Later that night at the apartment…
It was almost 10 PM and dinner was done.
Just like they had agreed: Kazuma cooks, and Akari does the dishes.
Kazuma sat lazily on the couch, flipping through TV channels, while Akari stood in the kitchen cleaning up.
Suddenly, she spoke up from the sink without turning around:
— "You could at least help me out a little instead of just sitting there watching TV."
I looked up at her from the couch.
— "That wasn't part of our deal, though."
She sighed, clearly annoyed.
— "There are way too many dishes because you eat so much."
I raised an eyebrow.
— "It's because I cook them."
— "And I buy the groceries. Maybe I'll just buy less from now on."
— "That's… abuse."
She held up her hands from the soapy sink, showing her wrinkled, red fingers.
— "What do you call this, then?"
— "Yeah, yeah," I mumbled, turning my focus back to the Tv"
After a few minutes, Akari was done cleaning the dishes. She sighed in relief, stretching her fingers before glancing at them.
— "Finally it's done."
She looked down.
— "It's all red."
I was so focused on the TV I didn't even hear her talking.
She looked over from the kitchen, narrowed her eyes at Kazuma, then walked across the apartment toward the living room.
— "What in the world are you so focused on?"
She reached the couch, and as her eyes landed on the TV, she instantly recognized the series. Her expression shifted.
— "The Girls I Met in My High School?"
I looked up at her as she said the name.
— "You know this series?"
— "Yeah, I loved this sh—" she paused midway, realizing she was speaking too bluntly about her tastes.
She cleared her throat and corrected herself.
— "I mean, I used to watch it a little."
She kept her gaze on the TV, trying to play it cool.
I could tell just by looking at her—she was too shy to admit she liked the show.
— "So you like the show?"
— "No, I mean—" she struggled with her words.
— "I do used to enjoy it a lot."
Still visibly shy about talking about herself for some reason.
— "Why don't you watch it with me?" I asked.
She blinked, surprised as he asked. It wasn't something she expected. But then again, she hesitated. She never really opened up to anyone like that. And she also felt weird about it, so she wanted to let it slide,
— "No thanks. It's getting pretty late and we also have college tomorrow, remember?"
I sighed.
— "It'll just take 20 minutes to watch an episode. Then you can go to sleep."
She still looked unsure. The whole situation felt strange to her. But the truth was deep inside she had been waiting for the new season for so long. A small part of her really wanted to sit down and watch it.
She let out a light sigh.
— "Okay, only one episode. Then over."
— "Ok ok, come sit here," I said, moving over and making space for her beside me.
She walked over and gently sat down, looking a little flustered.
Even though she acted like she was being forced to watch, deep down, she wanted to. She just couldn't admit it.
The episode started with its usual opening sequence.
— "Intros in this show are always amazing," I said.
— "I loved the stage direction from the first two intros before this. This one is not that bad either," she said, already invested.
I glanced at her while she was focused on the screen.
This was a new side of her. She loves talking about the things she liked.
It reminded me of how she used to be.
Suddenly, she looked back at me.
I quickly turned my eyes back to the screen—just in time.
She stared for a second, then assumed she imagined it, and focused back on the show.
That was so close, Almost got caught staring at her,
The main episode started—and right from the beginning, they jumped straight into the romance.
Then it hit me.
Hold on We're watching a romance show. This is something most people either watch alone or with their girlfriend. But here we were—two teenagers who barely knew each other—watching it together.
Awkward.
Apparently, Akari had the same realization. As soon as the romantic scenes kicked in, her body tense up. She sat straighter, lips pressed into a thin line.
She started thinking why she agreed to even watch this with him,
I should've never agreed to watch this show.
I forgot how much filed with romance this
show is.
It feels so awkward to even sit here—I don't even know what to say.
Meanwhile, my thoughts were running too.
I need to do something. If this keeps going, we won't even be able to look at each other when it ends.
What to say? What to do?
I can't even come up with a logical solution..
This situation is so worse
Then something came to mind.
Yes. This should work.
It had only been five minutes into the episode, but it already felt like forever.
Akari sat still, clearly hoping the episode would be over soon.
Just end it already so I can just leave, What's the point when I can't even watch it properly.
Suddenly, I spoke up.
— "Huh. This girl should be slapped. She's talking way too sweet."
Akari looked at me raising her eyebrows,
She looked genuinely offended.
That girl I mentioned? Apparently, she's one of the sweetest characters in the whole series.
— "Huh? Do you even understand romance?"
— "I understand it. But I don't like this much sweet talking. He should end up with Lisa instead."
— "You know that's the reason you won't ever get a girlfriend," she said, clearly annoyed now.
It's working. The tension's fading. She's debating with me—and that's good.
