A Love Longed for the Tiger Lily (GL) - Chapter 21

I gently brushed the cheek of the girl lying beside me.
Soft and smooth—so much so that I didn’t want to take my hand away.

Sayo didn’t look like she’d be waking up any time soon.

Bringing up that conversation yesterday had taken more courage than I expected.
Just telling her I want you to stay with me probably wouldn’t have been enough to make this work.

That’s why I added a condition—until your symptoms improve.

With that condition in place, I thought maybe… just maybe, Sayo would agree to keep living at my place.
Even if it’s only temporary, I wanted to spend a little more time with her.
I wanted to get to know her better.

But that—my selfish desire—I’ll never admit out loud to anyone.

Even though it’s a temporary arrangement, her symptoms don’t show any signs of getting better.
And even with me—someone she’s relatively more comfortable with—she still reacts pretty negatively sometimes.

Normally, that would hurt.

But now… I find it kind of comforting.

Which makes me feel like I might be a pretty awful person.

Still, even if I’m selfish or playing dirty,
I don’t want to let Sayo go.

I don’t even know exactly why.

Maybe it feels like I’ve gained a little sister.
Or maybe it really is like adopting a stray cat.

Sayo was right—
As long as she’s staying at my place, I probably won’t be bringing a girlfriend home.

But for now, that’s fine.

More than wanting a relationship, I want to understand her.

That’s all it is.

I rested my hand against her cheek again.
Her long eyelashes fluttered open, and her dark eyes looked up at me.

Ever since we met again, those eyes haven’t held any light.
But I keep hoping—just a little—that one day they’ll shine like they used to.

“Taniguchi-san… what are you doing?”

“I was about to attack you while you were sleeping.”

“You’re seriously a pervert.”

With a deadpan tone, she swatted my hand away.

If I said something honest like, “I just like how your skin feels,”
she’d probably be thoroughly creeped out and never let me touch her again.
So I always answer with a dumb joke.

“Do you say stuff like that to everyone?”

Lately, Sayo keeps asking questions that catch me off guard.
And even if I asked her why, I know she wouldn’t answer.

She won’t even tell me the reason why she’s afraid of women, after all.

“…That’s a secret.”

“You’re the worst.”

There’s no one else I say things like that to.
But if I told her “I only say it to you,” she’d probably just think I was creepy.

So I dodged the question with a teasing smile again.

According to Sayo, I’m “the worst.”
She’s probably not wrong.

Still, I didn’t want to just take it lying down.
So I decided to poke back a little.

“Do you want me to say it only to you?”

I said it with my usual grin.

When she tried to get out of bed, I caught her arm to stop her.
She glared at me, clearly irritated.

“I just don’t like people who flirt with everyone.”

“So you prefer loyal types, huh?”

“Doesn’t everyone? Who likes players?”

“Fair point.”

She had a solid comeback, and I couldn’t argue.

Then I remembered something—something I needed to tell her.
I looked at her face, still buried in the covers, and grinned.

I didn’t have to say this.
But I wanted her to know I was serious about what I said yesterday.

“To help you get better, let’s do that kind of thing at least once a day.”

“…‘That kind of thing’?”

Was she asking on purpose?

With a soft voice, I pulled her into a hug and whispered near her ear.

“—This kind of thing.”

And immediately got a knee to the thigh.

Ow.

Seriously—what a violent girl.

While I sat clutching my leg, she got up and walked over to the chair.
It’s summer, so it should feel cooler with her gone.

But the spot where she’d just been… suddenly felt cold.

I got up too and casually sat beside her.

“Ugh, I don’t wanna go back to work tomorrow…”

“You were just being a creep and now you’re acting all normal again?”

“I’m a grown-up. I can multitask.”

I said it lightly, but she looked at me with utter disgust and ignored me.

Then her face went still and serious.

“…Is being an adult really that hard?”

I didn’t expect that.
It took me a second to respond.

Should I be honest? Or try to look cool?

No—if I want her to be honest with me going forward,
I should start by being honest with her.

“…The responsibility keeps getting heavier. It’s kind of tough sometimes.”

“So that’s why you have moments where you look… tired.”

“…Huh?”

Tired?
I always try to act upbeat around her, so her words surprised me.

“Thanks for bringing me here, Taniguchi-san.
Let’s go home.”

She stood up and began tidying the room,
leaving me behind with all the things I still wanted to ask.

