It was sunset when Ryuichi arrived at his apartment. It was no exaggeration to say that this was the place where he felt most at home. However, today, there was a slightly different scene than usual.
"So this is the apartment you live in, huh."
"..."
Shizuna curiously looked around the building while Ryuichi heaved a heavy sigh.
In the end, Shizuna followed Ryuichi all the way to his home. She'd held tightly onto his hand and wouldn't let go. Of course, Ryuichi could've just forcibly shaken her hand off, but he didn't want to do anything too rough to her. And so, that was how Shizuna's visit came to be, albeit half-forcibly.
…This girl's got an impulsive streak in her, doesn't she?
Ryuichi could never have predicted that she would visit his apartment before the main storyline began; a time that, by all rights, should've been uneventful and ordinary. Although she had talked to him a little more frequently as of late, it was by no means enough of a reason to justify her lack of caution in coming to the room of a man living alone; it was so alarming that it made Ryuichi worried for her.
"…You should seriously go home. C'mon, I'll walk you there."
"I've already come all the way here, so no. I don't want to."
"Give me a break…"
"…Umm… Do you really hate me being here that much?"
Ryuichi heaved yet another huge sigh. Well, it wasn't like this was his first time bringing women to his room like this. Many women, including Chisa, had been here before. Ryuichi decided that Shizuna was just another one of those.
"Just a heads up; the room's gonna be a little bit dirty."
And with that, Ryuichi opened the door. As soon as he did, a pile of garbage bags laid spread out before the pair. It wasn't an amount big enough to crowd the room, but at least for a girl like Shizuna, it was a shocking sight.
"…It really is dirty."
"That's why I gave you the heads up."
"This is definitely more than just 'a little bit'!"
Ryuichi scratched his head and told her this was a lot better than what he had been used to. The two of them went straight inside, and the first thing they did was, of course, clean up the trash.
"This goes there, and that one goes there."
"Roger that."
"As for this one…just throw it."
"Alright."
Almost like a servant following Shizuna's orders, Ryuichi did what he was told to do in a straightforward and brisk manner. There was nothing indecent or erotic in their actions; both of them simply spent their time cleaning. Once they finished, the room had become so clean it was hardly recognizable from its previous state.
"Wow, my place looks like a luxury condo now, doesn't it?"
"Your room was just too dirty. This is how it's supposed to be."
This time, it was Ryuichi who was admiring the polished room while Shizuna sighed. She took her eyes off Ryuichi and spread out the ingredients she had bought. Originally, these ingredients were going to be used for Shizuna's dinner, but it looked like she was going to use them for Ryuichi instead.
"Is this really okay?"
"Don't worry. I told my mom I had to cook at a friend's house on short notice."
"…Now I'm really worried."
"It'll be fine. Now then, it's time to start making dinner."
It was refreshing to see someone other than Ryuichi standing in the now clean kitchen. Ryuichi almost lost himself staring at her, but he felt slightly uncomfortable now that he had nothing to do.
"…Ugh. Hey, Rindo. Anything I can help with?"
"Shishido-kun, you clearly can't cook. Go sit and wait."
"…Okay."
Ryuichi had a body more robust than most people his age, but even he was helpless when it came to cooking. When Shizuna told him to wait quietly, he obeyed her words and sat down dejectedly.
"Hmmm~♪"
Ryuichi stared at Shizuna, who'd started humming a tune as she cooked. Their eyes met several times, and Shizuna smiled and continued cooking. Soon, a home-cooked meal, the first Ryuichi had had in a long time, was spread out in front of him.
"Wow!"
"Here you go. It's nothing much, but please enjoy."
Since it would take too much time to cook up enough side dishes, Shizuna had settled on making nikujaga, a stew consisting of meat and potatoes. Ryuichi's stomach rumbled as the delicious aroma of the meat and potato stew tickled his nose. It was served with plain white rice and miso soup, but even then it still looked like a very luxurious meal to Ryuichi.
"…Thank you for the meal."
He put his hands together properly in thanks and quickly extended the tip of his chopsticks to the stew. He grabbed a potato and slowly brought it to his mouth, and immediately, the sweetness of the potato spread throughout his mouth, and Ryuichi's eyes lit up as he popped more and more into his mouth non-stop.
"If you shovel your food in too fast, you might choke on them, you know?"
"Don't worry, I'll be fi—Guh?!"
"See? What did I tell you?"
Exasperated, Shizuna passed a cup to him, and Ryuichi hastily chugged it down. He coughed and wheezed multiple times as she rubbed his back, yet despite her earlier exasperation, her cheeks soon relaxed and she broke into a smile.
