Episode 182: What’s Sara Worrying About?

「I’m home.」

「Welcome back, dear.」

I heard he would finish early today, but he was back nearly an hour earlier than usual.

When Masaomi-san walked in, Mayumi-san stepped up as she always does and gave him a light kiss on the cheek.

Watching them act so close… it isn’t that I was jealous, but I couldn’t help but feel like I wanted to see Sara-san soon too.

Two more days… I hope I can see her tomorrow…

「Good work, Takanashi-kun.」

「Good work, Masaomi-san.」

「Dear, it looks like Takanashi-san finished the filing.」

「Oh, that was fast. Honestly, with that much paperwork, I didn’t think you would finish within the time frame.」

「I think it’s alright, but I’d appreciate it if you could check it over.」

I figured I should have him check it first, and if anything needed fixing, I would handle it tomorrow.

If not, I was hoping there would be some other work I could do…

「Understood. Well, we have some time before dinner, so let’s go check it now.」

「Yes, sir.」

Masaomi-san handed his bag to Mayumi-san, turned around, and headed back toward the entrance.

I followed him, and we moved to the detached office.

As Masaomi-san opened the door and stepped inside, I heard him let out a short「Oh~」of surprise. I followed him in, and he walked over to the shelves, slowly scanning them from top to bottom, occasionally picking up a file to check the contents.

「Heh, you put this together really well. Hmm… what are these numbers for?」

「I put matching numbers on related documents. I thought it would make them easier to find when they’re needed, and it will be easier to organize them if they get scattered again later.」

Considering the disaster I found when I first got here, there is a good chance it’ll end up a mess again.

I did it mostly because I anticipated that it would eventually need organizing again…

「Ah, that is actually a huge help. I never have the spare time to tidy up, so I usually end up asking my wife. Honestly, I didn’t think you would go this far. Thank you so much.」

「No, I’m just grateful you gave me the job. So, about tomorrow…」

「Yeah, don’t worry about tomorrow. You can just rest…」

「Actually, isn’t there anything else I can do? Even if it’s just for half a day…」

Masaomi-san closed his eyes as if thinking for a moment, then nodded and opened them again.

「It isn’t exactly work, but since you did such a great job, let’s just spend tomorrow talking. I’ve been so busy with work that I haven’t really had much time for us to chat. By the way, you said you memorized the department names a bit, right?」

「Eh, yes. I feel like I have the ones with the most paperwork down.」

「Actually, even if you don’t know every single department, the documents you handled this time belong mostly to the departments I’m directly involved with. In other words, you already have a decent grasp on them.」

I see.

It isn’t like I was trying to memorize them, but after checking the names day after day, it just happened naturally.

「It isn’t work, but if you don’t mind, would you spend some time with me tomorrow? Of course, I will still pay you the agreed amount.」

「I’m sorry, I feel like I forced the issue…」

Since this wasn’t really a job, and Masaomi-san only brought it up because I pushed for more work, I felt a bit bad about it.

「Hm? No, no, don’t get the wrong idea. In the first place, I gave you a workload I didn’t expect you to finish on time, you know? That was why I didn’t say I wanted it all done when I hired you. But since you went beyond my expectations and finished everything, I’m the one who feels a bit bad.」

If he’s going to put it that way, I will accept it gratefully.

When I nodded, Masaomi-san gave me a smile in return.

And with that, my part-time job at the Satsukawa house effectively came to an end.

「Aah, after all that fun, there are only two days of the school trip left…」

After finishing breakfast, Yuri suddenly muttered that while we were walking down the hall to our room.

「We still have two days left, so don’t start sounding so depressed first thing in the morning.」

「But honestly, it feels more like only two days. Why do all the fun things have to end so fast?」

It’s true that fun things always seem to go by quickly.

I guess whether you feel like there are still two days or only two days left just depends on the person.

However, Sara, who was currently walking beside me in silence, was undoubtedly thinking「I want to go home already.」

She has been a bit low on energy since the call last night… no, maybe she’s just deep in thought…

Everything seemed fine while she was on the phone with Takanashi-kun, but it has felt a bit off ever since the call ended.

「Sara, is something on your mind? You said it was nothing last night, but I can’t really ignore it anymore, you know?」

「Yeah, Satsukawa-san has been acting a bit weird since last night.」

「Maybe she is past the point of being lonely and it’s just getting painful because she can’t see Takanashi-kun?」

「If that was it, it would have been like this since the first day.」

She seems to be listening, because she reacts and answers when spoken to.

