[Warning 15+]
Author's Notes:
Sorry to keep you guys waitin'.
I'm finally gonna start dippin' my toes into Part Four.
Heads up, I've got a major announcement in the Afterword.
Sorry to keep you guys waitin'.
I'm finally gonna start dippin' my toes into Part Four.
Heads up, I've got a major announcement in the Afterword.
Part Four
"―From Now On, You Better Treat Me with That Same Energy, Too!"
Chapter 123
The Start of a Summer Like No Other
"―From Now On, You Better Treat Me with That Same Energy, Too!"
Chapter 123
The Start of a Summer Like No Other
Lookin' up, the sky's just a piercin' mix of blue and white.
As far as the eye can see, the ground's just a sea of green rice paddies.
From the mountains all around, you can hear the leaves rustlin' and the cicadas goin' at it.
That's Tsukinose for ya—a mountain countryside that couldn't be further from the city's noise.
20 minutes from the main road where the bus stop is, cuttin' through the countryside from east to west, and headin' south toward the foothills, sits the Kirishima Residence. For Tsukinose standards, it's actually a pretty new-lookin' place.
"We're home... ...though it feels kinda weird sayin' that."
"Ugh, it's so stuffy and dusty in here."
"Himeko, for now, let's just get every single window open."
"On it!"
The house had been sittin' empty for two months through the rainy season, so the air inside was all damp and chilly in that weird way old houses get.
Both Hayato and Himeko left their bags right at the entrance and started rippin' open all the shut windows and storm shutters.
Right then, a gust of wind from the mountain just ripped through the place.
Unlike the city, that crisp, cool breeze felt like it was sweepin' away all the stale air and the exhaustion from a half-day's travel, makin' Hayato squint with a grin.
Hayato was dyin' to just crash and take a nap, but no dice. It was already mid-afternoon, and there was way too much crap to do before the sun went down.
"...Guess a house really does start fallin' apart if nobody's livin' in it."
When Hayato looked down, he could see a thin-ass layer of dust driftin' over the floor.
While Hayato was thinkin' about how he'd have to give the place a quick scrub, he heard Himeko callin' him from upstairs.
"Big Bro, what should I do with the bedsheets?"
"Oh, probably better to give 'em a wash. If we do it now, they'll be dry by evenin'. Throw mine in the wash too, would ya?"
"Got it! Oh, and what about the fall and winter clothes?"
"We can just ship 'em out later."
While they were back-and-forthin' like that, Hayato took a look around the livin' room.
The place was easily twice as big as their apartment in the city, and Hayato could see the two connected Japanese-style rooms right next to him.
The TV stand, the sofa, the cupboards, and the cabinets were exactly where they'd left 'em two months ago. It was like time had just frozen in place.
Most of the furniture they used back in the city was stuff they'd bought fresh when they got there.
That's just how sudden the whole movin' and transferrin' schools thing had been.
While Hayato was stuffin' the veggies Saki gave him into the empty fridge, he was brainstormin' where to start cleanin' first.
Right then, the doorbell went ding-dong—somethin' that almost never happens out in Tsukinose.
"Comin'... ...wait, both Haruki and Murao-san...?"
"Uuu~..."
"Eh, um, it's me, Murao Saki..."
The guests were both Haruki and Saki. They weren't haulin' any bags, so they probably already dropped their gear at Saki's place.
But man, somethin' was definitely off with these two.
Haruki's face was beet red and she was all curled up, while Saki was just total panic mode.
While Hayato was scratchin' his head tryin' to figure out what was up, Himeko came trottin' down from upstairs.
"Oh, Haru-chan and Saki-chan! Welcome... ...wait, Big Bro, what did you do!? Was it sexual harassment!?"
"Heck no, I didn't! And for the record, I'm dyin' to know what's goin' on too!"
While Himeko gave Hayato the major side-eye, Haruki started spillin' the beans bit by bit.
