Chapter 20

At my house, Ms. Rulia has come over.

There, the twin high school girls, Nanako and Akari, bump into her.

About 30 minutes later.

...We were having dinner in the living room.

"Delicious! Too delicious! I've never had such delicious hamburgers!"

Rulia's eyes sparkled as she took a big bite of the hamburger Akari had made.

"Hehe, how is it?"

"Damn... What is this? Beautiful and on top of that, a great cook...!"

Akari puffed out her chest.

By the way, she was sitting next to me.

Rulia and Nanako were sitting opposite us.

"This is... unfair! To be able to eat such delicious food every day... It's like you've already captured Okarin's heart!"

"Hehehe~. Did you notice, Rulia? Yes, my plan is to provide delicious meals every day and make Okarin unable to live without my cooking."

"Damn...! I'm so frustrated...!"

"But it's delicious, right?"

"Grrrrrrr!"

...Let me tell you what happened after that.

I explained the situation to Ms. Rulia in a nutshell.

A former student suddenly visited my house one day.

They seemed to be in some kind of trouble, and I was taking care of them as an old acquaintance.

I made sure to clear up any misunderstandings, assuring her that nothing inappropriate was happening.

After that, Akari and the others took Rulia to another room.

"We're going to have a secret girls' talk." "Okay..."

The twins left with Rulia for about five minutes.

And when they returned, they seemed to have reconciled a little.

By then, it was past 7 PM, so we decided to have dinner.

"Rulia, don't you cook?"

Akari brought another hamburger and placed it in front of Nanako.

The older sister was happily eating her third hamburger.

"Yeah. I'm not good at cooking..."

"Mmm, mmm, mmm! Mmmmm!"

"Onee, you shouldn't talk with your mouth full."

Akari sighed and wiped around Nanako's mouth.

"...I'm not good at cooking either, Rulia-chan. We're in the same boat~♡"

Nanako smiled warmly.

"Comrade..."

Rulia stared at Nanako intently.

"Um... Yes, Nanako is a comrade!"

Rulia smiled back at her sister.

Since the "secret girls' talk," Rulia's wariness of the twins seemed to have lessened.

"Hey, hey, what about me?"

Akari raised her hand.

Rulia glared at her and said,

"You... are a formidable opponent."

"Hmm? What do you mean?"

"Currently, you are the biggest threat. What with those big breasts, a well-structured face, the ability to care for others, and being a great cook, and living together... Isn't that unfair?"

Rulia pouted in anger, but Akari blushed and looked away.

"Hmm... Thanks for the compliment."

Akari twirled her hair with her finger.

That was her habit when she was flustered.

"N-no, I didn't mean it as a compliment."

Rulia also blushed and looked away.

"...You two are such good friends♡"

"Where are you getting that from!"

"You are good friends."

I watched the three of them interact while eating.

"Okarin, you're being so quiet. What's wrong?"

"No, you guys seem to be having fun. I don't want to interrupt. Besides, you've finally made friends, right, Rulia?"

"F-friends...?"

Rulia stared at the twins.

"Is that not the case? I thought you two were quite close."

Rulia hesitantly asked the two of them.

"W-well... that..."

"?"

"......W-we are..."

Rulia stammered, as if she wanted to confirm something.

"Akari, Nanako. Would you two like to be Rulia's friends?"

"Okarin..."

I know. This girl has been carrying a deep loneliness. I first met Rulia when she was still in her third year of junior high school. Over the past three years, we've had many meetings and conversations.

...From those interactions, I could sense that she didn't have any real friends. The reason... I don't know. She never talked about her friends or school. I once suggested she write a school-themed light novel, but she rejected it.

I thought this was a good opportunity.

Regardless of the form, she had the chance to get to know girls her age deeply.

"Eh? Friends?"

"Wh-what are you talking about?"

The twins looked puzzled.

Rulia pressed her hand to her chest, as if hurt.

"Y-yes, that's right. Someone like me... can't be a... friend..."

"We're already friends, aren't we?"

"......We're already friends, right?"

Rulia was taken aback by their responses.

"......Eh?"

"Eh, no. We're rivals who love the same man, but that's one thing, and this is another, right?"

Akari said, folding her arms behind her head.

On the other hand, Rulia said, confused,

"I don't really understand... but..."

"Well, it's all about feeling. I don't dislike you."

"......I don't dislike you either. Let's be friends, Rulia-chan♡"

Nanako, sitting next to her, reached out her hand.

"......"

Rulia hesitated, unsure whether to take it.

