Chapter 206: Home

A place with merely one person living in it could only be called a place to live .

Only a residence with two people living in it was a true home .

Shika had arrived at her new home .

The rooms were pretty much what she imagined, and it was only natural that there wasn't very much furniture . Even the few pieces of furniture were showing their age... but that wasn't important .

The wondrous part was that even though this was Shika's first time here, she felt more attached to this apartment than the place she had lived in for so long before by herself .

Was this a special feeling that only an older apartment possessed?

That seemed possible, but Shika preferred to believe that it was because of the boy in front of her .

"I don't have much, so if we need anything, we'll have to go out and purchase it . " Seiji examined the empty living room . "Let's go out shopping later together, and you can buy whatever you want without worrying about money . President Yoruhana gave me a five hundred thousand sakura payment for aiding her in the duel! That's why we don't have to worry about the rent or living expenses, so anything you want—items for daily life, furniture, and so on—you can buy it all without worrying about the cost . "

He turned his gaze to Shika with a gentle smile on his face . "How would you like to arrange this place?"

Shika blinked her eyes as she mulled it over .

She also took a look around the living room as she began imagining it .

She had zero experience with arranging rooms . In the past, she had never decorated the places she lived in with anything at all . Both her temporary and long-term residence looked exactly the same when she moved in and when she moved out .

But now, just one sentence from him gave her ideas that she had never even considered before .

Just how should she arrange things in here?

Shika's eyes gradually lit up as she considered it .

"Brother Seiji, I'd like to decorate this as a... tatami-style room . "

"Tatami?" Seiji pictured it in his head .

What he imagined was a scene which he often saw in manga in anime: watching television, playing games, resting, or having fun in a tatami-filled room, and placing a small kotatsu under a blanketed table as they sat around it in winter and lazily peeled some oranges... scenes like that .

That seemed pretty neat to him!

"Let's go with that, then . " He embraced her idea wholeheartedly .

And so, they decided to change the living room into a tatami-style room .

By the way, tatamis... although Seiji often saw them in animes and mangas, he wasn't actually sure what they were made out of .

From his impression of them, they seemed to be a type of grassy or wooden object made for placing on the floor and that was similar to a combination of carpet and flooring .

Was his understanding correct? Was it possible to simply place it on the floor after purchasing? Or was there some assembly required, or special things to watch out for in maintaining it? He didn't know any details whatsoever .

Shika didn't know anything either .

"I'll have to ask Miss Landlord, then, or seek out a professional in this area . "

At any rate, he had money now, and this would easily be solved with money .

"It's time for dinner . I'm feeling like high-class takeout tonight, but what would you like, Shika-chan?"

For the first meal in their new home, the two of them ordered a luxurious sushi dinner to be delivered to this new address .

...

After dinner, they purchased various necessities at the store and put everything in its place .

And then, Seiji and Shika wordlessly sat together in the living room .

It wasn't an awkward silence where neither of them knew what to say . It was simply a silence where neither of them happened to be saying anything .

What should they do next?

If either of them was by him or herself, both Seiji and Shika knew what they would do at home, but they were living together now .

While it was fine for both of them to do things by themselves, neither of them wanted to do that; instead, they wanted to do something together .

While it was fine for both of them to do things by themselves, neither of them wanted to do that; instead, they wanted to do something together .

'Why don't we work on our story together?'

That was the best option that Seiji could come up with .

But Seiji didn't want that to be the only choice, as he believed they should have other activities they could do together as well .

But he was unable to come up with anything else for the time being .

Nor did Shika offer him any suggestions .

And so, the silence continued... the two of them sat by the table and silently looked at each other .

The atmosphere became rather subtle .

A few moments later, Seiji suddenly came to the realization that he had become lost in thought while staring at her, which caused him to smile .

That's when he noticed that Shika's face was flushed red .

Seiji was mystified by this .

Shika shyly averted her gaze .

Seiji found this even stranger . Just what could she be thinking?

While he was a slightly curious, he didn't intend to pry .

