After I Started Living Alone, My Place Turned Into a Hangout Spot for Beautiful Girls - Chapter 3: Shizuru Mizutani (Part 3)

Chapter 3: Shizuru Mizutani (Part 3)

The day after the dreamlike event where my classmate Mizutani-san took a shower at my house.

As I entered the classroom as usual, it seemed yesterday’s events weren’t a dream after all.

When I passed by Mizutani-san’s desk on my way to my seat, she was already there and gently tugged at the hem of my uniform.

“Good morning.”

Her greeting had a soft expression, as if implying thanks for yesterday.

It appeared that Mizutani-san, the beautiful girl, taking a shower at my house wasn’t just a teenage fantasy.

“G-Good morning.”

I returned an awkward greeting to Mizutani-san and went to my seat.

Then, Kato, who had been watching our interaction, spoke to me.

“Were you and Mizutani-san close?”

“Something happened yesterday.”

“Oh, really?”

Kato, sitting behind me, gave me a curious look.

But I wasn’t foolish enough to tell my friend about yesterday’s events.

“I just returned something she dropped.”

I made up a random lie to brush it off.

Saying I let her use my shower would definitely cause misunderstandings.

My quick response must have worked, as Kato lost interest in my connection with Mizutani-san, saying, “Oh, that’s all?”

“I see. Well, no way a girl would be into you, Teruaki.”

“That’s harsh. I’d like to say I could get a girl if I tried… but yeah, probably not.”

In middle school, my parents forced me to join the basketball club, so my physique wasn’t bad, but… my face was just average.

Boasting that I was popular would only make me feel empty.

As I accepted the fact that I wasn’t attractive to the opposite sex, Kato tried to cheer me up.

“Nah, I think you’ve got a shot.”

“Me, the plain guy?”

“Yeah, if you go to my brother’s salon!”

“Hey, is this a sales pitch?”

“No way, not a sales pitch. I’m totally not recommending my brother’s place just because I’d get a referral fee if I brought a friend.”

That’s totally a sales pitch.

But I was at the age where I wanted to look even a little cooler to girls.

“How much?”

“Oh, you’re interested? Right now, it’s 2,500 yen for a wash and cut!”

“That’s cheap.”

“He’s a newbie. If you feel like it, get a cut at his place.”

My hair wasn’t that long yet, so I didn’t need a cut, but it wasn’t a bad deal.

I seriously considered going to Kato’s brother’s salon next time.

Seeing my reaction, Kato laughed happily.

“Thanks for the business!”

Hey, I hadn’t decided for sure yet.

I gave a wry smile to the opportunistic Kato.

※

Classes went on as usual, and before I knew it, it was lunch break.

I was munching on a plain salt onigiri I made myself.

“That’s a pretty simple lunch.”

“Well, sometimes it’s nice to keep it basic.”

I put on a brave front.

Yesterday, I borrowed money from Mizutani-san and managed to buy rice, but I only had 500 yen left.

With no money to buy side dishes, my lunch today was just a salt onigiri.

“Gonna hit the bathroom.”

Kato, who was eating lunch with me, got up.

Then, Mizutani-san, who was eating lunch with her friends in the classroom, left them with her bento and chopsticks in hand and came over to talk to me.

“Are your hands clean, Teruaki-kun?”

“I washed them earlier, so I think they’re clean…”

I showed Mizutani-san my hands, confident they were clean.

Then, she placed a piece of tamagoyaki on my palm.

“You looked kinda pitiful, so here you go!”

Her kindness made my heart skip a beat.

No wonder she was so popular with the guys.

“T-Thank you.”

“No worries. See ya!”

Mizutani-san left with light steps.

Watching her walk away, I ate the tamagoyaki from my hand.

Savoring the sweet, delicious tamagoyaki, I noticed Mizutani-san, back at her seat, being teased by her friends she was eating with.

“Shizuru, you lent him money yesterday, and now you’re giving him tamagoyaki… Do you like Teruaki-kun?”

“Hmm, well…”

Mizutani-san paused dramatically.

I listened to their conversation, a bit nervous.

But it seemed my interest in Mizutani-san was obvious.

She deliberately smiled at me and declared:

“Of course, we’re just friends!”

I figured as much.

There was zero reason for Mizutani-san to like me right now.

If she said she liked me, that’d honestly be creepy.

“Don’t be too nice to him~ Guys get the wrong idea easily. Like, ‘Is she nice to me because she likes me!?’”

Hearing Mizutani-san’s friend say that, I resolved not to misinterpret her kindness.

Still, eating just a salt onigiri for lunch felt lonely…

The tamagoyaki from Mizutani-san was already gone.

I wanted some side dishes, but then Mizutani-san said to her friend with a laugh:

“Teruaki-kun, huh… Nope, not right now.”

“You’re so blunt, Shizuru.”

“Well, yeah~ But, I mean, not right now, but…”

“Not right now, but?”

“Depending on Teruaki-kun, who knows what could happen~?”

“Come on, don’t say suggestive stuff like that loudly so Teruaki-kun can hear. Poor innocent guy.”

Mizutani-san’s friend, Akutsu-san, sighed in exasperation.

“Not right now, but who knows in the future,” she said.

As a high school boy, I couldn’t help but feel a bit hopeful, imagining what it’d be like if Mizutani-san and I became a couple…

“Teruaki-kun, I love you!”

In my mind, Mizutani-san hugged me tightly with a big smile.

And then, as she hugged me, we… well, you know…

I was lost in a little daydream or delusion when Kato came back from the bathroom.

“You zoning out or what?”

His voice snapped me back to reality.

Yeah, imagining a classmate as my girlfriend was creepy, so I’d stop.

“Nothing, really.”

I gave Kato a wry smile.

But I couldn’t shake off my stray thoughts.

Because when I checked my phone, I saw a message from Mizutani-san.

“Hey, hey, can I come over to your place again today?”

No guy could get a message like that and not feel excited.

I spent the rest of lunch break feeling restless.