Mandarin Orange, Kotatsu, And A Found Cat

Although the atmosphere was ostentatious at the beginning, thanks to Ayano-san, the rest of the time passed in a cheerful atmosphere.
And just as Ayano had said earlier, Mashiro was being asked about the beginning of her relationship with me.

It was quite embarrassing to hear Mashiro’s impression of me, but it also reaffirmed her trust in me.

To be honest, Sakakibara and Ayano-san were much more receptive to Mashiro than I had expected.
However, what I told them was not usual in the slightest. Perhaps that was why Sakakibara was more worried than interested.

“Just for the record, did you tell anyone else about this?”
“I haven’t told anyone. In the first place, there are almost no people who know both Mashiro the cat and Mashiro the human.”
“I see. Well, it’s not something you can just go around saying.”
“Well, my landlord has seen both.”
“…Is that fine?”
“For the time being, they have the same misunderstanding as Sakakibara and the others have.”

I thought about it a little, apart from these two, the landlord may be the only person who knew both of Mashiro’s appearances.
She has given her permission for Mashiro to live with me, and recently, the landlord and Mashiro have been talking together. So, there should be nothing to be concerned about…
But if something were to go wrong and the landlord found out, she would probably lose her mind.

“But, well, I can’t believe that Satou is living with a girl.”
“What do you mean?”
“It’s not that I’m making fun of you, but from the first time I met you, you didn’t seem very interested in girls.”
“That’s…well, true, I guess.”

It was not that I was not interested in girls at all, but I was just not as interested in them as any other adult male.
There was a time before I joined the company when I was reasonably active in such matters.

However, after a certain point, I lost interest in love. Although I am interested, work takes more priority.

When it came to Mashiro, it was exceptions. At first, she was just a cat that I picked up.
I don’t know her actual age, but she looked like she was in high school. It was no exaggeration to say that it would be practically a crime to touch her.

Lately, to my annoyance, I felt that Mashiro’s actions were making me more nerve-racking every day.
Of course, I knew that the distance between us was getting closer in the sense that we were simply a family living together.
Still, my tolerance for women was low enough to make me nervous, and Mashiro was highly attractive. I have to admit that.

“I know this may sound like a wild question, but is your life with Mashiro going well?”
“It’s going so well that I’m in trouble. It’s like the culture level has gone up.”

If I had to use a closer example, I would say it was like living at home. There was someone to wake you up in the morning, breakfast was prepared on the table, and there was homemade lunch.
When I returned home, the cleaning and laundry were done, and a sumptuous dinner was prepared for me.

And best of all, there was always someone with me who listened to me, healed me, and spoiled me.
Because of this, I was able to lead a good lifestyle and my mental state was also in good shape. In quantitative terms, my performance at work has been improving lately.

“Culture level…How bad has your life been?”
“It’s been normal. It’s just that my life with Mashiro was so different.”
“Satou will be fine, but you have to be grateful to Mashiro-chan, okay?”
“I had with words, with attitude, and with objects if I have to.”

Sakakibara was right, that was all I could do for Mashiro. But lately, that hasn’t been going so well, and that also has been a problem for me…

“Sakakibara. What do you think I should do when I’m incredibly grateful, but the other person doesn’t really accept it?”
“I don’t have to ask you that it’s about Mashiro-chan.”
“Exactly.”
“I see…Indeed, Mashiro-chan might be that type.”
“Yeah. I want to respect her feelings, but I can’t help but feel a bit conflicted.”
“Well, I don’t think it’s just a personality issue…”
“What do you mean?”

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“No, it’s nothing. But yes, I do understand how you feel, Satou.”

Sakakibara nodded as he watched the two girls enjoying themselves as usual.

I’ve never been able to talk to anyone about Mashiro before, so I was grateful to have someone like Sakakibara in my life.
Not only Sakakibara, but Ayano-san was also a big part of my life. She was like a big sister to Mashiro, and she might be able to be a consultant for her.

“If you’re asking me for advice, does that mean you’ve run out of ideas?”
“Well, yes. I’d like to hear what an extrovert has to say.”
“Somehow, I just lost my motivation at once…Oh, well. For now, I’ll think about it together with Ayano.”
“Thanks for your help.”
“For now, let’s enjoy our double date today. I’m sure it’ll be good for Mashiro, too.”
“Is that how it is?”
“That is how it is.”

I couldn’t read Sakakibara’s true intentions, but I couldn’t sense any lies in his relaxed smile.

Afterward, we left the restaurant and continued our shopping again.
Mashiro looked a little worn out from Ayano’s questioning, but she had a somewhat satisfied expression on her face.

“I’m sorry to say this, but are you alright? Mashiro.”
“Thank you for your concern. But I’m fine. I knew she was that kind of person.”
“Haha, no doubt.”

Sakakibara and Ayano-san lead the way in front of us. We both laughed as I asked Mashiro a bunch of questions and stared at her completely relaxed posterior.
I still remember the last time those two and Mashiro met when she was in cat form, but Ayano-san’s eyes were sparkling and she was very interested in Mashiro.
After that experience, she must have understood Ayano’s personality well enough.

If it weren’t for Ayano-san, I might not have tried to confide in them, and they might not have accepted me so readily.
As much as I wanted to thank Mashiro, I should thank these two people first.

As I was thinking about this, Mashiro suddenly grabbed my hand. When I turned around and looked at her face, she was looking at me with a gentle smile.

Satou-san, thank you for inviting me today.
No, it was a selfish thing for me to do. Thank you too, Mashiro.

I squeezed her hand and thanked her for her kindness.
It was not that they’ve gotten closer to Mashiro directly, but at least it has been a useful experience for her.

I would like to be able to repay Mashiro in this way, little by little.
I thought about this as I felt the warmth of her hand in my own.