Chapter 14: The Shuuchirorinium Obtained by Watching a Normally Cool Lolita Writhe in Shame

The Shuuchirorinium obtained by watching a normally Cool Lolita Writhe in Shame

Well, it's finally the day of the long-awaited sleepover.

The preparations are flawless, and I'll show you the perfect hospitality, from good morning to good night, from cradle to grave. And when I say "awaited," I mean, it's only been two days. It's a sleepover due to a sudden funeral. If it had been planned a month in advance, that would be a big deal.

"Hiro-chan, come in! Make yourself at home!"

Tomohiro-kun, who finally arrived, was greeted at the front door. My Mama and little sister were all there, and we all had three identical faces.

I wonder if Tomohiro-kun could tell us apart.

"I've been looking forward to this!" said my little sister with a genuine smile.

It's inconsiderate to enjoy an event that stems from a death, so I'll scold her about it later.

"You can just make this your home, you know," said Mama with a knowing smile.

Tomohiro is at a loss for how to respond, but her intention to bring us together is clear, so two thumbs up!

That's what mom duos are always like. What do they think of us?

"Oh, Mama! Hiro-chan will get all embarrassed if you and Akari talk like that at the same time. Sorry, Hiro-chan. It's been so long since you've stayed over, so these two are getting a little too excited. Come on, come on up."

I puff up at the sight of the two girls, who all look the same, then quickly smiles to cover it up. I'm like a young girl who doesn't want her beloved to see her pouting.

Of course, this young girl, she's doing it on purpose.

As I take Tomohiro-kun's hand and escort him inside, I hear Akari's voice behind me saying, "Onee-chan, you were the one who's looking forward to this the most..."

If I pretend not to hear her and walk on, I'm sure my actions will look adorable.

...Why am I pretending not to hear? Because when I did that, he wouldn't realize that I could hear her.

I hate myself for being so talented... Just kidding! I love me so much! So please don't cry!

When I got to the bathroom, teary-eyed and pretending not to hear, Tomohiro-kun gasped when he saw me in the mirror, and an indescribable expression appeared on his face.

I'm sure the inexplicable elation from seeing me with tears in my eyes, the awkwardness that the person he loved was looking forward to his sleepover, the mysterious guilt, and all the other emotions all mixed together and caused his brain to overflow.

I've ruined Tomohiro-kun's fetish for something trivial again.

His fetishes are always getting ruined. Why doesn't he give up on trying to pretend?

Having just inscribed another wound in Tomohiro-kun's fetish—the Shuuchirorinium he gets from seeing a normally rather cool lolita writhe in shame—I hide my expression and wipe my eyes.

A major blow to Tomohiro-kun's fetish!

Shuuchirorinium will eventually be effective against cancer, so its attack power makes sense.

I'll destroy all living things whose cancer cells it's not effective against.

The only thing I regret is that the only Shuuchirorinium I can produce is the normal type. I can't create secondary Shuuchirorinium from a pointy cool lolita, or tertiary Shuuchirorinium from an expressionless cool lolita. It's just not possible for my characters. So sad.

I hold back the tears that threaten to well up in my eyes again from the renewed sadness, and wash my hands as well.

You're so good for not crying! Hikari, you're a strong girl! 

Faced with the fact that the girl he likes has to wash her hands right after holding his hand, Tomohiro-kun freezes in shock, telling himself that it's not because he's dirty, but because he came from outside. Even though he knows in his head that this isn't the case, his funny side is that he can't help but think negatively. I love him.

After playing an unnecessary prank on Tomohiro-kun, I pull myself together and hold out my hand, now that it's shiny and clear.

Tomohiro-kun is a Yamato Nadeshiko, and I need to escort him, after all.

Contrary to my expectations, Tomohiro-kun heads off to the living room without grabbing my hand. It seems he's embarrassed to touch his cute childhood friend's hand.

So innocent and cute.

Such cute Tomohiro-kun walks ahead of me into the living room. Waiting for us there are Mama and little sister, who had returned while we were washing our hands. 

I'd already given him a full-on welcome, so I offered him the steamed buns while telling him to take his time, but I didn't go overboard with the hospitality. That's my job, after all.

