The Most Beautiful Girl in School Has Become a Mother - Chapter 66

“Hey, Isaki-kun. Are you awake?”

When Shuri had completely fallen asleep──with my eyes closed, Miori whispered and spoke to me.

“Hmm? Oh, I’m awake.”

As I slowly opened my eyes, the sight of Miori, smiling gently in the dimly lit room illuminated by a small light bulb, came into view.

Shuri is making cute sleeping sounds, snoring softly. It seems she has completely fallen asleep.

“Do you always go to bed this early?”

Miori glances at the wall clock in the room.

The time was still around half past nine.

“No. After Shuri goes to bed, I do various chores and study.”

Rather, from this time on, it will finally be my own time.

“Then, since we’re here, why don’t you show me Isaki-kun’s room?”

“My room? Why?”

“Well… Didn’t you see my room the other day?”

Only in photos, Miori added.

It seems she holds a grudge about the time I looked at pictures of teddy bears together. Those two teddy bears are now watching over her at her bedside.

“It’s unfair that I’m the only one being looked at unilaterally…”

Miori looked at me with reproachful eyes.

I don’t know what’s unfair, but it seems like she won’t be convinced. In reality, it’s a bit too early for a high school student to sleep. She probably can’t sleep either.

“It’s fine, I guess.”

“I did it!”

Miori showed a childlike, exuberant smile.

I have no idea why she’s so looking forward to seeing my room. The school’s number one beauty is quite the mystery.

Anyway, we quietly moved to my room without waking Shuri.

My room is separated from the room where Shuri sleeps by a storage room. Since there is one room in between, the advantage is that sounds don’t carry through the walls. Even if I talk a little, Shuri probably won’t wake up.

“This is Isaki-kun’s room~”

When I turned on the room light, Miori looked around the room and said it with a hint of happiness.

Actually, there’s a girl in pajamas in my room. Moreover, it’s Imiya Miori.

She had started coming to my house as if it were the most natural thing in the world, but she had never entered my room.

I’ve gotten quite used to seeing her in the living room and kitchen, but seeing her in my own room is something I’m completely unaccustomed to, and it makes my heart race all at once.

“…Is something wrong?”

Miori was looking around the room, so I asked out of curiosity.

“No, it’s my first time entering a boy’s room.”

When she turned to look at me, she had a somewhat happy expression on her face.

That expression was different from the face of the mother just a moment ago. It belonged to a girl, and the stark contrast made my heart race.

“I-is that so?”

“Yeah.”

Miori said, standing in front of the bookshelf.

There shouldn’t be any strange books, yet why do I feel so tense?

“There are a lot of books and manga that I don’t know about.”

“I used to collect them when I was in elementary school. Then, once I got to middle school, I didn’t have time for that anymore.”

Since entering middle school—that is, since Shuri was born.

From that day on, I began to live a life completely devoid of the joys and entertainments typical of a middle school student.

“…I see.”

Miori smiled a little sadly.

Surely, she must have understood what I was trying to say.

“Hey, Isaki-kun.”

“Hmm?”

Miori asked me with the same lonely smile as before.

“I want to see a picture of your Mom.”

“Eh…”

It was a somewhat unexpected request. I never thought she would ask for something like that. In fact, I even considered that it might be something she wanted to avoid.

Shuri calls Miori “Mom.” Of course, she knows she can never become a real mother, but still, I thought she might dislike being compared to the real one.

“Why?”

“Because… Shuri-chan looked at me and said, ‘Mom,’ right? I’ve been wondering how much I resemble her. Is that not okay?”

“It’s not that…”

I groaned as I moved in front of the closet.

Inside the upper section of this box, there is a hidden family photo album. It contains pictures from when there were only three of us, before Shuri was born.

I myself haven’t watched it since my mother passed away. Sometimes I feel like watching it, but something holds me back, and in the end, I never reach for the box.

But why was that? On that day, I had no brakes.

“…Never mind.”

“Eh?”

The one who was surprised by my response was Miori.

“What’s wrong?”

“Um… I know I asked you, but I thought you would definitely dislike it.”

“Well, I was surprised myself.”

A little while ago, I might have rejected it. But now, I didn’t feel uncomfortable showing her my mother’s photo.

That must be because of the day we had today.

After fighting with Shuri, Miori went to the aquarium with me to cheer me up. Then, after hearing her confessions, I had Miori mediate between Shuri and me, and I listened to my sister’s true feelings. From there, we spent the day together like family.

That’s why I might have lost my resistance to the concept of “mother.”

When I opened the closet, I stretched up to take out the box on the top shelf. From inside, I took out four albums.

“I think these are the only four books I have.”

If anything, there might be more image data. However, I don’t have that data. My dad should have it, but I haven’t asked him what he did with it.

If I go to my mother’s family home, there will be many photos from her younger days, but all I have are these four albums.

“Thank you… Can I take a look?”

“Please.”

When I said that, Miori flipped open the cover of the album on top.

I remember that album was from when I was in elementary school. There were photos from sports day, and there should have been photos from when we went to the amusement park and the zoo as a family.

For some reason, just that made me nervous too.

“Ah…”

When Miori flipped the page and saw my mother’s photo, she let out a small voice.

It was a photo of my mom covering me from behind.

In the photo, I must be in the upper grades of elementary school. Perhaps because my ego was developing, I had an embarrassed yet slightly displeased expression. On the other hand, my mother is smiling happily, directing her smile towards the lens.

I can no longer see that mother’s smile.

If I was to ask whether Miori and my mother resemble each other, their facial features aren’t that similar. The only common point might be their long hair.

But why? My mother’s gentle smile somehow resembled Miori’s.

That’s not all. Even when looking at other photos, there was a resemblance to Miori.

It’s not just the expression, but the overall atmosphere that somehow resembles each other. Even as a son, I can’t help but agree when I see it.

The story of when Shuri had a connection with her mother dates back to when she was still in her womb.

However, perhaps──Shuri felt the atmosphere of her mother from within her body at that time, and sensed something similar from Miori.

I couldn’t shake that feeling.

Miori flipped through the pages of the album in silence, without saying a word. Slowly, slowly, she examined each photo carefully. I watched it with her, as if confirming it together.

I haven’t seen a photo of Mom since the funeral. Since then, I’ve been too busy with Shuri and myself to have any time to think about Mom. No, I was trying not to think about her.

Surely, it would make me sad. Knowing that, I lived each day like a workhorse, trying not to think about it.

However, when I looked at the album like this, it was no good.

When I took the photo, the casual conversations before and after, my father’s voice, my mother’s laughter, the voice that comforted me when I cried after losing a race, the voice that scolded me──all of these came back to me as vivid images along with their expressions.

At the same time, my vision suddenly blurred.

“Isaki-kun…”

She immediately noticed that I was crying pathetically.

In a hurry, I wiped away my tears and was about to say, “It’s nothing.” Before I could say those words, my head was enveloped in something warm and soft.

“Huh…?”

My vision went completely dark, and I was enveloped in a pleasant smell and something soft. Something that felt like her pajamas was touching my face.

Just a moment ago, my face was pressed against the chest where Shuri had been sleeping.

The pleasant scent of Miori filled my nostrils and permeated my entire head.