177 – Evening Calm

RAW

(A/N:) Sorry for the delayed update.

I’ll be posting several chapters in a row from here on.

Actually, everything in this story so far has been leading up to the series of scenes starting here.

Well then… enjoy.

The weekend had ended, and in the classroom filled with a sluggish atmosphere, a particularly lethargic voice was raised.

"Daaahh… why did I have to come back to reality from the dream world?"

Tomoya was lying across Haruto’s desk, dramatically arching his body and looking up at the sky with a sigh of despair.

"I want to go back to the dream world\~\~ Reality sucks so much\~\~ Study, just disappear from this world\~\~"

"If you keep saying ‘sucks sucks’, you’re just going to feel even worse."

Haruto said with a tired expression, and Tomoya looked at him with a big sigh.

"You’re so lucky, Haru. Even when you come back to reality, you’ve got the cutest girlfriend ever."

"Yeah."

"Don’t agree with me, that pisses me off."

"Can’t help it. Ayaka’s the best girlfriend."

"Tojo-san is the best. But it pisses me off that you admit that."

"Jealous?"

"Jealous."

The two exchanged their usual lighthearted banter.

At this rate, Tomoya looked like he might melt away like slime from sheer exhaustion.

Haruto quietly glanced at Ayaka, who was surrounded by the girls in the middle of the classroom. Their eyes met and she smiled warmly. At that moment, the girls around them let out small cheers.

Haruto returned her smile, then deliberately looked away from Ayaka. Immediately, the almost-melting Tomoya complained, "Stop flirting."

"Why don’t you get a girlfriend too?"

Haruto said, only to be met with a sharp glare.

"What the hell’s that!? The confident attitude of a happy guy!? Damn it, if it comes to this, I have to rely on the blessing of the archangel Ryota!"

Tomoya took out a heart-shaped keychain Ryota had given him at the amusement park, gripped it tightly, and began to pray.

"You actually carry that around?"

"Of course! This keychain’s got serious powers!"

"…Do you even know what kind of power that keychain’s supposed to have?"

"Love luck boost, right? Don’t make fun of me."

"…Yeah, okay."

Tomoya gave a look that said ‘don’t ask the obvious’, and Haruto nodded awkwardly.

Just then, Saki came over to the two.

"Hey, you two… what’s Akagi-kun doing?"

"Basking in the full power of the archangel."

Saki looked skeptical as Tomoya spread his arms wide and solemnly looked up at the ceiling.

"Doing that again, huh…"

Saki gave an exasperated look, then noticed the keychain in Tomoya’s right hand. She quickly removed a matching keychain from her own bag and slipped it into her pocket.

Tomoya, focused on his prayer, missed her move, but Haruto saw it clearly.

Maybe Ryota’s blessing is for real.

Haruto forced himself to keep his lips from loosening as he deeply felt Ryota’s impressive power.

"I can feel it… I can really feel Ryota’s amazing power!"

Haruto simply nodded in response to his idiot friend.

"By the way, I wanted to tell you two, can we skip relay practice today? Everyone’s still tired from yesterday, right?"

"Yeah, that makes sense. Got it."

"Akagi-kun, you okay with that?"

"Okay okay!"

"Alright then, that’s settled."

After passing on the message, Saki waved lightly and walked away.

Haruto glanced at Saki’s back, then looked back at Tomoya, who was muttering suspiciously, "It’s working… it’s working!"

"Tomoya, you should put more heart into your prayers. Then maybe you’ll really get that blessing."

"I’m serious! Nanmaidā\~ Nanmaidā\~!"

Like a shaman, Tomoya held the keychain with both hands and shook it side to side.

"More seriously, with more heartfelt feelings."

"Archangel Ryota! Have mercy on this poor lamb\~!"

"More, more."

"I want a girlfriend\~! I want to go on dates\~! I hate studying\~! Make every day a holiday\~! Endless holiday\~!"

"That has nothing to do with love."

Haruto calmly poked fun at his lethargic, desire-filled friend.

That day at school passed uneventfully, except for Tomoya saying "Daaahh" all day long.

---

After school.

Haruto and Ayaka walked side by side on the way home.

"Akagi-kun was saying ‘Daaahh’ all day today."

"Looks like dreamland withdrawal."

"Well, can’t be helped then."

"In Tomoya’s case, it’s a pretty big shock."

Haruto laughed and Ayaka smiled in agreement.

"Saki scolded him to snap out of it."

Ayaka recalled Saki shaking Tomoya’s back to wake him up and laughed softly.

"If things go on like this, Tomoya will probably get so fed up that Aizawa-san will lose patience with him."

"Hmm, but Saki seems to be having fun with it too."

"Really?"

Ayaka’s question made Haruto tilt his head.

"You know, Saki’s good at looking after people, right? So I think she actually likes taking care of someone like Akagi-kun."

"Then, does that mean those two really get along well?"

"I think so."

Since Ayaka had known Saki since childhood, Haruto took that as a sign that Tomoya and Saki really are compatible.

Just as he was thinking that, Ayaka, walking beside him, spoke in a slightly lively tone.

"If Saki and Akagi-kun got together, it would be so much fun."

"In what way?"

