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.

Side: Sanae

Video games weren’t a common pastime in room 106, primarily because not everyone could play at the same time. Things had started to change as of late, however, after Sanae brought over a console she’d asked her parents to buy for her.

“Koutarou, who’s the culprit?”

“Why don’t you try thinking for yourself? You should be able to figure it out with your powers of deduction.”

“Come on!”

Group multiplayer games were on the rise these days, and lots of them were beginner friendly. As such, gaming was becoming more and more popular with the Corona House crew.

“Don’t be like that. Think about how the developers would feel if I spoiled it for you.”

“Hmm... Then just give me a hint.”

“Oh, fine. Well... there’s that one fishy guy, right?”

“The totally suspicious dude wrapped in bandages? I never thought he’d be the first to die...”

But today, Sanae and Koutarou were the only ones at the apartment. Sanae took the opportunity to play a detective game, and she was trying to solve the case with Koutarou as her assistant.

“That’s the problem.”

“What do you mean?”

“Nope. No more hints.”

“Come on! Pretty please!”

Sanae puffed up her cheeks, flopped herself across Koutarou’s lap, and wiggled in protest.

“If I tell you any more, I’ll practically be giving it away.”

“You mean, manly, super-serious cheapskate!”

“Pick between insulting me and praising me, will you?”

“Okay, you’re manly and super serious!”

“So you were praising me.”

Sanae continued to wiggle and pout. She didn’t want to think for herself; she simply wanted Koutarou to tell her the answer.

“...Oh?”

Her tantrum came to a sudden stop, however, when she let go of the controller and put her left hand on her chest.

“What is it?” Koutarou asked curiously.

“Bra malfunction. Eeheehee...”

Sanae let out a giggle—not out of embarrassment, but because she genuinely found the situation funny.

“That wouldn’t happen if you didn’t behave like a child.”

“Fix it for me, Koutarou.”

Sanae picked up her controller again. As far as she was concerned, the game was more important.

“Sorry, you’ll have to do it yourself,” Koutarou politely refused.

“Come on. It’s not that hard,” Sanae implored him, wiggling more as she typed out a name in the input box on the screen.

“That’s not why I’m refusing, you know?”

“You can feel me up while you’re at it. It’s win-win for you!”

“That might have worked on me ten years ago, but definitely not now,” Koutarou said with a wry smile as he patted Sanae’s head.

She could sense his feelings through the gesture, and she flashed a bright smile in return.

“Am I... Are we really that precious to you?”

“Let’s just say that I’d really regret doing something like that as a joke.”

Because Sanae could read people’s hearts via their auras, lying to her was pointless. She knew Koutarou was telling her the truth.

“Eeheehee, then I guess I have to do it myself after all.” Sanae had no idea what it was like to be a teenage boy, so she was especially forgiving of Koutarou. “Hold the controller for me.”

“Sure.”

“Jeez, boys sure are a handful... Heehee...”

Sanae handed the controller to Koutarou, then hiked her shirt up so she could fix her bra. Not wanting to stare, Koutarou turned his attention to the screen.

“Sanae...”

“Hmm? What?”

“This isn’t the right answer.”

“No way! Put in the right one for me, then!” she begged for the umpteenth time.

Koutarou hesitated for a moment, but ultimately relented and gave up the culprit’s name.