When I Picked Up A Stunningly Gorgeous Downer-Type Beauty In Front Of The Entrance. - Chapter 53: It's similar to 'Please give me your daughter,' isn't it?

It’s similar to ‘Please give me your daughter,’ isn’t it?

“Um, I’m sorry, but… If I’m not mistaken… I’m sorry if I’m wrong?”

The preemptive apology from Sajou-san’s mother sends a shiver down my spine.

Even though I just finished my coffee, my throat feels dry and my lips are chapped. As I run my tongue over them, I feel the small flakes of skin.

I should use some lip balm. But why am I thinking about that when I’ve never used it before?

This situation isn’t one where I can escape reality.

If it’s their relationship, it’s plausible.

Not telling about the move, or even having moved. I find it conceivable.

That’s how distant their relationship is.

Come to think of it, how many years has it been since we last spoke? I need to dig up those memories.

Despite being mother and daughter. Despite living together.

It’s not like every mother-daughter relationship is perfect, so it’s not strange for families like theirs to exist.

But still…

Shouldn’t she have at least told my sister?

Then I could have informed Sajou-san’s mother about the move beforehand.

…Thinking about it, my throat tightens. My face feels hot.

It’s kind of like… feeling like I’m being asked to take their daughter.

After all, she’s moving out of her house. She’s living in my house. We’re cohabiting.

Given these facts, I’m not quite confident that I could have smoothly reported the move to Sajou-san’s mother.

And now, with the report being made after the fact, the little confidence I had has melted away, leaving me feeling as small as an ice cube in a glass.

Now’s not the time to mention the three-way talk.

I’m breathing hard from nervousness. I’m feeling a stomachache unlike anything I’ve felt before.

I rub my stomach, but the pain doesn’t subside. It continues to linger deep inside like a dull ache.

“Hinata Rihito-san…?”

But I can’t just stay silent.

As Sajou-san’s mother looks at me with concern, I swallow hard and manage to open my mouth.

“Um… I’m sorry. You’re right, Sajou-san has been staying at my house, or rather, she’s moved in. Um, so… Well, that’s why, um… I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you beforehand.”

I bow my head so low it almost touches the table.

It’s not about blaming anyone anymore.

I accepted Sajou-san’s move without much thought, so I bear responsibility for that.

Even though it’s late, I wanted to at least show sincerity.

“Oh…! No, that’s not it. I’m sorry… I’m not angry, and I don’t want an apology. Could you please lift your head?”

“But moving without permission from a guardian is a bit too much, don’t you think?”

“Hinata-san, you didn’t know, right?”

“That’s true, but…”

Spitting out words without conviction, I slowly lift my head.

I was a bit scared to see what expression she had.

But Sajou-san’s mother’s face showed no anger, just a calm yet lonely expression.

“Yeah, it’s okay. I know the fault lies with me for letting it happen. Actually, I think it’s for the best…. Rather than worrying about her being gone and not knowing if she’s alive or not, it’s much better. Because she’s right next door. She’s still within reach. That alone is a relief for me.”

Her voice is earnest, filled with emotion.

A mother worrying about her daughter. Just that sentiment.

That’s why I have complex emotions about her words, implying that there could have been a situation where she went missing and we didn’t know if she was alive or dead.

Should I scold her? Should I console her? I don’t know.

“Thank you,” she says.

It’s as if she’s thanking me for causing trouble, realizing just how close Sajou-san came to danger.

I close my eyelids. There’s tension around my eyes.

“Ah…”

Despite the suspicion it might raise, I tilt my chin upwards.

The skin on my neck stretches, and my Adam’s apple protrudes.

…I can’t quite grasp it.

That was my honest impression.

To have parents who, even with some embarrassment, still take care of you.

A sister with whom, despite being a bit out there, I have a good relationship.

Having grown up in a perfectly normal household without any trouble, I can’t understand the relationship between these mother and daughter.

“I understand” or something like that. I couldn’t use that phrase lightly.

Actually, it’s just too heavy for me.

Both the relationship and the emotions between mother and daughter.

The faint electric light illuminating the cafe passes through my closed eyelids.

I lean my shoulders back.

Well, well. What should I say?

If this were a handsome hero straight out of a shojo manga, he’d inject some fuel into his heart to ignite a burning love and then rush to somehow mend the cold relationship between mother and daughter.

Unfortunately, I’m neither handsome nor a hero.

I can’t become the protagonist of a story, nor do I want to. I’m just an ordinary high school freshman. The kind you’d attach the phrase “just an ordinary” to.

How did it come to this? Why did it end up like this?

I’ve asked myself these questions hundreds of times in my head, but the answer always comes back to that rainy season. It all started when I found Sajou-san.

Well, what can you do? It’s like karma coming back to bite you, so all I can do is laugh.

I let my hands hang down under the chair where I’m slumped and let out a deep, deep sigh.

I really didn’t want to pry into Sajou-san’s family situation.

We had an unspoken agreement not to pry into each other’s affairs, so breaking that feels like a guilty act.

But, I’m at fault too. Honestly, so is Sajou-san.

There’s nothing to be done about it. I decided to tread a little deeper.

I slowly open my eyelids and straighten up my slouched body with a creak of the chair.

Looking at Sajou-san’s mother with widened eyes, I speak up.

“How about we arrange a meeting to talk, including Sajou-san… your daughter?”

When I said that, a small “…Huh?” slipped out from her slightly parted lips, and Sajou-san’s mother opened her eyes wide in surprise.