My stepmother's burden is my ex-girlfriend.

Page 142

"...I want to drink..."

"Okay. Can you get up?"

While I slowly sat up, Jie poured the sports drink into a cup with a straw and brought it to my lips.

"...I can drink it myself..."

"Wouldn't it be counterproductive if I spilled it and got it wet? Let me do it."

Even so, I still held the cup through Yui's hand and took the straw into my mouth. The sweet, cold drink seeped into the depths of my throat with a "chu-chu."

"Really... just say you're not feeling well."

Jie Nu said in a tone that suggested she had no way to deal with me.

"What if it's a bad cold? My whole summer vacation will be ruined..."

"...Why are you being so long-winded..."

"What's wrong? You can't even take care of yourself when you're sick?"

"……I……"

When my head was spinning, I blurted out whatever came to mind.

"...I'm just...scared..."

"what?"

I was exhausted by the time I finished speaking, and I put my head back on the pillow.

I'm so tired after just a few words...

"Are you going to sleep? What's your temperature? Have you taken it?"

No measurement.

I couldn't even squeeze out those words, and then I fell into a deep sleep again.

◆ Irito Yume ◆

...He fell asleep...

Looking at Shuidou's face, which was quietly snoring softly, I helplessly took out the thermometer.

Then slowly, he reached out to unbutton Shuidou's clothes.

I had no choice, absolutely no choice... I had absolutely no evil intentions. I'll just say I didn't...!

After unbuttoning the small buttons, her fair collarbone and chest came into view, and I immediately felt a rush of blood to my face. She's a patient! Calm down, calm down…

I put the thermometer under his armpit... I always thought he had little body hair, but I didn't expect he didn't even have armpit hair...

Beep beep beep beep – the measurement is complete.

I snapped back to reality and pulled the thermometer out from under the sink. Whew, that was close… The resolve I had when I kissed him last time was definitely not to sneak a peek while the patient was asleep. I need to control myself, control myself…

37·9 degrees.

The thermometer reading, while not indicative of a mild fever, wasn't high either. It seemed like a good night's sleep would do the trick.

"……fine……"

If he maintains this state for several days, I'm afraid I won't be able to control myself. It seems that being aware of one's own feelings isn't necessarily a good thing...

With a strong will, I looked away and helped Mizuto get dressed. Only then did I breathe a sigh of relief and gaze at his sleeping face.

--...I'm just...afraid...

Scared?

What is he afraid of...? Was I really that nasty? He's so scared he has a fever and is delirious, yet he still keeps saying it...? Waaah...!

...I don't really love being a hedgehog that much.

However, our relationship has become fixed in that pattern... I can't break free from that habit in a day or two. The moment we meet, I can't help but feel sarcastic towards him, and if he talks back, I'll retort. This sense of distance is our current norm.

I understand that just because someone is determined to do something doesn't mean they can definitely mend their relationship.

No, that's not right. Doing so would only lead to a repeat of past relationships.

Just like how I accidentally fell in love with him again—I hope he can fall in love with me again.

This may be a pipe dream... but we must reach this point before we can become a couple in love again.

Because we are not just boys and girls, but also step-siblings.

Our positions don't allow us to try dating, and if it doesn't work out, we can break up.

But what should I do?

Even if I told the truth, it would probably only make him wary. I have to admit that I have seriously lost his trust in me.

If I didn't have to do anything, and he would automatically fall in love with me and confess his feelings to me, wouldn't that be wonderful?

...Not only have they not improved, they've actually regressed even more than they did in junior high school.

"...Let's cook some savory porridge."

Although I've never cooked it before, I should be able to make it by looking at recipes online.

I stood up and left the water tank room for the time being.

◆ Irito Mizuto ◆

I knew immediately that I was dreaming.

"Can you drink water? Do you want me to feed you?"

Irito Yume took care of me like a mother would. There was no sarcasm or irony in her care, only selfless love.

Such a chilling hallucination could never happen in reality.

Let me take your temperature. Come on, raise your arm—

—What do you mean by being nice to me now?

No matter how good you are to me, in the end it'll all be the same, right? No matter how gentle you are to me, no matter how good our relationship becomes, in the end we'll still fall out over some trivial thing, right?

The most fundamental aspects of human nature aren't so easily changed. Neither you nor I have changed much. There will inevitably be things about each other that become intolerable. Then, who will be responsible for making concessions? Who will forgive the other? —I think neither of us will ever know how to forgive.

