Part 4 — Cleanup & Homework
Haruto pushed his empty bowl slightly forward and leaned back in his chair.
"Done."
Kaito was still halfway through his last bite.
Haruto glanced at him.
"…You're still eating?"
Kaito didn't look up.
"I'm finishing properly."
"You're delaying life."
"I'm respecting food."
Haruto sighed and stood up anyway, stretching his arms.
"Whatever. I'm packing."
Kaito finally swallowed and pointed his spoon.
"Don't touch my side."
"There is no 'your side.'"
"There is now."
Haruto ignored him and started gathering the empty containers from the table.
The house was quiet except for the soft clinking of utensils and plastic lids being closed. The warmth of the meal still lingered in the air, but slowly, it turned into routine again.
Kaito eventually joined him, dragging his feet slightly.
"Why do we have so many things to pack…"
"Because we ate," Haruto replied.
"That's not a reason. That's a crime."
"Pack faster."
Kaito groaned but helped anyway, stacking containers in a slightly messy pile.
Haruto immediately fixed it.
"What are you doing?"
"I was organizing."
"That's not organization, that's chaos."
"It's creative structure."
"It's garbage."
"Rude."
Despite the arguing, the table was cleaned properly. The containers were sealed, leftovers packed, and everything placed neatly aside just as Ayame had said.
Haruto stepped back and nodded once.
"Done."
Kaito flopped into his chair.
"I feel like I worked for three days."
"You moved two boxes."
"And emotionally?"
Haruto didn't respond.
After a short pause, Haruto pointed toward the books on the side.
"Homework."
Kaito's head slowly turned.
"…You said the worst word."
"It's not a word. It's your responsibility."
Kaito groaned loudly and dragged his books over to the table.
Haruto sat down opposite him, already opening his own notebook.
For a few minutes, it was quiet.
Only the sound of pages turning and faint pencil scratches filled the room.
Then—
Kaito frowned at his paper.
"…This makes no sense."
Haruto didn't look up.
"It makes sense. You just don't read it properly."
"I am reading it properly."
"Then read it better."
"That's not how reading works."
"It is if you're you."
Kaito clicked his tongue and leaned closer to Haruto's notebook.
"You're doing it wrong."
"I'm not."
"You are."
"I literally got the same answer last time."
"That was luck."
Haruto finally looked at him.
"…Say that again."