OtaPon 31-35 (Patreon)

Chapter 31

RAW

(Finally... this day has finally come.)

　It was Saturday, the day when Osamu promised to go out with Saki.

　Osamu was dressed up in the clothes he had chosen with Saki back then. He then tried to style his hair to the bare minimum, but it was difficult to style his hair as he had always let it grow out as it liked.

　Having no choice but to compromise to some extent, he made up his mind that he would definitely cut his hair before the next time.
　The sky was cloudy. Although the weather was a little questionable for going out, Osamu's heart was still in a good mood.
　He put my hand over his naturally loosening mouth, and tightened his expression again.

“...If I get too excited, people will think of me weird.”

　After all, Saki is only doing this to solve Osamu's struggles.
　There’s a need for Osamu to not be conscious of Saki so as not to make her feel uncomfortable.

　Osamu told himself to calm down over and over again and maintain his mental stability before heading to her apartment.
　The place where they are meeting up is the entrance of her apartment.

　When he arrived there, he saw Saki in casual clothes.
　A basic white T-shirt with a strange animal printed on it. She wore a short, light peach-colored skirt that exposed her healthy bare legs.

　Osamu looked at her for a while, trying to figure out the identity of the strange animal that was changing shape on her chest, but in the end he couldn't figure out what it was.

“Good morning, Shimazaki-san.”

　She smiled and shifted her tote bag before approaching Osamu. When he glanced at the bag, he saw a small stuffed animal-shaped keychain attached to it.
　It was a strange creature that looked like a bear but had three heads like Cerberus.

“Good morning, Hino, did I keep you waiting?”
“No, I just left... I'm glad your clothes suit you well.”

　Saki said that with a relieved voice.

“As expected, that’s because Hino chose it.”
“That's not true. It’s because Shimazaki-san's build is good.”
“Even if you tell me I have a good build. Aren’t I just unnecessarily tall?”
“That's not true. And your hairstyle is a little different than usual, isn't it?”

　Osamu started walking with the smiling Saki and opened his mouth.

“Well, I guess. But I haven't had my hair cut lately, so this was the best I could do.”
“That's true. Maybe you should have it cut soon.”
“...Yeah. Um, Hino looks good in your clothes, too.”
“I-i-i-is that so?”

　Saki looked down as if hiding behind her hair. Her cheeks were dyed scarlet.

“What's the animal printed on that T-shirt?”
“I don't know much about it either, but it's cute, isn’t it?”
“...Cute, is it? Isn't there something that looks like blood on it?”
“Don’t you think that’s cute?”

　Hmph, Saki puffed out her chest as if to show it off, emphasizing her well-developed breasts.
　When Osamu quickly looked away, Saki seemed to realize what she was doing and quickly looked away while trying to hide her chest.

“Shi-Shimazaki-san... th-that’s indecent.”
“N-no, isn’t Hino the one who showed it off!?”
“Wh-what I showed off was the prints...! Not my b-breasts!"

　With her face bright red, Saki raises her voice, attracting the attention of pedestrians who were walking nearby.
　Saki's face turned red, and Osamu also started walking briskly.

“Hi-Hino... we're going to take the bus first, right?”
“Y-yes.”

　Without much conversation, the two of them started walking toward the bus stop.

────

Chapter 32

RAW

　After walking for a while, Osamu’s embarrassment subsided, and he chuckled.

“...As expected, you are careless in some parts.”
“I-I'm not careless. That thing just now is because Shimazaki-san gave me indecent looks.”
“No, no, I think anyone who saw what happened will agree with me, you know?”
“...Th-that's not true. What happened just now, is, a coincidence. Humans, they just can't always be perfect.”

　As Saki said that, Osamu returned a wry smile.

“To tell you the truth... I haven't really seen Hino’s perfect side.”
“Wh-what?! I'm still the student council president, and I'm always getting first place in school!. I have a lot of trust from the teachers, and I can use the student council room almost as if it were half my room...”

　Seeing her talking about it with pride, she already looked careless. Osamu thought so, but he didn't point it out further.
　One reason was that she was almost in tears halfway through.

　When they arrived at the bus stop, the bus had just arrived, so they got on.
　They sat next to each other, their distance much closer than before.
　Osamu bit his lip and let out a breath to release the tension on his stiff body.

“By the way, what kind of store are we going to today?”
“Ah, if it’s that then please look at this.”

　Saki quickly took out her smartphone and after some manipulation, showed the screen to Osamu.
　As a result of the combination of Saki leaning in to show and Osamu leaning in to watch, their arms lightly touched.
　The two looked at each other for a moment, but did not move their bodies apart.

