Mandarin Orange, Kotatsu, And A Found Cat

Chapter 63 Mutual Feelings

On the way home from the shopping mall. It was a bit far to walk, but not too far.
A lot of people in the neighborhood take the bus, but we decided to go on foot.
I felt that Mashiro, who was not used to people and vehicles, was still a little too early to use public transportation.

I’d like to give her that experience eventually, but I don’t think it’s something we should rush into.
She agreed with me, and when we actually started walking, she didn’t get too tired, and on the contrary, I was glad to have more time to talk with Mashiro.

“We’ve done a lot of shopping today, haven’t we?”
“Yes, we did. It was fun to go shopping with Mashiro.”
“I had fun too. Thank you very much.”
“Thank you too.”

Mashiro walked beside me, holding my hand, and thanked me with a smile that is not at all flattering.
…I felt that the more time I spent with her, the more attractive she became.

She started to smile more naturally than before, and she started to feel more comfortable with physical contact.
Even though there was no change in her existence, even my awareness of her has changed just because of these changes in our lives and distance.

I’ve always tried to treat Mashiro like a gentleman, and above all, I’ve always tried not to hurt her and to take good care of her.
However, when I suddenly saw her charm, my heart was more attracted to her than I imagined.

Of course, I don’t have the taste to look at younger people…or underaged in that way.
I’m not sure why I feel such a stir when I see Mashiro, though. She was a cat that I’ve taken in and she’s a girl that I have to protect.

“Satou-san, your face is kind of scary…”
“Ehuh. I’m sorry. It’s nothing.”
“I’m sure it’s not nothing.”
“…”

Mashiro was right. It was a lie to say it was nothing. But I can’t tell her that.
When Mashiro looked into my face with concern, I felt uncomfortable and looked away.

“It’s me…isn’t it?”
“T-That’s.”

When Mashiro’s next words were faint, I immediately tried to deny it and choked on my words.
Seeing my reaction, she must have sensed it. Her feet, which had been walking nimbly, gradually slowed to a stop.

“I-I knew it, did I bother you…”
“No, not at all! That’s not what I meant…”

Mashiro must have thought that I was in a bad mood about today’s shopping.
That’s absolutely not true. As soon as I told her that, she tried to correct me, and I choked on the rest of the sentence again.
There was no such thing as “heart-to-heart” in real life. If I can’t put it into words, she’ll just take it as an attempt to fix things.

“I’m sorry for being so selfish…”

Mashiro turned her head and said sorry in a faint voice.
What is she talking about? …No, that’s not good. What have I gotten her to say?

There was nothing wrong with Mashiro. In fact, it was me.
It hurt my heart. Her apologetic expression and words pierce my heart. I can’t stand the fact that I can only look at her like that.

“Mashiro.”
“Y-Yes…eh?”

I called out her name. I let go of the hand that was holding hers. Then, I hugged her.
I gently wrapped her slender body. I can feel her warmth and softness all over my body. Naturally, the beating of my heart became much more vigorous than before.

“Saa-SaSa-Satou-san…?”

Mashiro’s voice leaked out, looking shocked by my sudden action.
She wriggled a little, but when she saw that I didn’t move, she didn’t resist any more.

“I’m sorry, Mashiro.”
“W-Why are you apologizing?”
“I’m sorry, Mashiro. I’m sorry.”
“Y-You haven’t done anything…”

Mashiro, who had no idea what was going on, remained confused in my arms as I hugged her.
I don’t think I’ve ever been this close to her before. At most, I’ve only patted her on the head or held her hand. It was understandable that she was shocked.

“I’ve never thought of Mashiro as a nuisance. Not just today, but ever since I met you.”
“Y-Yet I am…”
“I care about you more than anything. Maybe even more than Mashiro thinks, and even more than I myself think…”

This was a complicated feeling that I have for Mashiro. I’m sure it’s just a feeling of being a little carried away because I care for her so much.
I’m aware that destroying my current relationship with Mashiro was the thing that scared me more than anything else right now. So, there’s no need to force myself to formulate my feelings in such a fuzzy state.

“T-That’s why I’m not sure how close I am to Mashiro. I felt as if this feeling had taken a different form.”
“That’s…”

Even though I couldn’t put it into words, I managed to convey it to Mashiro. I don’t think she got my meaning, but she took my words firmly.

“There’s nothing for Mashiro to apologize for. I don’t think you’re bothering me. Please, don’t say that to me.”
“…Yes. I’m very happy. I’m very happy that you feel that way, Satou-san.”

After murmuring my words softly as if to embrace me, Mashiro does exactly what I was doing to her.
Her thin arms went around my back and she hugged me with a modest but firm will.

“It’s not just Satou-san…”

She said this in a faint voice, just barely audible.
I didn’t understand all the meaning of her words, but I didn’t ask her back, just as she had done for me.

We hugged each other for a while, confirming our feelings.
She cared for me as much as I cared for Mashiro.
It was not that I’m being arrogant, it was just that her warmth and the warmth of her words made me feel certain.

…After all, this feeling was not something that can be expressed in such simple words.
It would not be too late to come to a conclusion after we have carefully nurtured and sorted out our feelings for each other.

—But it was too late for them to realize what kind of situation we were in.
When I looked around, I saw that without exception, people on the street were looking at us, hugging each other.

“Ugh…!”

I hurriedly grabbed Mashiro’s shoulders and pulled her body away. She looks a little sad, but noticed something strange, checked her surroundings, and immediately her face turned bright red.
I felt my cheeks heat up as I realized that we had done something terrible as we got carried away by the moment.

If there was a hole in the ground, I’d want to get in it, and we both couldn’t stand it any longer and started walking home as fast as we could to get away from the place.