Chapter 16: Sleepover (Part 2)

After yet another long journey, I finally arrived at the Onodera residence and let out a deep sigh.

The trip had been exhausting—we had to transfer between multiple modes of transportation, and Sumire had been completely out of it the entire time. Leading her around like a lost child had been more of a hassle than I expected.

I had a suspicion this morning, but now I was sure—she must have stayed up past midnight.

Still holding her limp, unsteady hand, I checked the time—6 PM.

"I’m hoooome~"

Sumire’s drawn-out, halfhearted announcement echoed through the house as she stumbled inside. I followed after her, setting down our bags before heading to the sink to wash my hands and gargle.

In the kitchen, Sumire’s mom, Himari-san, was busy preparing dinner.

I offered to help, but she waved me off with a gentle smile.

"You must be tired. Just take it easy."

Even so, staying over and doing absolutely nothing felt too awkward.

At the very least, I decided to set the table. Once everything was ready, Himari-san finally urged me to relax.

"By the way, what time does Shigekazu-san usually get home?"

"Hmm? Papa should be back soon. He usually arrives around this time."

Taking her advice, I settled into the living room.

Sumire slumped beside me, barely keeping her eyes open as we lazily chatted.

Her responses came slow and drowsy, her posture so completely relaxed that she almost looked like a housecat curled up in a sunny spot.

I watched as her eyelids drooped lower and lower…

Just as she was about to doze off, the front door creaked open.

“I’m home.”

A deep voice echoed through the house, pulling my attention toward the entrance.

Standing there was Shigekazu Onodera, Sumire’s father.

Realizing I’d been slouching too much, I quickly straightened up and got to my feet. Unlike Himari-san, I hadn’t spoken much with Shigekazu-san, and the unfamiliarity made my body instinctively tense.

“Welcome, Shimada-kun. No need to be so formal—make yourself at home today and tomorrow.”

“Thank you. I’ll be in your care for a while.”

Even now, it was hard to gauge the right level of formality with the father of a female friend. Shigekazu-san was tall, his sharp features giving him an imposing presence.

He always carried this enigmatic smile, making it difficult to read his thoughts. Honestly, I couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy. What did he think of me, a guy who was constantly around his only daughter?

“Well, now that everyone’s here, let’s eat.”

With that, Himari-san ushered us toward the table. Sumire and I sat next to each other, while Himari-san and Shigekazu-san took their seats across from us, forming a diagonal between me and Shigekazu-san.

“Thank you for the meal.”

Sumire beamed at the feast her mother had prepared, her expression full of joy.

Meanwhile, for me, dinner was shaping up to be a somewhat awkward experience.

---

Ren Shimada, sitting diagonally across from me, offered a stiff, awkward smile as he moved his chopsticks.

He stirs up complicated feelings in me.

He’s a rare presence—someone who has always been kind to Sumire. Yet, at the same time, he’s also the boy who has stolen my daughter’s heart.

With those conflicting emotions churning inside me, I, Shigekazu Onodera, quietly observed my daughter and her childhood friend as they ate in front of me.

"Ren, aren’t you a bit too tense? Relax your shoulders."

"N-No, I’m not tense, really."

"Hmm… It’s not like this is the first time we’ve eaten together."

Sumire, unfazed by Ren’s presence, acted as naturally as ever—like having a boy over was the most ordinary thing in the world.

She spoke to him so casually, as if she saw Ren as just another member of the family. Given that they’ve been friends since kindergarten, I suppose that makes sense… but shouldn’t they be more aware of the dynamics between boys and girls by now?

Watching them, I couldn’t help but acknowledge that their relationship was truly rare.

Even setting aside my perspective as her father, I could admit—Sumire has grown into a beautiful young woman.

For a girl like her, having a male friend she could interact with so effortlessly, so comfortably, must be unusual.

Meanwhile, Ren still looked visibly on edge. I almost felt bad for him—but considering the circumstances, I couldn’t blame him.

My presence must feel intimidating.

…I remember being just like him at that age.

“Shimada-kun.”

“Y-Yes!”

“You can relax. It’s fine.”

“Ah, thank you!”

Seeing him flustered just from me speaking, Sumire grinned. Then, as if sensing an opportunity, she started poking his side, teasing him.

“Sumire, stop that.”

“Okay~”

Himari scolded her, but Sumire simply flashed a playful smile and continued eating, completely unfazed.

Watching her, a warmth welled up inside me—yet, alongside it, a familiar bitterness. A quiet, indescribable sense of helplessness.

Of course, there’s a flicker of jealousy toward Ren—the boy who has become such an irreplaceable part of her world.

But more than that, as a father, I feel something deeper.

An ache.

A quiet sense of inadequacy.

My thoughts drift to the past.