That’s why I let it go last night to see how she would be… but if she’s the same today, I have to ask or it will just keep bugging me too.

「Ahaha, I didn’t know you could make jokes like that, Satsukawa-san.」

「Yeah, it makes me happy, like we’ve actually become friends.」

「No, I wasn’t exactly joking…」

「「「…………」」」

What a stupid question.

The two of them being together has become so natural that they’ve definitely reached the point where they can’t stand to be apart.

Without the external factor of the school trip and Takanashi-kun’s persuasion, there is no way Sara would ever have chosen to spend a week away from him.

In that sense, Sara’s comments about being lonely and it being painful probably weren’t jokes at all.

Actually, if they can’t even be apart for a week…

Isn’t the only path left for these two just to get married?

Since their parents are practically half-approving already, there are basically zero obstacles.

If Takanashi-kun proposed, Sara would definitely say yes…

…Wait, aren’t all the conditions already met?

「Anyway, something is bothering you, right?」

「It isn’t just Natsumi; we’re worried too, so if it’s something we can help with, just let us know, okay?」

「I mean, it’s about Takanashi-kun, right?」

Regaining their composure, the three girls moved the conversation along as if that previous exchange hadn’t happened.

When asked about Takanashi-kun, Sara gave a simple, honest nod.

Well, it wasn’t exactly hard to guess…

「…About the phone call last night.」

It seemed she was willing to talk, as Sara began to explain calmly.

Apparently, something about last night’s call really was bothering her.

「No, to be precise, I have been a bit concerned since about the day before yesterday, but Kazunari-san looked quite exhausted. I know he has been staying up late for a while now, but when it comes to this level of fatigue, I can’t help but think it is more than just a few late nights…」

Sh-she is sharp.

I mean, she has always been sensitive to changes in Takanashi-kun, but I didn’t think she would pick up on it through a phone call…

Just from listening in, I didn’t think there were any obvious signs of a change in Takanashi-kun.

Of course, I know the situation (I got an extra report from Tachibana-kun), so it isn’t hard to imagine that Takanashi-kun is having a rough time with the part-time jobs. Even if he is tired, it’s no mystery…

I guess it just shows how much she is always thinking about him and watching him.

「R-really? I didn’t notice anything.」

「Yeah, he seemed the same as always.」

「Couldn’t it just be your imagination? Or maybe you’re just overthinking it…」

For someone who doesn’t know about Sara’s「Kazunari-san Detection Skill,」thinking it’s just her imagination or overthinking is perfectly natural.

But when it comes to Takanashi-kun, that isn’t the case…

「No, unfortunately, I became certain it was not my imagination during last night’s call. Since then, I have been worried because Kazunari-san seemed so tired.」

The fact that she was worried was written all over her face.

I know the reason and the circumstances, so I can’t say anything… but it really was impossible to keep it a complete secret, wasn’t it, Takanashi-kun?

「Hmm, but that isn’t really a big deal.」

「If it’s bothering you, why don’t you just grill him about it?」

Yuri threw out an extremely unnecessary comment.

If she does that, things will get real dicey for Takanashi-kun’s ability to keep the secret.

Since he is working so hard, I should at least try to back him up…

「…No, I cannot do that.」

「…Why not?」

Surprisingly, Sara seemed reluctant to grill him. I was shocked too. That’s why I accidentally blurted out something unnecessary.

「Kazunari-san and I promised each other that we would not keep secrets. So if I ask, Kazunari-san might struggle to give me an answer.」

「That might be true, but then the promise doesn’t really mean anything…」

「I trust Kazunari-san. Even if he is doing something right now, I know he will tell me eventually. So I will just wait for that moment.」

「「「「…………」」」」

Everyone went silent, including me.

Sara’s face showed an unwavering resolve to trust Takanashi-kun.

In her words, there wasn’t a single uncertain term like「I think」or「probably.」It meant she trusted Takanashi-kun completely. I guess my concern was unneeded…

「Man, that is really something…」

「Yeah… all the people I know who are dating look like they’re just playing house compared to this.」

「For real. But in that case, what are you actually worried about, Satsukawa-san?」

「No, I was just worried about Kazunari-san’s health. I know he is tired, so I just hope he is not pushing himself too hard… Kazunari-san is very decisive, so once he decides to do something, there is a chance he will push through even if he has to overdo it. That is what I am worried about…」

I see, that is so Sara…

She wasn’t worried about being kept in the dark; she was purely concerned for his well-being.

Having caught a glimpse of the bond between those two, I found myself thinking once again that I really want to make this surprise birthday party a success.