“So this is... the restaurant, huh? Is it an Italian restaurant?”

　There was pasta and pizza on the top page.
　Saki manipulated the screen of her smartphone.

“...Th-that's right. Their staple food is Italian, but the most popular thing in this restaurant is the cake.”
“Cake, huh... certainly, there are a lot of female customers.”
“That's right. It seems that it has become popular among women... Ah, now that I think about it, um, I didn't check but, are you okay with sweets?”

　As Saki looked at Osamu in worry, he nodded.

“I quite like sweets. I think I can eat them to a certain degree... Well, as expected, I don't think I can beat Hino though.”
“I-I don't eat that much either. But, I'm glad to hear that. I'm sorry I didn't check in advance.”
“Well, as far as food is concerned, I’m okay with anything, so don't worry about it.”

　He continued like that so that she wouldn't feel responsible. In fact, the fact that there was almost nothing he disliked was the truth.
　Saki relaxed her cheeks and returned to her body.

“...Now that I think about it, the weather is quite questionable today.”
“...That's, right. The previous forecast said it wouldn't rain until tomorrow, but this morning's weather forecast predicted rain today.”
“Yeah...”
“Could it be that I am a rain woman?”

　Saki's shoulders dropped.

“Maybe you are... Or maybe someone in this world who has an important plan today is the rain man or the rain woman.”
“I'm sorry you had to go out with me when it might rain.”
“No no, in the first place this all started because I wanted you to go out with me. Besides, rain is fine as long as we have an umbrella.”

　Osamu said as he took out a folding umbrella from his bag.
　Then, Saki suddenly realized something and looked at her bag.

“...”

　She rummaged through it, but it is not a very large bag to begin with, so she is sure to find what she is looking for soon enough.
　However, it was clear from Saki's expression that she didn’t find it.

“...What’s wrong?”
“My-my umbrella... I left it at the entrance.”
“...Do you have your wallet?”

　When Osamu asked, Saki immediately puffed out her cheeks.

“I-I have my wallet... Please don't make fun of me!”
“In that case, you'll be fine. If it rains, you can just buy one at a convenience store or something, and there's a chance it won't rain in the first place.”
“That’s true...”

　Saki dropped her shoulders.
　As expected, Saki's ponkotsu figure looked better than her perfect figure.

────

Chapter 33

RAW

　After about 20 minutes of bus ride, they arrived at their destination bus stop.
　After getting off at the bus stop, Saki checked the map and started walking.

“...Come to think of it, Hino. You’re the student council president at your school, right?”
“That's right. But could you please stop acting like you forgot about it until just a moment ago?”
“When I look at the usual Hino, you don’t really look like one... wait, my bad, my bad, don’t get angry.”

　Smiling wryly at Saki who was puffing out her cheeks, Osamu opened his mouth to continue.

“At your school, um... are there any rumors about us going to the shopping mall the other day?”
“Eh? Let’s see... I didn’t hear anything about it. But, the fact that you're asking that means, Shimazaki-san... did someone at school say something to you?”
“...As for me, um, it seems some guys in my class were there. Somehow it became a weird rumor.”

　Osamu said while laughing. It didn't seem to bother Saki, so he patted his chest in relief.
　But, Saki's cheeks flushed for a moment, then she bowed her head.

“I-I’m sorry.”
“Eh?”
“...I think I may have caused Shimazaki-san some trouble.”
“N-no no no, that's not true at all.”
“...R-really? If so, I’m glad to hear that, but are you okay with that rumor?”
“Right now, I am. I don't have that many friends to talk to at school. I don't think it's really talked about. I’m like that, so it’s fine, but I thought ‘I wonder if Hino is popular at school after all’.”

　Him saying “that many” is more or less trying to put on airs, in reality, it was zero.
　Saki smiled faintly at the word 'popular'.

“It's not that I'm particularly popular... but it's true that if someone sees us, they might say a lot of things. Then, I'll be careful not to cause Shimazaki-san any trouble.”
“You don't have to worry about me, you know? Even if they complain about my relationship with Hino, I’d be happy instead.”
“Eh?”

　Osamu's cheeks stiffened at the words he had inadvertently let slip.
　As Saki was surprised, she let out a voice of confusion, then looked into his face, her cheeks reddening.
　Osamu tried to avert his gaze, but was lightly tugged by the hem of his clothes.

“W-what on earth does that mean?”
“...Ah, um. I don't really... um, feel bad even if they misunderstand, I guess. Y-you know, Hino is beautiful after all, ha, hahaha."

