Chapter 2: Raise the Neighbor Flag
Two weeks had passed since starting at Ichiyo High School, and I was getting used to the feeling of wearing the new uniform. On this particular morning, I was, as usual, battling lingering sleepiness while eating breakfast.
“Oh, by the way, our neighbor’s moving overseas, apparently,” Mom said.
“Huh… Well, they haven’t been around much lately anyway.”
Our neighbor, who’d lived next door for years, was a single person who often traveled abroad for work, leaving their place empty most of the time.
When they did come back, they’d bring rare candies or toys from overseas for me and Akari, the little kids on the same floor, so we were pretty fond of them.
I felt a twinge of loneliness, but I reasoned that holding onto a place they barely used must be a hassle. It was the kind of pragmatic thought I wouldn’t have had back in elementary school.
If I were still that young, I might’ve cried.
“So, it’ll be vacant for a while?”
“Nope. Apparently, they’re passing it on to a relative’s kid who wants to try living alone. They might move in as early as this week.”
“Nice… Hope they’re a good person.”
“Guess we’ll see.”
“Thanks for the food.”
I finished getting ready, met Akari in front of the elevator, and headed to school.
More conscious of the gazes around me than before, I went through the day as usual.
Akari had plans after school, so I walked home alone.
The familiar route somehow felt shorter the more I used it.
It’s especially noticeable on the school commute.
Apparently, it feels faster because your brain gets used to the scenery and stops processing unnecessary details… or so I’ve heard.
Mulling over that trivial bit of knowledge, I reached home.
Inside the familiar apartment building, I noticed something different.
The nameplate on our neighbor’s door had changed, probably related to what Mom mentioned this morning.
“Minase…?”
The name felt familiar.
Then it hit me—Minase-san, the girl who spoke at the entrance ceremony. Her image flashed in my mind, but a question lingered.
“Do high schoolers normally live alone…?”
Sure, it’s a common setup in novels, but in reality? Not so much.
The only real perk of living alone as a high schooler is more personal time.
But doing all the chores—cleaning, laundry, cooking—by yourself? Would a high schooler really choose that life?
…Nah.
It’s not a common surname, but it’s probably unrelated.
They said they wanted to try living alone, so it’s likely a college student or someone older moving in.
Having an Entertainment Department student—and a current high school actress, no less—as a neighbor would be way too intense for the peaceful home life I’m aiming for.
With that conclusion, I opened my door as usual.
◆
“Excuse me~!”
Sunday afternoon.
It was the perfect time for my hobbies, with Mom out shopping. I was enjoying the ultimate quiet weekend, lounging on the soul-destroying sofa Akari left here, engrossed in a book. But then, a voice that was anything but tranquil echoed from the entrance.
Why was the door, which I was sure I’d locked, open? And I didn’t even get a heads-up.
Maybe if I hid, she’d give up and leave.
But as I entertained that thought, my bedroom door swung open, letting the cozy atmosphere escape.
“Huh~? Yuto, you’re here! Why didn’t you answer?”
“…First, a question. How’d you get in? I locked the door.”
“I ran into Yuto-Mama outside, and when I said I’d stop by later, she gave me the key.”
She dangled the keychain with Mom’s oversized bear strap in front of me.
“Sorry, but I’m reading. If you’re gonna bother me, go home.”
“I won’t, I won’t. I’ll play my game quietly.”
With that, she tossed the key onto my bed and grabbed a controller.
Realizing it was pointless to argue with my stubborn childhood friend, I gave up and started heading to the living room.
“Oh, you don’t have to move. Just spread your legs a bit?”
“…Like this?”
I adjusted my comfortably stretched legs as she asked, and Akari slipped between them, using my body as a backrest.
“…What’s this?”
“Hm? Gaming posture.”
“I can just move, you know.”
“No, no. When I’m serious about gaming, I like to lean forward a bit. This sofa sinks too much, so this is perfect.”
Without even glancing at my exasperated expression, she started matchmaking for an online game.
“This makes it hard for me to read.”
“Use my head~ It’s at the perfect height, right?”
Her head, positioned low due to our posture, was indeed at a convenient height.
“Lucky you~ Getting to use a high school girl’s head as a book rest? That’s a luxury!”
“Don’t equate my idea of luxury with some pervert’s…”
Giving up, I set my book on the floor and idly watched her gameplay.
How long had it been? A while later, the doorbell rang.
“Akari, move. Might be Mom.”
“Ehh! Wait a sec! One minute… no, two!”
“I’m not waiting that long!”
I stood up forcefully, and with a “Gya~!” Akari’s posture collapsed.
Leaving my room, I realized the chime wasn’t from the building’s intercom but the front door.
I walked to the entrance and opened it.
“Hi, nice to meet you. I’m Minase, your new neighbor.”
…My bad feeling was spot-on.
It was Nagisa Minase, the girl who spoke at the entrance ceremony.
Seeing her up close, unlike at the event hall, she seemed a bit more mature than your average first-year high schooler—probably the aura of a working actress.
“I might cause some trouble, but…”
Thankfully, it seemed my face didn’t register with her, an Entertainment Department student.
I’d dodge this and preserve my peaceful Sunday. Let weekday Yuto deal with any complications.
“Oh, nice to meet you too.”
I kept my response neutral, hoping to end the conversation.
“Mou~… Yuto, you made me lose my rank~… Wait, Nagisa-chan!?”
“…Hotta-san? Why are you here…?”
Minase-san’s surprised expression darted between the nameplate by the door and Akari’s face.
