I Was Cheated on by My Girlfriend but My Devilish Junior Now Yearns for Me - Chapter 67

Chapter 67   Shinohara’s Living Situation

I opened the door to my apartment using the key with a snow leopard keychain attached to it.

After kicking off my shoes in the small entryway and heading further inside, a voice behind me stopped me.

“Senpai, you need to line up your shoes.”

“Oh, my bad.”

I turned around and placed my shoes neatly near the entrance. It’s basic manners to arrange your shoes in someone else’s house, but at home, I tend to slack off.

“Well done!”

“That’s not really something to praise.”

I responded with a wry smile to Shinohara’s cheerful grin.

If I don’t line up my shoes, Shinohara will end up doing it for me. She usually handles the chores I neglect, so I feel obligated to at least do the simple tasks myself—even if she insists, “I do it because I like to!”

…Except when I’m too sleepy; that’s a different story.

“Come on, senpai, move it!”

“I’m going, I’m going.”

She lightly pushed me forward into the room. It’s hard to match her level of excitement as we entered my apartment.

“It’s still early evening, so let’s do something fun!”

“Couldn’t you have said that when we were out? There were tons of places to hang out.”

“I’m saying let’s do something we can only do at home, okay? Geez, you’re so slow, senpai!”

“Why are you suddenly being so harsh!?”

“I’m not harsh at all. Now, let’s cook together, senpai!”

Shinohara hung her jacket on a hanger and rolled up her sleeves.

A little confused by the sudden suggestion, I realized we had plenty of time, so I decided to go along with it. When I opened the fridge, I saw some of the ingredients Shinohara had stocked up.

“What are we making?”

In response to my question, Shinohara smiled.

“Let’s make ginger pork and have some drinks at home!”

“You’re still underage!”

“Yeah, but at home there’s no one to check my ID!”

Shinohara pouted in protest.

“That’s not the issue—it’s the law.”

Well, in reality, there are plenty of college freshmen and sophomores who drink. It’s a tradition that’s been passed down from generation to generation. But the reason I don’t want Shinohara drinking at my place has nothing to do with the law.

“…W-Why are you suddenly staring at me like that?”

Shinohara, looking a bit shy, averted her gaze. She’s undeniably cute. If I were to bring her to a mixer, the guys would undoubtedly flock to her, only to be shot down.

Drinking with Shinohara, just the two of us, would be tough. Even I—sometimes struggle to maintain my self-control.

Alcohol weakens the barriers of self-restraint that people work so hard to build. Acting on impulse is part of human nature, and there are times when throwing away reason leads to better outcomes.

But now is not one of those times. I know it would only lead to betraying her trust. As the older one, I can’t allow that.

“We’re not drinking.”

“…Fiiiine.”

Shinohara replied with a look of utter dissatisfaction.

Seeing her so disappointed, I added something as I opened the fridge.

“When you turn 20, I’ll drink with you as much as you want.”

Technically, I’d have no excuse not to, so I wouldn’t be able to say no. Her birthday isn’t until next year, so I’m just kicking the problem down the road.

“That’s such a long time from now… But fine, I’ll wait.”

“Good girl.”

“Don’t praise me for something like that…”

Shinohara gave the same reaction I had earlier, then added:

“Then at least pat me on the head.”

“Eh…”

“Why do you sound so reluctant!? Other guys would do it in a heartbeat, for sure! I mean it, absolutely!”

“You don’t ask those other guys to pat your head, though.”

“That’s not the point!”

When I frowned, Shinohara jumped onto the bed and kicked her legs in the air.

Thanks to Shinohara always keeping the room clean, no dust was kicked up at all.

As long as I didn’t leave the house for several days, this state would remain unchanged.

In terms of household chores, I’m really grateful for her help.

It’s been a few months since we got to know each other, but Shinohara continues to frequently visit my place.

I wonder what our relationship will be like by the time Shinohara’s next birthday comes around.

Even though we’ve only known each other for a few months, the time we spend together is long, and the intensity is greater compared to others.

If this were with someone else, it wouldn’t be surprising if some big change had happened by now.