"Well, we could all go on group dates like yesterday. Maybe even travel dates."

"Yeah, that does sound fun."

A date with just Ayaka was nice, but a lively group date might be fun too.

As Haruto thought about that, he felt Ayaka’s left hand slip into his.

He looked down at her hand, then at her face.

She smiled softly and looked up at the distant sky.

"Nice weather, huh."

"Yeah. Today’s sunset will probably be beautiful too."

"Wanna go watch the sunset together later?"

"Sure."

"Yay."

Ayaka smiled happily.

Haruto felt warm happiness as he slowly walked along with her.

---

"Kiyoko-san, how do I knit this part?"

"Here, you start by making one chain stitch, then single crochet up to 26 stitches, that’s fine."

"Got it. So, I insert the hook from the back side…"

"That’s right, just like that. You’re doing great."

After dinner, Ayaka was being taught knitting by Kiyoko.

Recently, spending time knitting with Kiyoko after dinner had become her routine.

Ayaka focused on her stitches, while Kiyoko smiled warmly watching over her.

Haruto’s expression softened watching the two get along so well, when Ryota’s urging voice reached his ears.

"Next, it’s big brother’s turn!"

"Oops, sorry."

Haruto looked away from Ayaka and Kiyoko, and glanced down at the Othello board.

Distracted by her, he got hit by a tough move from Ryota and groaned, "Hmm."

"Ryota-kun’s really strong."

"Hehe. I’m gonna beat big brother!"

"You won’t lose that easily."

Haruto replied as he made a counter move.

Ayaka and Kiyoko’s semi-cohabitation started when Kiyoko became a housekeeper for the Tojo family.

Normally, Kiyoko has Sundays and Mondays off, so Haruto was supposed to spend those days at the Otsuki house. But recently, Kiyoko comes to the Tojo house in the early afternoon on Mondays, so Haruto naturally ends up coming to Ayaka’s place.

Somehow, grandma seems to be more comfortable here with the lively atmosphere.

Haruto thought this as Ryota pondered his next move adorably, muttering, "Hmm, if I put it here, then this happens…"

Ayaka chatted happily as she enjoyed knitting with Kiyoko.

Shuichi was sitting across the dining table from Ikue, desperately pitching for permission to buy new fishing gear, holding a fishing rod brochure.

Ikue smiled warmly and easily brushed off his argument.

The lively, warm atmosphere of the Tojo household was becoming Haruto’s everyday life.

"This fishing rod can feel even the slightest nibble! Which means my catch rate will improve! So that means I can catch lots of fresh fish and we can enjoy luxurious seafood feasts at home!"

"Hehe, that sounds wonderful. Alright, you can buy it. Catch lots of fish with that rod, okay?"

"Of course!"

Shuichi did a victorious pose with a big smile after getting permission.

Ikue smiled at her husband’s happiness, then called out to Ayaka, who was busy knitting.

"You should take a bath soon."

"Oh? Is it already that time? Kiyoko-san, please teach me more tomorrow."

"Of course, I’d love to."

Ayaka picked up her knitting and got ready for the bath.

"Oh, by the way, there are many kinds of yarn for knitting, right?"

"Yes. Lately there are many varieties in stores."

"I want to see them sometime. Um… if it’s okay, would you like to go look at knitting yarns together sometime?"

Ayaka asked nervously.

Kiyoko smiled warmly, deepening the wrinkles on her face happily.

"Yes, let’s definitely go together."

"Thank you! I’m looking forward to it!"

Ryota, who had been focused on Othello, reacted.

"Big sister, are you going shopping with grandma?"

"Yes."

"I want to come too!"

"Sure."

"Yay! Let’s all go together, big brother!"

Ryota beamed with joy from the bottom of his heart.

Haruto smiled gently as well.

The warm and gentle everyday life at the Tojo household.

Haruto, watching Kiyoko slowly stand up from the sofa after Ayaka, thought to himself:

How lucky am I to have this kind of everyday life continue?

Before summer vacation started, it was just the two of them—Haruto and Kiyoko—the only family left.

It was a very quiet life.

But now, it had become a lively life full of endless smiles.

Haruto felt grateful to Ayaka, who had become his girlfriend, and to the Tojo family who accepted them both, and a gentle smile spread across his lips as he enjoyed these happy days.

In that moment, his eyes caught sight of his grandmother.

For Haruto, she was his only family, an irreplaceable precious presence.

Suddenly, her figure wavered for a moment.

And in the next instant, she swayed heavily and lost her balance.

To Haruto, it looked like it happened in slow motion.

But that slow motion was instantly broken by the loud thud of Kiyoko collapsing onto the floor.

“...Grandma?”

The event was so sudden that Haruto was left stunned, his face blank.

Ayaka, who had been about to go to the bath, turned around at the loud noise of Kiyoko falling and stopped in her tracks.

Ryota’s eyes widened in surprise.

Shuichi and Ikue stood up from their chairs, wondering what was happening.

For a moment, it felt as if time itself had stopped.

A moment that felt eternal to Haruto.

After a very long and yet very short instant, Haruto’s body moved on its own.

“Grandma!!”

Haruto shouted as he rushed to his grandmother’s side.

--

Damn, here we go...