SCPK 77

Chapter 77 

 “A Sleepover Just the Two of Us①”

An unexpectedly heavy rain poured down, almost like a typhoon.
My umbrella was useless, and the raincoat I wore just in case was soaked through.
Still, I somehow made it to my destination and rang the doorbell.

“Hi there! Oh, Taiyō-san!”
“Ah… hello.”
“You’re all soaked…”

I thought I was going to die.
Once I arrived at the Kaminagi house, Tsukiyo let me in, and I sank onto the living room sofa.
She handed me a towel, and I wiped off the rain.

“I thought you’d be coming after six…”
“Well, with this rain… I left home when it let up a little, but then it suddenly got heavier…”

It was early December. Next week, the semester exams would begin. Naturally, because my grades weren’t great, I had come to ask Seiya for tutoring.
Since today was Saturday, I was planning to stay over. Seiya had work until six, so it would just be a relaxed dinner first.
Tsukiyo was used to these pre-exam sleepovers, as it had become routine.

“I made some coffee. Here you go.”
“Thanks, that helps a lot.”

The Kaminagi household didn’t have heating. There was a stove, but it was mostly for saving electricity, so wearing warm clothes was expected.
I had brought a thick fleece for the sleepover, so I was prepared.
Still… this rain is intense. Will Seiya even be able to get home?

After six, I was relaxing and chatting with Tsukiyo when my phone rang.
Of course, it was Seiya.

“Hey, I’m leaving early today.”
“I see… but that’s not good. The river apparently overflowed. You might not make it home today.”
“Eh?”
“This rain is supposed to last until morning. I’ll contact you later.”

And just like that, Seiya hung up.
If Seiya couldn’t come back, then the study session… would I finally fail?
Well… can’t be helped.

“Your brother can’t come home?”
“Seems so… the river overflowed.”
“Is that so! Then… it’s just the two of us!”

I felt Tsukiyo’s eyes flash with a certain intensity.
Just the two of us… right. Just the two of us.
Lately, Tsukiyo had been getting rather bold, and I didn’t know whether to feel happy or panicked.
I had thought it would be fine today since Seiya was around… but this could be bad.

“Since your brother will probably eat before coming back, let’s have dinner.”
“Y-Yeah, right.”

Am I overthinking this?

◇◇◇

One of the joys of this sleepover was being able to eat Tsukiyo’s cooking.
Wearing an apron, tying up her hair, cooking in the not-so-big kitchen—she was captivating even just to watch.
I started filming, pointing the camera at her.

“Hey! No sneaky filming!”
“Sorry… but there’s nothing left to be afraid of anymore.”

After countless filming sessions, I had no hesitation in capturing Tsukiyo on camera. I was simply a machine photographing something beautiful.
Her knife skills, how she handled the pots and pans, even the way she washed things while cooking—all smooth.

“Honestly, Tsukiyo would make a great wife.”
“‘Great wife’ might be a bit old-fashioned nowadays, but I understand wanting your husband to say your cooking is delicious.”

She carried the simmering pot over to the living room table.
Wow! It was nikujaga.
Salad, tamagoyaki, miso soup—she laid out a full meal.
Rice was served, and we said our thanks before eating.

“This nikujaga is delicious. The flavors really soaked in… amazing.”
“My husband said it’s delicious.”
Spit-take

Tsukiyo smiled and started eating the nikujaga herself.
It felt like a counterattack straight to my heart.
If I could eat this every day… well, that would be nice too.
The Kaminagi siblings were big eaters, so the portions were huge. The quality was excellent, but eating this much daily would definitely make me gain weight.

After the meal, I offered to help clean up, but she refused. I guess I was just a guest—still, I felt a bit guilty.
Once dinner was done, Tsukiyo took off her apron and let her chestnut-colored hair down. Watching it spread softly across her shoulders made me feel giddy—I was a total hair enthusiast.

She called me from the table while I was looking at my phone.

“I’ll go take a bath. Taiyō-san…”
“I already took one before coming, so I’m fine.”
“Understood.”

She went to the door leading to the bathroom, opening it to enter.
Just her chestnut hair and neck were visible, and her lips moved as she spoke.

“There’s no lock, but don’t peek.”
“I won’t…”

Usually, Seiya was around, so peeking wasn’t even an option.
But today… it’s just the two of us.
I’m an idiot. If I tried something now, I wouldn’t just get in trouble—I’d risk Tsukiyo hating me. There’s no way I’d peek.

Even though I was flustered about being alone with her… I felt my worries were probably unfounded. She wouldn’t invite me to anything inappropriate inside her home, right?

“Thanks for waiting~”
“Ah!?”
“Well then… let’s study together.”

Seeing Tsukiyo step out of the bath… my earlier worries vanished. Instead, I felt a kind of determination, like she was ready to hunt or tackle a challenge.