I Was Reincarnated as a Mob, and After I Kept Listening to the Losing Childhood-Friend Heroine’s Complaints, I Somehow Maxed Out Her Affection Rating - 21

Chapter 21: The Afterglow of the Romance Movie and the Exposed Mountain of Cup Noodles

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Yuuta’s POV

“Phew… It’s over.”

When the movie’s end credits finished rolling, silence returned to the room. Next to me, Kaede sat with her arms crossed, still staring at the screen.

“…I want to try a romance like that sometime.”

“…Yeah, me too.”

I realized only after it came out of my mouth. Oh crap. I completely spoke under the influence of the afterglow. Kaede immediately looked my way and grinned.

“Oh, look at that—we agree. Hey Yuuta-kun, are you secretly a romantic?”

“N-no… I mean, that’s normal, right? Just, you know, the movie’s momentum or something.”

“Hmm. Then say it again, using the ‘movie momentum’?”

“…No.”

“Boooring!”

Kaede poked my side with her elbow. Seriously, this person was dangerous when I let my guard down. She laughed, but the line between “serious” and “joking” was always a little blurred with her.

No, I’m overthinking it.

I put down the remote, as if to hide the lingering emotion. But… A story where the childhood friend got rejected and grew attracted to another guy… It was just like Kaede now… I almost matched the story to our current situation and shook my head hard.

Stop it, me. Don’t read too much into it. It was just a movie. Just fiction.

“What’s wrong? Why are you shaking your head on your own?”

“No, it’s nothing.”

“Okay, if you say so.”

As she said that, Kaede stood up and looked around the room. I didn’t miss how her eyes switched into detective mode.

“H-hey, wait. Why are you looking around like that?”

“Huh? I’m curious. Ah. Hey! Can I look at your kitchen?”

“No, you can’t—!”

Too late. Kaede had already marched into the kitchen.

“…Hey, Yuuta-kun.”

A quiet voice echoed. Ah, this was bad. That tone meant she had found something.

“What do you usually eat?”

“Uh, well… You know, whatever…Randomly.”

“Hmmm. …And this?”

Kaede pointed. At my lifeline—my box of cup noodles. It was the stockpile I had shoved into a corner during cleanup.

“Ah, that’s, uh, emergency food, or…”

Kaede sighed and peeked into the box. Her back radiated half exasperation, half concern. All I could do was stand there.

“…You should rethink your eating habits.”

“I know, but it’s easy, okay? Boil water for three minutes and salvation appears.”

“Still, eating too many cup noodles isn’t good.”

Next, the refrigerator door opened slowly.

Creak…

That sound felt like the sound of rope tightening on an execution platform.

“Whoa…”

Kaede was speechless. Reflected in her eyes was my proud drink selection— five cans of energy drinks, two bottles of green tea, and one bottle of water. That was it.

“…Hey, Yuuta-kun. It’s kind of impressive you’ve stayed healthy until now.”

“…I agree. I think my luck is really good…”

When I gave a weak smile, Kaede sighed and entered her resolution mode.

“…Okay, I’ve decided.”

“Huh? Decided what?”

“I’m making dinner tonight!”

“What? No way, I don’t have ingredients!”

“That’s why I’m going to buy them!”

Before I could stop her, Kaede grabbed her bag, put on her shoes, and disappeared through the door. Was she a typhoon?

“…She really left.”

I stood there, dumbfounded for a while, then collapsed onto the sofa and stared at the ceiling with a deep sigh. Twenty minutes later—

“I’m hoooome!”

With a lively voice, the front door opened again. Kaede stood there, both arms loaded with grocery bags. She looked like a hero returning from battle.

“…Isn’t that too much?”

“Nutrition is all about balance! Any objections?”

“No, absolutely none…”

“Good!”

Kaede rolled up her sleeves and headed straight for the kitchen. Before I knew it, she had an apron on and was lining up vegetables like a seasoned mother.

“…Wait, where did you get that apron?”

“I bought it.”

“O-oh, right.”

The chopping of her knife echoed. Her practiced movements honestly impressed me.

“Hey, Hiiragi-san, you really don’t have to go this far. Making a guest do chores feels wrong.”

“No. It’d be a problem if you collapsed.”

“Huh?”

“If the person who listens to my complaints collapses from malnutrition, that defeats the purpose. So your health management is part of my job.”

Kaede adjusted the stove flame while smiling. Her profile somehow looked serious, yet a little happy. I couldn’t say anything, so I just sat on the sofa pretending to fiddle with my phone.But my fingers barely moved. Beyond the screen, the sound of Kaede bustling around in an apron filled the room comfortably.

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Shouma’s POV

『…The phone is either turned off or out of range—』

The mechanical female voice repeated the same line for the fifth time.

…Seriously, where did Kaede go?

“…Haah.”

I took the phone away from my ear and sighed. At this hour, Kaede should have been home already. There was no way she’d let her phone die and ignore it. She was weirdly diligent about things like that.

“…Well, might as well check.”

I put down the controller and stood up. On the game screen, the character I had been controlling was frozen in a half-crouch. Just like me right now, stuck in a half-finished state.

I was standing in front of Kaede’s house.The night breeze had grown a little chilly. The streetlight dimly lit the flowerbed by the door.

Ding-dong.

A few seconds later, the door opened.

“Oh, Shouma-kun, you’re here again?”

“S-sorry. Is Kaede home?”

“She hasn’t come back yet. I thought she’d be here soon, though.”

“Wait, she’s still not home…?”

I couldn’t help asking again. It was already past eight. Kaede being out this late was unusual.

“Thank you.”

I bowed and left the house. Yeah. It had to be that movie. The one she mentioned.

“A friend’s house… Who?”

On my way back, the night air hit my cheeks. I shoved my phone into my pocket and muttered. A friend. Which friend? If it were Mio, she’d be bragging on LINE. But Mio called me earlier, so it wasn’t her. Then the remaining possibility was—

“…No, no, no.”

I shook my head on instinct, rejecting the name that popped up.

“No way… It couldn’t be Fujiwara’s place…”

…Right?

No. No, definitely not. Because those two weren’t like that—

“…Why am I even getting worked up?”

I ended up talking back to myself. I was just worried. Yeah. Just worried. Of course, as a friend.

 …Probably.

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