We can't change our minds like Dongtou did.

We become unable to extricate ourselves, acting on emotions, stubbornly clinging to our own opinions, and sulking with the other person—by the time we realize it, we've already trapped ourselves.

Since that's the case...wouldn't it be better to become step-siblings?

It's finally possible to let all of that become a thing of the past.

Finally, I can slowly let go of the lingering feelings.

Why are you creating this unnecessary trouble again?

I'm so annoying.

You think you're getting along well, but it turns out you're not; you're happy one moment and frustrated the next.

Tomorrow will never be the same as today.

There wasn't a single moment that allowed me to calm down.

...But in the end, everything vanished like a bubble.

Love is nothing more than a temporary infatuation.

It was a terrible dream I was forced to have during puberty.

—I've had enough, I don't want to experience that again.

"……Um……"

I groggily opened my eyes and heard only the ticking of the clock.

There was no one by the bed.

Only sports drinks were placed on the side table.

I slowly sat up.

I stretched my elbows out to check. The joint pain was much better. The dizziness and nausea in my head were about 90% less than before I went to bed. I even broke a sweat, which meant my metabolism was returning to normal. Although my throat still hurts... it looks like the virus is almost completely gone.

After drinking a sports drink to wash away the lingering effects of my cold, I got out of bed.

I didn't intend to do anything; I just slept until I didn't want to sleep anymore.

As I walked out of the room and down the stairs, I sensed someone in the living room.

I opened the door.

"Uh—one tablespoon of salt…how much is one tablespoon?!"

A clueless fool stood in the kitchen.

(Illustration 006)

Wearing an apron over her loungewear and with her long hair tied in a ponytail to avoid getting in the way, she only looked presentable on the outside. But the way she frowned as she stared at the pile of salt in the measuring tape made her look exactly like a primary school student on her first cooking internship.

"One large spoonful... this is one spoonful, right? Oh well, it doesn't matter."

"There is a difference."

"what?"

I managed to grab her hand and stop her from adding a full spoonful of salt to the pot.

Jie Nu turned her head and blinked several times.

"Are you... all better now?"

"A large spoonful doesn't mean piled up into a small mountain, but rather a level spoonful. Didn't you learn that in home economics class?"

"Huh... Ah, that seems to be it...?"

I first let go of Jie's hand, washed my hands on the counter, and then used my fingers to spread the salt in the measuring spoon evenly. Only then did I add the salt to the boiling pot.

Rice is boiling in the pot. Looking at the eggs next to the stove, it seems they're making savory porridge.

"...Don't try anything new while I'm sleeping. What if it causes a fire?"

"I...I'm not that stupid, okay! I sometimes help with cooking! And I can already wash and cook rice by myself!"

"Yes. I even taught you how to wash rice and cook it."

"Ugh...!"

Jie Nu looked in a completely unrelated direction and pouted her lips in dissatisfaction.

"...At least acknowledge my willingness to take on a challenge. I'm doing you a meal, after all..."

I glanced at her face.

"Is your way of caring for patients to make them worry about you?"

"Ugh!...Ugh──...!"

The girl groaned softly like a child, staring intently at my face. Her expression seemed to say, "You foul-mouthed man, why don't you just get even sicker?"

That's right, that's correct.

I turned away from Jie Nu and opened the vegetable compartment of the refrigerator.

"Just rice and eggs aren't enough nutrition. At least add some scallions."

I took out the scallions and placed them on the cutting board.

"Ah...! I'll take care of the rest...! Are you still feeling better from your cold?"

"I'm almost fully recovered. But if I eat your terribly salty porridge, it'll probably relapse."

"But you've only just recovered from your illness—"

"You crack the egg. You're not saying you can't even crack it, are you?"

"…Okay, okay! Anyway, seeing how talkative you are, it should be fine now! I'll crack the eggs, I'll crack the eggs! I've practiced!"

The girl gently tapped the raw egg on the counter, tilted her head to look at the crack, and then tapped it again—repeatedly doing this over and over. Of course, she used too much force when cracking the egg, crushing the whole thing, and had to frantically pick off the broken shell.

I glanced at her movements and continued chopping my scallions. Letting such a clumsy person handle a kitchen knife would really worsen my condition.