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 19

Chapter 19

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“……… ”

“……… ”

…This is awkward. Painfully awkward.

The room fell into complete silence. Suzuya, sitting back-to-back with Natsuki, averted his gaze and stared up at the white vinyl-covered ceiling. What had just happened was an unexpected accident. Who could have predicted that her clothes would be undone that much?

Precisely because her pajamas were made of thin fabric, and because she trusted him in that regard, he had never once let such thoughts even cross his mind. And yet, caught off guard by the sudden incident, he hadn’t been able to look away in time, and the image of her perfectly emphasized figure burned itself into his vision.

If this were Kohaku, he’d probably be able to change the mood right about now… But unfortunately, I don’t have the social skills required to pull it off…

Without turning his body toward her, he glared at the inorganic door and silently cursed his own lack of social specs. Kohaku would probably plow ahead without worrying about a slip of the tongue to lighten the mood, and Tenma would surely say something more tactful. But Suzuya, lacking that kind of communication skill, could do nothing but wait for the heat in Natsuki’s cheeks to subside.

That was when it happened.

Bzz! Bzz! Bzz! Bzz!

Suzuya’s pocket began to vibrate with a low sound. He quickly untangled his legs, pulled his smartphone from his pants, and turned on the screen. A very familiar name was displayed prominently.

“Hm? Kohaku…? —Hello?”

‘—Hey! Wh—where—’

“Huh? …The wind noise is loud… What did you say?”

Lowering the phone’s volume slightly, he listened as an irritating roaring sound—like wind blasting directly into the microphone—filled his ears. Even so, during brief moments when it quieted down, he could faintly hear Kohaku’s voice. Unfortunately, the sound kept cutting out, making it hard to tell exactly what he was saying.

‘S-so… Where th—are you right now?’

“Oh, where am I? Hmm… I’m at home.”

He answered Kohaku’s question, now that he could finally hear it clearly. He wasn’t lying. He just hadn’t said whose home. And whose home it was… He could never say that, even if his mouth split open.

Yesterday, he’d come here unwillingly because he was on duty, so he could explain everything honestly. But today, he’d been personally invited by her. This wasn’t something he could casually admit even if the other person was Kohaku, a friend he trusted deeply. Hearing Suzuya’s voice over the phone, Natsuki—who had been turned away—shifted her gaze back toward him.

“So? Did you just call to see what I was up to?”

‘No, no, not that. I’ve got a favor to ask you.’

Given the current situation, he wanted to end the call as soon as possible. Suzuya quickly tried to steer the conversation toward its purpose. As long as he didn’t slip up, there was no way he’d get found out—but if, by some chance, Natsuki-san were to sneeze right now…

“Heh…! A-choo!”

“…Huh.”

She actually did it. The exact thing I was most worried about… No, wait. We’re not that close together. Even if the distance isn’t far, we’re not right next to each other. That means there’s still a chance the noise-canceling kicked in and didn’t pick it up…

‘Huh?! Wasn’t that a girl’s voice just now?! Don’t tell me,you’ve got a girlfriend there or something?!’

Of course you would jump to that conclusion, damn it.

Suzuya’s thread-thin hope was mercilessly cut and scattered. Not only had it been exposed that he was with a girl, but the situation had become even more dangerous. He instinctively widened his eyes and looked at the cause of it all only to see her grinning, the corners of her mouth lifted smugly. If she got found out, she’d be in trouble too, so why did it feel like he was the only one being pushed into a corner?

Then, slowly and without making a sound, she conveyed words using only the shape of her lips.

“(Payback.)”

She did it on purpose. She definitely did this on purpose. She’s enjoying my reaction. She’s not even trying to hide it.

If Suzuya’s interpretation was correct, that was exactly what she had said. Her teasing gaze and fearless grin. Who could have imagined she’d pull off something this bold, knowing his friend was on the phone? She stuck out her tongue cutely and rested a hand against her head. Since the call was still ongoing, he couldn’t call her out on it and if she made another sound now, it would truly be game over. With no way out, he could only shoot her a desperate glare.

‘Heeey, Sorato?? Sooo, what’s going on here??’

With no time to think, his friend pressed him for an answer. Suzuya averted his eyes from Natsuki-san, paused just long enough to sound natural, and delivered the conclusion he’d arrived at—

“…It’s my little sister. She’s got a cold, so I’m taking care of her.”

