[It’s unusual for you to still be sleeping at this time, though. Was there something keeping you up?]
As I was led to the room, I sat in my usual position. I was curious and decided to ask her about it. It was really unusual for her to oversleep, so I wanted to know why.
If she didn’t want to talk about it, I would stop. So I asked her lightly, and her eyes wandered around in panic.
[W-Well… It was fun to go out with Tanaka-kun on New Year’s…]
She blushed and lowered her eyes in embarrassment, and muttered in a faint voice. The last part was barely audible to me.
[Oh, I see. It’s true that we came back home late that day. No wonder you’re so sleepy]
It wasn’t so much that she couldn’t sleep, but that she was sleepy to begin with and slept the entire time. It’s true that I was also up late at night, and in that sense, I probably could have slept as long as her. I just felt like I was sleeping too much.
[…]
Even though I was content with her explanation, for some reason, she seemed dissatisfied. She pouted and stared at me as if she wanted to tell me something.
[N? What’s wrong?]
[…It’s nothing. I’ll get some tea]
She turned away and said [Excuse me] bluntly, and went off to the kitchen with a sullen atmosphere.
Stunned by the sudden change, I could only watch her back in a daze.
She still looked a bit sulky when she came back, but when she opened her book and started reading, she loosened up as if she was enjoying herself.
I could tell that her mood had somewhat recovered, and I was relieved inside.
When I came back from taking a book from the shelf, I suddenly had an idea.
I don’t know why, but she was in a bad mood earlier, so I decided to talk to her and give my gratitude to her.
[Thanks for lending me your book. Saito]
When I thanked her as usual, she turned to me and her beautiful, black eyes blinked.
She seemed to be caught off guard, or maybe she was just somewhat dumbfounded, and a certain childishness that was usually hidden came out. The expression she made was probably someone who was “puzzled”.
Apparently, she was surprised to be called by her first name.
[You’re the one who asked me to call you by your first name]
[…That’s true]
I didn’t expect her to be surprised, so I followed up. And a soft, faint smile appeared on her face. That smile that seemed to indicate her being relieved made my heart flutter a little.
[It’s kind of embarrassing to be called by name… But… I’m glad you called me by that]
She muttered in a faint voice with a slight blush on her cheeks.
The figure of her being shy was so cute, that I ended up averting my gaze from her.
I turned my gaze away from her because if I looked at her any longer, the buzzy feeling in my chest would grow, and I felt as if I was driven by something itchy and frustrating.
I pretended to read the book in my hand and just replied [Is that so?]
[It’s unusual for you to still be sleeping at this time, though. Was there something keeping you up?]
As I was led to the room, I sat in my usual position. I was curious and decided to ask her about it. It was really unusual for her to oversleep, so I wanted to know why.
If she didn’t want to talk about it, I would stop. So I asked her lightly, and her eyes wandered around in panic.
[W-Well… It was fun to go out with Tanaka-kun on New Year’s…]
She blushed and lowered her eyes in embarrassment, and muttered in a faint voice. The last part was barely audible to me.
[Oh, I see. It’s true that we came back home late that day. No wonder you’re so sleepy]
It wasn’t so much that she couldn’t sleep, but that she was sleepy to begin with and slept the entire time. It’s true that I was also up late at night, and in that sense, I probably could have slept as long as her. I just felt like I was sleeping too much.
[…]
Even though I was content with her explanation, for some reason, she seemed dissatisfied. She pouted and stared at me as if she wanted to tell me something.
[N? What’s wrong?]
[…It’s nothing. I’ll get some tea]
She turned away and said [Excuse me] bluntly, and went off to the kitchen with a sullen atmosphere.
Stunned by the sudden change, I could only watch her back in a daze.
She still looked a bit sulky when she came back, but when she opened her book and started reading, she loosened up as if she was enjoying herself.
I could tell that her mood had somewhat recovered, and I was relieved inside.
When I came back from taking a book from the shelf, I suddenly had an idea.
I don’t know why, but she was in a bad mood earlier, so I decided to talk to her and give my gratitude to her.
[Thanks for lending me your book. Saito]
When I thanked her as usual, she turned to me and her beautiful, black eyes blinked.
She seemed to be caught off guard, or maybe she was just somewhat dumbfounded, and a certain childishness that was usually hidden came out. The expression she made was probably someone who was “puzzled”.
Apparently, she was surprised to be called by her first name.
[You’re the one who asked me to call you by your first name]
[…That’s true]
I didn’t expect her to be surprised, so I followed up. And a soft, faint smile appeared on her face. That smile that seemed to indicate her being relieved made my heart flutter a little.
[It’s kind of embarrassing to be called by name… But… I’m glad you called me by that]
She muttered in a faint voice with a slight blush on her cheeks.
The figure of her being shy was so cute, that I ended up averting my gaze from her.
I turned my gaze away from her because if I looked at her any longer, the buzzy feeling in my chest would grow, and I felt as if I was driven by something itchy and frustrating.
I pretended to read the book in my hand and just replied [Is that so?]