Sumire wasn’t always this way.

Until she was six years old, she rarely smiled. Most of the time, she was either expressionless, lost in thought, or crying.

The term autism spectrum disorder came up. No matter how much we tried, we couldn’t reach her. Even as her parents, we felt like strangers in her world. At times, it even seemed like she was afraid of us.

We took her to specialists, tried different approaches, hoping for progress. But nothing changed.

At kindergarten, she never approached other children. While her classmates played together, she sat alone, flipping through picture books. Himari, too, struggled—worn down by the uncertainty, by the weight of not knowing how to help.

Then, one day, when our home had been drowning in that quiet sorrow, Himari returned with a smile I hadn’t seen in a long time.

“I saw her today,” she said, breathless with excitement. “Sumire… she was holding hands with a boy.”

A classmate. A little boy her age. Sitting beside her, sharing a picture book.

The teacher mentioned that they often spent time together.

That night, Himari and I sat together, filled with cautious hope. Maybe, just maybe, having a friend she trusted could be the change we had been praying for.

And then, for the first time, we started hearing a new name from Sumire’s lips.

"Ren-kun."

She began telling us about her day at kindergarten—how they built sandcastles together, how he read her a book.

It was the first time Sumire had ever willingly shared her world with us.

Perhaps Ren’s parents had heard about Sumire’s struggles from other moms, because not long after, his mother approached us with a suggestion.

"Why don’t our families spend more time together?"

Work kept me busy, so I couldn’t be as involved as I wanted, but Himari grew close to Ren’s parents.

Even after entering elementary school, Sumire remained mostly expressionless. But as the years passed, something changed. Little by little, she started smiling more at home.

Yet every time she did, the reason was always the same.

Ren.

As a father, it was frustrating. Seeing her happiness tied so closely to someone else—someone outside our family—left me uneasy. I worried she was becoming too dependent on him. But in the end, I didn’t know what to do. All I could do was watch over her.

Helpless. That word summed it all up.

After dinner, we cleaned up, and when Sumire went back to her room, I took the chance to speak to Ren.

“Thank you for always being there for Sumire. I’d be happy if you two could stay close.”

He looked surprised for a moment, then gave a small, bashful smile.

“Thank you as well. I’m always grateful for everything. I’d be happy if we could stay close too.”

Something about that answer annoyed me.

---

Sumire told me to take a bath first, so I reluctantly went. Using someone else’s bathroom always felt a little strange—everything was unfamiliar, making me oddly nervous. Even the scent of the shampoo made my heart race a bit. Maybe that’s just how it is for a healthy high school boy.

After finishing my bath and changing into pajamas, I headed back to the living room, where I found Sumire sprawled across the sofa. Her eyes were glazed over, barely reacting as I approached. Peering at her face, I saw the faintest flicker of recognition. At least she was still awake.

“Hey, aren’t you going to take a bath?”

“…I’ll go… yaaawn…”

She slowly sat up at my words, stretching with a sleepy yawn. Then, as if suddenly remembering something, she turned to me.

“Don’t peek, okay?”

“I wasn’t planning to.”

And with that, she shuffled off. Was that exchange really necessary?

Shaking my head, I went to the Japanese-style room where our bags were and found Himari-san laying out the futons.

“Thank you so much. Sorry for the trouble.”

“Don’t worry about it. If anything, thanks for going along with Sumire’s whims today. It must’ve been sudden and a bit overwhelming, right?”

“Not at all. I had a lot of fun.”

At my words, Himari-san hesitated, briefly looking away as if choosing her next words carefully. Then, after a moment, she met my gaze with quiet determination. Her expression, her mannerisms—so much like Sumire’s—it was almost uncanny.

“It might be unfair of me to say this,” she began softly, “but please continue to look after Sumire. Now and always, I think you’re the only one she’ll ever trust this much.”

“I’ll see you later,” Himari-san said quickly before leaving the room.

Both of Sumire’s parents had spoken to me with the same serious tone. Maybe it was just a common courtesy, but something about the way they said it felt heavier—more sincere.

Not that it really mattered. The thought of leaving Sumire’s side was unthinkable… unless she pushed me away herself.

That aside, being entrusted with their daughter by the very people who raised her—it was oddly gratifying.

After that, I packed my dirty clothes into my bag and got everything ready for the next day. By the time I finished and returned to the living room, Sumire had just stepped out of the bath.

“I have awakened…” she declared dramatically.

“…What are you talking about?”

“Let’s play games.”

Refreshed from her bath, the drowsy, half-conscious Sumire from earlier was gone. Her eyes were now wide with energy as she poked my back, chanting, “Games, games.” It seemed she had officially entered her late-night mode.

As she clung to me, the scent of soap lingering around her, I peeled her off.

