The Handsome Boy I Saved from Getting Beaten on the Train… Turned Out to Be the “Prince” of an All-Girls School - V1 Chapter 19: Mom’s Not Home Today Either

Chapter 19: Mom’s Not Home Today Either

“So, you’re saying you were late because you had to deliver the princess to the nurse’s office, huh, Saito?”

“I mean, I was inside the building before the bell rang, Tsuyoshi-nii.”

“It’s Mr. Neya at school.”

Whap!

I got smacked on the head with a stack of papers in the teacher’s office while Tsuyoshi-nii gave me a lecture.

After I brought Rinna to the nurse’s office and she took her temperature, it turned out she really did have a fever.

So they had her lie down on the bed to rest and then sent her home early.

…Though I had a sneaking suspicion that the cause of her fever might not have been entirely physical.

Anyway, I couldn’t just drop her off and dip, so by the time everything settled down, I’d already missed morning homeroom.

Which sucked, considering I had even woken up early to go pick up Rei today.

And then I still ended up late. Not fair.

“You used to be pretty quiet when you first enrolled, but lately there’s been a lot of drama around you.”

“It’s not like I’m causing any of it on purpose.”

“Yeah, yeah. I know you’re the type who can’t just ignore someone in trouble.” 

“I even left the prefecture for high school, and yet somehow, it’s like nothing’s changed since middle school.”

“Not that it’s a bad thing. Honestly, your late grandma would’ve been happy to see you staying true to yourself.”

“…Maybe. Hey—quit messing up my hair!”

This guy always treats me like I’m still a kid.

“Oh, right. Those folks reached out, by the way.”

“…Huh!?”

The moment Tsuyoshi-nii casually dropped the words “those folks,”

My heart instantly skipped a beat, and cold sweat broke out all over me.

“You okay, Saito?”

“I’m fine, Tsuyoshi-nii…”

Even though he’d been thoughtful enough not to mention their names directly,

I still couldn’t hide how shaken I was—and that frustrated me.

Those people…

He meant my parents.

“…Wait. Did they find out about the video!?”

“Nah. Just the usual check-in from Aunt. She didn’t bring it up, so I didn’t either.”

“Aren’t you gonna get yelled at for that later?”

“Whatever. I’m not wasting my time babysitting some overgrown kid every time.”

“…Thanks.”

Tsuyoshi-nii’s words weren’t said out of apathy.

He was looking out for me—and I could tell.

And honestly, that made me really happy.

“If only those two could figure out how to actually be decent parents for once. They’re just… really bad at it.”

“Yeah… I guess I’m just as bad in a way. I haven’t been able to play the role of their son very well either.”

“You’re a kid. You’re supposed to suck at it. And just ‘cause they’re your parents doesn’t mean you’ve gotta stick close to them all the time. For you guys, this distance? It might actually be what’s healthiest.”

“You really think so…?”

“Yeah, I do. Though honestly, I do wish those two could handle things just a little better.”

Even now, if someone told me I had to go live with them again…

There’s no way I could do it.

I’d definitely end up running away.

Just like I did back in middle school, when I ran off to Grandma’s house.

“Hey there, Neya-kun~”

“What is it now, Principal? Vice Principal?”

And just like that, the heavy, serious mood was shattered—

Completely blown apart by the sudden arrival of the principal and vice principal.

“Did you talk to Kujou-kun about using him in next year’s entrance pamphlet photo shoot?”

“Ah—sorry. I totally forgot. Just didn’t care enough to remember.”

“Come on, help us out! Also, we’re still getting tons of interview requests about Kujou-kun’s video, you know?”

“Yep. Here’s the notice from the Board of Education. Feel free to handle it. Honestly, the fact that they keep sending reminders… Makes you wonder just how little faith they have in this school.”

“Don’t say it like that!”

The principal and vice principal both looked utterly defeated.

“See? Adults are just like this too sometimes,”

Tsuyoshi-nii said with a crooked grin.

And for some reason, that smile—

It made me feel a little better.

Yeah. I really can’t win against this guy.

◇◇◇◆◇◇◇

“Saito~. What game should we play today?”

