Satori shrank his body in the corner of the room.
(What the heck happened after I left the house?)
It seemed like Sousuke repeatedly tripped his foot at something, as short screams like ‘aah’ or ‘whoa’ can be heard. Every time he heard that, Satori’s body shrank and trembled even more.
(Whoa, the washroom… Wait, even the washing machine is full of bubbles. Ah, this scent, could it be shampoo?! There are even unwashed dishes broken. Ahh, my favorite book…!)
“Sousuke…”
Satori slowly looked at Sousuke, who was speechless at the front door while standing still.
“I’m sorry…”
(No, it’s not ‘sorry’ that I want to hear…)
“I… would be lying if I said I’m not angry, but forget about that now. Explain to me how it got to this.”
In Sousuke’s hand, he held a page from the book that was torn by the white fluffy spirits.
Even if Satori told him that the white fluffy spirits were the ones who did it, Sousuke, who couldn’t see them, probably wouldn’t believe him. Without being able to find any words of excuse, he sniffled.
“I-I…”
As soon as Satori opened his mouth, tears started to well up again and he rubbed his eyelids.
“…I was just trying to make you happy. But nothing went right… I-… I’m sorry…”
Satori cast his eyes downwards and couldn’t bring to raise his face. A sighing sound could be heard from above his head.
(So he tried to clean up the house.)
“Are you hurt?”
(…Aah, blood is coming out from his finger.)
“Zo-zosuke.”
As soon as he realized that Sousuke was no longer angry, Satori became relaxed and his tears started to flow. Towards Satori who unconsciously spoke with a nasal voice, Sousuke burst out laughing.
“….What the heck is Zosuke?”
Sousuke smiled wryly.
Sousuke’s words are always so gentle. It doesn’t hurt.
(…It can’t be helped.)
A voice with a hint of resignation drifted down, but it didn’t reach Satori’s ears at that time.
After Satori had finally stopped crying, Sousuke treated the wound on his finger. Then they went to the living room and ate a meal. Sousuke, whose hobby was cooking, had made and froze an orange soup before when he had time. It was filled with many kinds of vegetables cut into small pieces and was very delicious. While eating, Satori could feel Sousuke’s thought that his bangs which covered half of his face looked gloomy, but Sousuke didn’t say anything out loud.
“So, about things from now on.”
Dinner was over, and as the air was filled with a relaxing atmosphere, Sousuke spoke up.
Things from now on?
Satori tilted his head.
I wonder what Sousuke is talking about?
“If you have nowhere else to go, you can stay here for a while.”
…!
Satori was surprised. He didn’t expect that Sousuke would say something like that. He had assumed that Sousuke was going to tell him to leave after he had finished his meal.
Sousuke stared at Satori as if he were examining him, then let out a small sigh.
(There’s no mistake that his identity is suspicious though. But I can’t leave him alone, so it can’t be helped.)
“Just so we’re clear, this doesn’t mean I’ve fully trusted you. If I’m going to keep you in my house, then I’m going to set some rules. If you don’t follow them, then I’ll kick you out immediately.”
Satori was unable to utter a single word with his eyes still wide open. Sousuke perhaps had misunderstood Satori’s attitude, as he relaxed his expression that he had purposefully made to look fierce earlier.
“…I said that I’ll set some rules, but it’s nothing that hard to follow. It’s just normal things that are needed for us living together. And my daily life isn’t exactly normal, after all. If you follow the rules, then you can stay here for a while. If you still don’t know what to do in the future, then you can just start thinking about it now. I’ll also try to help you as much as I can, and I can give you some advice… Sato?”
Satori couldn’t believe what Sousuke was saying. As the thought that he could still be together with Sousuke caught up with him, all the feelings that he had been unconsciously holding back became plentiful and overflowed.
(…Oh no.)
Satori was looking down, crying while trying to suppress his voice. From above his head, Sousuke’s inner voice could be heard. It was so gentle, just like the spring rain.
(Please don’t cry…)
“You cry too much.”
Sousuke muttered in a voice that was filled with bewilderment. His hand that rubbed Satori’s head from over the table was so warm, and it only made Satori even sadder for some reason.