“Even so, what game are we playing?”

“Anything you want, Ren.”

“Not really, I’ll leave it to you.”

I went back to the guest room to grab the game console I had brought, and instead of taking over the living room, we moved to Sumire’s room.

Stepping inside, a wave of nostalgia hit me. My eyes wandered around, taking in the familiar sight. The little garden eel plushie was already sitting in the corner of her bed, exactly where I expected it to be. Other than that, her room was surprisingly plain. A neatly arranged bookshelf lined with reference books and a simple study desk gave off the usual Sumire vibe—organized, focused, and a little too meticulous for her own good.

The plain bedsheets only added to the sterile, almost clinical feel of the room. Knowing Sumire from the past, this space felt very "her"—but I couldn’t help but wonder how surprised her classmates would be by the contrast.

Even as I held these somewhat rude thoughts, my nerves refused to settle.

After all, I was in the room of the person I liked.

The faint, sweet scent lingering in the air made my head feel a little light. Flustered, I quickly stopped Sumire from sitting on the bed and instead took the chair.

I didn’t have the courage to sit on an opposite-sex bed just yet.

We ended up playing games for about two hours, losing ourselves in rounds of Mario Kart and Splatoon, making a bit of a mess in the process. But honestly—any guy who can stay completely composed while playing games in the room of someone they like is a monster.

It really drove home just how unrealistically chill light novel protagonists are.

At some point, Sumire let out a small sigh and suggested we take a break.

Setting the console aside, we let the room fall into a quiet lull.

I sipped at the drink Himari-san had prepared, trying to focus on literally anything else—but with the distraction of gaming gone, I was painfully aware of the situation. My heart was far from at ease.

But at the same time...

I found myself resigned to simply enjoying the moment.

Out of the corner of my eye, I stole glances at Sumire, stretched out on the bed.

And then—

“Hey…”

Her voice broke the silence.

When our eyes met, she quickly looked away, her lips parting slightly, as if she wasn’t sure what to say.

Something about the way she fidgeted awkwardly reminded me of Himari-san. Given how much they resembled each other physically, it was a bit of an odd sensation.

"What's up?"

Sumire hesitated for a moment before speaking.

"Did you… have fun today?"

Her voice was soft, uncertain. Even though she always acted confident on the surface, moments like this revealed the insecurity beneath.

Something about that contrast made my chest tighten.

I fought the urge to pat her head and instead gave her a reassuring smile.

"I had a lot of fun. Thanks for inviting me."

"I see… I'm glad you had fun."

She let out a small sigh, a flicker of relief crossing her face—but the shadow in her eyes hadn’t completely disappeared.

I leaned back in my chair, studying her for a moment before speaking.

"Hey, you really don’t need to worry about weird stuff like that, okay?"

Sumire blinked.

“…I didn’t cause you any trouble by suddenly making plans, did I?”

"I told you, it’s fine. I’m used to your sudden actions by now."

"Ugh…"

With an exaggerated groan, Sumire buried her face in the pillow.

I couldn’t help but chuckle.

She really hasn’t changed since we were kids. She’s always been the type to overthink the strangest things when she’s tired. It was just another one of those little quirks that made her… well, her.

A quick glance at the clock told me it was already 11:30 PM.

For our age, it wasn’t that late, but Sumire hadn’t gotten much sleep last night—and more importantly, I was a guest in her house.

It was probably time to call it a night.

"Alright, let's go to bed. I'm going to brush my teeth."

"Eh? Isn't it still early? The night's just starting."

I sighed. "You barely slept last night, didn’t you?"

"...I think I got about an hour. But I'm fine."

No wonder her dark circles were so bad.

Yeah, no. She needed sleep.

"Alright, I’m going to brush my teeth. I’ll use the sink, okay?"

"W-wait. I’ll brush mine too."

She hurried after me, falling into step at my side.

Standing shoulder to shoulder in front of the sink, we silently brushed our teeth together. It was such a mundane moment, yet it felt oddly fresh. Every time she glanced at me with those soft, content eyes, my heart gave the slightest tug.

Thinking back, this was probably the first time we’d brushed our teeth side by side since kindergarten.

Back then, we’d all line up at the sink, brushing together after meals. I always ended up next to Sumire.

How nostalgic.

Once we finished, I gave her a casual wave.

"Alright, goodnight."

"Mm. Goodnight."

I headed to the guest room, switching off the lights before slipping into the futon Himari-san had laid out for me.

And then—

As if it was the most natural thing in the world, Sumire followed me in and climbed into the futon.

"Wha—?!"

I shot upright, flicking the lights back on in alarm.

“Hey, what are you doing? I’m going to sleep now, so go back to your room.”

“Huh? This is my house, you know? That means this is my room too.”

