Chapter 34: Love Thy Neighbor... Don't Call The Act of Destroying Emotions "Love"

Love Thy Neighbor... Don't Call The Act of Destroying Emotions "Love"

A few days after Dad received a homemade dinner from his adorable daughter and a smile saying "Thank you, Dad," and became delirious, thinking that this was paradise on earth, it was Saturday. I was at the neighbor house.

Of course, today was Saturday, a holiday. Since high school students no longer have to go to school on weekends for parent-teacher conferences, it wasn't school.

"If it's not school, and you're not here to wake Tomohiro-kun, then why go to the neighbor house?" You ask? 

Stop saying such cruel things, someone will cry. Tomohiro-kun is.

But, in a way, that thought is correct.

Yes, the reason I came to the neighbor house today wasn't for Tomohiro-kun. After all, it's just so I can chat with the neighbor mom, who's becoming more and more widowed with each passing day. I think it's okay for Tomohiro-kun to cry when he wakes up one morning to find his first love flirting with her mother.

"I baked some scones because Hikari-chan is coming over. I hope you like them..."

The neighbor mom, blushing a little shyly as she says this, has the expression of a girl in love no matter how you look at her.

Even if the person she's talking to is literally someone of the same sex, much younger than her, she still has the expression of a girl in love.

"Hmm... These scones are moister than the last one. Did you change the flour?" I thought so.

Praise them by saying they're delicious, and also point out any details they might have put effort into. Pointing out sounds a little harsh, but the point is to notice the change. Making them realize what they've done for you made you happy. Just that alone makes them want to work harder. 

Because they weren't able to do that, the relationship between the neighbor couple is becoming sad. It's the fault of the neighbor dad, who's always working overtime and on business trips and doesn't have the mental space to notice.

In other words, it's Tomohiro-kun's fault for causing it all by going to a private middle school, and my fault for acting in a way that made it happen.

I'm sorry, neighbor mom. I'm sorry for making you relying me, thinking that only I would understand you, but the root cause of this situation is me.

I feel a little responsible and sorry, but that logic leads to the question of whether the manufacturer of the murder weapon, a kitchen knife, is responsible for the murder done by someone else, so I've decided not to think about it at all.

In this case, it would be more accurate to say that I didn't make the murder weapon, but rather instigated the crime, so I'm clearly out no matter how you look at it.

In this way, I turn a blind eye to the inconvenient facts and say kind words to the neighbor mom. She's amazing for working hard every day, and she put so much feeling into her cooking, it's wonderful.

Yeah, yeah, that's your husband's fault.

Hikari wished she wouldn't make you feel that way.

The worries and complaints of the neighbor mom that she couldn't tell anyone else about. There's really no need to listen to all of that. As long as she maintains a minimum mental health, it's enough that she's accepted to raise Tomohiro-kun. Those kinds of unpleasant adult feelings should be aired with neighbor mom friends who can vent their frustrations to each other, not with the beautiful high school girls.

Despite all that, the reason I'm doing this is to gain favor with the neighbor mom. I'm sure I'll end up messing up Tomohiro-kun's heart in the future, so I want to make that time as painless as possible. And if possible, I want us to remain friendly even after I've used him up. I'm scared of the neighbor mom hating me.

The reason the neighbor mom has no one else to complain to is because she feels like she's being shown the difference between her and my Mama, who was her closest friend, just by complaining, which is painful.

Unlike the neighbor mom who has a lot of worries, my Mama seems to have an incredibly happy family relationship. They used to get along so well, so it must be hard for her to see the difference.

Poor thing. Neighbor mom, so cute.

As I was admiring the neighbor mom and feeling sorry for her, the sleepy Tomohiro-kun woke up and was shocked by the sight he was confronted with as he woke up.

It was only natural that he would be surprised, seeing his own mother being pampered by his beloved childhood friend.

Even though he's a sleepyhead, it's only 9 o'clock now. For a holiday morning with nothing to do, wouldn't that be considered early rising?

Before my reincarnation, I had no sense of time, so I'm impressed by Tomohiro-kun, who can wake up early without any prior commitments.

