The Most Beautiful Girl in School Has Become a Mother - Chapter 46: Part II

Since the day we first held hands, I feel like the distance between me and Miori has gotten a little closer.

Somehow, the number of times we make eye contact has increased, and we no longer hesitate to touch each other as much as we used to. However, when our hands accidentally touch, we both get tense, and sometimes it creates a strange atmosphere, so honestly, I don’t really understand the right distance either.

However, we haven’t held hands since then. We almost always hold hands with Shuri in between the three of us, but when it comes to just the two of us, it’s only from the bench in that national park to the entrance gate.

There are times when I wonder if that day was just an illusion. But the indescribable itch between us tells me it wasn’t a dream.

Moreover, just thinking that Miori is sharing the burden of taking care of Shuri has reduced my burden. It’s not so much physically, but rather mentally that I feel relieved.

For example, even if I were to fall ill or something came up, as long as Miori is there, she would somehow manage it. Although I haven’t actually been in such a situation yet, just having her around has given me a lot of peace of mind.

Thanks to her, I feel like I’m gradually creating a situation where I don’t have to push myself too hard. It’s as if she is supporting what I used to carry alone.

Of course, this is also a situation where I am entrusting something I have held alone until now to her. I had to be careful not to tire her out or push her too hard.

She said, “I’m fine because I know my limits,” but I can’t help but think that she has a tendency to push herself for others. Even if she’s a bit tired or not feeling well, she seems like she would push herself for Shuri. I guess I need to be mindful of that.

However, at this point, I am really grateful for her presence. Just having someone to share the hardships with makes such a difference. My life has become easier compared to before, when she took on the role of “mom.”

And it doesn’t just stop at reducing my burden. Miori’s presence has become significant for Shuri to have a more enjoyable time.

For example, it often appears after school.

“Maybe this puffy sticker would be good…”

Before going to pick up Shuri, Miori, and I stopped by a 100-yen shop in front of the station. There, Miori looked for toys that Shuri would like.

Right now, she was looking at the girl’s dress-up stickers. Of course, I had never set foot in a sticker section like this before.

“Puff seal?”

“Yeah. It’s one of those dress-up stickers, but it has something soft like a cushion inside. It feels really nice to touch.”

I handed the product to Miori and pressed it through the outer packaging. It was indeed squishy and felt good.

Dress-up stickers are generally stickers of a girl illustrated in about a four-heads-tall proportion, onto which you stick clothing stickers. You place stickers of clothes, accessories, shoes, socks, and hats that are designed to fit the girl’s body shape and pose on the sticker base where the girl is illustrated. There are various types of clothes, and you can dress her up and coordinate them according to your preference.

There are many types of girls to begin with, but there are also many types of clothing. From girly styles to cosplay and gal styles, it’s truly impressive.

According to Miori, it’s a game necessary for girls to hone their fashion sense.

“I didn’t know there were toys like this… Just like the previous AquaBeads.”

“Isaki-kun, you never played with girls when you were little, did you?”

Miori lets out an exaggerated sigh as if in disbelief and asks almost as if making a statement.

“Ugh… W-why do you have that…”

It pierces my heart deeply.

As she said, I was so absorbed in running races, playing ball games, and pretending to play with the boys that I hardly ever played with girls. Perhaps because I had no experience playing with girls since childhood, I never played with them even in elementary school. Then, suddenly in middle school and high school, I was made to take care of Shuri. It’s an unreasonable demand to expect a guy like me to take care of a younger sister.

“Then, I only bought the toys that the daycare sensei recommended. We didn’t have any stickers at home, and we didn’t have many clothes either… As a ‘mom,’ I can’t just let this slide.”

“Ugh… I’m so sorry… It’s just that I really don’t understand…”

I couldn’t even make a sound in response to “mom’s criticism.

Since the kindergarten has uniforms, I don’t have to worry about what to dress them in on weekdays. They hardly go outside on holidays either, and I wouldn’t know the quality of the children’s clothes. I had been buying clothes quite haphazardly, but according to Miori, “They’re not cute at all.” This harsh criticism made my heart bleed.

“Well, I wasn’t really expecting that from Isaki-kun anyway.”

“That’s harsh. I’ll do my best from now on, so please look forward to it.”

“Umm, I don’t think so.”

Miori almost asserts it and chuckles.

Seriously, couldn’t she have said it a bit more gently?

“I’ll take care of that. Isaki-kun, it must be embarrassing for you to buy these kinds of stickers, right?”

“Yes… It’s embarrassing.”

When I answered honestly, I was met with a look of disbelief.

In reality, it was really appreciated that someone accompanied me to buy these stickers. After all, it would be too embarrassing for a high school boy like me to buy fancy dress-up stickers alone. I mean, people might start to suspect I have some weird fetish.

“Oh, right. How about we go buy some clothes for Shuri-chan next time?”

“Huh? Ah, sure. Actually, it’s even better that you come with me…”

I suddenly remember when I was five years old, but I have no recollection of caring about clothes or coordination at all. Until middle school, I just wore whatever my parents bought for me.

After all, I realize once again that the help of a girl is absolutely essential in this area. There’s no way someone like me could tell the good from the bad when it comes to buying clothes.

“Just buying the clothes they want isn’t good either, right?”

“Huh, really?”

I was completely sure that I would buy her the clothes she wanted, the cute ones.

I thought the only thing they cared about was the price, but it seems that’s not the case.

“Yeah. If I leave it completely up to them, they’ll choose based on their own preferences, and I’ll end up with clothes all in the same color and style.”

“I see!”

“…Because I was like that.”

“I-I see…”

It was an unexpected real experience.

Even though Miori now seems to handle everything, it was kind of cute to think that she made such mistakes when she was little.

“To understand Shuri-chan’s preferences, I’ll buy various types of dress-up stickers.”

Miori looked excited as she crouched down at the sticker display and began to examine them closely.

It seems that the variety is more abundant than what she used to buy back in the day, and just looking at it seems to be enjoyable for her. Just looking at her profile, for some reason, I also started to feel excited, which was strange.

I bought quite a few stickers, but they weren’t very expensive. Since they’re stickers, the unit price is low, making them a wallet-friendly toy.

However, since I can’t tell the good from the bad, I decided to leave all the selection of the stuff seals to Miori.

Somehow, seeing her choose stickers looked very fun, so I have the honest desire to watch her. Of course, that’s something I keep hidden in my heart.

And then… I’m happy that the time spent with her is increasing like this. I instinctively felt that way.