Chapter 9 - Irony

I didn't need to see it to know that Hayato and Ryo had gone off to talk about me in another room.

My curiosity couldn't wait. After all, if she told him everything that had happened, I wouldn't be able to stay in that house.

So I got up and went to the kitchen door, where I stopped to listen to their conversation. 

"Are you sure about this, Hayato? Putting a man up here can be a bit..." She didn't finish her sentence, but it was clear what she 'feared'. 

"Ryo, we've already talked about this. If you want someone here to keep you safe while I travel, a girl isn't going to solve the problem." 

"But the stalkers are stopping. It's been a while since I've seen anyone suspicious around."

I could hear Hayato take a deep breath. "Oh yeah? If stalkers aren't a problem anymore, then explain to me why the hell you need to leave the house wearing sunglasses and always driving a car?" 

His voice became harsher, cutting.

"If there's no danger, why can't you just take the subway or walk when you go to the market, for example? It would be much quicker." 

Ryo didn't reply. Hayato was winning the argument. He was right, and she knew it.

"Besides, I've already given my word to Nishida-kun. I can't go back now."

I could imagine Ryo gritting her teeth, and Hayato didn't seem willing to change his mind.

Then I heard Hayato's voice soften, and he approached her. "Look, you don't have to worry about Shizuri either. I'm telling you, kids these days are a bunch of wimps and shy people. Nishida-kun looks like one of those otakus who've never touched a woman in their lives. She won't be in any danger." 

My eyebrows twitched, and an irritating heat rose in my chest.

'Otakus who've never touched a woman...?' 

I almost laughed. The irony was blatant.

However, I knew from Hayato's tone of voice and the way Ryo had run out of arguments that their conversation was over. So I discreetly moved away from the door and returned to the armchair.

I crossed my arms and assumed a bored expression, as if I had heard nothing.

It wasn't long before Hayato came back into the room, with Ryo right behind him. Her fake smile was gone. Now she just looked at me coolly out of the corner of her eye.

"So, Nishida..." Hayato called out, throwing himself onto the sofa with a sigh. "Do you want to sign the contract, right?"

I thought for a second, as I was about to enter a very complicated situation. However, there were two main reasons why I accepted.

The first was obvious. The location of this house was spectacular, and the rent was cheap. And the second reason was Ryo herself. Living under the same roof as a hot milf was an adolescent dream, and I would not let an opportunity like this pass me by.

"Yes, of course." I smiled, picked up the pen, and signed my name on the dotted line.

When I looked up, Ryo was staring at me. But she said nothing. She just went back into the kitchen.

I had just entered their house.

And somehow, it felt like I'd just walked into the middle of a minefield.

-:-

In the afternoon of that same day...

After picking up my last box from the small truck I had rented, I was walking toward the entrance of the house when the door opened.

Ryo stepped out and stood under the doorway. 

I had only intended to walk straight past her, saying nothing so as not to disturb her beyond what was safe on that first day. However, she was the one who started the conversation. 

"You heard, didn't you?" she asked, her arms crossed.

I stopped next to her. "Heard what?"

"Don't play dumb, 'Nishida-kun'." She sneered. "I know you overheard the conversation between me and Hayato."

I bent down and left the box next to the others in the hallway.

"Well, it's not like you two kept it down. You don't want me here, do you?"

"You just need to understand that..."

"I know he doesn't know. And don't worry, I don't intend to tell the man who's giving me a roof over my head that I had sex with his wife."

Ryo's face flushed.

"You don't have to worry either. I'm just a shy otaku who've never even touched a woman, remember?" 

Her eyes flashed with something akin to irritation. Without saying another word, I turned and started toward the exit.

"I'll be back in a few minutes. I'll return the keys to my old landlord and the truck, too."

As much as I was teasing Ryo about this whole situation, the whole thing was more stressful than I would have liked for someone who was about to start my first semester at college.

Also, every detail about living in this house — from Ryo's cold expression to Hayato's casual, almost dismissive way of talking about me — made me a little angrier.

 It was funny how people loved to assume things about each other. Not that I cared much about his opinion. He didn't seem like a bad guy — insensitive and pragmatic, maybe — but despite that, he didn't even know me and was already judging me. Well, of course, if he knew everything that happened between me and Ryo, he'd have reason to. But he didn't!

'Was Carl right? Should I take better care of myself? Go to the gym, do some skincare and stuff?'

Thinking about the damn thing, I called Carl to tell him the whole situation. After all, if I was in this mess, it was all down to Carl! If he hadn't told me about the natural insemination group, I wouldn't have met Ryo before meeting Hayato.

"Come on, pick up the phone... Answer your cell." I muttered to myself, but the phone just kept ringing and ringing. 

Blip! "This phone is outside the coverage area."

"Son of a bitch! Sigh... All right, I'll tell him all about it later."

The process of returning the keys to Mr. Watanabe was a pain. The guy even tried to convince me to pay extra as a 'painting fee.' I told him to find another sucker to scam and left him cursing in the back of my head.

Then I walked back to my new address. As the distance wasn't long, it only took twenty minutes.

However, to my surprise, as soon as I turned the corner of the street, I was met with a strange new scene.

In front of Ryo's house was a guy wearing a dark sweatshirt with the hood up. It was already night, but a lamppost perfectly illuminated him as he stood in front of the gate. When I looked more closely, I noticed a camera hanging from a leather strap around his neck.

He was leaning slightly against the gate, trying to look in through a small gap.

'A stalker!' I thought, my eyes widening.