Eh, in this life?

Of course, early to bed, early to rise, and breakfast are the basics.

A beautiful girl has an obligation to behave like a beautiful girl. Well, a beautiful girl looks good no matter how she behaves, so I don't really have any obligations.

I greet Tomohiro-kun, who's still half-awake and not fully mentally prepared, with a bright smile. Adding a touch of girlishness makes my morning greeting even cuter than the gentleness I'd been showing the neighbor mom.

What happens then? Don't you know? The neighbor mom becomes jealous of her son.

Yeah, if the girl you thought was the only one for you unconsciously appealed to other guys, it would definitely destroy anyone's brain.

Well, I'm not unaware of it, and I have no intention of becoming a woman for someone like Tomohiro-kun.

Argh! What a despicable woman you are, Hikari! 

That's why people call me a girl who destroys the brain in every direction. It's fun

And so the neighbor mom's brain begins to break down, and Tomohiro-kun is frustrated by me, who was close to her.

The damage ratio is about 10:3:1.

10 for the neighbor mom, 3 for Tomohiro, and 1 for me.

Why I also got a damage? It's because getting up early was hard.

Without showing any sign of the pain I'd felt, I make sure Tomohiro-kun goes to wash his face, and once he's gone, I smile at the neighbor mom and tell her we'll continue next time. Now the neighbor mom can look forward to chatting with me again and get on with her daily life.

With a husband who never comes home and a son who is jealous of her as if she's a love rival. Yeah, it's a stressful day. The collapse of the neighbor family's home is in my hands.

Oh no, Hikari feels like she could destroy it on a whim. What does she think of her childhood friend's house?

However, if things continue like this, she might turn into a domesticated woman instead of a club woman, so I'll help her make sure things go smoothly.

If the neighbor mom starts to truly desire me and says, "I want to be with you forever... I want you to be my daughter... Yes, Hiro-chan! Make her your wife!" then that'll be perfect.

Even if I've been a little cruel to Tomohiro-kun, the neighbor mom still wants him to end up with me.

From Tomohiro-kun's perspective, this is hell. It's probably pretty easy, so I'll call it a hell of a life. If you want to go to hell, just crush ants and live without any remorse.

When Tomohiro-kun returns, I pat the remaining moisture off his face with the handkerchief I brought with me, then invite him over for snack, saying the neighbor mom's scones are delicious. Some people like sweet treats in the morning, right? At least I do. I can eat as many delicious snacks as I want, and it makes me happy. Right, Tomohiro-kun (Snack-kun)?

By the way, the neighbor mom is the same as me, while Tomohiro-kun prefers bread, and the neighbor dad prefers rice.

Since the tastes of the three family members are completely different, there is no breakfast that everyone is happy about.

It must be tough huh, neighbor mom.

If you don't like it, then prepare it yourself! Especially Japanese breakfast! You want to get mad, right?

I understand. It's really stressful when you make something you don't even want to eat. Well, I make it without stress because I want to see the happy faces of my beloved family.

Watching Tomohiro-kun, who looks a little unsatisfied as he stuffs his mouth with his scone, I smile and suggest we do something since we've already gotten up early. Then we head outside. All that's left is the neighbor mom, whose relaxing time has been snatched away. Poor thing.

"Hiro-chan, this feels a bit like a date."

Question 1: If a boy wakes up and his cute childhood friend destroys his brain, then for some reason asks him to escort her, what is the probability that he can put together a decent date?

Based on our assumptions;

(1). Tomohiro-kun has a 30% chance of putting together a decent date...

(2). Tomohiro-kun's actions are all affected by a -50% adjustment when he wakes up...

(3). Tomohiro-kun's brain is currently destroyed...

(4). Even if it goes well, I'll ruin it...

Based on 1, 2, 3, and 4, Tomohiro-kun can't be a decent escort. That's all for Q.E.D. 

...To put it mildly, those are the worst proof questions. Especially the last one. 1-3 are irrelevant.

Well, that's fine. I like Tomohiro-kun when he's sad, when he's in pain.

I'll send him some gentian flowers.