"I think we definitely need to buy a TV, or else it'll be too quiet in here . " Seiji finally broke the silence .

"Yeah..." Shika replied in a soft voice .

"Let's go buy one tomorrow . As for tonight...should we watch some videos on my computer together?"

Shika nodded upon hearing this proposal . "I'd like to watch them together with Brother... the type that Brother Seiji typically likes to watch . "

"Eh, is that really alright?"

"Yep, I'd like to better understand Brother's... interests . "

"Yep, I'd like to better understand Brother's... interests . "

"Of course . " Seiji blinked in understanding as he smiled . "But if you don't like them, or if you think they're boring, you don't have to force yourself to accompany me and watch the videos together . I'm quite happy that you want to understand my interests better, but, you know, interests should be about what you naturally like . If you like something, you like it, and if you don't like something, you don't like it .

"Don't force yourself to watch the videos together with me if you don't like them . That'll make me unhappy instead, which isn't good for either of us, understand?"

"Yes... I won't force myself . " Shika nodded again .

She definitely wouldn't be forcing herself .

'As long as Brother likes them... anything that you like is meaningful to me, and I wouldn't possibly hate it or feel that it's boring . As long as you're here... this world seems so beautiful . '

Shika smiled faintly as she looked at the boy before her .

And so, the two of them went to the study and sat down in front of the computer to watch some videos .

At first, Seiji snuck looks at Shika on several occasions to check if she was enjoying the videos or if she seemed annoyed or bored, but she seemed to be having lots of fun, so he got rid of his worries .

Both of them simply enjoyed watching animes on his computer, while laughing about the videos and discussing them together .

...

Mika could faintly hear sounds of discussion and laughter from Seiji's new next-door apartment .

Mika slowly opened her eyes and then shut them again as she laid on her bed .

'They sound quite happy . I wonder what they could be doing?'

She impulsively felt like rushing over to see .

But her body felt quite heavy and impossible to move .

The double pigtailed... no, she was no longer wearing double pigtails, as she had let down her hair .

The black-haired girl laid there on her bed with a somewhat distant and cold expression on her face .

If Seiji could see Mika at this moment, he would surely be shocked, as she was now revealing a type of beauty that he had never seen from her before .

It was different from her typical haughty beauty . This beauty was somewhat cold and different .

Frustration, anxiety, unwillingness, confusion, and shakiness... various emotions were tossing about tumultuously within her chest, making her body heavier and her expression more negative than she realized .

It was different from her typical haughty beauty . This beauty was somewhat cold and different .

Frustration, anxiety, unwillingness, confusion, and shakiness... various emotions were tossing about tumultuously within her chest, making her body heavier and her expression more negative than she realized .

Her cell phone rang .

Her phone tone that she usually enjoyed hearing made Mika feel frustrated .

She looked at the caller ID, and, as expected, she saw that it was Chiaki .

She knew why Chiaki was calling and what Chiaki was going to ask her .

It was definitely because Seiji didn't know what was going on, so he must have called Chiaki to ask, but Chiaki didn't know either, so she must be calling her out of worry .

'Such an idiot . '

Not Seiji or Chiaki—she was talking about herself .

She didn't tell them anything about what happened and was stuck by herself with her confusion and frustration . She knew that she was being an idiot .

Mika truly felt that she was foolish .

But it was impossible for her to say anything .

That was because the words that "she" said to Mika were all indisputably true... at the very least, it was impossible for Mika to counter anything "she" said .

"That venerable person... Seiji Haruta is a special existence, an outstanding individual . "

"And as for you, even though you're somewhat cute, in the end you're just an ordinary girl that can be found anywhere . "

"For someone as 'ordinary' as you, just why do you think you deserve someone as 'special' as him?"

It was impossible .

"For someone as ordinary as you, with nothing special whatsoever and no cards up your sleeve, it's impossible for you to win his heart, nor will you even be able to make him pay more attention to you . "

"She" smiled and expressed that to Mika with no malice whatsoever . It was a simple statement of a fact .

That was why it seemed all the more cruel .