As she stepped out of Kujou Sakuya’s house, the sun still hung high in the sky. Though the peak of summer had passed, the breeze that greeted her remained somewhat scorching.
She hadn’t quite managed to fill her stomach at Kujou Sakuya’s place. Kujou Sakuya, noticing this, had brought out her entire stash of snacks to share with Hoshimori Shion. However, Kujou Sakuya’s snack pantry seemed far less abundant than Kazama Nanami’s, so even after opening two bags of potato chips, Hoshimori Shion’s stomach still rumbled faintly.
Taking out her phone, she saw a message Iori Shigure had just sent.
[Hoshimori-san, why don’t you come to my house for tutoring today? My grandma’s care is being handled by the nurse today.]
‘To Iori Shigure’s house?’ While she had seen Iori Shigure several times outside of school, Hoshimori Shion had no idea what Iori Shigure’s home looked like.
Following the route guided by her navigation app, step by step, Hoshimori Shion eventually stopped before a marked location.
“Huh?” Hoshimori Shion looked up at the imposing house before her, which could even be described as grand.
The house was far from small, standing out among the surrounding ordinary rural bungalows as a sizable dwelling. It exuded an ancient, rustic charm, as if it had once been the residence of a prominent family in the small town.
Were it not for the large kanji characters spelling ‘Iori Family’ on the nameplate, Hoshimori Shion wouldn’t have dared believe this was Iori Shigure’s home. The last time she had walked Iori Shigure home after the cultural festival, it had been close to midnight, and Hoshimori Shion hadn’t even looked up to notice that Iori Shigure’s home was so… grand.
“Iori-san, Iori-san! Are you home?” Hoshimori Shion stood at the entrance, calling into the house.
“Hoshimori-san!” Iori Shigure poked her head out from the second floor, the summer breeze gently lifted her long golden hair, making it dance softly in the air. “Please wait a moment, I’ll be right down to open the door for you!”
In no time, Iori Shigure’s hurried footsteps echoed from the porch. The golden-haired girl quickly pushed open the main door and stood at the threshold. “Welcome, Hoshimori-san!” A faint blush colored Iori Shigure’s cheeks, whether from shyness or the exertion of rushing downstairs. Yet, her smile was as radiant as the day’s sunshine.
“Ah, excuse my intrusion!” Hoshimori Shion stepped inside, slipping off her black loafers.
Iori Shigure’s inner joy was utterly irrepressible. The night the cultural festival ended, last time, she had mustered the courage to invite Hoshimori Shion to stay over, but Hoshimori Shion had ultimately declined. This time, when she messaged Hoshimori Shion, asking her to come to her house to study, her fingers had trembled. She had carefully chosen every word and phrase before finally sending the invitation.
However, it was only when she chatted with Hoshimori Shion last night that she learned Hoshimori Shion had already spent a day reviewing at Igarashi Rie’s house and was scheduled to go to Kujou Sakuya’s house for Japanese language tutoring this morning. While a tinge of annoyance had surfaced, Hoshimori Shion surely wouldn’t refuse now. This way, they could spend at least an entire afternoon together.
On Hoshimori Shion’s end, she simply marveled at how large Iori Shigure’s house was and how remarkably antique its decor appeared. It seemed to have been passed down through generations, only appearing so new because Iori Shigure kept it meticulously clean.
“Hoshimori-san, have you had lunch yet?” Iori Shigure asked with concern. “You can’t study properly if you’re not full, you know.”
Hoshimori Shion nodded. “Yes, I already ate at Kujou-san’s house. Though…”
At that very moment, Hoshimori Shion’s stomach let out a perfectly timed grumble. Judging by that, it seemed she truly hadn’t eaten enough.
“Hoshimori-san, you didn’t eat enough? Perfect, I saved a portion of lunch for you~” Iori Shigure led Hoshimori Shion to the reception room first, where they sat down. Then she swiftly turned and darted into the kitchen, emerging with her usual bento box. Neatly packed inside were umeboshi rice (TL Note: Umeboshi rice is rice mixed with pickled plums, a traditional Japanese dish.), broccoli, and tonkatsu (TL Note: Tonkatsu is a Japanese dish consisting of a breaded, deep-fried pork cutlet.).
As Iori Shigure opened the bento box lid, a waft of steaming heat could still be seen rising from within. The tantalizing aroma of tonkatsu and the tangy scent of umeboshi stimulated Hoshimori Shion’s senses. Hoshimori Shion felt her mouth watering profusely.
‘Honestly,’ Hoshimori Shion thought, ‘this wasn’t merely leftovers from lunch; this was clearly a carefully prepared, fresh meal!’
“W-well then, I won’t hold back!” Hoshimori Shion took the spoon Iori Shigure offered and began to eat without the slightest hesitation.
“Eat slowly, Hoshimori-san.” She pushed a cup of yogurt towards Hoshimori Shion. “Once you’re done, have some yogurt to help with digestion!”
“Iori-san is so kind!” Hoshimori Shion exclaimed, almost unconsciously, as she ate.
Taken aback by the sudden praise, Iori Shigure was momentarily flustered. “Eh? R-really? …Hehe, thank you for the compliment, Hoshimori-san. If you’d like, I can cook for you every day.”
Hoshimori Shion nodded emphatically and continued to scoop up her rice.
Hoshimori Shion, who showed not a hint of maidenly grace, put down her bowl and let out a hearty burp, completely unconcerned about her image. “Ah, I’m full~ Thank you for the meal, Iori-san.”
Iori Shigure thoughtfully cleared all the dishes and meticulously wiped the table clean. She was accustomed to diligently caring for her grandmother this way at the hospital, so these household chores came naturally and effortlessly to her.
“Well… Hoshimori-san, after lunch, let’s rest a bit, and then we can start reviewing. I-I’ve specially prepared a few typical exam questions today, which are often found on tests. If you learn them, Hoshimori-san, passing should be no problem at all…” Iori Shigure timidly poked her fingers together as she handed over the set of compiled questions to Hoshimori Shion.
“Eh?! Can I not write them? I’ve been reviewing for so many days already! I want to slack off!” Hoshimori Shion grabbed Iori Shigure’s hand and asked with teary eyes.
Under Hoshimori Shion’s pleading gaze, which was akin to pouting, Iori Shigure felt her heart rate accelerate rapidly, and her breathing grew shallow and quick.
“Hoshimori-san! That… you’re so close… If you really don’t want to do them, then actually…” Though Iori Shigure felt her ears practically steaming and her heart was already softening, wanting to agree, she still steeled herself and shook her head.
“Hoshimori-san, you still need to, to study seriously! If your final grades aren’t good, both Hoshimori Ayane and I will probably be sad, you know.”
Iori Shigure’s tone was earnest. Seeing her so serious, Hoshimori Shion no longer dared to pout or slack off. She could only take out paper and a pen from her backpack and began to look at the questions Iori Shigure had provided.
Iori Shigure also brought over a small stool and sat beside Hoshimori Shion. Her gaze was fixed on the girl before her, watching her expressions, sometimes serious, sometimes troubled. Her eyes remained unmoving, as if a single blink might cause her to miss a fleeting moment of the girl’s youthful charm.
She was unwilling to let even a single second pass by unnoticed.
“If you have any questions, Hoshimori-san, you can ask me anytime. I’ll always, always be right here beside you.”