“Hm~? Just hanging out. This is Yuto’s place. Yuto, from the Advanced Department, first year.”
Standing behind me, Akari poked my head with her finger, cheerfully spilling all the info I wanted to keep quiet.
“So you do know me…?”
Cursing my meddling childhood friend, I could only muster a faint reply.
“…Yes.”
After a few seconds of silence following my weak response, Minase-san let out a small sigh, stepped into the apartment uninvited, sat on my bed without hesitation, and started talking.
“Why’d you pretend not to know me?”
“It wasn’t pretending… I just didn’t think it was necessary to say.”
“Ugh. If we’re in the same school and grade, you didn’t have to act all aloof.”
She let out a big sigh, lacking the polished demeanor I’d sensed at the entrance ceremony or just moments ago at the door.
Was this her real self, without the “cat mask”?
“So, Hotta-san, why are you here? Boyfriend? Some scandalous relationship?”
“She’s just my childhood friend…”
“Does a high school girl normally hang out in her childhood friend’s room?”
Faced with Minase-san’s perfectly reasonable question, I had no answer beyond Akari’s personality.
In stories, childhood friends might be more conscious of each other, but Akari? She was sprawled on the sofa, reading manga, completely oblivious to any boy-girl boundaries.
“She’s been talking to me every break since the ceremony, and even when I brush her off, she follows me like a stalker, so I knew she was weird…”
Though they’d seemed acquainted from the doorstep conversation, it didn’t sound like a wholesome friendship.
Minase-san, looking weary as if she’d been through a lot these past two weeks, sparked a bit of camaraderie in me.
“And she’s on the same floor, so she comes over a lot… and keeps bringing her stuff here…”
“That’s… tough luck.”
Minase-san gave me a sympathetic look, and silence fell over the room.
The only one who could’ve been a lifeline, my childhood friend, wasn’t helping—her only sounds were giggles at the manga she was reading.
Akari aside, having Minase-san, someone I’d just met today, in my room was unsettling and far from relaxing.
I was debating how to politely ask her to leave when her dry sigh broke the quiet.
“I’m so unlucky~… My first time living alone, and I’ve got two classmates from the same school, same grade, on the same floor…”
“Huh? Isn’t that super lucky? Sounds fun!”
Akari, apparently done with her manga, leaned forward from the sofa, jumping into the conversation.
“…Unlike you, Hotta-san, I prefer peace and quiet. The guy’s fine, but with you around, it’s gonna get noisy, right?”
“Oh… Yeah, maybe. Sorry if I’m too loud.”
For once, Akari’s bright expression darkened with a rare apology. Feeling guilty for her slightly snarky comment, Minase-san hurriedly backtracked.
“No, I didn’t mean you’re loud or anything…”
“But I’m so happy! I mean, you moving into our building, on our floor, Nagisa!”
Akari’s gloomy look vanished, replaced by a beaming smile and straightforward words that seemed to warm Minase-san’s heart.
“So, if you ever need help, just let me know, okay?”
“…Got it.”
Though her tone was curt, the sharpness in her expression had softened noticeably.
Why does my childhood friend have so many friends?
She opens her heart to others before expecting them to open theirs.
Of course, she probably does it without thinking, but that genuine nature is part of why people like her.
As the two of them rapidly closed the distance, with Minase-san now sitting on the sofa next to Akari, exuding an aura that suggested they’d stay for a while, I—the homeowner—felt completely left out. Just then, the building’s intercom chimed.
Checking the monitor, I confirmed it was Mom this time.
I went to the entrance to meet her, taking the bags from her hands as we headed to the elevator.
“Oh, by the way, our neighbor’s at the house. She’s a first-year in the Entertainment Department and got close with Akari.”
“Oh? A girl?”
“Yeah.”
“How exciting~! I bet she’s cute.”
“Well, she’s cute, I guess…”
I swallowed the thought that she didn’t have the kind of cute personality you’d see on TV or at the ceremony. Following Mom, who was practically skipping down the hall in high spirits, I returned home.
“Huh? Minase-chan! You’re in dramas and stuff, right?”
“Uh, hi… I’m Minase, your new neighbor. I go to the same school as your son… Sorry for barging in.”
“No worries at all~! Can I shake your hand? I’m a huge fan~!”
After Minase-san, visibly overwhelmed, shook Mom’s hand, Mom said, “I’m making dinner, so you two should stay and eat~!” before heading to the kitchen.
“You’re so proper in front of Mom, huh.”
The Minase-san talking to Mom was the polished Nagisa Minase I’d seen at school.
“She’s older and the homeowner, so she’s not like you. Besides, you don’t seem like you need that kind of formality.”
“Hmm…”
Honestly, I preferred her current casual tone over stiff politeness.
Her ability to adjust her demeanor to the person she’s with was probably another reason she seemed so mature. Though, to be fair, compared to someone like Akari, most people would seem mature.
“If you don’t want to stay for dinner, I can tell Mom for you. It’s probably hard for you to say, right, Minase-san?”
“No, I hadn’t decided on dinner plans, so I’d appreciate it. And… Yuto, right? Is it okay if I call you that? Calling you ‘you’ in front of your mom might leave a bad impression.”
“She wouldn’t care… but sure, that’s fine.”
“Akari.”
At that, Akari, who’d been listening beside Minase-san, cut in.
“Huh!? Then call me Akari too! It’s not fair if it’s just Yuto!”
After a few seconds of hesitation, as if debating something, she mumbled with a shy expression.
“…Akari.”
“Yup! Nagisa!”
Once again, I was completely left out…
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