After about twenty minutes on the bus and a ten-minute walk from the bus stop, Masachika finally stood before the Suou estate for the first time in years.
Ah…
Old memories of the home he thought he would never return to—that he thought he could never return to—came flooding back. Nevertheless, one thought in particular plagued Masachika’s mind as he intently stared at a grand gate leading to an impressive garden and the intercom that stood between him and the entrance.
I really wish I didn’t have to push that button…
Of course, he intended to go inside. He wouldn’t have come all this way if his resolve wasn’t firm… However, he wondered if he had to be so bold as to make a grand entrance through the front door. Wouldn’t it be perfectly reasonable to just call Ayano and have her quietly let me in? After all, she was the one who had invited him to the Suou household in the first place, so it wouldn’t come off as strange. And more importantly, it might help him avoid running into his grandfather or mother before seeing Yuki.
They’re the last people I want to run into with Alya here.
He didn’t know how he would react if he ran into either of them. He might end up blurting out something that would completely weird Alisa out. And besides, coming back to his childhood home for the first time in years—with a girl at his side, no less—was just plain awkward.
I’ll just call Ayano and have her take us to Yuki’s room. That way, I can go talk to my grandfather while Alya waits in Yuki’s room. All right, let’s do this.
But just as he reached that conclusion and was about to pull out his phone, a snow-white hand reached out from beside him and pressed the intercom button.
“Hey?!”
“What? You were taking too long.”
“I was coming up with a—”
“Master Masachika…?”
The person who answered was Natsu Kimishima, a Suou family maid whom he hadn’t spoken to in several years. Masachika’s breath caught, and he was frozen for a few moments before finding his voice.
“…Long time no see, Natsu.”
“Oh my. Oh my! Yes… Yes…! It has been too long! Oh, uh… I see you brought a young lady with you as well…”
“Oh, this is…”
While Masachika struggled to find an explanation, Alisa chimed in and smoothly introduced herself.
“I apologize for the intrusion this late at night. I’m Alisa Mikhailovna Kujou. I’m Masachika’s classmate and work with Yuki in the student council. We heard that Yuki got the flu, so we thought we would come check up on her, if that’s okay.”
“Oh my. What a polite young lady… Understood. Could you please give me a moment?” replied Natsu, perhaps having regained her composure thanks to Alisa’s courteous greeting. Once the intercom cut off, Masachika exhaled softly, then turned his gaze toward Alisa, staring at her intently.
“…What?” She asked.
“Oh, uh… It’s just…you sure know how to keep calm. I can really count on you.”
“…Of course. I told you already… I’m going to be here for you…,” Alisa replied bashfully while averting her gaze.
“Yeah… Thanks,” said Masachika with a weak smile.
“…No problem.”
She turned her head to face away even more, nervously fidgeting with her hair…when suddenly Masachika lifted her right hand gently into the air.
“But maybe we should stop holding hands while we’re inside?”
“Huh? Oh…”
As Alisa looked down at their joined hands, a flicker of irritation knitted her brow before she looked away in a huff.
“I’m fine staying this way.”
“Wait. What? There’s a security camera right over there, you know? It’s going to look like I came all this way to introduce my fiancée to the family. And we especially don’t want Natsu to catch us like this, either!” Masachika protested fervently, his eyes flicking nervously to the camera on the wall. He knew that Natsu could act as giddy as a schoolgirl at times—a striking contrast to her granddaughter, Ayano.
Alisa also shot a quick glance at the camera, then turned away with another huff, tightly squeezing Masachika’s hand as she whispered:
“<I’m fine with that.>”
Stop being fine with everything!!
Masachika screamed inwardly at that utterly explosive statement. Joke or not, it made him momentarily forget what they were even doing there.
You’re fine if there’s a misunderstanding? Seriously? Wait. Do you really want me to introduce you as my fiancée? You’d be fine if I was like, “Hey, guys! We’re getting married”? Natsu would be thrilled. That’s for sure. But you were just joking, right? Right?!
Though Masachika was staring at Alisa with disbelief, he couldn’t quite make out her expression with her face turned away. Still, even in the darkness of the night, he could see that the tip of her ear was bright red.
You were joking…right…?
Sweat began to gather in his palm where their hands were clasped. He panicked. A part of him wanted to pull away, but doing so now would be terribly rude. But even then, as they stood there in silence, he couldn’t help but imagine Natsu quietly consulting with Gensei, perhaps even heading to the front door together to greet them…
Hold up. I can’t just not say anything, or she’s going to get suspicious.
Masachika managed to maintain his composure, suddenly reminding himself that he had been pretending he didn’t understand Russian.
“I don’t know what you just said…but we should probably stop holding hands. I mean it. I don’t have time to go into detail right now, but the head of the household here would probably be pissed if he saw me stroll through the front gate with your hand in mine.”
Alisa shot her rambling partner a dissatisfied glare before abruptly releasing his hand. However, just as Masachika began to taste relief, she started fidgeting with her hair and muttered:
“<You could have at least blushed a little.>”
…Huh? Wait. Is that why she’s mad? Because I didn’t react to us holding hands? How adorable could one girl be? The thought rose unbidden as Masachika quickly looked in the other direction to hide his expression. He was startled by a sudden loud, metallic clang. The gate in front of them began to groan as it automatically slid open with a rumble. He exhaled, realizing the sound that had startled him was nothing more than the lock disengaging.
No. This is not the time to relax.
He was about to deal with his greatest karmic burden. He had always imagined that he would need tremendous resolve if the time ever came to confront his past. And yet…
Of all the ways I pictured coming back, I never expected to feel this way while walking through the front gate.
It was a surprisingly strange feeling, deflating Masachika the instant he walked past the gate.