Chapter 13: A Childhood Friend Who Knows Nothing

A Childhood Friend Who Knows Nothing

Just as I was planning to blow up Tomohiro-kun's self-esteem, I arrived at his house. Coincidentally, I said hello to the neighbor mom who was about to go shopping, and decided to drop off my bags and follow her. Tomohiro-kun, who should be accompanying her rather than me, seems to be waiting at home because I said I was going. It's so cute and adolescent.

"Thank you for always looking out for Tomohiro. He really loves Hikari-chan, and he talks about you so much that it's like he doesn't have any other friends."

The sad state of Tomohiro-kun at home is revealed in a brutally blunt way. It's an undeniable fact that I'm the only friend Tomohiro-kun has.

Neighbor mom, your son is a loner.

I couldn't bring myself to say that, so I told her that he seems to be having fun at school.

Of course, I'm not lying; he enjoys reading books by himself and worrying about his homework. He's so cute.

The mom next door is convinced that my relationship with Tomohiro-kun is just as normal as before. Well, my attitude hasn't changed, and Tomohiro-kun still gives off an aura of adoration for me, so it's understandable that she'd be so mistaken.

I can't help but feel sympathy and amusement for Tomohiro-kun, whose mother still recounts his childhood promise to marry Hikari-chan, but it's the result of his own actions, so there's nothing I can do about it.

He'll probably want to hide the fact that he's a loner from his family, and it's probably hard for him to talk about his feelings for me.

That's only natural, since I raised him that way.

"Oh yeah, I was just talking to Hotaru-san about it today. There's a funeral at my parents' house and I have to go. Could you please look after my boy in the meantime?"

I want to say it's a bit strange to have a boy and girl of marriageable age (who, from the outside, seem to be in love with each other) spending time together, and generally speaking, it would be a bad idea to ask me to take care of Tomohiro-kun, but I immediately agreed.

I'm happy that there are snacks nearby, and more importantly, Mama said that if she wanted something, she could ask me. I can't let Mama down. I could betray her, but now's not the time.

With this in mind, I ask the neighbor mom about the specific schedule. Hmm, there will be three full days off, with a holiday in between, so I don't have to wake him up in the morning, but she'd like me to mainly supervise his meals.

Thanks to Tomohiro-kun trying so hard to be worthy of me, he does his homework on his own, so it's true that I don't have to do that much as his caretaker.

With that decided, assuming I'm in charge of cooking meals that day, the question is how to allocate Tomohiro-kun's time.

I could have him stay over at my house from the start, or I could be his commuter wife.

Both have their pros and cons, so it's hard to decide between them, but I think we should go with the overnight stay this time. I can't just focus on Tomohiro-kun, after all.

Considering the need to spend time with the family, this would be more appropriate.

Fortunately, our families are close, so I don't think Dad would object if Tomohiro-kun were the one staying over.

In fact, until recently Dad only saw Tomohiro-kun as a future son-in-law. I haven't seen him much recently, so I don't know for sure.

Since we were going to have to change the dinner menu anyway, I finished my shopping and asked her to make sure Tomohiro was informed.

Afterwards, I returned home and talked to Mama, and it seemed that the two of them had planned for me to be a commuter wife to give the two youngsters some time alone.

I wonder what their ideas about chastity are.

Do they trust me? I'll just leave it at that.

It might be better than being told: "Do whatever you want, but remember to use contraception".

Well, at least I have no intention of doing anything like that. It's not because of chastity or my true gender, but the value of my first experience still has the potential to increase in the future. It would be a shame to lose it like this. Besides, Tomohiro-kun probably wouldn't have the nerve to make a move on me.

Mama asked me if I was really glad that we didn't take the commuter wife course, so I told her it was too early for me, and she smiled and said, "Too early, huh?"  

If I end the conversation with a slightly angry look on my face, my perfect, self-conscious beautiful girl move will be over.

