Volume 2 Episode 3 – I can’t live without Ryo-kun
Source
https://kakuyomu.jp/works/16818093093152263860/episodes/16818622175620143908
“It’s all happening so fast, I don’t know what to think…”
I sat down at the living room table with Toka and gave my mother a rough explanation of what had happened so far.
“So, Ryo brought his girlfriend home for the first time, and that girl is Asahina Toka? And now she’s about to be kicked out of the house she was living in, so she wants you to help her… is that right?”
“You’re right, Mom! That’s exactly what happened!”
“There’s no way I can just accept that story!”
My mother’s voice echoed through the living room! Toka flinched and shrugged her shoulders.
“I’m sorry…”
Seeing Toka bow her head apologetically, my mother froze with her mouth open.
“No, it’s not Asahina’s fault! It’s just that it happened so suddenly, and my mind can’t keep up! An old woman’s mind is just too stiff these days!”
Mom stammered as she tried to explain. It was a little amusing to see Mom, who was usually so calm, so flustered.
“You’ve always been like that since you were a child. You’d always bring home stray dogs and cats!”
…As I thought that, the blame shifted to me.
“Don’t treat Toka like a stray dog.”
“Woof”
“Toka, be quiet!”
Don’t do that with my parents right in front of you! Mom is surprised again by Toka’s behavior!
Because of Toka, the living room was filled with an awkward atmosphere.
“Is there anything we can do about this… I’d like to keep Toka here if possible.”
“…”
As soon as she heard my words, my mother’s expression, which had been soft until then, turned serious.
“Asahina-san, I’m truly sorry, but I think you should consult with the appropriate authorities about this.”
“Is that so…?”
“The school, the police, or child welfare services. I don’t want to speak ill of someone else’s home, but I think that’s a clear case of child neglect.”
“…I’m sorry, but she’s still my parent. I’d rather not make a big deal out of it if possible…”
“Hmm…”
Toka’s words made me pause for a moment. Because of what happened, I had accumulated a lot of negative feelings toward Toka’s mother, but she was still an important family member to her.
(Back then, my mother used to comb my hair like this…)
I remembered the first time she combed her hair, Toka had said something like this while crying. There must be a lot of complicated feelings toward her mother.
mother remained silent for a while, staring at the table, interlacing and uninterlacing her fingers.
“…Asahina-san, do you have any other family members?”
“My father is still alive.”
“What does your father do?”
“He’s currently recovering, and we don’t really keep in touch…”
“Hmm…”
This was the first time I had heard about Toka’s father.
Hearing this, my mother buried her head in her hands even more. I think my parents are pretty cheerful people, but this was the first time I had seen them so obviously troubled.
“As the mother of the Kuga family… no, as a parent with children, I think it’s even more important to consult with someone proper after hearing that. I think it’s for the sake of the Asahina family as well.”
“Ah, um, I!”
After hearing mother’s words, Toka stood up abruptly!
“I don’t want to be separated from Ryo-kun! I want to be with him no matter what!”
“Huh?”
Toka’s sudden words made mother let out an odd sound.
“If Ryo-kun weren’t here, I wouldn’t exist! I’ll do anything to be with Ryo-kun! I can’t live without him!”
Toka started saying some crazy stuff. No, it’s just plain embarrassing. My face is getting super hot. Even my mom is looking away, embarrassed!
“Oh, I get it! This is a prank, right? Like, what if your own child brought Asahina Toka home? Where are the cameras hiding?”
My mom finally started suspecting it was a prank.
“No, it’s really not like that…”
“Then why is Asahina Toka saying such things to my son?!”
Guh… I want to argue back, but I can’t. Because if I were in her position, I’d definitely think the same thing.
“…Mom, that’s why I’m asking you to please help Toka.”
The conversation was starting to veer off track, so I stood up and bowed to my mother. Toka bowed with me.
“Ugh…”
I could hear my mother’s voice filled with genuine confusion.
“I need to consult with your father about this but…”
“But?”
“Either way, I think we need to have a direct conversation with Asahina’s parents. No matter what you say, taking care of someone else’s child isn’t something we can just do easily.”
My mother answered firmly. An opportunity to talk directly with Toka’s parents… If that were possible, we wouldn’t be in this situation. Even if we could talk, Asahina’s mother’s reaction is too unpredictable.
“If we talk to father, maybe he’ll listen…”
“Huh? Really?”
“Ryo kun, I’ll go get the notebook with my father’s contact information from my room! I’m sure my father will support me.”
Saying that, Toka dashed back to her apartment. Toka’s apartment is about a fifteen-minute walk from our house. I think it will take her about thirty minutes to come back.
Seeing Toka leave the house, my mother let out a sigh of relief.
“Ryo, isn’t the prank sign going up yet? I’m not wearing makeup, so I don’t want to be photographed.”
“Are you still talking about that? It’s for real!”
“I’ve been thinking that you’ve been doing something every day since you started high school…”
In the room where Toka had left, my mother was staring blankly. It seemed that my mother was quite nervous.
“How did you meet Asahina-san?”
“Well…”
I was bombarded with questions from my mother… After a while, there was a loud bang as the front door opened. It was way too early for Toka to come back.
“I’m home. Oh, onii chan is here.”
Oh no! My younger sister Yuzuha came back at the worst possible time!
“Oh, welcome back. Isn’t it early today?”
“Because I got off early today. Oh, Mom! Listen to this!”
My sister put her bag on the sofa and ran over to my mother.
“I just ran into Asahina Toka! The other day, I saw on TV that she goes to the same high school as onii chan! Wow, she lives in the neighborhood! I should have asked for her autograph!”
“Yuzu…”
Mom placed her hand on Yuzuha’s shoulder.
“From now on, Toka-chan will be coming to our house, so be prepared.”
“What do you mean?”
“Toka-chan is apparently dating your older brother.”
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