Chapter 18: Good grief

When Daikichi Sakoda explained everything, the zoo staff willingly provided female staff work clothes and access to the changing room.

Before he knew it, it was already quite late, the sunset was visible, and Hanakumori Sakurazaki had said, “I want you to take me home,” so Daikichi agreed to see her off.

“It’s apartment 202 in that building… It looks a bit rundown, but I know Daichan-senpai won’t make fun of that… Do you want to go in?”

Sakurazaki, fidgeting and peering at Daikichi’s expression, asked hesitantly. It seemed as if she was suggesting something like, “Since you drove me, how about a drink?”—but Daikichi had already noticed that every room on the floor marked with “20” (i.e., on the second floor) had its lights on.

In short, Sakurazaki’s family was home.
And that was a problem.
Daikichi had concluded that it would be unacceptable for a strange boy he’d never seen or heard of to casually walk into a house with her, saying something like “hello.”

“The lights are on, so her parents must be there, right?”
“Eh? Ah, yeah, it seems they are.”
“If a stranger like me shows up at this hour saying ‘Sorry to intrude,’ they’d be shocked. It would turn into a big deal.”

“Well… at this time, her father is probably out on a night shift, so maybe only her mother is home, and that should be okay.”
“How is that okay? Even if it’s just one, the fact remains: her parents are here.”
“Besides, she’s already told her mother about Daichan-senpai…”

“Huh?”
“At school, there’s a senpai who always watches me, and she said he doesn’t seem like a bad person… and then she said, ‘It’s not about youth. It’s fine, isn’t it? If it’s a student from that school, go for it!'”

That was a situation Daikichi had never imagined.
A cold sweat broke out on him.
But looking at it objectively, he realized it wasn’t all that strange.

Daikichi’s school was made up of twenty percent scholarship students and eighty percent from upper-class families. In other words, scholarship students had potential, and even the others came from well-to-do families.
Basically, whether it was family wealth, social status, or personal ability, there was no doubt that these students were in a good position.

Of course, even the best qualities can’t excuse extremely poor character—and warnings might be issued in that case… Yet, considering Sakurazaki’s usual personality, it wasn’t hard to imagine her saying only nice things.
A daughter who spent all her time studying, pure and unversed in romance, expressing interest in a particular guy and saying, “I think he’s a good person” could easily be believed.

Judging by the way Sakurazaki spoke, at least regarding her mother, it seemed that she was giving her a gentle push because she believed her daughter’s chances of long-term happiness were high.
However, one part was missing from this conversation.

Daikichi’s feelings.
It was only now that Daikichi had managed to take one step forward. He didn’t have the luxury to suddenly consider a relationship.
He had only resolved to stop avoiding Sakurazaki.

With that in mind, Daikichi politely declined.

“No, it’s too late now. We should probably skip this—it’s already late.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, well, maybe another time.”
“I see. Another time… so today isn’t the last, huh?”

Whether that time would come or not was up to Daikichi alone—only he knew. Though reluctant to tell Sakurazaki that, he saw her off as she entered her home, and then he headed back.

When Daikichi returned to his apartment building, he happened to run into Sachiko and Eleanor in the common corridor, seemingly arriving home at the same time.
As he moved to greet them, the atmosphere felt oddly heavy, and he found himself stopping in his tracks.

“Sachiko… I’m angry, you know?”

Eleanor furrowed her brows and narrowed her eyes, glaring at Sachiko with obvious anger.

“Mama… don’t come in like that…”

Sachiko trembled with fear, covering her head with both hands. Her shaking face hinted that something serious had happened. From the snippets of conversation Daikichi had overheard, he had a rough idea of whether Sachiko had done or said something to earn Eleanor’s scolding.

Normally, Daikichi would be the one to throw her a lifeline, but today—after everything with Sakurazaki—he was rather exhausted and just wanted to get some rest. He tiptoed toward the entrance, careful not to be caught in the middle of their quarrel.

But then, suddenly, he met Sachiko’s eyes.

“Gah!”
“Daikichi! Daikichi, help me!”

Sachiko, tears glistening in her eyes, dashed over and clung to Daikichi’s legs. At the sight, Eleanor’s eyes widened in surprise.

“H-Have you come back, Daikichi?”
“Uh, um, just a moment ago.”
“Daikichi! Daikichi! Mama is bullying me!”

Even though Daikichi knew Sachiko was exaggerating, with her clinging to him like that, he had no choice but to help.

Daikichi was especially kind to Sachiko because, over the years, he had come to understand that she had no one but Eleanor for a parent. Usually, when something goes wrong with one parent, the other can step in to mediate. But Sachiko didn’t have that luxury—when Eleanor scolded or disliked her, there was nowhere for her to run and no one to help.

So when Sachiko cried out for help, Daikichi took it upon himself to fill that role.

“According to what Sachiko says… is that really what happened?”
“No, that’s not it! You should know, Daikichi, that Sachiko is at fault too!”
“I understand that Sachiko might have said or done something careless, but still, we need to hear her side…”
“Sachiko bumped into an old man on the train and didn’t apologize!”
“She did apologize! Mama just didn’t see her! The old man said, ‘It’s fine, it’s fine!'”
“Sachiko, you always do foolish things—you might even be lying!”

It appeared that was the case. Eleanor, frustrated by Sachiko’s consistently poor manners, couldn’t bring herself to fully trust her, and her anger was evident.

But Daikichi knew better. Though Sachiko could be cheeky at times, she wasn’t incapable of apologizing or prone to lying. Gently, Daikichi patted the tearful top of Sachiko’s head.

“It’s alright. Sachiko isn’t lying.”
“How do you know that?”
“Not to boast, but I’ve spent more time with Sachiko than anyone else. Even Eleanor, who frequently leaves Sachiko in my care, should know that well enough.”

Silence followed for a moment.

“Sachiko is definitely cheeky and says things like Mama’s boobs are big and all that…”
“Daikichi! Have you betrayed me!?”
“S-Sachiko, is that really what you’re saying?”

“Please, just listen to me until the end. What I said isn’t the important part. Yes, I might say things like that, but I’m not a bad kid.”

Daikichi smiled at Sachiko, though she looked stunned, her eyes wide with disbelief at having her words laid bare. Eleanor bit her lower lip and looked down.

“You’re a good kid. You always say thank you, and even when Mama can’t come pick you up, you say, ‘It’s fine because Mama’s an adult,’ and you never insist that only Mama will do. Just trust that—she’s your adorable daughter.”

With those words, Daikichi’s reassurance moved Eleanor. Her eyes glistening, she approached Sachiko, sat down on the floor, and wrapped her arms around her.

“Sachiko… I’m sorry. Today, Mama had to call it a day because of the upcoming school festival at her work, so you won’t be able to attend your own recital. I thought that if we were together, even just for a little while, I could make up for it…”

Sachiko stared up at Daikichi in shock.

“Mama apologized, even though she doesn’t believe what I say—but she believes everything you say, Daikichi…”
“Isn’t that just the way things have been?”

“I can’t say anything back. And by the way, was it really necessary to bring up that Mama’s boobs are big?”
“That’s a fact, isn’t it? And besides, it’s part of saying that even a kid like Sachiko is a good kid.”