Chapter 2

Parsed with an automated reader. The content accuracy is not guranteed.

TL: Single TL Translations

Chapter 2

I walked as though I was being pulled. She gently pulled and supported me, so while I was unsteady, I somehow managed to walk. As we walked on the road, she worriedly glanced at me from time to time and while that made me feel really apologetic, I couldn’t do anything about it anymore. She was the only one I could rely on right now.

“We’re almost there, so please hang in there.”

“Ah, yeah, thanks. I’m really sorry. Oh, by the way, what’s your name? I’m Yuki, Yuki Haneyama. While it’s a little late, nice to meet you.”

“Ah, you’re right, we did forget about that. Fufu, I’m Aoi Sera. Please call me Aoi, Yuki-san*”

*-san is an honorific in Japanese, and is just added to someone’s name to be polite since calling someone without honorifics usually signifies closeness between one another.

“Aoi, alright, also you don’t need the honorific, let’s also drop the respectful speech, I mean we seem close in age anyways. Besides we’re not strangers anymore. I sound a bit shameless, but just give me a break for today…”

She, for some reason, looked at me blankly and froze. After she was surprised, her expression changed into one of delight and then, while smiling, replied with a yes. She really is beautiful. Just by smiling, Aoi is very beautiful and cute, she’s very attractive. I noticed while walking with her, but her style is also great. Even though she looks delicate, her height is a little on the taller side making her look just like a flower on top of a hill*; so bright.

*高嶺の花 (takane no hana) is a Japanese idiom used to describe a girl who’s unreachable or a girl who’s out of one’s league. It literally translates to a flower on top of a hill

“You’re… really cute.”

It seems like what I said out loud caused Aoi to feel shy and embarrassed. Aoi was a bit surprised and then said somewhat quickly.

“W-What? What did you say all of the sudden?”

“Huh, I mean you’re very beautiful and you look cute when you smile.”

“…I’ll get embarrassed so don’t say that.”

I don’t know if Aoi faced forward because she wanted to hide her embarrassment, but it made me grin. She does have a cute side.

“C’mon now, aren’t you told that by a lot of people? Rather, Aoi, do you not have a boyfriend?”

“I don’t have… something like a boyfriend.”

“What?? Even though you’re so beautiful? You probably have so much to choose from, or maybe your standards are just too high…?”

She was shocked for a moment, but then gently pulled my arm to go to the entrance of the apartment. While I was thinking about how I shouldn’t have said that just now, Aoi let go of my arm for a moment and then took out her key. As I was admiring the splendid and beautiful apartment, she says in a slightly stronger tone

“It’s not like that… It’s just that I’ll only go out with the person I really like.”

While thinking that something probably happened, she opened the door with the key and started pulling my arm towards the elevator and then pressed the button. Compared to how it sounds like, her movements were really gentle making me feel and experience how much of a kind person she is.

“Even though you’re cute, gentle and kind, Aoi.”

“?!”

I intended for that to be a compliment, but she had an angry, embarrassed, surprised or some other expression I wasn’t sure about and then angrily said you drank too much! I pleasantly laughed as she really had an abundance of emotional expressions and this time, she started getting embarrassed and then told me I’m laughing too much.

“Here, drink some water.”

Her house was on the bigger side for living alone and the rooms were clean and tidy without many belongings. Even though it was simple, she also placed stuffed animals in different places making me think she’s girly. While I was admiring the place, Aoi, who let me sit on the bed, brought me a glass of water.

“Thanks. …Sorry, I’m really drowsy right now.”

I gave her back the water I drank.

“Hm, it’s okay. Alright, before you lay down, take off your coat, okay? I’ll hang it.”

“Mm, thanks.”

When I slowly took off my coat, Aoi laughed and then hung it on a hangar. She really does a lot of things.

“Ah, your face, do you want to remove your make-up? I have a sheet of make-up remover if you want.”

“Mm…I wanna take it off…”

“Fufu, wait a moment.”

Aoi gave me the sheet when my eyes were heavy and I was nodding off. She giggled near me, but I was too tired to care about that.

“Yuki? Come on, wipe your face with that.”

“Mm… I can’t, Aoi, can you do it for me…?”

“Eh? Geez, really, this drunkard.”

After saying it can’t be helped, she gently wiped my face using the sheet. She also laid me down and covered me with the bed sheet. She really did anything and everything, I felt nothing but gratitude towards her. She really is such a kind person.

“Hurry and sleep, okay? If you feel sick, just call for me, alright?”

“Yeah… Thanks… I’m really sorry.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

I slept the moment after I apologized. I think Aoi said something, but my drowsiness was at its limit.

The next day, I woke up to the creak of a bed. It was the sound of Aoi getting out of the bed and when I opened my eyes a little, I saw Aoi stand up. I was a little annoyed at this body of mine that can sleep anywhere but is sensitive to sound.

“Aoi?”

“Hm? Sorry, did I wake you up? You can go back to sleep. Today’s Sunday so you don’t have work, right? …or do you?”

“No, I don’t, but…I’ll wake up, I feel bad.”

When I got up and rubbed my eyes, I was told to take a shower and so I took a hot shower. Fortunately, while I had a heartburn from the hangover, I didn’t have a headache. Rather than thinking about that, I have to do something as thanks for everything she did yesterday. Even though she said that yesterday, I won’t feel good unless I reimburse her for the towel. While I thought I needed to ask her about it later, I finished taking a shower, wiped my body with the towel Aoi prepared, and dried my hair with a hair dryer.

