Chapter 7

 

 

 

 

 

TL: Chaos

 

PR: Mateo

 

 

 

 

 

It was a rainy Saturday evening.

 

 

 

On my way home from my part-time job, I was walking through the rainy downtown area holding up my umbrella.

 

 

 

Today was the first day of my part-time job as a private tutor. The students were two high school boys who were aiming for the university I attend, National S University. I had just finished tutoring one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

 

 

 

The high school boys, who had done well in their basic studies, were quite knowledgeable and were able to understand what I taught them with ease. It was a big difference from the high school girls I usually deal with who had difficulty understanding the basics. It was so easy to communicate with them that I was almost moved to tears.

 

 

 

“Ah—I’m so glad I changed my part time job~. Earning money this pleasantly is the best~.”

 

 

 

Teaching others is a good learning experience for me as I’m aiming to become a teacher in the future. I have to thank Tokunaga for introducing me to this job.

 

 

 

It was raining, but I was in a bright mood.

 

 

 

“Nn?”

 

 

 

I was in such an upbeat mood, when I suddenly spotted a familiar figure walking among the people on the street.

 

 

 

Wet blonde hair.

 

 

 

A high school girl walking drenched without holding an umbrella… Erika-chan.

 

 

 

“—Erika-chan!?”

 

 

 

I rushed over to the high school girl and called out to her.

 

 

 

Then just as I thought, the person who turned around was indeed, Erika-chan.

 

 

 

“Eh? Onii-san?”

 

 

 

“What happened to you!? You’re soaking wet!!”

 

 

 

I quickly brought Erika-chan under my umbrella. But she was already so drenched that water was dripping from her hair.

 

 

 

“I was just wandering around doing some errands though?”

 

 

 

“Do you not have an umbrella!?”

 

 

 

“I don’t. I left my house in the morning. I didn’t even know it was supposed to rain.”

 

 

 

I remember it started raining a little after noon, when I was tutoring at the second house. How long had she been walking in the rain?

 

 

 

When I looked at Erika-chan with concern, she looked down awkwardly. Perhaps it was because she was wet from the rain, but Erika-chan looked less energetic than usual.

 

 

 

I gently said to Erika-chan.

 

 

 

“You’d better go home and change your clothes. Are you done with your errands?”

 

 

 

“I’m done, but I don’t want to go home.”

 

 

 

“But you’ll catch a cold if you stay like that.”

 

 

 

“It’s fine. It’ll dry up.”

 

 

 

She was somewhat stubborn and more aloof than usual. It seemed as if it was written on her face that she wanted to be left alone, but I pretended not to notice.

 

 

 

“Then, come to my place.”

 

 

 

I grabbed Erika-chan’s hand and started walking. Erika-chan looked a little surprised.

 

 

 

“Eh? I said I’ll be fine so…”

 

 

 

“You idiot. You’re soaking wet, how can you be okay? You should take better care of yourself.”

 

 

 

When I said that, Erika-chan fell silent.

 

 

 

We walked together in the rain in complete silence.

 

 

 

The sound of the rain hitting my umbrella was so pleasant that I didn’t feel bored even though we were silent.

 

 

 

 

 

“—I’m home~! Mana! Are you here–?”

 

 

 

I called out loudly, as soon as I entered the front door of my house.

 

 

 

Then Mana, who had just come out of the bathroom, turned around and looked at me with a startled look on her face.

 

 

 

“Eh!? Erika!? What happened!?”

 

 

 

Mana rushed over to the soaking wet Erika-chan.

 

 

 

“I was soaking wet, so Onii-san picked me up~”

 

 

 

Erika-chan smiled bitterly.

 

 

 

Her words made it seem as if she was like an abandoned cat.

 

 

 

“Show her to the bath. Then lend her a change of clothes.”

 

 

 

Mana replied, “Okay,” and began walking to the bathroom with Erika.

 

 

 

“Ah, wait, I have to arrange my shoes properly.”

 

 

 

When Erika-chan arrived at the door, she suddenly looked back at me. I’m glad to see that you remember what I said and tried to put it into practice. But…

 

 

 

“It’s okay for today. I’ll take care of it. Hurry up and take a bath.”

 

 

 

When I said that, Erika-chan silently gave a small nod.

