Chapter 218 – ‘I’m Home’ and ‘Welcome Back’

So far, our summer vacation has been quite hectic, but we managed to have a good time.

In summer school, we gradually managed to deal with the gazes that were sent toward us. Because we ignored them completely and probably because they got bored of gossiping about us, we stopped hearing their whispers and managed to concentrate on our studies.

Overall, I had a good impression of the summer school, but I think it would be a while before I attend this cram school for real.

"Maki, don't you think the fire is too small for the kinpira? Should I make it bigger?" (T/N: Kinpira is sauteed and simmered dishes)

"No, that's big enough. Wait a little, it'll sizzle eventually. When the water evaporates, turn the fire off, let it cool, then move it to the bowl."

"Roger~"

The following week after summer school ended. Umi and I were making side dishes together in my house. I didn't need to make lunch for everyone anymore, but Umi said… 

'I want to learn how to cook.'

Since she asked for it earnestly, I had no choice but to go along with her. So, we were working together in the kitchen.

Of course, Amami-san and Nitta-san weren't here.

"That's it I guess… I'll send you the recipe later, so you can try it at home. You can call me if you don't understand something."

"Thank you, Maki. Sorry to bother you this early in the morning. The other day when we made our lunches together, I gave my mom some and she immediately told me to ask you to teach me how to cook…"

Things became hectic the other day when we were cooking together, but overall, the girls said that the end result was tasty.

I prepared various side dishes for them ranging from veggies to fried eggs. It was quite a dainty task to make them all, but thanks to the girls helping me, it didn't end up too tiring.

Their response made all my efforts learning to cook worth it. Even if I started cooking out of necessity more than anything.

"Mm~ It's tasty! The size of the veggies are uneven, but it still tastes good. Try it, Maki, ah~"

"Ah… Mm… Yeah, it's tasty. I think if my mom tries this she won't realize that you're the one who made it, Umi. It's that tasty."

The lotus root kinpira she made was a good reproduction of mine. Well, I was there to watch over her, but that shouldn't be a reason to discredit her. In any case, the kinpira she made was well seasoned and the sweet and sour taste went really well with rice.

Umi wasn't good at cooking, but she wasn't horrible at it like Amami-san, so as long as she put her mind into it, she could manage.

"Hehe, I guess this is what they call character development?~ Anyway, I remember the thing you taught me. Medium heat and only let the tip of the flame touch the frying pan!"

"I guess you could call this character development, yes…"

It was small, but a development was a development I guess…

"By the way, Maki…"

"Hm?"

"Which do you prefer?"

"What do you mean?"

Maybe she was asking about my breakfast preference or something? She didn't give me any options to pick, so I wasn't sure how to answer her.

When I asked her back, she shyly turned her face away. I could see her face starting to redden.

She probably wanted me to guess what the nature of her question was. Either that, or she was just too shy to ask it out loud. Or possibly both.

"Y-You know, our relationship is going well, right? W-We started as friends and became lovers, then our families approved of our relationship… We went on a trip together and we had our… m-moments… Y-You know what I'm talking about, right?!"

"Yeah… Our relationship is going well indeed…"

"R-Right? S-So, I've been thinking… I-If we keep this up, we'll be together in university and after too… S-So, we might one day live together or get married, right? I've been wondering which do you prefer?… U-Um…"

"Ah I see…"

"I-It's just a hypothetical question…"

It was a little early to talk about this kind of thing when we were still so young. But, seeing how our relationship went, this conversation would come up in the near future anyway. I mean, both of us were devoted to each other. As long as there was nothing else going on, we would get together eventually.

The gender roles in a household had started to blur. Men wouldn't always have to be the breadwinner and women wouldn't always have to be the housewives. The roles were interchangeable between the two genders. Our parents wouldn't interfere with our decision either, so we were free to do whatever we liked.

"Hm… I mean, I don't mind becoming a househusband. Honestly, I've been enjoying doing the housework lately. Also, looking at my mom made me think that being the breadwinner is kinda scary…"

"I see. Nina also complained about her part-time job to me sometimes. From her words, working sounds really troublesome."

I understood that mom's workplace was an exception and not the rule and I knew that there were decent jobs out there. But I was still a student. I could only make judgments based on what I saw and heard from people around me, in other words, my mom, Daichi-san and Riku-san. All of them made work seem burdensome, so I became hesitant about working.

This was why I hadn't made an effort to apply for any part-time jobs even though I had been thinking about it. Of course I was also busy with my studies and other stuff, but that was only part of the reason why.

"But, well… If I were to marry you, I'd definitely become the breadwinner instead of a househusband."

"So, I'll be the housewife then?"

"You can do whatever you want, really… Honestly, I just want to do my best so we can live a happy life as a family, that's why I'd rather work than stay at home…"

Of course that didn't mean I'd neglect everything other than my job. I'll try to strike a perfect balance between my job and everything else. It was something that my dad failed to do, but Daichi-san managed to do it successfully.

"I see. So you don't want me to welcome you when you get back home, hm? I see how it is~"

"Wait, that's another thing entirely."

I couldn't give that up easily. I wanted her to welcome me home. I knew how lonely it was without her by my side, so if possible I wanted her to do that every day.

What a dilemma…

"That was a cruel question, Umi…"

"Hehe, sorry~ But now that I think about it, we always greet each other when we visit each other's houses, but we've never done that, have we? Saying 'I'm home' and the other person will reply 'welcome back'. Right, why don't we try it? I'll stay inside and you come in from the front door."

"We don't even have part-time jobs yet and you're already thinking about doing something like this."

"I want to say it just this once. Just once. C'mon, go outside, quickly!"

"This is my house though… The roles should be reversed…"

In the end, I gave in to her demands. I put on my shoes and went outside.

Then, I heard the sound of the door being locked.

Oh, crap. I didn't have the house key with me.

[Asanagi: Let me prepare myself for a bit.]

[Maehara: Fine.]

I could hear the cicadas' crying in the distance and feel the warm breeze caressing my cheeks. Was this how it would feel if we got married and Umi kicked me out of the house? As I was imagining that, my phone vibrated.

[Asanagi: Alright, ring the intercom]

[Maehara: 'Kay.]

As instructed, I rang the intercom and heard the sound of footsteps approaching the door, followed by the sound of the door unlocking.

"Hehe, welcome back, Maki."

"Ah…"

Her appearance didn't change much from before she kicked me out of the house earlier. She was still wearing the light blue one piece, the same dress she wore during the trip.

However, her bashful expression and words landed a critical hit to my heart. The warmth those actions brought was more than I could handle.

"C'mon, say your line properly!"

"O-Okay… I'm home, Umi."

"Good. Welcome back, Maki~"

She giggled before grabbing my hand.

I knew this was just role play, kind of, but it felt so real to me.

"Umi, can I ask you something?…"

"What is it?"

"Can I hug you?"

"Of course. Go ahead~"

"I won't hold back then."

She opened her arms wide to welcome me and I didn't hesitate to take a step forward and embraced her.

Maybe when we grew up, we would still be doing the same thing.