Ch.201Epilogue. What I Wish For (1)

This is a story from a few days before I learned about Tsuneda’s past.

More precisely, it should be called the catalyst for Kagami starting to sing that “eating out song.”

After I started calling Kagami “mom,” Koko naturally followed my lead and began calling Kagami “mom” too. Kagami seemed incredibly happy during that time. As happy as one could be as a family.

To be completely honest, I still find that title awkward. The only time I actually call Kagami “mom” is when I’m addressing her first. It will probably take a few more months before it feels natural.

Japan and Korea may be countries separated only by a sea, but they have many cultural differences, one of the most notable being the “fiscal year.”

They say it’s the standard for government budgeting and such, but I don’t really understand the exact meaning. What’s important is that most workplaces also follow this “fiscal year.”

Japan’s fiscal year runs from April 1st to March 31st of the following year.

Naturally, school schedules are aligned with this, so school starts in early April, summer vacation begins in August, the second semester ends in late December, followed by a short break, then the third semester, and another short summer break.

For someone like me who was used to having two long vacations a year, this schedule feels a bit strange. It’s as if they’ve split the winter break into two parts.

Additionally, what’s even more peculiar is that there’s another Golden Week holiday in late April. It’s about a week long, and since it comes so soon after spring break ends, it gives a really stretched-out feeling.

Of course, I don’t feel like we get too much time off… holidays are always better when there are more of them.

Strictly speaking, although Saturday and Monday are included, Hanakawa High School chose to just take the entire period off. I’m not sure if this is common at other schools, but the result was that Koko and I had continuous days off from April 29th to May 5th.

“…You’re staying overnight at a friend’s house?”

Surprisingly, it seemed Kagami was planning to enjoy another trip like our previous one during this Golden Week.

When Koko and I told her our plans, Kagami responded with an expression as if she’d lost her country.

“…Yeah.”

Hasn’t it been quite a while since the last time?

Well, from my previous life’s perspective, this would be a bit strange. In my previous life, the first time I stayed overnight at a friend’s house was in college. I suppose when you’re a teenager and your parents are at home, staying at a friend’s house can feel a bit uncomfortable. And vice versa for parents.

I’m not sure if it’s because this world is like a light novel world, or if this is just normal in Japan, but for some reason, I frequently stayed at friends’ houses or had friends stay over at mine.

It was natural since I was living somewhat independently for a while. When you live alone, having friends over is pretty common, right?

The problem is that sometimes my awareness of the situation and my thoughts don’t align.

Seeing Kagami slump down on the floor, I felt a pang of guilt.

That’s right.

Even though I was living with Kagami, I hadn’t considered that she might have made plans.

I was just so used to making my own decisions and acting on them.

“Um… I won’t be staying over the entire holiday.”

“Of course not!”

Kagami exclaimed.

“Shouldn’t families have cozy time together?”

Y-yes, that’s right.

When Koko and I go to school, Kagami is left alone at home.

It might be the fate of a full-time housewife, but unfortunately, Kagami doesn’t have a husband, nor is she part of any local housewives’ network.

Perhaps because she was always alone before? Kagami seems to feel lonelier after considering us as family.

If you never had something to begin with, you wouldn’t know what you’re missing, but once you have it, the empty space feels even larger when it’s gone. Having lived with Koko, I could somewhat empathize.

“…”

After thinking for a moment, I said:

“Then, let’s go out to eat after the holiday ends. A weekday afternoon would be fine too.”

Since I’d likely be with Kagami on weekends anyway, I decided not to include weekends in the negotiation. If I did, Kagami might make that a separate condition the next time I wanted to go out with friends on a weekend.

I wondered if this was appropriate for a mother-daughter relationship, but we were still getting closer, weren’t we? If we didn’t set some frequency for meeting, we might quickly drift apart again.

Hearing my suggestion, Kagami seemed to consider it briefly, then nodded with a serious expression.

“Then, let’s make it four times.”

“…Four times?”

“You’re staying overnight for one day, right?”

Well… that’s true.

I had actually thought about possibly staying another day depending on the situation, but seeing Kagami’s reaction, that didn’t seem like a good idea.

“If we divide one day in half, and offset each half with one meal out, that makes four times.”

Looking at Kagami’s expression, which suggested she was being very generous, I had a lot I wanted to say, but I managed to hold back.

If I opposed her logic now, she might actually try to calculate exact time compensations later.

Besides, I understood her feelings.

“…Alright.”

“Good. It’s a promise.”

I nodded at Kagami’s words.

“Well, I’ll be going then.”

“I’ll be going!”

As I turned to leave,

“Wait!”

I paused at Kagami’s call.

Looking back, I saw Kagami with her arms spread wide, looking at us.

“You should say goodbye to your mom properly.”

She doesn’t forget, does she?

I was hoping she might let it slide a bit, but Kagami clearly had no intention of doing so. Well, she didn’t forget in the morning either.

Koko had already gone to Kagami and wrapped her arms around her waist.

Kagami kept one arm outstretched, as if she would stand there forever until I approached.

As I hesitantly approached, Kagami gently embraced both of us tightly.

“Have a good time.”

That sincere voice made me feel much more embarrassed and ticklish than hugging a friend would.

This is why I can’t get used to it.

I grumbled inwardly.

*

Anyway, the reason Kagami started singing that strange song about “shriveling up if we don’t eat out” was because of that promise.

It’s not like I was trying to forget. I was just so busy with school life that it slipped my mind.

It’s fine since Kagami remembered. We kept the promise in the end.

…Anyway, let’s set that aside for now.

The place I planned to stay overnight was Yuka’s house.

I had considered visiting Yuu as well, but I thought Kagami could come along for that visit.

After all, they are relatives.

I might not be able to bring myself to call Mr. Yamashita “uncle,” but both Yuu and I had quite easily accepted the fact that we’re cousins.

It should be fine for family to visit and chat. They have plenty of rooms anyway. We just need to make arrangements in advance and bring gifts.

On the other hand, bringing Kagami to Yuka’s house seemed completely inappropriate.

I hadn’t even considered staying overnight there with Kagami, and I judged that it would be better for my mental health if Kagami and Yuka’s family didn’t meet.

“Welcome!”

As soon as I rang the doorbell, Yuka opened the door wide as if she had been waiting.

The face Yuka had when dealing with Nirlas was nowhere to be seen now. That’s a good thing. It means there’s no shadow left.

Today she seemed particularly happy.

“Tonight we’re having sukiyaki!”

Sukiyaki.

That was the first meal I had at this house.

Right. Originally, I had no intention of getting close to Yuka.

Somehow we ended up eating together, and somehow I got invited over.

The reason Yuka first invited me wasn’t just because she wanted to feed me. It was because of our “Kokkuri-san” incident at the club.

I was lured by the mention of sukiyaki and came here, and through various circumstances, we’ve become able to smile at each other like this.

And now sukiyaki again.

I’m not sure if Yuka remembered and deliberately chose that menu, or if it’s just something they often eat at home and it happened to coincide.

But I suppose it doesn’t matter.

What’s important is the host’s heart.

“Sukiyaki!”

Koko’s eyes sparkled as she repeated Yuka’s words.

Yuka stepped aside to make room, and we quickly took off our shoes and went inside.

Today’s sleepover wouldn’t be anything special.

We’d have dinner, go up to the room to do some homework, chat about various things while having snacks, and enjoy ourselves late into the night watching movies or playing games.

It would be such an ordinary day that I’d barely remember it after it passed, but that was fine.

That’s what I came here for.

As I headed to the kitchen, smelling the delicious aroma, that’s what I thought.