I Reincarnated as the Counselor NPC in a Dating Sim, and Now Every Heroine I Treat Becomes Obsessed with Me - Chapter 25: “Summer in the Library—Shizuku and Haruto, Gears That Don’t Quite Match”

Chapter 25: “Summer in the Library—Shizuku and Haruto, Gears That Don’t Quite Match”

Early August.

Even during summer vacation, Shizuku came to the counseling room three times a week.

2 PM on an open day.
The usual time.
The usual knock.

Two soft taps.

“Come in.”

Shizuku entered.

She was in casual clothes again today.

A white top and a light blue long skirt.

In her hands were two books and her memo pad.

“Hello, Shizuku-chan.”

She gave a small bow and sat in her usual seat.

I prepared tea.

Since it was summer, I made cold green tea.

When the tea was cold, Shizuku held the cup with one hand.

When it was warm, she used both hands.

I couldn’t remember when I first noticed that difference.

She held out a memo.

『Ren-sensei, I have something to report today.』

“Go ahead.”

She began writing the next memo.

It took longer than usual.

Write, erase.
Write, erase.

Finally, she handed it to me.

『Yesterday, I met Hanasaki-san in the library. He said he has read up to the third book on the summer reading list. I asked for his thoughts.』

“He read three books? Hanasaki-kun really put in the effort.”

Shizuku nodded.

Then she wrote another memo.

『Hanasaki-san’s thoughts were: “The protagonist tried hard, so I wanted to cheer for him.” “The ending was moving.” “It was easy to read and interesting.”』

“Those are good impressions.”

Shizuku stared at her memo pad for a moment, then started writing again.

『Yes. But all three books had almost the same kind of comments.』

Reading that line, I understood what Shizuku was feeling.

Haruto’s impressions weren’t bad.

They weren’t unpleasant either.

He read the books, found them interesting, and said so honestly.

But for three completely different books—“made me want to cheer for the protagonist,” “it was moving,” “it was interesting.”

All of them had the same depth.

What Shizuku was looking for—was a deeper kind of conversation.

—“Why do you think this scene used that kind of description?”
—“What do you think is hidden inside this character’s silence?”
—“If the last line didn’t exist, how would the story change?”

Those were the kinds of conversations we had in the counseling room.

Digging into what lay beneath the words.

That was what Shizuku wanted.

Expecting that from Haruto—might be too much.

He probably wasn’t used to reading like that.

And reading deeply itself was a skill, something built through experience.

The fact that Haruto had already read three books was impressive on its own.

But for Shizuku—

It didn’t quite connect.

“Hanasaki-kun really tried, in his own way.”

Shizuku nodded.

『Yes. Hanasaki-san is trying his best. He smiled and said, “I’m looking forward to the next book too!”』

“How did that make you feel, Shizuku-chan?”

Her pen stopped.

A long silence.

Cicadas cried outside the window.

Slowly—

She began to write.

『I was happy. I was happy that he read them. But— I wanted to talk a little more about what was inside the books.』

“Mm.”

『With Ren-sensei, I can talk about one book for hours. With Hanasaki-san— it ended in five minutes.』

Reading that note, I felt conflicted.

Shizuku’s world was definitely expanding.

She was exchanging notes with Haruto in the library, giving him a reading list, asking for his thoughts.

She had formed a connection with the world outside the counseling room.

That was recovery.

Without a doubt.

But at the same time—

Shizuku had started to feel a clear difference between “people in the outside world” and “Ren-sensei.”

With others, it ended in five minutes.

With Ren-sensei, it could go on for hours.

That comparison—could become the starting point of dependency.

“Shizuku-chan. Both those five minutes with Hanasaki-kun and the hours with me—both matter.”

She looked at me.

“The fact that you can even have a five-minute conversation with Hanasaki-kun is already amazing. Before, you couldn’t even imagine talking to someone in the library, right?”

She gave a small nod.

“Those five minutes might turn into ten someday, then thirty. That’s how things grow—little by little. There’s no need to rush.”

『Yes. …But I like the time with Ren-sensei more.』

Those were honest words.

Shizuku was always honest.

Even more so because she used notes.

Unlike spoken words, written ones could be revised.

And the fact that she still wrote “I like” after thinking it through—meant it was a genuine feeling for her.

“Thank you. I value my time with you too, Shizuku-chan.”

As a counselor, I might have been expected to say something like, “Don’t place too much importance on time with just one person.”

But at this stage, denying Shizuku’s honest feelings would only backfire.

Accept them while making sure her connection to the outside world doesn’t fade.

That balance mattered.

—

Shizuku started drawing.

Today’s theme was free.

She chose a window as her subject.

An open window.

Curtains gently swaying in the breeze.

Beyond the frame, the summer sky.

Following our alternating drawing rule, I added a small cat sitting on the window frame.

Shizuku looked at it—and the corner of her mouth lifted slightly.

A faint smile.

No sound, but her expression clearly said, “That’s funny.”

Then she drew another cat beside it.

The two cats sat close together by the window.

I added a small book near their feet.

It looked like the cats were reading together.

Shizuku saw that—and this time, her eyes grew slightly moist.

Not tears.

But her emotions were beginning to show on her face.

She didn’t cry.

Instead, she wrote small words in the corner of the drawing.

『I like it here.』

Written inside the drawing of the window—“I like it here.”

Here—probably meant this window in the counseling room.

I didn’t say anything.

I just nodded and added a small cloud in another corner of the drawing.

The summer sky stretching beyond the window.

Shizuku looked at that sky—

and paused, as if thinking about something.

After a while, she drew a small bird outside the window.

Two cats inside the window.

One bird outside.

