In a World of Reversed Chastity, I’m Surrounded by a Clingy Older Woman, a Walking Red Flag, and an Exhausted Office Lady - 18

Chapter 18: You’ll End Up Loving Me Completely, Won’t You?

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Let me get straight to the conclusion. I have completely, utterly, and hopelessly fallen in love with Aoi.

As I slipped under my covers, I looked back on everything that had happened up until today. Thinking that Aoi-kun had grown fed up with me, I decided right away to make omurice—the one dish I used to cook back when I lived at my parents’ house. But maybe because it had been so long, I couldn’t make it well at all.

Before I knew it, the egg that was supposed to wrap the ketchup rice had turned into scrambled eggs. It had been a mistake for an amateur like me to try adding my own twist and make those fluffy, runny eggs.

All right. This time, I’ll follow the recipe exactly.

That was what I thought as I tried again, but somehow the flavor turned out too heavy, and there was no way I could finish it all. I was already full that day, so while composing a song inspired by Shirasu-kun, I lived a healthy life—practicing omurice every day and properly doing my housework.

Wednesday, Thursday, Friday… The days passed, and by Friday, I had gotten good enough at making omurice that maybe, just maybe, Shirasu-kun would think it tasted good. All that was left was how to invite him.

Just that.

Suddenly saying, “Please eat something I made,” would make me sound like a weirdo. But I couldn’t think of a good excuse to invite him either. No matter how much I worried over it, no good idea came to mind. Even if I sat there brooding, time would just keep passing.

All right.

I made up my mind that on Saturday at lunchtime, I would simply say: 『I worked hard to make this, so please try it.』 I wanted him not to get fed up with me. I wanted our relationship to go back to the way it was before. And so, on the day itself, nervously, I pressed the intercom at Shirasu-kun’s place.

I waited for several seconds, heart pounding but there was no sign of him coming out, nor any presence from inside. Maybe he was out, I thought, so I tried again around dinnertime. But there was still absolutely no sign of him. I didn’t know why, but a bad feeling began to take over my mind.

What if he had gotten so fed up with me that he didn’t even want to live next door anymore… and had moved away?

Looking back now, I know that wasn’t realistic at all. But at that time, I was convinced Aoi-kun had grown tired of me and cast me aside. That was why I got trapped in such terrible delusions. With unsteady steps, I returned to my room. I didn’t want to imagine anything worse. I didn’t want to think at all. I threw myself onto my bed. But even after that, I couldn’t fall asleep. I couldn’t stop imagining Shirasu-kun leaving me. I was so anxious that my body trembled slightly. Still, I reread the note he had once left for me, remembered that time, and somehow managed to fall asleep.

The next day at noon.

With trembling hands, I made omurice again and went to Shirasu-kun’s place once more.

………………But again, there was absolutely no sign of anyone inside. My anxiety accelerated even further, and the delusion that I had truly been abandoned spread through my mind.

It’s okay. Shirasu-kun is probably just out somewhere. Maybe he’s on a trip and just won’t be home for a few days. Yes. It’ll be fine.

Somehow maintaining my sanity, I returned home and sat down, staring at the omurice in front of me. If he ate this, surely he would smile that smile and look at me happily.

As I imagined that, my doorbell rang.

Shirasu-kun!?

Thinking that, I rushed to open the door. Standing there was the man I had once believed to be my ex-boyfriend.

“Yo. Long time no see.”

Had he always been this ugly? This filthy? I found him so disgusting I could hardly stand it. If this man had come to my house, it was obviously about money. Even when I mistakenly thought we were dating, whenever he came over like this, it was always to get money from me.

“…What do you want?”

“Huh? What’s with that attitude? …Whatever, just let me in for now.”

Without waiting for my reply, he walked inside and sat down on his own.

“Hey. I want you to hear me out on something.”

As he said that, he gave me a sickeningly ingratiating look. A shudder rose from my stomach—an indescribable disgust—and I almost felt like throwing up.

…So I had been happy, thinking I was dating a man this revolting.

“…It’s about money, right? No. I don’t have a single cent to give you. Leave. Now.”

I must have made the most disgusted face of my life as I threw those words at him. At first, he froze, as if he couldn’t understand what I had just said. Then, as it sank in, anger spread across his face.

“Don’t get ahead of yourself. Are you misunderstanding something? I’m the man, you’re the woman. That means you don’t get a choice. Be grateful you even get to support me.”

He said something so revolting as if it were perfectly natural. A piece of trash born from a world where men were scarce and women spoiled them rotten. Until I met Shirasu-kun, I had thought that was normal. I thought just having a boyfriend was something to be grateful for.

But it wasn’t. That wasn’t it at all.

Once you know there’s someone who sees you as you, laughs with you, worries about you, and smiles at you… You can’t go back.

I couldn’t see the man in front of me as a man, as someone of the opposite sex, anymore.

“No. Absolutely not. I won’t give you a single yen. If I have money, I’ll give it all to Shirasu-kun. So there’s nothing left for you. Don’t ever come here again. You’re disgusting.”

I said it. I said everything. My feelings. My feelings for Shirasu-kun. The fact that I had no lingering attachment to him anymore—I told him all of it. After hearing me out, my ex’s face turned even redder. Irritated, he suddenly grabbed the omurice sitting on the table and threw it into the trash.

“Who would ever like a woman who reeks of STDs like you? A guy who’s kind and worries about you? There’s no way someone like that exists. Stop with the delusions. Who would ever be nice to someone like you who has no money? And this cooking looks disgusting as hell, too.”

Having said what he wanted to say, he stomped out of the apartment like a child throwing a tantrum. For a few minutes after he left, a rush of exhilaration filled my chest. But as that feeling cooled, his words gradually began to take over my mind.

『Who would ever like a woman who reeks of STDs like you?』

Shirasu-kun would never say that about me. He wouldn’t think that.

…Right?

『A guy who’s kind and worries about you? There’s no way someone like that exists. Stop with the delusions.』

Shirasu-kun exists.

That smile wasn’t a lie. It wasn’t some delusion I made up. It wasn’t.

“…Right?”

『Who would ever be nice to someone like you who has no money?』

Shirasu-kun was kind to me. Even if I didn’t have money, he would still be kind.

…Probably.

『And this cooking looks disgusting as hell, too.』

Shirasu-kun wouldn’t say that.

…Right?

My anxiety kept growing. I became scared. I ran out of my room and rang the intercom next door at Shirasu-kun’s place.

I was scared. I wanted to see his face as soon as possible. I wanted him to tell me that that man’s words were lies. I wanted him to smile at me with that sun-like smile and reassure me. But once again, there was no answer. I slowly slid down against the door and collapsed there.

“Shirasu-kun… where did you go?”

My voice echoed softly. I didn’t move from that spot. Other residents came and went from their rooms, avoiding me. How much time had passed? At some point, it had grown dark outside. It was almost late enough to cross into the next day.

…………Maybe Shirasu-kun—someone so convenient for me—had never existed in the first place. Just as I began to seriously think that…

“Um…? Are you okay?”

My prince always came to save me.

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