She must have thought I was a little suspicious after the revelation over summer vacation, so I need to appeal to her in these small ways that I'm a normal girl.

What? You're saying normal girls don't collect qualifications? Shut up. Don't use your common sense to talk about normal to me.

To Mama, normal children are me and my little sister. They're both brilliant, so the bar for normality is sky-high.

By the way, if my little sister is also highly talented, then perhaps my talent is genetic after all. Does that mean Mama and Dad have had a go at manipulating my genes?!

No wonder I turned out better than Mama, I realize, and share the dinner plans I've discussed with the neighbor mom. While the neighbor mom has complete knowledge of our arrangements, this is still the Mama's responsibility. It's not something I can decide on my own.

The main dishes for dinner are hamburger steak, curry, and omelet rice. Oh yeah, I'll make a fluffy omelet for Akari. This big sister knows, so it'll be fine. We can just eat leftovers from the previous day in the morning, and make a sandwich for lunch.

After that, I'll check my mental database of food ingredients to ensure nutritional balance, and make salads and soups with the necessary vegetables. I'm glad I learned about nutrition. I'm aiming to be a better mom than Mama. There's no way a sleazy bitch like me could replace Mama.

"Is Hiro-chan coming to play? Akari can't wait for it!"

My little sister, who had been running around listening to my conversation with Mama next to me, understood and was happy that Tomohiro-kun was staying the night.

Maybe because they're similar in mental age, my little sister likes Tomohiro-kun.

Oh, although I said "running around" here, she definitely wasn't making a mess while we were discussing dinner in the living room.

This will affect my little sister's brand image, so I have to be careful not to get the wrong idea.

They're childhood friends, close in mental age, and they know each other really well.

My little sister is the spitting image of Mama, and while not as good as me, she's the type who can do anything with ease, making her a more than adequate bride. Even if she loses her sparkle, she'll still have plenty of good qualities, and if I no longer need Snack-kun by then, I might just arrange for her to be his wife. 

Two people who I've raised won't be a bad match.

While feeling a little sentimental, I imagine that by that time, neither Tomohiro-kun nor my little sister will have any feelings for me anymore, I'm considering this as a possible future. 

After all, providing constant aftercare is also proof of first-class service. In fact, I might just intrude on the love that began with them licking their wounds like this and ruin it all.

... Just thinking about it is getting me pretty excited. I love the moment when a twisted yet irreplaceable love crumbles. 

"You look like you're having fun, Onee-chan. Are you happy because Hiro-chan is coming?"

My little sister said this with a slightly teasing tone. She was probably trying to tease me, assuming I'd denied her words like I did to Mama.

Hehe, Hikari-onee-chan know what you're thinking.

"...Yeah, something like that. It's been so long since Hiro-chan stayed over at our house, so I'm kind of happy."

I can't tell you the truth, like I was starting to get excited thinking about what would happen after I betrayed your expectations and trust, so I just make something that sounds like it, blushing slightly as I look away shyly.

Seeing the feminine side of her beloved big sister means 30 damage to my little sister. It also counts for 50 damage to me, but since I'm just acting, the damage is negated. Hmph! Take that, you little girl!

While losing by decision to Mama-sama, who is recovering from her daughter's bittersweet first love, I feel good about beating the little girl and start making dinner.

Mama-sama is hurt by her daughter, who is better at cooking than she is. This means I've won. By the way, she was happy about it being sweet and sour, but maybe the sour taste is because the ingredient's gone bad. Is that okay? Be careful not to get an upset stomach, okay?

But still, I'm looking forward to the sleepover.

I'm sure there will be lots of fun things waiting, melting and destroying Tomohiro-kun's brain.

Hikari will do her best, for Hiro-chan!

Let's not even consider the fact that Tomohiro-kun, who is struggling with various emotional issues, is probably not happy about being taken care of by me.

You couldn't work in the livestock industry if you had to consider the feelings of livestock.