A Love Longed for the Tiger Lily (GL) - Chapter 4

When I checked the clock, it was still only 7 a.m.

It was my day off, so I figured I could sleep in for once.
I pulled the lukewarm blanket over myself, planning to stay in bed all morning and start cleaning the house in the afternoon.

But then—
a loud crash from the kitchen jolted me upright.
I leapt out of bed and rushed toward the sound.

“What happened?!”

“I was trying to make breakfast… but I dropped everything.”

Sayo stood there with her head lowered, looking genuinely apologetic.
Pots were scattered all over the floor.
I had no idea how she managed to create that level of chaos just by trying to cook.

“Haaah… I’ll make it. Just go sit down somewhere.”

“I’ll do it myself.”

“Do you even know how to cook?”

“…No.”

“Haaah… Then please go sit down before you get in the way.”

I’m not exactly a morning person.
Starting the day with this kind of nonsense put me in an incredibly sour mood.

When I tried to lightly grab Sayo’s arm to guide her away, she flinched and jerked away from my touch like she’d been shocked.

That reaction felt way too extreme.

Maybe it was the way I said it.

Sayo quietly moved away on her own, and I turned my attention to cooking.

I felt terrible for not being kinder to someone younger than me.
As a sort of penance, I took a deep breath, calmed my frustration, and tried again with a brighter tone.

“Do you prefer rice or bread in the morning?”

“…Bread.”

“Alright, just give me a second.”

I quickly got to work and plated up breakfast.

A slice of toast topped with a sunny-side-up egg and bacon, plus a cup of consommé soup.
Sayo glanced between the toast and me, flicking her gaze back and forth.

“Taniguchi-san…”

“Hmm?”

“Sorry… for earlier this morning.”

She was unusually honest, and I couldn’t help but reach out to pat her head—
But she dodged my hand like lightning.

It was honestly kind of sad.
She used to beg me to pat her head when we were little.

And yet, since yesterday, something about her has felt… off.
I couldn’t ignore it anymore.

“Do you… not like being touched?”

She’d dodged me every single time, so I had to wonder.
Or maybe… she just really didn’t like me?

“I have gynophobia,” she said quietly. “I’m scared of women.
Talking to them, being touched by them—it all terrifies me.”

“…I see.”

I had no idea.
And honestly, I don’t think my mom knew either.

It made me feel a little guilty—thinking that she’d been enduring all that, just to stay at our house.

I didn’t know what had happened to her, but if she said she was afraid, then I needed to be more careful about how I acted.

“…Sorry. I’ll be more mindful from now on.”

She looked so fragile and withdrawn that I figured pressing her any further would only make things worse.

Still, I couldn’t help but wonder…
What had happened to her to make her this way?

My questions remained unanswered, but I decided to change the subject before I accidentally made things more uncomfortable.

“Is the food good?”

It might come off as unnecessary chatter, but she didn’t reject it.
Instead, she gave a small nod and quietly munched on her toast.

When she’s silent like this, she’s just a cute high school girl.

My own emotional wounds weren’t even close to healed.
In fact, things had only gotten more complicated.
But having a beautiful girl right in front of me somehow made everything easier to deal with.

I silently offered thanks to the broken air conditioner at my parents’ place.

Lately, I’d started suspecting that my ex already had a new lover.
A photo had popped up on social media—her on vacation with someone who definitely looked like a girlfriend.
It felt like someone was squeezing my heart.

That’s just how the world works.

I probably should have been more devastated, but I think having this gorgeous girl in my house had helped distract me from spiraling too hard.

“I’ll take care of the dishes.”

The beautiful girl across from me suddenly spoke up.

Her hands were small, pale, and smooth—like they’d never washed a single dish in their life.

“…Are you sure you can?”

“…Probably.”

This girl never tells me anything.
Whether she can do something or not, her answers are always vague.
And earlier, she tried to do something she clearly wasn’t capable of.

Maybe it was time to establish some house rules for living together.

“Alright then, I’ll show you how to clean up after meals. Come over here, okay?”

“…Okay.”

I patiently explained how we wash and store the dishes in this house, pointing out where everything goes.
I couldn’t tell if she really understood, but unlike yesterday, Sayo was acting a bit more cooperative today. That alone was a relief.

“We might not be living together for long, but let’s set some ground rules.”

“Rules…?”

I went ahead and laid out a few basic guidelines, so we could avoid stressing each other out.

