Life In The Reverse World

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Ding-dong.

As soon as the doorbell rang, the door opened.

Izumi looked at Harutaki, who was carrying a plastic bag and showed no sign of being out of breath, and could not help feeling curious.

“You’re back already? Did you run the whole way?”

“It’s only about two kilometers, not that far. Besides, Shihou has a high fever and needs medicine. If we dragged it out any longer, I was worried we’d end up calling 119 for an ambulance.”

As he spoke, Harutaki kicked off his shoes, washed his hands, and jogged into the kitchen to look for hot water.

To be honest, even he himself was a little puzzled. Were the effects of all those daily runs, sit-ups, and push-ups really that good?

So sticking with hard work really does pay off.

“I’d already boiled some water earlier and let it cool. There’s still plenty of warm water in Chouko’s cup.”

“Eh? Nogami-san—cough, cough…” Meeting the girl’s sharp glare, he immediately changed his wording. “…Nogami-san really does have the makings of a good wife.”

“W-what do you mean, good wife?! Stop talking nonsense and hurry up and give Chouko her medicine!”

Her fierce expression lasted less than three seconds before collapsing. Unable to keep it up, Izumi quickly grabbed Harutaki by the shoulders, turned him around, and pushed him toward the bedroom.

“She looks a little better already. You did a pretty good job, Nogami-san.”

“Hmph, of course. Who do you think I am?”

Harutaki did not really believe that simply drinking more hot water and using a cool towel could work that well, but he amused himself with the thought. It was not like Nogami had used some kind of magic, right?

He took the medicine box out of the small shopping bag while helping Chouko sit up from under the covers, letting the weak girl lean against the headboard.

“I bought fast-acting tablets. You just swallow them with water, so there shouldn’t be much of a taste.”

“Mm…”

Chouko nodded lightly, suddenly feeling a bit shy.

This was her bedroom, after all. Since moving here, aside from Izumi, no one else—boy or girl—had ever entered it.

Good thing she always kept things tidy, she thought. Otherwise, it would have been awkward if Harutaki had seen things like underwear lying around.

And yet… even though she was already out of bed, when she looked at Harutaki sitting sideways on the edge of it, she felt an inexplicable warmth.

Once again, she clearly realized that she was no longer alone.

“I bought two boxes this time. This Lion one is fast-acting fever medicine for bad colds, and this Daiichi Sankyo one is for ordinary colds. That way, if you catch another cold and can’t find medicine, you won’t just sit at home enduring it in silence.”

One box was Lion’s BUFFERIN EX, a strong fast-acting fever reducer unsuitable for those under fifteen—Shihou Chouko was sixteen, just right. The other was Daiichi Sankyo’s IB ACE, a milder general cold medicine, better for early symptoms.

As Harutaki read through the precautions and contraindications on the leaflet, he also took the chance to lecture her a little.

Even if it was “just a cold,” letting it drag on together with a high fever could be genuinely dangerous.

“Mm…”

“Here. Drink some water and take this tablet.”

He handed the white tablet and the cup to Chouko, only letting go after making sure she had them securely. But instead of putting the tablet into her mouth, she glanced around first. After confirming that Izumi was not nearby, she pouted and looked up at Harutaki.

“Hoshikawa, I don’t have the strength to take medicine anymore. Feed me…”

Her brain really must have been fried by the fever.

“Want me to carry you to the bathroom later too? I do have some experience helping kids pee.”

“Guuh…”

Seeing Chouko’s ears turn bright red as she was left speechless, Harutaki chuckled and took the cup and tablet from her hands.

“Open your mouth.”

“Ah—”

Carefully, he placed the tablet onto the center of her pink tongue. Even though he was being cautious, his fingers inevitably brushed against the moist surface of her tongue, and a warm, slick, slightly rough sensation shot through his fingertips.

“D-drink… drink water…”

Harutaki quickly pulled his hand back and brought the cup to her lips.

Gulp, gulp.

After swallowing two big mouthfuls of warm water, Chouko stuck out her pink tongue to show him, then looked up at Harutaki with a bright smile and narrowed pale-golden eyes.

“Um, I took my medicine properly. Shouldn’t I get praised?”

“What kind of little kid are you… Alright, alright. Good girl.”

Despite grumbling, Harutaki still reached out and rubbed her head, almost like petting a cat. For a moment, he even felt as if he were looking after a relative’s child during the New Year holidays.