‘Oh, what? Is that so? Sorry, man, for calling over such a dumb thing.’

“Huh? That’s fine, but what was it you wanted to ask me about?”

Somehow, it seemed he’d managed to get through the crisis naturally.

‘I’m on cleaning duty tomorrow, but I’m gonna hang out with friends after school… Could you switch with me and handle the cleaning for me?’

“So that’s it… Yeah, sure.”

‘Oh! Seriously?! I’ll treat you to a juice next time!’

“I’ll look forward to it.”

‘For sure! …Man, I wonder if Natsuki-san will come tomorrow.’

“…I think she probably will…?”

‘How do you know she’s coming tomorrow?’

“…Just a hunch.”

Of course, that was a lie. The real reason was because he was looking right now at the girl energetically rolling around on the bed in front of him.

Having successfully pulled off her prank, Natsuki rested her cheek on her hand at the edge of the bed, narrowing her eyes in satisfaction as she watched the flustered Suzuya. One look at her expression made it obvious. Her condition had already improved significantly.

‘Haha, what kind of answer is that? …Well, whatever. Thanks, and take care of your little sister.’

“Yeah. Don’t catch a cold yourself. See you.”

Beep.

Even though he felt a twinge of guilt about lying to his friend, Suzuya was deeply relieved that he’d managed to hide the situation. Hanging up a bit abruptly, he took a long, deep breath and slumped down onto the floor.

“Hehe, that was close, wasn’t it?”

“Don’t say ‘wasn’t it?’…! My heart almost stopped. What were you planning to do if you’d gotten found out…?”

“Mmm~ I just figured you’d handle it somehow, Suzuya-kun? I couldn’t help pulling a little prank♪”

“I can’t tell anymore whether you’re thinking things through or just being too carefree about this…”

At first glance, she might seem like a mischievous, childish girl who doesn’t think much at all. But the “Kaon Natsuki” at school was gentle, intelligent and cheerful. She was both talented and beautiful. She was someone who suited every word used to praise people, completely different from how she was now. Calling it a “gap moe” made it sound nice, but this side of her was something no one could have imagined from her school persona.

“It’s a hundred years too early for you to try to understand me is a hundred years too early~”

“Knowing there’s a big gap between school Natsuki-san and private Natsuki-san is more than enough for me.”

“So that means I’ve got a disguise for getting through society too, right?”

“The disguise is so extreme I might catch a cold from shock.”

“If you’re going to say that, then I’m happy that you talk so much more in private than at school.  Suzuya-kun—if anything, you should just act like this at school too.”

“I get told that a lot, but unlike you, Natsuki-san, I can’t really swap personalities between school and private life. I don’t think I’m changing that much.”

“You come off pretty different, you know? At first, I thought you were scary. Like you’d stab someone if you got angry.”

“That’s just pure prejudice. What part of me gives off that impression…?”

“Your bangs?”

“I’m planning to cut them soon anyway, so maybe that’ll be the turning point where I get reborn as a new me…”

“Hehe, don’t worry~ I don’t think that way anymore.”

As their conversation bounced along at a good pace, Natsuki occasionally hurled an outrageous “dead ball” of a remark his way. It seemed she’d formed all kinds of assumptions about him without his knowledge, and the final verdict being “looks like he’d stab you if he got mad” was enough to bring tears to even Suzuya’s heart.

She added a few words of encouragement at the end, but the impact of what came before was far too strong to let them sink in.

“…Oh, it’s already this late. It’s six-thirty. I should head home.”

As he checked the time on his phone, reflecting on her words, he saw that about thirty minutes had passed since earlier, and his departure time was finally approaching. With the end of this warm, comforting place drawing near, a quiet sense of loneliness settled in his chest.

“…I see. You came both days, so it started to feel normal having you here.”

“Those two days end today. Starting tomorrow, make sure you come to school properly, okay? I’ll be waiting.”

“…! Got it! I’ll do my best, okay?”

As Suzuya began organizing his bag at the parting moment, Natsuki showed a hint of reluctance. Having finally learned to pick up on those subtle cues over the course of the day, Suzuya could clearly predict what she wanted and chose his words accordingly. Naturally, without even realizing it, they had come to understand each other.

The time they spent together was short, but it was dense and deep. That relationship, where they could understand each other without saying much, was comfortable for Natsuki. And for Suzuya, who wasn’t particularly good at communication, it was one of the few places where he could truly be himself.

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