Am I being simulated by their love affair?

Page 540

But Jun Matsue reached out and grabbed the doorknob, and the girl behind the door made a surprised sound.

"Huh?"

"Why did you open the door so soon?" he said, looking through the crack in the door.

"I didn't say a word, senior, didn't you even glance at who was outside the door?"

"..." The pulling force from the doorknob disappeared, the security door was closed tightly, and then opened again two seconds later.

Wearing an apron, Yamami Maki appeared behind the door, smiling and waving to the boy.

"Oh, it's Matsueda-kun~"

"Your safety awareness is still insufficient." Jun Matsue entered the room and closed the door behind him. "Have you already forgotten the lesson from last week?"

“…Matsueda is right.”

Yamami Maki's face turned slightly red, whether from embarrassment or from the heat indoors, it was hard to tell.

“But I’ve been very wary ever since…” she said softly, her head down.

"Maybe it's because I knew you were coming—I was so focused on opening the door for you that I forgot to peek through the peephole first."

The boy who was bending down to change his shoes paused for a moment.

He turned his head and glanced at the girl standing obediently beside him.

"You should remember that in the future," he said softly.

"Yes!" Yamami Maki nodded vigorously, then seemed to remember something.

"Matsugi-kun arrived just in time; the stew will be ready in no time!"

After changing into slippers, Jun Matsue stood up and watched the girl walk quickly toward the stove with a small flame burning.

At home, the senior was wearing a beige turtleneck sweater with an elegant knit pattern. A light yellow floral apron had two ribbons extending from her back, tied into pretty bows, swaying gently with her movements.

The aroma of creamy stew wafted to the boy's nose, soothing his mood. He walked into the living room and looked at the kotatsu against the wall.

"Sorry, school doesn't end until 12:30, so I'm a little late—"

Jun Matsue was taken aback.

He originally thought that, given Kuroba Shin's personality, she might get impatient waiting for him.

However, at a glance, there was no one else in the living room besides the senior student and him.

"It's alright, stewing dishes takes a lot of time anyway..." Yamami Maki turned around with a soup spoon, blinking in surprise.

Uncharacteristically, the boy pushed open her bedroom door, leaving only half of his body outside.

"What is Matsue-san looking for?"

"Has Kokoro-chan not arrived yet?" Jun Matsueda pulled himself back and closed the door. "It's almost time to eat."

The girl put down her cutlery and looked guiltily toward the door.

"Um, Kokoro said she forgot she had something to do at home today, so she might not be able to make it."

"……real?"

"Really!" She put her hands behind her back and nodded vigorously at the boy.

"Why don't we eat first? Maybe Kokoro-chan will be here soon?"

Meeting the expectant yet apprehensive gaze of his senior, Jun Matsue remained silent for a moment before glancing at the steaming stove behind her.

"Don't boil the water dry."

Is that considered an agreement? Yamami Maki nodded with a sigh of relief.

"I remember."

Watching her continue busy at the stove, the boy silently pulled out the kotatsu (heated table) leaning against the wall and sat on the tatami sofa chair.

The floor-length soft chair is similar to a beanbag chair, with a sturdy backrest, and it feels nice to sit on.

"..."

Now that I'm already here, it would be a little awkward to turn around and leave the study abroad sister alone.

Jun Matsue put his slippers aside, tucked his legs under the covers, and watched as the girl put on thick gloves and carefully carried the soup pot to the kotatsu.

Yamami Maki bent down and placed the stew on the table.

"Dinner's ready!"

She smiled at the seated boy, but her long hair, which had been draped over her shoulders, slipped down and seemed about to fall into the pot.

"Be careful." Jun Matsue reached out and tucked her black hair behind his ear.

"It's better to tie your hair up or put it in a bun when cooking, otherwise it's easy for it to get smudged by cooking fumes."

Feeling the warmth of the boy against her neck, the girl's cheeks flushed slightly. She straightened up and rubbed the kitchen gloves on her hands.

"Um……"

Back at the stove, Yamami Maki took off her gloves, opened the rice cooker, took out two bowls, one large and one small, filled them with rice, and sat down by the kotatsu.

She first placed two bowls of rice on the table, then gracefully bent down and sat down, pushing the slightly larger bowl to the boy opposite her.

"Shouldn't Matsueda-kun eat more rice?"

"Thank you." Jun Matsue nodded politely, picked up his chopsticks, and looked at the large pot of stew in front of him.

The milky white broth was delicate and thick, with the chicken thigh meat, carrots, mushrooms, and broccoli glistening in it, looking absolutely beautiful—the boy closed his eyes slightly, letting the sweet aroma of onions and chicken amplify in his mind.

"It looks like it will taste really good," he said, looking up at the girl.

"And it is indeed enough for three people."

"Haha..." Yamami Maki, taking off her apron, laughed awkwardly, "I'm glad Matsueda-san likes it."

The stew for three people wasn't meant to conceal her plan—she was just considering the boys' appetites and worried that Tsun-kun wouldn't have enough to eat.

Before the meal, Jun Matsueda still went through the motions, glancing at the phone his senior had placed on the table.

"Is Kokoro still not able to make it in time?"

The girl picked up her phone and pretended to check her messages.

"Yes, that's a real shame."

"What's so regrettable about you..." the boy sighed inwardly.

Anyway, I'm starting.