"Is it that delicious?"
"It's absolutely incredible. It's been years since I've last had something this good."
It was truly a tasty meal, as evident by the look on Ryuichi's face. Shizuna started eating together with Ryuichi, and soon the white rice and miso soup, including the meat and potato stew, were gone. Although Ryuichi was the one who ate most of the stew, Shizuna had no qualms with it and was even smiling the entire time, probably because he had eaten it so heartily.
"That was really good… Heh, I envy the man who'll marry Rindo Shizuna in the future."
"Geez, what are you saying all of a sudden…"
Seeing Shizuna's blushing face, a hint of mischief grew inside Ryuichi. He reached out, grabbed her arm, and pulled her body toward him.
"Kyah?!"
He held Shizuna's body in his thick arms. For Ryuichi, the only purpose of taking a woman up to his room was for her body. However, he was not doing this to Shizuna with that in mind; it was merely a prank.
"Maybe I'll devour you next. Y'know, you came all the way to my home knowing full well what people say about me, so I'm sure you won't mind if I push you down right here and now, right?"
"…Ahh…♪"
Ryuichi couldn't help but wonder why her reaction was different from what he was expecting. In fact, he recalled having slept with a woman who'd reacted similarly to Shizuna before. In any case, he couldn't comprehend her reaction no matter how hard he thought about it, so he let go of her.
"You do realize, Rindo, that I've been having relations with a bunch of women."
"…So it is true."
"Yep. Right now I'm only seeing one person, though…but anyways, that's just the kind of person I am."
He was trying to give a warning to Shizuna, who was too kind for her own good.
"The meat and potato stew was delicious, and I thank you for that. But you shouldn't carelessly follow a man to his home, especially one who lives alone. You're lucky that man happened to be me this time, which is kinda strange coming from me, but still… There are plenty of boys who have their eyes for you. The moment you let your guard down, you'll instantly get devoured by them."
Shizuna's body jumped and shivered. Seeing this, Ryuichi decided that he had admonished her enough; he gave a wry smile and took out some money from his wallet.
"Here, money for the ingredients you used. Don't you dare say you won't take it. Even I'd feel bad if I didn't pay you back."
"…Fufu, okay. I'll take it."
No matter what form it took, it was best to clear up any money you owed or borrowed from others before you forgot. Even if it was just for making dinner, letting a girl in his class spend money for him was something Ryuichi wouldn't allow.
"But man, you really surprised me, y'know? I never would've thought you were such an impulsive person. Normally, you'd never do something like this."
"Yes…but I just couldn't leave you be. Of course, it may have been annoying from your point of view, but…actually, no, I'm sorry. In the end, this was all because of my selfishness."
"…You're also too kind to a fault. I swear, you're going to get tricked one of these days."
"I-I'm not that much of an idiot, okay?!"
Her expression, which frequently changed from one moment to the next, as well as her beauty and friendliness were the hallmarks of a quintessential heroine. They talked for a while longer before Ryuichi decided to walk Shizuna to her house.
"You really don't have to."
"How many times have we had this conversation? C'mon, let's go."
Ryuichi left the room first. Shizuna also came out of the room in a hurry a moment later, but soon matched Ryuichi's stride and walked beside him.
"…Hey, Shishido-kun."
"No, I'm not letting you come over to my place anymore."
Shizuna puffed her cheeks out after having been beaten to the punch by Ryuichi. Apparently, she'd wanted to ask if she could come again. Of course, Ryuichi would love to be able to eat a variety of her dishes again, including her meat and potato stew…but he still thought it necessary to draw a line in the sand. That's why both of them should forget about today and go back to how things were. He tried to convince Shizuna that this was the right thing to do.
"…Even though you forcefully embraced me."
"C'mon, what kind of nonsense are you pulling now?"
"Am I wrong, though?"
"..."
She certainly had a point. Even though she hadn't resisted, there was no doubt he'd embraced Shizuna with his thick arms. Her reaction had been slightly suspicious, but it must've been embarrassing nonetheless.
"I wonder what'll happen if I tell everyone at school about this?"
"…You're a stubborn one, aren't you?"
"Fufu… So, does that mean I have your permission to come back?"
"You better not come crying to me if people find out and bad rumors start spreading at school about you, you hear me?"
"Got it! ♪"
"Does this girl really get it…?"
This time, it was Ryuichi's turn to stare at Shizuna in exasperation.
Her smile was so beautiful in the moonlight, Ryuichi couldn't help but briefly admire it in fascination. I see. This does make me want to NTR her, he thought to himself.
"…Rindo."
"Yes?"
"…See you next time."
"?! …Okay!"