Lonely Me And The Lonely Caring Goddess - Chapter 251: Is Satsukawa-Senpai A Man-Hater?

Is Satsukawa-Senpai A Man-Hater?

The part I thought would be the hardest—no, the part that was the hardest—was letting my classmates know, and somehow, I managed to clear up the misunderstandings about Hanako-san as well.

It all happened so suddenly that I was completely flustered at first, but looking back now… I suppose it’s fair to say things turned out all right in the end.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from all this, it’s that I still underestimated just how popular Sara-san really is. I’d expected a bit of a fuss once our relationship became public, but I didn’t think it would explode to this extent.

And as for the guys who refused to believe it even after seeing the truth with their own eyes—honestly, that was something I hadn’t accounted for at all.

Judging from their reactions, if Sara-san hadn’t been there in person, they never would’ve believed it. Not in a million years.

So, I’ve come to realize there’s really only one way to make reality hit home and reduce the number of guys who keep hitting on her—by showing them the undeniable truth.

That’s why the whole idea of doing that at the Miss Contest suddenly feels even more meaningful now.

It’s not that I don’t have doubts about whether it’s really okay to go through with it… but this whole incident gave me the perfect push to make up my mind once and for all.

I’m going to do it. 

For Sara-san—no, for us.

***

The classroom was quieter than usual now that the boys who’d been making a racket earlier had all gone home.
The ones left behind just stood there, dumbfounded—no, I should say the ones remaining were… the adults.

Right. I’d completely forgotten this was happening during Parent Observation Day.

The mothers who stayed behind were staring at us in a daze, clearly unsure what to make of everything that had just happened. As for Kayo-san, she looked completely frozen in place, eyes wide open.

Well, considering her own daughter had been at the center of the commotion, I can’t really blame her.

“…Now that the fools who didn’t know their place have left—”

Hanako-san herself, the very daughter in question, didn’t seem bothered in the slightest by the uproar from earlier. She was her usual self, calm and unconcerned with whatever was happening around her.

“Kazunari, I’d like to greet your mother. I’m sure my own mother would like to say hello as well.”

“Ah, sure.”

“I shall accompany you, of course.”

Sara-san’s offer was honestly a huge relief. When it comes to dealing with my mom, having someone as trusted and reliable as Sara around makes all the difference in the world.

And on top of that, her presence alone helps prevent any potential misunderstandings—after what happened with my classmates, I can’t exactly rule out the chance my mom might jump to the wrong conclusions too.

“Well, well… that was quite the show. I can see why Sara-chan’s so popular, but wow, that was beyond anything I imagined. You sure you won’t end up resented for hogging her all to yourself?”

…And there she goes, my mom, saying the most unhelpful thing possible.
And the worst part is, she might actually be right, so it doesn’t even qualify as a proper joke.

“Don’t jinx me.”

“If anything happens to Kazunari-san, I won’t show mercy.”

I could tell—Sara wasn’t joking. Not even a little. She’s not the kind of person who says things like that lightly, so I knew immediately that was a genuine warning.

“Oh my, Sara-chan~ You really do love Kazunari, don’t you?”

“Of course. I love Kazunari-san very much.”

(Wow… she has no problem saying that in front of everyone, huh…)

“H-hold on, just—! You can’t just say that here!”

“…Satsukawa-senpai’s personality has done a complete 180…”

“Seriously, is this okay? Like, actually okay?”

“…The Satsukawa cult is going to lose members over this…”

“Th-this isn’t a dream, right…?”

“Sorry to keep you waiting.”

Just then, Hanako-san returned, leading Kayo-san by the hand. Looking noticeably tense, Hanako-san faced my mom directly and bowed politely.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Kazunari-kun’s mother. My name is Hanasaki Riko. Um… thank you so much for always looking after him.”

We’d both been through some rough moments together—comrades-in-arms, so to speak—but I’d never seen her this nervous before.

Given how calm and cool she usually is, it was a rare sight indeed. Well, considering the delicate nature of our situation, I guess that’s only natural.