　Osamu realized that the more he spoke, the more he dug his hole, so he laughed to try to cover it up.
　Saki bit her lip, then her cheeks flushed slightly. After that, Saki nodded slightly.

“M-me too... um... I don’t mind being misunderstood either... okay?”
“...Eh? Wh-what do you mean by that──”

　Osamu was about to ask back in the same tone when Saki looked up.

“Th-that’s the restaurant over there!”

　As Saki pointed with her index finger, she turned bright red until her ears.

“H-Hino... just now...”
“It's nothing! It's just a trick of the imagination!”

　Saki walked away as if she would not accept any more questions.
　Then, they arrived at their destination restaurant.
　Inside the restaurant, there were many people waiting. Osamu was about to fill in their name at the reception desk, but Saki poked his arm.

“I already made a reservation, so it's okay.”
“Ooh, you did that much for me, huh.”
“Of course. I'm the one who invited you, so I can't waste your time. I knew it would be crowded, so this is only natural.”
“...As expected of the student council president.”
“Fufun, did you get a better opinion of me now?”

　Saki puffed out her chest and called out to the store clerk, who furrowed his brow in suspicion.
　Then, with a wry smile, he opened his mouth.

“...I'm sorry, Hino-sama’s reservation will be from 13:00──”

　That will be in an hour. Saki's eyes widened, then she took out her smartphone and checked her reservation screen.
　Then, she made a face that looked like she had lost her soul.

“...I understand. For now, shall we kill time somewhere for an hour?”

　Saki nodded like a broken doll. Osamu pulled Saki and they went outside together.
　There, Saki came back to life.

“...I-I'm sorry! I made a mistake!”
“No, if it’s just an hour, I don’t mind at all... I'm glad it's not tomorrow or something.”
“...I'm really sorry!”
“Don't worry about it. Come on, why don't we kill some time around there?”

　As he pointed to a nearby store, Saki, who looked like she was about to cry, nodded her head.
　And after an hour, they came back and enjoyed the all-you-can-eat.

────

Chapter 34

RAW

　They eat lunch and take a leisurely walk home.
　Since they had already taken the bus back, all that’s left to do now was walk to the apartment.
　It was at that time. When it started to rain.

　Osamu stretched out his palm and pointed it toward the sky, and he watched drops of water wetting that palm.
　Next to him, Saki was looking up at the sky with a resigned look on her face.

“Wow... it ended up raining.”
“I guess, it did.”

　Before the rain began in earnest, Osamu took out a folding umbrella from his bag and unfolded it.
　Then, he looked at Saki next to him,

“Use it?”

　He held out his umbrella to her. There is no convenience store nearby, and if things continue like this, Saki will be drenched by the rain.
　Osamu offered it thinking there would be a lot of trouble if something were to happen to Saki, but Saki shook her head.

“Eh? I-it's fine! It's my fault for forgetting it. Shimazaki-san, please use it.”
“...As expected, I can't stand it if my acquaintance walking next to me gets drenched.”
“It’s fine! And, it would be bad if Shimazaki-san caught a cold...”

　Osamu bit his lip. After hesitating whether to say those words or not──

“Then, shall we use it together?”

　Osamu unfolded his umbrella and tilted it towards Saki.
　Needless to say, that action required tremendous courage.

(I-I don't think she’ll hate me for this... I-it's okay if I get this close, right?... Please, I don't want her to hate me for this! There's nothing I can do if she calls it sexual harassment for this, right...?)

　Since he couldn't see the other person's feelings, he had no idea what kind of feelings Saki had towards him right now.
　Although he acted under such anxiety──Saki didn’t push back.

“...Th-thank you very much.”

　Saki moved closer to Osamu until she touched his arm. Because of the height difference, Saki naturally looked up at Osamu. Because of the combination of nervousness and embarrassment, those upturned eyes inevitably caused Osamu's heart palpitations to increase in intensity.

“...Ah, yeah. Shall we go?”

　Osamu quickly started walking, taking smaller steps than usual.
　Since it is a folding umbrella, it is not large enough for two people to fit inside.

　Osamu tried to keep Saki from getting wet as much as possible by holding his umbrella towards her, so the right side of Osamu's body was getting hit by the rain.
　Apparently noticing this, Saki spoke up.

“S-Shimazaki-san, you're getting wet. Please make sure you don’t get wet!”
“...I'm fine. My body is surprisingly strong after all. I haven't had a cold in years.”

　This wasn’t him trying to be strong or anything, he had never missed school due to illness since middle school.
　That said, Saki was still looking at Osamu worriedly.

　It was when Osamu averted his face after looking at her worried face. Suddenly, a soft sensation touched Osamu's body.
　She was even closer than before. Feeling the soft sensation on his left arm, Osamu's consciousness awakened.

