Mandarin Orange, Kotatsu, And A Found Cat

After Mashiro had changed into the form of a human girl, she looked terribly anxious as she ate dinner with me.

She seemed to be worried that her change to human form would change my attitude as well.
Of course, the fact that she was in human form was still a surprise to me.
It was a natural reaction, but that didn’t mean I would despise her for it.

“Don’t look at me like that, Mashiro.”
“I’m sorry. But I’m still a little nervous…”

Mashiro is Mashiro. It’s nothing to be concerned about.
But she couldn’t seem to come to terms with it and kept a blank look on her face.

I thought for a while about what to do, but even if I tried to say something comforting, it would end up being just superficial words.
So I decided to tell her how I really felt.

“…Well, to be honest, I admit I was a bit cautious.”
“Yes…why wouldn’t you be?”

Mashiro instantly lowered the tone of her voice and showed a fragile and lonely expression, as if she was about to disappear.
I continued in a tone in contrast to her behavior.

“But it’s not necessarily Mashiro’s fault. It’s a shame to say this, but I’m not really used to women myself.”
“What…?”

Mashiro tilted her head at my sudden revelation.
Please stop. Don’t look at me with those genuinely questioning eyes.

…Yes, to be honest, it was true that I had been cautious because I could not get a good hang of the distance from Mashiro.
However, this was not due to her changing appearance, but simply because of my lack of experience with women.

“Well…that’s it, so don’t be so uptight.”
“…Fufum.”

When I said that to explain to her, Mashiro let out a giggle.
I regretted saying something really embarrassing, but her reaction made my cheeks feel even hotter.

“Don’t laugh at me. I didn’t think I was this flustered of girls either.”
“No, no, that’s not it. I was just thinking that Satou-san is a kind person…”
“Why suddenly this?”
“It’s not sudden.”
“…It seems so.”

I couldn’t help but avert my gaze from Mashiro’s gentle expression. It was as if she had seen through everything.
I felt that my heart had been somewhat deeply wounded, but at any rate, my heart has regained its peace.
Scratching my feverish cheek, I looked at her sideways and thought again.

It was my decision to pick her up, my decision to live with her, my decision to protect her, and my decision to make her happy.
I don’t want to make her feel uncomfortable or worried.

I’m sure Mashiro didn’t just show me her human form on a whim.
She must have had a reason, must have trusted me in some small way, and must have had the courage to make up her mind.

I don’t want to do anything that would betray that feeling. No, I shouldn’t.

“Is the food good?”
“Yes, it’s delicious.”

I asked Mashiro as we proceeded to eat our dinner together with the awkward atmosphere gone, and she answered cheerfully.

I’ve been slowly getting rid of my convenience store lunchbox lifestyle, so it’s not too unsightly for dinner…I think.
However, I can’t say with confidence that it’s a perfect dish, since I’ve been relying on frozen foods for half of it.
Since I’m the only one who ate it, it doesn’t need to be that elaborate, and I haven’t developed any great cooking skills.

I had no idea that she would be satisfied with such an exhaustive dish, but Mashiro smiled and answered immediately.
After all this time, judging from the way she was acting and what she said earlier, it seems that she has no problem eating human food.

“Well, if you have any complaints, feel free to tell me, okay?”
“I have no complaints. It’s really delicious.”
“It’s not just about the food, it’s about the problems you have in your daily life…”
“Satou-san.”

She interrupted me and called my name in a slightly stronger tone.
When I looked at her with my mouth agape, I felt that the still expression on her face had become somewhat grim.

“I can’t thank you enough for saving my life.”
“No, you’re exaggerating…”
“At least, that’s how I feel. So please don’t think less of yourself.”
“…”

I found her lecturing me.
In fact, if I had not picked up Mashiro that day and left her there, there is a good chance that it would have ended badly.
However, I don’t want her to feel forced to return the favor to me and lose her freedom because of it.

But that doesn’t mean that I wanted to neglect Mashiro’s feelings.
I don’t want her to lose her freedom.

“It may be difficult to do so right away, but I’d be happy if you could treat me as a normal cat as you always have.”
“Mashiro…”

Her words made me realize something important.
She didn’t want her to change the way I treated her, just as I wanted Mashiro to be able to live her life naturally.

“You’re still the same cute cat, now and before. I’ll try to keep it that way.”
“I-I don’t know about the cute and all but…I look forward to being with you.”

I felt a little more confident about how to treat her. I’m sure we’ll be able to live our lives much the same as before.
I smiled back at Mashiro, who replied with a faint tint to her cheeks.