 

 

 

I watched to make sure Erika-chan went into the changing room with Mana, and then I rearranged her shoes.

 

 

 

Erika-chan’s shoes were heavy from absorbing the rain.

 

 

 

“…I can’t just leave this as it is.”

 

 

 

I went to the kitchen to get some old newspapers and shoved them into Erika-chan’s shoes at the entrance. This way it’ll be a bit drier by the time she heads home.

 

 

 

As I wondered if there was a faster way to dry them, my nose started to itch.

 

 

 

“Achoo!!”

 

 

 

My left shoulder was wet from bringing Erika-chan home while under the same umbrella. If I don’t do something about it, I’m sure I’ll catch a cold too.

 

 

 

I decided to leave Erika-chan’s shoes and went to my room to change first.

 

 

 

 

 

A few minutes after bringing Erika-chan home.

 

 

 

I was in the living room using the hair dryer to try to dry her shoes as much as possible.

 

 

 

I laid out some newspaper on the floor and placed Erika-chan’s sneakers on it. The hair dryer was switched on to warm air, not hot air, to avoid damaging the shoes. Then I stuffed the shoes tightly with newspaper.

 

 

 

“Aniki~? Where’s the hairdryer~?”

 

 

 

I turned toward the voice and saw Mana coming into the living room with Erika-chan. Her complexion seemed better, thanks to the hot bath. She seemed to have borrowed Mana’s casual t-shirt and pants, but her long blonde hair was still wet.

 

 

 

“Ah, my bad. I was using it to dry Erika-chan’s shoes.”

 

 

 

“Erika first. Give it to me.”

 

 

 

Mana held out her hand for the hair dryer. I turned off the dryer and handed it to Mana.

 

 

 

“Erika, sit here.”

 

 

 

Mana sat Erika-chan down on the sofa near me.

 

 

 

Erika-chan was somewhat in a daze and did as Mana told her to. Then Mana started drying Erika-chan’s hair with the hair dryer.

 

 

 

Meanwhile, I took out the newspaper that I had stuffed in Erika-chan’s shoes. After collecting the slightly damp newspaper, I stuffed a new one inside.

 

 

 

“…Why are you stuffing my shoes with newspaper?”

 

 

 

The moment the sound of the hair dryer stopped, Erika asked me. She looked at me as if she were looking at a suspicious person. I wondered if it looked like I was playing a prank on her.

 

 

 

“Newspapers are very absorbent, so they can take the moisture out of your shoes.”

 

 

 

When I explained, Erika said, “Hee~?”

 

 

 

“Is that common sense? Will people look down on me if I don’t know that?”

 

 

 

Erika-chan asked me. I was a little worried because she looked a little different from the usual Erika-chan.

 

 

 

“No, it’s just some sort of life wisdom that’s useful to know… If you don’t know it, you won’t be ridiculed. But if you know it, you might appreciate it.”

 

 

 

“I see.”

 

 

 

Erika-chan muttered in a small voice.

 

 

 

At that moment, Mana had brought over a cup of barley tea for Erika-chan.

 

 

 

“Do you want some?”

 

 

 

Mana said, and Erika-chan took the cup and drank it.

 

 

 

I looked at them, and said,

 

 

 

“Why don’t you at least say thank you?”

 

 

 

 

“What will happen if I don’t?”

 

 

 

Erika-chan stared at me.

 

 

 

She didn’t get angry at me for pointing out the details, she was honestly questioning it.

 

 

 

“If you don’t say it, Mana might not be able to tell that you’re grateful or happy for the tea, and that might bother her. On the other hand, if you said ‘thank you,’ Mana would be happy.”

 

 

 

“Ah—I don’t really mind that. I already know that Erika doesn’t say such things often.”

 

 

 

Mana smiled wryly at the sudden mention of her name.

 

 

 

Erika-chan stared at Mana.

 

 

 

“Do you want me to say thank you, Mana?”

 

 

 

Mana scratched her cheek in confusion at Erika-chan’s straightforward gaze.

 

 

 

“Well, I’d like you to say it if you’re grateful. If Erika is happy, then I’ll be happy as well, and I’d be glad that I was useful in any way.”

 

 

 

Mana’s words were straightforward and easy to understand. Her feelings must have reached Erika-chan, too. Erika-chan looked at Mana and smiled.

