Does This Love Suit Your Taste? - Volume 1 Chapter 8.8

Riz au Lait 8

A single tear trickled down from Shirahime’s eyes due to the slight trembling of her body.

“Fuah…wh-what…this kiss is…?”

“…What do you mean, ‘what’? It’s for today. You’re the one who said it. That you were waiting for a kiss from me.”

“Toui-kun…”

“It’s fine if you want to cut ties with me because you don’t want to marry me, but I don’t need you to break it off for my sake. Your kindness has affected me. Just like you’re kind to everyone else, I now want to be kind to you.”

I wiped her wet cheeks with the sleeve of my parka and looked into her eyes.

“As long as there’s a kiss between us, I’m your servant with no right to refuse, right?”

“Toui-kun, if I stay by your side… wouldn’t I just be getting in the way of your dreams…?”

“It’s okay.”

“Then, I’ll be very selfish…”

“Just say it.”

“Toui-kun… I… I…”

As soon as I wiped her tears, Shirahime’s cries flowed uncontrollably like a broken dam.

“Toui-kun, I want to be with you…!”

Shirahime stood up from her seat and clung to my chest, crying.

“I want to be by Toui-kun’s side…! Only next to you can I be my true self…! I want to fulfill my feelings…! That’s why Toui-kun, please… I don’t want you to leave me…!”

I gently wrapped my arms around Shirahime’s back, just like she did for me when I had a cold.

“That’s fine.”

This girl, who had been labeled as perfect and an honor student—her real face was actually just an ordinary high school girl, utterly imperfect, simply a selfish girl.

She gets angry, laughs, cries like now, is sensitive, likes milk tea, sometimes speaks sarcastically, jokes around, teases, is innocent like a child, complains about trivial things, conveniently cunning, but somehow can’t leave troubled people alone, can’t stand up to others, forces a smile, is clumsy, can’t do things as she wishes, worries more about others’ problems than her own, can’t talk about her own worries, and was actually relying on me–just an ordinary human being.

I had arbitrarily decided that we were complete opposites, but in reality, maybe Shirahime was worried about the same things as me.

Since that time, it’s already been.

I remembered and gently stroked Shirahime’s hair.

“This short haircut, regardless of the reason, you cut it because you wanted to, right?”

“Ah…? What…? I cut it because I wanted to…?”

“I’ve never been able to say it honestly since the first time we talked.”

“Yeah…?”

“…I like this hair better.”

As I gently ran my fingers through Shirahime’s hair, she began to cry even more and buried her face in my chest.

“Uuu…uwaaaahhh…. Thank you…. Thank you so much…!”

“Hahaha… Yeah. I should be the one thanking you, really, for everything…. You’ve given me so much… But now we’re even.”

While nestled against my chest, Shirahime looked up at me.

“You took care of me when I was sick and helped out with the shop. I saved you from a pervert. Now we’re even. So starting tomorrow, things will be back to normal.”

“Back to…?”

“I didn’t say anything about ‘giving up on my dreams.’ I’m definitely going to protect Maison, so you better brace yourself and not let me escape.”

Shirahime seemed to have understood that as she nodded once.

Then she moved away from me, sat back down on the chair, wiped her tears with the back of her finger, sniffled once, and smiled shyly with a sparkle in her eyes.

“Thank you, Toui-kun. I’m looking forward to continuing this journey with you!”

I’m not sure what will become of Maison again, but for now, this is fine. I couldn’t just let this smile disappear for my own sake.

That’s how precious this smile is.

Then Shirahime took another bite of the Riz au lait. Her face as she enjoyed the dessert was enough to satisfy me.

It seems like what I wanted to say got through. I had also come to understand Shirahime’s feelings better, which I had most wanted to know. For now, this could be considered a case closed.

“This is really sweet and really delicious.”

Shirahime commented while savoring the Riz au lait.

“Yeah? Ah, that’s good.”

“Since you went to the trouble of making it for me, here, Toui-kun too.”

Then, saying that, Shirahime scooped up some of the Riz au lait with a spoon and held it out towards me.

“Hmm? No, it’s fine, I made it for you. Eat it all.”

“Don’t be shy! Food tastes better when you eat it with someone! Come on, open wide!”

Fully recovered, Shirahime puffs her cheeks childishly.

Well, if she insists that much, I’ll take it.

“…Alright.”

“Here you go, say ‘ahh’ “

And there I was, falling for the same trick again.

“Ahhh———…Ahh…?”

——The spoon made a U-turn and went straight into Shirahime’s mouth.

“What an unsightly expression.”

Seeing the smug look on her beautiful face, I finally realized I had been duped by this little devil again.

“You…”

Having completely returned to her usual self, Shirahime looked at the humiliated me and struggled to suppress her “pukuku…” laughter.

“You’re the one who said it, ‘back to normal,’ right? Then I still have lots of things for you to listen to, and I won’t stop reforming you. You better be prepared, okay? Toui-kun.”

Facing this girl, Shirahime Rira, I wonder if I can protect Maison or if I will end up walking a different path. I don’t know.

The only thing I can say right now is just one thing.

“I knew it. I definitely don’t want to marry someone like you!!”