In the apartment near Nakano Station, Toru Shimizu carried the dinner he bought in front of the station and climbed the stairs that had been used for some years. Halfway through, I suddenly thought about the meaning of Nanami's words yesterday.

When a girl says "it's okay", it probably means "something's okay". Although it is not a personal experience, the large number of books he has read, coupled with the emotional experience of watching Hasegawa, still makes him deeply understand this truth.

But "what's going on" is another mystery.

Since she chose to ask herself, it should have something to do with herself. But with the current relationship between the two, it is really not easy to solve this mystery.

Speaking of which, he and Nanami Nanami are friends in name, at least to the point where they are familiar enough to call each other by their last names. However, considering Nanami's recent borrowing of his house, everything doesn't seem so simple.

But that's just what it seems. On the premise that both of them leave early and return late, the little time they spend together simply does not allow them to develop anything, let alone the wonderful development of "Night Attack" written in the light novel.

But what else is there to do with you? Toru Shimizu never came up with an idea.

Questioning, he opened the door and changed into slippers in the hallway, a strange smell in the air that woke him from his thoughts. Ears pricked up, and another sound of rustling was heard, mixed with the sound of metal clashing.

After careful observation and determination of the kitchen as the source of all this, Toru Shimizu only felt more puzzled.

For a chef like him, there's no reason to step into the kitchen other than to use the refrigerator. Although Nanami had heard Nanami mention that she could cook, considering the intensity of her part-time job beyond ordinary people, Toru Shimizu dismissed this possibility in her heart.

Secretly raising his vigilance, he pushed open the door from the outside, and the smell in the air instantly became stronger, and the sound of pots and bowls colliding became clearer.

Standing at the doorway, through the vapor floating in the air, he saw Nanami Nanami in an apron. She also looked over, as if she had been smashed, and her voice was full of nervousness and surprise.

"That's... Qing Shui, didn't you say seven o'clock yesterday? ”

"Kodansha ended early today, so I'm back early."

Glancing at the boiling soup in the pot slightly, Qing Shui Toru looked at her again: "You are..."

Pulling the apron on her body, Nanami lowered her eyes and smiled: "It's not bad, right?" I don't see the kitchen, I went to the 100-yen store today to buy it. ”

"No, I'm talking about..."

Faced with this question, as soon as she opened her mouth, she stirred the soup spoon with an "oops", but still did not answer positively.

Toru Shimizu had no choice but to give up, put down the lunch bag casually, rolled up his cuffs and asked, "Is there anything I need to do?" ”

The dinner she had prepared was delicious, but Toru Shimizu was more concerned about her sudden attitude than that.

So after finishing the meal and putting everything in order, he asked that question again.

"Nanami, how did you think about it today..."

This time she didn't run away.

"That's... The main thing is that there is a little time today, and I just want to thank you for your help during this period of time. ”

"If I really want to talk about it, I didn't help much."

Qing Shui Toru turned his eyes and happened to see her smiling and shaking her head slightly.

"No matter what Qing Shui thinks, that's what I think... However, sometimes I wonder if I'm bothering you too much. From the beginning of the modeling work at the publishing house, to the next few shoots, and that night in Adachi Ward, to the present..."

"No, no, it's not at all."

With some bad premonitions, Qing Shui Toru hurriedly opened his mouth to interrupt her.

She still had the same smiling expression, and the light in her eyes did not change in the slightest.

"I've always been grateful for your help to Qing Shui, but when I think about it, I don't seem to have anything to repay you. Only a small amount can be repaid in this way. ”

"There's no need to talk about anything in return..."

Toru Shimizu wanted to struggle a little more. However, Nanami Nanami didn't seem to hear it and continued.

"But... I can't always rely on Shimizu for you... It's nice to live here, but if your girlfriend comes..."

"I don't have a girlfriend." When it came to an important issue, Toru Shimizu immediately took a stand.

"Huh~"

She elongated her voice, more of a smile than a surprise.

After finishing the joke, she curled her eyebrows again, pursed her lips slightly, and continued: "But there will always be in the future, right?" She'll come here sooner or later, too, if she sees her... I just recently saved a little money from my part-time job, and I also got the deposit and gift money for the previous room, so I recently thought about whether to rent a room and move out..."

The hunch came true. The words "move out" echoed in her mind, and Qing Shui was stunned, unable to hear what she said later.

The emotions churning in his chest made him can't help but try to dissuade him, but he was blocked by the inexplicable vague relationship between the two, and he couldn't say anything.

Speaking of which, a pair of young men and women are in the same room, and on the premise that both of them are good-looking, it is just a simple friendship relationship, and even an elementary school student like Minami Hamabe will not believe it. So if you want to get along with each other in a dignified manner, the only choice can only be to go further.

For this choice, Toru Shimizu is naturally happy to see it come to fruition. However, in his eyes, Nanami's attitude was like a cloud floating in the sky, which made him a little unpredictable. If you don't understand the situation and attack rashly, you may not even be able to maintain a nominal friendship.

What's more, making a request for a relationship when Nanami Nanami was living with him inevitably meant that he was a bit of a coercion.

Since she doesn't want to challenge her self-esteem because of her own selfish desires, she doesn't want to let herself leave a moral stain on her heart. In this way, when Nanami Nanami brought up this matter, he didn't really have any room for dissuasion.

"See you seven... Has it already been decided? ”

"Hmm."

She smiled, her eyes resolute.

"Okay then," Qing Shui Toru sighed in his heart, dispelling all those thoughts he didn't have, and looked directly into her eyes, "I happen to know a real estate agent, and this room is also rented from him, so I'll take you over tomorrow." ”

"Then I'll trouble you."

"Nothing."

Just as he was about to get up from the couch, Toru Shimizu remembered something else and felt something out of his pocket.

"You said it the day you came, but you forgot to buy it, and today you finally brought it back. You can hang this lock on the door in the middle for a while, and you can feel more at ease. ”

Watching him walk into the bedroom after explaining this, Nanami Nanami picked up the lock that was placed on the table. I put it in my hand and looked at it carefully for a while, but I didn't know what I was thinking.