And just like that, our first trip together was over.

“Phew… trips are fun, but being home is still the best.”

I sank into the couch—the couch that makes me lazy—
and immediately regretted it.

I still had to prep a week’s worth of bento lunches.

Dragging myself up from the couch I’d just melted into,
I got ready to head to the supermarket.

“I’m heading out for a bit, Sayo.”

“What are you going shopping for?”

“I need to pick up stuff for tomorrow’s bentos.”

Sayo stayed quiet for a while, a serious look on her face.
As I turned to leave the house, she suddenly stopped me.

“I’ll come with you.”

Why? I wondered, but I didn’t really have a reason to refuse.
So I simply nodded, and we stepped out together.

She walked beside me in silence.
I thought about asking her why she came,
but I had a feeling she wouldn’t answer even if I did.

When we arrived at the supermarket and I began picking out ingredients,
Sayo, still quiet until then, finally spoke.

“Can I have the basket?”

“The basket? Why?”

“At least let me carry the groceries.”

Before I could say anything else, she took it from me without hesitation.
I didn’t understand what she was thinking,
but I kept on shopping, placing vegetables and side dish ingredients into the basket she stubbornly held.

With each item I added, her expression grew more and more serious.

“It’s getting heavy. Let me carry it.”

“Don’t touch it.”

She brushed off my concern without a second thought.

Her whole posture screamed I’m not letting go of this basket.
Clearly, she wasn’t going to back down.

I gave up trying.

Even on the way home,
Sayo—despite her small frame—carried everything, swaying slightly under the weight.

Back at home, I started prepping in the kitchen,
but she hovered beside me with a look that said she had something to say.
Her gaze flicked between my face and the ingredients in the sink.

It was so obvious it made me laugh.

“What’s up?”

“Isn’t it rude to laugh at someone’s face?”

“True, sorry. So? What is it?”

“…Can you teach me how to make bento side dishes?”

That caught me off guard.

What brought this on?

Was it because she agreed to keep living with me?

Was she just trying to be polite?

“I’m only making extra because I’m already cooking mine.
You really don’t have to feel obligated, you know?”

“I’m not doing this for you.
I just want to learn how to cook for myself.”

She said that flatly and didn’t budge from the kitchen.

Once she got like this, there was no stopping her.

I wanted her to give up because, honestly, it’s way more efficient if I cook alone.
And I was tired.

But… it couldn’t be helped now.

“Ever used a kitchen knife before?”

“Only during home etc. at school…”

“Yeah, that doesn’t count. Alright—let’s start with cutting practice.”

I carefully taught her how to handle the knife.

It was exhausting. She held it in such a dangerously awkward way that I couldn’t take my eyes off her.
Even peeling vegetables was a struggle.

By the end, I was three times more tired than usual.

“Whew… Well, at least the weeks’ worth of side dishes are done.”

My body and brain felt completely drained.
The clock showed it was already past 7 p.m.

I didn’t have the energy left to make dinner now. I seriously considered just ordering something.

“…Sorry.”

Sayo lowered her head and apologized softly.
And I immediately felt bad about my own behavior.

She said it was for herself,
but I’m pretty sure she wanted to help me.

Even if she didn’t— I wanted to believe that was her reason.

Everyone struggles in the beginning.

When I first learned how to cook, I was a disaster too.
Mom used to scold me constantly for being clumsy and slow.

Sayo never had anyone like that to teach her.

Of course she doesn’t know how to do this yet.
It’s not her fault.

Blaming her would be completely wrong.

“If you were good from the start, that’d be way scarier. It’s okay—you’ll get used to it little by little.”

I forced my tired face to smile, and when I did, something softened inside me too.

But Sayo’s expression grew more tense.

A frown formed on her face, her brows drawing together.

“I don’t like it when you smile like that, like you’re forcing it.”

Her words left me speechless.
She always sees right through me.

I try so hard not to let anyone notice when I’m tired or faking it— but with her, it’s like all of that’s laid bare.

I don’t know if she’s just really perceptive, or if she’s just always watching closely.

Either way, maybe I need to be more careful around her.

…If we ever started dating, she’d probably sniff out every little lie in seconds.

I can just imagine her catching someone cheating and calling them out mercilessly.

With dumb thoughts like that running through my head, I quietly washed the dishes next to her.

And for the first time since she moved in, we ended the day with a delivery dinner.