194 – Becoming Even More Charming

RAW

As the lunch break was coming to an end, Haruto and the others returned from the courtyard to their classroom.

Ayaka and Saki headed back to their seats and began chatting with the other girls. Watching them from a distance, Haruto sat down at his desk and prepared for the afternoon classes.

“Man, still… having your wife in the same classroom is crazy.”

Sitting on Haruto’s desk, Tomoya looked over at Ayaka, who was smiling and talking with her friends.

“It’s not official yet.”

“For you two, what does ‘official’ or ‘planned’ even matter anymore? You’re already living together, your parents approve, and you’ve basically done the family meeting too, right?”

“…That’s true.”

“Right?”

Haruto couldn’t help but nod with a wry smile at his best friend’s words.

Then a nearby boy approached them.

“Hey, Otsuki. You were absent last week, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Tojo-san was absent at the same time too—were you two doing something together?”

The moment that question was asked, every boy around Haruto twitched in unison.

“Wait, Otsuki, were you actually absent together with Tojo-san?”

“What’s this? You two skipped school for a secret date?”

“Otsuki, you bastard… I’m jealous! Give us the details!”

A group of boys swarmed Haruto’s desk, their eyes gleaming with curiosity.

Feeling their suffocating pressure, Haruto opened his mouth to clear up the misunderstanding.

“No, no. I was absent because my grandma collapsed last week.”

“What? Seriously? Sorry, man, my bad.”

The boy who had asked first bowed his head apologetically.

“It’s fine. My grandma recovered, so everything’s okay.”

“That’s good to hear. Then, Tojo-san being absent at the same time was…”

“Ah, like I explained before—my grandma works at Ayaka’s house now, so—”

Back when Haruto and Ayaka tried to make their relationship public at school, Ayaka had self-destructed and accidentally revealed that they were living together.

To calm down the chaos that followed, they had explained to their classmates that Kiyoko worked at the Tojo household as a housekeeper.

Hearing Haruto’s explanation, the boy nodded. “Makes sense. You’ve had it rough. But… Tojo-san’s family seems like amazing people.”

“Yeah. Ayaka’s family is really warm. They’re incredible.”

Haruto couldn’t help but smile, happy to hear Ayaka’s family praised.

Then Tomoya leaned in with a sly grin.

“You’re part of that family now too, though.”

“…”

Haruto decided to ignore his friend’s teasing for the moment.

“Anyway, about Tojo-san’s family…”

Another boy threw a question at him.

“Tojo-san’s mom… is she super beautiful?”

Again, the boys’ We’re dying to know! stares hit Haruto like a wave.

“Ayaka’s mom is insanely beautiful.”

“Ohh! I knew it!”

The boys erupted with excitement.

“Pictures! Otsuki, do you have pictures!?”

“No.”

“Why the hell not!?”

Going from excitement to despair in one breath, the boy yelled.

“Why would I take pictures of my girlfriend’s mom?”

“You should! If she’s that beautiful, you should! She might be your future mother-in-law!!”

“Already is, though.”

“Huh? Akagi, you say something?”

“Nope, nothing.”

Interrupting him mid-sentence, Tomoya redirected the boys’ attention.

“Wait, Akagi, you’ve been to Tojo-san’s house too, right? For that study group.”

“Yeah, I went.”

“Did you see Tojo-san’s mother then?”

“Perfectly.”

“Then show—”

“No pictures.”

He cut the boy off again.

A chorus of despair followed. “You too!?”

Tomoya suddenly put on a solemn expression.

“The fact that there are no pictures of Tojo-san’s mother here is a blessing for you all.”

“Huh? What’s that supposed to mean, Akagi!?”

Looking serious, almost priestlike, Tomoya spoke as though delivering a sermon.

“Tojo-san’s mother—Ikue-san—is an absolute top-tier beauty.”

“What, are you bragging now?”

“No. I’m worried for your future.”

He placed a hand on one boy’s shoulder.

“Her charm is too powerful for you guys. Think about it: she’s the one who gave birth to Tojo-san, the idol of the entire school. And yet her beauty is youthful enough that she could be mistaken for Ayaka’s older sister.”

“Seriously!?”

“Oh yes. And that’s not all. Ikue-san radiates the mature elegance of an adult woman. She carries the deep maternal warmth of a mother of two. And she has the shining innocence of a girl, as though she never ages. She possesses all of it.”

The boys swallowed hard.

“But sadly—she’s married. No matter how captivated you become, she’s forever out of reach. Truly a flower on the highest peak.”

Tomoya sighed sympathetically. The boys slumped, defeated.

“To long for something so beautiful, yet unreachable… damn it!”

“That summer-night flame… I want to get close, but I’m scared…”

“A married woman even more charming than Tojo-san…! If only I had more guts!”

“No, guts and courage won’t fix that,” Haruto said flatly.

Maybe every boy in this class has a few screws loose.

While Haruto was thinking that, another boy changed the topic.

“Speaking of married women—don’t you think Tojo-san has gotten even cuter since she started dating Otsuki?”

“Yeah! I thought so too! Like, her whole vibe is softer. She feels easier to approach.”

“Same. Before, it was like she had this unbreakable wall against guys. Now she feels more familiar, like the distance shrank.”

“So her becoming Otsuki’s girlfriend made her more charming, huh?”

“Don’t ask me…”

Haruto tilted his head, troubled.

“To me, she was always cute, even before we started dating…”

He never noticed any change—Ayaka had already surpassed every limit of cuteness in his eyes long ago.

Then another boy joined the circle.

“Tojo-san definitely got cuter recently.”

It was Sato—the one who once insulted Haruto and stepped on Ayaka’s landmine.

“This morning, I overheard some guys from another class. They were like, ‘If Otsuki can be her boyfriend, doesn’t that mean I have a chance too?’”

Tomoya’s eyebrow twitched.

“You serious?”

“Yup. So I educated them. I told them how amazing Otsuki is! Tojo-san deserves no one else but Otsuki in this world!”

Sato’s eyes were shining with devotion.

After his incident with Ayaka, he’d been force-fed stories of Haruto’s greatness until he practically became a Haruto worshipper.

Haruto awkwardly looked away from the blinding admiration. “Thanks, Sato.”

Sato’s expression lit up like a kid getting a hero’s handshake.

“Tojo-san’s so cute now that idiots might think they stand a chance, so be careful, Otsuki.”

Just then, the bell rang to signal the end of lunch break.

The boys dispersed, returning to their seats.

With the crowd gone, Haruto could finally see Ayaka clearly. She had just finished chatting with her friends and looked toward him. Their eyes met.

Ayaka smiled softly and gave a small wave. Haruto raised his hand in response and thought:

To me, Ayaka has always been—and still is—the most charming girl in the world.