Lonely Me And The Lonely Caring Goddess - Chapter 215: Future Course.

Future Course.

Yuuji’s POV.

Pirorirorin.

A notification chime from RAIN echoed from the smartphone on the table. But it wasn’t just mine – everyone’s phones in the room rang at once, sounding almost like a choir of smartphones.

Naturally, everyone receiving a message simultaneously could only mean one thing: a group message in RAIN. In other words, it had to be from Kazunari.

Depending on what this message said, Hayato and I were ready to storm into the Satsukawa residence and beg for forgiveness on our knees. With that resolve, we exchanged a glance before checking our screens.

“Yattaaaaaa!!!!”

Toudou-san and Tachikawa-san shouted in joy at the same time. Their reaction told us everything, but I still checked to confirm Kazunari’s achievement.

“Phew… looks like it went well,” Nishikawa said, exhaling in relief.

“Honestly, he really kept us on edge,” Hanako-san added.

“Yeah, thank goodness. But if you’d told me six months ago that Sara was getting engaged, I would’ve called it nonsense in my sleep,” Natsumi-senpai said.

“If it were me, I’d have questioned your sanity and recommended a hospital visit,” Nishikawa replied.

That was harsh, but for these two who had seen Satsukawa-san up close, it was probably their honest feeling. To be fair, if I didn’t know how she treated Kazunari and only saw her usual demeanor, I might have said the same.

As Hayato and I shared a smile over the good news, we both raised our arms and clapped them together with a loud “Pan!”

Seeing that, Natsumi-senpai gave us a sly grin.

“Hehehe, youth at its finest. Brotherhood, huh.”

“!?”

Looking around, I realized everyone else was watching us too. Wait, did we do something weird?

Glancing at Hayato, he seemed just as clueless and shook his head.

“Well, well. Either way, it’s wonderful news,” Nishikawa said calmly. “Thanks to meeting Sara’s grandmother, I was spared the trouble of making that call myself. Honestly, it probably carried more weight coming from her.”

“True. Hearing it from her grandmother likely made it more convincing,” Hanako-san agreed.

“Toudou-san, that was a fine play,” Natsumi added.

“Oh no, I did consider that she might get angry at me for meddling…” Toudou said hesitantly.

“Don’t worry, even her grandmother thanked you. You really did great,” Hayato assured her.

“Marina, nice job!” Tachikawa cheered.

“R-Really? Ehehe…”

Just as Natsumi-san said, it truly was a fine play. Thanks to her, the kneeling apology I’d steeled myself for became unnecessary.

“Alright then, let’s celebrate their future together with a cake buffet!” Nishikawa proposed.

“ “No objections!!” “

Congratulations, my friend.

You’ve struggled so much until now. Please, be happy.

***

To inform everyone waiting for an update, I quickly sent a message to the RAIN group letting them know we’d received their approval.

In an instant, seven people had read it – everyone must have been anxiously waiting. I was truly grateful.

Looking to my side with that thought, I saw Sara-san smiling as she read the flood of congratulatory messages on her phone.

“Let’s thank everyone properly next time.”

“Yes. I wonder what we should say.”

“Hehe… I’ll leave that to you, Kazunari-san. I’m looking forward to how you’ll introduce me.”

She smiled mischievously as she said that, making me feel a bit embarrassed.

Introduce her… of course, as my fiancée, right?

Wait, did she just call me by my name…?

“Sara-san, did you just… call me by my name?”

“…Yes. If I start doing that regularly now, I’m afraid I’ll accidentally call you that in front of others. I think… that’s something I should save for… after we’re married…”

As she spoke the word “married,” her cheeks turned bright red and she shyly leaned against me.

“I will call you ‘dear,’ so… please call me Sara, okay?”

Looking up at me with those pleading eyes while saying something so adorable made my face burn too.

But I couldn’t just let her have the last word, so I decided to respond as a little payback for earlier, and to grant her wish.

“…Sara.”

“!?”

In an instant, she turned as red as a boiling kettle. But it wasn’t just her – saying it made my own heart pound so hard it felt unbearably embarrassing.

“C-Could you… say it once more… just once more, please…”

Seeing her look so happy, I couldn’t refuse.

“Sa…Sara.”

“Yes… dear.”

“…………”

After a moment of silence, we both hurriedly lowered our heads in embarrassment.

No, this is too much!! If I look up now, I might actually die from embarrassment… But I’m sure Sara-san feels the same way.