“Uh… well…”

My mom looked caught off guard, clearly unsure how to respond—especially with Sara standing right beside her. Before I could step in to smooth things over, Sara moved first.

“Mother-in-law, please rest assured. I’m fully aware of everything.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. There are some circumstances, but nothing you need to worry about, Mother.”

“I see. In that case, it’s fine.”

Yep. Bringing Sara along was definitely the right call.
It’s thanks to her credibility that Mom accepted things so quickly and without question.

“I’m sorry for the trouble. My son’s the one who’s been indebted to you. You can call him Kazunari like usual. Still, between Sara-chan and this adorable girl here… honestly, for such a useless son, you’re getting a bit full of yourself, aren’t you?”

“Why does it always come to that!?”

The moment she relaxed, she was back to roasting me. Does she even know how to have a conversation without making me the punchline?

“Kazunari has helped me. Over and over again. So I want to do what I can for him. I want to keep being close friends with him. I won’t cause trouble for his fiancée… for Satsukawa-san. Please… let me.”

Her tone was composed, but I could feel the desperation in her words—the heartfelt desire to be accepted.

Personally, I don’t care whether Mom approves or not. I’ve already decided to stay by Hanako-san’s side as her friend and help her however I can. But for Hanako-san, being recognized mattered deeply.

“…I see. I don’t know what happened, but Kazunari really helped you, didn’t he?”

“Kazunari accepted me. He acknowledged me. That’s why… I…”

I couldn’t tell what my mom was thinking as she looked at Hanako-san, but her eyes were warm, her voice gentle—the same kindness she showed when speaking to Sara.

“I understand. If Kazunari was able to help you, then I’m happy too.”

Mom didn’t know the full story. She couldn’t. But she must’ve sensed there was something deeper going on—and decided to simply accept it as it was.

Then again, knowing Mom, she might’ve just been going with the flow as usual.

“If Sara-chan acknowledges you, that’s good enough for me. Please keep taking care of my idiot son, okay?”

“Thank you very much. I look forward to it. And… Kazunari isn’t an idiot.”

With Mom’s official approval, Hanako-san slowly lifted her head, a radiant smile spreading across her face—so bright it made me want to tell her “Good for you” on the spot.

“I’m sorry for the late introduction. I’m Riko’s mother, Kayo. Thank you for taking such good care of my daughter, Kazunari-san.”

Now it was the parents’ turn to exchange greetings. Of course, Kayo-san couldn’t exactly explain the sibling situation in front of Hanako-san, so their conversation stayed pleasantly vague. Thankfully, Mom seemed to pick up on that and played along perfectly.

“Finally… I got to talk to Kazunari’s mother.”

“I’m glad for you, Hanako-san.”

“Yeah. Now I can finally have an older sister with peace of mind. Kazunari, I’m counting on you.”

“Y-yeah, sure.”

Hanako-san looked delighted, but for a moment I wasn’t sure if it was safe to just nod like that in front of Sara.
When she smiled and said, “That’s wonderful,” I figured I was probably in the clear.

“Um, Satsukawa-senpai.”

It seemed our conversation had settled down, because now a few classmates timidly approached us.

They looked nervous—understandably so, given that Sara was standing right there. Still, curiosity must’ve outweighed fear.

“Y-yes? What is it?”

“P-please don’t get mad, but… is it true? You’re really… engaged to Takanashi-kun?”

The same boys who’d been shot down by her earlier were now stumbling over polite speech they clearly weren’t used to.

“Yes. But… why is it so hard to believe?”

Sara tilted her head, looking genuinely puzzled.

Of course, that just showed how out of reach she seemed to everyone else. But to her, this was simply the truth—one she stated with calm certainty, even as a faint edge of irritation began to creep into her expression.

“No, it’s just… Satsukawa-senpai has rejected pretty much every popular guy in this school, so there’s this rumor going around that she hates men…”

“My senpai said the same thing. He tried talking to her once, but she didn’t even give him the time of day. He keeps saying it doesn’t count as being rejected since she never actually said no, so he’s planning to try again.”

“Yeah, my senpai said that too.”

Sara-san never really talks to me about things like this, so I didn’t know what the situation was actually like.

