The Story of A Beautiful Girl I Rescued From An Attacker Who Became My Seatmate. - Chapter 16

I cast aside any distractions and headed towards my second-floor room.

I went upstairs and arrived in front of my bedroom door. Right now, Kirishima should be sleeping here.

I decided to knock on the door and enter the room. She’s probably asleep and won’t notice, but it’s just to be considerate.

I slowly opened the door, intending to rely on the light from my phone to retrieve the charger in the darkness, but…

“Oh, Mom… Please don’t go. Please…”

I heard Kirishima’s voice, as if she was sobbing. I briefly directed the light from my phone towards the bed and saw Kirishima sleeping, wrapped in the blanket and hugging the pillow.

Why is she crying? Is she having a sad dream? Or has she always been like this? I won’t know the exact reason unless I ask, but even when I saw her at the park, I caught a glimpse of the darkness in her family situation.

However, Kirishima acts cheerful in public. Isn’t she forcing herself? I worry that one day her mental state might collapse. I’m really concerned.

While thinking that I should continue to pay attention to Kirishima, I left the room.

***

“Good morning!”

“Morning!”

The next morning, the alarm on my phone went off as planned, and I woke up at 9 o’clock.

“Oh, I should go grocery shopping soon.”

As I peeked into the refrigerator to prepare breakfast, I noticed that the ingredients were running low. It’s not like we’re financially struggling, but providing meals for Kirishima as well would double the consumption, which means I have to go shopping more often.

“Hey, can I come with you for grocery shopping? Or rather, let me come with you.”

“Why? Do you want something to eat?”

“No, it’s just that you’ve been letting me stay here and even cooking for me. I should do something in return, including covering the food expenses.”

Ah, I guess she does feel indebted. Maybe I would do the same. But after seeing her last night (technically, earlier today), it doesn’t really matter anymore.

“It’s fine. Kirishima, you have been helping me with studying, so it’s not financially burdensome.”

“Do you receive an allowance that can cover double the food expenses…? That’s nice.”

“Well, I do earn my own money. I can’t have a part-time job, so I have to find other ways.”

Oh, was it okay to say that? Well, it should be fine. I don’t think Kirishima has the personality to spread that around.

“It’s impressive that you’re earning money at your age. Well, it might be presumptuous for me to say that as someone who’s being allowed to stay here.”

“Well, don’t worry about it. So, shall we go grocery shopping before noon?”

“Yeah, sounds good.”

With the grocery shopping plan settled, I immediately started studying. Kirishima has been helping me with studying throughout Golden Week. I’m really grateful. Her way of teaching is easy to understand, and I think she would be suited for a career in education.

“So, what do you want to eat today?”

Kirishima and I were at the shopping mall near the station. I don’t know why, but she had changed into a more elegant and refined outfit rather than her usual style. When did she bring that outfit? Her whole aura has changed, and she looks really cute.

As for me, I’m wearing my usual tracksuit. I don’t have any clothes for going out. Hey, don’t call me an introvert.

“Hey, hey. Can I cook dinner tonight?”

“Huh? Oh well, if you’re willing to cook…”

Kirishima’s homemade meal… I hope no one in class finds out. Ah, but from an outsider’s perspective, it’s probably too late to hide the fact that we’re living together. It’s not like Kirishima has fallen for me or anything, and I’m the only one agonizing over it every day.

It’s just that I couldn’t bear to see Kirishima in that state. That’s really all there is to it.

“If I remember correctly, you’re making fried rice for lunch. So maybe I’ll make hamburg steak for dinner.”

As she said that, Kirishima added ground meat and onions to the basket. To be honest, I don’t make hamburg steak or similar dishes very often. They’re just too much of a hassle. With fried rice, which I often eat, you just throw the ingredients into the frying pan and cook them. But when it comes to hamburg steak, you have to sauté the onions, let them cool, mix them with the ground meat, shape them into patties… It involves several steps.

“Do we have nutmeg?”

“Ah, yeah, I think we do.”

In the end, I ended up buying a considerable amount of groceries, enough to last for about half the week.

Under the warm sunshine, the two of us were heading back home.

“Hmm?”

Suddenly, Kirishima hugged me from behind. Caught off guard by her sudden action, I turned around briefly and saw a look of fear on Kirishima’s face.

“What’s wrong?”

“S-Sorry, Kurata-kun. Just let me hide for a moment…”

“Huh? Um…”

I wondered what was going on as I looked around. This place is near the station, and there are quite a few people around. I don’t think there’s anything to be scared of.

“Are you okay?”

“Y-Yeah, I’m fine now.”

With doubts about Kirishima’s behavior, we decided to head back home.

Little did I know that someone was following closely behind me.