Chapter 24: A Well-Known Fact (Kanae’s Point of View)
The morning after Souta-kun left for his short-term study abroad.
I was busy getting ready for school like always.
I washed my face, ate breakfast, brushed my teeth… My lunch was already done, so I checked my bedhead and the wrinkles in my uniform one more time, and then I even tried putting on a little makeup… ehehe.
While I was doing all that, my mom had been following me around the whole time, teasing me with stuff like, “Wow, having a boyfriend really changes things, huh,” and, “What’s this? A handmade lunch? Someone’s definitely going for his stomach,” and, “That Kanae being all girly in the morning, I really have to thank Yuki-kun for this,” just nonstop from behind.
“Hey, stop following me every morning already!”
I complained to her, saying I was busy, but my mom just kept grinning…
“I mean, you know, that sleepyhead Kanae waking up early, making lunch, and even dressing up? It’s gone past rare and straight into mild horror, you know? I can’t just watch, I have to keep an eye on you, right?”
That’s way too cruel!
While all that was going on, it was already our promised time. My phone rang, telling me Yuki-kun had come to wait in front of the house.
“Uu, I’m out of time already…”
I got a little teary, wondering if everything was okay or if there was something weird about me.
“Fufu, it’s fine, Kanae.”
My mom gently placed her hands on both my shoulders.
“Ever since you realized you like Yuki-kun, you’ve gotten incredibly cute… so have some confidence…”
M-Mom…!
“…What are you talking about? That’s not what I meant just now, you know? I meant you shouldn’t have gotten in the way, Mom.”
My mom went, “Whoa, scary…” That’s so rude!
“Well, anyway, is it really okay to keep Yuki-kun waiting? Or if it’s gonna take a bit longer, should Mom head over to Yuki-kun and keep him company with some talk?”
“Don’t you dare!”
Even when Yuki-kun and I reported that we were dating the other day, she was already asking things like, “Have you gone on a date yet? Have you held hands? Have you kissed yet?” It was just a barrage of questions that made Yuki-kun adorably embarrassed. Stuff like that should be done properly where I can see it too!
“Uu, I’m really going now!”
I can’t actually make Yuki-kun wait… a-and I wanna see him as soon as possible… My mom kept saying things like, “Why’re you getting red?” and, “Are you secretly lewd?” but I don’t care!
“I’m heading out.”
I said it while turning my face away with a huff.
But she didn’t mind at all.
“Oh, right, I said this before, but your dad and I are going to your sister’s place next time, so we won’t be back for two weeks, okay?”
I’ve got an older sister who’s much older than me, and she’s already married and about to have her second child.
Because of that, my dad and my mom go visit her regularly, and while two weeks is a first, I’ve stayed home alone before.
“Ah, yeah, I know. You told me way before.”
“We won’t be back for two weeks, you know?”
“I get it, okay?”
The way she emphasized it made me tilt my head in confusion.
Then my mom let out a sigh.
“Sigh… Kanae-kun, in other words, for those two weeks, in this house where only you’ll be here, no matter who you use it with or for what, or who you bring in to live with you, we won’t interfere at all… you understand what that means, right?”
At those words, I froze.
My mom didn’t say anything more and silently gave a thumbs-up.
I swallowed hard and left the house.
“Ah… Y-Yuki-kun, good morning.”
“Yeah, morning.”
Thanks to her, I’m weirdly nervous now!
“I-it feels kind of strange walking to school together with you at this hour, Yuki-kun.”
“Ahaha, yeah, normally I’d have morning practice.”
A few days ago, as punishment for skipping school to chase after Souta-kun, we were made to write reflection essays and were banned from club activities.
But honestly, writing a reflection essay together with Yuki-kun at a cafe, and having Yuki-kun banned from club activities so we can walk to school together every morning… It might be improper, but it makes me a little happy.
And as I walked to school, clinging to Yuki-kun’s arm like it was my privilege, there was a crowd gathered in front of the school entrance.
“What is that, I wonder?”
“What the heck is that?”
We said almost the same thing at the same time, and it made my chest feel ticklish.
Then some people started turning toward us, saying things like, “Aren’t those the two from the photo?” and, “Get a room already,” and, “I mean, it’s totally Yukiya,” and the atmosphere got kind of scary…
“Ah, Kanae-senpai! Yukiya-senpai!”
Rinka-chan came running over.
“Um, about this commotion, you see, there are photos like this posted all over the school building…”
The moment I saw the A4 print she handed me, my face burned hot.
Because it was a photo from a few days ago, when I was doing that “fuu fuu” thing for Yuki-kun… or rather, looking at it as a photo, it totally looks like we’re kissing. We haven’t even done that yet…
“Azaka-senpai and the student council are going around taking them down right now, but you two might still get called to the staff room.”
I was surprised by the crowd, but judging by how Rinka-chan was talking, maybe it wasn’t that serious?
“Well, lots of people already know you two just started dating, so the teachers might just give you a light warning, and after that you’ll probably just get teased like crazy by everyone.”
Hehe, ever since I started dating Yuki-kun, I like being teased. It feels good.
And thinking that this makes my relationship with Yuki-kun something everyone knows somehow makes me feel like it’s been officially recognized, and that makes me happy.
When I think about it that way, I might even feel a tiny bit grateful toward whoever took and posted those photo prints.
While I was having such shallow thoughts, I ended up getting called to the staff room together with Yuki-kun after all.
But there wasn’t really any warning or punishment. They just asked things like whether we took the photo ourselves, or asked someone else to take it, or if we had any idea who took it.
What was that about? It felt like they were more concerned about where the photo came from and who took it than about what Yuki-kun and I were doing.
“What was that all about, I wonder?”
“Ah, when we were leaving the staff room, I kind of overheard something about ‘secret photography’ or whatever…”
“S-s-secret photography…?”
It feels way too unreal! But I guess that’s what it ends up being?
“Ah, um, I’m sorry… this happened because I did something like that…”
I was so apologetic and embarrassed I wanted to disappear.
“N-no, no! Thanks to that thing you did, Kanae, I didn’t have to put distance between us, and honestly, it even helped me!”
Uu, Yuki-kun’s so kind… distance?
“Yuki-kun, what do you mean by distance?”
“Ugh, well, it’d take too long to explain…”
“I wanna know though. I’d be happy if you told me in detail.”
“Y-yes.”
As we were talking like that and went into the classroom, the other thing Rinka-chan mentioned, the “getting teased like crazy,” was waiting for us.
“Heeey, Kanae, what was that all about?”
“Come on, Kanae, tell your big sisters what you did and how far you went?”
The girls sitting nearby crowded around us with grins.
I said things like, “It’s a secret,” and, “There’s nothing,” but no matter what, my face wouldn’t stop grinning. Being the subject of rumors with Yuki-kun feels good.
Things were peaceful on my side, but it looked rough on Yuki-kun’s side…
“You bastard! So you weren’t armored, you were a freak titan!”
“Take him down, take him down!”
Yuki-kun was being jumped on from behind by other guys in some pretty intense horseplay.
Watching that from a distance, I thought to myself.
During these two weeks with no one home… how should I invite Yuki-kun over to my place?