After seeing Hōjō Shione out, Shiratori Seiya thought for a moment and asked if her new place was all set up—did she need any help?
He eventually got the reply: "There are still some things left to organize, but at least sleeping tonight won't be a problem. You've been tired all day, though. If you're free tomorrow, would you mind helping me then?"
Watching Shione disappear into her own apartment, Shiratori Seiya returned to his bedroom.
He lay down on his bed, his dark eyes fixed on the lights outside the window.
After a while, he let out a quiet chuckle.
Shameless.
He cursed himself on behalf of Shione, Saori, and Mio.
Earlier, the reason he'd laid things out so clearly with Shione was partly because he'd adopted an "I've told you the truth—how you choose is your business" attitude, hoping it would let him feel less guilty if they ended up together.
On the other hand, he also wanted Hōjō Shione to back off—to abandon this yandere impulse of hers.
He'd expected that once he said something like "I won't give you any official status for now," she'd most likely keep her distance.
After everything she'd already done, could she really be so magnanimous as to get involved with him without any official standing?
Of course, Shiratori Seiya didn't deny the depth of Hōjō Shione's love for him. Truth be told, she probably loved him even more than he realized. Under special circumstances—even without marriage or a proper dating label—she'd likely still want to be with him.
Shiratori Seiya had no doubt that she'd willingly give everything for him.
But… if the price was sharing him with Saori and Mio? Then she'd absolutely refuse.
Why? Shiratori Seiya felt it came down to the strong possessiveness rooted deep in Shione's heart.
Originally, if the concert incident hadn't happened—and he'd only seen her gracefully appear at the school gate and then leave—he might not have noticed these things.
But now, seeing Hōjō Shione move in directly across from him, plus everything else that had gone down… he understood.
Some women are born with a certain desire—a desire to attract and capture men, regardless of the consequences.
Hōjō Shione was probably that kind of woman.
She was like a black hole, wanting to consume him completely, leaving not even a speck of light behind.
It was a bit overwhelming, but honestly? Shiratori Seiya didn't dislike being loved that completely. If he had to say why… probably because he'd always been alone—both in his past life and this one. He'd never experienced such intense affection before.
For the first time, Shiratori Seiya deeply felt something that money couldn't buy.
But to be honest…
He did like Shione's love for him. He deeply enjoyed it.
The catch? He couldn't let it spiral out of control.
So stabilizing Shione's heart was especially important. Otherwise, who knew what kind of crazy anime villain actions she might take next?
Fire contained in a stove is perfect for warmth. But if it gets out of hand and burns your whole house down? That's a different story.
Of course, he wasn't 100% sure today's conversation would be enough to control Shione. If she truly wanted nothing, and was willing to be with him even without a clear label, he wouldn't actually push her away.
Shiratori Seiya didn't consider himself some kind of saint—the kind who could remain unmoved in the face of temptation.
She was already like this. Willing to go to such lengths. What more could he ask for?
If she wanted these things? Then satisfying her was enough.
As for tonight's situation, Shiratori Seiya admitted he'd been a little cunning—maybe even a little malicious.
He didn't like scheming. But that didn't mean he couldn't.
Given the current situation, if he just sat back, did nothing, and let these people run wild, he probably wouldn't end up with a good outcome.
The nightmare from before involuntarily came to mind…
"Sigh…"
Shiratori Seiya let out a deep breath.
He'd only wanted to make money. But somehow, he was becoming more and more like a full-fledged scumbag protagonist.
Closing his eyes, he thought about Takahashi Mio for a while longer. But as he did, he slowly drifted off to sleep.
—
The next day.
Thanks to his internal body clock, Shiratori Seiya opened his eyes to find dawn barely breaking. He checked his phone: just past six o'clock.
A few days ago at this time, Saori would come find him for a morning run in about ten or twenty minutes.
But even without her, Shiratori Seiya still ran every morning. Except for typhoons and earthquakes, ordinary wind and rain couldn't stop him.
He didn't know if he'd get another life after this one. So he tried his best to keep his body healthy—to live longer.
It was November now. The weather had clearly turned cooler, especially after those few rains at the end of October completely extinguished the last traces of summer heat. Shiratori Seiya felt a chill on his neck as he threw off the blanket.
