The next morning, I woke up at my usual time, ate the breakfast Hayashi had prepared, and headed out.
After a long train ride, I arrived at the university. This early in the morning, even the school cafeteria—which was usually a riot of noise by noon—was sparse.
"Phew."
Finding a sense of comfort in the quiet, I took a seat and began my prep work.
As my mechanical pencil skated across the paper, my mind drifted back to last night's conversation with Hayashi. She hadn't mentioned it this morning, but right before bed, she’d saddled me with a ridiculous task: talk to another student today.
I let out a heavy sigh.
Honestly, her sudden, queenly whims were always a headache.
As I’d thought before, I wasn’t exactly looking for friends right now. If anything, there was no way I could get along with the types who spent all day making a scene.
...But then, there was the reward.
To be blunt, it would be a waste to forfeit it.
The truth was, I’d been running a bit low on funds recently. It wasn't that looking after Hayashi was draining me—I’d worked part-time and saved since high school, so my finances weren't in any immediate danger.
However, since she’d moved in, the frequency of my trips back to our hometown had skyrocketed. I hadn't set foot in that place for months before this, yet in the last three months alone, I’d lost count of how many times we’d gone back together.
It wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but I’d been more than a little surprised when I reviewed last month's ledger.
I felt bad about making her open her own nearly empty wallet, but since she was the one who suggested it, I supposed a little wouldn't hurt.
...Wait, speaking of being short on cash, was her own wallet okay?
Before she escaped that abusive bastard, she’d been treated like a full-time housewife and hadn't been allowed to work a part-time job. Even though she’d been living with me for three months, there was no way she had any real savings to speak of.
The thought of making her pay, even if it was just a few thousand yen, started to weigh on my conscience.
Yeah. This reward idea was no good. I’d call it off. I’d just tell her I didn’t want a reward and didn't bother talking to anyone. That would be the end of it.
Bzzzt.
My smartphone buzzed at the perfect time. I checked the screen.
It was a message from Hayashi. I unlocked the phone and opened the chat. It was a photo.
I stared at it, aghast.
The image showed something bundled in packing material, followed by a text: "Had some of that packing material left over."
『Wait, since when was it "left over"?』 I hurriedly messaged back.
『When I looked it up on an online shopping site, this stuff goes for quite a bit on the resale market.』
『Why are you even looking at prices if you aren't planning to sell?』
『If you don't talk to someone, the cleaning tools are going on the market. That was the deal, Yamamoto.』
『No, it wasn't?』
This was strange. Had I slipped into a parallel universe overnight where the rules had changed?
『Then consider it a new clause!』
『It's not "a new clause," though.』
There was no reply. Apparently, she was ghosting me.
Dammit.
How is this level of tyranny even legal? This... this was brutal. Just plain cruel!
I mean, sure, I might have grumbled in front of her lately about my cleaning tools piling up... and I might have said I should organize them... and I might have even suggested getting rid of the ones that were a pain to use!
...Wait. Now that I thought about it, was there actually a problem here?
My phone vibrated again. It seemed she hadn't been ignoring me; she’d just been typing.
『You aren't starting to think it's fine if I sell them, are you?』
『You're sharp.』
『Don't just give a confession.』
An anger mark stamp popped up, followed by another message.
『Just talk to someone. Do it quick and easy.』
『Well, that's certainly the fastest way.』
『Right?』
『Yeah.』
Well, even if the cleaning tools were to be sold, there was no reason to trouble Hayashi with it. In fact, if I let her handle it, I’d just end up feeling indebted to her, and I hated that.
Whatever the task, I had to be the one to initiate it. That’s just who I am—a difficult, meticulous man. Thinking I could just let her handle it, even for a second, was beneath me.
I suppose that realization was proof of how much I’d actually come to trust her. Of course, I would never say such a thing to her face even if my life depended on it.
Regardless, Hayashi was right. I should just hurry up and get this pointless promise over with.
That was the move.
The truth was, I already had a plan. A stroke of genius I’d just come up with.
『Hey, Hayashi.』
『What?』
『Is Kasahara "Safe"?』
『Out.』
And just like that, my strategy crumbled.