"Akira-kun, aren't you going to stay here and rest?"
At the entrance, Sayouye's mom smiled as she watched Akira change his shoes, clearly hoping he would stay.
"No, Auntie."
Akira shook his head, declining Sayouye's mom's suggestion.
After all, if he stayed any longer, he would meet her Papa-san returning from work, and according to Sayouye's mom, her Papa-san didn't seem to have a friendly attitude towards him.
Although Akira was very brave at heart, he felt it was better to hide for now.
Let Sajuna and Sayouye's mom wear down Sajuna's Papa-san's hostility first.
It should be easier to deal with then, Akira thought, as he didn't want any famous scenes to happen in front of Sajuna's Papa-san and leave a bad impression on her Papa-san.
"Is Akira-kun afraid Auntie will make you sleep on the sofa? If Akira-kun stays, I can arrange for Akira-kun and Sajuna to be in the same room."
Akira was suddenly tempted.
"Mom."
Sajuna quickly tried to cover her Mom's mouth, afraid she would say something even more inappropriate.
"What's wrong, Sajuna?"
Sayouye's mom stroked her daughter's hair, saying carelessly.
"Everything in the house is plentiful, and it saves the trouble of going out to buy things."
Akira hadn't expected Sayouye's mom's thoughts to reach this extent; it seemed Sayouye's mom might have contributed to Sajuna's earlier eagerness for their relationship to progress.
Even with Sayouye's mom's assistance, and Sajuna seemingly within reach, Akira still shook his head.
"No, Auntie, my, my second volume of the novel is about to be published, I need to go back and finish the manuscript."
Akira hesitated for a moment, then gave another reason.
"And, I, I'm not very brave about meeting Uncle."
Is it shameful for a boy to be afraid of meeting his father-in-law? Akira thought righteously.
"So that's how it is."
Sayouye's mom looked enlightened but couldn't help but persuade him.
"Are you really not going to consider it? Auntie's house has everything."
Seeing Sayouye's mom's eagerness to'sell' her daughter, Akira was a little exasperated.
Sajuna, standing next to her Mom, had long since turned into a steam engine, muttering about "sleeping in one room, sleeping in the same room, sleeping together," her brain seemingly about to overheat.
Akira reached out and stroked Sajuna's hair.
"Goodbye, Sajuna."
Only then did Sayouye's mom realize Akira truly wouldn't be staying overnight, and she sighed, saying.
"Then, Akira-kun, see you tomorrow."
Akira bowed to Sayouye's mom and said.
"I'm sorry to have troubled Auntie and her family tonight."
After speaking, he hesitated, "I also hope Auntie can say some good things about me to Uncle."
"Leave it to Auntie."
"Goodbye, Aki-Kun."
Sajuna also waved goodbye to Akira.
As Akira's figure grew more distant, Sayouye's mom closed the door and gently tapped Sajuna's head with her index finger, startling her from her daze.
"Stop looking, Akira-kun is long gone."
"Eh, oh."
Sajuna reached up and touched the spot her Mom had tapped, feeling a slight sting.
Then she remembered Aki-Kun had stroked her hair when he left, and her hand, which had been touching the tapped spot, couldn't help but start stroking her hair.
"Sajuna, you look like a pervert right now."
Sayouye's mom said something startling.
"Are you feeling the warmth Aki-Kun left behind?"
"No, no, my hair just got messy."
Sajuna puffed out her cheeks and turned her head away, not daring to look her Mom in the eye.
"If you care about Akira-kun so much, why didn't you express your feelings when Mom invited Akira-kun earlier?"
Sayouye's mom took Sajuna's hand, looking at her daughter, who was looking down.
Although she had already met Sajuna's boyfriend and Akira's performance was good, Sayouye's mom still couldn't help but want to give them a push.
Sajuna kept her head down and didn't speak.
Sayouye's mom led Sajuna to the living room; the TV Akira had turned on was still playing, and the canned laughter from the variety show seemed to relax Sajuna's heart considerably.
"Sajuna, what do you think of Akira-kun?"
"Aki-Kun, Aki-Kun is very good to me."
Sajuna looked up, surprised, at her Mom.
Her Mom should be able to see something like this very clearly, right?
"Of course Mom knows Sajuna and Akira-kun have a very good relationship, but precisely because of that, you need to take it a step further."
Sayouye's mom recounted her own experiences as if listing family treasures.
"When Mom met Sajuna's Papa-san, Mom had just come of age, and then Papa-san shamelessly pursued her."
"Later, at Papa-san's request, we completed what needed to be done early."
"Although I used to think it was a bit hasty, looking back now, it's still a little sweet."
Sayouye's mom gently patted Sajuna's hand, looking at her with contentment in her voice, expressing her hopes.
"So, so when Mom sees you two with such deep feelings now, it's like seeing my past self, and I can't help but want Sajuna to move towards happiness."
Sajuna looked at her Mom's contented expression, as if feeling the happiness her Mom once shared with her Papa-san.
But Mom, happiness isn't just one kind of thing.
"Mom."
Sajuna's voice sounded very calm, completely devoid of the forced courage one might expect.
"My relationship with Aki-Kun is completely different from yours, Mom."
"Aki-Kun, Aki-Kun is very considerate of my feelings, and..."
Sajuna recalled Aki-Kun's reaction when faced with her temptations, a reaction completely different from what her classmates had described, and Aki-Kun's wholehearted comfort for her.
Sajuna remembered Aki-Kun's shyness when he first held her hand, her daze during their first kiss, the wild flutter in her heart during their second kiss, the unusual feeling in Aki-Kun's body when he held her – every single thing she had experienced with Aki-Kun, as long as Sajuna didn't forget it, would become a sweet memory she could relive repeatedly in her future life.
So she lifted her head, looked at her gently smiling Mom, and for the first time, clearly and concisely expressed her thoughts on love.
Although Aki-Kun had also told her these principles, Sajuna was now very clear in her heart.
"Mom, you don't have to have something important happen to feel happy."
"Every day, every moment I spend with Aki-Kun, even if we're just sitting together silently without talking, as long as it's something I can recall in the future, it counts as Sajuna's happiness."
"So, Mom, just let Sajuna go at her own pace."
Sajuna's face showed an expression of relief.