“Hehehe…”

So stupid…

Chouko did not know what was wrong with her.

Was it because her head was not working that she was becoming bolder? Or was she simply too foolish to think about anything else?

Either way, she found herself instinctively wanting to act spoiled toward gentle Harutaki. Maybe it was because he gave her a sense of a fatherly presence.

Not the stern, busy father from reality who was rarely around, but an idealized one who was endlessly gentle and attentive to her.

She did not just want him to feed her medicine, or to pat her head and praise her. She even wanted to be held in his warm embrace, soothed by his soft voice while he told her stories and lulled her to sleep.

“Hoshikawa! It’s already past six. Time to make dinner, right?”

“Oh! I’m coming!”

Harutaki answered, then turned back to pat the girl’s head once more and helped her lie back down under the covers.

Chouko felt a little disappointed, but hearing Izumi’s voice also brought her back to her senses. She suddenly felt unbearably embarrassed about how she had practically been acting spoiled just now.

Shameless. Absolutely shameless!

What was wrong with her? Asking Harutaki something like that… It was far too embarrassing!

Being sick really was the worst.

“I’m going to prepare dinner. Since you’re sick, porridge is okay, right? I bought rice, vegetables, and pork loin.”

“Mm…”

Chouko hummed softly through her nose, squinting her eyes comfortably as she watched Harutaki leave the room.

If she did not have the strength to eat later… she thought nervously, would she be able to enjoy being fed by Harutaki again? Maybe being sick was not all bad after all. After all, patients got special treatment and care.

…

White rice went into the inner pot of the rice cooker, was rinsed quickly with water, dried at the bottom, and placed back in. After setting it to porridge mode, Harutaki took out the bok choy, tomatoes, and lettuce from the shopping bag and washed them.

He planned two dishes for Chouko. One was vegetable and lean pork porridge, slightly on the salty side. The other was the classic sweet-and-sour tomato scrambled eggs. When he had made it for her as a late-night snack before, she had eaten it happily, so it likely suited her tastes.

The lettuce would be a light cold salad, sour and salty, to serve as an appetizer.

Although food during a cold should be relatively light, taste and appetite both tended to weaken when sick. An appetizer like this was just right.

While peeling and shredding the lettuce, Harutaki caught Izumi in the corner of his eye, lying on the dining table and watching him. He casually asked,

“This dinner’s made for Shihou since she’s sick, so the flavors are pretty mild. Is there anything you want to eat, Nogami-san?”

When he had been sorting the ingredients earlier, he had taken a quick look in the fridge and noticed there were still some usable ingredients left from when the girl usually cooked for herself.

“I told you I don’t really care. Anyway…”

Izumi’s voice grew softer and softer, until the last part was completely drowned out by the rhythmic chopping sounds from Harutaki’s knife.

She propped her elbows on the table, resting her chin in her hands, gazing absentmindedly at Harutaki as he prepared the food in the kitchen.

His serious expression, neat knife work, smooth and practiced handling of ingredients…

The last time she had gone to Harutaki’s place as a “guest,” whether out of shyness or lack of expectation, or for any number of reasons, she had just sat on the sofa watching the news and missed the chance to see him cook.

Looking at him now, Harutaki really was pretty handsome when he cooked…

As she watched, Izumi’s thoughts drifted toward a distant future, and an image formed in her mind of herself coming home from work, with Harutaki wearing an apron and greeting her at the door.

“Dinner first, bath first, or m-me first?”

“Guuh…”

After letting out a quiet, miserable groan, she quickly slumped down, burying her flushed face in the crook of her arm so that no one would notice if they turned around.

A dog greeting its owner at the door when they come home was totally normal!

Izumi had never dated and did not really understand those things. She just felt that living together with Harutaki seemed kind of nice, though she was not sure what that feeling actually was.

But… she thought, girls who could cook were generally more popular with guys, right? Should she also… also learn how to cook?

Of course—not for Harutaki’s sake.

She secretly vowed to become a girl so charming that Harutaki would be utterly shocked, then make him kneel down and beg her to go out with him. And when he finally submitted to her, maybe she would… just a little… do something to make him feel good.

“Hehehe…”

“……”

As Harutaki turned around to cut the meat, he happened to glance at Izumi, who was lying on the table with a red face and a silly grin. Seeing her orange side ponytail bouncing along with her trembling body, he felt utterly baffled.

…She hadn’t caught Shihou’s cold too, had she?