When I Started a Volunteer Nursing Service, All the Beautiful Girls in My Class Suddenly Became Gloomy

Chapter 3: The Continuation of Taking Care of Her

Ichinose-san’s kitchen looked as clean as the rest of her room.

It had a simple white theme, and the spices and dishes were all neatly arranged.

But.

It didn’t feel lived-in.

When I opened the fridge, it only had mineral water and some jelly drinks. There was almost no real food inside.

I checked the shelf under the kitchen and found an unopened bag of rice.

“This should work for porridge.”

I took out the green onions and eggs from the plastic bag, borrowed a knife, and started chopping the onions finely on the cutting board. The steady rhythm of the knife echoed softly through the quiet room.

Since I started living alone, I felt like I’d been hearing this sound more often. At first I almost cut my finger, and I even burned a frying pan once.

But after doing it every day, I got used to it without realizing.

I put water and rice in a pot and turned on the heat.

Right when it started to bubble with small sounds, I heard faint footsteps from behind.

“…Amamiya-kun.”

I turned around and saw Ichinose-san standing at the kitchen entrance. She should have been in bed, but she was leaning on the wall and looking my way unsteadily.

“Whoa, Ichinose-san!? Why did you get up?”

“…I don’t know, I just got worried.”

Her voice sounded spaced out, probably from the fever.

But her eyes stayed fixed on the pot.

“You won’t get better if you don’t rest properly.”

“But…”

Ichinose-san sniffed quietly, then muttered.

“Being alone… felt bad.”

Her words made me pause for a second.

Maybe it was because of the fever.

Her voice sounded so weak, nothing like the strong, put-together girl I saw at school.

“…Then why don’t you sit here?”

I pulled out the small chair next to the kitchen. Ichinose-san gave a small nod.

She walked over slowly on shaky legs and sat down.

“Don’t push yourself, okay?”

“Yeah…”

Even her reply sounded sleepy.

I smiled a little awkwardly and stirred the pot.

After a while,

“…Smells nice.”

Ichinose-san whispered softly.

“It’s still not done.”

“But… it makes me feel safe somehow…”

Her words tickled something deep in my chest.

When I had a cold, this was probably what I wanted.

Just having someone nearby made the quiet room feel a little less lonely.

While listening to the bubbling sound of the porridge, I poured the beaten egg into the pot.

“Done.”

I scooped the porridge onto a plate and set it in front of Ichinose-san.

Then she said in a weak voice, “Feed me…”

She stayed in the chair and looked up at me with hazy eyes.

Her cheeks were still red from the fever.

“Is… is that bad…?”

Her gaze trembled a little, like a kid who did something wrong.

“Got it.”

I cleared my throat, scooped a spoonful of porridge,

blew on it gently to cool it, and brought it to her mouth.

“Ahh…”

Ichinose-san opened her mouth obediently.

She slowly swallowed the porridge and said,

“…Tasty.”

She smiled like she felt relieved.

Her smile looked so soft that I quickly looked away.

At school she always seemed quiet and hard to approach.

But right now, Ichinose-san seemed like a completely different person.

“Think you can eat more?”

“Yeah… I want more.”

She opened her mouth a little again.

The way she did it looked kinda childish and cute.

…No, what am I thinking?

I pushed the weird thoughts away and scooped another spoonful.

“I’m full…”

After she finished the porridge, Ichinose-san slumped forward onto the table.

“If you sleep here your cold will get worse.”

“Mmm… I can’t move…”

“Guess I have no choice…”

I smiled awkwardly and moved around beside her.

“Can you stand?”

“…Maybe not.”

She turned just her face toward me and looked up with moist eyes. Even though it was the fever, knowing the normal Ichinose-san from school made this feel really off.

“Then I’ll lend you my shoulder.”

“…Mm.”

I gently put her arm around my shoulder.

A soft, sweet girl scent brushed my nose.

“…Close.”

“S-sorry.”

“You don’t have to apologize…”

She muttered quietly and then rested her head on my shoulder with a little tilt.

Her forehead felt a bit hot from the fever.

I almost never got this close to a girl, so I tried hard not to think about it too much.

“Ichinose-san, can you walk slowly?”

“…Amamiya-kun, take me.”