I’m an Introvert, but After Taking Care of the School’s Most Beautiful Girl Who Lives in an Apartment When She Was Sick, She Became Attached to Me and Started Inviting Me Over to Her Place! - Chapter 11

Chapter 11

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“That reminds me, Natsuki-san, how has your health been since then?”

“Hmm? I’ve recovered quite a lot. I’m still coughing, and I have a slight fever, but I think I can go to school tomorrow!”

I was allowed into her house, and she led me straight to the living room. I placed the get-well gifts on top of the dining table. After being offered a seat on a wooden dining chair and taking a breather, I left a small pause before asking her about her condition. For a moment, Natsuki-san widened her eyes. She froze with a blank, puzzled expression on her face. Then, still holding that expression, she let her gaze drift briefly toward my face. Almost immediately, she put on her usual smile and deliberately moved her body in an exaggerated way, appealing how energetic she was.

Maybe it was just my imagination though…

“…I see. That’s good to hear. Everyone’s waiting for you.”

“Hoho~?”

Wondering if the sense of discomfort I felt was just my misunderstanding, I gave her a simple response. At that, Natsuki-san, who had been putting the gifts away into the refrigerator, stopped her hands and turned around with a sly grin. The corners of her mouth lifted smugly.  As I stood there confused about what was going on, she slowly crept closer. Eventually, she sat down in the chair across from me. Without changing her expression, she tossed out a question.

“So… Does that mean you want to see me at school too~?”

“Huh? Why?”

Natsuki’s sudden question didn’t align at all with my words or intentions just now, leaving me able to come up with only a simple question in response. Natsuki, wearing the same smile as a kitten that had found its prey, continued on.

“Because~ Normally, you could’ve just ended with ‘That’s good to hear,’ right? But you went out of your way to tell me ‘everyone’s waiting.’ It’s almost like you’re using ‘everyone’s waiting’ as a shield to tell me how you feel, like, ‘I want to see you at school soon!’—that’s what I thought you were getting at, Suzuya-kun.”

“No, you’re reading way too much into it. I was just stating the facts.”

In truth, there was absolutely no such meaning in my words. I had only meant to convey the current situation of their class as a fact. Even so, I was taken aback by her strangely sharp insight. 

I suppose this kind of thing is the place where her intelligence naturally came through…

I thought to myself.

“Well, that’s boring.”

“Sorry for being such a boring guy.”

“Fufu, I’m kidding. Thanks for worrying about me!”

Hearing my flat reply, she puffed out her cheeks like she was sulking. Seeing that, I let out a small smile and responded with a slightly more confident, mock-sulky tone. In turn, she laughed softly as well, thanking me with a bashful look while gently stroking her long silver hair that draped over her shoulders.

“Hm?”

“…………!”

…Huh? What was that?

Their conversation reached a pause, and I let out a quiet sigh. Wrapped in silence, the atmosphere was strangely not awkward. In just these two short days, I had gotten to the point where I could be quite natural around her. Maybe because of that, I felt like their eyes were meeting far more often than before. Because of my introverted nature, I instinctively looked away. But once I started getting conscious of her gaze, there was no end to it. Gathering my courage, I tried to meet her gaze—only for her to look startled and quickly avert her eyes instead.

“…It’s hot today. Winter ended in the blink of an eye, huh?~”

As if to break the silence, Natsuki-san muttered softly. But her voice sounded somewhat hoarse, and after her words, there was a short sound of her drawing in a breath.

Huh?

The room’s heater was on, sure, but her cheeks seemed a little too red. Her slender fingers were gripping the edge of her sleeve tightly. Her hand looked somehow frail, and I could clearly see it trembling slightly.

“Hey, Natsuki-san. What’s your temperature right now?”

“Feh? …I haven’t measured it, so I don’t know…?”

At last, something clicked into place for me, and I calmly began organizing my conclusions. I asked her a question. It was the final question before I could know for sure if I was right or not. For just a moment, her pasted-on smile stiffened. I started by asking her temperature, but as expected, she dodged the question. Up to this point, everything was well within my expectations. Even if I were to tell her to measure it, she probably wouldn’t listen.

So I switched to the simplest method of checking.

“Excuse me for a second.”

“Eh?! W-wait! Suzuya-kun?!”

