1
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What is happening right now?
Shouta was once again thrust into an unusual predicament. He sweated a gallon of water off his body as he walked to Sara's flat. His clothing got wet as a result of this.
He was pondering something. Critical thinking is more important now than it has ever been.
Sara showed him a pair of underpants that appeared to be a size larger than his. A stalker may be inside Sara's flat if his thoughts were going down this path. This stalker's underpants was found in Sara's room, which was even more unsettling.
If the individual was planning to assault or do something to Sara, Shouta wasn't prepared for a battle. He isn't built for combat, and he suspects the individual is larger than he is.
If he fails to safeguard Sara, it will leave a gaping hole in his memories. He'd like to erase that memory from his mind.
What would Shouta do if he were to walk into Sara's room? He went inside twice, but it was pitch black and the lights were switched off each time. And whenever Shouta requested Sara to turn it on, or whenever Shouta wanted to turn on the lights, Sara refused.
Was she hiding a guy? Is she….
Don't get the wrong Idea, buddy.
Shouta appeared to be in a state of fear.
Where did he acquire all of these dreadful scenarios in his head? His mother had previously checked his room for an adult magazine or comic and had come up empty-handed. That is, unless she checked his computer, which had two of his favorites.
Shouta has a different taste in otaku culture than other people. His preference is for characters who are younger than he is, rather than those who are his own age. He denies being a lolicon every time his father or mother refers to him as one.
Don't forget, this is the same person that loves his little sister to the bones. Shouta will treasure Mia like a japanese doll.
"—Shouta"
"Hm?"
"Close your eyes first"
"Oh okay, I trust you"
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I don't trust you at all—!!!
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The words Sara spoke to Shouta made him more nervous than before. More so, he began to feel something rising—
"—Shouta"
"Yeah?"
Shouta inadvertently entered Sara's apartment. The apartment was dark, as he had imagined.
Despite the fact that he had only seen her twice, he recalled the room well enough to know where everything was.
—the light switch!
Shouta shifted his body posture in an instant, throwing his arm towards the light switch. As he pressed his fingertips on the switch, a cool breeze blew through his fingers, and the room brightened.
He opened his eyes and was surprised to see a regular messy room.
"…"
This was still suspicious though. Well, at least for Shouta that is. Sara was expressionlessly looking at Shouta, who was "investigating" her room from corner to corner.
The first room he checked was the living room, that was also the dining room and the kitchen.
—It is a small apartment after all. Even though Sara came from a rich family, she was assigned with this small one.
"Shouta, sit down on my bed"
"Uh… uhhh, sure"
Shouta's panic meter was at an all-time high.
He appeared to be peaceful on the surface, but he wasn't. His spirit was undoubtedly yelling at [himself] to quit doing what he was doing.
The bed was really comfortable.
That comfortable bed had no place in a little apartment like the one he was standing in right now.
"—about the underwear…"
Sara said as she stacked the pair on top of her desk.
Shouta observed that her computer was still turned on and that a panel from her seventh volume was shown on the screen.
He felt his heart skip a beat. It was because he saw the panel closely reflecting the scenario he was in that he decided to do it.
In the first panel, the girl was sitting on top of the boy, and he was desperately trying to get her to stop.
"S-sara….!"
Taken aback, Shouta was forcefully pinned down on the bed by Sara's hands. Sara's face was close enough to his for him to feel her warm breath.
—Shouta's cheeks were on fire and his face turned red.
——Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why? Why?
Why was she doing this to him? Did Shouta do something wrong? No. If Shouta did something wrong, Sara would forgive him in an instant, that's just how much he loves him.
But, the question was yet to be answered.
Why was she doing this to him?
The answer is simple.
She—
Knock, Knock. Sara's expressionless face turned poisoned. A snake, ready to inject venom to whoever was disturbing her moment.
"Dear, I bake you chocolate cake"
Suddenly, the fangs disappeared as the beast's venom evaporated into thin air, not leaving a mark behind.
—Shouta was an exception.
The doors to the outside world opened, and it revealed an old lady holding a tray.
"Fujiwara, if I do remember, right?"
"Yes, that's right. You do remember your name. Such memory for an old person at your age"
Sara pridely praised the old woman.
Meanwhile, Shouta in the back, still shocked on the bed.
Did she really speak to an elderly like that?
"Aww… thank you very much dear"
She's taking the praise?!!!
The old woman continued.
"I am well very aware that I am getting old, but I still have my special talents with me"
"Sure, old lady"
You're being rude Sara!!
Dude should've just shouted.
But he knew in that situation, if he had shouted, the old lady would've suspected two highschoolers doing something that they shouldn't do at their age. They are still sixteen at the moment.
—Shouta will turn seventeen next year, that is still three months away.
So with that processing thought in his currently messed up mind, he decided to only speak in his head.
"O-oh, do you have a guest? Is it your friend?"
"Hmmyes"
Sara! Don't eat while your mouth is full!
"Dear, Fujiwara, don't eat too much or you'll get a stomach ache. And you should finish your food before talking"
Yes. That is true granny.
For the past seven or so years, Sara has forgotten most of the manners her family had taught her. Though they were engraved in her memories, she decided not to use them.
"If you do have a guest, please share that cake with them. You don't want to not give a guest a cake"
Yes yes yes yes. Who's this old lady? She's like an angel. Is she Mia but old? No, Mia is still cuter and more angelic than her!
"Sure, I'll share it to my boyfriend"
"Oh my, you have a boyfriend?"
"Yes, I do have one"
"Well… congratulations. Who is he like?"
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"Well… for starters—"
—Shouta hasn't confessed to Sara, yet. And while Sara has done it multiple times, doing it one hundred percent more effort than ordinary females, Shouta hasn't really picked up on it.
But, Sara knew that Shouta knew she was in love with him. And she also knew the reason why Shout was "ignoring" her confession every time.
"—in the past, he has caught me walking with other guys"
"Oh, that's not very good—"
—but Sara wasn't "cheating" on Shouta.
The guy Shouta probably saw Sara walking with were strangers that tried to lure Sara to become one of their own "toys".
Sara had the feeling the strangers wouldn't care about her, only to show her off to their friends and public. And she was from a strict family that trained their daughter to self-defense.
Sara was like the gun in rock paper scissors.
"And then? Did you ever make up with him?"
"We are getting together now… since highschool started, he and I changed a lot"
"Oh, is that so"
"Yeah… He's more determined to do something that he wants to do now than before"
He had to be separated from Sara when he finished elementary school and moved to junior high school since she went to a more prominent school.
After hearing Sara's song during the graduation ceremony, he felt a little lonely. Shouta then gave in to her dread of being abandoned. However, it was also at that time that Mia was depressed. When Shouta realized he was being pursued and had to come to a halt, he grinned regrettably.
"That's great to hear, dear…"
"Thank you"
"Well… I hope you two could get along very well from now on"
"Sure, thank you very much"
The door closed before the old lady.
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"———"
"Shouta…"
"—so you really do love me"
Shouta looked at the expressionless face becoming more lively. For the first time, Shouta saw Sara's face burnt red.
"Y-yes…"