The Correct Japanese Terms of Homestay Seems to Be Marriage - Chapter 3

The Reason Leading to the Beginning

Since there’s no need to wake up early on holidays, Keitaro would start his day around noon.

After washing his face and brushing his teeth, he’d eat lunch and then, despite not actually watching it, let the TV play in the background as BGM while lazing about on his bed.

Then, when night falls, he’d have dinner, take a bath, and watch random videos until he felt sleepy. Drifting off, he’d fall into a deep sleep, only to wake up again past noon the next day.

This was the very essence of a worthless lifestyle. Except for a mysterious big clean-up forced upon him on the first day, Keitaro spent his days idly like this.

Having turned off all notifications on his SNS from the day before, there was zero chance of this best life being interrupted by external factors, other than perhaps his mother.

Wrapped in a sense of invincibility, Keitaro was fully enjoying his blank spring break.

And so, a week passed, and today marked the midpoint.

Last night, his mother told him, “Some packages will arrive at noon, so take care of them~!” Thus, waking up a bit earlier than usual, Keitaro was munching on rice balls prepared on his desk with sleepy eyes when a loud ring echoed through the living room.

Barely awake and not functioning properly, Keitaro believed it to be a delivery without a second thought, and without checking who it was on the monitor, carelessly opened the front door.

There, standing with smug faces, were two familiar figures.

Keitaro’s sleepiness vanished instantly.

“Sorry. We don’t welcome solicitation for religions or anything of the sort.”

As Keitaro tried to close the door quickly,

“Wait, wait, idiot.”

“At least hear us out, Keitaro.”

They stopped him, one of them even wedging a foot in the door gap, making it impossible to close.

Reluctantly giving up on closing the door, Keitaro faced the two. He had a good excuse this time, so he was brimming with confidence.

“I don’t know what you want, but unfortunately, I’ve been asked to do something by my parents. It’s really unfortunate, but could you try someone else?”

“Relax. No packages are coming.”

Hirofumi Hiroshi pushed up his glasses with his middle finger, stating confidently.

“We were really worried because we couldn’t contact you at all. So, we asked Keitaro’s mom for help and came all the way here. You really have kind friends, Keitaro. You should be a little grateful to me.”

Then Nanamiya Tsubaki, the sly one with squinty eyes, declared shamelessly.

So that’s why mom was so overly happy last night, Keitaro realized, feeling both understanding and irritation. How dare they deceive his dear single son. Damn it.

“Don’t expect any tea.”

“Don’t worry. We’re not looking for such consideration from you.”

“Well then, we’ll make ourselves at home.”

As Keitaro opened the door wide with a resigned look, the two entered the house without any hesitation. The sound of peace being trampled upon was heard.

Reluctantly, Keitaro invited them to his room, and they headed straight for the low table in the center. Sitting down with a heavy thud, he gestured for the two to do the same.

“…So, what do you want?”

Crossing his arms and sitting cross-legged, Keitaro oozed a sullen aura as he glared at the two sitting across from him.

“I want a girlfriend.”

“Same here.”

With not a cloud of doubt, the two answered.

Even though this was his room, Keitaro felt an immediate desire to leave.

“I see, good luck.”

Though his heart wasn’t in it, he sent them what could pass for encouragement. He couldn’t think of anything else to say to them.

“Keitaro, are you fine with this? Even as we enter the second year?”

Hiroshi asked with an unusually serious expression, causing Keitaro to shrug while slumping his posture.

“It’s fine, isn’t it? To begin with, girlfriends aren’t something you make because you want one. It’s something precious that’s created at the end of passionate feelings. When you’re really in love and can’t stand not being with that person, when you want to spend your entire life together—that’s when a girlfriend is made. Not because you want one on a whim.”

“I’m not looking for a correct argument here. I’m saying I want a girlfriend right now.”

Keitaro’s beautiful reasoning was bluntly dismissed. Hiroshi wasn’t listening.

Hoping perhaps his words had reached Tsubaki, who was nodding vigorously next to him,

“Same here.”

And again, Keitaro slumped in disappointment.

“We’re going to be second-year high school students, Keitaro! Don’t you understand what that means!?”

Hiroshi banged the table. The floor felt like it shook. That’s how strong it was.

“Second year is the symbol of youth! Youth equals high school life, and of course, among that, the year as a second-year student shines like a bright star! That’s why in creative works with high school settings, the protagonists are mostly second-years, whether it’s light novels or dating sims! First of all—”

Hiroshi’s fervent speech. Tsubaki nodding. Keitaro, utterly uninterested.