When I went to the living room, a good smell wafted throughout the room. Aoi glanced at me while heating the pot. She looks cute and pretty, a beautiful person, even without make-up. To be looked after by such a person, I started to worry about how much I should give her. Aoi then smiled at me.

“Are you okay? Do you feel refreshed?”

“Yeah, really, thanks for everything. I’m so thankful to the point that I don’t know what to say.”

“Fufu, you’re overexaggerating. I have leftover minestrone from yesterday, but do you want to eat it?”

“Minestrone?”

I slowly walked towards Aoi and peeked at the pot which had the food I’ve never heard of before. It looked like a very delicious looking tomato soup containing lots of vegetables. My heartburn is strong, but I’m hungry. If it’s this, I think I can eat it.

“Wow, it looks amazing! I’ll eat it! Aoi, you’re good at cooking.”

“Okay. I’ve always liked cooking, come on sit over there. Do you want to eat some bread too?”

“Yeah! I’ll eat anything!”

“Okay, okay.”

There was a chair next to the small table and soon after I sat down, minestrone, a small salad, bread, and jam was put on the table. While I cook for myself, I don’t cook actual, full-fledged meals, so this was an amazing sight to me.

“Thanks, Aoi, really, thank you. I really mean it.”

“You keep saying thank you. Let’s eat, okay?”

“Yeah, itadakimasu*.”

*いただきます (itadakimasu) the supposed literal translation means “ I am going to receive the lives of animals and plants for my own life.” (I’m think? Idk I googled this part) In Japan, it’s said before eating.

Aoi started to eat after shyly saying itadakimasu. I continued eating, it was really delicious. I had a heartburn, but I was hungry, and it was easy on the stomach. While I kept saying it was delicious, I finished eating. Every time I said it’s delicious, Aoi smiled embarrassedly and seemed happy, I thought that seeing such a cute girl happy is a blessing and though it was a carefree thought, it was just right. I then told her about the main issue at hand.

“Hey, Aoi, I want to thank you for what you did yesterday and today but is there something you want to eat or something you want, anything’s fine. Money works too.”

“Hm? You don’t need to do that. Rather, I plan on returning the 1000 yen you gave me yesterday.”

She started to go through her wallet as though she just remembered what she planned on doing, so I quickly stopped her. This is the one thing I won’t allow.

“You can’t! That’s less than 10 percent of the thanks I plan to repay you with, and it also includes the nuisance money for throwing up yesterday. I mean I’ll buy you a new towel, I’m really sorry about yesterday, and I feel guilty for how much trouble I caused you…”

I had so much I wanted to talk about so I rapidly spoke in succession about everything. I might have said the same thing as her if I was in her position, but that’s not allowed right now. After she keenly listened, Aoi groaned a little while thinking and then said softly and with difficulty

“Then, can… you be my… friend?”

“Huh, friend?”

Huh? What? Friend? I couldn’t comprehend the unexpected suggestion. Will becoming her friend be a thank you? Not just that, I’m just a drunkard that was on the side of the road. Why? And becoming friends, aren’t we already…

“Um, if you don’t want to… it’s completely fine… it’s just been a long time since someone stayed the night and ate together with me… it was pretty fun, so…”

Aoi became despondent and lowered her gaze. I unconsciously panicked at the sight of her depressed expression. I thought there would be a lot of people who would do such things because she’s very beautiful and cute, I wonder what she means by that.

“Sorry, sorry! I don’t not want too! I thought I was already friends with Aoi so I just wondered if that would be considered a thank you.”

“… Really?!”

I raised and vigorously nodded my head at the girl who seemed overjoyed.

“Huh? Yeah, really. Rather, I stayed at your house and ate together with you so wouldn’t it be weird to call us strangers and it’s hard to call us acquaintances too, so aren’t we friends? We don’t really know much about each other, though.”

“Is that so, I guess that’s right. …Yeah, okay.”

“?”

She seems to be nodding happily so I guess everything’s fine? Aoi’s frequently changing expression is really charming. To think she doesn’t have a boyfriend, what in the world are the guys in the world doing.

“Then, …since we became friends, … I want to get along and eat delicious food together. I also want to… go out and do a lot of stuff too. And I also want you… to stay the night again. I want what I just said to be the thank you repayment. …Can it?”

I almost laughed at Aoi’s embarrassed figure since it was so cute. Contrary to her beautiful appearance, I thought she seemed a little young, so I reached out and stroked her head. Aoi was a bit surprised but let me stroke her head while she was a little embarrassed yet happy.

“You really are cute. Alright. Let’s do all of it! I’ve recently only been drinking on my days off and I’ve been thinking of refraining from it a little. Hm, let’s start with eating something good, I wonder what’s good.”

“Yeah! But, don’t drink too much, okay?”

“It’s fine. I’m reflecting on myself quite a bit right now.”

We then talked about what we were going to do, where we were going, and then exchanged our contact information. Aoi happily looked at her phone and said that she’ll contact me soon. However, when I tried to go home, because I felt bad staying for too long, she sadly lowered her eyebrows. She looked cute so I stroked her head again. Aoi seems to like being stroked, because as soon as I stroked her head, she became silent and looked very happy.

She’s as cute as a pet animal and heals me, I was impressed about how I managed to meet such a good and cute person by chance. I gently stroked her head telling her that I’ll contact her when I’m home, she replied saying okay. She dejectedly told me to contact her after I reluctantly took my hand off her head.

Prev / TOC / Next

Like this:Like Loading...

Related