Today was 11 March, it was my day off, and I was determined to find a place to stay. With my first salary in hand, I couldn’t keep freeloading at Junpei’s place. He’d been nagging me about it since I moved in a month ago. Thinking about it, it had been a month since I’d left Keiko and Rin too. That realization hit harder than I expected. Did Keiko think I’d run away? Maybe she thought I was back to my old ways, cheating or shirking responsibility again.
I sighed deeply, the weight of those thoughts pressing down on me as Junpei sat next to me, scrolling on his phone. "Okay, listen up," he said, tapping at the screen. "I found a couple of places that are in your budget. But heads up, these are way out of the city. Are you ready to live in the boonies?"
"Guess I don’t have much of a choice," I replied with a shrug, though the idea of living so far from everything didn’t sit well with me.
I spent the morning touring various apartments, none of which felt right. Some were way out of my price range, others looked like they hadn’t been touched since the ‘90s. By the time the afternoon rolled around, I was frustrated and exhausted.
"Should I just live in a cave?" I muttered, slumping onto a park bench.
I pulled out my phone, checking messages and half-heartedly browsing rental listings. Suddenly, I heard a familiar voice call out.
I looked up and froze. Rin was walking toward me, still in her school uniform. For a moment, I couldn’t help but smile. She looked so much like her mother—like Keiko when we first met.
"Hi, Rin," I greeted warmly.
She stopped in front of me, tilting her head slightly. "What are you doing here? Shouldn’t you be at work?"
The question caught me off guard. Rin, being...friendly? It was such a far cry from the constant resentment she used to hurl my way.
"Umm...hello? Are you going to answer me or just sit there like a statue?" she asked, folding her arms with a huff.
"Ah, sorry!" I stammered. "Today’s my day off. What about you? Are you coming home from school?"
She nodded, sitting down on the bench next to me. "Yeah..."
Her tone was casual, but I noticed the slight blush creeping up her cheeks. There was an awkward silence between us, the kind that felt like we were both waiting for the other to speak. I decided to break it.
"How’s school been?" I asked.
Her expression stiffened, and she looked down at her hands. "Why are you asking?"
I frowned slightly. "I just...wanted to make sure you’re okay. You know, after...everything that happened last month. If anyone’s still bothering you—"
"I’m fine!" she interrupted, her voice sharp but her eyes betraying her insecurity. "It’s not like I need you to protect me or anything."
"Rin..." I started, but she looked away, cheeks tinged red.
"I said I’m fine," she mumbled, softer this time.
For some reason, my heart ached seeing her . I didn’t even realize I’d moved until I was already pulling her into a hug.
"You’ll be fine," I whispered.
She stiffened in my arms, her face bright red. "W-What the hell are you doing?!" she stammered, pushing me away so hard I nearly fell off the bench.
"I—I’m sorry!" I blurted, holding up my hands in surrender. "I wasn’t thinking. I just—"
"Don’t do that again!" she yelled, her voice cracking slightly. "You’re so weird!"
Before I could say anything else, she grabbed her bag and bolted, leaving me sitting there, dumbfounded. What did I just do? I’m nothing more than her mom's junior now, I thought to myself.
Later that evening, I recounted the incident to Junpei.
"You hugged her? Are you insane?!" he exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air. "Of course she freaked out! You two barely just started getting along, and you go and pull something like that?"
"I wasn’t thinking!" I admitted, burying my face in my hands. "It just...happened."
Junpei groaned. "Man, you’ve gotta get it together. You’re not Ryusei anymore. You’re Ryuko. You can’t just go around doing reckless stuff like that."
"I know, I know..." I muttered, sinking deeper into the couch.
Junpei smirked suddenly, his tone turning teasing. "You know, even if you were still her dad, she probably would’ve decked you for pulling that. I can just picture it—‘Don’t touch me, you creep!’ Bam! Right in the face."
"Shut up," I muttered, chucking a pillow at him.
He dodged it easily, laughing. "I’m serious, though. She’s a tsundere through and through. You’ve got to play it cool or she’s gonna think you’re some kind of weirdo."
"Thanks for the advice, Mr. Expert," I shot back sarcastically.
"Anytime," he replied with a grin. "By the way, did you find a place yet?"
I sighed heavily. "Not yet. Looks like I’ll be stuck with you for a while longer."
Junpei groaned dramatically, flopping back on the couch. "Great. Just what I needed—my freeloading roommate sticking around even longer."
I smirked, leaning closer to him with an exaggerated pout. "Aww, but Junpei, you love having me around! Admit it~!"
The look on his face was priceless—a mix of horror and disgust.
"Stop it! Stop doing that creepy voice!" he shouted, scrambling away from me.
"But Junpei," I continued, batting my eyelashes at him. "Don’t you think I’m cute?"
"UGHHH! You’re disgusting! Get away from me!" he yelled, covering his face with a pillow.
I couldn’t help but burst out laughing at his reaction, my earlier worries melting away, if only for a little while.
As I lay in bed that night, I couldn’t stop thinking about Rin. The way her cheeks flushed red when I hugged her, the way she stammered when she yelled at me—it was adorable in a way I hadn’t expected.