Uncle Hikigaya is Forever Young [47]

People always say men only want eighteen-year-old pretty girls.

That’s not exactly true!

Honestly, not every guy out there wants to marry some youthful, eighteen-year-old girl.

Plenty of thirty-something guys prefer a more mature woman.

Of course, here we’ve got to define clearly what a “mature woman” (jukujo) actually is.

A mature woman is one who doesn’t fuss or stir drama, who's attentive and thoughtful, who understands money is hard-earned and life’s not easy, who acknowledges everyone makes mistakes and who knows how to appropriately act spoiled…

A tired man easily falls for this kind of woman.

And if such a woman were also pretty, held a decent job—

And single—

Forget about older guys in their thirties; even younger, puppy-like boys would desperately chase after her, dreaming of taking her home and tossing her onto the bed.

According to these criteria, aside from her good looks and decent job, Machida Sonoko-san...

Well, anyway, there was a reason she was still single—and it wasn't purely bad luck.

“Sonoko, starting today, you're moving out!”

Early Saturday morning, after spending a sleepless night reflecting deeply on her failures as a mother, Machida-san’s mom dragged her daughter out of bed, delivering these stern words with grim determination.

It was time for drastic measures!

“Eh?! No way! Renting a place is such a hassle—I’d have to cook for myself, too! My job already takes up all my time…” Having stayed up way too late last night chatting online with Shi-chan, Machida-san was still half-asleep, only knowing how to cling spoiledly onto her mother.

“I said! Starting today, you're living on your own! You can come back every Sunday for dinner if you want. I've already asked your dad to rent a place for you—today we're moving your things!”

This aging mother, who’d worn herself out worrying about her daughter, resisted the powerful urge to smack her again with the broom.

Recently, Machida-san’s mom had finally realized something: every gentle, virtuous mother eventually raises a completely useless idiot of a daughter.

She herself was partly to blame!

She'd never liked her daughter doing some vague job like “editor,” but back then, she thought everything would settle down once Sonoko got married.

But…

“No way!”

31-year-old Machida-san was fully awake now, protesting loudly.

Her family lived comfortably in central Tokyo; living with her parents meant no worries about food or expenses!

Her salary was spent entirely on herself every month!

Though saying this might sound pathetic, this kind of life was seriously comfortable and relaxing!

Compared to white-collar workers from elsewhere who earned a million yen more than her, she was living even more comfortably.

High-quality life, carefree mood!

And half of that was thanks to living with her parents!

Smack!

Machida-san’s mom spread her fingers wide and smacked her daughter's head mercilessly.

“Out! Out! Out! I’m tired of looking at you! If you can't get married, don’t call me your mother! You useless child!”

Utterly distressed, she didn’t want to say another word. It was all because she'd spoiled Sonoko too much.

Lately, she'd come to a painful conclusion: If she'd chased her daughter out earlier, right after graduation, and let her suffer some hardship in society, maybe by now she’d already be holding a few grandkids in her arms.

She’d raised her too comfortably.

“I’m already thirty-one! Could you stop hitting me on the head?!”

Machida-san shouted her complaint.

If she hadn't said that, maybe things would’ve been fine, but hearing this, her mother was so angry she started trembling!

Her eyes rolled back dramatically, nearly fainting on the spot.

“Hah! So you actually realize how old you are now?! Waaah, Machida Sonoko! You’re going to be the death of me!!! I’m such a failure as a mother!” As she spoke, tears of frustration streamed down Mrs. Machida’s face.

Machida-san panicked briefly but suddenly remembered something important.

“Actually, I've arranged to go on a matchmaking date this weekend. Miura-nee from next door introduced him. I heard he's really reliable. This time, I'll definitely take it seriously!”

A few days ago, Machida-san had genuinely panicked about her single status. But after agreeing to the date—even though she hadn't actually gone yet—she'd already thrown her resolve to prepare herself as a bride completely out the window, burying herself again in the endless routine of harassing her authors for manuscripts.

If her mom hadn't confronted her this morning, she might've completely forgotten about it again.

“Oh?! How old is he? What's his income like? Has he been married before? How’s his character?” Mrs. Machida’s distressed expression suddenly brightened, firing off questions one after another.

“He’s thirty-four, earns pretty well, and his character should be fine—Miura-nee recommended him after all. Plus, he's fairly handsome… Wait, why ask if he's been married before?”

Finally fully awake, Machida-san absent-mindedly adjusted the silk strap slipping off her smooth shoulder and tilted her head toward her mom.

This child seriously doesn't have any sense at all!

“You idiot! Think about it! If he's fairly young, makes good money, has a good character—why would he ever settle for a nearly thirty-two-year-old fool like you? Sure, in your dreams you’ve got everything!”

“Haaah?!”

Machida-san’s mouth dropped open in shock.

“Wake up already! At this point, all you can get are leftovers! I'll ask Miura-chan myself about him.”

...

Early Saturday morning, Hikigaya Ryōhei on the other side of town was also busy.

Today he planned to head over to Yokosuka.

He’d already promised the overly diligent government official yesterday, after all.

After briefly giving Hachiman a few instructions, Ryōhei stepped out the door.

Komachi was still sleeping soundly, enjoying a rare chance to sleep until she naturally woke.

Last night, after hearing her dad found a good new job, Komachi had jumped three feet in the air, too excited to sleep properly all night.

Following the arrangements he’d made with the government official, Ryōhei arrived at Chiba Station.

“Over here! Hikigaya-san!”

Just as he approached within a dozen meters of the station entrance, a familiar voice called out.

The girl’s voice was exceptionally pleasant, so gentle it made one slightly sleepy just by hearing it.

And besides… probably a D-cup at least, right?

She’d probably be considered high-grade even by Victoria’s Secret standards.

Turning toward the voice, Ryōhei saw the civil servant from yesterday standing elegantly in casual clothes, a small handbag slung gracefully over her shoulder.

Though concealed beneath a silky white blouse, her impressive bust was attracting the gaze of almost every passerby. She, however, seemed perfectly unfazed, probably already quite used to such attention.

“Kushida-san, you're here early! Actually, you really didn't need to accompany me. I already planned to visit... Akeno today anyway.” Ryōhei’s impression of this overly dedicated government worker was quite positive.

Yesterday, she'd specifically visited him at home to persuade him to adopt his niece, Misaki Akeno.

This was already far beyond her official duties.

She was probably a deeply compassionate person.

He instinctively felt goodwill toward such people.

“Please don’t be so polite. To be honest, I was already planning to visit Akeno-chan myself today anyway.”

Perhaps thinking of all those maritime-disaster orphans she'd gotten to know, Kushida Kikyou’s flawless face—perfect even without makeup—momentarily darkened.

She wanted those orphaned children to be happy.

If the children were happy, she’d also be happy.

---

This is a fan translation of 比企谷大叔永远年轻 by Stargazer All rights to the original work belong to the creator. Please support them by exploring their original work or sharing it with others if you can. Thank you for reading and supporting my efforts to bring this story to a wider audience!