When I started preparing our breakfast, Suzuki-san returned from upstairs, requesting to be of assistance to me. Although I rejected her at first, she remained standing at the side with imploring eyes as though she was saying ‘I’ll stand here until you say yes’.

In the end, I succumbed to her unusual enthusiasm and let her assist me.

Partway through it, when my focus wandered to her side, I was late to notice that she was already out of her sleepwear. She’s back to her striped undershirt and black pants.

That’s her uniform along with the coat and boots. No. It’s not just her uniform, that’s how she was always dressed. Honestly, it’s actually a fresh sight to see her in that rather loose sleepwear that Akane found for her. That somehow proved that I was wrong to assume before that she was sleeping without changing her clothes every night.

Furthermore, as I expected, the flustered expression that I saw earlier was already swept away. It’s like the Suzuki-san I saw earlier was an illusion. Or rather, she quickly moved past it and erased it from the timeline

But as I said, that’s normal for her. Even Hitomi had the same ability. That’s just how they’re built or trained...

Thinking about it. I might be at fault for why her greeting was stiff and she immediately ran up the stairs. I forgot that the side effect of the tea had yet to subside. It was poking through my shorts.

Well, I thought of apologizing to her. However, it’s probably best not to mention it again and just treat that incident as a bygone incident.

Anyway, even though that should be our first time collaborating in the kitchen, Suzuki-san meshed too well with how I work. She didn’t overstep or try to take control of the situation, allowing us to finish preparing a set of meals for our breakfast quicker than I estimated.

After that, knowing that she was the type to not eat alongside her young lady, I invited the woman to eat with me.

I had a morning routine to accomplish so I also needed a replenishment of my energy. I’d feel bad if she just left after helping me prepare.

Luckily, I didn’t need to persuade her as she accepted it right away. According to Mizuki, she’s the type who’s only eating one or two meals a day, skipping lunch or dinner or both. She was probably starving.

Due to that, we had a quiet breakfast together.

Uh. No. It was peaceful and awkward at the same time.

Unfortunately, with my head filled up with things I have to do, I didn’t make an effort to break the silence between us.

Once I’m done, I left her behind there to start preparing for the day.

Daily exercise, a quick shower to wash off my sweat, and lastly a short review of Mizuki’s lessons.

I skipped my keyboard practice. Akane and Mizuki were still asleep, after all.

And with that, I put on my uniform, checked on my two girls still sleeping soundly, and left behind a note before leaving the room.

It’s still very early, after all. Akane often stays up late and wakes up early to help with my morning wood. As for Mizuki, she’s always busy with different paperwork or problems at night. It’s best for them to get a proper rest today. I’d expect to be scolded later though.

Anyway, going back downstairs, I found Suzuki-san standing right at the door frame leading to our living room.

And by the looks of things, she was expecting me.

Well, that’s good too because I was going to look for her if I didn’t find her here.

I stopped in my steps and turned to face her.

“Suzuki-san, thank you for your help earlier. If it’s not trouble, can I also ask you to look after the two? You can knock on our bedroom door to wake them up. I left them a note so they’ll know that I left without waking them up.”

I was expecting her to act the same as before; answering succinctly and without any flair. However, it was different this time.

Her usually expressionless face cracked a small, almost unnoticeable smile as she nodded at me. “Un. Understood.”

Whether that was an improvement or not, I had no idea. But I guess eating breakfast together shortened the distance between us. Well, as she’s someone whose number 1 priority is Mizuki’s well-being, she must have started warming up to me.

Last time, she asked me for help to scold the girl for not resting properly. And today, we collaborated to prepare our breakfast.

Yep. That’s an improvement, alright.

Even if she’s not someone tangled in our complex relationship, I’m certain that I can trust her enough to not even hide most of our secrets in front of her eyes. She’s already more than aware of the extent of it, after all. And not once did she look at me in disdain.

In any case, as long as she’s loyal to Mizuki. That’s all that matters.

-

-

After making a small conversation which was mostly me, leaving reminders, and the woman nodding her head, I exited our front door at exactly 5:30 in the morning.

Precisely or not, it’s enough time for me to reach Saki’s house without being delayed.

Looking up, the sky above me was still filled with stars but further to the east, the hues of color had started to change from dark purple to orange. Thanks to the gradually rising sun.

The morning breeze was still cold but not that freezing anymore. It goes to show that we’re transitioning from spring to summer.

Apart from the chirping noises of birds up on the tree branches and the occasional engine sounds as the early risers with their vehicle traversed the main road, everything was still peacefully silent.

Five minutes later, I arrived at the bus stop to catch the first trip of the day.

Although I wasn’t the first passenger, most of the seats were empty, giving me the freedom to choose my ideal spot.

Upon sitting down, I pulled up my phone, spending the idle time waiting inside the bus to greet my girls good morning regardless if they were still sleeping or not.

Expectedly, no one replied right away. But upon inspecting the messages I received, I found some unread ones from those who I wasn’t expecting.

One such message was from Hanabi. The twin sister of Matsuri, the girl who I considered to be my first time and the one who taught me about the matters of man and woman.

Looking at the date and time that the message was sent, I sighed in relief. It was only sent three hours ago.

Yep. In the middle of the night and while I was still sleeping.

That’s not what I was feeling relieved at though. It’s the fact that it’s not a message that I neglected to check for more than a day.

Anyway, upon opening the message, the content of her message unknowingly made me smile.

Because in it, a photo was attached.

Hanabi and Matsuri’s selfie photo. As for the text, it reads, “Ruki, I forgot to send this to you. I went to visit their place today and I caught myself some Matsuri. Here’s a service for you. You must’ve been dying to see her again, am I right? PS. I ought to send that earlier but I fell asleep. PSS. I haven’t told her yet that I met you. It’ll be a surprise for her. Hehe~”

Really, what sort of mischief is she cooking? Don’t tell me she’s going to arrange a meeting with me without telling Matsuri who they’re going to meet? If it’s that sassy goofball, it’s possible...