I gently brushed aside her silky, beautiful silver bangs as softly as I could. A floral scent wafted into my nose, and as her forehead was revealed from behind her bangs, I lightly placed my hand against it. Her warmth seeped into my palm, spreading with a faint, pulsing sensation. At the same time, I touched my own forehead with my other hand, comparing the difference between her temperature and mine.

“I’ve always admired this and tried it since I was a kid, but I could never really tell if someone had a fever… Still, Natsuki-san, you pushed yourself again, didn’t you?”

“! Uu…”

This method—comparing foreheads to check for a fever, like you often see in anime—was something I had tried a few times in my life, but I could never really tell before. And precisely because of that, I could tell now that she had been pushing herself.

The temperature difference Ie had never been able to discern before was now crystal clear. Hers was higher. There had been several things that felt off.

“Fufu, I’m kidding. Thanks for worrying about me!”

“…It’s hot today. Winter ended in the blink of an eye, huh?~”

She had seemed to be exaggerating her movements more than usual, clearly trying to appear energetic. Her voice was high, her gestures big, almost as if she wanted to blatantly make me think she was better now. Her eyes, instead of focusing on me, looked distant and unfocused. While saying it was hot, her fingers lightly pinched her sleeve, trembling faintly. Each time a conversation ended, her throat moved as she swallowed, her shoulders rising and falling as she took deep breaths.

“You seem to have quite a fever. …Honestly. For now, hurry up and get back into bed.”

“—Okaaay. I’m sorry.”

I had no intention of lecturing her, but Natsuki-san, looking dejected as she lowered her head, quietly stood up from the chair and trudged toward her room. Watching her sorrowful back, I stood up as well, picking up the bag I had placed on the table.

“Then, Natsuki-san. Seriously, make sure you rest.”

“Yeah… Wait, are you going home already, Suzuya-kun?”

“Well, yeah. I’d feel bad if your cold dragged on because of me.”

Seeing I was clearly about to leave, Natsuki tried to stop me. If I made her push herself any more, her fever might linger again, and she might end up missing school. I didn’t mind catching her cold myself, but her health came first. From her vacant eyes, it was clear she still had a fever.

“Then really, take care of yourself and get some good rest—hm?”

Making hurried footsteps as I prepared to leave, I gave her one last word of concern, then crouched down in the entryway and began straightening my shoes. In the middle of that, I felt a weak but firm tug at the back of my clothes.

“Hey…?”

“Hm? What is it, Natsuki-san?”

When he turned around, Natsuki-san—who should have been seeing me off from down the hallway—was right behind me. She was reaching out toward my back.

“Ah…!? N-no, it’s nothing! It’s nothing at all! …I’m really sorry.”

I calmly tilted my head in question. Behind me, Natsuki panicked, pulling her hand away and apologizing. Her expression, hidden by her long silver hair, looked somehow fleeting, as if her inner feelings were plainly reflected there.

“…Haha, is there maybe something you want to say?”

“Geez. That’s mean… Why make me say it…”

Having realized something, I looked at Natsuki-san with an upward glance, wearing an expression like I had solved the mystery, almost triumphantly so. She blushed deeply and looked away. Still not knowing exactly what she wanted to say, I quietly waited for her to speak on her own.

Eventually, as the heat in her cheeks began to cool, she took a deep breath, her shoulders rising and falling, and slowly brought her gaze back to me. I said nothing more, waiting for her words. After a few seconds of silence, Natsuki-san, her expression set with resolve, muttered softly, her cheeks still faintly tinged with an apple-red blush.

“Um… I’m still feeling lonely, so… Would you stay with me…?”

“Could it be that you called me over today for this?”

“…Yeah. There are lots of things I want to talk about too, so if you’re okay with it, could you come back in one more time…?”

“Alright then. I guess I’ll stay, just this once, in consideration of that puppy-like expression of yours.”

“Wha—!? Who are you calling a puppy?!”

Just as I had expected, she had something she wanted to say and it was a simple wish. She only wanted me to stay here a little longer. Assuming that she was inviting me with full awareness of her own condition, I readily agreed. It was as if all her anxiety drained away at once upon hearing my answer. Her expression softened and she tugged firmly at the hem of my clothes once more, as if to say “Hurry and come in.”

Smiling, I simply let her do as she pleased. For some reason, this exchange felt incredibly comforting.

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