[Warning 15+]
Part One~She Only Acts Like Her Old Self When She's with Me... Wait, Hold Up!~Chapter 29The Face of a Lost Child
A few minutes later, in a large shared hospital room nearby.
There, Hayato was receiving an apology from Minamo Mitake's Grandpa.
"Kid, I'm sorry. Alright, we cool now?"
"Eh, yeah..."
"Mitake. If you give such a half-*ssed apology, Minamo-chan is gonna get mad at you, you know?"
"Yeah, you old geezer, don't come crying to us if Minamo-chan is gonna stop talking to you."
"Urgh... ...fine, I was wrong! So just forgive me already, you brat!"
"Eh, yeah..."
But Gramps' apology was clearly begrudging, like he was only doing it because his roommates were ganging up on him. He still wasn't feeling it―that much was painfully obvious.
"Now, now, Mitake. By the way, Young Man, are you the 'Teacher' who's been teaching Minamo-chan about veggies lately?"
"T-Teacher?"
"Thanks to you, Minamo-chan has been smiling so happily lately. Thanks a lot."
"Even that Old Man over there is actually grateful to the 'Teacher' behind his back."
"…Hmph."
"Eh, yeah..."
The way Mitake Minamo's Grandpa looked at Hayato was incredibly sharp, showing blatant hostility. He felt like a real tough nut to crack.
However, seeing how Gramps was being teased by everyone else, it seemed like he was only like this when his granddaughter was involved.
Hayato also realized that Mitake Minamo was really loved by everyone around her. It showed just how often she must be coming here.
"So, Kid, I heard you're a transfer student... ...but why?"
"Huh?"
"Why'd you go and talk to my Minamo?"
"That's..."
"I get that Minamo is cute. You could even call her an angel without wings. I can understand why you'd want to talk to her. Are you hitting on her? Just playing around? Because if you are—"
"N-No, that's not it!"
The sheer intensity coming off Gramps was unreal.
Without missing a beat, Gramps thrust his cane right in front of Hayato's eyes.
Depending on Hayato's answer, his life might be forfeit—it felt hard to just laugh it off as a joke, so Hayato couldn't help but blurting out exactly what he was thinking.
"M-Minamo-san just reminded me of a kid from my old neighborhood! I used to look after her a lot, and the way she flusters is just like Minamo-san, so I just couldn't leave her alone!"
"Ho, Minamo does? What kind of kid was she?"
"An eight-year-old girl with the same kind of curly hair!"
"So that's why you spoke to Minamo."
"Y-Yeah!"
Mitake Minamo's Grandpa put a look that said he wasn't entirely convinced.
However, the other people in the ward were muttering stuff like, "I get it," "Minamo-chan does have that clumsy side," and "Makes you wanna give Minamo-chan some candy."
Hayato gave a forced laugh to hide the truth—even though he called her an eight-year-old girl, she was actually a sheep, and a pretty old one at that.
While all this was going on, Mitake Minamo, who had gone to change the water in the vase, came back.
"Grandpa, where should I put the flow—wait, Grandpa! What the heck are you doing to Kirishima-san!"
"M-Minamo, look, it's just that..."
"Grandpa! Stop doing weird stuff to Kirishima-san! Jeez, let's go!"
"M-Minamo!"
"Man, that Old Geezer Mitake and his jealousy. He really needs to act his age."
"See ya later, Minamo-chan!"
As soon as Mitake Minamo got back, she was shocked to see Hayato being cornered by her Grandpa's cane, and she immediately grabbed Hayato's hand and dragged him out of the room.
The way Minamo pulled Hayato was surprisingly strong for someone like her, and her ears and neck were flushed red with embarrassment.
Hayato could totally get why Minamo'd feel humiliated having to show off her family's rowdy side, so he just went along with her.
But by the time they hit the first-floor lobby, being led around by the hand by a girl started to feel a little awkward.
"Mitake-san, um, your hand…"
"Huh… …oh! I-I'm so sorry!"
"Oh, no, it's fine."
Come to think of it, excluding his little sis and his childhood friend (Haruki), this was the first time Hayato'd ever held a girl's hand. As soon as that thought crossed his mind, Hayato's face started heating up fast.
So, to play it off, Hayato blurted this out.
"Well, your Grandpa's a pretty energetic grandpa who clearly dotes on his grandkids, huh."
"…Oh. Yeah, I guess so…"
It was just something Hayato said without thinking. And honestly, the version of Gramps Hayato saw really was full of energy.
But this was a hospital, and her Grandpa was an inpatient.
"Cr*p," by the time Hayato realized his slip-up, it was too late.
Mitake Minamo's face, which had been flushed with embarrassment just a second ago, was suddenly cast in shadow, catching a glimpse of an expression like she was about to burst into tears.
But it was only for a moment before Minamo flashed her usual soft smile―and that totally messed with Hayato's head. He cursed his own carelessness and total lack of tact.
"…Sorry."
"No, um, it's not something Kirishima-san needs to apologize for... ...if anything, it's Grandpa who…"
"Oh, right. That's... ...yeah, true. Haha."
"Yeah."
They both bowed and apologized to each other. Then, they shared a bitter laugh.
That dark expression really must have been fleeting, because as they locked eyes, Minamo's face now showed a certain inner strength.
Which only made Hayato worry about that dark look from before even more.
(That look on Mitake-san's face…)
Hayato thought it looked familiar.
That day. The day back in their childhood when Mom collapsed.
The face of a lost child, just like Himeko's; The one who couldn't do a single thing on her own and just stood there frozen by her side, completely lost for words.
That's why Hayato just couldn't bring himself to leave Minamo alone.
"Well, Kirishima-san, I'll leave you here."
"…Wait, um, Mitake-san!"
"Yeah?"
"Eh, well... ...the flowerbed! Is it okay if I come by the flowerbed again…?"
"Wha?"
That must've been the last thing Mitake Minamo expected him to say.
Minamo blinked her big eyes in surprise for a few seconds, but once the realization sank in, her face broke into a huge, beaming smile.
"Yeah!"
"Cool, looking forward to it."
Hayato replied to Minamo's radiant smile with a faint, awkward one of his own.
Hayato was well aware that this request of his was kind of selfish in its own way.
With a quick goodbye, Hayato hurried out of the hospital.
The second Hayato stepped outside, a powerful gust of wind came roaring through.
It washed away the lingering scent of disinfectant.
And up in the early summer sky, giant thunderhead clouds were billowing upward.
TL: Reeze27
ED: Reeze27
PR: Reeze27
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