But from what I just heard… it sounded like her way of turning people down didn’t always make them give up. In fact, most of them probably refused to take the hint.

“I suppose that’s true. Honestly, I wouldn’t deny it if people say I dislike men. No matter how many times they approach me, it’s just a waste of everyone’s time.”

“So it is true then… Th-then, does that mean Takanashi-kun is really that special?”

“Special? Hmm… rather than that, it’s more accurate to say that I have no interest in any man other than Kazunari-san. Since they’re only getting in the way, I’ll make sure to reject them more firmly from now on.”

“She—she said ‘getting in the way’…”

“Wow… so it’s really true, huh?”

“Unbelievable… that Satsukawa-senpai would go this far…”

“I mean… I believe it, but I still can’t believe it.”

“…Sara-san, if anyone still refuses to believe it, just tell them to come talk to me.”

Judging from what I’d seen earlier, and the guys I’d heard about now, there were probably plenty who wouldn’t accept it no matter what she said.

And honestly, anyone bold enough to confess to Sara-san without even knowing her properly was probably just an overconfident idiot with delusions of grandeur. If someone like that showed up after hearing my name… well, I’d deal with it myself.

“Hehe… understood. From now on, I’ll make it clear that I’m engaged to Kazunari-san, and that their attention is simply a nuisance. So please—don’t make such a worried face.”

Sara reached out her hands, gently cupping my cheeks. A soft smile played on her lips.
I hadn’t realized it myself, but apparently I’d been making quite the expression.

It’s not like I was overthinking anything complicated—I was just concerned about the guys bothering her and wondering how to stop them.

But if Sara noticed and reacted like this, maybe my feelings had shown more clearly than I thought.
Especially since she’s practically an expert at reading my expressions.

“…Was I really making that weird a face?”

“It’s fine. Here, like this—eii~♪”

She lifted my cheeks upward with her hands, forcing my mouth into a smile. The playful sound she made caught me off guard—it was so cute that I couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

“Pfft—hahaha!”

“Fufufu, there. That’s more like it. That’s the face of the Kazunari-san I love so much.”

“Haha, I didn’t even realize it myself.”

“You might not have noticed, but I’m your personal Kazunari-master. This kind of thing is a piece of cake for me.”

“…W-wait, why are they suddenly flirting…?”

“D-did anyone else think she was about to kiss him just now…?”

“N-no way, even for them that’d be…”

“…Okay, I finally understand why the guys call this a waking dream…”

Her smug little grin was so cute it completely disarmed me. Honestly, I can’t win against her at anything—not even at managing my own expressions. But if losing feels like this, then I don’t mind losing forever.

“…I look forward to continuing our relationship.”

“…As do I.”

By the time we’d finished talking, it seemed our parents’ conversation had wrapped up as well.

When I looked over, Kayo-san and my mom were bowing politely to each other. It seemed Kayo-san had managed to dodge any awkward topics, so thankfully, things ended without any unnecessary complications.

“By the way, Sara-chan, where’s Mayumi-san?”

“Mother is speaking with the principal, I believe. Since she hasn’t come here, I assume they’re still talking.”

“Sara-san, does your mother know the principal personally?”

Now that I thought about it—

When Mayumi-san showed up uninvited during my class observation, she mentioned that she’d asked the principal for permission. I could understand asking the homeroom teacher or a friend on the staff, but going directly to the principal was quite the leap.

“I don’t know all the details, but… the Sanami Corporation is one of the school’s sponsors, so I imagine it’s through that connection.”

“Ah, I see. So that’s the link.”

“Yes. It’s a fairly large company, after all.”

‘Fairly large,’ she says. It’s practically one of the country’s leading conglomerates…

“…Wait, that Sanami? Like the Sanami?”

“Yeah. Talking with the principal… does Satsukawa-senpai’s mom have some kind of pull?”

Ding-dong…

“This is an announcement. The parent–teacher reception will now begin…”

The chime and calm voice from the school speaker signaled the start of the social gathering. The remaining students began calling for their parents and making their way out.

