Chapter 26: A Different Comparison
At six in the evening, Aragaki Takiya, who had spent the entire afternoon playing with Aragaki Moeha, finally returned home with a tired body. Aside from the cost of lunch, Aragaki Takiya had also bought the Little one many snacks and several plush toys; after this round of spending, his weekly part-time wages had completely evaporated.
"Although it hurts my wallet a bit, the results are significant. At least Moeha isn't as shy around strangers as before..."
Looking at Aragaki Moeha, whose face was filled with happiness, Aragaki Takiya couldn't help but feel a sense of relief. Although he lacked the process of getting to know this Little one from his past life, it didn't affect their life together at all. Of course, if his savings were a bit more, the effect might be even better.
"Sigh... work, studies, and Eriri—all of these feel so far away from me."
Aragaki Takiya, slumped on the sofa, let out a sigh, but then a flash of golden yellow entered his vision.
"Papa, have a tangerine~"
Seeing her father lying tiredly on the bed, Aragaki Moeha quickly split open the tangerine she had just peeled and held it to his mouth.
"Ah~ Thank you, Moeha."
Seeing the tangerine his daughter offered, Aragaki Takiya naturally had no reason to refuse, but as he chewed the tangerine in his mouth, his brow couldn't help but twitch.
"Is it sweet?"
The Little one asked curiously.
"Mhm! It's very sweet. Moeha should try some; it's delicious."
"Okay~"
Seeing the smile on Aragaki Takiya's face, Aragaki Moeha no longer hesitated, but after she ate a segment of the tangerine, her cute little face puckered up.
"Ugh~ It's so sour! Papa, you lied..."
The Little one endured the sourness in her mouth and then, as if in a huff, broke off another segment and stuffed it into his mouth.
"Mmm, but even though it's sour, the aftertaste is sweet. Didn't you feel it, Moeha?"
"Really?"
Looking at the remaining tangerine in her hand, Aragaki Moeha hesitated, but seeing the serious expression on her father's face, she chose to believe him and broke off another segment to put in her mouth.
"Ugh, it's still so sour..."
Aragaki Moeha endured the sourness and looked at Aragaki Takiya, only to see a smile on his face.
"Papa, you're teasing me."
Looking at the smiling Aragaki Takiya, Aragaki Moeha pounced on him crossly, but she deliberately held back her strength when she reached him.
After all, her father was happy; she hadn't seen him this happy in a long time. And even though she was the one being teased, for some reason, a faint warmth blossomed in her heart... Click.
As the Apartment door opened, Shiina Mahiru, having finished all her school affairs, returned home, but today she wasn't greeted by that cute Little one.
"Kaede, are you home?"
Shiina Mahiru asked tentatively, but received no response.
"Could she be asleep?"
Unlike Aragaki Takiya, who took the afternoon off to accompany his child, Shiina Mahiru had only sent Shiina Kaede home before rushing back to school for classes. At the time, Shiina Kaede had seemed quite happy.
"Is there no one in the Bedroom either?"
In the Bedroom, Shiina Mahiru looked at the neatly arranged quilt, a trace of worry growing in her heart. Just as she was about to use her phone to call, the nearby wardrobe made a slight noise.
"?"
The noise from the wardrobe made Shiina Mahiru a bit alert, but then she thought of the space inside. After some hesitation, she opened the wardrobe door, and there was Shiina Kaede.
"Eh? Mama, when did you get back?"
Shiina Kaede, who had been dazing inside the wardrobe, was startled by the sudden opening of the door, but then she saw the familiar figure of Shiina Mahiru who had just returned home.
"Did... something sad happen to you?"
Shiina Mahiru had originally wanted to ask why she was hiding in the wardrobe, but seeing Shiina Kaede's red eyes, she gradually realized that the Little one's state was off.
"Ah? I'm fine. I just felt a bit bored, yeah, that's it."
Hearing her mother's question, Shiina Kaede quickly explained, but even though she tried her best, the subtle movements she attempted to hide still gave her away.
"You... won't even tell Mama the truth anymore?"
Looking at Shiina Kaede, who was trying her best to hide her emotions, Shiina Mahiru felt a pang of distress. Even though she had come to see the other as her closest person during this time, it seemed the other wasn't treating her with sincerity.
"Eh, no, I just..."
Seeing the sad expression on Shiina Mahiru's face, Shiina Kaede couldn't help but panic. She hadn't intended for this, but if she were to tell the truth... "Is there something hard to say?"
"No, I just didn't want to make things difficult for Mama."
Looking at the familiar face before her, Shiina Kaede gave up on hiding it and directly spoke about what had made her uncomfortable this afternoon.
"You're saying it's because Aragaki-san's attitude toward me made you feel uncomfortable?"
"That's not 'Aragaki-san,' that's Papa. We're family."
Perhaps remembering how Aragaki Takiya had said they were "just acquaintances" at noon, Shiina Kaede felt another pang of distress. He was clearly her father; those words weren't nice to hear at all!
"Was it because of that? But why didn't you tell me sooner?"
Shiina Mahiru caringly hugged the red-eyed Little one before her. She was also a victim of this kind of emotional "torture," but compared to her parents' indifference toward her, what Shiina Kaede had to endure was the process of gaining and then losing something.
"Because... because I didn't want to make things difficult for Mama."
Shiina Kaede answered softly. This was a difficult problem to solve, and unfortunately, she was the one experiencing it firsthand.
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