The next morning, Hoshimi woke up to the sound of the doorbell.
"Ha~" He yawned, groggily reaching for his phone by the pillow, and realized it was already Sunday.
Sunday morning, nearing eight o'clock, doorbell ringing…
With these three elements combined, the answer was clear: Aoyama Nanami had arrived to provide housekeeping services.
In a half-awake state, Hoshimi scratched his head without much thought, grabbed some random clothes, and went to open the door for Nanami.
"Click--"
At the entrance, Hoshimi greeted the modestly dressed Nanami with a wave, "Yo~ Good morning, Nanami."
"...Good morning, Hoshimi-kun..." Nanami shyly twisted her fingers together, displaying her usual timid politeness.
"Come in." Hoshimi paid no mind, leaving the door open while grabbing his phone and heading upstairs to his bedroom, typing a message to order breakfast from a restaurant.
"Nanami, have you eaten?" Hoshimi asked without turning around.
"..." Just stepping into the entrance and switching to slippers, Nanami replied in a soft voice, "I have."
Hmm, judging by her voice, she probably hasn't eaten yet.
Hoshimi mentally noted this and casually added, "I ordered some food. Let's eat together later. I'll take a quick nap for now. Wake me when the food arrives."
"Huh?" Nanami looked at Hoshimi's back in surprise.
Didn't she just say she'd already eaten? She was pretty sure about that, right? But Hoshimi-kun still invited her to join him for a meal…
"Um..." She pressed her lips together, wanting to thank Hoshimi-kun.
But before she could speak, his figure had already disappeared down the hallway.
Staring at the empty corridor, Nanami bit her lower lip and quietly continued changing her shoes.
Today's work must be done more seriously...
...
In his bedroom, Hoshimi wrapped himself in a blanket and drifted back into his dream.
Normally, he would wake up around seven in the morning, but today he was late because he had spent two hours in his dream appeasing Kotoko, whom he had ditched earlier.
At first, he tried to use sincere methods to make Kotoko feel better, but for some reason, she had turned into a stubborn, prideful girl who wouldn't listen to anything he said.
In the end, he had to use both Morse code and yoga lessons to finally make her relent.
Just before the doorbell rang, Kotoko had been reciting the Chinese scriptures in Morse code while begging for mercy.
The doorbell had interrupted her recitation, so now Hoshimi had to return to his dream to pull her back and continue.
That little girl, didn't she always pride herself on being smart? Why couldn't she memorize a single ancient poem in one or two hours?
Today, Kotoko wasn't leaving his dream until she finished reciting the Chinese scriptures perfectly!
...
At nine in the morning, the food Hoshimi ordered arrived.
After setting all the dishes on the coffee table in the living room, Nanami turned to go upstairs and wake him.
"Knock--"
"Click--"
As soon as Nanami knocked once on the bedroom door, it opened automatically.
With messy hair, Hoshimi held the door handle and greeted her, "Nanami, good morning~"
After speaking, Hoshimi realized he had already said that, scratched his head, and asked, "Nanami, is breakfast here?"
"Yes..." Nanami averted her gaze, her eyes darting nervously away from Hoshimi's open shirt and exposed chest and stomach, yet still sneaking glances at him.
"Hmm?" Hoshimi noticed her gaze, and his sleepiness instantly vanished.
He stepped forward, placed his hand on Nanami's shoulder, and leaned down to whisper in a raspy, magnetic voice, "Nanami, you want to look, don't you? I've got something even better to show~"
"!!" Nanami's eyes widened as she quickly raised her hands to cover her chest, retreating several steps.
Standing a meter away, her face flushed with embarrassment, she stammered, "Hoshimi-kun! Please don't joke like that! I..."
Her lips moved, but she couldn't find the words to say.
"Heh~" Hoshimi chuckled softly, brushing the hair off his forehead. "Nanami, I'll go take a shower first. You can eat; I'll join you in a bit."
With that, Hoshimi stretched and leisurely walked toward the bathroom downstairs.
"..." Nanami, still standing there, watched his retreating figure, feeling that something about Hoshimi had changed.
His attitude toward her seemed more casual, almost like when he didn't yet know her real-life situation…
Nanami couldn't understand why Hoshimi was behaving this way, but she bit her lip and didn't dwell on it, heading down to the living room.
She sat on the sofa, staring at the lavish spread of food on the table, waiting blankly for Hoshimi to finish his shower.
