When I Started Doing Housework For The Cool Beauty In My Class, She Began Asking Me About The Dinner Menu Every Day. - Chapter 2: The Body is Honest.

The Body is Honest.

A brief silence hung in the air.

Faced with an unexpected greeting, I froze in place. The person who greeted me—Fujisaki Kanon—seemed equally paralyzed.

“Uh… Fujisaki?”

“Ah, um… just… time out, please?”

“Oh, uh, sure.”

Fujisaki, clearly flustered, was darting her eyes around in visible confusion, asking for a timeout.

Not that I was any less bewildered.
Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d run into Fujisaki while working at a job my mom recommended. And on top of that, I certainly didn’t expect her home to be this messy.

This can’t be a mistake, can it?

I stole another glance at the chaotic scene behind her—an overwhelming mess spilling into the hallway. It didn’t seem like I was imagining things.

Noticing my gaze, Fujisaki’s panic visibly escalated.

“Uh, um… what do I do? Wait, just wait a second… ah!”

“Y-yeah…”

She stumbled and tripped over the scattered items as she tried to move around, frantically attempting to fix things. Meanwhile, I stood awkwardly at the half-open door, watching her.

However, the more she moved, the worse the mess became. It was almost impressive how things seemed to spread even further.

“Fujisaki, it looks like it’s getting messier. Maybe take a breather for now?”

“…Okay.”

“For the record, I came here for housework. Cleaning and tidying up—does that sound familiar?”

Trying to calm her down before things spiraled further, I asked for confirmation about the job I was here to do.

I’d already seen enough to guess the answer, but just in case, I needed to be sure. Perhaps she wanted help cooking instead, leaving the mess as it was? Though judging by her current panic, that seemed unlikely.

Fujisaki nodded hesitantly, her face flushed with embarrassment.

I let out a small sigh of relief. At least she wasn’t asking me to whip up a meal in the middle of this chaos.

“For now… can I come in?”

“…Yes.”

“Alright then. Excuse me.”

Stepping inside, I couldn’t help but marvel at how life has a way of throwing curveballs. Who would’ve thought I’d find myself entering the home of a classmate—much less like this?

…Ah, I just stepped on something. My bad.

***

As Fujisaki clumsily navigated around the scattered items on the floor, we eventually made our way to the living room. I was left speechless by what I saw.

Fujisaki, muttering “Don’t look, don’t look…” seemed embarrassed, but honestly, I would have preferred to pretend I didn’t see any of it either.

It was impressive, really. Who knew that flooring could be so completely obscured?

The only area that could be considered relatively safe was around the couch—though calling it “safe” would be a stretch.

Here, we would have to come up with a plan for what to do next…

(So, what should I do here…?)

Before diving into the cleaning process, I needed Fujisaki to help me sort through things. That is, I wanted her to distinguish between what she actually needed and what could be thrown away.

After all, even though something may seem like trash to me, it might hold value for her.

Also, there were things I definitely shouldn’t see. Clothing, mostly, was scattered around, and I could easily make out what seemed to be some undergarments here and there.

She probably wouldn’t want a guy like me seeing those kinds of things, let alone touching them. So, while I wanted to be considerate, it was a bit tricky…

The worry was whether asking Fujisaki to do the sorting would make the situation worse. I didn’t want her to make it even messier.

And considering the dust in the air, I was concerned it could get even worse.

“Hmmm…”

“…I’m sorry. It’s just so bad that I can’t even figure out where to start…”

“Well, I think we should at least start by clearing some space to walk, but, um… there are probably things that you, as a woman, wouldn’t want a guy like me to see. I’m just saying…”

I tried to phrase it gently, but deep down, I was pretty sure of what I had seen.

Because I could see it.

I didn’t want to look too hard, but there were things scattered around that were impossible not to notice.

And then there was the issue of laundry.

When my mom taught me how to do housework, she even made sure to show me how to wash women’s underwear—more out of curiosity, but I can manage. Still, if possible, I’d rather Fujisaki handle those more delicate tasks on her own.

But at the same time, I didn’t want to make things worse while looking for laundry.

This situation was becoming a real dilemma…

“Uhhh… yeah, there might be some underwear around… But, honestly, if you let me handle it, it would probably get worse.”

Well, that wasn’t much of a brag.

But at least she had the self-awareness to acknowledge it.

***

“What do you usually do?”

“Usually… when things get bad, my mom helps out, but she’s been busy and couldn’t come. She told me if it got to the point where I couldn’t manage, I should use a housekeeping service. But, suddenly, I found someone to help, so I asked you…”

“So, that’s where I come in.”

“Yeah. I didn’t expect a man to come, so I was really surprised.”

Well, that’s understandable.

If she’d known a guy was coming, she probably wouldn’t have left her underwear lying around.

…Although, even if she had known, I’m not sure if Fujisaki would have been able to tidy up in time.

“So, what do you want to do? Do you want to clean up the things you don’t want me to touch, or do you want to leave it all to me? I’m here to do a job, and I’m getting paid, so even if you leave everything to me, I’ll still do it. The question is whether you’re okay with it.”

“Uwaaa… it’s embarrassing, but please help.”

“Got it. I’ll get started right away. It might get a little dusty, so you might want to put on a mask.”

“Yeah… a mask… uh, where did I put it?”

Considering the situation, dust was definitely going to be kicked up.

I recommended the mask out of consideration, but if her searching for one caused more chaos, that would be a hassle.

Alright, I’ll just give her one of mine. But please, don’t move around too much.

Seriously.

I’m begging you.

***

So, the task of restoring the ruined living room began… and unsurprisingly, my mental state was already being worn down quite quickly.

Clothes, trash, underwear, trash, super cute clothes, trash, underwear, underwear, magazines all bent and crumpled, some really provocative-looking underwear.

As I picked up the scattered items and started sorting them…

“Uh, Fujisaki-san? Isn’t it a bit much to leave your clothes scattered around like this?”

But, well, it is what it is.

Even though I’m trying not to look, I have to look in order to pick things up.

I’m not exactly lacking in tolerance, but when I realize these things belong to a beautiful classmate, it’s hard not to be aware of it…

No, no, this is work. I have to do my job promptly, without thinking about anything weird…

Every time I dug up some underwear, it felt a bit awkward, but I managed to continue with the task.

Then, out of nowhere, I noticed Fujisaki puffing her cheeks out and glaring at me.

I happened to make eye contact just as I picked up a piece of underwear, and it became extremely uncomfortable.

“Uh, Fujisaki-san?”

“You’ve been holding it like it’s trash… Do you not have any interest in girls’ underwear?”

“Eh?”

She asked shyly, averting her eyes, clearly displeased with how I was handling it.

Apparently, she didn’t like the way I was picking it up.

It wasn’t that I found it dirty—it was just that I was trying to minimize how much of it I touched, so I picked it up with two fingers.

Honestly, if I had grabbed it all aggressively, it would have been way worse, right?

But now, what should I say?

She’s asking if I’m interested or not, so the answer is either yes or no… but honestly, either answer feels risky.

“That one’s my favorite. I’ve been looking for it for a while.”

“…I see.”

“So, what do you think? Do you think it’s cute?”

“…Don’t ask me.”

“You’re embarrassed. I knew it. Your body’s honest, isn’t it?”

…That’s true.

Hearing her say, “I’ve been looking for it for a while,” made me wonder how long this underwear has been left around, and a chill ran down my spine…

Yeah, as you said, the body is honest.