Once I finished the dinner, which was nothing like I had anticipated, I went to my room and spent some time sitting there.
It was nighttime, and as I lay in bed contemplating what had transpired in the kitchen, I heard someone knock on the door.
"Izumi! Open the door."
"Hmm"
I heard a familiar voice on the other side of the door, and since there was no reason not to open it, I got out of bed and approached the door.
"No one is using the bath, feel free to take a dip."
I noticed that she had changed into new clothes, and her hair appeared wet, as though she had taken a bath.
My previous possessions made me familiar with the bathing method. Bathing was a method that humans used to clean their bodies.
"Why do you keep looking at me? Go!"
Is she telling me to take a bath?
After saying that she went to the room next to me and closed the door. I was aware of the location of the clothes because I had discovered and recalled yesterday everything that a human needs on a daily basis.
After pulling out my clothes from the drawer in my room, I headed to the bathroom. This bathroom was different from the last time, I saw a familiar machine that humans used to wash clothes, and because I did not know where to put my clothes, I removed them and placed them on top of the machine.
I then opened the sliding door on my right to enter to the bathtub. There were several items that I recognized, such as the soap and the water sprayer, whose name I could not remember, but there were also bottles with writing on them that I didn't understand.
One black bottle caught my attention, so I picked it up and started looking into. After washing my hair as shown in the photos, I pushed the top of the bottle to release a thick, black liquid with a distinct scent, which I then rubbed into my hair.
When I noticed that it began to produce white foam, it brought back a clear memory of Ruji explaining bathing to me.
I also remembered that this thing was called a shampoo; perhaps the unique shape of this bottle made it difficult to identify.
I also recalled that Ruji used to bathe with me every time, even after I gained control over my body. She mentioned something about how important it was for lovers.
A few pieces of foam got into my eyes, making them slightly uncomfortable. As Ruji had once told me to do, I immediately rinsed my eyes and got the foam off my head.
Wait, was it Ruji or Rusi?
Since I could not remember her name, I gave it up and jumped in the tub.
I had a bath, changed into the clothes I had kept on top of that machine, and made my way to my bedroom.
"Izumi, is that you?"
"Hmm"
I heard a familiar voice coming from the living room and responded because they had taken my name.
"Ok"
I then took the stairs and moved straight towards my room. I noticed the door was open, which I had clearly closed when leaving to take a bath.
"Dummy"
As I got closer to the door, I heard Ruhi, who was in my room, mumble something. She was sitting on the bed and her arms were wrapped around the pillow.
"What took you so long?" She asked, releasing the pillow.
"I want to talk—"
I wanted her to leave because I had other plans for the night, so I went straight to my bed and laid on the side she was not using. I assumed that if I continued to ignore her, she would eventually leave.
After a few minutes, she continued to sit with her back to me, rather than leaving.
"Izumi, are you seriously trying to change?"
"Hmm."
She said without turning around, but I responded because she had taken my name.
"You know how much trouble you have caused for everyone."
"I will not forgive you for your past actions until you make amends."
After that, she turned towards me and laid next to me in bed, staring directly into my eyes. Her expression suggested that she was a little sad.
"Can we talk?"
"Can we t~alk"
"Don't repeat what I said."
"Don't rep—"
She did not leave, so I figured it would be a good idea to learn from her. I attempted to imitate her, but she held her hand to my mouth, indicating that I should not speak.
"Stop being such an oddball."
"..."
"You see, Yuki said something to me this afternoon that made me feel a little depressed. I decided not to let her words bother me, but for some reason, during dinner, my mind just stopped."
"I Sniff, I am very glad to see you trying to move on."
Her eyes became watery as she said those words. I wondered why these people always seemed to be crying when they were around me.
Her presence was becoming a hindrance because I had other plans for the night.
"I—I, Sob"
Her voice trailed off into a low cry.
My avoidance tactic failed, so I considered a few more ways to get her to leave. I considered using my powers to make her leave, but that would have caused me a lot of issues. The best course of action would have been to tell her to leave, but I did not speak her language.
Since I was out of options, I reasoned that if I could stop her from crying, she might leave, and even if not, I would at least be spared this pitiful expression.
I thought of a recent memory where the older woman had put her hand on Ruhi's head and stopped her crying.
Ruhi's low sob filled the quiet room. I moved my hand to her head and gently patted her, just as the elderly woman did.
"Don't do that, Snif."
She said something that made me feel like I should stop, so I tried to move my hand away from her. Her eyes took on a slightly sharper appearance, giving the impression that she was angry, just as I withdrew my hand from her head.
I shifted my hand back toward her head again as I considered how I might have misinterpreted what she had said. This time, instead of saying anything, she just looked at me with those teary eyes for a while before giving me a strong hug.
"Uff"
"Sob, just for a moment, and then I will leave." She spoke so softly that it was difficult to hear her.
Feeling like there was nothing to be done, I gave up trying and accepted things as they were.
After a few hours, I turned to the watch which was on the table to check the time. It read 2:30, and instead of leaving, this human slept next to me.
Half of her body was over me making it harder to get out of the bed. But my excitement took over, and I tried to remove her hands and legs from me so that I could get out of bed.
My release from her restraints was successful. I stood up from my bed and considered the time I had lost as a result of her.
However, thinking about this will not help, so rather than wasting any more time here, I headed for the door to exit this house.