A little while later, Hoshimi returned to the living room in a bathrobe. Noticing Nanami staring off into space, he spoke up, "Nanami, waiting for me?"
Startled, Nanami flinched, looking up at Hoshimi. She stared at him for a second or two before snapping out of it.
She quickly stood up, nervously twisting her fingers, and stammered, "Hoshimi-kun, I..."
"Alright, no need to say so much. Let's sit down and eat." Hoshimi moved behind her and gently pushed her down onto the sofa.
"Here~ this is your portion," Hoshimi said, handing her a bowl of rice.
"...Thank you, Hoshimi-kun..." Nanami murmured, hesitating for a moment before thanking him quietly.
Hoshimi, already enjoying his food, waved his chopsticks, "What's there to thank? Hurry and dig in, Nanami, before the food gets cold."
"Okay..." Nanami picked up her chopsticks and silently savored the food she rarely had the chance to eat.
Some time later, after finishing the meal, Nanami swiftly cleared away the leftovers while Hoshimi went upstairs.
By the time Nanami had cleaned the table, Hoshimi, now dressed to go out, came back down.
He glanced at Nanami's curvy figure and said, "Nanami, I'm heading to the library. Once you finish cleaning this afternoon, you can leave directly. Just make sure to lock the door."
"Huh?" Nanami froze, looking at Hoshimi. "You're going to the library?"
"Why? Is there a book you want me to borrow for you?"
"No..." Nanami looked at Hoshimi suspiciously.
Hoshimi-kun going to the library? That just didn't seem right. A laid-back person like him didn't fit with the word "library" at all…
Plus, she remembered Hoshimi-kun once telling her he didn't like studying.
So why was Hoshimi-kun going to the library now? Could he be meeting someone there?
"Nanami, your expression is a bit odd..." Hoshimi squinted at her with a friendly smile. "Nanami, are you doubting my passion for learning?"
"Uh..." Nanami averted her gaze, unsure how to respond.
Hoshimi-kun having a passion for learning? That was probably the funniest joke she'd heard all year…
Hoshimi chuckled and didn't bother explaining. After saying goodbye to Nanami, he turned to leave.
"Nanami, I'm off. See you later~"
"Uh… okay, have a safe trip." Nanami responded blankly.
"Bang--"
It wasn't until the sound of the door closing that Nanami snapped out of it.
Wait, this was Hoshimi's home. Wasn't it a bit odd for him to say goodbye like that?
And her response was strange too, like a wife seeing her husband off to work…
A wife and husband?
Suddenly, a mental image popped into Nanami's mind: herself in a thin nightgown, lazily leaning in the doorway, watching Hoshimi leave the house...
"Ugh~..." Nanami's face turned hot as she hurriedly cleared that strange fantasy from her mind.
I'm thinking too much. Hoshimi and I will never, ever, ever reach that point—it's just a baseless fantasy…
No need to overthink. I should focus on my work. At the very least, I need to earn the generous pay Hoshimi gives me.
"Hoo~"
Nanami took a deep breath and refocused on the tasks at hand.
…
At 6:30 PM, when Hoshimi returned home, he found that Nanami, who had already finished her work, was indeed still waiting for him at home.
Seeing Nanami acting like a virtuous wife and mother, Hoshimi teased, "Nanami, do you know what you look like right now?"
"Huh?" Nanami, standing to the side, looked at Hoshimi in confusion.
"Like a proper wife," Hoshimi said with a playful smile.
"..." Nanami instantly turned as red as a steamed lobster, her whole body seemingly blushing, and it looked like steam was rising from her head.
Click--!
Hoshimi took out his phone and snapped a photo of Aoyama Nanami's shy, flustered look as she turned into a "steam princess."
Teasing Nanami (1/1), complete.
Speaking of which, Nanami really is easy to embarrass. She must have some feelings for me, right?
Hoshimi rubbed his chin, pondering whether he should play an even more intimate prank on Nanami.
As he was thinking, the image of Yukino kneeling on the floor, her face flushed as she looked up at him, suddenly popped into his mind.
Next, he imagined Kotoko in a school swimsuit, lying flat in a T-shape by the pool.
Then, Kasumigaoka pulling down her neckline to take a suggestive photo of her cleavage also flashed in his mind.
After these images played out, Hoshimi quietly gave up on his previous idea.