First: we each do our own laundry and use our own detergent.
It was just my assumption, but I figured she wouldn’t like our scents mixing.

Second: I’d handle the cooking, and she’d take care of cleaning the dishes.

Third: we’d take turns cleaning the apartment every other day.

And fourth: I’d only ask necessary questions about day-to-day life—
but when I do, she has to answer.
And if something’s wrong, she needs to talk to me about it.

“Any complaints?”

Maybe it sounded like a lot, but I figured that giving her responsibilities might make her feel less like she had to tiptoe around in this house.

“…Understood.”

“You can use the kitchen and the living room freely, but just don’t do anything dangerous, okay?”

“Alright.”

As soon as I finished speaking, Sayo quietly headed off to her room.

“Haaah… this is going to be rough…”

She didn’t leave that room for the rest of the day.
Judging by her luggage, she didn’t bring anything to pass the time.
And my old room didn’t have anything either.

She responded when I called out to her, but aside from that, she stayed locked away.

I wanted to know what she was doing in there, but I figured pressing her too much would only make her dislike me more. So, I left her alone.

Even though it was my day off, I spent most of it thinking about Sayo.
Now it was evening.
Dinner was over, and Sayo was in the bath.

Beep, beep.

The bathroom chime went off, and I rushed over.

“Is something wrong?”

“It’s only giving me cold water.”

That had never happened before.
If I could figure out the cause of that from outside the bathroom, I’d probably be hailed as a genius and featured on TV as the next big thing.

Jokes aside—right now, I had to help her.

“Can I come in for a sec?”

“No.”

…Right, of course.

Even I would feel awkward being seen naked by someone I wasn’t close to.
For someone her age, it would be even worse.

But the problem was—I couldn’t fix anything if I couldn’t see what was going on.

“If you sit in the tub, I won’t be able to see anything, so can I come in?
Otherwise, you’ll have to wash in freezing water.”

I heard a splash.
Her shadow moved behind the frosted door.

She must’ve decided she didn’t want to suffer through a cold bath after all, because I heard the door unlock with a soft click.

I stepped inside quickly and checked the faucet.

Sure enough, she’d set the temperature wrong.
I remembered now—our bath controls were a little confusing.
Even I didn’t get it right the first time.

“You set the temperature over here.”

I almost turned to explain it to her, but decided against it.
Better not to look at her right now.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her curled up in the tub, knees drawn to her chest, bubbles rising around her.

If she stayed like that, she’d get dizzy.
Without saying anything, I quickly stepped back out of the bathroom.

Sure enough, when Sayo came out a few minutes later, her face was flushed red.

“You okay? Your face is really red.”

“I’m fine…”

But then she swayed—about to fall.

I instinctively reached out to support her—

—and the next thing I knew, I was shoved away.

“Ugh—ow…”

Okay, seriously?

I tried to help her, and that’s what I get?

But then I remembered—Sayo had told me she was afraid of being touched by women.

Even so, I couldn’t help feeling a little hurt.
Still, I swallowed my frustration and reminded myself to be the adult here.

She really had overheated; she slumped down onto the floor.

“I’m sorry, Sayo.”

I gently wrapped her arm over my shoulder and helped her up.

I knew full well she didn’t want to be touched.
I knew this whole situation was unpleasant for her.

But I couldn’t just leave her collapsed on the floor.

Her body was tense, but I did my best not to let it show that I noticed.

I brought her to the room and positioned a fan nearby so it blew on her gently.
I placed a cold pack beneath her neck.

She lay on her side, staring silently at the wall.

“…Kind of reminds me of when I used to take care of you when you were sick.”

Back when she was little and caught a cold, I used to stay by her side just like this.

“That’s unnecessary small talk…”

“Yeah. Feel free to ignore it.”

Without thinking, I reached out to pat her head, lost in nostalgia.
But when she stirred slightly, I pulled my hand back.

The truth is…
Sayo is no longer the sweet little cousin I used to know.

And things like that…
They’d only be a burden to her now.

“Taniguchi-san…”

“Hmm?”

“…Thank you.”

Sayo had her back to me, so I couldn’t see her expression but her ears were bright red.

Maybe she was embarrassed?
I decided to interpret it that way, even if it was just wishful thinking.

“You’re welcome. See you tomorrow.”

She’d probably go back to being cold and distant again by morning.
But for now, I was happy—just knowing she had opened up a little.

With that thought warming my heart, I quietly stepped out of the room.