First, pick up a piece of chicken and put it in your mouth—the fried chicken skin has a caramelized aroma of oil, the meat is tender, and the sauce it's dipped in has a milky sweetness and a hint of black pepper, making you want to immediately eat a big mouthful of rice.

Jun Matsueda scooped up another spoonful of the thick soup mixed with carrot chunks and put it in his mouth along with the glistening, soft rice. Maki Yamami, sitting opposite him, watched his actions expectantly.

"what about the taste?"

"Very good." The boy's satisfied chewing expression was the best approval. "It tastes even better than the stew at Haneoka High School's cafeteria."

"Really?" The girl relaxed, her smiling eyes like two crescent moons.

"Then I'm relieved."

"You're eating too, senpai?" Matsueda Jun gestured with his lips towards her. "Are you waiting for Kokoro-chan to come over?"

"..." Yamami Maki couldn't help but chuckle softly.

She tidied the stray hairs at her temples, scooped up a spoonful of broccoli, and sipped the broth.

"It's a little hot." The girl pouted and blew on it, looking adorable.

"It tastes really good." She nodded her chin. "It should be my most successful stew ever."

Junya Matsue picked up a piece of broccoli with his chopsticks, blew on it a couple of times, and put it in his mouth.

Food tastes best when it's piping hot.

The small square table fell silent for a moment—the girl was well-mannered and naturally didn't talk much while eating, and the boy was also focused on enjoying his food.

The two moved in perfect harmony amidst the clatter of cutlery and soup pot. Yamami Maki, who was eating with her head down, slightly raised her eyes to look at her beloved in front of her.

They would naturally be very compatible—the young man and woman had eaten together countless times during their previous relationship.

Yamami Maki felt a tightness in her chest, as if she hadn't fully recovered from a cold.

However, the stew she was eating tasted even sweeter—at least now, the distance between them was gradually closing, which was the thing that made the girl happiest.

Recalling the boy's hand stroking her black hair, the girl felt her cheeks burning. She remembered the moment when their skin was so close, and they were almost lost in passion.

She put down her spoon and tucked down the turtleneck of her sweater with one hand.

"Senior?" Jun Matsue called out as he looked at the girl who had stopped eating.

"Ah." Yami Maki came back to her senses.

"It's nothing, I just feel a little hot." She smiled gently.

"I don't eat much, so you can eat more, Matsue-kun."

She didn't bring Kokoro over because she didn't want her relationship with Tsunku to progress rapidly and replicate the ambiguous scenes from their time in the newspaper office.

The girl just wanted a little more time alone with him—if Kokoro were here, she might not have had the chance to have her hair stroked by the boy.

The stew in the pot gradually dwindled until the faint chirping of birds broke the harmonious atmosphere at the dining table.

Matsue Jun turned his head in surprise to look behind the bedroom door. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the girl put down her chopsticks, get up and walk towards the bedroom.

"I almost forgot about Xiao Kui."

Yamami Maki pushed open the wooden door and quickly came out carrying a large square birdcage. She then took a bag of seed grain from the cabinet above the stove and poured it into the cage.

The boy watched her busy herself for a little while, then returned to the kotatsu.

"Did you bring your parrot along too?"

"Yes." The girl, who had sat back down at the table, smiled apologetically. "My mother brought it when she visited me before."

"She thought living alone might be lonely, so she wanted me to have someone to keep me company."

"..." Jun Matsue stuffed a spoonful of cream stew into his mouth.

He glanced at the stove behind his senior, where a pale yellow parrot in a cage was hopping around its small bowl, seemingly enjoying its meal.

"This kotatsu is quite warm even when it's not turned on."

The boy touched the blanket on his lap and changed the subject.

“Yes~” Yamami Maki licked the soup from the corner of her lips.

"You have to be careful when eating, like now, otherwise it will be troublesome if the cup gets soup on it."

“It’s not just troublesome when eating,” Jun Matsueda said casually, “it’s also troublesome when drinking beverages, eating snacks…”

"And then there's the time when your parrot runs out and hops around—that's the risk that comes with the happiness of the kotatsu."

“That’s absolutely true.” The girl gracefully covered her mouth and chuckled. “Nothing in this world is perfect.”

"Whether it's a parrot or a kotatsu, it's the same~"

The aroma of the stew, carrying warmth, enveloped the small kotatsu. The two, chatting, seemed to have returned to a year or so ago, when they were still lovers, still sweet and loving.

However, those undisguised feelings are gone forever, and the intimate gestures of feeding each other are no longer seen—lunchtime is limited, and the warm atmosphere between the young man and woman eventually cools down again.

“…There’s still some stew left.” Yami Maki put down her chopsticks and looked at the soup pot in front of her.

“After all, this is a proper serving for three people.” Jun Matsueda looked at his empty bowl. “I’d be too full to finish it.”

"Then I'll save it for dinner." The girl got up, picked up the soup pot, and walked towards the refrigerator.

"There are oranges and pudding in the fridge, would you like to try some, Pine Branch?"

"Let's wait a bit. Senior's stew is delicious. I feel a little full."

The boy also stood up and put both of their bowls and chopsticks into the sink for her.

"If you get tired of the stew, you can buy some bread to dip in tonight. It tastes pretty good too."

"Okay~" The girl in front of the refrigerator breathed a sigh of relief.

Since Jun-kun is planning to wait, it means he probably won't leave right away, right?

After quickly rinsing the stains off the bowl, Jun Matsue turned off the tap, and a sound came from the cage beside him—