"Where did you go?"
When Sato returned to the apartment, he found Fujimiya Konomi taking out the cleaning supplies. Hearing his footsteps, she looked up curiously.
"Next door. I went to teach someone who never learns a lesson."
"A girl?"
"Yeah."
Sato nodded.
"You're my probationary boyfriend now, yet the first thing you do after coming back is visit another girl. That's going to cost you points."
Konomi puffed out her cheeks, trying her best to look angry as she glared at him with her bright eyes. Instead of being intimidating, though, she only looked adorable.
Sato couldn't help but smile.
Come to think of it, he had never actually seen Konomi get angry before. It was almost as if she simply never lost her temper.
"Konomi, do you know what a pufferfish is?"
"A pufferfish? Of course I do. Why are you asking..."
She suddenly realized what he meant.
With an indignant huff, she tossed the broom at him.
"You're the pufferfish!"
Pufferfish puff up when they're angry.
Laughing, Sato caught the broom before glancing around the apartment.
"Now that I think about it, there's really not much to clean."
He had thoroughly cleaned the place before leaving, and although Yukinoshita Yukino had been coming over every day to feed the cats, given her personality...
Wait...
Sato's expression suddenly stiffened.
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Konomi reacting to something.
She walked over to the sofa with a puzzled expression and gently picked up a long strand of hair.
A long hair.
Konomi's expression changed instantly.
After a brief silence, she slowly turned toward Sato.
Sato: "..."
"I think you've misunderstood something."
He tried to explain, sounding outwardly calm.
"Really?"
A gentle smile bloomed across Konomi's face.
Holding the smooth black strand of hair between her fingers, she waved it in front of him.
"Then what's this?"
"Hair."
"I know it's hair. What I want to know is whose hair it is."
She asked the question softly, her narrowed eyes fixed on him.
Of course she knew it was hair.
The real question was who it belonged to.
"I can explain."
"Then go ahead."
"Well, actually..."
Click~
The sudden sound of the front door unlocking interrupted him.
He stopped speaking and looked toward Konomi.
She frowned slightly.
"Is that the landlord?"
The corner of Sato's mouth twitched.
He already knew who it was.
After all, he was the landlord here. Unless it was a burglar, there was only one other person who had a key.
The door opened.
But no footsteps followed.
Several seconds of silence passed before a cautious voice called from the entryway.
"Nohara-kun?"
The voice was cool and clear, carrying a trace of uncertainty. It belonged to a young woman.
Konomi instantly felt terrible.
The way she looked at Sato became increasingly dangerous.
"A woman? And she has a key to your apartment?"
He had confessed to her only yesterday.
And today she had caught him keeping another woman in his apartment?
As expected...
Coming to Chiba had definitely been the right decision.
This guy was far too worrying.
Konomi took a deep breath.
Sato's expression, meanwhile, was rather complicated.
He honestly didn't even know where to begin complaining.
Why did this kind of thing always happen to him?
He glanced toward the hallway before lowering his voice under Konomi's dangerous stare.
In the end, he chose to explain.
"She's my friend, and also a cat lover. You've met her before."
He spoke quietly, almost afraid someone else might overhear.
Huh?
I've met her before?
Konomi's expression shifted to confusion.
After searching her memory for a moment, a familiar figure gradually surfaced.
Could it be... her?
Seeing that she seemed to remember, Sato didn't explain any further.
Yukinoshita Yukino was still waiting at the entrance.
She had probably noticed the shoes in the foyer and decided not to come in. With the owner clearly home, Yukino wasn't the type to intrude uninvited.
Sato called toward the entrance.
"It's me, Yukinoshita. Please come in."
Soon, soft footsteps echoed down the hallway.
A graceful figure slowly came into view.
An icy, elegant aura.
Delicate, refined features.
Perfect posture.
An atmosphere as cool as a snow-covered mountain.
And long black hair cascading like a waterfall.
Even though she had met her before, Konomi still couldn't hide the flicker of amazement in her eyes.
She's so beautiful...
Yukinoshita Yukino, the admired beauty of Private Mixed High, possessed stunning looks worthy of her reputation.
Alarms immediately began ringing inside Konomi's head.
A moment later, she noticed Yukino's long black hair.
Comparing it with the strand still in her hand, she confirmed that they matched perfectly.
She shot Sato a fierce glare.
So after I left, you let another girl move in?
Although Sato had no idea what Konomi was thinking, the look she gave him was enough to give him a headache.
As Yukino walked into the living room, she couldn't help feeling a little wistful.
Now that Sato had returned...
She wouldn't be able to come visit the cats every day anymore.
Hmm?
Her clear eyes suddenly settled on Konomi.
She's here too?
The two girls looked at one another for several moments.
Neither of their expressions changed in the slightest.
Amazing...
Watching them, Sato couldn't help but marvel.
How were they both so good at controlling their expressions?
"You've already met before, so I won't bother with a full introduction."
"This is Fujimiya Konomi."
"And this is Yukinoshita Yukino."
Even though they had technically met already, Sato introduced them again, just in case either of them had forgotten the other's name and things became awkward.
Still...
Why did having these two in the same room feel so dangerous?
There was some invisible tension hanging in the air...
Sato couldn't shake the uneasy feeling.
"Long time no see."
"Long time no see."
The two girls calmly greeted each other without revealing the slightest emotion.
Seeing that, Sato's eyelid twitched.
Then he smiled at Yukino.
"Yukinoshita, have a seat and rest for a while. I'll get you a glass of water."
"Thank you."