After lunch, the two sat in the fast-food restaurant for a while, then went to the station and boarded the train to Bocchi's house.
In the bright, sunlit train, the two sat together with some distance between them.
After getting on the train, Hayato noticed that Bocchi suddenly became less enthusiastic about talking; she lowered her head, hugged her cloth bag, and her sky-blue eyes looked sadly at the floor in front of her.
Hayato glanced around, noticing that some people occasionally looked their way.
Apparently, their combination was too strange and attracted the attention of others.
This was normal; Hayato alone usually attracted enough attention, and with Bocchi, who was like his opposite, beside him, it was even more so.
Just now, on the bustling street and in the restaurant where they sat opposite each other, the feeling wasn't so obvious.
But on the train, in this confined space, the feeling was amplified.
Hayato didn't say anything to the people around him; he just took out his phone, casually opened a video to watch, and at the same time placed his right hand in between them.
"Hand."
He reminded her without turning his head.
Hearing Hayato's sudden voice, Bocchi was startled.
Then she glanced around, hesitated, squeezed her hand, and then nervously placed her hand next to Hayato's, leaving a few centimeters of distance.
Hayato subtly reached out and held her slightly cool small hand.
Bocchi was surprised and looked at her hand, which was held by Hayato.
Their two hands overlapped as if by accident, Hayato's warm palm covering the back of her hand.
She carefully glanced around, not noticing any difference in the surrounding gazes.
Then she occasionally stole glances at Hayato, who was holding her hand, but seeing Hayato quietly looking at his phone, her heart was full of questions.
After a while, her gaze couldn't help but look at his phone again.
But... even after getting off the train, she still couldn't clearly see what video Hayato was watching...
After leaving the station, Hayato followed beside Bocchi, while also paying attention to their surroundings.
Bocchi, seeing him, thought he was memorizing the route to her house; although she was a little scared, she wouldn't dare to say anything.
She could only obediently lead the way.
However, as they passed a fruit store.
Hayato suddenly asked her, "Bocchi's parents are both home, right?"
Bocchi:??
She cautiously looked beside her.
Hayato's tall and upright figure was illuminated by the soft, warm sunlight as if emitting a glow; he looked down at her slightly, his neat short hair and the gentle smile at the corner of his mouth were so attractive.
What was he doing, what was he going to do! What if her parents were home, what if they weren't!
Wait, Bocchi only realized this now.
She was bringing a boy to her house now! Although it was just to get a Guitar, shouldn't she let Hayato in?
And then what!
She didn't know! She didn't know!
Moreover, in her understanding, when a male normie goes to a female's house, isn't there only one thing to do?
As soon as she thought of that thing, Bocchi... *bang*.
Hayato stared blankly at Bocchi, who suddenly exploded; she was like a firework, jumping up directly and flying into the sky to explode.
She quickly disappeared into the bright sky.
Looking at this clear-sky firework, Hayato sighed silently.
This time, he failed to read Bocchi's thoughts, and she actually exploded...
After Bocchi returned to normal, she began to answer Hayato's questions.
"Ah, both my parents are home, and I also have a younger sister..."
She lowered her head, transforming into a true guide, introducing her family situation to Hayato.
Hayato nodded, suddenly thought of something, and then continued to ask.
"Oh, you have a younger sister too? How old is she? Where does she usually play?"
Bocchi hesitated, also feeling something was off.
Her eyes were already spinning, but she spoke as if she couldn't control herself.
"5... 5 years old, in..."
Before she could finish her sentence, Hayato patted Bocchi's shoulder and sighed.
"Bocchi, saying everything like this is very dangerous."
But Bocchi was already in a stuttering state, opening and closing her mouth like a puppet.
"Ah ah ah..."
...Then, Hayato led Bocchi to the fruit store he had seen earlier, and selected fruits under Bocchi's confused gaze.
Finally, he led Bocchi out of the store, placed his wallet on the ground, and bowed to his wallet, which seemed to say, 'I have nothing left.'
After picking up his wallet, he wiped away a tear and strode forward.
Bocchi looked at him in surprise, then followed closely with small steps; she seemed to realize the reason and asked softly.
"Um... Hayato, what is this?"
"A souvenir."
Hayato replied.
Bocchi was stunned.
Just accompanying her to pick up a Guitar, it didn't need to be so formal, did it...
"I'm home."
Bocchi could still speak naturally in front of her family.
Behind her, Hayato also raised his voice slightly and said.
"Excuse me for the intrusion."
His voice made Bocchi's father's voice, who was saying "Bocchi, welcome ho..." in the living room ahead, stutter and stop.
Then, as Bocchi brought Hayato his slippers...
Thump, thump, thump.
Bocchi's parents, both looking flustered, rushed out in their slippers.
They stopped at the entrance, momentarily stunned to see Bocchi bringing someone slippers.
Their faces showed an expression that was a mix of joy and emotion.
Then, they both shifted their gaze to Hayato, who was about to enter.
"Good afternoon, Uncle, Auntie," Hayato said with a polite smile, then held up the fruit in his hand and offered it.
"A souvenir."
Bocchi's mother, Gotou Michiyo, who had numbly accepted the souvenir, sized up Hayato.
Handsome, sunny, polite, and exuding confidence.
Then she glanced at her own daughter: a frumpy tracksuit, bangs covering her eyes, and a slight hunch.
Finally, she met eyes with Bocchi's father, Gotou Naoki.
The two began a telepathic conversation.
Gotou Naoki: Bocchi has finally gone down this path.
Gotou Michiyo: To stoop so low as to deceive her family... she communicated with her husband mentally, but in reality, she was already silently wiping away tears.
Bocchi's father couldn't quite bear to watch.
Although he also felt something was off—after all, with his daughter's personality, bringing slippers to an unfamiliar person, especially a male, would absolutely not be so natural.
But based on his many years of understanding of his daughter, this! This absolutely had to be a rented boyfriend!
He rubbed the back of his head, pondering with difficulty what words to use that wouldn't hurt his daughter.
"Um... Bocchi, you don't need to deceive your family like this."
Bocchi's mother echoed his sentiment.
"That's right, Mama will be sad like this."
Seeing her parents making fools of themselves and undermining her, Bocchi couldn't help but exclaim.
"Dad, Mom, what are you talking about?!"
At this moment, Hayato put on the slippers, walked over to Bocchi's father, crossed his arms, and, looking completely at ease, joined her parents' camp, lecturing Bocchi.
"That's right, Bocchi, it's better not to continue with this kind of thing."
Hearing his words, Bocchi blinked twice, then fell into self-doubt.
Even Hayato said that?
Hayato... could he really be an accomplice she hired herself?
Were those memories somehow written in by her to deceive herself?
Yes, it was strange to think that she brought a male home.
She herself felt something was amiss.
Seeing Bocchi's existential crisis, Hayato patted Bocchi's father's shoulder, sighed, and, looking like a long-time drinking buddy, said to him.
"Drink, just go have a drink, it'll be fine."
Bocchi's father, hearing these familiar words ingrained in every office worker's bones, nodded glumly.
"Yes... let's drink."
The two walked into the living room, arms around each other's shoulders.
While Bocchi's mother also had things she wanted to say to Bocchi, with a guest in the house, she had to help entertain.
She merely said to Bocchi with a sad expression.
"Let's talk later."
Watching her mother walk into the living room after speaking, Bocchi was full of questions.
But she still remembered what she needed to do, so she immediately headed to her room on the second floor to get her Guitar.
But after she got her Guitar and came back down...
"What?! Is he really Bocchi's friend?!"
Her father's astonished cry, like a bolt from the blue, echoed through her house.