After being saved by Kaminagi-san, I now found myself having dinner at his house.
「How did it come to this…?」
「Hm? You don’t like chinese noodles, Kagurazaka-san?」
「N-No… I like it…」
「Then that’s great. Don’t hold back, eat as much as you like.」
「Thank you very much…」
「Wait, hold on a second!」
「What’s wrong, Kagurazaka-san?」
「N-No, it’s nothing! Kaminagi-san!」
「Ara, if you just say ‘Kaminagi-san’, how will we know if you mean me or Yuuki? You’ll have to use his first name.」
Came a pinpoint pass from Kaminagi-san’s mother.
「Uh… then… Y–Yuuki-san.」
「Yes? What is it?」
「I mean… why am I eating dinner here in the first place?」
「Well… it just kind of happened?」
「I see…」
「Well, one of my classmates caused you a lot of trouble earlier, after all～.」
Joining us at the dinner table was also Hikari-san, who lives in the house right next door (and who got mad at me when I used her last name).
「If it’s about that, please don’t worry, 」
After that commotion, it turned out one of his classmates had recognized me from when I was a child, and I ended up getting swarmed.
「No, I really am sorry about that…」
And to make things worse, I… I was carried away from that scene in a princess carry by him.
「No, really, thank you… And besides, it was my first time jumping through a city at sunset like that.」
Looking down at the city dyed in evening hues, leaping from building to building, that’s not something you experience in normal life. It was something out of a movie, so breathtakingly beautiful that I forgot all about how embarrassing it was to be carried like that.
「Really? I’m glad you enjoyed the ride. That makes it worth it for me.」
「Hey, hey! Next time, do it with me too!」
「Hikari, you can fly on your own, can’t you…?」
「That’s not the point, I want you to carry me in a princess hold, Yuuki!」
「Ugh… fine. Someday.」
Just like I thought when I met them before, those two are awfully close. Are they… that kind of relationship?
「So, what is your relationship exactly, oh! I’m sorry! That was rude of me!」
The question slipped out before I could stop it. I hadn’t meant to ask… and the moment I did, I regretted it.
「Ah, me and Yuuki? We’re engaged.」
「……」
A sharp pain stabbed through my chest. That was the one answer I didn’t want to hear.
Wait, what am I even doing!? I mean, he was just kind to me the first time we met. He helped me out. I got to see a romantic view while being carried in his arms, that’s all! He doesn’t know anything about me, about my time as a child actress, or about my dad or mom. Even if he did know, he hasn’t tried to cozy up to me or anything! Calm down, me! If I keep this up, people really will start calling me an “easy heroine” again! Be careful! Stay calm, stay calm, stay caaaalm… muttering…
「Stay calm, stay calm, stay calm, stay calm…」
「Kagurazaka-san!? Are you okay? You just suddenly started muttering to yourself!」
Yuuki-san’s concerned voice snapped me out of it.
「I’m fine! Really! Please don’t worry about me, Yuuki-san!」
「Uh… okay. Got it…」
He looked so dejected, ahh, he’s just too cute!
I couldn’t help thinking that.
He wasn’t that much taller than me, and with that boyish face, he felt different from other guys somehow.
(No, no! He’s Hikari-san’s fiancé!)
At times like this… what would my sisters do?
If the third daughter of our family also ended up stealing someone else’s fiancé, the tabloids would have a field day.
「Anyway! Please, don’t worry about it, really!」
I quietly focused on eating the slightly soggy chinese noodles.
「Ah… it’s delicious…」
「I’m glad to hear that. It’s homemade, you know. Mom makes the noodles herself. She’ll be happy to hear you liked it.」
「Wait, these noodles are homemade too?」
「Yup, recently Yuuki bought me a pasta machine, and now I’ve been having so much fun making all sorts of noodles～」
Yuuki-san’s mother came over smiling, carrying some extra toppings.
「Kagurazaka-chan, here’s some spicy minced meat and soup for a flavor change. Do you like spicy food?」
「Ah, yes, I’m fine with it.」
「Great, then eat as much as you like. There’s plenty more if you want seconds.」
That big pile behind her must be uncooked noodles… There’s gotta be enough for twenty people, right?
「Mom… you overdid it again, didn’t you…」
「Ahaha… I just got carried away…」
「Yes, yes, Yuuka-san! Seconds, please!」
「You sure eat a lot, Hikari…」
And just like that, I found myself surrounded by something I hadn’t felt in a long time, a warm, family-like atmosphere. I ended up enjoying dinner more than I expected.
◇◆◇◆
「Ahh… that was so much fun…」
Yuuki-san walked me home, and as I returned to the house, I sensed something unusual, someone was there.
「I’m home.」
「Ah, Rinka-chan, welcome back! Mama was so worried when you weren’t home!」
「Ohh, Rinka, you’re back! I was worried when I came home and found the place empty!」
Seeing my parents’ faces again for the first time in a while, I felt a sense of relief in my heart.
「Dad… Mom…」
「What, not ‘Papa’?」
「And I wish you’d call me ‘Mama’…」
「Ah, right… sorry, Papa, Mama.」
As I said that, both of their faces lit up with beaming smiles.
「Sorry we haven’t been home much lately.」
「It’s fine. I’m not a little kid anymore. Besides, I’ve made some friends…」
「Really!? That’s wonderful! Isn’t this the first time you’ve ever visited a friend’s house?」
「Yes, we should celebrate! Oh, but before that, shouldn’t we go greet them properly?」
The two of them started talking excitedly, completely ignoring me.
「It’s fine, really!」
「Is that so…? And what are your friends’ names?」
「Um… Kaminagi Yuuki-san and Mizushiro Hikari-san. We worked together as explorers.」
The moment I said those names, something changed in their eyes.
Ah… how could I have forgotten…
These two always act on their desires so openly…
It’s always like this. Once it starts, they no longer see me…
The happiness I’d felt just moments ago melted away like it had never existed, and something dark began to well up from inside me.
「Rinka, you must introduce those two to us sometime.」
「Yes, we simply must get closer with them!」
「…Understood, Father. Mother.」
They no longer heard my voice. With resignation and that persistent, dark feeling clouding my heart, I shut myself away in my room.
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