When Tomohiro-kun immediately reached for them, I scolded him, saying, "It's dinner time, so no snacks!" and pouted, "Mama too!" They both looked downcast and said, "Sorry..."

The steamed buns, which had been inviting Tomohiro-kun to eat, also seemed to be feeling a bit lonely. Stop talking, steamed buns!

I desperately wanted to hear the sound of konnyaku balls being pressed against the hot frying pan, but I wasn't using konnyaku balls for dinner, so I gave up. Maybe I should use them for lunch...?

But unfortunately, I don't have any lunch recipes that use konnyaku balls in my repertoire. It's not even in the fridge, anyway.

Giving up, I take out all the vegetables I'll need from the fridge to prepare some light sandwiches.

Seeing me, Tomohiro-kun offers to help, while my little sister raises her hand, shouting, "Akari too!"

It's still second-rate to cloud over the mood by saying, "You guys aren't going to be much use here, are you?"

If you calculate the total clouding, you might get a decent result, but you'll lose too much.

It's a matter of preference, so I can't generalize, but thanking them while poking them about their inferiority complex is just right.

So I ask the other two to tear up the lettuce and mash the boiled eggs, while I skillfully chop the vegetables next to them. I wonder if Tomohiro-kun is worried about me? I wonder if he thinks I can only do such simple things...?

As I thought this, I glanced at him from the side, and he was staring at the rhythmic sound of my knife with a complicated expression.

Tomohiro-kun isn't very good with knives, so he couldn't cut so quickly and accurately. It's okay, I'm a better cook than a stay-at-home Mama!

Hikari, no matter how good you are at cooking, you shouldn't take your eyes off the knife while you're cooking.

After quickly finishing the cooking, I start shaping the sandwiches. I like to use six-slice bread, cut in half. It's better to eat more filling with the same amount of bread. I don't like eight-slice bread, though, because it's hard to cut. I can freeze it first to make it into a rectangular shape, but it's a pain to do that. I don't do it unless I have to.

"Thanks for tearing it into bite-sized pieces!" I praise Tomohiro-kun, and "It's just the right amount of squashed!" I compliment Akari.

My easy-going little sister is delighted, but Tomohiro-kun doesn't seem too pleased, thinking it was just flattery. In fact, he looks as if it would have been quicker if he hadn't helping. 

Correct!

Thinking about such mean things, I try not to make it seem like I really mean it, so I'm definitely first-rate.

Maybe I'm the best at playing the role of a brave, high-spec, beautiful childhood friend.

Poor Tomohiro-kun, who wanted to be helpful and try to help, only to have his sense of incompetence aroused. So cute!

Then the four of us eat lunch together, enjoying the sight of Tomohiro-kun, the only male, looking a little awkward.

He's the only one who's different, not just in gender but in face, too, so he really feels like an outsider. Does Dad always eat in places like this?

By the way, Dad, who's away on a holiday, is having a fun day off work. The neighbor dad, who wasn't even allowed to take care of his son, wasn't abandoned... or rather, he's on a long-term business trip.

The Dads are busy with work, aren't they?

Thanks to them, we live a rich life. The Dads seems happy, too.

Well, I heard Dad has the day off tomorrow, so it should be fine.

Tomohiro-kun seems nervous about saying hello to my Dad. They've known each other for a long time, so it's hard to understand why he's so nervous.

Mama smiles and says, "Daddy was looking forward to meeting you, Hiro-chan," while the boy worries about what kind of face he should make when he meets him.

It's a truly touching story, considering that the boy who once peed on Dad's face while he was changing his diaper was now worried about something like that.

"Don't worry, Daddy's a kind person, so he won't get mad unless you do something really weird. He'd probably get mad if you peed on him again, though."

"No way I would do something like that!" Tomohiro-kun says, and Mama bursts out laughing. 

My Little sister rolls her eyes in confusion at Mama's reaction. 

That's right, you weren't even born yet, so there's no way you could have known. If anything, I'm the weird one, being the same age as Tomohiro-kun and remembering it. 

My little sister was confused, I was looking at her with lukewarm eyes, and Mama was still shaking her shoulders.

Seeing this, Tomohiro-kun said as if it was obvious, "Did I say something so strange? I don't pee on him, right?" and that comment dealt the final blow to Mama.

"You did it, your old self did!"