"This should do."
I was in the nearby supermarket, buying ingredients for my dinner.
A supermarket basket hung from my arm, and inside it sat a daikon radish and some tofu, as well as a package of chicken thighs and a carton of milk.
I brushed past the sweets and began searching for the condiments on display in the next aisle. I was just about to put the soy sauce in the basket when I heard a familiar voice call out to me.
"Hello, Ichinose-san"
"Hello, Koyanagi-san. You are here to shop for your dinner as well?"
"Yes."
She looked at me curiously and asked.
"How are you feeling now?"
"I am alright. I feel a lot better now. And thank you for helping me get home the other day."
Saying that I slightly bowed to her.
"Ah. No. It's nothing to thank me for. I will always be around to help you."
With that, she gave me a playful smile.
"Oh, Ichinose-san. How are you doing?"
Another familiar face asked me. He was the twin brother of Koyanagi-san.
"I'm feeling good now. Thank you for your concern."
I was feeling a lot better. All thanks to him.
He had nursed me when I was sick. He had prepared a meal for me and shown concern for me. Though he didn't admit it saying that it was only because of her guilt.
In my life till now, no one else had done so much for me. Not even my own family members had done that for me. Without realizing it, I was smiling.
"What's wrong, Ichinose-san?"
"Oh, nothing. I'm done with my shopping so I will head out now."
I replied to him and went to the counter to pay for the ingredients. While the staff was calculating the bill, a certain thought crossed my mind.
When I was unconscious, he had undressed me and wiped my body. He had also changed my dress himself.
"That means he saw me naked, didn't he?"
My face went bright red. I could feel my body getting hot. He saw me naked, full naked!!
He said he didn't do anything, right? But what if he had done something? He was a boy after all. So, it's possible that he did something to me.
No, no, no, no.
I shook my head forcefully and tried to convince myself that he didn't do anything.
After getting out of the store, I was heading towards my apartment. That's when I saw him. He was sitting on the bench with his eyes closed, the wind ruffling his hair.
I went towards him and greeted him.
"Oh. Hello there, Kobayashi-kun."
At that, he slowly opened his eyes and looked at me. He didn't say anything but just kept looking at me. I was feeling a bit awkward so I decided to follow up with something that I had already decided to ask.
"What are you doing here, all alone?"
"Just enjoying the night."
I hadn't seen him interact with others often. But whenever I tried to speak, he always kept the conversation short. Again a heavy silence loomed.
I suddenly thought of asking him something that I had tried to ask in the morning as well.
"Um…"
"Yes?"
I was feeling a bit embarrassed. But somehow I mustered up my courage and asked him.
"Do you have any dinner plans?"
"I have already had my dinner."
"Huh?!"
When he said that I couldn't help but shriek. I was utterly disappointed. I had tried to ask him to have a meal with me together in the morning as a way of thanking him for his care when I was sick. But I couldn't say anything. When I finally mustered up my courage, it was for naught.
"Why the hell did I not ask him before going to the supermarket? I could have made him cancel his dinner plans and we could have eaten our dinner together."
That was the thought, that was going through my mind and I was frustrated that had missed my chance to have dinner with him. I even clicked my tongue without realizing it.
"Is that so?" I had nothing more than that to say now.
Frustrated with myself I quickened my steps and headed towards my apartment.
After finishing my meal, I thought of going out on the balcony. I turned left to see if the person I was expecting was there. But he wasn't.
"Hasn't he returned yet?"
I went outside and looked around the park. I spotted him on the same bench. I decided to go to him.
When I approached closer, I noticed that he was sleeping. With his head rested on the bench, he was sound asleep. The image of his hair ruffling due to wind seemed alluring and my heart started beating faster. It had been just about three days that I had met him, but I felt comfortable around him.
Suddenly another thought crossed my mind.
"He saw me naked, didn't he? So, I have the right to take revenge on him. Otherwise, it would be unfair."
Clenching my fists in determination I sat down beside him. At first, I thought of giving him a lap pillow but that would be too much. Yeah, too much for 'me'.
So, I settled on my shoulder. I slowly raised his head and placed it gently on my shoulders. I could hear his soft breath from up close.
I looked at him. I slowly raised my hand and poked his cheek with my index finger. A soft sound escaped from his mouth but he showed no signs of waking up. I poked him again and again. For some reason, I was feeling excited and my heart was pounding faster and faster.
After about an hour, he slowly opened his eyes. He slowly raised his head and looked around and finally, his eyes landed on me.
Upon that his eyes widened. He reflexively jumped back and landed on his butt.
"Why the hell are you here?!"
He cried. It seemed he was flustered a bit. I suddenly felt an urge to tease him.
"Did you sleep well?"
"Oye. Don't dodge the question. I'm asking why the hell are you here? And what were you thinking doing that, huh?!"
I didn't reply but just kept looking at him acting flustered.
He shook his head right to left and left to right in quick succession probably looking around if anyone saw him. Seeing that there was no one around he heaved a sigh of relief and finally looked towards me.
"I was just loitering around the park when I saw you sleeping here with your head resting on the hard bench. Since I thought that your head will hurt if you continued resting your head at the hard surface, I lent you my shoulder."
He was still there, sitting dumbfounded which made me want to tease him a bit more. I slowly raised my hand over my wide open mouth and widened my eyes as if in surprise and continued.
"Don't tell me that you wanted a lap pillow! I'm not that shameless, you know."
"Tch."
I could hear him click his tongue. He was still a bit embarrassed. He quickly stood up and without even sparing me a glance he rushed towards the apartment.
I watched him till his back disappeared in the lobby.
I slowly raised my both legs and sat on the bench tightly hugging my knees.
"I managed to pull that."
I had wanted to take revenge on him for seeing me naked. I wanted to make him embarrassed and I had succeeded in that. However…..
I buried my face in my knees and slowly muttered to myself.
"I think I was more embarrassed than him."
This was my first time doing something like this. I had never thought that I would ever do something like this, not to mention to someone of the opposite sex.
But I did something like that to him even without a second thought. I felt a bit comfortable around him.
And I knew that he had something in common with me. I had realized that the moment I first met him.