For now, it's better to hold off... Just handling these three is already difficult enough... adding more would be risky...
"Hoshimi-kun! Please don't make such jokes! I'm not... mmm~"
Aoyama Nanami, startled by the flash, blushed even deeper and protested, but halfway through her words, she couldn't bring herself to say the rest.
"My bad, my bad," Hoshimi laughed. "Nanami isn't a proper wife yet; she's still a girl. There's still a long way to go before she becomes a wife. It's my mistake, I admit it."
"Mmm~" Nanami turned her head away, unconsciously gripping the corners of her clothes.
Not a proper wife...
"Oh, by the way, Nanami, could you help clean my ears today?" Hoshimi suddenly asked.
"... Sure," Nanami replied with a shy, evasive look.
"Then I'll go get the tools." Hoshimi went upstairs to retrieve a full set of ear-cleaning tools from his room.
After a short while, Nanami began cleaning Hoshimi's ears as he lay on her lap.
The ear cleaning went as smoothly as usual, and after it was done, just like every other time, Hoshimi personally walked Nanami to the train station.
By the way, they left the apartment using his private elevator, not the public one.
As for the reason, those who know, know.
…
Sunday night, a dream conversation.
Yukino: "Hoshimi, can you please stop wearing the Sobu High uniform?! Change into something else, please!"
Hoshimi: "Huh? What's wrong? Isn't this fine?"
At this moment, Yukino was dressed in a white shirt, a black blazer, and a tight-fitting skirt with black stockings—this was the most mainstream teacher outfit from Japanese films.
Hoshimi, on the other hand, was dressed in the black uniform of Sobu High.
Yukino: "Hoshimi! You have to change today! Otherwise, no perfect score reward!"
Hoshimi: "Oh? Are you planning to go back on your word, Yukino?"
Yukino: "Um~ No... as long as you change..."
Hoshimi: "Alright."
Hoshimi snapped his fingers, changing Yukino's outfit into the Sobu High uniform while he transformed his clothes into the attire of a male teacher from the same school.
"..."
Seeing this, Yukino remained silent for a while before poking Hoshimi in the chest, embarrassed and annoyed. "Hoshimi! Change it back!"
"Yukino, you're so troublesome~"
"Ho-shi-mi! Will you change?"
"I can, but Yukino, you can't go back on your word again, or else..." Hoshimi smiled mischievously at Yukino, not finishing his sentence.
"Got it! I won't go back on my word!" Yukino, blushing, kicked Hoshimi's leg in frustration.
Damn idiot! Does he really like playing these weird role-playing games? He's such an incorrigible jerk!
Hoshimi snapped his fingers again, returning their outfits to their original state.
"Yukino! I want my reward!" Hoshimi sat in a chair, demanding confidently.
After rolling her eyes at him, Yukino reluctantly approached him.
The night was long.
The dream continued.
Everything was still ongoing...
…
On Tuesday, the midterm exams at Sobu High began.
Just before the first exam started, Hoshimi stood outside the exam hall, holding a bottle of yogurt, and asked Yukino, who was standing next to him, "Yukino, want some?"
"..." Yukino kicked Hoshimi's leg and pinched the soft flesh on his waist, saying coldly, "Hoshimi, just you wait!"
"Hehe~" Hoshimi cracked a grin, laughing with an air of defiance.
Ring~~~
The exam bell rang, and after giving Hoshimi a glare, Yukino turned and entered the exam hall.
Hoshimi squinted his eyes in amusement. Only after he finished drinking his yogurt, he leisurely strolled into the exam room.
…
Thursday afternoon, the final exam. Hoshimi, having finished his paper early, sat idly, staring into space.
After a moment, a thought seemed to cross his mind. His gaze shifted, and his crimson eyes gradually brightened.
He remembered that Kasumigaoka's final exam should be around this time as well. He had already finished his test, and as a top student, Kasumigaoka must have finished hers too, right?
Maybe he could meet up with her?
Without hesitation, Hoshimi propped his chin on his hand and entered a dream state.
…
In the dream.
"Utaha, long time no see~ I've missed you~" Hoshimi greeted Kasumigaoka with a smile, but she just stared at him in shock.
Hoshimi thought Kasumigaoka was surprised by his sudden appearance, not realizing her shock actually came from the fact that he was still wearing his Sobu High uniform!
===
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