Chapter 1: A Doll-Like Beauty Comes to Live in the House
“Nice to meet you, I’m Yukina Aoi. Starting today, due to certain circumstances, I’ll be living at Mr. Yonemura’s house.”
Wait, what is this girl saying? It’s unimaginable from her lovely doll-like face, but is her mind crazy?
“Um, are you…?”
I was about to say it. “Is there something wrong with your head?” I was about to say it to a girl I just met.
As a man, no, as a human being, I was about to hit rock bottom. Just one step, no, a hundred steps away from the staircase called “growth,” I stopped myself.
Come on… um, Aoi-san? She’s looking at me with bewildered eyes because of my unnatural movements, and I’m afraid she might think I’m the one with a problem.
“Um, so…?”
“Oh, did you get the wrong house?”
“I don’t think so.”
There’s no other Yonemura in this area, but I’ll give it a shot.
Maybe, just maybe, an incredibly cute thief… something like that?
“Why is that?”
“Well, there’s no other Yonemura house around here, and Yonemura-san’s mother brought me here.”
“I see… there’s only one place like this, huh?”
“…Right?”
She tilts her head with a worried expression, smiling awkwardly.
An awkward silence hangs for a few seconds, and then the front door opens.
“I’m home—wait, didn’t you guide Yukina-chan to her room?!”
“But before that, don’t you think we need an explanation?”
“You can’t just leave a girl standing around like this, can you?”
My mother said this with a sigh mixed with exasperation in her voice and a sharp look.
“I-I’m fine, really. I think he was confused.”
“Honestly, Yukina-chan is so kind.”
My mother’s face melted with affection.
What on earth is she doing in front of her own son?
“I’m sorry for doubting you earlier, it was wrong of me. I mean, um… I’m sorry.”
This was my fault. I quickly admitted my mistake.
Thanks to this, we moved smoothly without any unnecessary pride.
“You don’t have to apologize… Yes.”
“So, would you like to come inside and, including introductions, have an explanation?”
“Yes, that sounds good.”
I feel like I’ve already heard the important things from this girl, but well, since she’s willing to explain properly, I should listen carefully.
“So, it’s like this.”
“In other words, your father got transferred overseas, and you wanted to stay in Japan. You actually wanted to live on your own, but you couldn’t, right?”
“That’s right, and that’s when Yukina-chan’s dad asked for Dad’s help.”
“I see, to let his cute daughter live on her own would be too scary.”
Well, I’m not a father, so I don’t know how he feels, but if I were a man and my daughter said she wanted to live on her own…
I don’t have the confidence to just say, “Sure.”
Besides, I wouldn’t want to let such a cute girl live alone.
“Well, I don’t know if he thinks that way…”
“It’s not like that.”
“Ever since Mom passed away, Dad seemed to become even more devoted to his work…”
After that, there was just silence. No one tried to say anything. No, we couldn’t say anything.
This is the Aoi family’s issue, and we can’t say anything foolish.
“Yukina-chan, feel free to think of this place as your second home, okay?”
“Yes, thank you very much.”
“Yeah.”
While saying this, my mother was caressing Aoi’s hair like she would with a cat.
Aoi seemed a little embarrassed, but she didn’t resist. However, there was something in her expression—somewhere between loneliness and sadness.
“Well then, shall we have dinner?”
“Come to think of it, I’m really hungry.”
“Well, I’m going shopping right now.”
“Take care.”
“Um, can I help with anything?”
“No, it’s fine, really. You must be tired from various things and feeling nervous today, right? You can take a break.”
“I see… alright.”
My mother instructed me to show Aoi to her room and then left the house. I followed her instructions and led Aoi to her room.
“Feel free to use this room as you like.”
“Are you sure?”
“Of course. Besides, it hasn’t been used, so it’s perfectly fine.”
“Thank you.”
I had cleaned it, but there might still be some dust or dirt, so she’d have to bear with it.
“Do you have a boyfriend, Aoi-san?”
I didn’t even know why I asked that question now. Probably… probably because if she did have a boyfriend, it could potentially lead to issues.
“I don’t have a boyfriend…”
“I see. Well, if you did have a boyfriend, I wouldn’t want any problems to arise.”
I answered in a way that suggested, “You understand, right?” The issue here could potentially be her boyfriend causing trouble or accusing her of cheating.
It’s not like I want to date Aoi. I have no intention of dating her, nor do I believe I could.
Who said I’m not popular, damn it?
“You do have a reason for not dating anyobe, don’t you?”
“True…”
I couldn’t help but chuckle lightly at my own contradiction.
“U can’t imagine myself dating anyone.” She said softly.
“Is that so?”
“Yes, I actually dislike men.”
Huh? Wait… Did she just say that she dislikes men?
She said she dislikes men…
“Um, well… Dislike?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, I didn’t mishear you…”
As I said this with a wry smile, she maintained her expression, perhaps even colder than before.
“Well, if I dislike them, there’s no way I could date one, right?”
“T-True, that’s a valid point…”
“Yes.”
From her cold gaze, I felt as if she had given up on something. Well, it might be my imagination, but maybe it’s better not to get too involved.
“Well, it seems like we’ll get along better this way.”
“Huh? What do you mean by that?”
“Hmm? Oh, it’s nothing. Just that it won’t be troublesome.”
“I see.”
Listening to my words, Aoi seemed somewhat relieved. It might be more challenging to develop feelings for such a doll-like girl when we live in the same house.
Was it lucky for Aoi to come to my house, or was it unlucky for me?
From that day on, I, Sou Yonemura, started living together with Aoi Yukina.