(That’s just because it allows for both senior and junior characters, making it convenient for creators to expand the story variety. Nothing more, nothing less.)

With a jaded look, Keitaro observed Hiroshi , who continued his heated monologue with almost flammable enthusiasm, and reluctantly lent an ear. In reality, he wasn’t listening at all. It was just a pretense. He continued pretending to listen.

“Keitaro, are you perhaps not interested in girls?”

Tsubaki’s sudden question seemed to be probing for something different than what the words implied.

Keitaro shook his head sideways, trying to dispel the suspicion cast upon him.

“It’s not like that. I’ve had my share of sweet memories with girls.”

“Oh, that’s very intriguing.”

“Is that so?! Keitaro, weren’t you a comrade with the same lack of experience in having a girlfriend as us?! When did this happen!”

Even Hiroshi, who had been rambling on like a runaway train, was easily hooked by those words. Just as Keitaro planned.

If things continued this way, getting entangled in the troubles these two would cause was highly likely. Keitaro’s past experiences almost assured it.

Therefore, Keitaro decided to brag. However, he wasn’t planning to tell a blatant lie. He decided to embellish a story based on an actual event that happened to him.

“Well, unfortunately, it was only for a short period of about half a year. But during that time, we were always holding hands, sleeping in the same futon, and even bathing together.”

Up to this point, Keitaro hadn’t told a single lie. It was all based on real experiences, even if those experiences were from his childhood when he was in elementary school. The fact remained a fact.

In the past, a foreign girl had come to stay at Keitaro’s house for a homestay. That’s the story.

It was a memory that had faded and gathered dust over time, but Keitaro remembered they were quite close. Essentially, she was like family.

“What… did you say…?!”

“Wow, I’m beaten. I never dreamed you’d be so far ahead.”

Hiroshi’s veins were nearly bursting in shock, and it looked like he might start crying blood tears.

Tsubaki, opening his eyes slightly, let a tear trickle down his cheek, showing he was just as surprised as Hiroshi by his rare expression.

“That’s why I understand. Even if you force yourself to get a girlfriend, it’s just going to feel empty…”

This was all according to Keitaro’s plan. The fact that he wasn’t outright lying worked in his favor.

Unless one was a born swindler, lying would always cause some discomfort to others—be it in the way they spoke, their expressions, or their gestures.

However, since Keitaro hadn’t lied at all this time, none of that applied, and his confident demeanor and words convinced the two in front of him that he was telling the truth.

“Well, that’s the situation. As for girlfriends, you two can figure it out yourselves.”

“Ha, hahaha…! I see, Keitaro! Then, come with us! If you’ve had a girlfriend, you can easily pick up girls, right?! You’re unnecessarily tall, too!”

“Did you even listen to what I said? You definitely didn’t, did you?”

Something was wrong. The plan had succeeded, yet the conversation was heading in an unexpected direction. Keitaro felt a chill down his spine.

“Tsubaki, do something about this idiot.”

“Keitaro… Asking me, who’s so frail, that’s too much to handle. It’s impossible.”

Looking at Tsubaki for help, he saw him raising his hands in an exaggerated gesture of helplessness. It wasn’t about whether he could or couldn’t; he simply didn’t want to. Truly, a sly one.

“Let’s go, Keitaro! A radiant youth is calling us!! Viva youth! Let’s get girlfriends and enjoy uniform dates after school starting this spring!!”

“I wasn’t called, and I’m not interested.”

“Come on, Keitaro, hurry up and change. If you don’t go outside once in a while, you’ll wither.”

“Just like not all plants need sunlight, not all humans need it, either. I’m a person with a high tolerance for shade. First of all, having had a girlfriend doesn’t equal being good at picking up girls. It’s illogical. And frankly, I find it inappropriate and utterly embarrassing to approach strangers. I don’t want to go. I don’t want to leave my room. I want to stay inside. I want to nap.”

“Yeah, yeah, all that’s fine.”

No matter how much Keitaro resisted, he couldn’t win against the power of numbers in a two against one situation. As long as they adhered to democracy, the majority rule would prevail.

Or rather, Keitaro was weak against being pushed hard. Because resisting required a certain amount of effort. It was clear from the moment he let them into his house that this outcome was inevitable.

Keitaro lost.

Subsequently, before he knew it, he was dragged out of the house, walked to the station, put on a train, and taken to the bustling downtown streets.

And so, the story circles back to the beginning, pulling Keitaro once again into a harsh reality.