Two days had passed since Yayoi Natural got her Valentine's Day date.
Tokai Teio watched Yayoi Natural—and the trio in front of her: Mr. C.B. and Chiyono O.
All she could feel was how… off the atmosphere was.
Which made perfect sense.
After all…
Watching what was happening around her mom, Yayoi Mochizuki could practically feel a man-eating aura spreading through the entire restaurant.
And with that kind of pressure hanging in the air, both Yayoi Mochizuki and Tokai Teio looked like they could get swept up at any second.
Smothered by the vibe, Tokai Teio glanced over at them.
Then she swallowed, quickly looked away, and turned back to face her little sister again.
"See? I told you," Mochizuki said, shifting her gaze slightly. "Mom's like that every day around Valentine's."
"Next few days will probably be worse too, since…" Remembering the mountain of romantic debts her mom had racked up, Mochizuki took a sip of what had once been hot water and was now cold. "Mom's personal life is… kind of a mess."
It wasn't blatant, but Teio still caught the schadenfreude in Mochizuki's voice.
She looked at Mochizuki. "Is it really okay to talk about Auntie Natural like that?"
"Strictly speaking, it's not nice," Mochizuki said, meeting Teio's eyes without flinching. "But Mom probably doesn't care. She can barely keep up with herself anymore."
She'd fully evolved into a spectator by now.
Then, after a brief thought, she added, "If Mom keeps—"
"Hm? What?"
"No, nothing." Mochizuki lifted her head again, looking toward Yayoi Natural, who was clearly getting put through the wringer. "I just hope she won't keep suffering over stuff like this."
As her daughter—or rather, as the kid who'd been with Yayoi Natural the longest—Mochizuki understood all too well what her mom would turn into if she stayed on this path.
But compared to Mochizuki, who'd already seen through everything, Teio could only stare toward her mom with a headache written all over her face.
Tokai Teio had only lived with Natural for less than a year.
She didn't know Yayoi Natural all that well—especially not the web of relationships around her.
And right now, under Teio's gaze, Yayoi Natural was struggling to manage the girl in front of her.
"I know, I know. In a few days, I'll go out with you first, okay?"
As she spoke, Yayoi Natural glanced toward Chiyono O in the corner.
Only after confirming Chiyono O hadn't said anything did Yayoi Natural turn back to Mr. C.B. sitting across from her.
"But after that, I've already promised Chiyono O, so I can't do that day."
Yayoi Natural's refusal didn't surprise Mr. C.B. at all. Yayoi Natural always kept her promises.
Mr. C.B. nodded. "Fine. Then that's what we'll do. But after that, you'd better make some proper time for me, got it?"
With that, Mr. C.B. downed her drink in one go—and then…
"Ugh~~~"
She let out a deeply miserable sound.
It was the kind of reaction you only got after drinking something Yayoi Natural had made. Even so, Mr. C.B. didn't spit it out—she just forced it down, swallowing through the discomfort.
Chiyono O, drawn by the performance, immediately looked down at the cup by her hand—the one she hadn't touched yet.
It was bright-colored, and it looked like it might taste good. Chiyono O's ears shot straight up.
"Um, Yayoi-nee… you didn't, like…"
"What?"
"This one isn't also…" Chiyono O lifted her cup. "This is… isn't it also…?"
"Chiyono O," Yayoi Natural said calmly, pointing at Mr. C.B., "it'll be better if you drink it. I don't think C.B. is going to give you a chance to refuse."
Chiyono O turned to look at Mr. C.B., sitting one seat away.
Mr. C.B. was staring straight at her.
Clearly, she was upset she'd been the only one forced to drink that thing—and she intended to watch Chiyono O drink it too.
But then—as if a lightbulb went on, Chiyono O blurted, "Yayoi-nee, if it's something even I don't want to drink, then there's no way you'd sell it to Tracen Academy students!"
The moment her survival instincts kicked in, Chiyono O looked at Yayoi Natural with pleading eyes, silently begging her not to make her drink it.
Yayoi Natural froze for a second. She hadn't expected Chiyono O's brain to start working now.
Then, going along with her, Yayoi Natural rose onto her toes and took the drink from Chiyono O's hand. "If that's the case, I'll pour it out. I'll get you something else in a bit."
After dumping it, Yayoi Natural snapped back into work mode and turned her gaze to Mr. C.B.
"Hey! But I drank it!"
Yayoi Natural could only shake her head helplessly.
Then she looked back at Chiyono O.
Under Mr. C.B.'s stare, Chiyono O still hadn't fully realized what had happened—she was just relieved she didn't have to drink that.
Catching Chiyono O's obliviousness, Mr. C.B. sighed at how little tension these two had, then said, "We're preparing some things for your date. And yeah, it's compensation for me. Though honestly, I wouldn't even mind doing it after Chiyono O's date either…"
"Huh? Date? Compensation?" Yayoi Natural sounded even more confused.
Mr. C.B. looked at her again. "We're getting you ready, Natural."
As she said it, Mr. C.B. rubbed her head. Clearly, she'd realized Yayoi Natural had basically zero sense for holidays, and it was making this conversation way harder than it needed to be.
Chiyono O, finally catching on after the reminder, chimed in, "You can't exactly go in everyday clothes. Buying something new is better, right?"
"Yeah, but…" Yayoi Natural hesitated.
Mr. C.B., of course, knew exactly what that hesitation meant.
Money.
So she just stepped right over it and turned to Chiyono O. "You don't mind, right?"
Chiyono O turned at once.
A moment later, cheeks faintly red, she answered, "Um… I don't mind."
"And what about my opinion?!"
Yayoi Natural raised her voice—loud enough to bury every inconvenient fact.
Then a hand landed on her shoulder, and her protest cut off like someone had yanked the plug.
Tokai Roman.
"Natural, just go," Tokai Roman said. "We're closed that day anyway. And besides, Teio needs to do another round of testing around then too."
Yayoi Natural's expression soured immediately.
"You're my real sister!"
"Mm… I guess I am," Tokai Roman said, setting two small side dishes down in front of Mr. C.B. and Chiyono O. "Take it slow. It'll be better if you don't rush."
At Tokai Roman's words to them, Yayoi Natural's face twisted even more.
"Hey!"
"Um, thanks…" Chiyono O murmured.
"Thanks for the reminder," Mr. C.B. added.
Watching the four of them react in four different ways, Teio turned back to Mochizuki. "Auntie Natural, she…"
"In a few days, a few more people might show up," Mochizuki said, dropping her gaze back to her workbook. "Just watch, Teio."
Then, in a quieter tone, she added, "I just hope Mom doesn't end up with an even bigger headache."
---
T/N: i hope natural is careful...
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