The Day After I Told My Shut-In Genius Childhood Friend, Who’s Highly Dependent on Me, “I Got Confessed To,” She Showed Me a Hypnosis App

“—Huh?”

I snapped back to attention at the sound of oil popping in the frying pan.

“Oh, it’s burning…!”

“Honami? Are you okay?”

“Yeah…”

For a moment, it felt like I’d blacked out. Maybe I’m just sleep-deprived?

I tilted my head and tried to figure things out, but first, I had to deal with the fried egg. I put the slightly burnt egg onto a plate.

“The egg got a little burnt… is it okay?”

“It’s fine. I can eat anything if it’s made with your love, Honami.”

“I see. So, you can eat vegetables too, right?”

“…That’s made to resist love!”

“Yeah, no way.”

Mio and I talked casually as we ate breakfast.

But something felt off.

(Huh? Did I forget something?)

I tilted my head while trying to dig through the foggy memory.

But the part I wanted to remember was hidden behind a cloud in my mind.

(…Ah, whatever.)

I gave up trying to remember. It probably wasn’t anything important.

After finishing breakfast, I still had plenty of time, but I decided to at least get changed.

For some reason, my uniform was neatly folded in Mio’s room. Why was that?

“Honami, we still have time before school, right?”

“Huh? Yeah… Why did you ask?”

After getting ready, I sat on the sofa, and Mio came and sat next to me. For some reason, she was fidgeting and swaying a little.

“Hmm. Lately, you’ve been kind of cold, Honami.”

“I didn’t mean to be.”

“It’s getting colder outside, too.”

“…Eh, are you talking about body temperature?”

“No, I’m sorry, it’s not about the weather. I mean, um.”

I wondered what Mio was trying to say. She seemed a little different today.

“…I guess I’m just a little ‘lonely’…”

“Lonely…?”

Just as I was about to ask her why, a sound echoed in my head. A myon, myon, myon noise rang in my mind. And then, I knew what I had to do.

“―Yeah… that makes sense.”

I put my hand on her back and helped her lie down. She rested her head on my lap, and I settled into a lap-pillow position.

Then I placed my hand on her head and gently stroked it.

“I’m sorry for making you feel lonely.”

“…Ah.”

I slowly patted her head and tried to comfort her.

“Honami. T-this is?”

“Eh? ―‘Pat your head if you feel lonely’?”

I was just doing what I always do, so why was she surprised? Mio’s face softened, and she relaxed.

“I see. Ehehe… you even have a lap pillow… it’s like when we were kids…”

Hearing that, a memory from when we were little popped into my mind. That’s right. Mio used to get anxious and cry a lot, so I would stroke her head like this.

(Huh?)

…But the way she said that felt a little off.

“What are you talking about? We do this all the time.”

“Ah, y-yeah, you’re right. We do it a lot! Yeah!”

Mio hurriedly nodded. I looked down at her face from above.

“…”

“W-what’s wrong, Honami?”

Lately, Mio seemed a bit restless. I wondered what she was up to.

“You… aren’t you acting a little weird?”

“…I’m not weird? Maybe it’s just your eyes being lewd?”

“You’re blind.”

…She seemed a little more energetic than usual. What happened to the lonely feeling she mentioned earlier? Feeling like she was teasing me on purpose, I ruffled her hair a little.

“…If you still have energy to joke around, can we stop now?”

“Hehe… just a little longer… ―Oh.”

She suddenly pulled a stuffed toy with a string out of her pocket and held it out.

“This is a present for you, Honami. It’s a little thank-you for everything you do.”

“…A Lux stuffed toy keychain?”

“That’s right!”

Mio nodded with a smile.

She handed me a small stuffed keychain of Lux, a fairy character from “Prikle.”

“Did this kind of merchandise even exist?”

“Of course, I made it myself.”

“Wow… impressive.”

Mio’s talent even shows in making otaku goods. The little plush looked like it was made from felt, and the quality was really high.

“Why all of a sudden?”

“I said it’s a thank-you. This is just to show my appreciation for everything you do.”

Mio puffed her cheeks out in a slightly grumpy way.

It seemed a little suspicious, but since it was a gift, I accepted it gratefully.

“Make sure to attach it to your school backpack, okay?”

“You even specify where it goes… Well, I guess that’s fine.”

I haven’t really told anyone at school that I’m a fan of Prikle, but if I showed this to Momose-san, she’d probably be surprised. If I put it inside my backpack, no one would notice unless I wanted them to.

Then, I patted Mio’s head as she was still grinning from ear to ear, before leaving and heading to school.

◆ “Shinonome Mio”

“Hehe… It’s been a while since someone patted my head…”

After seeing Honami off, I touched my head with my fingertips.

During the hypnosis, I only asked him to pat my head when I said I felt lonely, but having a lap pillow too was a lucky bonus.

(So in Honami’s mind, comforting me always comes with a lap pillow…)

Thinking about little Honami made me smile.

When I was sad as a kid, he would often let me rest my head on his lap and stroke it until I calmed down. Sometimes I would even fall asleep like that, and when I woke up, Honami’s legs would be numb.

(Maybe next time I’ll ask him to hug me while doing it…)

My list of things I want Honami to do for me keeps growing. I really am a genius for making that hypnosis app.

…Though I’ll ignore the part where I just decided to stop overusing it a moment ago.

“Well then… next.”

I went back upstairs and held the [parent] headphones I had prepared to my ears.

A rustling sound came through.

“Yeah, I can hear it fine.”

The sound was like fabric brushing, and I heard Honami’s voice after a while, “I’m early today… Maybe I’ll do some test studying.”

The [parent] headphones were made to hear the sounds picked up by the [child] device.

And the stuffed toy I gave Honami had the [child] device inside it.

“I wonder what kind of girl confessed to Honami.”

I rested my chin on my hand at the desk, staring at the monitor that wasn’t even turned on.