For example, my ex, Reina.

It didn’t take long for my relationship with Reina to change significantly.

But recently, I’ve been thinking that it’s unlikely there will be any big changes between me and Shinohara.

Human relationships are unpredictable, so nothing is certain, but that’s how I felt the first time Shinohara stayed over at my place.

To be exact, it was after we talked about how trust and having deeper conversations are two different things.

Since then, I haven’t said anything to Shinohara.

And since then, Shinohara hasn’t said anything to me.

We’ve been getting along well without crossing the lines we’ve drawn for each other.

Because we trust each other not to cross those lines, it’s hard for things to change.

As long as we don’t want our relationship to change──

“Junior Attack!”

“Ugh!?”

A pillow hit me square in the face, and I let out a ridiculous sound.

I felt the pillow drop onto my foot.

“Hey, Senpai, can I stay over again sometime?”

“How can you ask something like that so casually after what just happened? What’s going on in your head?”

“Haha, oh Senpai, don’t be so mysterious.”

“Don’t twist things in your favor! I’m going to get revenge for this, don’t think you’ll ever wake up once you fall asleep tonight.”

“Se-Senpai is broken…”

“Don’t act like you’re scared now!”

I kicked the pillow off my foot and headed toward the kitchen.

Dealing with that junior was going to be exhausting.

“So, it’s settled that I’m staying over again next time, right?”

Shinohara, who had snuggled up beside me, smiled bashfully with a look of joy.

“Why do you look so happy?”

“Well, it’s been a while!”

I almost thought about saying, “We’ve had plenty of sleepovers,” but then I remembered that Shinohara always slept during the day when she stayed over.

When I think about it like that, I realize that Shinohara was probably gauging my reaction this time.

If I had shown any reluctance, Shinohara would have pouted like usual, and then acted like the rejection never happened.

But this time, I couldn’t refuse, and that’s why she was so happy.

It was a simple thing, but for some reason, it made me feel embarrassingly self-conscious. To hide it, I opened the wall-mounted shelf.

I expected to see some cooking utensils inside, but they were nowhere to be found.

“The cooking stuff is down here,” Shinohara said, opening the lower storage cabinet. Inside, a large array of cooking tools were neatly lined up. Some of them were unfamiliar to me, which made me widen my eyes in surprise.

“They were hard to reach up there, so I moved them to the lower cabinet,” she explained.

“That’s helpful, but it looks like you’ve added more stuff.”

“I added a few things I thought would be useful for cooking. But, well, that was quite a while ago.”

Shinohara gave me a slightly exasperated smile.

“It’s pretty clear that you never spend any time in the kitchen when you’re by yourself, Senpai.”

“Can’t be helped. Convenience store meals taste better than anything I can make.”

It’s generally advised to avoid eating convenience store meals every day, but considering Shinohara frequently visits and even leaves prepared meals behind sometimes, my situation is different.

I take pride in the fact that I’ve been in much better health lately compared to before.

“You’re just lazy, aren’t you?”

“I won’t deny that.”

Hearing my response, Shinohara pouted in displeasure.

It was a spur-of-the-moment comment, but maybe I should’ve just said thank you.

“A lazybones like you, Senpai, what are you doing in the kitchen?”

“I thought we could make some ginger pork together. I’m not drinking, but join me, will you?”

Feeling too embarrassed to express my gratitude outright, I invited Shinohara in a blunt tone. Wondering if this might lift her mood, I glanced at her sideways, and our eyes met.

“Not very honest, are you?”

“Shut up.”

“Hehe, okay.”

Shinohara grinned, then started setting out utensils and ingredients on the counter with practiced ease.

Maybe it’s because of all the time we’ve spent together, but lately, Shinohara has been able to pick up on my true feelings right away. I wasn’t sure if that meant I was easy to read or if she was just perceptive. Probably both, I thought, exhaling quietly.

Still, I wouldn’t admit either out loud.

──Even so, it’s not a bad feeling.

Savoring the comfort of being understood just a little, I opened the freezer to help with the cooking. The pork I pulled out was on its expiration date.