“I-I feel like I’m going to melt from happiness… M-Maybe… we should save this for after we’re married… marriage… I’m so happy…”

She gently rested her head against my arm. I felt truly blessed in that moment.

“…Um, can we continue the discussion now?” Mayumi-san’s slightly exasperated voice called us back to reality. “Also, Masaomi might actually die if you two keep flirting like this. Save it for when you’re alone, okay?”

Startled, I looked up to see Mayumi-san giving us an exasperated smile, Sachie-san watching us warmly, and Masaomi-san… staring blankly, as if his soul had left his body.

“Ahem… now, let’s continue,” Masaomi-san cleared his throat. “Although, what I’m about to say is still just a plan at this stage.”

I could tell he was trying to regain the serious atmosphere, but it was difficult with Sara-san radiating happiness next to me.

“Well, leave the complicated matters to us. We won’t do anything to trouble you two.”

“Indeed. Trust us.”

“Yes. I’ll make sure to watch over everything.”

With all three of them saying this, there was no reason to doubt them. More than anything, I knew they always put Sara-san first.

“Yes, thank you very much.”

I looked straight ahead as I answered, and Masaomi-san gave a big nod.

“Now then, first, have you decided on your future plans after high school?”

“No, to be honest, I haven’t really decided what I want to do yet…”

I had thought about it before, but never settled on anything specific. Now, I just wanted to be wherever Sara-san would be – if she went to university, I wanted to follow. And as for a job, I felt I wanted to aim for Masaomi-san’s company. Though that might sound like an impure motive, simply to stay close to her… but it was also true that I respected him as a person and aspired to be like him.

“This is just my wish, not an obligation, but… as you can imagine, choosing to be with Sara will narrow your options to some extent. I hope you can accept that.”

“I understand.”

“Thank you. In short, I want you to go to a top university after graduating high school. Realistically, from here, there’s only one choice… by the way, Mayumi and I are alumni.”

University… I had expected this, but hearing it still made me nervous. There really was only one option within commuting distance from here.

“I don’t want to say that academic background is everything, but unfortunately, it does matter in the corporate world. While you’re at university, I’d like you to start learning about my business little by little. That’s why I want you to set your goals clearly from now.”

Listening to him speak, I felt a sense of tension. It was as if the vague ideas I had were now being given clear destinations and waypoints.

“I’ll say it again: this is just my wish, not an order. I’m only telling you because you spoke so seriously about your future with Sara.”

“…Thank you. To be honest… I’ve been thinking about my future based on being with Sara-san. If she goes to university, I want to be with her, and after that, I want to be somewhere I can continue to stay by her side. That’s my true feeling.”

I knew it might disappoint them to hear my motives were so driven by her, but I didn’t want them to think I hadn’t thought seriously about it.

“But… I also have another goal. It’s embarrassing, so I can’t say in detail, but… there’s someone I respect deeply. I want to become like that person. So if aiming for Sanami can help me achieve both, then… that’s what I want to do.”

They probably knew who I meant, but… oh well.

“…I see,” Masaomi-san murmured, his expression unreadable. He probably understood and was choosing not to show his feelings.

“…I-I can’t hold back anymore, Kazunari-kun!!”

Suddenly, I was yanked to the left with tremendous force, buried in Mayumi-san’s embrace.

W-What’s happening!?

“Oh my, why are you saying such adorable things!? Masaomi-san might be able to hold it in, but I can’t!! To have such a wonderful boy become my son… I’m so happy!!”

As she hugged me tightly and patted my head, my mind went blank with panic.

“H-Hey!! What are you doing, Mother!! That’s my role!!”

Snapping out of her daze, Sara-san lunged forward, pulling me away from Mayumi-san with surprising strength, and pressed my head against her chest as if to shield me.

“Ahh… Sara-chan, that’s not fair…”

“Please stop saying such nonsense! Hugging Kazunari-san and patting his head – that’s my role!”

Declaring that, she gently stroked my hair. Ah… I felt all my strength drain away.

“Hehe… Kazunari-san, I’ll be on the same path, so let’s work hard together. We’ll always be together.”

“U-Um, Sara-san, I was in the middle of a conversation with Masaomi-san…”

“Oh, you’re right. Then, just a little longer…”

She said, hugging me tightly once more with a lingering sweetness.

“…My, my. Looks like Sara-chan is even bolder than Mayumi…” Sachie-san commented softly.

“…I don’t think I ever did that in front of my mother,” Mayumi-san muttered in slight shock.

Apparently, Sara-san’s maternal instincts had surpassed even Mayumi-san’s.