The next day, Akira emerged from his bed.
The morning sun shone through the window onto his bed, its dappled light slowly warming the air in the bedroom.
Akira tidied up his computer desk, which was messy from working late, before stepping out of his bedroom.
As usual, he went to the bathroom for a shower, washed up, and then put on his school uniform before coming out.
He checked his phone and found that he had woken up much earlier than usual today.
Perhaps it was because he was going to meet Sajuna's Dad.
Thinking about what he had to do next, Akira felt an urge to go back to bed and think for a while, but he felt it wasn't appropriate to lie in bed in his uniform, so he sat on the sofa and browsed his phone.
Was he going to Sajuna's house today?
If he went, he would meet Sajuna's Dad.
Akira hesitated, thinking that in the past, when Sajuna's Dad and Sayouye's mom weren't home, he would usually go to Sajuna's house for breakfast, but now, it seemed it wouldn't be so easy...
After browsing social media for a while, Akira finally stood up from the sofa, walked into the kitchen, and started preparing his breakfast.
Akira's skilled cooking spread from his hands, and the aroma of various dishes gradually filled the air.
He really felt there was a bit of a gap compared to Sayouye's mom.
Akira couldn't help but think that it was as if the dishes he made lacked some important element.
If this were in a gourmet anime, it would probably be the absence of various 'love' energies.
How to infuse his feelings into his cooking, Akira fell into deep thought.
He carried the curry and miso soup he had made in the kitchen to the table in the living room, picked up his small bowl, softly murmured, "Itadakimasu," and then began to eat skillfully.
Speaking of which, it had been a long time since he had eaten breakfast alone at home.
The sweet curry, stirred by his chopsticks, emitted its unique aroma, making even the surrounding air gradually become delicious and sweet.
He ate the potato curry in his bowl, taking a sip of miso soup, all while wondering what questions Sajuna's Dad would ask him if they met.
After finishing breakfast, Akira tidied the table, took the dishes to the kitchen to wash, then adjusted his appearance, put on his school bag, and left the house.
The train to Sajuna's house was, as usual, not crowded. Akira sat in his seat, feeling a bit restless.
Yesterday, Sajuna had specifically messaged him that Sayouye's mom wanted to see him, but this morning, there was no sign of it.
Could it be that Sajuna's Dad had specifically told Sajuna not to give him a heads-up?
However, even though he could guess that he would go to see Sajuna the next morning, did he still choose to do this?
"Akira: Sajuna, good morning."
Akira thought for a moment and sent a message.
The message on the LINE interface quickly turned to 'read,' but after waiting a minute, he didn't see a reply from Sajuna.
As expected, she was advised not to reply.
Akira didn't think Sajuna's Dad was being overly controlling, because after all, it was his daughter whom he had raised for over a decade, and it wouldn't be surprising for him to react strongly upon suddenly hearing she was'snatched away' by a boy.
The fact that Sajuna's Dad didn't make any threatening calls, but instead resorted to the childish act of having Sajuna not reply to his messages, actually made Akira find his future father-in-law a bit endearing...
After all, while not replying to Akira's messages sounded serious, it certainly wouldn't prevent him from meeting Sajuna.
Akira felt confident.
After getting off the train and walking a short distance along the street, Akira arrived at a very familiar place. He stood in front of Sajuna's house and rang the doorbell.
Unlike the usual 'thump-thump' footsteps followed by the sound of the door opening, he heard slow footsteps approaching, and then saw Sayouye's mom open the door, looking at Akira with a smile.
"Akira-kun, you really did come this morning."
"Sajuna is still getting ready, come in quickly."
Sayouye's mom walked behind Akira, pushing him into the house, talking non-stop.
"Yesterday, I told Sajuna's Dad about Akira-kun. Although Sajuna's Dad was still a bit reluctant, his attitude has softened a lot."
"So Akira-kun, don't worry, Sayouye's mom will support you."
Akira felt the force of Sayouye's mom pushing him, trying to ensure Sayouye's mom didn't feel any resistance to his movement, while also making sure she could push his back at every moment.
The two of them entered the living room and, as expected, saw Sajuna's Dad eating.
Seeing Akira being pushed in by his wife, Sajuna's Dad's face showed a hint of an unnatural expression.
Although he had already agreed to his wife to be nicer to the boy in front of him, seeing him, he still couldn't help but want to scold him a bit.
So he lowered his head and focused on eating his meal.
Out of sight, out of mind. The food his wife made was truly delicious, Sajuna's Dad couldn't help but think.
While Sajuna's Dad was still eating at the table, Sajuna had already come out of her bedroom, dressed in her uniform.
Seeing Akira standing in the living room, she was a bit shy and softly called out, "Aki-Kun."
"Sorry for making Aki-Kun wait."
"It's fine."
Akira couldn't help but want to caress Sajuna's hair. Just as he reached out, he heard a cough from nearby.
"Cough, cough."
Akira stopped his outstretched hand and instead took Sajuna's right hand.
SakuranoMiya Girls' University's uniform was a sailor suit with a red, white, and black color scheme, featuring a red outer collar with white stripes and a yellow bow tie.
The neckline wasn't very wide, but Akira could still observe Sajuna's fair collarbone beneath her neck.
The pleated skirt she wore was also wine red, black long socks encased her smooth thighs, coupled with a pair of shiny leather shoes; just one glance would fill one's heart with a sense of cuteness.
Akira couldn't help but utter the words he had said countless times.
"Sajuna is very cute today."
After saying it, he seemed to feel it was a bit perfunctory, so he added another sentence.
"I really like this beautiful Sajuna."
"Thank you, Aki-Kun."
A blush spread across Sajuna's cheeks; she was clearly still not very accustomed to making intimate gestures or saying intimate words in front of her Dad and Sayouye's mom.
"These are your two lunch boxes."
Sayouye's mom came out of the kitchen and handed over the two lunch boxes.
"Then we'll be heading out."
"Be careful on your way."
Sayouye's mom watched the two of them standing together with a smile.
"Wait a moment."
Sajuna's Dad's voice came from behind.
"Be safe." Sajuna's Dad's voice paused, and he looked at Akira, "Are you coming back after school?"
Seeing Sajuna's Dad's serious expression, Akira slightly tightened his grip on Sajuna's hand and nodded his head affirmatively.
"Yes, I will come."