Chapter 85: Spoiling Instinct

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Translator: Soafp

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A slightly calmed-down Ginji realized he was hungry. Glancing at his wristwatch, he saw that it was already past noon.

“I’m starving. Should we get in line somewhere?—Whoa, suddenly it’s gotten really crowded.”

The food court they were in was a popular spot, and the crowd that was already large had grown denser all at once.

“……”

Thankfully, being a food court, there were plenty of options. At least that's what Ginji thought—but Sora gave no response.

He glanced over to find her puffing her cheeks and trembling slightly, as if she were holding something in.

“Sora?”

“…I got dizzy.”

“Huh?”

A few minutes later, Sora's face, which had been flushed red, was now pale as she leaned against Ginji while they stepped outside.

“You okay, Sora? I should've been more considerate.”

“No, I didn't think I'd end up like this either… Ugh, and on a date, too… I'm sorry.”

Apparently, Sora had gotten overwhelmed by the crowd. Normally shy and reclusive, she spent most of her time drawing at home. On top of that, with her tendency to constantly absorb and remember flows of movement and sound, the bustling shopping mall overloaded her senses.

Under normal circumstances, she would have been fine—but her excitement about the date had pushed her too far. The stress she hadn't noticed had built up and finally boiled over during the lunchtime chaos.

“Don't apologize. Come on, a date's not over until you get home.”

“Heh, that kinda sounds like a school field trip.”

As Sora gave a weak laugh, Ginji felt an urge to punch himself.

He knew her memory could be a double-edged sword—he knew—but he'd failed to account for it. He bit his lip in frustration. But if he let that show even a little, Sora would instantly pick up on it and blame herself. He couldn't let that happen. Right now, his priority was making sure she got home safely.

Luckily, they managed to catch a train just in time. Once they were seated, she could finally rest.

“Feeling better?”

“Yeah… a lot better now.”

Sora took slow sips of a sports drink, leaning on Ginji. Her complexion looked much improved.

When they arrived at the station, Ginji took out his bike and they rode double back to her house.

“Don't push yourself. Want to take a taxi?”

“I'm okay, really.”

Holding Ginji from the side, Sora felt like crying from regret.

She had wanted to give it her all as a girlfriend today—but she had only ended up messing things up. Things had been going so well at the mall, and she had ruined it herself. Even as a gloomy cloud hung over her, she couldn't help but feel comforted by Ginji's back—and that just made her feel guiltier.

“We’re here.”

“Eh? Already?”

“We were going slower than usual, though. Here.”

Sora wobbled as she got off the bike, and Ginji caught her.

“You need to take it easy today.”

Hearing those words made Sora's heart sink. She had actually thought through a lot of things for the day.

But everything had ended halfway. And once she was home—she'd be alone again.

“…Yeah, but… I kinda wanted to be with you longer.”

“What are you talking about? Come on.”

Ginji took her hand. Led by his gentle urgency, Sora unlocked the door.

“Uh, Ginji?”

“What kind of guy leaves his sick girlfriend alone? Today, I'm in full ‘spoil-you-rotten' mode.”

“…Huh?”

With a wide grin, Ginji stepped into Sora's home. He led her to the living room sofa like he'd done it many times before, then grabbed some tea from the fridge.

“You were sweating earlier. Drink up and take a shower or something. I'll make us dinner.”

Sora took a sip of the chilled barley tea and let out a breath. She thought about helping with the cooking—but she was still in a white sundress, and she had been sweating.

“…Okay. I'll be back.”

She couldn't stop her cheeks from relaxing into a smile. Heading up to the third floor to grab a change of clothes, she then went down to the bathroom on the second. She carefully undressed and placed the sundress into a laundry net before setting the washing machine to gentle.

A lukewarm shower refreshed her mind, and by the time she finished and changed into loose-fitting underwear, a shirt, and shorts, she was feeling much better. With light skincare done, she gave a small prayer to the washing machine spinning her dress.

“Let's try this again sometime, okay?”

With those words, she returned to the living room—and was greeted by a delicious aroma.

“I'll help you, Ginji.”

“You don't need to push yourself.”

“I'm totally fine now. Thank you, really.”

“…Nah, you’re not totally fine.”

Ginji glanced sideways at Sora. She tried to insist she was, but from his gaze, she caught his true intent. A metaphorical lightbulb lit up above her head.

“Uhh, yeah—you're right—maybe I'm still a little off.”

“Haha, that's more like it.”

While still clearly faking it, she looked over the kitchen.

There was soup warming on the stove, and Ginji was slicing tofu.

“What are you making?”

“Nyuumen—easy on the stomach.”

The ingredients were frozen broad beans and an egg. Judging from the prep, he planned to swirl the egg in like an egg-drop soup.

It was a kind and thoughtful choice for Sora, who still didn't have much of an appetite. Something warm was better for digestion, even in summer. Sora headed back to the living room and pulled out Ginji's new dishes from the shopping bag.

“Let's wash these and use them right away.”

“Oh, right. Good idea.”

They washed the new dishes and continued preparing the meal together.

Working side-by-side, they ladled the egg-drop soup over the nyuumen in large bowls. Since they didn't have mitsuba, they used a few frozen edamame for garnish.

“…It looks delicious.”

“Turned out great, huh?”

With their new chopsticks, Ginji took a bite while Sora watched with delight. She then happily slurped noodles from her own smaller bowl. Afterwards, they washed the dishes together.

Sora, choosing not to use the drying machine, wiped the new tableware carefully and placed Ginji's dishes in an easy-to-reach spot on the shelf.

“This is for your chopsticks. And your cup goes here.”

“Whoa—wait, you made this holder?”

“I had some leftover wood, so I started doing a little DIY.”

After tidying up, they sat down on the sofa. Sora gently wrapped herself around Ginji's arm and rubbed her head against him.

“Feeling better?”

“Not yet. Maybe I'll feel better if we talk some more.”

Ginji stroked her head, which now rested on his arm.

“I'm all sweaty too, so you shouldn't snuggle up too close. You just showered.”

“You don't smell. And if I do get sweaty again, I'll just shower again. You want to take one too?”

“Yeah, no thanks—that's way too nerve-wracking.”

“Just bring a change of clothes next time. Should we buy a bed? Get some sheets?”

“Okay, whoa there, let's slow down.”

He tried to brush it off as a joke, but the look in Sora's eyes was dead serious, and he hit the brakes.

“…It's weird. I used to hate having anything or anyone in my personal space. But if it's you, Ginji, I just want to add more and more of you to it. I think a new door just opened. Take responsibility, okay?”

Sora's heart had found a new door—and opened it wide.

“Well… I guess I'd feel kind of happy if some of your stuff was mixed in with mine too. That dish shop we went to—let's go again once I get my next paycheck.”

“Yeah. I'll be more careful about getting overwhelmed by crowds next time. I'm really sorry about today.”

Just as she apologized, a gentle flick to her forehead came from Ginji.

“Ouch!”

“I told you I was the one who wasn't considerate enough. Don't apologize—there's not enough spoiling going on here.”

With that, Ginji guided her head onto his lap, giving her a knee pillow.

“…Isn't this backwards?”

“Once in a while's fine, right? You're tired—take a nap. If my knee's too hard, go grab a real pillow. I'm not going anywhere.”

“Hehe… this is perfect. Thanks, Ginji. Today had its rough parts… but I had a great time.”

“Yeah. Me too.”

A few minutes later, gentle breathing filled the room. Ginji softly stroked Sora's hair until she woke.