up working at the Satsukawa home.

「I see. When a coincidence goes that far, even I’m tempted to call it destiny.」

Yuji, who had listened silently, voiced an opinion similar to Hayato and Todo-san’s.

I guess everyone thinks the same way.

「Got it. Just make sure you don’t overdo it, okay? Natsumi-san was worried too.」

Wait, Natsumi-senpai’s name is coming up here?

Hmm, do people really think I’m that reckless…? Wait, more importantly.

「I see. Then I’ll apologize next time I see her. By the way, Yuji, are you and Natsumi-senpai keeping in touch?」

「Wh, what’s with the sudden question?」

「No, it’s just that saying she was worried sounded like something from a very recent conversation.」

「I got a message from Natsumi-san checking in on your current status. That’s all there is to it.」

Hmm, the fact that she’s asking Yuji instead of Hayato, who goes to the same school, feels like it has some kind of meaning.

「Whoops, sorry, I’m almost out of time.」

「Ah, my bad. Anyway, that’s how things are on my end.」

「Got it. I’ll let Natsumi-san know.」

「Thanks. See ya!」

I hit the end call button, and looking at the clock, it was closer to the deadline than I thought.

Crap, I need to hurry back to the classroom.

As I tucked my phone back into my pocket and walked toward the room, I found myself thinking about that conversation with Yuji.

Yuji called Natsumi-senpai「Natsumi-san.」I’m pretty sure he used to call her「Yuzuki-san,」right?

Maybe Yuji and Natsumi-senpai are closer than I thought.

If things are headed that way for the two of them, I want to support them with everything I’ve got.

I should definitely talk to Sara-san about this.

Though thinking about it now, I’m just really glad that Yuji, Hayato, and Natsumi-senpai didn’t end up in a love triangle…