 

 

 

“Mana, for the barley tea…thank you~” [TLN: sankyu]

 

 

 

“Ah, yeah…”

 

 

 

Mana’s face turned red. I think she’s embarrassed.

 

 

 

The interaction between the two of them felt pleasant, and a warm feeling spread in my chest.

 

 

 

“And then…”

 

 

 

Suddenly, Erika-chan turned to me. She faced me properly and took a small deep breath.

 

 

 

“…Thank you too, Onii-san. For worrying about me, and bringing me all the way here to your home, thank you.”

 

 

 

I hadn’t expected her to thank me as well, which caught me off guard. My chest felt ticklish and my heart rate increased.

 

 

 

“…Yeah, you’re welcome. I was wondering if I was being an annoyance while trying to help you, so I’m glad to hear you say that.”

 

 

 

When I replied, I felt Erika’s cheeks had turned a darker shade of red.

 

 

 

“By the way, what were you doing before you got soaked by the rain?”

 

 

 

Then I asked her something that had been bothering me.

 

 

 

Erika-chan then answered with a slightly troublesome look on her face.

 

 

 

“Ah—… I was looking for a part time job.”

 

 

 

“A part-time job?’

 

 

 

“Yeah. I want to get out of my house fast, so I need a part time job. But, I can’t really use honorifics and such, so I get fired after a while. I don’t really know much common sense either, so I wonder if I’m just a hindrance wherever I go. Recently I can’t even clear interviews.”

 

 

 

Erika-chan said a little sulkingly.

 

 

 

She said it in a light-hearted tone, but it sounded like she was serious about wanting a part-time job. I was about to say, “Then I’ll give you some advice on how to make a good impression at your job interview,” but I decided against it, thinking it might be a bit meddlesome.

 

 

 

“Well for now, I want to spend more time having fun with Mana and the others.”

 

 

 

Erika-chan put the cup with the remaining barley tea on the table and stood up.

 

 

 

“Mana, these clothes, can I wear them while going home?”

 

 

 

“Eh? It’s fine but… you’re leaving? It’s been a while, so why don’t you have dinner with us?”

 

 

 

“It’s fine. You’ve taken care of me so much today, I don’t feel like being taken care of even more.”

 

 

 

‘Nihihi,’ Erika-chan laughed and headed for the door.

 

 

 

“Ah, your shoes!”

 

 

 

I hurriedly grabbed Erika-chan’s shoes and chased after her.

 

 

 

“They’re not completely dry yet, but I think it’s better than when you came.”

 

 

 

When I placed Erika-chan’s shoes in the doorway, she gave a small “thanks” and began to put them on.

 

 

 

“Amazing. They’re pretty dry already. Amazing…”

 

 

 

Erika-chan was impressed with her dry shoes.

 

 

 

“…Really, there’s so much I don’t know…”

 

 

 

The words that suddenly spilled from her pink lips were very quiet. And they seemed to be tinged with melancholy.

 

 

 

“Thank you for today, Onii-san. Mana too.”

 

 

 

She said her thanks and walked out of the house.

 

 

 

Mana, who was diagonally behind me, snickered.

 

 

 

“She excessively thanks you for your advice, doesn’t she.”

 

 

 

She walked back into the living room, humming to herself, happy with the change in her friend.

 

 

 

I was alone, staring at the front door from where Erika-chan had left.

 

 

 

She listens to me when I warn her and tries to correct her bad habits. I don’t think Erika-chan’s lack of common sense is because she hates common sense and stubbornly refuses to use it.

 

 

 

She just doesn’t know. She has never been exposed to that knowledge. Or she wasn’t taught the importance of it.

 

 

 

—Anyhow, she’s such a docile and bright girl, so it’s a shame…

 

 

 

Common sense can be a shield to protect you. And ignorance can be a sin. There are many things in this world that you can’t get away with not knowing.

 

 

 

That’s why we study. We accumulate knowledge. To protect ourselves… and in order to protect our loved ones.

 

 

 

—I wish I could teach you properly, about the things you’ll need when you go out into the world…

 

 

 

The brotherly spirit in my heart was in turmoil as I worried about Erika-chan. But at the same time, I was frightened of what would happen if she became depressed and kept her distance from me.