The cats didn’t go outside.

The bird didn’t come in.

But they existed in the same picture.

I saw it as a map of Shizuku’s world.

Inside the window—the counseling room was her safe place.

Outside the window—the library, and Haruto, looked like that bird.

For now, it was still separated by the window.

But the fact that she drew the bird—meant she recognized the outside world.

She hadn’t rejected it.

And for now—that was enough.

—

After Shizuku left, I pinned the drawing on the wall.

The alternating drawings with Shizuku had now reached seven.

The apple tree.
The sea.
The night sky.
The library.
The counseling room.
The rainbow.
And today’s window with the cats and the bird.

Looking at the progression of these drawings—you could see the change within Shizuku.

In the very first drawing—the apple tree—she could only draw near the edge of the paper.

Today, she drew a window in the center, added words, and extended the world beyond the window.

Her world—was definitely expanding.

(…The problem is that I’m at the center of that world.)

Two cats.

One was Shizuku.

The other was— me.

The two of them sat close together by the window.

To Shizuku, I wasn’t “someone from the outside world.”

I was someone on the same side—inside the counseling room.

That was trust.

And at the same time—it was something fragile.

Still, it was too early to treat this as a problem and create distance.

Shizuku’s world was still small.

As long as this place was her only safe space, protecting it came first.

Someday, the bird outside the window—might come inside the counseling room.

I would wait for that day—

Slowly.

—

Evening.

While I was cleaning up the counseling room, my phone rang.

An unfamiliar number—no, it was Rin.

The number I gave her before summer vacation, telling her to contact me if anything came up.

“Hello?”

『Ah, Sensei! Sorry—are you free right now?』

“I’m free. What’s up? Your training camp ended, right?”

『Yeah! I got back last week! —So, I wanted to report something. On the second day of camp, I told my coach about my leg.』

“You managed to tell him.”

『After talking with you, I thought it over that night… and figured if I ruin my body, that’s the end of everything. The coach got mad, like “Why didn’t you say this sooner?” but he adjusted my training. I didn’t get full rest or anything, but I could go at my own pace.』

“You did well, Rin-san.”

『Hehe. —Oh, and Sensei, can we meet sometime soon? There’s something I want to talk about.』

“Of course. How about one of the open days next week?”

『That works! —Oh, and Sensei.』

“Yeah?”

『Hanasaki-kun asked about you. Like, “What kind of person is Asagiri-sensei?” I told him, “He’s a good teacher,” but… he started thinking really hard after that.』

“…Thinking really hard?”

『Yeah. He said, “I feel like I’m trying to really see everyone too.” He looked kinda… I don’t know… lonely? Or maybe frustrated.』

Haruto had started to notice the difference between himself and me.

Rin continued.

『Hanasaki-kun isn’t a bad guy. The other day too, when he saw me limping during practice, he said, “Don’t push yourself.” It made me feel like he was really paying attention.』

“Yeah.”

『But—how do I put it… when you asked me, “Are you having fun right now?” it hit me way harder. Hanasaki-kun’s “don’t push yourself” is kind, but your “are you having fun?” felt like—you were asking about what’s inside me.』

“…………”

『Ah, I’m not saying anything bad about Hanasaki-kun! He’s trying in his own way too! It’s just—something feels different. I can’t really explain it.』

She couldn’t put it into words clearly.

But Rin could feel that “difference.”

“Don’t push yourself”—was concern for the body.

“Are you having fun?”—was a question directed at the heart.

Haruto’s approach wasn’t wrong.

He was paying attention.

He was being considerate.

But whether he could take one step beyond the surface—that was where the difference lay.

“Hanasaki-kun is a good guy. Just like you said, Rin-san.”

『Right? —Okay then, see you next week! Sensei, don’t let the summer heat get to you!』

“You too, Rin-san.”

The call ended.

I stared at my phone for a while.

Haruto had said, “I feel like I’m really trying to see everyone.”

There was no lie in those words.

He really was trying.

He was making the effort.

But the girls—their hearts were turning toward me.

It wasn’t Haruto’s fault.

And it wasn’t mine either.

It was just—their wounds ran deeper than kindness alone could reach.

Without kindness, skill, experience—and above all, trust built over time—you couldn’t reach that depth.

Haruto didn’t have that skill or experience.

And expecting that from a seventeen-year-old high schooler would be too much.

But that didn’t mean I could casually give him advice.

If I did…

I’d be indirectly touching those girls’ wounds.

I could give him general communication advice.

But that wouldn’t be enough to truly reach them.

(…You’re a good guy. You’re trying hard. But—these girls’ wounds are too deep for just a high schooler.)

If possible—

I wanted him to keep going without giving up.

To slowly expand their world in his own way.

Still feeling conflicted, I turned off the lights in the counseling room.

Outside the window, the summer evening glowed orange.

On the wall hung the seventh drawing.

Two cats.

One bird.

Shizuku’s world was moving.

Slowly but surely.

—

Thank you for reading this story!

About the comments I’ve received—if I replied to everything in the comment section, it could end up spoiling things for many readers. So I’ve only been replying to some of them…

I’m really sorry about that.

That said, please feel free to keep commenting anytime!

I read every single one, and they truly motivate me.

Also, I’ve posted an update note titled: “The Counselor NPC in a Dating Game has surpassed 2000 stars!!”

In that note, I’ll answer questions like, “What was going on in that scene?”  “What was the intention behind that line?”—as long as it doesn’t become a major spoiler.

So if there’s anything you’re curious about, feel free to leave a comment there.

The note does contain some minor spoilers, so if you’re sensitive to that, you might want to avoid reading it.

I’ll be deleting this afterword after some time.