Finally—the season when wearing long sleeves won't get you weird looks.
He sighed inwardly, but had no intention of putting on thermal underwear. It wasn't that he didn't feel the cold—it was that wearing them made him feel bloated and less flexible. So unless it was actually snowing, he wouldn't wear them.
While washing his face, he subconsciously pulled open his shirt and looked at the tooth marks on his shoulder. They'd already scabbed over. He reached out and touched them—a sharp sting shot through him.
That was really something…
He sighed. Just as Shiratori Seiya was about to head back to his bedroom to fold the quilt, the doorbell rang.
He turned his head toward the entrance.
Saori's back?
That was the first thought that flashed through his mind. Then he realized—it was probably Shione.
Why not Mio? Given her lazy, comfort-loving nature, she should be curled up under her blanket right now, enjoying the warmth of her bed like a hibernating neet character.
Still, Mio had probably been losing sleep the past few days, worried about how to convince her family. So her showing up early wasn't entirely out of the question either.
Thinking this, he walked toward the door, habitually glanced through the peephole, and sure enough—it was Shione.
Click.
The door opened. Hōjō Shione's hand, which had been idly playing with her hair, stopped. She looked up and gave him a gentle smile.
"Good morning, Seiya."
Her voice was noticeably better. That self-conscious, gloomy aura from yesterday was gone. It seemed moving in and seeing Shiratori Seiya had genuinely lifted her spirits—like a shoujo heroine finally reuniting with her love interest.
Shione raised her hand, lifting a paper bag filled with breakfast in front of him, her face bright.
"Since I just moved in, I didn't have time to make breakfast. And I don't know which shop you usually like, Seiya, so I just grabbed some things casually…"
She waited two seconds. When she saw Seiya still standing at the door staring at her, she blinked her clear eyes and asked cautiously:
"Um… is it okay if we eat together?"
Shiratori Seiya glanced at the breakfast packaging.
He knew this shop. It wasn't too far, but it wasn't close either—about twenty minutes round trip, maybe thirty if you walked slowly. Looking at the light makeup on Hōjō Shione's face, she'd probably woken up around five o'clock.
He'd been in a calm, just-woke-up state of mind. But her actions made his mood complicated again.
He stepped aside to let her in, and at the same time said:
"You didn't have to run that far to buy breakfast early in the morning. You just finished moving yesterday—you should be resting."
Upon hearing this, Shione paused mid-bend while changing her shoes. She gave him a strange look first, then smiled.
"I see. So if I walk next time, Seiya, you'll probably be even more touched, right?"
Seeing the stunned expression on Shiratori Seiya's face, she laughed again and raised her hand to playfully tap his chest. Her gaze swept over the spot where she'd bitten him yesterday, and she said softly:
"I drove there, you silly~"
"It's not that I can't walk, but it takes so long to do my makeup. So I just drove to be lazy~"
With that, she walked briskly into the house, leaving behind the clear, bell-like sound of her laughter.
...
Arriving in the living room, she quickly arranged the breakfast on the table, tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and looked at Shiratori Seiya with tender, watery eyes.
"You're hungry, aren't you? Eat while it's hot."
"Wash your hands first~"
Saying this, she walked into the bedroom on her own and began folding the quilt as she spoke.
"I don't know if you have classes today, Seiya. If you do, don't worry. I took a week off from school recently, and I don't have much to do anyway. I've pretty much finished tidying up my own place."
"Oh, and Seiya, I washed your clothes yesterday. They're not dry yet and haven't been ironed, but you should be able to wear them this afternoon…"
*The ones with vomit.
As if remembering something, Shione stopped folding the quilt and turned her head to look at the clearly thinly dressed young man.
"It's getting cold lately. You'll be cold in those clothes, won't you? You've always been like this—your knees will hurt when you're old…"
...
Standing at the doorway, smelling the warmth of the breakfast, watching the girl folding the quilt in the sunlight, and listening to her words of concern, Shiratori Seiya's heart suddenly felt an unprecedented sense of peace.
It was different from Saori's naive and innocent concern—more mature, more tender.
Unbeknownst to him, their roles seemed to have reversed. He'd gone from being the caretaker to the one being cared for.
Serenity. Warmth. Stability.
This feeling… isn't half bad.