If we kept watching in silence, it would've been unbearable for both of us. But now? We're talking. We're reacting to the characters. It's getting better.
— "Whatever. You'll see. He'll end up with Lisa after the show ends. It'll be better than this sweet-talking girl… even forgot her name."
I said with a teasing grin on my face,
— "Yeah, we'll see about that. Hmph."
She turned her head back to the screen, crossing her arms.
— "Yeah, we're watching."
As the show went on, the awkwardness faded more and more.
Now we were just rooting for the characters we liked.
— "Look, you see? He's never going out with Lisa. He's being so romantic with Kataguri."
— "Hold your horses. When Lisa comes, it'll all change in no time," I said, smirking.
— "Oh, your Lisa is such a side character. She's not even getting screen time. So sad," she said with a smug grin.
— "Kataguri is the one side character. We all know who he's ending up with."
— "Yeah, we can all see who's the side character here, buddy," she said, keeping her eyes glued to the screen.
We both went quiet for a bit, watching again.
As much as I liked arguing with her, I was mostly enjoying how excited she got talking about this.
I was glad it didn't end up awkward—and that I got to see this side of her.
The episode reached its end.
The main character proposed to Kataguri—the girl Akari was rooting for.
And he ended up with her.
— "Oh, how romantic. Ending to an episode."
She turned to me with a victorious smirk.
I looked away, completely defeated.
— "What now, Kazuma? Are you going to cry because your Lisa didn't end up? Poor boy."
She smiled wide, clearly satisfied with the ending.
It worked out fine after all.
We weren't awkward. We grew into the moment.
I looked at her again. She was still smiling, eyes twinkling from the joy of the episode.
Suddenly, she said it out loud without thinking
— "Oh, I love this show so much." Before realizing she just admited something of her own self
I raised an eyebrow,
— "So you do like the show?"
She immediately looked away, completely embarrassed she had admitted it out loud. Now she couldn't even argue. Her voice came out shaky as she spoke,
— "Umm… yeah, I do like the show, alright."
I sighed.
— "It was really obvious how you were so invested in it."
— "Huh?" she replied, genuinely surprised.
She clearly hadn't realized how open she had been during the episode.
Her eyes narrowed as she looked away, annoyed.
— "Yeah, so what?"
— "If that's your reaction now, why bother not telling me in the first place that you actually liked the show?"
Akari blinked, caught off guard by how valid that question was.
She could've just said it from the start and enjoyed it.
But there was something deeper holding her back.
She let out a small sigh.
— "It's just that… I'm not comfortable sharing stuff like that with anyone.
It just feels weird telling people what I like, because I feel like they'll judge me for it."
I looked straight at her.
— "I don't know about anyone else, but I don't judge you for your own likes or dislikes."
She stared at me for a moment, waiting to see what else I had to say.
So I continued,
— "Someone's liking is their own opinion, right?
So I'm no one to judge them. Nor is anyone else."
Her heart fluttered at those words.
She lowered her gaze, slightly blushing.
— "So you don't judge, huh?"
She glanced at me again.
— "Then you're saying… it's not weird to talk about your likings?"
— "No, it's not weird to talk about your likings.
And I think it makes you more attractive when you do talk about it," I said, smiling.
That smile hit her like a truck.
The words "more attractive" echoed in her mind.
Her heart started beating so fast it felt like it might explode.
She had no idea how to respond.
Suddenly, she stood up.
I watched her in confusion.
— "What happened?" I asked, completely clueless.
She turned her back to me.
— "Don't you think it's getting pretty late? Let's just call it a day."
And without another word, she stormed into her room, shut the door, and locked it.
She sat right down against the door, clutching her knees as her heart kept pounding.
Inside her head, everything was spinning.
How is he able to say something like that so bluntly?
More attractive?
Does it really make me more attractive?
She shook her head, trying to push the thought away.
I hate you, Kazuma… for making me feel like this, you idiot.
Stupid, stupid Kazuma…
Meanwhile, I was still sitting on the couch, completely unaware of what had just happened.
— "Did I say something wrong?"
Said to myself not having a slightest idea of what just happened just now,
Suddenly, a text popped up on my phone.
It was Daiki.
The message read:
"Hey, a new student is joining our college next week. He shares the same last name as you, and he's pretty famous on social media."
I stared at the message, confused.
The same last name as me?
I texted back:
"What's his name?"
I waited, and after a few seconds, another message popped up:
"His name is Akaza Shinomiya."
Akaza Shinomiya, huh?
Maybe just another Shinomiya.
If he were a relative of mine, I'd probably recognize the name.
Not my problem.
Either way…
I'm kinda interested to meet this "other Shinomiya."
As the night faded into silence, another day of being roommates quietly came to an end.