The Correct Japanese Terms of Homestay Seems to Be Marriage - Chapter 7

Welcome Back

About an hour after discovering that Keitaro’s mother had left for England without telling their beloved son anything, Keitaro and Sophia finally reached their home.

“We’re here, we’re here, tadaima. Oh beloved home of mine, Sophia has returned!”

“Haa… it feels nostalgic… It hasn’t changed at all…”

As Keitaro opened the front door, Sophia blinked rapidly, seemingly lost in the nostalgic view that greeted her from the entrance, letting out a sigh of varying tones.

For Keitaro, it might have been just another return home after a day, but for Sophia, it was a homecoming after about seven years, so it was natural for her to be deeply moved by the moment.

“Well, we haven’t done any remodeling or anything. Now, come here.”

However, it wouldn’t do to just stand around at the entryway forever, so Keitaro beckoned Sophia with a quick wave of his hand, then gave a sharp nod of his chin.

“…Is something wrong?”

Like prey caught by a lantern fish, Sophia approached Keitaro, a question mark clearly written on her face.

“…Keitaro…?”

“You’re in Japan now, shouldn’t you say something when you get home?”

Sophia seemed clueless, so Keitaro, with a sigh, shrugged his shoulders and reminded her to follow the Japanese tradition. There’s an old and honorable saying in Japan: “When in Rome, do as the Romans do.”

And Sophia used to do it every day during her previous homestay.

“…!”

Sophia seemed to finally catch on to what Keitaro was hinting at, her face lighting up with realization.

“Keitaro, tadaima!”

“…Oh…”

As Sophia hugged him tightly, Keitaro gently patted her back in response.

“Welcome back, Sophia.”

It was a familiar exchange. Despite always coming back together, they never skipped this traditional greeting upon returning home, a fact that Keitaro vividly remembered. His heart warmed slightly at the thought.

It’s curious how the brain works, forgetting things over time but rapidly recalling memories at the slightest trigger, though, for some reason, he couldn’t remember anything about the “promise.”

But now, with Sophia’s return, it’s as if she’s officially back.

“Still, from today it’s just the two of us, huh?”

After locking the door and picking up the suitcase, Keitaro headed towards the corridor. It seemed they might be alone together for two years, so there was a lot to decide.

Starting with choosing a room seemed logical. Their house being a detached one meant there were plenty of rooms available. Keitaro turned to Sophia to hear her preference.

“What about your room? We have plenty of empty ones, so you can choose any you like right now.”

“Of course, Keitaro’s room.”

Sophia said without hesitation, her firm intention clear in her words, as if no other option was conceivable.

“Anything but that. You can choose my mom’s room, my dad’s study, a Japanese-style room, a Western-style room, or even the living room if you want. So, which room would you prefer?”

Keitaro smoothly diverted the conversation, listing the available rooms in the house, even including some unconventional options.

“Keitaro’s room.”

When Sophia repeated her choice word for word, Keitaro considered deflecting again but quickly abandoned the idea, feeling like he’d be stuck in an endless loop if he chose the wrong option. It felt like being in a one-way RPG where choosing incorrectly meant you couldn’t progress.

“…Look, that’s not good, you know, if you think about it from a common-sense perspective.”

Keitaro chose “no.”

“But last time I was here for the homestay, I stayed in Keitaro’s room. It was fine before. I want it to be the same as before.”

“That was when we were in elementary school. Things are completely different now. We’re both in our second year of high school, seventeen this year.”

“I don’t want to. I want to be with Keitaro.”

Sophia’s logic didn’t seem to make any sense to Keitaro.

If only she didn’t understand Japanese and that was why she wasn’t getting it, it might have been better. But understanding him perfectly and still not getting it was even more frustrating.

“You know… sigh…”

Letting go of the suitcase, Keitaro ran his hands through his hair. This was going nowhere.

So, it was time for a drastic measure. A harsh treatment was necessary. Before being overwhelmed, it was time to go on the offensive. Keitaro sighed once more in exasperation and then declared,

“So, we’re going to share a bath like we used to? If we keep this up, that’s what it’s going to come down to. Are you okay with that? If you want to have that kind of relationship, I’m not going to stop you. What do you say? Are we going to share a bath?”

This statement could be considered sexual harassment without a basis of trust. Of course, he didn’t mean it. He just wanted Sophia to realize the implication of her words. That’s all. There was no other intention.

However, Sophia seemed to take Keitaro’s words at face value.

“…Hau… That means… that means…!?”

Her face turned red instantly, and she looked away as if trying to escape, steam seemingly coming off her head. She must have been imagining something quite vivid. With her cheeks flushed, she shook her head vigorously, seemingly embarrassed.

“No, it was a joke. Don’t take it so seriously. The next two years would be incredibly awkward if you did. It’s only the first day.”

Keitaro immediately retracted his statement, realizing he might have gone too far. Even as a form of harsh treatment, it was too much. If there was a constant tension at home, the one place where Keitaro could relax, he wouldn’t last long.

And if Sophia went to public authorities crying harassment, Keitaro’s social standing would be in jeopardy. From a distinguished student to a black-barred “Mr. A” of a prestigious school.

“Yeah, you’re right…! There’s a… proper order to things… and you haven’t even remembered the promise yet…”

Sophia seemed to come back to her senses, nodding vigorously. Keitaro didn’t catch the latter part of her muttering, but he understood that she got the message, which allowed him to breathe a sigh of relief.

“So, how about the room next to mine? It used to be a storage room, but I just cleared it out at the start of spring break last week. My mom even bought a new bed for it. It’s in that room, so the timing’s good…”

He quickly moved on to continue the room selection.

Remembering there was an ideal room, he explained its details while,

(…It’s clearly a room prepared for Sophia. Mom, you’ve been hiding this all along, haven’t you? That sneaky… )

He finally understood the purpose of last week’s major cleaning. It seemed it was for Sophia’s sake. Why keep it a secret when it would have been easier to say so? This part remained a mystery to Keitaro.

Everything about today was a complete surprise to him. It was undoubtedly the most shocking day of his life.

“…Alright. I’ll compromise and take the room next door for now.”

“Don’t talk about the room I busted my guts cleaning as a compromise. Even if it’s just flattery, say it’s good.”

With Sophia’s approval, the room selection concluded. Now that a room had been chosen, the next step was to move Sophia’s luggage there.

“Let’s take this over, then.”

Picking up the suitcase again, Keitaro headed towards the stairs. Along the way, he remembered another important matter they had to decide on for their life together.

“Hey, what about meals? Can you cook, Sophia? …Oh, but you’re from England.” (TLN : Its original from raw. so based on my googling, keitaro might teasing her with ‘British Woman Can’t Cook’)

“How rude can you get, Keitaro! I’ll have you know I’m perfectly capable! I’ve learned to cook! I even asked Saeko-san about your favorite dishes! Just you wait, I’ll show you! Be prepared!”

“Can’t you defend your country for once…?”

Despite Keitaro’s stereotypical comment, Sophia got mad but didn’t deny anything about her country, leaving Keitaro utterly baffled.