"Okarin... W-what should I do?"

She looked at me anxiously.

This girl is afraid.

Is it really okay to accept the kindness of these two?

"Rulia, just follow your heart."

"Follow my heart?"

"If you reject her hand, I won't criticize your choice. But if you ignore the feelings in your heart... I'll do my best to stop you."

In my 29 years of life, I've never had a day without regret.

Especially, I still regret marrying Misae.

If I hadn't married Misae back then... I might have been happier.

I often think, "If only I had done this back then."

That's how adults think.

But... Rulia is still a child with a future.

I want children to look forward and have hope in their eyes.

"What do you want to do?"

"I... I want friends."

"Then, you know what to do, right?"

Rulia took Nanako's hand.

Nanako smiled and hugged Rulia tightly.

"Rulia-chan, I'm so happy to have a friend."

"Y-yes... I... I'm happy too... Nanako... I'm happy."

Nanako hugged her even tighter.

Rulia's small face was completely buried in Nanako's large chest.

"Good job, Okarin♡"

Akari said with a smile from the side.

"Making friends for a lonely teacher, that's so kind. Is it because it's work?"

"Of course not."

I looked at Nanako and Rulia.

Rulia... wasn't wearing her usual stern expression but had a smile appropriate for her age.

"Adults want to pass on their past failures as lessons to children, without any ulterior motives."

"Hmm..."

Akari looked up at me and hugged my arm.

"Akari?"

"Indeed, marrying that stupid wife might be an unerasable stain on your past. But... Okarin, you can look to the future too."

I was suddenly enlightened.

Right, it's not just children who should look to the future.

"Let's enjoy the present!"

"Right... That's right."

I seemed to have lost sight of myself.

Akari was right; I should also look forward and live in the present.

I can't be backward-looking forever.

"Akari... thank you."

"Huh? U-um... What's wrong, Okarin? Did I do something?"

"No..."

This girl has a talent for unconsciously cheering people up.

Just being with her makes me feel better.

That's why I'm always grateful.

"I just thought you'd make a good wife in the future."

"O-oh! So, so, finally! Will you marry Akari?"

"Don't get ahead of yourself. That's not what I meant."

"Of course not~"

I poked Akari's forehead.

She smiled happily and hugged my arm.

I felt her warm, soft touch and the sweet scent of a woman, which was beyond her age.

"AAAAAAA!"

Nanako and Rulia shouted loudly.

They stood up and forcibly pulled Akari away from me.

"You! That's cheating!"

Rulia raised her voice.

"Cheating? Sounds like a period drama. Haha, that's funny."

"Cheating... It's not fair!"

Nanako puffed out her cheeks childishly.

"Rulia-chan, Akari is a bit touchy. She'll grab you if you're not careful."

"Interesting, very useful information. Thanks, Nanako."

"Hey, you two seem to get along well. How about being friends with me too?"

Akari grinned and reached out her hand to Rulia.

Like she did with her sister, she wanted to shake hands with her.

"Hmph!"

Rulia turned away but... she took the offered hand and squeezed it.

"Rulia is not very honest, huh?"

"Rulia...?"

"Yeah. Rulia. You can call me Akarin. But you can't call Okarin 'Okarin.' That's a privilege of being a couple."

"W-who's a couple! You're still under Okarin's protection!"

"Maybe not. We might already be married without you knowing~"

Rulia blushed and trembled as she was teased by Akari.

"...Akari, teasing Rulia-chan... is mean."

Nanako hugged Rulia and scolded her sister.

"Don't forget, Rulia is older than us."

"......I didn't forget."

"You did."

Akari chuckled.

Nanako, on the other hand, said apologetically,

"Sorry... Rulia-chan."

"No... It's okay. This distance... feels comfortable."

Rulia looked at me and smiled like a flower blooming.

"Okarin... thank you."

Her expression, which had always been hard and shadowed, now seemed to have a light shining through.

"Thanks to you... I've made a friend. I'm grateful. ...I love you."

Rulia blushed and said to me.

As a person and an adult, I was glad she trusted me.

"Yes, that's great."

"Ugh... It's not getting through..."

For some reason, Rulia seemed to be discouraged.

"Rulia, don't be discouraged. The adult sees us as just kids, so it's totally fine."

"From now on, we'll attack aggressively and break down the teacher's defenses. Let's do our best, Rulia-chan!"

Rulia nodded at the two of them.

"Let's do our best. We are not enemies but comrades!"

And so, the assigned author made a friend.

If I could do my job as an editor and an adult... I was happy.