Bonus Short Stories
Side: Kiriha
In Kiriha’s mind, being a good woman meant accommodating her man to a certain degree. Because of that, she behaved quite differently when she was with him alone.
“What’re you doing there, Kiriha-san?”
Koutarou sat at the tea table doing his homework. Kiriha was sitting across from him, but she’d swiftly finished her homework and had now pulled out a sewing kit.
“Oh, this? Well, I noticed a hole in one of your shirts, so I was thinking of mending it.”
Kiriha paused her handiwork and smiled at Koutarou. It wasn’t her usual mischievous grin, but a kind and gentle expression.
“There’s a hole? Where?”
“Here. Look.”
Kiriha held the shirt out to Koutarou, pointing to a hole about a centimeter big. He stared at it for a moment before putting a hand on his side and nodding.
“Ah, yeah, I bet that’s from soccer the other day. I must’ve torn it when I fell.”
“Are you hurt?”
Kiriha looked concerned. The way Koutarou had put his hand on his side made her worry that he’d injured himself in the fall.
“Aw, don’t look at me like that. I’m fine. It’s hardly anything. Just a small bruise.”
“I see... I’m glad.”
“You’re overreacting.”
“You say that, but you know you’re the most important thing in the world to me.”
“Erk...”
Koutarou looked away in a fluster, escaping by throwing himself into his homework. A teenage boy could do nothing but blush when faced with such an earnest profession of love.
“...”
Kiriha simply smiled, not saying a word. She knew Koutarou was feeling bashful, so this was her way of accommodating him. In the meantime, she got back to sewing.
“You can just consider sportswear expendable, you know...” he eventually muttered.
“Don’t worry. I’ll fix it up as good as new.”
“I don’t doubt your sewing skills... It’s just that I’d feel bad about putting another hole in it after you sew it up so nicely.”
“In reality, I’m not fixing this for you.”
“Huh?”
“I’m doing it because I want to.”
Koutarou was at a loss for words. This was what Kiriha was really like when it was just the two of them. Instead of teasing him, she didn’t hold herself back. She was honest with her feelings, and that honesty had only grown stronger since they became third-years.
“...Thank you...”
“Of course.”
In reality, Kiriha being so forthright bothered Koutarou even more than when she teased him—but just because it was embarrassing, not because he disliked it. After mustering his courage to show his gratitude, he got right back to his homework. Kiriha said nothing more either as she got back to sewing too.
“...”
“...”
Silence then fell over the apartment. The only noises in room 106 were the sounds of Koutarou scribbling and Kiriha sewing. The atmosphere was perfectly tranquil. And after about thirty minutes of this...
“Koutarou.”
“Hmm?”
“I just wanted to say your name.”
“I see...”
It was a meaningless exchange of words, but a very meaningful exchange of feelings. Kiriha was beaming afterward, while Koutarou was beet red.
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