Monogatari Series - Volume 8 - Chapter 1.09

009

Hm?

Didn’t we skip over a section number?

Am I just imagining things?

Whatever, it’s fine.

The ruins seemed like a place where Roomba could have really shined, but sadly he burned down with the rest of everything in the house, which meant I could no longer rely on him to wake me up in the morning. Even so, I presumed I could wake up at the same time as always.

Humans have something called a circadian rhythm.

This biorhythm is ingrained into our bodies and doesn’t falter easily.

Not only that, I was someone who didn’t know what it meant to be still asleep─or so I believed until reality intruded.

It wasn’t that I overslept.

In fact, I woke up earlier than I’d planned─and I didn’t wake up naturally, I was woken up.

But there shouldn’t have been anyone who would now that Roomba was gone─

“Miss Hanekawa!”

I was pulled from bed.

Does being still asleep involve incredible images diving into your view? I thought lazily as I waited for my understanding to catch up to my perception─looking at Miss Senjogahara, who was right in front of me with her hands on my collar.

I thought lazily.

She bellowed, “Are you okay?! Are you alive?!”

“H-Huh? Hm? Good morning?”

I gave her a greeting─my first time doing so in a while, actually─still unsure of what was happening.

I was even bewildered.

After all, the normally cool and collected Miss Senjogahara had tears streaming down her reddened face as she stared at me.

“Are you okay?!” she kept asking me.

Still unsure why she was so worried, I nodded, overwhelmed.

“Y-Yeah.”

“……nkk.” In response, Miss Senjogahara finally let go of my collar, bit down on her lip, seemed to hold back an outburst of tears, and then─“Idiot!” she slapped me across the face.

Roused awake.

And slapped away.

I probably could have dodged them if I’d tried, but she looked so fierce that I just accepted the blows.

No, I probably couldn’t dodge them.

Heat pulsed through my cheek.

“Idiot! Idiot! Idiot!”

Not content with hitting me once, Miss Senjogahara did so again and again─her slapping stance deteriorating until she was just popping me in the chest like a child having a tantrum.

It didn’t hurt at all.

But it hurt so much.

“Y-You’re a girl! By herself! A-And you’re staying in a place like this?! What if something happened to you?!”

“…I’m sorry,” I apologized.

Well, I should say I was made to─this miniature Boy Scout experience only felt like I was having a bit of fun, and I’d been free of regret or remorse.

Even so.

I was certain I had made Miss Senjogahara, yes, that Miss Senjogahara, terribly worried─

And inappropriately enough, that made me feel a bit glad.

I was happy.

“Uh-uh. I’m not forgiving you. I’ll never forgive you,” she said, snuggling, clinging, nestling into and hugging me.

She was never going to let me go again.

“I’m not forgiving you. I’ll never forgive you, not even if you apologize.”

“Okay…understood. I got it. I’m sorry, I’m sorry.”

I still reiterated my apology.

I put my arms around Miss Senjogahara and returned her embrace.

And I continued to apologize.

In the end, it took about half an hour for her to stop crying, which brought us to the time that I normally woke up.