"...This is pretty much all Saki-chan's fault. I legit thought Saki-chan was gonna be the death of me..."
"Huh?"
"N-No, that's not it! I just wanted everyone in the countryside to know that Haruki-san is my buddy, that she's super pretty and cute, and has tons of great qualities! So I'd been, y'know, hypein' her up ahead of time, and then...!"
"E-Every single person I ran into on the way here was like, 'Oh, aren'tcha cute!', 'Wow, I barely recognized ya!', 'What a total beauty!', 'Take good care of Saki-chan, Hayato, and Hime-chan, okay?'! I finally realized what people mean when they say 'K*lled by Kindness'!"
Looks like Saki had been goin' around spreadin' the word about Haruki all over Tsukinose beforehand.
Luckily, it seemed like Haruki was welcomed with open arms for the most part.
Haruki just wasn't used to gettin' that kind of treatment, and well, this was the result.
Both Hayato and Himeko looked at each other, and when they imagined both Haruki and Saki gettin' smothered with that over-the-top small-town love, they just couldn't help but burst out laughin'.
""...Pffft!""
"H-Hime-chan~!"
"H-Hayato, you too!?"
Haruki puffed out her cheeks, lookin' totally annoyed at the Kirishima siblings' reaction, and stomped into the house while groanin' like a grumpy cow.
Haruki marched right into the livin' room, then suddenly stopped dead in her tracks. It was like she'd just turned to stone.
Lookin' past Haruki's shoulder, it's just that same old livin' room from two months ago, even if it's a little dusty. Hayato knit his brows, wonderin' what her deal was.
"...Haruki?"
"...Oh, no, it's just, I was thinkin' how nothin' has changed."
"You think so? I've moved the furniture around a bunch, and the place is probably lookin' a bit beat up by now."
"Ahaha, I dunno how to put it, but it just feels like I'm finally back at Hayato's place..."
"Whoa!"
When Haruki turned back with that shy-*ss smile, she looked way different than she used to—straight-up elegant and cute.
Hayato's heart skipped a d*mn beat, so he started scratchin' his head like a madman to play it cool and looked away.
Watchin' both Hayato and Haruki like that, Saki scrunched up her face all annoyed and reflexively grabbed the hem of Himeko's shirt.
"Saki-chan?"
"Oh! I mean, eh, Hime-chan's house has been empty for a minute, right? So I figured you guys could use some extra hands for the clean-up~"
"Oh yeah, that's it! That's why we came over to your place."
"...You girls sure about this?"
When Hayato asked that, both Haruki and Saki just nodded like it was a given. Himeko was all for it too, yellin', "Let's clean this place up fast so we can crank the AC!"
Here Hayato was, in his own house in Tsukinose, with a total "glowed-up" Haruki and his little sis' bestie Saki—someone he barely even knew back in the day—just chillin' together.
It felt a little trippy. A scene Hayato couldn't have even dreamed of just two months ago.
"Alright then, first things first―"
Hayato had a gut feelin' this summer was gonna be like no other.
With that thought in mind, Hayato's voice as he barked out orders drifted up and got swallowed by a blue sky that felt way higher than the one back in the city.
Author's Notes:
So, eh, great news—Tenbin is officially gettin' a manga adaptation!
It's actually pretty rare for a rom-com to get a manga deal, so even I'm low-key shocked.
Also, on June 30th (2021) at 8:00 PM, there's gonna be a live reading of (LN) Tenbin Volume 1 on the K*DOKAWA anime YouTube channel featurin' two voice actors! Yep, it's a live stream!
Looks like we'll be able to chat through the comments, so definitely go check that out.
I've dropped all the deets in the Activity Reports.
Anyway, a lot is goin' on, but I've only got one thing to say.
Just droppin' a "Meow" in the reviews is enough to keep me goin'!
Meow!
TL: Reeze27
ED: Reeze27
PR: Reeze27
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