After school.

I tried to slip into the luxury hire car waiting out front without drawing attention,

And inside, Rei greeted me with a huge smile.

“Hmm… What do you wanna play?”

“Let’s pick up where we left off in Game of Life. I still have the save data.”

“That thing takes forever to finish. Let’s not.”

The problem with that game is you never know when to stop.

It always turns into, “Just one more year,” and then “Okay, maybe one more,” and before you know it, you’ve been playing forever.

And with Rei—who throws a fit every single time I try to leave—

Yeah, that game and she are a terrible combo.

“Wait… are you saying you don’t wanna play games with me anymore?”

“No, no! That’s not it. It’s just a long game, so I figured maybe we should save it for a day when we have more time—like last time, when I stayed over.”

“Wait, really!? Saito, you’re gonna stay over again!?”

Crap!

I was just trying to dodge a long gaming session…

And now I’ve walked right into a trap.

“Uh—no, hang on. It’s not like before. The situation’s totally different now, so staying over is kinda…”

“Why not?”

“I mean… we’re a boy and a girl, right? Sleeping under the same roof at our age… That’s, uh, kind of a no-go.”

Even childhood friends living next door go back to their own homes at night.

And the whole morning-after scene is supposed to be something that happens way later in a rom-com—like, final arc kind of stuff.

“Come on, we’ve already done it, haven’t we?”

“You mean staying over!! You gotta stop dropping the object like that, Rei! At the time, I thought you were a guy, okay!?”

The driver is right there, so could you please not say things that could be wildly misunderstood!?

“Still, Mom told me I’m grounded and not allowed to go out today, so I came straight home like a good girl.”

“Yeah, and playing games all the time does get kinda old after a while.”

“Wait, Saito, are you saying you’re bored already!? Okay then—we’ll just get a new game! You can pick whatever you want. Seriously, anything. Go on!”

Saying that, Rei pulled up a game list on an online shopping site and held it out toward me.

“I-I don’t think spending money like that is a good idea…”

If I were a terrible person, I could’ve turned her into a walking wallet in seconds.

“So… so then, are you saying you don’t want to play games anymore, and now you wanna do something else at home?”

“Yeah, kinda. I feel like moving around a bit.”

“Moving… your body!? R-Right, of course! You are a guy, after all… Don’t worry, I’ve been ready for this for a long time. Oh, and by the way—my mom’s not home today either.”

Fidgeting and wringing her hands, Rei kept sneaking hopeful little glances my way.

“Yeah, actually… This might be the perfect timing.”

“Y-Yeah! Right!? Totally!!”

Rei nodded over and over like one of those bobblehead dolls on a dashboard.

“In that case, I’m counting on you.”

“Okay♪”

“I’m really looking forward to it. Rei’s apartment gym.”

“…The… gym?”

Rei, who had been enthusiastically bobbing along, suddenly froze mid-nod, her head tilting slightly to the side.

“Remember? You said we should go together sometime. I’ve been looking forward to it.”

There’d been so much chaos with Rei being revealed as a girl and all,

But we had talked about hitting the gym together.

And hey—trying out a new gym is always fun.

It gives your muscles a fresh new challenge.

“W-When you said ‘perfect timing’ just now… you meant…?”

“That the supercompensation phase for my pecs and glutes just ended.”

“Ugh! I don’t care anymore! Go ahead and turn into a muscle meatball, Saito!”

“Wait—why are you mad, Rei!?”

She’d been all smiles just a second ago…

I even remembered our promise,

So why did it feel like I was suddenly the bad guy here?

-:+:-:+:-:+:-:+:-:+:-:+:-:+:-+:-+:-+:-+:-+

Quick Announcement!

My other work, “Wanna Marry Me When I Become a Shogi Master, Sensei?”, has won an Encouragement Award in the D&C Media × Studio Moon6 Web Novel Awards!

This is my first time winning anything in a contest—super happy!

The story is also available on Kakuyomu, so feel free to check it out here:

私が名人になったら結婚しよ？師匠 （マイヨ＠『名人』受賞） – カクヨム