“...P-please come closer. Please try to stay out of the rain as much as possible.”
“...I-I got it.”

　Saki hugged him tightly in her arms.
　Osamu kept chanting, “to not get wet,” “to not get wet,” like a curse in his mind, but he still couldn't suppress the embarrassment that was welling up in him.
　All he could think about was whether or not the sound of his heart was being transmitted to Saki.

　Together with Saki, Osamu walked to her apartment, and by the time they got there, he was considerably exhausted.

　His breathing seemed to be erratic, but if he kept breathing heavily here, he might be thought of as a degenerate.
　When Saki entered the building, Osamu moved away. Saki looked back and smiled at him.

“Shimazaki-san, thank you very much.”

　Her cheeks were slightly reddish, but probably not as red as his own, Osamu thought.

“Aah... your body might be getting cold, so why don't you take a shower early?” (Osamu)
“I-I suppose I should...”
“Well then... See you.”
“Yes, let's go out together again next time.”
“Y-yeah.”

　Osamu replied, raised his hand once, and headed back to his apartment.

────

Chapter 35

RAW

[...Hey, Sakicchi, are you okay?]
“I-I’m okay...! cough!”

　The next morning.
　Saki had a fever. Osamu’s consideration for her was in vain, and her health deteriorated.

　While listening to Mayumi's worried voice, Saki was regretting answering the call.
　Because it made Mayumi worry needlessly. She should have communicated everything through messages. Although it was too late, that's what she was thinking.

[You’re definitely not okay, aren’t you? You live alone too, so it's probably a lot of trouble. Should I go there?]

　Saki shook her head that was in a daze.

“I-I’ll be okay... it would be bad if you caught a cold.”
[Geez, don't worry about that kind of thing. If I catch a cold, I’ll just take the day off school!]
“That's rude! I’d be too ashamed to meet your parents who took the trouble to send you to high school!”
[Y-you don't have to take it so seriously─.]
“That's how important it is to me... In the first place, this cold was the product of my naivete.”
[Well, I guess that's partly true, but... I know! Since this is a rare opportunity, why don’t you ask Shimazaki-kun to visit you?]

　Saki coughed violently at Mayumi's sudden proposal. The cough just now is not caused by her cold.

“I-Isn't that even more rude! Besides, we just met up yesterday!? Isn’t it like saying, ‘It's your fault!’...?!”
[I don't think you need to worry about it that much though? In fact, if he comes right away because of this, that means he thinks about you that much, doesn’t he?]

　That will serve as a measure of how much Osamu is currently thinking about her.
　In other words, the reverse pattern also exists... Saki bit her lip.

“...Wouldn't it be lonely if he doesn’t come?”
[...Ahaha, I see, I see. I got it. Well then, I'd like to ask you a quick question... how did yesterday go? Did the date go well?]
“Let’s see, I don't think I made even a single mistake.”
[Didn’t you say you forgot your umbrella?]
“Th-that’s──other than that, I didn’t make any particular mistakes, okay?!”
[Then, that’s great. ...So, was it fun?]
“......It was fun. Yes, very.”

　Saki answered with her honest feelings. Listening to Osamu's stories is fun, and above all, she could talk to him without restraint.
　More than just fun, she felt a strong sense of relief and calmness.

[I see, then, that’s good. Maybe you got too excited that you got a fever though.]
“There’s no way it's that pathetic of a reason. It's only because I got caught in the rain.”
[I guess so. Anyway, it looks like it went well. I know you're not feeling well, so I’ll stop the call here. Take care, okay?]
“...Yes. Mayumi, please be careful not to catch a cold too.”
[It’s fine, it’s fine.]

　No longer able to hear Mayumi's cheerful laughter, Saki was immediately struck by loneliness.
　In order to disguise this, Saki crawled out of bed and moved through the room where the garbage had increased.
　She moved slowly and opened the refrigerator. The cool air gently leaking out of her refrigerator felt good on her flushed body.
　After enjoying it for a while, Saki looked at the rows of nutritious jelly drinks lined up there.

“Fu, fufun... I thought something like this might happen, so I stockpiled a large number of jelly drinks for some calorie intake...”

　The number of times Saki, who usually leads a self-indulgent life, does her meals like this is not few.
　However, she didn’t anticipate having a fever, so she didn’t prepare any cooling sheets or anything like that.
　Saki took out four jelly drinks and went back to bed, playing with her smartphone with a dizzy head.

“...”

　And what she was intently staring at was the words [Shimazaki Osamu].

────

Previous | Next