I frowned. “Well… technically, yeah.”

“So, I’m sleeping here too.”

“Huh!?”

Before I could even process her words, Sumire wriggled deeper into the futon, shifting around until she found a comfortable spot. Her audacity left me momentarily speechless.

“Wait, then where am I supposed to sleep?”

“Huh? Just sleep here with me. It’s not like it’s the first time.”

She said it so casually, patting the space beside her, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

That’s when it hit me.

—Her words from earlier. “I understand what it means to invite someone over.”

Wait.

Does she mean—?!

N-no. There’s no way, right?

I glanced at Sumire’s face. Her half-lidded eyes practically begged me to shut up and let her sleep already. There was no teasing smile, no hidden intent—just pure exhaustion.

Thinking it through logically, her parents were right next door. Even Sumire wasn’t that careless.

After the fastest mental processing of my life, I reached a conclusion—

This isn’t “that kind of situation.”

Still, the more I thought about it, the more annoyed I got.

For ten years—since the moment my male self-awareness had kicked in—I’d been holding back. I’d endured. And yet here she was, completely oblivious, curling up next to me like we were still kids.

It felt ridiculous.

Like all that restraint, all that effort, meant nothing to her.

I took a deep breath, forcing down the frustration.

Then, finally, I turned back to Sumire.

“Sumire, cut it out. At our age, we can’t just casually sleep together like this…” I sighed, trying to keep my voice steady. “Seriously, if you keep this up, someone’s going to take advantage of you, and it’ll be your own fault.”

“Someone…?” Sumire murmured, her voice almost a whisper. “It’s not like I’d do this with just anyone…”

I blinked.

Before I could fully process her words, I noticed her eyes glistening.

Sumire—normally so assertive, so full of confidence—looked like she was about to cry.

I froze.

Had I… said something wrong?

With a pained expression, she met my gaze through teary eyes. Her voice trembled as she continued.

“You know how I feel…! You’ve been acting all clueless…! I trust that Ren wouldn’t take advantage of me, and even if you did, I wouldn’t mind… That’s why I’m doing this.”

Her words hit me like a lightning strike.

My breath caught. My mind went blank.

A confession. No—more than that.

The weight of her feelings, the frustration she had been holding back, everything crashed down on me at once.

I couldn’t respond. I didn’t know how to respond.

Seeing my silence, Sumire hesitated, lowering her gaze. Her voice grew quieter, as if she was afraid of what would happen next.

“…This might be the last chance for something like this… So, today… I want to sleep together.

Is that… still no good?”

…She’s unfair.

How am I supposed to refuse when she looks at me like that?

The emotions that had been boiling inside me just moments ago—annoyance, restraint, frustration—vanished.

In their place, a different kind of heat spread through my chest.

“Just for today, okay?”

“Just for today…”

“…For now.”

With that, I let out a quiet sigh, half-resigned, and turned off the lights. As I slipped into the futon beside Sumire, she immediately scooted closer, pressing against me without hesitation.

I froze.

…No, stay calm. Detach. Ignore. Transcend.

That’s a lie. I was freaking out.

My heart pounded so loudly that I was sure she could hear it. But I couldn’t—no, I wouldn’t—betray her trust. Sumire probably just wanted to sleep together, nothing more.

This was just another one of her antics. I’d endured them for ten years. I could handle one night.

I kept chanting to myself— banish these impure thoughts, banish these impure thoughts, banish these impure thoughts—

…Slowly, drowsiness crept in, dulling my senses. I guess I was more exhausted than I thought.

At some point, I felt something soft and warm clinging to my right arm.

…But that was probably just a dream.

And so, I drifted off into a light sleep.

---

Looking back, I must have been unsteady ever since I made that confession-like move toward Ren.

Now, lying in the futon, I writhed in silent agony, recalling the clingy, troublesome behavior I had just displayed.

What was I thinking?

And worse—his words kept replaying in my mind.

"Someone might take advantage of you."

A strange anxiety stirred inside me. Did that mean Ren… no longer intended to keep me close?

Even I was startled by how clingy my thoughts had become. And we weren’t even together yet.

Ughhhhhhh…

I screamed internally, careful not to wake Ren, who was presumably sleeping beside me.

…What’s done is done. I’ll just have to move on.

But maybe I should hold back a little from now on.

If I keep up these needy, troublesome antics, I might end up being pushed away… even if things go well tomorrow.

As I held this personal reflection session, drowsiness slowly crept in. My thoughts softened, drawn toward the warmth against my left hand—a warmth that eased the unease in my chest.

Like a child seeking comfort, I unconsciously reached out, clinging to his right hand.

Last time, I snuck in and got scolded.

But this time… I had his permission.

Basking in that warmth to my heart’s content, I, too, drifted into the world of dreams.