Chapter 55

The day after Satoru unknowingly became the topic of conversation between two girls.

“Ugh… this sucks…”

The chills he was feeling weren’t just in his head. Satoru had actually come down with something.

“38.5°C? That’s a full-on high fever… I told you this would happen, walking around underdressed even with the weather swinging like this.”

“I’ve got no comeback. You’re absolutely right…”

“Seriously, aren’t you super busy with class rep stuff right now? You always get sick at the worst possible times, don’t you?”

“Yeah… that does seem to happen.”

Satoru wasn’t the type to get sick often.

But when he did, the timing was rarely good.

He wouldn’t fall ill on the exact day of something important, but he often got sick just before or after a big event, or on days when something important was going on for a family member.

“Mom said she already called the school to report you’re taking the day off. So make sure you rest properly. Also, she said if you’re feeling better by evening, the housework’s still your responsibility.”

“Roger that… Damn, I faked being sick to skip school when Reika was out, and now I’ve actually come down with something. Everyone’s gonna think I’m getting sick way too often.”

“Well, this one’s totally your fault. Oh, and did you tell Reika-nee you’re staying home?”

“Of course. I don’t want to dump all the work on her… Haven’t gotten a reply yet, though.”

“As long as you told her, that’s fine. I’m heading to school now.”

“Alright. Be careful.”

“Mm-hm.”

With that, his sister left his room and headed off to school.

Satoru pulled the comforter closer, grateful for his sister checking in on him during one of the hardest times of day to be up—just before school.

Then suddenly, the phone right by his ear rang out loudly.

“Whoa!?”

The caller, of course, was Reika.

He picked up and answered the call.

“I’m staying home too. Mind if I come over now?”

Without even a hello, she dove right into bold declarations.

“Wait, hang on. You don’t have to stay home just because I’m down. Plus, if it’s a cold, you might catch it….so maybe don’t come?”

“Stop your whining. If you take the day off, my workload doubles. And with that annoying girl still around, I’d have to deal with her too. If we both take the day off, the homeroom teacher or another class can handle it, right?”

“That’s… a bit of a ruthless take, but not wrong.”

“And if we both take another day off together, won’t it make going back even more exciting?”

“‘Exciting’ isn’t the word I’d use… but yeah, I guess I’ll have to brace myself.”

Missing class at the same time again, so soon after the last time, would definitely raise eyebrows.

There was no avoiding it this time and he’d have to be prepared for the inevitable questioning.

“Maybe we should just start going to school together already?”

“At this point, sure. But since we’re both out sick, showing up together would get us in trouble in other ways…”

“True. The teachers might be uptight about that. We’re still seen as model students, after all.”

“Meanwhile, we’re a hopeless couple tangled up in a full-on physical relationship. What a joke.”

“What’s so hopeless about it? We’re a lovely couple whose love has blossomed.”

“Call it whatever you want. I’ll just consider this the moment we go public.”

“My, you’re awfully cooperative today. Did Chisa-chan talk some sense into you or something?”

“More like calmly reasoned with me. She’s smart like that.”

“Heh. Sis-con.”

“Shut up.”

A few minutes after Reika’s surprise announcement about staying home, they were already back to their usual banter.

“So, can I come over now?”

“I won’t stop you, but if this really is a cold, you might catch it.”

“If I catch it from you, I’ll happily accept that.”

“…Okay, that one made me cringe a little.”

“I’ll cry, you know?”

“Hey, that one’s not on me! Fine, come if you want. The door’s unlocked, so just let yourself in.”

“Got it. I’ll aim to get there in an hour to avoid bumping into students on their way to school.”

“So thorough.”

“Alright, I’m hanging up.”

And with that, the call ended.

“Ugh… guess I’d better clean up…”

It wasn’t uncommon for Satoru to visit Reika’s house, but Reika coming to his was much rarer.

In fact, he could count the number of times she had come on one hand.

Even though he was feverish and sluggish, the idea of letting her see his room 

as it is made him feel uneasy.

They’d gone all the way in as a couple, sure, but there were still things in the room he wouldn’t want her to see.

So he forced his heavy body into motion and began tidying up, hoping to finish before Reika arrived.