Be careful with the laid-back beauty who took a liking to me. Otherwise, it will be too late! - Chapter 35: Clinging

Chapter 35: Clinging

Today is the day I meet Sayo’s mother. Sayo and I are heading to her house together.

I was feeling nervous, but thanks to Sayo holding my hand all the way there, I managed to relax a bit.

“This is my house,” she said.

After taking the train and bus, we walked a little further, and there it was—Sayo’s home. The nameplate read “Koga.”

Since there was a housekeeper, I expected the house to be big, but this was twice the size I imagined.

As we stood in front of the entrance, a person came out from inside. Sayo gasped, and her hand slipped from mine.

“Welcome, Lady Sayo,” said the woman.

“Fujimura-san!”

Sayo, who had looked a bit down until we arrived, immediately brightened and smiled when she saw Fujimura-san.

“It’s been a while, Fujimura-san,” Sayo said, hugging her tightly.

“Yes, it has! I’m so glad to see you again. I’ll be working at the Koga household again this year,” Fujimura-san replied.

“Really? I’m so happy to hear that!”

“Yes!”

Fujimura-san gently patted Sayo’s head.

Then she looked at me and gave a slight bow, so I bowed back.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Fujimura, the housekeeper here. You must be Kawai-kun?”

“Ah, yes. I’m Kawai Hinata.”

If I remember correctly, Fujimura-san is a housekeeper who, according to Sayo, is great at cooking.

Her kind smile made it easier for me to relax and talk.

“Thank you for taking care of Lady Sayo. It seems like you’ve become an important person in her life, and I’m really happy for you both,” Fujimura-san said, causing Sayo to freeze. She was probably worried about what her father had said earlier.

“Fujimura-san—”

“Sayo, you’re here. Come inside quickly.”

Just as Sayo was about to say something to Fujimura-san, a beautiful woman came out of the house.

Having hugged Fujimura-san, Sayo quickly stepped back to apologize before entering the house.

“Excuse me,” she said.

I hesitated, wondering if I should follow her, when the woman who appeared to be Sayo’s mother addressed me.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Koga Aya. You’re Kawai Hinata, who’s dating Sayo, right?”

“Yes! I’m Kawai Hinata,” I stammered, bowing deeply. When I looked up, Aya-san’s gaze met mine, and it was as cold as Sayo had described.

Her words were soft, but I got the feeling that if I did anything she disliked, she would immediately tell me to leave.

“Come in. Sayo is waiting for you.”

“Yes, I’ll be intruding.”

As I stepped inside, Aya-san guided me to a room where Sayo was already waiting.

Aya-san instructed me to sit next to Sayo, and I complied, sitting on my knees. Then, Aya-san sat down across from us.

“I understand that you two are dating. I have no intention of interfering with your relationship, but Kawai-kun, I’ll leave Sayo in your care.”

“Yes, I’ll do my best…”

I felt a strange sense of unease, even though I should be happy to be acknowledged. It was reminiscent of what Sayo’s father had said, and it left me feeling a bit unsettled.

It felt like I was being handed Sayo without much thought. No, no, both her parents seem nice; that can’t be the case.

The room fell silent, and when I glanced at Sayo beside me, she looked down, as if wanting to say something.

Aya-san noticed this too.

“Sayo, you’ve been quiet. If there’s something you want to say, go ahead.”

“…I have nothing to say.”

“I see. I’m going to step out for a bit; I have things to attend to. Kawai-kun, feel free to stay and take your time.”

“Yes, thank you.”

With that, Aya-san left the room, leaving Sayo and me alone together. I immediately moved closer to her.

“Are you okay, Sayo? You’re not forcing yourself, are you?”

I remembered that Sayo had mentioned she didn’t want to see her mother too much, so I was worried.

“I’m fine… I’m relieved. I thought my mother would oppose my relationship with you,” she replied, placing her hand on her chest and smiling brightly at me.

However, that smile felt forced, like it was meant to reassure me.

Seeing her like that made it hard for me to bear, so I gently hugged her.

“Hinata…?”

“I’m sorry, I just wanted to hold you…”

“…Hehe, you can lean on me. I’ll lean on you too.”

In a soft voice, she whispered in my ear and wrapped her arms around me tightly. Just then, I heard the sliding door open.

I turned to see Fujimura-san standing there.

“Excuse me, Sayo—ah, my apologies.”

“Fujimura-san, it’s alright.”

Seeing that the timing was awkward, Fujimura-san seemed about to leave, so I hurriedly stopped her.

“Is that so? I brought some chilled barley tea. I’ll leave it here for you.”

Fujimura-san set the tea on the table.

Then Sayo spoke up.

“Thank you! Fujimura-san, I’d love to chat a bit since it’s been a while.”

“With me? Of course, I’d be happy to,” Fujimura-san replied.

As Sayo and Fujimura-san began talking, I thought I might be intruding and started to stand up, but Sayo grabbed my hand.

“Hinata, why don’t you join us?”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, let’s all talk together.”

Since Sayo was okay with it, I settled back down, and she happily began chatting with Fujimura-san.

“Can you make tamagoyaki now? That’s amazing, Lady Sayo!” Fujimura-san exclaimed.

“Hehe, if it’s something I learned from you, I can make anything,” Sayo replied.

Unlike when Aya-san was there, Sayo was enjoying her conversation with Fujimura-san.

“Lady Sayo, you’re living alone now, right? Is there anything you’re having trouble with?”

“Trouble? Not really. I can handle household chores.”

“I see, that’s good to hear.”

Fujimura-san smiled brightly, reassured that Sayo was doing well.

“By the way, Fujimura-san, I started working part-time!” Sayo announced.

“Part-time?”

“Yes! I’m working at a cafe called ‘AMAOTO.’ I’d love for you to come visit sometime!”

“‘AMAOTO’ is the cafe run by Chisato-san, right? Yes, I’d love to go.”

“Hinata, you should come too.”

“Yeah, I’ll definitely go.”

＊＊＊

As we were leaving, I wanted to say a quick word to Aya-san, but she seemed busy, so I just said I had a great time and left the house.

After saying goodbye to Fujimura-san, we were finally alone again, and Sayo tugged at my sleeve.

“Hey, Hinata. What if we don’t go home right away? I have something I want to do with you.”

“Something you want to do?”

“Yeah, it’s a special day today.”