We should probably head to the student council room before we got in anyone’s way.

“Mom, I’ll be waiting in the student council room. Call me when you’re done.”

“I’ll be waiting for you there as well, Mother-in-law.”

“Got it~ Don’t mind me, just take your time.”

As we were about to exit through the back door, a teacher entered from the front—perfect timing.

***

Rattle, rattle, rattle…

“Good work, everyone.”

“““Good work~!”””

Even though no meeting had been planned today, almost all the student council members were already gathered.

Well, except for Toudou-san. But even the third-years, including the former president Uesaka-senpai, were here.

Tea and snacks were already laid out on the table—clearly, this wasn’t an official meeting, just a friendly get-together. Technically, there were still some festival-related tasks left, but after all the daily effort they put in, taking a breather once in a while was fair enough.

“I thought no one would be here, so I didn’t expect to find everyone gathered like this.”

“Everyone’s waiting for their parents. You two are too, right?”

“Yes. We’ll be talking again once the reception ends.”

“Oh—so this is the first time Takanashi-kun’s mother and Satsukawa-san’s mother are meeting?”

“That’s right. The formal family introduction is planned for another day, though.”

“Ah, now that you mention it, you talked about that over the phone before—something about kimonos?”

“Yes. I’ve already discussed it with my mother, but for some reason, my father’s been all fired up about buying me a new kimono. And while he’s at it, he’s decided to get me a new yukata as well.”

Knowing Masaomi-san, who absolutely dotes on his daughter, it was easy to imagine him eagerly spoiling her like that. Honestly, I’m looking forward to seeing Sara in a new outfit too. I should remember to thank Masaomi-san properly next time.

“Sara-san, you’re getting a new yukata too?”

It wasn’t a problem, of course, but something about that caught my attention.

“Yes. The old one, well… it’s gotten a bit small.”

“Small?”

Sara said it quietly, looking a little embarrassed.

I tried recalling how she looked the last time she wore it, but I hadn’t noticed anything off about the fit at all. Maybe traditional wear like yukata can disguise small size differences… or maybe that was just my perception.

“Ahh, I seeee~”

“Right, right. Satsukawa-san’s… figure has probably changed, huh.”

“So jealous… mine might’ve stopped growing already.”

“Good for you, Takanashi-kun. You must be happy.”

“……….”

The girls were clearly on the same wavelength. They kept glancing between me and Sara with teasing smiles.

Judging by the word “stopped,” it clearly wasn’t about height… meaning there was really only one thing they could be talking about.

And if I could figure it out, then so could every other guy here. Feeling uneasy, I glanced around—but thankfully, no one seemed to be staring at Sara.

“…Is there something you’d like to say?”

““N-no, nothing at all, ma’am…””

Her voice was icy, and her gaze alone could’ve frozen the air.

The male members went pale and immediately turned their backs to her, trembling slightly.

Relieved, I exhaled—only to realize I’d let my guard down. Without meaning to, my eyes drifted toward the very area of Sara’s body that had apparently “grown.”

I swear it wasn’t intentional. I’m just a guy—it was instinct, not willpower.

Still, by the time I realized it, she had already noticed.

Oh no. I’m dead.

“K-Kazunari-san, if you stare that much… I’ll get embarrassed…”

“S-sorry!!”

“No, please don’t apologize. I am embarrassed… but, if it’s you, then… I don’t really mind.”

Though her cheeks burned red, Sara didn’t avert her gaze, cover herself, or step away. That alone told me everything. She was fine with it—because it was me.

Of course, I couldn’t just keep staring, but it still took me a few seconds longer than it should have to look away.

“…Kazunari-san… bad boy.”

!?

Sara poked my forehead, her face flushed crimson. I must’ve been just as red, because the way she said “bad boy” in such a shy, tiny voice was way too much.

It was unfair. I nearly melted on the spot, barely keeping my knees from giving out under me.

Deciding it was too dangerous to look at her any longer—for multiple reasons—I turned my eyes to the side.

Only to find every female council member staring at us with deadpan expressions. And Hanako-san… was pressing a hand to her chest, looking strangely dejected.